Is President Twitter Troll so deep in debt to the Russians that effectively he's a Russian agent?

The rather unfortunate fact is that we cannot win without the votes of people who live in the flyover states. The Electoral College will not be abolished before the 2018 elections occur.

This speech is a great way to rally the bicoastal troops. Those troops arent the ones we need to mobilize.

Our only foothold in the Midwest are the unions. We must appeal to union rank and file if we are to retake the House and Senate at the midterms.

As much as I adore Meryl Streep and the Globes, I'd rather here these words come from Richard Trumka or Mary Kay Henry.

Let me repeat, we cannot win this thing without the Midwest. The only thing that can limit the GOP right now is winning big in those states. California is important, but I don't think we're in any danger of losing the Left Coast.

Meryl and other assorted divas of tinseltown are enjoying this a tad too much.

Ms. Streep has received 157 major awards for her performances. If that's what Trump considers "overrated", what do we call someone with six bankruptcies under their belt?

@5: A businessman taking risks.

@6:

"A BAD businessman taking irresponsible risks", there, fixed it for you.

@4: enjoying what too much? the impending end of the republic?

streep is not a "diva" in the sense you undoubtedly mean. I can, however, think of someone who this definition fits better: "One who demands that attention be paid to his or her needs, especially without regard to anyone else's needs or feelings".

Good. He's shown how thin skinned and vengeful he is. Hopefully he'll someday accidentally retaliate in a way that's illegal and then we can throw the bum out. Keep up the attacks on trump. Hopefully he'll crack.

@Raindrop just can't break that habit of yours to rush to the defense of anything or anyone stamped Republican no matter how repulsive, stupid, and destructive to our republic it or they are, can you.

That knee jerk habit of yours is not consistent with conservatism it is a trait of a blind brain dead sycophant.

Trump already had his chance (many chances, actually, US presidential campaigns last a long time) to draw a line under his previous conduct and turn over a new leaf. He didn't, largely because he can't.

Respect is something that must be earned, and Trump has done nothing to earn my respect.

I'd save outrage for things worse than making fun of people. This whole dignity and tenor suitable of the respect for the highest office blah blah... do these people know the history and the scoundrels we've had in there?

I usually (or more accurately, always) loathe awards shows and all that they entail, but this thing really is worth watching.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxyGmyEb…

@11 - Why are you conflating common reasons for bankruptcy as a defense for Trump?

@13 I was referring to classical conservative thought e.g. Edmond Burke. Not the weird unprincipled incoherence that calls itself conservative thought in America today. Sorry I should have been more clear, I apologize.

Raindrop did you not rush to to join Trump in attempting to take a cheap shot at Meryl Streep? Not that trying to praise Trump for his bankruptcies is any less the act of a sycophant.

@ 18,

There is certainly a place for contrarians. Diogenes is one of my personal heroes.
While; I don't agree with your political positions, I do appreciate the civility of your tone.

@20,

I only learned of Diogenes a couple of years ago when the wonderful folks at philosophytalk.org dedicated an episode to him. Agree he seemed like a pretty neat dude, but w/ respect to civility... One of the things that sticks out from the program is his penchant for challenging societal norms in pretty interesting fashion -- masturbating in full public view and such.

I figure KAC is drunk. It just occurred to me that she most likely cancelled that sold out speaking gig in Alberta because she found out she couldn't cross the border (are the Canadians still keeping out US DUIs?).

Look at her, tell me she hasn't seen the sun come up w/ Steve Bannon and a bottle of Jameson's!

(sorry for my earlier post @ 17 linking to the speech. I was reading this at work earlier and wasn't able to see the embedded video and so thought the writer hadn't included it for some reason.)

How did we get here? Trump is feuding with Streep because she called him on making fun of a disabled man. Got it. But why was Trump making fun of a disabled man? What was it he "couldn't remember"?

@20 - I appreciate that. Cheers!

If only the left were more outraged when a disabled man was mocked, beaten and tortured by Poor Disenfranchised Urban Youth in Chicago just for being white. Some weird priorities here.

@27

What about the African American disabled youth that was anally raped with a coat hanger by 3 white students?
I'm sure you are outraged that they got away with a slap on the wrist.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morn…

@3

The Electoral College is only used in presidential elections, so they won't meet again until 2020-21.

Trump sure is a special little snowflake to get all flustery-blustered by a mere actress saying stuff.. .not even directly about him.

What a fucking thin-skin he has... sign of a weak man.
(As if all the "braggadocious" posturing wasn't enough to tell you he is really weak inside.)

15,16,
Let's remember: Only _1/3rd_ of the nation actually voted, so barely more than 1/6th of the entire population of the good ol' USofA managed to elect Trumpypants. Hardly any claim to "the masses".
In fact, you could say that "the masses" (2/3rds of the USA, aka 200 million people), wanted neither of the proffered candidates.... or didn't think that voting for them would change anything relevant about their lives.

3, 29,
It's actually possible the EC won't be relevant by the 2020 elections.

27, 28
And what about that black gentleman who was forcibly sodomized with a broom handle by POLICE OFFICERS in New York City. Outrage on the right? Or just silence? Silence.

Pick your battles carefully, Fuckley. There's enough history to counter any "shock" you may have that liberals aren't stepping to their own stated morals.
The Right isn't either. Get used to it.

How about instead working towards agreement on common positive goals?

@ 29,

If we win the midwestern states in 2018, we can build majorities in House and Senate. Thats the best way to paralyze Trump.

ESPECIALLY if that majority is comprised of union people.

Re: Trump as a business man: Anyone who funds as many ventures and sits as an executive on so many companies is going to declare bankruptcy on some of them, and shutter many of them before they make a profit, it is just the nature of the beast.

Trump is not a self-made man, but he has created a good deal of wealth for himself, mostly through real estate, where he tends to have the most success (although still not enough to put him in the top ten real estate moguls in NY). Whenever he gets away from real estate, he tends to do worse.

The big failures that often get mentioned when people discuss him is his casino/hotel deals in Atlantic City, which were very large losses and did almost suck away all of his personal wealth, but he got out of it, and likely before he lost even more. Basically everyone who invested in Atlantic City lost big, that place is a hellhole of crime and decay. Definitely his worst business decision by far.

Overall, a mixed bag: Some failures, some successes, but overall when he sticks to real estate he tends to do well, and he tends to do poorly when trying to manage other things like football teams or casinos.

He is kind of like Steve Jobs in a way: his biggest talent is creating a sort of alluring mythos about his brand, but there is really not much substance there.

A pretty good article by WaPo sums it all up:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk…

Reminds me of an old quote, "If you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullshit!"

@32:

But even his real-estate "successes" are somewhat questionable. Anyone who owes nearly a billion dollars to foreign banks and investors (including the Chinese National Bank and some that are little more than fronts for Russian mobsters and oligarchs), isn't exactly a "genius" when it comes to business - he's just someone who suckered a lot of people into loaning him a lot of money; and of course they expect pay back.

#3 Yes. Aside from #29's observation, we need the Midwest. Unfortunately, there is no appealing to the unions/working people until their situation is made better. If you read Thomas Frank's "Listen Liberals!", you will see they have been marginalized by Dems for decades. It's the elitist attitude that non-college educated are the lesser. All this BS about technology making our lives better rings hollow. There is no app for inequality.

@34: I agree, certainly no one should be calling Trump a real estate/business "genius," but it is very common for real estate developers to carry debt. The average debt/equity ratio right now is about 107, unfortunately most of Trump's holdings are private, so I am unable to ascertain what his particular D/E ratio is.

All in all, he is fairly typical, more successful than average in real estate, less so in other ventures. It is his visibility that tends to make his failures seem worse, and his successes seem better. But that is really the meat of his business, which he himself admits: the Trump brand itself. He did a damn good job of convincing people the Trump brand was a good one, no one can really take that away from him.

The trial of the three police officers began on January 22, 2010. The prosecution called Mineo, another police officer who witnessed the incident, a doctor who treated Mineo, and a DNA expert from the medical examiner's office. The defense followed by calling each of the three officers, and a doctor who stated the injuries were not consistent with assault.[16] The defense submitted a video as evidence that supports the argument that Mineo had a pre-existing medical condition.[16] During the jury deliberations, one juror was removed because she misinformed the other jurors regarding past allegations against Kern. The removed juror was replaced with an alternate.[16] After a couple of days of deliberating, the jury found the three police officers not guilty. The jury stated to the judge that they had reasonable doubt regarding the incident.[16]

Nice equivocation. If only those police officers were smart enough to broadcast their hate crime on Facebook live.

@37

Again, what about the three white high school students that anally raped a disabled black student with a coat hanger?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morn…

"so nobody thinks that Hollywood might just be a liiiitle out of touch with everyday life of the masses?"

Actually, no. Hollywood - in the generic popular entertainment sense of the word - basically thinks for "the masses". It tells them what's funny, what's sad, what to wear, what not to wear, how to behave, what products are fashionable - you name it. In fact, part of the plague of Trump stems directly from Hollywood - by way of "The Apprentice" and all the free media Trump has been given over the last forty years.

Even Trump's halfwit statement about making America "Great Again" is based on the great Hollywood myth makers of the 20th Century - the MGM musicals, the John Wayne westerns, the poor-but-honest "Real Americans" of the Capra schlock, all of which became part of the culture. Hollywood made America what it is today

And the masses are stupid. An Iowa acquaintance who never left Council Bluffs posted - without irony - a supposed quote from Mark Wahlberg talking about how Hollywood "doesn't understand real America" - the same Mark Wahlberg who has been a celebrity since he was in his teens when he was Calvin Kline's underwear muse, and is worth millions of dollars, mostly based on his willingness to play workingman hero roles where he is paid more than most Iowans will ever see in their lifetimes. Those same roles are probably what makes him think that he understands "real" America.

So no, Hollywood is not out of touch with everyday lives. Hollywood run everyday lives. We're all in Hollywood's bubble - especially the flyover states, where shopping is limited, and news and entertainment is 99% Hollywood.