What if he was also allowing Secret Service folks to run up expensive meal tabs

[malaise]

at Federal government expense for his financial benefit. You can see how that could buy a few folks.
Was watching the discussion on Chris Hayes.
Seriously the Slobfather is a lowlife on steroids.

[Eliot Rosewater]

1. If a Democratic prez owned a hotel and charged $1100 a night for a room for SS agents

there would be 75 million kitchen ceilings in need of painting because this would happen


Oh yeah, i cant show the "Scanners" gif, sigh...anyway, heads would explode.

[Irish_Dem]

2. We know this is one way he controls people. He buys them.

The guy who handed him his diet cokes was making a large salary.

[malaise]

3. Indeed

That was very interesting

[Irish_Dem]

4. I read that Putin does the same thing.

Gives his bodyguards a huge salary, houses, cars, etc.

They are very personally invested in keeping him alive.

Also we know Putin pays the puppets he installs into govt positions all over the world quite well.

So yes it was quite interesting to see how much money a waiter makes working for Trump.

[malaise]

12. Wasn't his father Stalin's chef?

Hmmmmmmm!

[Irish_Dem]

16. Good point. Putin's grandfather was a personal cook to both Lenin and Stalin.

Stalin is considered to be one of history's most brutal dictators.

A ruthless psychopath, Stalin is said to have murdered at least 20 million people and tortured, imprisoned, deported many more.
Anyone who might posed a threat to him was neutralized.

Brutal control of the Russian people.

Stalin was a criminal and law breaker before he came to power and when in power, created law that suited his needs.

He lied and cheated to get and maintain power. Reckless disregard for the safety of others. No remorse for his horrible deeds.

We can see that Putin followed in his footsteps, and is importing that style of leadership across the world by installing puppets
into foreign governments. (Like he is doing in the US and Europe.)

[malaise]

19. Grandfather. - thanks

Would have had decent meals while others were being slaughtered or starving.

I am seriously stunned at humanity’s capacity to kill.

[Irish_Dem]

23. Yes humans are very odd creatures, aren't they?

The most valuable resources we have are the planet and the people on it.

And yet we destroy both on a constant basis, with no thought about it.

We see ruthless, horrific, stunning brutality, hatred and inhumanity on display.

But we also see stunning acts of heroism, goodness, beauty, art, literature.
Superb leadership and moral clarity. Love, kindness, generosity and sacrifice.

I was trained as a scientist and clinician, but as I get older I think about
the Biblical concept of good vs evil. Maybe there is merit in that paradigm.

[malaise]

26. I don't think good and evil are merely biblical concepts

I have nothing to do with any religion but cannot be cruel to animals. On the other hand, I know so called Xtians who drown feral kittens

[Irish_Dem]

28. Clinicians are not trained to think in terms of good or evil.

Our paradigm is pathology, with clear criteria for clinical diagnoses.
We think about normal vs abnormal, health vs illness.

But when I read about ruthless brutal psychopaths, like what Putin is doing in Ukraine.
Or what Hitler and his nazis did in WWII, it crosses a line from psychopathology to pure unadulterated evil.

Human nature is capable of great goodness and horrible evil.
And even normal people can be driven to do evil, given certain circumstances.

[malaise]

29. That makes way way more sense

I do like that you remind us that human nature is capable of great goodness and horrible evil.
And even normal people can be driven to do evil, given certain circumstances.

[malaise]

30. That makes way way more sense

I do like that you remind us that human nature is capable of great goodness and horrible evil.
And even normal people can be driven to do evil, given certain circumstances.

[Irish_Dem]

32. Yes the complexity of human nature is quite incredible.

[Irish_Dem]

24. Yes ruthless, brutal dictators live in the lap of luxury while the people starve.

And are treated brutally.

[Cracklin Charlie]

5. What did he give them to behave like traitors?

All hiding their texts, and communications during an insurrection?

I doubt if that was as inexpensive as a Trump hotel meal. Always something worse with this guy.

[speak easy]

6. 'Escorts' for the escorts?

[Cracklin Charlie]

7. Now we're getting somewhere.

Condo in Trump tower?

[malaise]

10. Nicely played

Would make sense

[Irish_Dem]

17. Hookers, drugs, booze, cash, freebies.

Whatever they wanted.

[greatauntoftriplets]

8. Probably bar bills, too.

[malaise]

11. Very possible

😀

[C_U_L8R]

9. Not one agent complained or blew the whistle.

That's what corruption looks like. For shame.

[malaise]

14. Quid pro quo

mob style

[Irish_Dem]

18. Whistleblowers would be fired or worse.

[whistler162]

13. Well if they at at one of his

golf places then likely the repackaged cold single burger from the cheapest spot within a 100 mile radius cost $100!

[malaise]

15. It's always a grift for King Con

[jonstl08]

20. Luxury

He bought them with luxury accomodations and other amenities they did not have to pay for. A law should be enacted that when a President goes on vacation the government is only responsible for a set per diem amount. Anything over that amount is on the President to cover.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

21. It doesn't work that way. You get a per diem for meals.

What you don't spend, you keep.

If you eat breakfast at the lodging's breakfast setup and go to Subway for lunch and dinner, you get to pocket the amount you haven't spent.

[malaise]

22. Apparently all rules were flaunted

starting with the emoluments clause. There is no Federal per diem that matches what was exposed by that committee

[Kid Berwyn]

25. If only a record existed of the transactions.

The Press would RUSH to explain it to the American people before the election not.

[malaise]

27. LOL

Don’t hold your breath my friend

[Cognitive_Resonance]

31. Wining and dining the detail, sounds like scheme to co-opt agents while grifting

on Uncle Sam's dime.

[Lucinda]

33. It's how he made money after he said he'd donate his salary

He made WAY more money charging the govt than he would have earned via his salary alone

[Hermit-The-Prog]

34. There should be a permanent task force to uncover all the corruption of the Slobfather.

Need investigators that can't be dismissed or deterred by changes in party.