General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsWhat Does Dictator Putin Have On Donald Trump? - Gene Lyons
Full article posted with the permission of the author -- DonNovember 15, 2017 2:51 am
The more Donald J. Trump talks about Russia, the harder it is to believe hes actually loyal to the United States. Hes dedicated to his money and to his grotesquely inflated ego. He enjoys pomp and parades. The end.
Otherwise, Americans cannot count upon this president to protect and defend the U.S. Constitution any more than they could trust him alone with their wives or daughters. To Trump, patriotism is a one-way street running from his deluded voters to his grandiose sense of entitlement.
There it dead ends.
Its all about him; its not about you, or me, or the United States of America. Whats more, deep down almost everybody knows it, apart from Trumps dwindling cohort of diehard supporters.
Consider last weekend, when the guy Kevin Drum derisively calls the greatest negotiator the world has ever seen declared that regarding Russias massively-documented efforts to sabotage the 2016 U.S. elections, he disbelieves his own intelligence agencies and puts his faith in Vladimir Putin.
Trump even impugned the patriotism of former CIA director John Brennan, former director of national intelligence James R. Clapper and fired FBI director James Comey.
I mean, give me a break, they are political hacks, Trump said. So you look at it, I mean, you have Brennan, you have Clapper and you have Comey. Comey is proven now to be a liar and he is proven now to be a leaker. So you look at that and you have President Putin very strongly, vehemently says he had nothing to do with them.
Never mind that these three men have a combined history of more than ninety years of public service at the highest levels, versus Donald J. Trumps glorious ten months as president. To him, theyre bunglers and prevaricators, while the trustworthy Russian dictators denials should be taken at face valuevoluminous evidence notwithstanding.
How can anybody be surprised? A friend asks. After all, Trump is a guy who believed (or pretended to believe) for years that Barack Obama was born in Kenya and was aided in becoming President by a massive conspiracy involving his deceased parents, the director of Hawaiis bureau of vital statistics, and a copy editor for the Honolulu Advertiser in 1961.
It was quite funny to see people holding up Welcome to Kenya signs when the president recently touched down in Honolulu. But I digress, and pointlessly. Cultists cannot be persuaded by reason.
Within twenty-four hours, Trump was already walking the Russia nonsense halfway back. Meanwhile, Clappera retired Air Force general and the recipient of two Bronze Starsissued a strong rebuttal: the president was given clear and indisputable evidence that Russia interfered in the election. His own DNI and CIA director have confirmed the finding in the intelligence community assessment. The fact that he would take Putin at his word over the intelligence community is unconscionable.
The CIA said that (Trump-appointed) director Mike Pompeo stands by and has always stood by the January 2017 Intelligence Community assessment with regard to Russian election meddling. That assessment concluded that Kremlin hackers and spies working for Vladimir Putin had done everything in their power to elect Donald J. Trump.
So the big dope started crawfishing. Putting aside his customary Mean Girls act, Trump explained that the Russian strongmana one-time KGB Colonel whose political opponents often end up dead in the streethad gotten his little feelings hurt. You can only ask so many times, Trump alibied. He said he absolutely did not meddle in our election. He did not do what they are saying he did.
I really believe that when [Putin] tells me that, he means it. I think hes very insulted, if you want to know the truth, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. At a press conference in Hanoi, he put further sideways spin on his remarks. He only meant to affirm Putins sincere belief, the president said.
As to whether I believe it or not, he said, Im with our [intelligence] agencies, especially as currently constituted. Whatever that means.
Trump went on to argue that making nice with the Russians is more important than their subversion of our democracy.
Just give this egotistical buffoon a big military parade and a couple of flattering toasts and he rolls over on his back like a lost puppy. Would you like to scratch my belly? As the Washington Posts invaluable conservative columnist Jennifer Rubin put it, Trumps the type of target that counterintelligence operatives dream ofan arrogant fool.
To believe that Putin has Americas best interests at heart, said Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) is not only naïve but also places our national security at risk. Of course, a darker possibility also exists: that Trump isnt so much naïve as frightened about whatever Putin has on him, and about the possibility Americans will find out.
Which the way things are going, appears quite likely.
###
http://www.nationalmemo.com/what-does-dictator-putin-have-on-donald-trump
Eyeball_Kid
(7,433 posts)Trumpy's a Russian Asset. MOST of his cabinet have political and economic ties to RUSSIA. His unconfirmed inner circle have ties to Russia.
Do we have to ask whether Russians, with Trumpy's participation, have engineered a coup? Do we have to even discuss this?
Arkansas Granny
(31,523 posts)The fact that he has totally ignored this threat to our democracy is troubling to say the least and even treasonous. Any time a US President openly disputes the findings of his own intelligence agency and sides with a known adversary, you can be certain that he doesn't have the best interests of our country at heart.
SonofDonald
(2,050 posts)That with the very easily findable information that there's undeniable proof he's in pooties pocket has still not breached the thick skulls of his brain dead fans, even if they don't watch anything other than the faux noise channel there's so much out there stating that it happened.
Willfully ignorant of reality when faced with continuous facts they still believe this idiots denials, there was a presser on Faux last night I saw a moment of on msnbc, the station ID floating in the background said.
"On Your Side "
I can't wait till he goes down, I want faux noise to go with him, badly, they are the reason he's still in office.
Period.
world wide wally
(21,751 posts)It can only mean one of two things period.
1) Trump is truly the most stupid person to ever hold the office,
2) Trump is truly a traitor.
Why do we even play this fucking game?
Wounded Bear
(58,685 posts)Trump thinks he's always the smartest man in the room. He isn't.
I have been saying it all along. Find out what Trump owes the Russians.
It doesn't have to be either/or. Postulate 1 just makes postulate 2 easier to implement.
GeorgeGist
(25,322 posts)Possibly.
Orsino
(37,428 posts)gratuitous
(82,849 posts)Trump can be wooed with a short parade and three sentences of disingenuous praise. He can be provoked with a tweet. He's not a stable individual, a danger to himself and our nation (but mostly out nation).
I have, however, given up on the formulation of Trump pretending to believe anything; if he says or tweets something, I'm going to ascribe that "thought" to him, no matter how nonsensical. If he wants to deny that he believes what he said, fuck him. He's old enough to know how to say what he thinks. If he says something he doesn't really believe, then let him explain it. I'm not going to do his heavy lifting anymore. And I'm going to hang every stupid thing he sharts out around his fat neck and the necks of his stupid partisans.
If Trump learns to say what he thinks, great. If not, he'll get no break from me.
elias7
(4,024 posts)Betraying his financiers would bankrupt him, then get him killed.