Trump Presidency

[asher2789]

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.

whos going to stop him? liberals are not getting this! he doesnt care about the law! what are democrats gonna do? hold up signs? at least in other countries they at least get into fist fights in parliament. i wonder when its going to dawn on people how f*** we are?

[asher2789]

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.

you mean the ones he FIRED?!

[easyrider16]

No, I mean all the ones who would have to follow the orders of whatever hacks he decides to put into place at the top.

I'm not really interested in going down this rabbit hole further. It's so outlandish and unlikely that I think it's a waste of time to talk about.

[XtremeJibber2001]

I'm not really interested in going down this rabbit hole further. It's so outlandish and unlikely that I think it's a waste of time to talk about.

I said it before January 6. I said it after, certain Trump was finished. I said it before Senate Republicans refused to convict him and before the election, convinced Americans wouldn’t back a man who attacked our democracy. I said it before Trump pardoned the Capitol rioters.

It’s no longer outlandish to talk about.

[easyrider16]

I'm not really interested in going down this rabbit hole further. It's so outlandish and unlikely that I think it's a waste of time to talk about.

I said it before January 6. I said it after, certain Trump was finished. I said it before Senate Republicans refused to convict him and before the election, convinced Americans wouldn’t back a man who attacked our democracy. I said it before Trump pardoned the Capitol rioters.

It’s no longer outlandish to talk about.

I'm confused. I never said it was outlandish that he may get reelected. In fact I think I recall saying after Senate Republicans failed to convict him that he had a chance of getting reelected. Which is why it was such a bummer that Senate Republicans failed to do their duty.

But him being re-elected in (as far as we know) a free and fair election is a far cry from him seizing power and turning the republic into a dictatorship. I think the danger of Trump trying to seize power when his term is up is outlandish. Maybe things change between now and when his term is up, but I just don't see it. He's not that powerful and not that popular. If he tried, it would spark an immediate civil war. He just doesn't have that kind of support from the people who are in charge of all the guns.

[asher2789]

No, I mean all the ones who would have to follow the orders of whatever hacks he decides to put into place at the top.

I'm not really interested in going down this rabbit hole further. It's so outlandish and unlikely that I think it's a waste of time to talk about.

no, youre interested in sticking your head in the sand because thats far more comfortable than realizing weve been couped and i cant blame you for it. ignorance is bliss. he fired all the top JAG officers in all the military branches with decades of experience serving under multiple administrations and is going to replace them with yes men who wipe their ass with the constitution. just wait until this summer when protests finally start popping off, hes going to make kent state look peaceful. the guardrails are off. the courts dont matter anymore and the damage is already done. theres just a lag between the damage being done and everyday people realizing how utterly f*** they are. by this summer the lag will be gone.

in your later comment you said if he tries sh*t hes gonna spark a civil war, and guess what, youre right! thats where we are heading and weve been in a cold civil war since ~2016.

liberals are out to brunch when it comes to realizing the gravity of the situation we are in. absolutely mind boggling how almost nobody is seeing this.

[XtremeJibber2001]

I'm not really interested in going down this rabbit hole further. It's so outlandish and unlikely that I think it's a waste of time to talk about.

I said it before January 6. I said it after, certain Trump was finished. I said it before Senate Republicans refused to convict him and before the election, convinced Americans wouldn’t back a man who attacked our democracy. I said it before Trump pardoned the Capitol rioters.

It’s no longer outlandish to talk about.

I'm confused. I never said it was outlandish that he may get reelected. In fact I think I recall saying after Senate Republicans failed to convict him that he had a chance of getting reelected. Which is why it was such a bummer that Senate Republicans failed to do their duty.

But him being re-elected in (as far as we know) a free and fair election is a far cry from him seizing power and turning the republic into a dictatorship. I think the danger of Trump trying to seize power when his term is up is outlandish. Maybe things change between now and when his term is up, but I just don't see it. He's not that powerful and not that popular. If he tried, it would spark an immediate civil war. He just doesn't have that kind of support from the people who are in charge of all the guns.

I hear you. I’m just saying talking about it isn’t outlandish anymore - it’s a real possibility.

There’s nothing preventing him from taking out opponents or disobedient military leaders while he remains POTUS. What safeguards will remain during the period January 6 - 20? What will remain on January 21?

[asher2789]

I'm not really interested in going down this rabbit hole further. It's so outlandish and unlikely that I think it's a waste of time to talk about.

I said it before January 6. I said it after, certain Trump was finished. I said it before Senate Republicans refused to convict him and before the election, convinced Americans wouldn’t back a man who attacked our democracy. I said it before Trump pardoned the Capitol rioters.

It’s no longer outlandish to talk about.

I'm confused. I never said it was outlandish that he may get reelected. In fact I think I recall saying after Senate Republicans failed to convict him that he had a chance of getting reelected. Which is why it was such a bummer that Senate Republicans failed to do their duty.

But him being re-elected in (as far as we know) a free and fair election is a far cry from him seizing power and turning the republic into a dictatorship. I think the danger of Trump trying to seize power when his term is up is outlandish. Maybe things change between now and when his term is up, but I just don't see it. He's not that powerful and not that popular. If he tried, it would spark an immediate civil war. He just doesn't have that kind of support from the people who are in charge of all the guns.

the nazis were democratically elected and then consolidated power. free and fair election then (theoretically), free and fair election now (theoretically). hes not waiting till the end of his term to consolidate power, hes doing it now. how are you not seeing that when he fired the JAG officers?! "you wont have to vote again" believe people when they tell you who they are!

[asher2789]

everything ive been trying to say but far more eloquently and in french no less:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmDVrV7QRrU

Claude Malhuret, Senator of the French Republic, 3.5.25:

“Europe is at a critical turning point in its history.
The American shield is slipping away,
Ukraine risks being abandoned,
and Russia is being strengthened.

Washington has become the court of Nero:
an incediary emperor, submissive courtiers,
and a buffoon on ketamine tasked with purging the civil service.

This is a tragedy for the free world.
But above all it is tragedy for the United States.
Trump’s message is that
being his ally serves no purpose, as he will not defend you,
he will impose higher tariffs on you than on his enemies,
and he will threaten to seize your territories, while supporting the
dictators who invade you.

The so-called king of the deal is demonstrating what the ‘submissive’ art of the deal is.
He believes he will intimidate China by capitulating to Putin, but Xi Jinping, witnessing such a
collapse, is undoubtedly accelerating preparations for the invasion of Taiwan.

Never in history has a President of the United States surrendered to an enemy.
Never before has one supported an aggressor against an ally.
Never before has one trampled on the American Constitution,
issued so many illegal decrees, dismissed judges who could oppose him, sacked the entire military leadership in one go, weakened all counterpowers, and taken control of social media.

This is not a mere illiberal drift. It is the beginning of a seizure of democracy.
Let us remember that it only took just one month, three weeks, and two days
to bring down the Weimar republic and its Constitution.

I have faith in the resilience of American Democracy, and the country is already protesting. But in just one month, Trump has done more damage to America than in four years of his previous.
We were at war with a dictator, we are now fighting against a dictator supported by a traitor.
Eight days ago, at the very moment when Trump was patting Macron on the back at the White House, The United States voted at the UN alongside Russia and North Korea, against the Europeans who were demanding the withdrawal of Russian troops.

Two days later, in the oval office, the draft-dodger was giving moral and strategic lessons to the war hero Zelensky, before dismissing him like a stable boy, ordering him to submit or resign.

Last night he took another step into disgrace, by halting the delivery of promised weapons. What should we do in the face of this betrayal? The answer is simple: stand firm.

And above all, do not be mistaken. Ukraine’s defeat would be Europe’s defeat. The Baltic countries, Georgia, and Moldova are already on the list. Putin’s goal is to return to Yalta, where half the continent was ceded to Stalin. The Global South is awaiting the outcome of this conflict to decide whether they should continue respecting Europe, or whether they are now free to trample it. What Putin wants is the end of the order established by the United States and its allies: 80 years ago, whose first principle was the prohibition of acquiring territory by force.

This principle is at the very foundation of the UN, where today, the Americans voted in favor of the aggressor, and against the victim, because Trump’s vision aligns with Putin’s: a return to spheres of influence, where big powers dictate the fate of smaller nations. “I take Greenland, Panama, and Canada; you take Ukraine, the Baltics, and Eastern Europe. He takes Taiwan and the South China Sea.”

In Mar-a-Lago, golfing oligarchs party; this is called ‘diplomatic realism’. We are therefore alone. But the claim that resisting Putin is impossible is false. Contrary to Kremlin propaganda, Russia is struggling. In three years, the so-called second-best army in the world has managed to gain only a few crumbs from a population three times smaller. With interest rates at 25%, the collapse of foreign currency and gold reserves, and a demographic crisis, Russia is on the brink.

The American lifeline to Putin is the greatest strategic mistake ever made during a war.
The shock is severe but it has a virtue. Europeans are emerging from denial. In a single day in Munich, they understood that Ukraine’s survival and Europe’s future are in their hands, and that they have three imperatives:
First, accelerate military aid to Ukraine to compensate for the American abandonment, to ensure it holds, and of course, to secure its and Europe’s place at the negotiating table. This will be costly. It will require ending the taboo on using frozen Russian assets. It will require bypassing Moscow’s accomplices within Europe itself through a coalition of willing countries, with the United Kingdom, of course, included.
Second, demand that any agreement includes the return of kidnapped children, prisoners, and absolute security guarantees. After Budapest, Georgia, and Minsk, we know what Putin’s agreements are worth. These guarantees must be backed by sufficient military force to prevent another invasion.
Finally, and most urgently, because it will take the longest, we must rebuild the neglected European defence, which has relied on the American umbrella since 1945, and sabotaged since the fall of the Berlin wall. It is a Herculean task, but it is on its success or failure that the leaders of today’s democratic Europe will be judged in the history books. Friedrich Merz has just declared that Europe needs its own military alliance. This is an admission that France has been right for decades in advocating for strategic autonomy. Now, it must be built.

Massive investment will be needed, reinforcing the European defense fund outside the Maastricht debt criteria, harmonizing weapons and ammunition systems, accelerating Ukraine’s EU membership, since it now has the largest army in Europe, rethinking the role and conditions of nuclear deterrance based on French and British capabilities, and relaunching missile defence and satellite programmes.

The plan announced yesterday by Ursula von der Leyen is an excellent starting point. And much more will be needed. Europe will only become a military power again by becoming an industrial power once more. In short, we must implement the Draghi report, for real.

But Europe’s true rearmament is its moral rearmament. We must convince the public opinion in the face of war fatigue and fear, and especially against Putin’s collaborators in both the far right and the far left. They once again stood in the National Assembly yesterday, Prime Minister, before you, arguing against European unity and European defense. They claim to want peace. What neither they nor Trump say is that their peace is capitulation, the peace of defeat, the replacement of de Gaulle’s Zelensky with a Ukrainian Petain at Putin’s beck and call. The peace of collaborators who, for three years, have refused to support the Ukrainians in any way. Is this the end of the Atlantic Alliance?

The risk is great. But in recent days, the public humiliation of Zelensky, and the series of reckless decisions taken over the past month, have finally stirred Americans into action. Poll numbers are plummeting, Republican representatives are being met with hostile crowds in their districts, even Fox news is becoming critical.

The Trumpists are no longer in their prime. They control the executive branch, congress, the supreme court, and social networks. But in American history, the defenders of freedom have always prevailed. They are beginning to rise again. The fate of Ukraine is decided in the trenches, but it also depends on those in the United States who fight for democracy, and here, on our ability to unite Europeans, to find the means for our collective defense, and to restore Europe to the great power it once was, and hesitates to become again.

Our parents defeated fascism and communism at the cost of great sacrifice. The task of our generation is to defeat the totalitarianisms of the 21st century. Long live free Ukraine, long live democratic Europe.”

[easyrider16]

I keep seeing people talk about how Hitler dismantled democracy in Germany and comparing it to our current situation. Here's the problem - Trump is not doing the things Hitler did.

Hitler did these things:

1) massive propaganda about the threats of communists culminating in a fire at the Reichstag that he blamed on communists;

2) the Reichstag Fire Decree suspending freedom of speech, press and assembly, and protections against unreasonable searches; allowing the government to arrest and detain political opponents without charge, overthrow state and local governments and override state and local laws;

3) the Enabling Act - allowing Hitler to enact new laws without Reichstag (parliamentary) approval;

4) He then proceeded to systematically use these new powers to ban opposing political parties, arrest and persecute political opponents to the tune of thousands of people.

You could argue Trump has done the first thing. He has not come close to doing the rest. I mean the governor of Maine openly defied him about something as stupid as transgender people in sports. That was two weeks ago and she's still governor. I just do not see how Trump could get away with banning free speech or arbitrary arrest of political opponents. I just don't see it, not based on the evidence we have today.

Source: https://www.annefrank.org/en/anne-frank ... tatorship/

[XtremeJibber2001]

After waffling on Canada tariffs, now a new set ...

Trump threatens new tariffs on Canada, including 250% tax on dairy
https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/07/business ... index.html

A day after offering Canada a one-month reprieve on punishing, virtually across-the-board 25% tariffs, President Donald Trump has threatened new tariffs as soon as Friday on Canadian lumber and dairy products. It’s yet another twist in a serpentine trade policy that seems to shift on an hourly basis.

“Canada has been ripping us off for years on lumber and on dairy products,” Trump said in an Oval Office address Friday, citing Canada’s roughly 250% tariff on US dairy exports to the country. Trump said America would match those tariffs dollar-for-dollar.

“We may do it as early as today, or we’ll wait until Monday or Tuesday,” Trump said. “We’re going to charge the same thing. It’s not fair. It never has been fair, and they’ve treated our farmers badly.”

[asher2789]

I keep seeing people talk about how Hitler dismantled democracy in Germany and comparing it to our current situation. Here's the problem - Trump is not doing the things Hitler did.

Hitler did these things:

1) massive propaganda about the threats of communists culminating in a fire at the Reichstag that he blamed on communists;

2) the Reichstag Fire Decree suspending freedom of speech, press and assembly, and protections against unreasonable searches; allowing the government to arrest and detain political opponents without charge, overthrow state and local governments and override state and local laws;

3) the Enabling Act - allowing Hitler to enact new laws without Reichstag (parliamentary) approval;

4) He then proceeded to systematically use these new powers to ban opposing political parties, arrest and persecute political opponents to the tune of thousands of people.

You could argue Trump has done the first thing. He has not come close to doing the rest. I mean the governor of Maine openly defied him about something as stupid as transgender people in sports. That was two weeks ago and she's still governor. I just do not see how Trump could get away with banning free speech or arbitrary arrest of political opponents. I just don't see it, not based on the evidence we have today.

Source: https://www.annefrank.org/en/anne-frank ... tatorship/

yet. the keyword here is yet. with the doge demolition of the federal government, hell have his version of a reichstag fire by this summer or possibly even sooner, once the effects begin to hit the public in enough quantities hard enough. firing the JAG officers was a huge step towards consolidating power. re your second point, the federal government through multiple administrations has slowly been chipping away at that although trump is metaphorically walking around the jobsite looking for a sledgehammer and hasnt found it yet. for the third point - one can argue (and again, multiple administrations consolidating executive power) that the president governing by executive action is a form of that. based on the current behavior of this admin, it looks like theyre using executive actions to defund the government and make it collapse without congressional approval (see the doge coup).

people make a mistake of going from hitler gets into power to gas chambers way too fast. it took years for things to get bad.

[easyrider16]

I agree. The key word is yet. We shouldn't condemn him for something he hasn't done yet.

There's plenty to condemn him for now. I agree the JAG officer dismissals are concerning. We should criticize that. But we should criticize it for what it is, bad policy and management, not for what it might one day become.

[Bubba]

In the 1950s the right wing saw communists under the beds. Today the left sees fascists. I see a right wing that believes in executive power and, with Trump’s cult of personality, leans toward authoritarian power. Were the Democrats in power taking actions such as we see right now, the right would be going nuts about the same thing. There’s no doubt we’re on dangerous ground at the moment and we need to be very careful about the abuse of power but that’s not fascism. So far at least the courts are doing what they’re supposed to do. If the courts fail, that’s another story.

[XtremeJibber2001]

Maybe I'm too simple minded, but is Trump's goal simply to get interest rates lower?

Stock Market Today: Dow, Nasdaq Fall After Trump Doesn't Rule Out Recession
https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock- ... _lead_pos1

A new trading week has done little to calm investors’ nerves. Stocks and Treasury yields are both falling.

President Trump over the weekend refused to rule out the U.S. entering a recession this year, telling Fox News there will be a “period of transition, because what we’re doing is very big.” In contrast, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told NBC News: "There's going to be no recession in America."

Here's what some top Wall Street economists think about the chances of recession.

Shares of big tech companies extended their selloff. Tesla's stock tumbled more than 8% Monday mid-morning. Shares of the other Magnificent Seven stocks—Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon.com, Nvidia and Meta Platforms—fell more than 2%.

Monday's drop follow on from a turbulent week in markets, with concerns growing about how the administration's unpredictable tariff policies could affect U.S. growth. The S&P 500 finished Friday with a 3.1% weekly drop, its biggest such decline in six months.