8 Donald Trump Mind Benders
By D. S. Mitchell
Face Slamming
For me, staying on track, with so many political news stories slamming me in the face, seemingly every minute, is a bit hard. My primary intention with Calamity News and Politics/Calamity Politics, is to be a voice for the progressive political agenda. I believe everything is political, so you will see articles on health care, housing, homelessness, suicide, struggling families, criminal ‘injustice’, and the overall inequality of our existing system. I hope to do that through sensible reporting, comment, opinion and conversation.
Objectivity?
Although, my agenda is progressive, I want to stay as objective as the facts allow me to be. I attempt to use a minimum of two sources for each story. I know my personality, so I expect I am likely to drop a commentary bomb somewhere in almost every post. However, my goal is to give you news. When writing an Editorial, however, I am more likely to go on a screaming tirade.
Outbursts
I will do my best to restrain those outbursts when posting my regular posts. If you want to watch me eviscerate the powerful, look for posts labeled Editorial. If I deviate from that set goal, I give my readers permission to remind me of my shortcomings. My central goal is to empower the powerless, encourage the weak and motivate the involvement of the many. When you read Calamity News and Politics it is the same as reading Calamity Politics, you just got to the site using a different URL. I am on Twitter, but find I do not have the energy it requires to be as visible as I would like. I hate Facebook. Because of that bias I am there only by social media arm twisting. Lastly, you can find CP posts on Pinterest.
Mud Wrestling
U.S. Politics is a rough and tumble world of scandal, bribery, conflict of interest and self-aggrandizement. Some liken it to mud-wrestling. Join me for the show. Today, I am going to list just a few of the alarming issues surrounding this baby administration.
1). Adult Children Escalate Security Costs
Globe Trotters
I was watching a political show yesterday, and the commentator did a quick piece on Eric, Ivanka, and Donald, Jr. It seems the Secret Service is providing protection to all the adult Trump children, while they gallop around the planet vacationing, trophy hunting, partying, doing real estate deals and sewing up trademark deals. Why was the spot so short, I wonder? It definitely deserves more attention. People should be screaming. I was. The cost of this foolishness is, as yet, unreported, but I am alarmed. I want to know, how much is this costing the US taxpayer? For some reason I doubt if the investigation will go any further than a 5 minute spot on a cable news program.
Cut Off
Why, in God’s name is the Secret Service providing security for the adult children of President Trump? There should be an age cut-off at some point. I can understand lifetime security for former presidents, but give me a break on this kind of protection for every adult member of his family. The Trumps tell us they have ship loads of money, so why the Hell should the United States government be paying for the security detail for his adult children. Eighteen years of age should be the cut-off age for any president’s children. It’s not like any of our recent presidents had money concerns.
2). MAR-A-LAGO Shenanigans
Who Does Trump Meet At Mar-a-Lago?
This is a Member’s Only Club, OWNED BY TRUMP. OMG! May I repeat, OMG!! The initiation fee is $200,000. Additionally, there is an annual membership dues of $14,000. Trump and the crew admit to meeting secretly with donors, according to today’s headlines, while at Mar-a-Lago this weekend. The citizens of this country are paying for these mini-vacations, at an estimated cost of 3 million dollars a weekend. Additionally, Trump, charges Secret Service for rooms and facility fees.
Ethics Forgotten
Where is the House Ethics Committee? Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), shame, shame, on you. “Get off your ass, and do your job”, as your constituents told you at your televised Town Hall. I was glad to see your constituents think there is more you could be doing. Who’s paying to have dinner with President Trump? Who’s paying President Trump fees, and favors? We don’t have the answer to that question, but we do know, that for a mere $200,000, you have a good chance of getting a word, or two, or, possibly more, with President Trump. If you pay enough, you can have Trump’s ear and no one will know about it.
3). Open Your Wallets
Secret Service Charges
The Trump Organization is renting to the Secret Service “a floor, or two,” at the Trump Tower, in NYC for 1.5 million dollars a year, per floor. So, whether it is 1.5 million or 3 million, it’s a fuckin’ lot of money. It looks bad. The question of conflict of interest, cannot be ignored. Why isn’t the Secret Service renting across the street? I don’t know how other people feel, but I don’t like the government paying Trump, to guard him at Trump Tower. The President should be providing the space free of charge. After all, it would be like pennies to a man who claims he is a billionaire many times over.
4). $55,000 Against FEC Regulations
Unsold Books
The Daily Beast reports that the Trump campaign, at Donald J. Trump’s direction, in 2016 paid $55,000 to buy a bunch of his unsold books. Apparently, the rag was re-named for the campaign, Great Again-How to Fix Our Crippled America. So that you understand this, Trump used donor money given to his campaign to further enrich himself. His campaign bought the book to give to Republican National Convention delegates. So far, so good. HOWEVER, Trump then had the campaign send the cash back to him. FEC regulations prohibit candidates from putting donor money in their pockets. I’m sure this will find a quick grave.
Up Those Rents
Furthermore, Huffington Post reported Trump jacked up rents once the RNC started picking up expenses. So the size of the rip off isn’t important, getting the better of someone, anyone, seems to be the number one rule. The sitting President of the United States and his crew seem to have a limitless capacity for scamming anyone within their line of sight, in this case his donors. It doesn’t matter, $5, $10, $1,000, or, as in this case, $55,000. Trump and his associates just run one cheap ass scam after another. Disgusting. Yeah, really disgusting.
5). Putin Orders Psych Report on Trump
Total Bullshit
I heard a cable news pundit say, just yesterday, “Putin is having buyer’s remorse.” LOL. I don’t believe that bucket of hogwash. Putin has Trump right where he wants him. Putin’s smirking face should be slammed into the nearest oil barrel. Sadly we won’t see it from this president. Why would the newsman think Putin is unhappy? Trump has done nothing but encourage the Russian bear. So, what I want to know why? Why are the Russians leaking such nonsense.
6). Trump’s “The Muslim Ban”
Travel Ban
No one seems to be talking about it, but the travel ban affected over 15,000 medical doctors and registered nurses. Many of these health care professionals serve rural access hospitals. I haven’t seen any numbers, on how many nurse’s and other adjunct medical people have been affected, but I can imagine as few as 10,000 people, up to as many as 30,000.
We Depend On Them
I’ll update readers if I see any verifiable statistics. I worked as an RN for 38 years. I worked with physicians and nurses from all over the world. At hospitals up and down the West Coast, from San Diego to Seattle. The American health care system depends on these wonderful people. The negative effect on the small rural hospitals, and vulnerable communities they work at is unimaginable.
Dr. D.
I know that one of the physicians I worked with in Astoria, Oregon was denied readmission. He had gone home to the Philippines for a wedding. When I spoke to a rep from the hospital I was told they expected they would have Doctor D. back at work in a month or two, they hoped. Hard to communicate the stupidity of such actions by the Trump administration. I would like to see more thought and less bluster from this administration. And a lot more heart.
7). “A Fine-Tuned Machine”
Lie Baby
The President of the United States, snorting and looking puffy eyed stares into the camera lens, and lies and lies. He lies when he doesn’t need to. He lies, just to keep in practice. “I inherited a mess, a mess,” he says, and I have replaced it with, “a fine-tuned machine.”
Fiasco King
From my West Coast bunker, I’d call it, “a finely fucked machine”. I have a message for our newly elected president. President Trump, I am watching and listening. Some of us, according to the polls about 60%, recognize a lie when they hear it. The last Gallup Poll showed a 40% favorability rating for Trump. Sad, but not surprising. When you are a jerk from Queens, you remain a jerk from Queens. “If you’re born round, you won’t die square,” I’ve heard said.
8). “A lot of money is pouring in”
Russia Connected
In 2008, Donald Jr, said in a Golf Magazine article said, “A lot of money is pouring in from Russia”. However when Russia comes up to the Trump elder he denies even knowing any Russians. In an extremely contentious press conference on February 16, 2017, President Trump lashed out at reporters who dared question him about his Russian ties. Trump denied all associations to Russia. “I own nothing in Russia”. Quickly followed by, “I have no loans in Russia”. I don’t have any deals in Russia.”
Three Decades Of Deals
Despite the denials from our thin-skinned president there is a lot of speculation that says once again Trump is lying. For the last 30 years, Trump, or Trump surrogates, have made frequent business trips to Russia, participated in multiple deals in Russia, and have engaged in financial dealings with wealthy Russians in the US and around the world.
Move On
Trump wants us to “Keep moving folks, nothing to see here”. Keep moving. Nothing to see here. Of course there is plenty to see, and I intend to keep watching and talking.
Join the Resistance.
