As a former Republican and now Independent, I vote in Republican primaries just to mess with Diaper Don. I am following Liz Cheney's example and doing all I can to keep the Orange Jesus out of the White House.
I am no longer quiet with my Republican friends and constantly point out all of his BS and lies. My favorite these days is to ask about the J6 folks that are in prison. Are they "hostages" or are they "ANTIFA' and "FBI informants"? They cannot be both. So is Donnie Boy going to pardon "hostages" or "ANTIFA" and the "FBI"?
And if those J6 people are in prison, doesn't that mean they broke the law? Because all of those juries that convicted them couldn't have been comprised of all left wing idiots.
If you keep harping on those facts, you start to make all of these MAGA people have to justify their the lunacy of the lies.
Yes, I don't get invited to many events with these people these days, but I think they are starting to realize that MAGA is a cult and that they are following Orange Boy off a cliff.
Go Jeff! Turning those who can be turned to the truth is our biggest challenge and highest calling! I am attempting to do the same thing in every way I can think of!
I try not to watch any of his speeches (to maintain my own sanity), but the portions I have heard sound exactly as you described... "confused ramblings". I might squeeze the word "deranged" in there as well.
I heard his speech from yesterday and if it weren't for the fact everyone knows he doesn't drink, I would have sworn he was totally in the bag at that event.
I fast-forward (or mute) whenever I see Trump speaking on news show. I cannot abide hearing his voice. However, I do get information about what he's saying by listening to NPR, reading Adam's letters, listening the The Bulwark podcast, and reading the NY Times. Those sources keep me informed of his lies and BS while avoiding actually hearing him.
Watching the Sunday morning "news" shows. Where are the Dems to refute this crap head on? The pundits all talk, on and on, about the horse race. And they completely drop the ball on calling out Don the Con's never ending lies and phony claims and dementia.
Last night Don talked at a rally in NH for TWO HOURS! Try to find the transcript of this "important campaign address" by a former President. Nope. No one, not even CSPAN, took the time to write it down because everyone, EVERYONE, discounts these rally ramblings as total BS. The Press will pick apart every word his opponents utter. But they give Don the Con a pass. "What crazy shit did he say this time?" Oh hum.
Its time to start a campaign calling out the media for ..."discussing Trump like he's a normal guy." They are a huge, and potentially, overly influential part of this election. They love it because Trump sells. We need to require them to write and post more responsibly!
On CNN just now. Dana Bash asked Rep Veronica Escobar, Co-Chair of the Biden-Harris Campaign about the Democratic Party's message to combat what Trump is saying. She responded "it is early" and "we will draw a stark contrast between Biden and Trump" and then reminded us of what the economy was like at the end of his term, "we've seen what happens when we have someone like Donald Trump in office." Stark contrast? Someone "like" Donald Trump? What the hell? Get some Republicans on the air who tell the truth and shut down Don's Big Con. Sure looks like the Dems want Trump to be the nominee, thinking they can beat him. Dangerous game--for them and the Country.
I completely agree. The earlier the Democrats start hammering on Trump's contradictions, the better. I'd like to think it would have an effect in the Republican nomination but I think that ship may have already sailed.
Well I guess Niki is going to learn now. She was complacent to his lies and bullying during his presidency. But some people don’t learn until it’s directly happening to them. Maybe she should call Barack and ask him how to handle the birther issue.
As an independent I will be voting Tuesday. I was considering voting for Haley to strengthen her numbers. However after her slavery comment and the distortion Dean Phillips is floating, I will be writing in President Biden. If trump wants to assail someone, how about Sununu? He is pushing Haley very hard.
I encourage you to still vote for Haley in the primary rather than a protest vote even if you do not support her overall. That is the message that Trump needs. It will push him and bring out more of his true character. And if he were lose the nomination, he will not go quietly. He will burn the whole thing to the ground rather than let someone else have it. This would showcase effectively how much of a destructive force he actually is.
Trumps rallies are nothing more than indoctrination camps (ironic isn’t it) for the weak minded. It’s a meet up for the “Deplorables” as Hillary correctly called it long ago. Truth matters not to those who cannot fathom what their actions will ultimately result in. And that will be the complete loss of our long curated democracy.
None of them have actually confronted a key question. And that is, what has Trump actually delivered for the good of the people? Besides someone or something to hate. While he wallows in power and a pile of cash so willingly heaped upon him.
Do his followers actually get that they are royally screwed in the end? Seems not. Too hard for them to “think” that far ahead.
The Trump media machine is constantly running roughshod over America. Meanwhile, where in Gods name is the DNC response and counter messaging to all of this?
I bet very few can even name the head of the DNC. Come on Jaime. Let’s get going here!
I keep harping on the "tax cut" I supposedly got back in 2017. NOT! I have Turbo Tax charts that show I am still paying just as much as I was prior to those supposed "cuts".
Then I ask where is my fabulous health care program I was going to get back on the 2016 campaign trail? The Republicans had control of everything for two years! TWO YEARS! And all they could seemingly do is cut the taxes of people who already don't pay taxes.
And yet these MAGA people keep thinking they are being catered to and all that is happening is are being treated as the total RUBEs that they are. I really fear what happens when they finally figure out that they were played by Orange Jesus and his gang of grifters.
Jeff - you have to remember that Trump's health care plan is due to come out in 2 weeks. Note that this is a rolling schedule, and the release date will continue to be 2 weeks from... well, from whenever. 😁
RIGHT ON!!!! The Republicans heaped a trillion dollar debt upon us to give tax cuts to corporations (the lifeblood of the rich) THEN COVID hit and they had to heap even more debt to bailout people and businesses (which is where we actually shoukd cteate deficit if necessary). DEBT HAWKS! HARDLY!
Where indeed is the DNC backbone? The apparent DNC strategy today is to treat Trump like the "respected opposition". "They lay low." When they better start showing up and countering lie for lie. And shining a light on the MAGAs in Congress and the enablers in the Press.
Now what? The question I wanted answered on the Zoom you and Steve did was where do we go? As we watch the fairytale of The Emperor Has No Clothes become our country’s reality what do we do? I feel hopeless and helpless. There are global implications that are beyond frightening and national implications that are frightening on a scale I’m afraid to contemplate. If this were a real fairytale the cavalry would arrive. I don’t see any cavalry in our immediate future.
The next ten months we have to continue staying engaged and pray for a win. Best advice i can give. If we win, we still have to battle and take energy from the win. If we lose, well we will cross that bridge when we hopefully never get there
Adam, absolutely. But will there be a Trump successor to take his place? Once the lies become mainstream (to some degree we are already there) how do we deal with it? This is one reason why I think Trump needs to go to jail. No one can be allowed to borrow his playbook and get away with it.
Like you I pray we never get there. Astounding that you & Liz Cheney fairly lay out all the dangers of Trump and almost no one else will publicly do so. What this says about our government is sad. We’re tied to the tracks, and the train is coming. Although you have haters I know you sleep at night.
We may not have a cavalry on the way but we do have The Lone Ranger and his trusty sidekick. Joe and Kamala beat the bad guy before and they’ll do it again. Hi-Yo Silver!
Tragically, none of this is new. I can not look at him or listen to his speeches, it is disgraceful. However, he NEEDS to be talked about but not in the ways the MSM is doing. He needs to be fact checked to the Nth degree after a speech and blasted everywhere. On the flip side, I worry that this is all baked in and won’t make a damn bit of difference. The people that need to hear it, won’t or will dismiss it as lies. My one prayer is that when the primary is over (Tuesday??) and it turns to the general, Trumps ramblings, his word salads, his lies, his mental acuity, are glaringly obvious. However, Biden needs to do some work, too. Biden needs to come out strong, be a statesman and show the world he is up for this task. We know he is but he can’t falter and he must convince his skeptics that he will be up to the task of the presidency once again.
Honestly, I don’t believe that Donald J Trump knows the difference between the truth and a lie these days. He just starts freestyling with whatever pops into his addled mind and blurts it out. He has probably forgotten that Democrats cannot vote in the GOP primary, he thinks that anyone with a name reflective of their ethnicity is not a “real” citizen. He thinks the insurrectionists were patriots. Republicans in leadership positions endorse the crazy. Tim Scott, the guy formerly considered decent who has now shown himself for the spineless, shameless shill that he is, actually responded to a question about Trump’s birtherism with regard to Haley by saying that the Biden administration’s rhetoric is..,salacious. Seriously? And Harvard grad Elise Stefanik says she’d be “proud” to be Donald’s #2. What is WRONG with these people? Women and folks of color endorsing an unbelievably awful candidate who would destroy them both given the dictatorship that he craves?
Trump and his MAGA maggots are not the true Republican Party-they are the Repugnantcans-I’m so sick and tired of him that even looking at him repulses me-we hear more about him than our own President Biden-Trump just needs to go!
You say this but over 60% of registered Republicans are avid supporters of Trump. Problem is... the Republican Party has changed immensely and Republicans still haven't figured it out. Time for a new party a little left of extreme right. I'd prefer in the middle so I might change my Democrat affiliation.
The one thing I do question and would love to hear Adam's take on it is can we take back the Republican party or is it a dumpster fire that needs to burn to the ground?
Liz Cheney seems to think that the Party is gone and cannot be salvaged. I've heard the same from a lot of non-MAGA Republicans here in Minnesota and elsewhere that they do not see how it can be salvaged.
And what do we do with the MAGA cultists that will never come around? Are there strategies we can take from the battle with ISIS to bring them back to reality? Or have we created a group that will be home grown terrorists to deal with?
I refuse to believe the Republican Party is dead and gone. It just has NO LEADERSHIP; those that could lead in a Constitutional direction have chosen to sit on the sidelines. Maybe bitch a little but .... Many Republicans (millions of them IMHO) are drinking Trump's Kool-aid because no one else is carrying water.
I saw the same thing on the other side when a few days ago Michelle Obama said she was terrified about what this election could bring but is she out on the campaign trail using some of the love and political capital she acquired as First Lady? No!! She was one of the most beloved First Ladies but has "retired". In this fight anyone who is sitting on the sidelines "retired" is part of the problem.
Sad and scary to contemplate. But I think most of these MAGAs never used to vote--they just sat in their homes and complained about how bad and unfair everything was. That’s why they aren’t so engaged (and dangerous) now. If I’m correct, most will see what has happened to the 1/6 rioters and decide it’s really not worth it to do Trumps bidding, since3 they do time while he skates. Voting is one thing, but doing crimes....too much work and risk to bother. Back to griping for most of them is my guess.
Sadly, they think they are the "saviors" of the Republic because the great Orange Jesus has told them so. As a result, they feel enabled to act on their feelings because he will protect them.
And yet, Haley will endorse him earnestly if he wins the nomination. Tim Scott defiled himself beyond repair in defending Trump this week. They’re all irredeemable.
This is what makes me especially sick. You got DeSantis who is cardboard anyway ....but what under 6 minutes DeSantis pulled out of the race he endorses trump? Next o wait for Haley to endorse trump too.
This sick man and all these Cowardly betrayers wanna live that sick life then good for them but you are not gonna think the rest of us os gonna drink that sick Kool aid.....or pay the price of no freedom no democracy? No way. Don't they have any face? How can any single one of these people be trusted to run for two clown never mind president of the US.
Total shame on them they let the American people so down its nothing less then total betrayal for money fear and power.
It makes you want slap them right across the face.
The only way to see that happen is for REAL Republicans to come out in the primaries and take them back from the MAGATs. It's because they fear getting primaried is why they do not speak the truth.
As a former Republican and now Independent, I vote in Republican primaries just to mess with Diaper Don. I am following Liz Cheney's example and doing all I can to keep the Orange Jesus out of the White House.
I am no longer quiet with my Republican friends and constantly point out all of his BS and lies. My favorite these days is to ask about the J6 folks that are in prison. Are they "hostages" or are they "ANTIFA' and "FBI informants"? They cannot be both. So is Donnie Boy going to pardon "hostages" or "ANTIFA" and the "FBI"?
And if those J6 people are in prison, doesn't that mean they broke the law? Because all of those juries that convicted them couldn't have been comprised of all left wing idiots.
If you keep harping on those facts, you start to make all of these MAGA people have to justify their the lunacy of the lies.
Yes, I don't get invited to many events with these people these days, but I think they are starting to realize that MAGA is a cult and that they are following Orange Boy off a cliff.
Go Jeff! Turning those who can be turned to the truth is our biggest challenge and highest calling! I am attempting to do the same thing in every way I can think of!
Be careful. You might confuse the MAGA crowd by using “truthiness” in your convos. 😄 It’s something they just can’t deal with...
I try not to watch any of his speeches (to maintain my own sanity), but the portions I have heard sound exactly as you described... "confused ramblings". I might squeeze the word "deranged" in there as well.
Totally
I heard his speech from yesterday and if it weren't for the fact everyone knows he doesn't drink, I would have sworn he was totally in the bag at that event.
I agree -- definitely appears that way.
He probably has dementia. That would explain so much of his statements and behavior, as well as the weird body language.
I fast-forward (or mute) whenever I see Trump speaking on news show. I cannot abide hearing his voice. However, I do get information about what he's saying by listening to NPR, reading Adam's letters, listening the The Bulwark podcast, and reading the NY Times. Those sources keep me informed of his lies and BS while avoiding actually hearing him.
Watching the Sunday morning "news" shows. Where are the Dems to refute this crap head on? The pundits all talk, on and on, about the horse race. And they completely drop the ball on calling out Don the Con's never ending lies and phony claims and dementia.
Last night Don talked at a rally in NH for TWO HOURS! Try to find the transcript of this "important campaign address" by a former President. Nope. No one, not even CSPAN, took the time to write it down because everyone, EVERYONE, discounts these rally ramblings as total BS. The Press will pick apart every word his opponents utter. But they give Don the Con a pass. "What crazy shit did he say this time?" Oh hum.
This concerns me. I was going cnn for Iowa race and the whole time thinking “why are we discussing Trump like he’s a normal guy”
Its time to start a campaign calling out the media for ..."discussing Trump like he's a normal guy." They are a huge, and potentially, overly influential part of this election. They love it because Trump sells. We need to require them to write and post more responsibly!
On CNN just now. Dana Bash asked Rep Veronica Escobar, Co-Chair of the Biden-Harris Campaign about the Democratic Party's message to combat what Trump is saying. She responded "it is early" and "we will draw a stark contrast between Biden and Trump" and then reminded us of what the economy was like at the end of his term, "we've seen what happens when we have someone like Donald Trump in office." Stark contrast? Someone "like" Donald Trump? What the hell? Get some Republicans on the air who tell the truth and shut down Don's Big Con. Sure looks like the Dems want Trump to be the nominee, thinking they can beat him. Dangerous game--for them and the Country.
I completely agree. The earlier the Democrats start hammering on Trump's contradictions, the better. I'd like to think it would have an effect in the Republican nomination but I think that ship may have already sailed.
Well I guess Niki is going to learn now. She was complacent to his lies and bullying during his presidency. But some people don’t learn until it’s directly happening to them. Maybe she should call Barack and ask him how to handle the birther issue.
Absolutely
As an independent I will be voting Tuesday. I was considering voting for Haley to strengthen her numbers. However after her slavery comment and the distortion Dean Phillips is floating, I will be writing in President Biden. If trump wants to assail someone, how about Sununu? He is pushing Haley very hard.
I encourage you to still vote for Haley in the primary rather than a protest vote even if you do not support her overall. That is the message that Trump needs. It will push him and bring out more of his true character. And if he were lose the nomination, he will not go quietly. He will burn the whole thing to the ground rather than let someone else have it. This would showcase effectively how much of a destructive force he actually is.
Trumps rallies are nothing more than indoctrination camps (ironic isn’t it) for the weak minded. It’s a meet up for the “Deplorables” as Hillary correctly called it long ago. Truth matters not to those who cannot fathom what their actions will ultimately result in. And that will be the complete loss of our long curated democracy.
None of them have actually confronted a key question. And that is, what has Trump actually delivered for the good of the people? Besides someone or something to hate. While he wallows in power and a pile of cash so willingly heaped upon him.
Do his followers actually get that they are royally screwed in the end? Seems not. Too hard for them to “think” that far ahead.
The Trump media machine is constantly running roughshod over America. Meanwhile, where in Gods name is the DNC response and counter messaging to all of this?
I bet very few can even name the head of the DNC. Come on Jaime. Let’s get going here!
I keep harping on the "tax cut" I supposedly got back in 2017. NOT! I have Turbo Tax charts that show I am still paying just as much as I was prior to those supposed "cuts".
Then I ask where is my fabulous health care program I was going to get back on the 2016 campaign trail? The Republicans had control of everything for two years! TWO YEARS! And all they could seemingly do is cut the taxes of people who already don't pay taxes.
And yet these MAGA people keep thinking they are being catered to and all that is happening is are being treated as the total RUBEs that they are. I really fear what happens when they finally figure out that they were played by Orange Jesus and his gang of grifters.
Jeff: this needs to be a political ad come October. Everyone needs to hear this from average Americans.
Jeff - you have to remember that Trump's health care plan is due to come out in 2 weeks. Note that this is a rolling schedule, and the release date will continue to be 2 weeks from... well, from whenever. 😁
Yeah ...
As in we will never, ever see it. Because if they fix Obamacare, then the MAGATs will have one less thing to complain about.
Just like the border. Heaven help us we fix immigration because then the GOP doesn't have something to bitch about.
And then we'll have to hear Langford or some other sane GOPer complain about the fact that they have no accomplishments to tout.
Yeah - I'd like to see the press hammer him on that constantly 'Sir, where is your plan?'
RIGHT ON!!!! The Republicans heaped a trillion dollar debt upon us to give tax cuts to corporations (the lifeblood of the rich) THEN COVID hit and they had to heap even more debt to bailout people and businesses (which is where we actually shoukd cteate deficit if necessary). DEBT HAWKS! HARDLY!
Where indeed is the DNC backbone? The apparent DNC strategy today is to treat Trump like the "respected opposition". "They lay low." When they better start showing up and countering lie for lie. And shining a light on the MAGAs in Congress and the enablers in the Press.
Now what? The question I wanted answered on the Zoom you and Steve did was where do we go? As we watch the fairytale of The Emperor Has No Clothes become our country’s reality what do we do? I feel hopeless and helpless. There are global implications that are beyond frightening and national implications that are frightening on a scale I’m afraid to contemplate. If this were a real fairytale the cavalry would arrive. I don’t see any cavalry in our immediate future.
The next ten months we have to continue staying engaged and pray for a win. Best advice i can give. If we win, we still have to battle and take energy from the win. If we lose, well we will cross that bridge when we hopefully never get there
Adam, absolutely. But will there be a Trump successor to take his place? Once the lies become mainstream (to some degree we are already there) how do we deal with it? This is one reason why I think Trump needs to go to jail. No one can be allowed to borrow his playbook and get away with it.
Like you I pray we never get there. Astounding that you & Liz Cheney fairly lay out all the dangers of Trump and almost no one else will publicly do so. What this says about our government is sad. We’re tied to the tracks, and the train is coming. Although you have haters I know you sleep at night.
We may not have a cavalry on the way but we do have The Lone Ranger and his trusty sidekick. Joe and Kamala beat the bad guy before and they’ll do it again. Hi-Yo Silver!
The thought of the worst outcome makes me cry. Truly cry.
Same
Tragically, none of this is new. I can not look at him or listen to his speeches, it is disgraceful. However, he NEEDS to be talked about but not in the ways the MSM is doing. He needs to be fact checked to the Nth degree after a speech and blasted everywhere. On the flip side, I worry that this is all baked in and won’t make a damn bit of difference. The people that need to hear it, won’t or will dismiss it as lies. My one prayer is that when the primary is over (Tuesday??) and it turns to the general, Trumps ramblings, his word salads, his lies, his mental acuity, are glaringly obvious. However, Biden needs to do some work, too. Biden needs to come out strong, be a statesman and show the world he is up for this task. We know he is but he can’t falter and he must convince his skeptics that he will be up to the task of the presidency once again.
🙏 Amen indeed
Honestly, I don’t believe that Donald J Trump knows the difference between the truth and a lie these days. He just starts freestyling with whatever pops into his addled mind and blurts it out. He has probably forgotten that Democrats cannot vote in the GOP primary, he thinks that anyone with a name reflective of their ethnicity is not a “real” citizen. He thinks the insurrectionists were patriots. Republicans in leadership positions endorse the crazy. Tim Scott, the guy formerly considered decent who has now shown himself for the spineless, shameless shill that he is, actually responded to a question about Trump’s birtherism with regard to Haley by saying that the Biden administration’s rhetoric is..,salacious. Seriously? And Harvard grad Elise Stefanik says she’d be “proud” to be Donald’s #2. What is WRONG with these people? Women and folks of color endorsing an unbelievably awful candidate who would destroy them both given the dictatorship that he craves?
Publius Cornelius Tacitus (famous Roman Historian) - "The lust for power is the worst of all possible passions."
Lord Acton (British Politician) - "Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely."
Trump and his MAGA maggots are not the true Republican Party-they are the Repugnantcans-I’m so sick and tired of him that even looking at him repulses me-we hear more about him than our own President Biden-Trump just needs to go!
You say this but over 60% of registered Republicans are avid supporters of Trump. Problem is... the Republican Party has changed immensely and Republicans still haven't figured it out. Time for a new party a little left of extreme right. I'd prefer in the middle so I might change my Democrat affiliation.
The one thing I do question and would love to hear Adam's take on it is can we take back the Republican party or is it a dumpster fire that needs to burn to the ground?
Liz Cheney seems to think that the Party is gone and cannot be salvaged. I've heard the same from a lot of non-MAGA Republicans here in Minnesota and elsewhere that they do not see how it can be salvaged.
And what do we do with the MAGA cultists that will never come around? Are there strategies we can take from the battle with ISIS to bring them back to reality? Or have we created a group that will be home grown terrorists to deal with?
I refuse to believe the Republican Party is dead and gone. It just has NO LEADERSHIP; those that could lead in a Constitutional direction have chosen to sit on the sidelines. Maybe bitch a little but .... Many Republicans (millions of them IMHO) are drinking Trump's Kool-aid because no one else is carrying water.
I saw the same thing on the other side when a few days ago Michelle Obama said she was terrified about what this election could bring but is she out on the campaign trail using some of the love and political capital she acquired as First Lady? No!! She was one of the most beloved First Ladies but has "retired". In this fight anyone who is sitting on the sidelines "retired" is part of the problem.
Sad and scary to contemplate. But I think most of these MAGAs never used to vote--they just sat in their homes and complained about how bad and unfair everything was. That’s why they aren’t so engaged (and dangerous) now. If I’m correct, most will see what has happened to the 1/6 rioters and decide it’s really not worth it to do Trumps bidding, since3 they do time while he skates. Voting is one thing, but doing crimes....too much work and risk to bother. Back to griping for most of them is my guess.
Sadly, they think they are the "saviors" of the Republic because the great Orange Jesus has told them so. As a result, they feel enabled to act on their feelings because he will protect them.
Yet he has proven time and agin that he wants nothing to do with them when the going gets tough. Martyrs for the Orange Jesus indeed.m
I have all the same questions. The party must be reconstituted. Will that actually happen is the ultimate question.
He’s telling them Haley was in charge of capitol security. Just WOW. The lies are getting wackier and wackier!
He’s lost what little mind he had left.
And yet, Haley will endorse him earnestly if he wins the nomination. Tim Scott defiled himself beyond repair in defending Trump this week. They’re all irredeemable.
This is what makes me especially sick. You got DeSantis who is cardboard anyway ....but what under 6 minutes DeSantis pulled out of the race he endorses trump? Next o wait for Haley to endorse trump too.
This sick man and all these Cowardly betrayers wanna live that sick life then good for them but you are not gonna think the rest of us os gonna drink that sick Kool aid.....or pay the price of no freedom no democracy? No way. Don't they have any face? How can any single one of these people be trusted to run for two clown never mind president of the US.
Total shame on them they let the American people so down its nothing less then total betrayal for money fear and power.
It makes you want slap them right across the face.
I'd like to know what the republicans in house and senate are thinking right now, if they all could speak honestly.
The only way to see that happen is for REAL Republicans to come out in the primaries and take them back from the MAGATs. It's because they fear getting primaried is why they do not speak the truth.
I'd love for them to stand up and say NO MORE