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The US Presidency 2018

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An opinion I voiced before the election in 2016 was that it seemed to me that Trump had a particular function in American political discourse which is not unlike a course of radiation and chemotherapy in medical treatment. The problem is, what he was in fact trying to treat wasn't cancer.
 
No, it was far worse.

Please keep in mind, President Trump, Doug Ford, Brexit, Viktor Orban, AfD, Movimento 5 Stelle and even Bernie Sanders are all symptoms, not causes of political dysfunction in the Western world. While it would be nice if Preston Manning like politicians were able to turn the ship of State around, all you need to do is look back at the reaction by the media, academia and the political establishment to the Reform Party and Preston Manning to understand why voters have been forced to move to stronger measures.

If you want a good primer as to where the dysfunction comes from, read "The Revolt of the Elites". I also suggest Francis Fukyama's book "Trust" to see how high trust society works, and then consider how and why it is unravelling (and why voters might not want that outcome).
 
Thucydides said:
An interesting historical find. . . .

And where did you find it?  No, I'm not being sarcastic, but knowing its provenance and author would help to judge its credibility.
 
Blackadder1916 said:
And where did you find it? 

https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/02/how-donald-trump-did-it-213581
 
An interesting opinion piece, which explains far better than most other things I have read about how the President actually goes about negotiating, and why he acts as he does. He has a lifetime of experience in sizing people up and seeing their strengths and weakness, which explains how he can deliver such devastating jabs at opponents ("Low Energy Jeb", "Crooked Hillary", "Rocketman"), and why he is so successful in playing off the various sides against each other (in one thread about the trade wars, several posters opined that the United States could not stand against a united world. It now looks very much like the US will become the hub of a "spoke and wheel" trade system instead, because the President correctly predicted that the interests of the various nations and trade blocks do not overlap.

Read and ponder:

https://spectator.org/everyone-is-smart-except-trump/

Everyone Is Smart Except Trump
That’s why they all are billionaires and all got elected president.

"Lengthy posts and fully quoted articles are posted here. Link to these large posts in the regular boards."
https://milnet.ca/forums/threads/128702.0.html

 
Baden Guy said:
Link to article: https://spectator.org/everyone-is-smart-except-trump/

The US Presidency 2018 
Reply #386
https://milnet.ca/forums/threads/127915/post-1544759.html#msg1544759
 
"So they messed up, and we had to save their butts again. And another 405,399 Americans died for them during World War II. And then we had to rebuild them! And we had to station our boys in Germany and all over their blood-stained continent."

Maybe I have history wrong but everything I have ever read reflects that the states were determined to stay out of WWII until they were hit by Japan.  A fair number of those 400k died for the states against Japan.  I also understood that the station of troops in Germany was their idea. 


 
CountDC said:
Maybe I have history wrong but everything I have ever read reflects that the states were determined to stay out of WWII until they were hit by Japan. 

You are correct.  The US was technically neutral minus Lend-Lease, RAF Eagle Sqns and the AVG "Flying Tigers" until Pearl Harbour.
 
Dimsum said:
You are correct.  The US was technically neutral minus Lend-Lease, RAF Eagle Sqns and the AVG "Flying Tigers" until Pearl Harbour.

And, tangentially, the story behind how FDR 'tricked' the USA into WW2 is fascinating:

How Franklin Roosevelt Lied America Into War

by William Henry Chamberlin

According to his own official statements, repeated on many occasions, and with special emphasis when the presidential election of 1940 was at stake, Franklin D. Roosevelt's policy after the outbreak of the war in Europe in 1939 was dominated by one overriding thought: how to keep the United States at peace. One of the President's first actions after the beginning of hostilities was to call Congress into special session and ask for the repeal of the embargo on the sales of arms to belligerent powers, which was part of the existing neutrality legislation. He based his appeal on the argument that this move would help to keep the United States at peace. His words on the subject were:


Let no group assume the exclusive label of the "peace bloc." We all belong to it ... I give you my deep and unalterable conviction, based on years of experience as a worker in the field of international peace, that by the repeal of the embargo the United States will more probably remain at peace than if the law remains as it stands today ... Our acts must be guided by one single, hardheaded thought -- keeping America out of the war.

This statement was made after the President had opened up a secret correspondence with Winston Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty and later Prime Minister in the British government. What has been revealed of this correspondence, even in Churchill's own memoirs, inspires considerable doubt as to whether its main purpose was keeping America out of the war.

http://www.ihr.org/jhr/v14/v14n6p19_Chamberlin.html
 
CountDC said:
"So they messed up, and we had to save their butts again. And another 405,399 Americans died for them during World War II. And then we had to rebuild them! And we had to station our boys in Germany and all over their blood-stained continent."

Maybe I have history wrong but everything I have ever read reflects that the states were determined to stay out of WWII until they were hit by Japan.  A fair number of those 400k died for the states against Japan.  I also understood that the station of troops in Germany was their idea.

Wow.  Just wow.

I thought that Infowars had been deleted from the internet.

What a load of tripe.
 
The "America saved Europe, twice" idea/myth has been around since before I was a kid, and I knew of it as a kid.  Surely it can't be that much of a surprise when it resurfaces.

The historical concensus I understand is that 1) American domestic political sentiment was overwhelmingly isolationist prior to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, and 2) Roosevelt meant to support Britain (and the USSR) against Germany as much as was domestically acceptable (politically), a restraint which disappeared on 07 Dec 1941.  Also, although "Germany first" was the agreed grand strategy, significant players in the US military establishment (eg. Adm Ernest King) thought the war with Japan was equally (or more) important.
 
Retired Admiral William McRaven publishes and op ed piece in the Washington Post in support of former CIA Director John Brennan.

Architect of bin Laden raid issues stunning rebuke of Trump
By Zachary Cohen, CNN

Washington (CNN)Retired Adm. William McRaven, the man who oversaw the 2011 Navy SEAL raid that killed Osama bin Laden, issued a stunning rebuke of President Donald Trump's decision to revoke the security clearance of former CIA Director John Brennan on Thursday, defending the former spy chief as "one of the finest public servants I have ever known."

In an op-ed published by the Washington Post, McRaven, a former Navy SEAL who led US Joint Special Operations Command from 2011 to 2014, not only called Brennan "a man of unparalleled integrity," but volunteered to have his own security clearance revoked in an act of solidarity.

"Few Americans have done more to protect this country than John. He is a man of unparalleled integrity, whose honesty and character have never been in question, except by those who don't know him," McRaven wrote.

"Therefore, I would consider it an honor if you would revoke my security clearance as well, so I can add my name to the list of men and women who have spoken up against your presidency," he added.

His comments come just one day after Trump announced his decision to revoke Brennan's security clearance, marking an unprecedented use of a president's authority over the classification system to strike back at one of his prominent critics.

"This action is part of a broader effort by Mr. Trump to suppress freedom of speech & punish critics. It should gravely worry all Americans, including intelligence professionals, about the cost of speaking out. My principles are worth far more than clearances. I will not relent," Brennan tweeted after the announcement.

McRaven, who resigned as chancellor of the University of Texas in Austin earlier this year, is widely respected among the tens of thousands of active and retired special operators and his message will likely resonate within that community.

"Through your actions, you have embarrassed us in the eyes of our children, humiliated us on the world stage and, worst of all, divided us as a nation," McRaven said of Trump.

"If you think for a moment that your McCarthy-era tactics will suppress the voices of criticism, you are sadly mistaken. The criticism will continue until you become the leader we prayed you would be," he added.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/16/politics/mcraven-trump-brennan-security-clearance-revoke/index.html

:cheers:
 
Remember that big parade?

https://taskandpurpose.com/trumps-military-parade-postponed/

QUOTE

The Department of Defense and White House have been planning a parade to honor America’s military veterans and commemorate the centennial of World War I,” Pentagon spokesman Col. Rob Manning said in a statement. “We originally targeted November 10, 2018 for this event but have now agreed to explore opportunities in 2019.

END QUOTE
 
If a person has a security clearance for a job, when they leave the job they lose the clearance, right. I've had top secret twice. Lost it both times the task was complete.

Can someone explain why this is so contentious? Sounds like SOP to me.

Unless the upset is because they say Trump did it?
 
recceguy said:
If a person has a security clearance for a job, when they leave the job they lose the clearance, right. I've had top secret twice. Lost it both times the task was complete.

Can someone explain why this is so contentious? Sounds like SOP to me.

Unless the upset is because they say Trump did it?

When you are at the level that these folks are, it is routine that they keep their security clearances so that the next administration can consult with them on new and ongoing issues. By having current clearances such consultations can happen rapidly without having to go through the vetting process needed to issue or reinstate a clearance. This is especially handy in crisis situations. All in all it's primarily to help the new administration rapidly access corporate memory to assist them in making sound and informed decisions.

:cheers:
 
mariomike said:
Remember that big parade?

https://taskandpurpose.com/trumps-military-parade-postponed/

QUOTE

The Department of Defense and White House have been planning a parade to honor America’s military veterans and commemorate the centennial of World War I,” Pentagon spokesman Col. Rob Manning said in a statement. “We originally targeted November 10, 2018 for this event but have now agreed to explore opportunities in 2019.

END QUOTE

This from Secretary Mattis.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/trump-military-parade-cancelled-james-mattis-postponed-washington-cost-leaked-a8495561.html

However, defence secretary James Mattis has rubbished the reports, suggesting whoever claimed the parade was set to cost upwards of $90m was “probably smoking something.”

“I'm not dignifying that number with a reply,” the Pentagon chief told reporters while travelling to the Colombian capital Bogota.

“I would discount that, and anybody who said it, I'll almost guarantee you one thing: They probably said, 'I need to stay anonymous.' No kidding, because you look like an idiot.

“And number two, whoever wrote it needs to get better sources. I'll just leave it at that.”
 
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