Trump's Card

[Ginger Yellow]

Tariffs to left of them, Klingons to right of them...

[johnr]

He's having a go at other countries for not paying their NATO dues at the moment. Is he right on this?

[Ginger Yellow]

No, in several ways. One, the 2% target is not what they're supposed to be paying now (according to the agreement), it's what they're supposed to get to in, I think, 2024. Two, when Trump talks about other countries being "delinquent" or owing the US money, he's just making shit up. The other countries paid what they owed to the budget, they just don't spend as much on defence as Trump would like them to, or that they have committed to in the long run.

[Flynnie]

I've long said that Trump MAGA'ing his way into an independent European defence policy would be possibly the single dumbest achievement of his entire Presidency. He's too stupid to see the mutually beneficial relationship that exists at the moment.

[johnr]

No, in several ways. One, the 2% target is not what they're supposed to be paying now (according to the agreement), it's what they're supposed to get to in, I think, 2024. Two, when Trump talks about other countries being "delinquent" or owing the US money, he's just making shit up. The other countries paid what they owed to the budget, they just don't spend as much on defence as Trump would like them to, or that they have committed to in the long run.

Thanks for that - it's always good to look to OTF for the best info...

[Walt Flanagans Dog]

Trump says Germany 'controlled by Russia'.


"Ultimately Germany will have almost 70% of their country controlled by Russia with natural gas, so you tell me - is that appropriate?" he asked at Wednesday's breakfast meeting with Mr Stoltenberg.

"Germany is totally controlled by Russia because they will be getting from 60 to 70% of their energy from Russia, and a new pipeline, and you tell me if that's appropriate because I think it's not and I think it's a very bad thing for Nato."

[Ginger Yellow]

There's another way in which it's nonsense, which is the idea that the US taxpayer is overpaying, as if the US would cut its own defence spending if EU countries spent more. From a president that proposed increasing the US defence budget by 13% in 2019 alone.

[Ginger Yellow]

He's not wrong in the abstract about the pipeline and Germany's dependence on Russian gas, by the way, though of course his numbers are way off and he's also vehemently opposed to measures that are diversifying Germany's energy supply. I think he's confusing the proportion of Germany's oil and gas that comes from Russia with the proportion of energy production, which is much lower.

[Femme Folle]

More fascistic power-grabbing:

https://twitter.com/RonaldKlain/status/1016833767900631040

[Lang Spoon]

Where is the Oswald for our times?

[Lang Spoon]

Or at least, test the Prez for syphillis.

[adams house cat]

The point about syphilis may not be far wrong LS. I had a client some years ago who killed a baby. His behavior was so erratic that we had him tested for syphilis. He had done five years in CNMCF where he had been raped. He tested positive for syphilis. His brain was swiss cheese. He is dead now.

[ad hoc]

This woman (Ash Sarkar) is brilliant

https://twitter.com/GMB/status/1017298433563136000

I know it goes without saying, but by christ Piers Morgan is an utter dick

[Ginger Yellow]

Some quality financial journalism parochialism from one of my competitors here:
Trump nominates CLO risk-retention judge to Supreme Court

[adams house cat]

Where is the Oswald for our times?

Don't agree with assassination LS. The consequences would be catastrophic with a great deal of violence and bloodshed. El Trumpo's acolytes would go on a wild rampage and anyone without a lily white complexion would be seen as fair game. Anyway, we would get Pence.

[MsD]

It's landed safely. :-(

[Satchmo Distel]

Isn't Piers on the Trump payroll, more or less? Certainly there's a mutual interest between him and Trump.

[adams house cat]

They are both gifted contortionists, able to simultaneously stick their heads up their ass with their foot in their mouth.

[Femme Folle]

I don't agree with assassinations either, but I'm genuinely surprised that no one has made a serious attempt. As angry as I have felt because of what he has done, and I don't own a gun and am able to control myself, I just imagine that there are people who are not able to control their rage who do own a gun. Maybe after the economy goes to shit and more of his base are adversely affected, one of them will try. They are the people most likely to do that sort of thing, I believe.

But they better not leave us with Ponce or Eddie Munster.

[WOM]

Trump doesn't present many opportunities, though. Most presidents this early in their term (before they get unpopular) show up in public fairly regularly and shake hands. Trump is a phantom unless it's a highly security-controlled environment like one of his rallies. He's not popping into burger / chicken joints like Obama did.

[MsD]

A load of helicopters have been flying over. Presumably fuckface on one and the others decoys for people to shoot at.

[Satchmo Distel]

Economic collapse is surely preferable to 45's death if we want to rid ourselves of the GOP virus. Something that makes them unelectable.

[Ginger Yellow]

Sorry Tubby, Paul Ryan isn't saving you from tariffs

[Tubby Isaacs]

Fighting hard for Wisconsin.

[San Bernardhinault]

There's all kinds of weird performative nonsense going on in Washington right now.

One, today, was the "Peter Strzok hearing". If you don't know what this is, you're lucky. Strzok was an FBI agent who once sent a text that wasn't very nice about Donald Trump. This, according to Republican nutjob land, means that the Clinton investigation (which, ironically, was shown to help Trump), and the Russia investigation, are deeply corrupt and must be ended now. This hearing is, of course, utterly pointless, but is being put on for the purposes of increasing Republican opposition to Mueller. It is pure show, and isn't even meant for the general public. It's purely for the Breitbart and Daily Caller and Infowars demographics.

Meanwhile, and slightly more interestingly, is the Jim Jordan story. This is also a bit baffling - Jim Jordan a Republican Representative and is the founder of the Freedom Caucus. He's actually not been accused of doing anything wrong. Long ago, he was a wrestling coach at a university, and it turns out that the doctor on the team appears to have repeatedly been involved on voyeurism and assault. And that everyone knew. The scandal is that Jordan claims he didn't know - and appears to obviously be lying here. What interests me about this is that the story appeared just as Jordan was being talked about as a potential challenger for Paul Ryan's job. That leads me to think that this scandal has been leaked and hyped and pushed by Steve Scalise and Kevin McCarthy. It has all the hallmarks of someone in the Republican halls of power trying to bring Jordan down before any leadership bid could take place.