Trump Presidency

[easyrider16]

Sounds to me like Putin is ready for peace! Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia, just said,

"Russia is advancing. The enemy is resisting and has not yet been defeated," Medvedev's post said, adding that stopping the war would mean the end of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's leadership and government.

"Therefore, inflicting maximum defeat on the enemy 'on the battlefield' remains our main task today."

https://www.newsweek.com/medvedev-makes ... at-2039763

[XtremeJibber2001]

Sounds to me like Putin is ready for peace! Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia, just said,

"Russia is advancing. The enemy is resisting and has not yet been defeated," Medvedev's post said, adding that stopping the war would mean the end of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's leadership and government.

"Therefore, inflicting maximum defeat on the enemy 'on the battlefield' remains our main task today."

https://www.newsweek.com/medvedev-makes ... at-2039763

US military aid is stopped. US banned the UK from sharing US intelligence with Ukraine. US has stopped its cyber operations against Russia. Trump is considering easing sanctions on Russia.

It’s no surprise Russia will use all this to their advantage.

Trump is definitely not in bed with Russia though.

Can’t help but think this period is similar to our isolationism between WWI and WWII.

[XtremeJibber2001]

Finally making some progress ...

Trump administration plans to cut 80,000 employees from Veterans Affairs, according to internal memo
https://apnews.com/article/veterans-aff ... 592e165712

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Department of Veterans Affairs is planning a reorganization that includes cutting over 80,000 jobs from the sprawling agency that provides health care for retired military members, according to an internal memo obtained by The Associated Press.

The VA’s chief of staff, Christopher Syrek, told top-level officials at the agency that it had an objective to cut enough employees to return to 2019 staffing levels of just under 400,000. That would require terminating tens of thousands of employees after the VA expanded during the Biden administration, as well as to cover veterans impacted by burn pits under the 2022 PACT Act.

The memo instructs top-level staff to prepare for an agency-wide reorganization in August to “resize and tailor the workforce to the mission and revised structure.” It also calls for agency officials to work with the White House’s Department of Government Efficiency to “move out aggressively, while taking a pragmatic and disciplined approach” to the Trump administration’s goals. Government Executive first reported on the internal memo.

[easyrider16]

Pay no attention to the conflict of interest behind the curtain...

"A conflict too blatant to ignore has surfaced between Space Exploration Technologies Corp., Musk’s startup known as SpaceX, and the Federal Aviation Administration, which regulates SpaceX," wrote Black. "Musk is pushing SpaceX’s satellite broadband product, Starlink, as a quick solution to the FAA’s antiquated air-traffic-control systems and is muscling in on a $2.4 billion contract already awarded to Verizon Communications Inc. to upgrade FAA’s operations, as chronicled in detail by Bloomberg News."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technolo ... r-AA1Ak7pA

[XtremeJibber2001]

Never ascribe to malice what can be explained by incompetence... There's a belief among conservatives that has become near dogma, that all government spending is bad and wasteful. I suspect that belief is part of what's driving this sledgehammer approach to cost cutting. The concept of cost cutting isn't bad but the implementation here has been pretty poor. It's going to hurt them politically.

Be patient. The pendulum swings. 2026 is not that far away.

My MAGA friends reaction to the Pentagon stopping offensive cyberoperations against Russia ... "There's so much more to it that we don't see - to say Russia isn't a cyber threat is like saying Biden is a Republican."

So 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada are set to go into effect tonight, LOL. Wonder how far Trump will actually take this? Could be the beginning of the end of his presidency right here if he tries to follow through.

Trump didn't go through with it last time. I don't see any ending of his presidency w/ 25% tariffs, even if there are retaliatory tariffs, except if Social Security payments are impacted.

With Trump's tariffs in place, I checked Fox News' coverage. It's a front-page story with a pro-TikTok ad. The reporting is intriguing. I asked my MAGA friends about the tariffs and the stock market dip; they said, 'it will get worse before it gets better.' It reminds me of 'destroying the village to save it.' Whether these steps are a net positive for the USA remains to be seen.

Trump’s threats against Canada boost Trudeau's Liberal Party in the polls as new tariffs set to begin
https://www.foxnews.com/world/trumps-th ... -set-begin

OTTAWA, Canada — As new tariffs came into effect on Tuesday, analysts say that if Canada's Liberal Party holds onto power, the party can thank President Donald Trump in part for such a reversal of political fortune.

Since Trump's inauguration, Canada's official opposition Conservative Party – once leading the governing Liberals by a wide margin – has seen their popularity in public-opinion polls gradually decline.

An Ipsos poll released last week found that, for the first time since the Liberals won the last federal election in 2021, they’re ahead of the Conservatives by two points, with 38% popularity compared to the Conservatives at 36%. Six weeks earlier, the Conservatives were leading the Liberals by 26 points. A general election is expected to be called as early as this spring by Trudeau's successor, who will be announced on Sunday.

Darrell Bricker, CEO of Ipsos Global Public Affairs, told Fox News Digital that he has never seen a party experience such a rapid and dramatic drop during his four-decade career in polling.

He believes the Conservatives' decline is attributable to two factors.

Justin Trudeau, whose personal popularity has plummeted since he became Canada’s 23rd prime minister in 2015, will step down as head of the Canadian government and Liberal Party on March 9; "And the threat from Trump to use economic force on Canada to bend us to his knee and possibly absorb us as a 51st state," explained Bricker, about the president’s planned tariffs against Canada and his repeated references regarding annexation.

Throughout February, Nanos Research found the gap narrowing between the Liberals and Conservatives, who the month before were poised to form a "super-majority" government with as many as 240 members of Parliament (MPs) in an expanded 343-seat House of Commons that takes effect after the next general election.

"That’s completely out the window now," said Nik Nanos, founder and chief data scientist of the Canadian polling firm, who also believes Trudeau’s imminent departure and Trump’s rhetoric against Canada have contributed to the Liberals’ bump in the polls.

The president "has effectively changed the ballot question from: Is it time for a change? – which was bad news for the Liberals – to who can best deal with Donald Trump, the new existential threat to the Canadian economy?" offered Nanos.

He explained that Canadian Conservative Official Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre and his party played a part in the Liberals’ boost by "showing they were a little out of touch" in focusing on the Liberal government’s tax on carbon emissions and vowing to remove it while Canadians became increasingly concerned about Trump’s threats.

"In hindsight, when the Conservatives had a 27-point advantage in our polling, it didn’t have anything to do with Pierre Poilievre being strong or liked, or the Conservatives being brilliant strategists," said Nanos. "It all had to do with dislike of Justin Trudeau and people wanting change and the Conservatives being the agent of change."

According to the Ipsos poll, 86% percent of 1,000 respondents said that they want a general election "immediately" to have a federal government "with a strong mandate" to deal with Trump’s tariff threat.

Bricker said the Liberals’ lead in the polls, particularly in Canada’s most populous provinces of Ontario and Quebec, over the Conservatives could even widen should Mark Carney, the former governor of the central banks of England and Canada and the frontrunner in the Liberal leadership race, succeed Trudeau as prime minister.

Veteran Canadian pollster Angus Reid said the latest polling by his company found that 51% said Carney and the Liberals were best suited to improve relations with the U.S., including on tariffs, compared to 35% who chose the Conservatives under Poilievre, who is seen by many Canadians as holding a "Trump-light agenda."

From south of the border, the president has "eroded Conservative support because it completely changed the political dynamic in Canada, completely changed what could be considered the most important ballot question that was all about getting rid of some of the baggage from the Trudeau era," explained Reid, founder and chair of the Angus Reid Institute.

"Now it’s one of defending the sovereignty and economy of the country."

Another Angus Reid poll found that with Carney as Liberal leader, his party is virtually tied at 44% with the Conservatives, at 45% on voting intention. In Quebec, a Carney-led Liberal Party enjoys 31% support compared to the Conservatives at 22%.

Reid said the annexation and tariffs issue especially resonates with Quebecers more than any other region in Canada.

Carney’s further challenge for Poilievre is that the former "on paper, looks like a Conservative," said Nanos.

"The guy worked in the banking sector and the private sector, like Goldman Sachs, and chaired, until recently, large enterprises like Bloomberg and Brookfield [Asset Management]. He walks and talks like a Conservative."

Carney, an Oxford-educated economist who has never held elected office, is expected to call a snap election should he be chosen as Trudeau’s successor.

... back to another delay ... whiplash yet? DOW down ~2k since Monday.

Trump delays tariffs on Mexico, and Lutnick says Canada will likely also get a delay
https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/06/economy/ ... index.html

[XtremeJibber2001]

Let’s just call him Neville Trump and be done with it.

You're not the only one drawing some inferences ...

NZ fires envoy to UK who questioned Trump's grasp of history
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp3yew446k5o

Mr Goff recalled how Sir Winston Churchill had criticised the agreement, then said of the US leader: "President Trump has restored the bust of Churchill to the Oval Office. But do you think he really understands history?"

His comments were "deeply disappointing" and made his position "untenable", New Zealand's Foreign Minister Winston Peters said.


His comments came after Trump paused military aid to Kyiv following a heated exchange with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office last week.

He contrasted Trump with Churchill who, while estranged from the British government, spoke against the Munich Agreement as he saw it as a surrender to Nazi Germany's threats.

Mr Goff quoted how Churchill had rebuked then UK Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain: "You had the choice between war and dishonour. You chose dishonour, yet you will have war."

[XtremeJibber2001]

Dude is absolutely positively heartless.

Trump to revoke legal status for 240,000 Ukrainians as US steps up deportations

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump- ... 025-03-06/

WASHINGTON, March 6 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is planning to revoke temporary legal status for some 240,000 Ukrainians who fled the conflict with Russia, a senior Trump official and three sources familiar with the matter said, potentially putting them on a fast-track to deportation.

[easyrider16]

... back to another delay ... whiplash yet? DOW down ~2k since Monday.

Trump delays tariffs on Mexico, and Lutnick says Canada will likely also get a delay
https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/06/economy/ ... index.html

The explanation for the tariffs against Canada make no sense. Fentanyl? Almost none of it comes across the border from Canada. On top of that, the trade agreements with Canada and Mexico that were in place prior to these new tariffs were negotiated and agreed to by none other than Donald J. Trump.

This is a scam. He's not doing it for the reasons stated. None of the administration's explanations make sense. The only thing I can think of is that this is a power grab, and he's using it to get big corporations to come and beg him for exceptions to the tariffs and in return he's getting something from them - campaign contributions at a minimum. BTW, why is he still holding fundraisers if he can't run for another term? And at $1 million a plate? This stinks to high heaven.

https://www.axios.com/2025/03/04/trump- ... aiser-cost

Dude is absolutely positively heartless.

Trump to revoke legal status for 240,000 Ukrainians as US steps up deportations

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump- ... 025-03-06/

Disgusting and makes me feel ashamed to be an American. What we are doing to Ukraine is nothing short of a betrayal. Unfortunately, his supporters are just as heartless when it comes to this sort of thing.

[XtremeJibber2001]

BTW, why is he still holding fundraisers if he can't run for another term? And at $1 million a plate? This stinks to high heaven.

I believe Trump thinks he can run again.

[easyrider16]

BTW, why is he still holding fundraisers if he can't run for another term? And at $1 million a plate? This stinks to high heaven.

I believe Trump thinks he can run again.

Zero chance he can get a Constitutional amendment passed before his term ends. He knows this. He talks about a 3rd term to get a reaction, not because he seriously thinks he can achieve it.

I think he's doing the fundraisers so he can have money to use in the mid-term elections to try to hold on to Congress or at least shore up his support as much as possible until the mid-terms.

[XtremeJibber2001]

BTW, why is he still holding fundraisers if he can't run for another term? And at $1 million a plate? This stinks to high heaven.

I believe Trump thinks he can run again.

Zero chance he can get a Constitutional amendment passed before his term ends. He knows this. He talks about a 3rd term to get a reaction, not because he seriously thinks he can achieve it.

I think he's doing the fundraisers so he can have money to use in the mid-term elections to try to hold on to Congress or at least shore up his support as much as possible until the mid-terms.

What if he doesn't leave? Do you think an incoming Republican POTUS will give him the boot? What about an incoming Democrat POTUS? How would they give him the boot - Secret Service is going to expel and jail him? Won't let him back in?

[easyrider16]

What if he doesn't leave? Do you think an incoming Republican POTUS will give him the boot? What about an incoming Democrat POTUS? How would they give him the boot - Secret Service is going to expel and jail him? Won't let him back in?

Yes. They all secretly hate him and would love the opportunity to kick his ass out. If the secret service wouldn't do it, incoming POTUS could send in the Marines.

Mark my words - this is the height of Trump's power. From here it is only downhill. He knows this, which is why he's trying to do as much as he can right now. In six months he'll seem a lot smaller and more vulnerable. In two years he might be dealing with impeachment inquiries again.

[Low Rider]

BTW, why is he still holding fundraisers if he can't run for another term? And at $1 million a plate? This stinks to high heaven.

I believe Trump thinks he can run again.

Zero chance he can get a Constitutional amendment passed before his term ends. He knows this. He talks about a 3rd term to get a reaction, not because he seriously thinks he can achieve it.

I think he's doing the fundraisers so he can have money to use in the mid-term elections to try to hold on to Congress or at least shore up his support as much as possible until the mid-terms.

Don't fool yourself - he probably fully think he can run again. Weather he actually achieves that remains to be seen - most republicans would go along with it.

[easyrider16]

He might. I doubt it, but he's reaching the age of senility.

But think it through. Half the country hates him, and he can't be legally on the ballot. The Democrat controlled states wouldn't put him on the ballot. The Republican states might try, but that would get challenged in court. And if you think SCOTUS will bail him out, they wouldn't even do that over the recent USAID funding case. He can't possibly win legally.

If he tried illegally, you'd have a civil war. Blue states would refuse to accept it. And who do you think the armed forces would line up behind in that fight? You think all those generals and admirals who spent a life of sacrifice in public service would just follow his illegal orders? Zero chance.

[asher2789]

... back to another delay ... whiplash yet? DOW down ~2k since Monday.

Trump delays tariffs on Mexico, and Lutnick says Canada will likely also get a delay
https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/06/economy/ ... index.html

The explanation for the tariffs against Canada make no sense. Fentanyl? Almost none of it comes across the border from Canada. On top of that, the trade agreements with Canada and Mexico that were in place prior to these new tariffs were negotiated and agreed to by none other than Donald J. Trump.

This is a scam. He's not doing it for the reasons stated. None of the administration's explanations make sense. The only thing I can think of is that this is a power grab, and he's using it to get big corporations to come and beg him for exceptions to the tariffs and in return he's getting something from them - campaign contributions at a minimum. BTW, why is he still holding fundraisers if he can't run for another term? And at $1 million a plate? This stinks to high heaven.

https://www.axios.com/2025/03/04/trump- ... aiser-cost

Dude is absolutely positively heartless.

Trump to revoke legal status for 240,000 Ukrainians as US steps up deportations

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump- ... 025-03-06/

Disgusting and makes me feel ashamed to be an American. What we are doing to Ukraine is nothing short of a betrayal. Unfortunately, his supporters are just as heartless when it comes to this sort of thing.

call me a crazy conspiracy theorist (wouldnt be the first time!) but i think he wants to provoke canada so they arent welcoming to americans when some of us eventually try to flee in the coming years. and potentially... a ground war. canada has a ton of natural resources. he wants greenland too. im convinced this push for the artic is related to russia and also for raw materials.

BTW, why is he still holding fundraisers if he can't run for another term? And at $1 million a plate? This stinks to high heaven.

dont worry, youll never have to vote again. just remember that when the democrats refused to hold a primary and run a competitive candidate.