Althouse: "It would be good if top Hill Republicans went en masse to the president and said: 'Stop it. Clean up your act. Shut your mouth. Do your job. Stop tweeting.'"

May 20, 2017

"It would be good if top Hill Republicans went en masse to the president and said: 'Stop it. Clean up your act. Shut your mouth. Do your job. Stop tweeting.'"

"'Stop seething. Stop wasting time. You lost the thread and don't even know what you were elected to do anymore. Get a grip. Grow up and look at the terrain, see it for what it is. We have limited time. Every day you undercut yourself, you undercut us. More important, you keep from happening the good policy things we could have done together. If you don't grow up fast, you'll wind up abandoned and alone. Act like a president or leave the presidency.' Could it help? For a minute. But it would be constructive -- not just carping, leaking, posing, cheering and tweeting but actually trying to lead. The president needs to be told: Democracy is not your plaything."

Writes Peggy Noonan in "Democracy Is Not Your Plaything/When the circus comes to Washington, it consumes everything, absorbs all energy" (in the WSJ).

Here are the top-rated comments there:

1. "Though I usually enjoy your articles, Ms. Noonan, this is way overblown. Wrenching questions? Seriously? Methinks you need to turn a critical eye to your own profession. Many of the slithering reptiles in Washington are incendiary journalists who revel in this circus. A circus of its own making. This latest piece of yours is part of the act. But do you realize it?"

2. "Nice try Peggy. It's not Trump, it's your lefty friends. And your left is not interested. They are so radical they want a coup and they are going to get it. This is a revolution and your side wants power and will get it even if we all have to get trampled in the mud. Duly elected POTUS? Doesn't matter. This is a coup. The left is not just out of control, they are severe, violent radicals. Violent times are coming, thanks to the left."

258 comments:

1 – 200 of 258 Newer› Newest»

J. Farmer said...: Noonan seems to be under the assumption that "Hill Republicans" have principles and backbones as opposed to the supine bought-and-paid-for jellyfish that they are. Even after the immigration issue helped carry Trump to the White House (and helped eject former House Majority Leader Eric Cantor), "Hill Republicans" are still trying to screw the voters on amnesty. Their paymasters are addicted to cheap labor, and if that means screwing poor dumb yokels who don't have the IQ and skills to benefit from globalization, then so be it.; 5/20/17, 1:05 PM
Anonymous said...: "Grow up"? Why did they elect a child to begin with? As for Republicans having an intervention on Trump, I doubt it. First it would be bad optics for them, they are too afraid of the Trumpists reaction.; 5/20/17, 1:05 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Andrew Mccarthy said...
I admit to being slack-jawed over the New York Times report that President Trump smeared former FBI director James Comey in a conversation with representatives of Russia’s murderous, anti-American regime.

The president first told his guests that the former FBI director – a decorated former prosecutor and investigator who has spent most of his professional life trying to protect the United States from terrorists, hostile governments, and criminals – was “crazy, a real nut job.” Remarkably, Trump then managed to top himself, adding that by firing Comey, he had “taken off” the “great pressure” he faced “because of Russia.”

Let’s say that, as Sean Spicer says, Comey is a grandstander who has intentionally politicized an investigation in order to undermine the president. He’s still not the Russians. “America First,” remember? Comey is an American who believes in America; Lavrov and Kislyak are Putin operatives who oppose America at every turn. Comey believes in freedom and the rule of law; the Putin regime believes in Soviet tyranny and the rule of Putin.

There is no excuse for a president of the United States to run down an American for the consumption of our Russian adversaries – particularly an American who is fighting against Russia’s operations against our country. It is indefensible.; 5/20/17, 1:06 PM
tcrosse said...: Why did they elect a child to begin with?

Consider the alternative.; 5/20/17, 1:06 PM
Bay Area Guy said...: Noonan is truly a gifted writer. Love her to death.

But she is wrong here, as many right-wingers are, about Trump.

His tone is what upsets folks. His style, his manners, his bravado, his braggadocio don't gel with many calm, sober, dare I say boring, David Gergen-NPR listening types.

My suggestion is to get PAST his tone, focus on major policy issues, and see whether Trump is improving substantive policy issues or not.

Basically, the anti-Trumpers are acting worse than Trump, and to calm down.; 5/20/17, 1:10 PM
Anonymous said...: "Consider the alternative."

I have and Trump makes Hillary look like Pollyanna. That's no excuse for hoisting him upon America.; 5/20/17, 1:10 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: tcrosse said...
"Why did they elect a child to begin with? "
Consider the alternative.

Much could be said of Clinton's personal qualities, but 'childlike' is not an obvious place to start.; 5/20/17, 1:10 PM
Mark said...: It has long been time for Peggy Noonan to STFU -- and for Hill Republicans to get their heads out of their asses and do what they promised to do and were elected to do.; 5/20/17, 1:12 PM
LTC Ted said...: The Hill critters can't wait to remove President Trump so they can get back to lamenting the evils of the other party over their free Friday Surf and Turf in the Congressional dining halls.; 5/20/17, 1:12 PM
Michael K said...: My comment at that column:

Peggy, you are part of the swamp and you show it more and more every week.

"Crucially needed reforms in taxing, regulation and infrastructure—changes the country needs!—are thwarted, all momentum killed. Markets are nervous."

The idiot Congress does this if it does anything to justify its existence and its perks. Trump has done a lot on regulation. Where is the Congress' tax reform proposal? Where is the Obamacare repeal ? Where are the budget and spending bills?

You blame Trump but he is the only one I see trying to govern.

And I think that says it all for me.; 5/20/17, 1:14 PM
khesanh0802 said...: Peggy Noonan has fallen back into her establishment roots since the election. Prior to the election she had a sense of what was happening and she probably talked about it because she never thought Trump would win. Now that he is in charge she wants H. W. instead.; 5/20/17, 1:15 PM
Michael K said...: I've had about 40 up votes on that comment, by the way.; 5/20/17, 1:16 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Noonan said...
And giving speeches, as he did this week at the Coast Guard Academy: “No politician in history, and I say this with great surety, has been treated worse or more unfairly.” Actually Lincoln got secession, civil war and a daily pounding from an abolitionist press that thought he didn’t go far enough and moderates who slammed his brutalist pursuit of victory. Then someone shot him in the head. So he had his challenges.

Multiple people have made this point but no one has done it as elegantly.; 5/20/17, 1:16 PM
tcrosse said...: Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are both perfectly awful, each in their own way.
We voters were offered a Hobson's Choice, because the Democrats rigged their nomination and the Republicans didn't rig theirs.; 5/20/17, 1:20 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Noonan said...
It is absurd to think the president can solve his problems by firing his staff. They are not the problem. He is the problem. They’re not the A-Team, they’re not the counselors you’d want, experienced and wise. They’re the island of misfit toys. But they could function adequately if he could lead adequately. For months he’s told friends he’s about to make big changes, and doesn’t. Why? Maybe because talented people on the outside don’t want to enter a poisonous staff environment just for the joy of committing career suicide. So he’s stuck, surrounded by people who increasingly resent him, who fear his unpredictably and pique and will surely one day begin to speak on the record.; 5/20/17, 1:20 PM
Lewis Wetzel said...: Blogger AReasonableMan said...
Much could be said of Clinton's personal qualities, but 'childlike' is not an obvious place to start.

5/20/17, 1:10 PM
There are far worse things in a president than being "child like." Teddy R. was child like in many ways.
The focus on Assange, Trump, and the Russians takes the pressure off of the Democrats to own up to their own failings. The Democrats have become moral absolutists to a greater degree than the GOP. The Wikileaks revealed that Clinton's own staff believed that she was a poor candidate, and although they do not mention this directly, those failings would have made her a poor president. Cupidity, secrecy, back-stabbing, and a lack of empathy for the common person (or even the ability to fake it).; 5/20/17, 1:20 PM
320Busdriver said...: Comey is a tool..He'd have put any of us away for doing what HC did..Of course it wasn't her "intent" to break the laws. She is too dumb for that.; 5/20/17, 1:22 PM
Earnest Prole said...: If Trump believes twitter put him in the White House then no amount of persuasion, least of all by Congressional Republicans or Peggy Noonan, will get him to put his phone down. And for all the grief twitter has caused Trump, it has also saved him more than once by allowing him to bypass haters in the media and appeal directly to the American people. But the rest of Noonan's advice is sound: time is indeed limited and slipping away, and Trump seems to have lost the thread.; 5/20/17, 1:23 PM
Otto said...: When all the dust is settled he will be TRiUMPhant.; 5/20/17, 1:23 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: khesanh0802 said...
Peggy Noonan has fallen back into her establishment roots since the election. Prior to the election she had a sense of what was happening and she probably talked about it because she never thought Trump would win. Now that he is in charge she wants H. W. instead.

This is unfair. Noonan's sympathies before the election were clearly with the people that Trump brought into the party, not Trump himself. She reasonably sees Trump's incompetence as a betrayal of these people. Noonan has been consistent.; 5/20/17, 1:23 PM
Bill, Republic of Texas said...: "Why did they elect a child to begin with?"

Because people like you who threw away their vote on Jill Stein. If Hillary was so wonderful and Trump so awful, why did you vote in such a selfish manner?

Why did you impose Trump on us?; 5/20/17, 1:24 PM
I'm Full of Soup said...: Peggy still thinks honorable and worthwhile things get done in the Imperial City. She is so wrong.; 5/20/17, 1:25 PM
The Godfather said...: I agree with a lot (not all) of the criticisms of Trump, but no one who honestly wanted to help him improve his performance and accomplish his goals would imagine, even as a fantasy, addressing him in such a condescending, rude, dismissive, disrespectful, and bullying way. This wouldn't be an intervention, it would be an indictment. If this is the way Noonan thinks, then she should be honest and say that she's gone over to the "other side".; 5/20/17, 1:25 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/20/17, 1:28 PM
Anonymous said...: "Because people like you who threw away their vote on Jill Stein. If Hillary was so wonderful and Trump so awful, why did you vote in such a selfish manner?"

You're right. I will forever regret my vote for Jill Stein. I should've voted for Clinton, despite the daily demonization aimed at her. Why did you vote for Trump? I hope you too see the error of your vote, but I doubt you're that introspective or honest. We would not be going through what we are now if Clinton had become President, despite her own failings.; 5/20/17, 1:30 PM
mockturtle said...: J. Farmer sums it up nicely: Noonan seems to be under the assumption that "Hill Republicans" have principles and backbones as opposed to the supine bought-and-paid-for jellyfish that they are.

The likes of David Brooks and George Will no doubt applaud her sanctimony.; 5/20/17, 1:30 PM
n.n said...: The press and establishment have been on a baby hunt since day -100 and have only managed to expose witches... and classified and sensitive information that places our nation, friends, and allies at increased risk.; 5/20/17, 1:33 PM
David Begley said...: Agree with Bay Area Guy but most people can't get past Trump's style, bluster and manner.

I do think that a close friend and peer, Tom Barrack, might convince Trump to tone things down.; 5/20/17, 1:34 PM
khesanh0802 said...: @ARM Is this the same Andrew McCarthy?

Who said this in an interview with Sirius' Alex Marlow:

“I’ve known Comey for 30 years, so I have a personal relationship with him,” said McCarthy. “I disagree strongly with the way he handled the Hillary Clinton investigation but I kinda think, Alex, that he’s been the same guy all along. It’s the political expediencies and whirlwinds around him that have changed perceptions of him.”

“They loved him in July when he cleared Mrs. Clinton. They hated him in October when he reopened the investigation. He was given Satan status in November when they counted the votes. And now he’s Eliot Ness all over again because he’s pitted against Trump,” he said of the Democrats’ attitude toward Comey.

Marlow asked if Mueller’s appointment might reduce the huge number of leaks coming out of the White House.

“It’s certainly within his mandate, Alex, to pursue that,” McCarthy replied. “I actually think one prosecution would do the trick. If they could just get the unmasking of Flynn and find out who gave that name to the Times.”

“This is Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act wiretapping. There’s not a lot of people who have access to that information,” he elaborated. “It ought to be possible to figure out who did the unmasking, and from there to go from who did the unmasking to who got access to the information, and try to find the narrow world of people who may have been able to give that to – was it the New York Times that got it? No, it was the Washington Post.”

McCarthy predicted that “only one prosecution along those lines, or even if you couldn’t find the leaker, one aggressive attempt” might be sufficient to bring the flood of leaks under control."

Or this in an interview on May 17 to CBS' Philly affiliate:

“Evidently, Comey wrote these kind of memoranda a lot, according to what we’re hearing. What the Times has mined is one basic statement out of what is surely a longer memo and anyone who wants to evaluate something for purposes of obstruction of justice would want to see the entire context of the conversation. For example, we would think much differently, perhaps, of what we know about it, if we learned that Trump said, look, I’m not telling you what to do and you do whatever you think is right, but I really hope you see your way clear to letting Flynn go because I think he’s a good guy. That would be awkward. It would probably be inappropriate, but it would not rise to the level of criminality.”; 5/20/17, 1:35 PM
khesanh0802 said...: @ARM Is this the same Andrew McCarthy?(cont.)

Or this In an article in National Review on 15 May

"All that said, how unusual is this sort of thing, really? It is a good question that Steve Hayward raises at Power Line — along with a Washington Post report reminding us that, less than a year ago, the Obama administration was offering to share with Russia intelligence about ISIS operations in Syria . . . which sounds an awful lot like what Trump was doing. When Osama bin Laden was killed, President Obama was not content to explain that fact to the American people. His administration gratuitously disclosed that the raid on the al-Qaeda emir’s compound in Pakistan produced a “trove” of actionable intelligence. From a national-security standpoint, this political grandstanding was a foolish: It gave al-Qaeda operatives a heads-up that their cells and activities had likely been exposed, providing them the opportunity to disappear before our forces could roll them up. And then there is the Obama administration’s leak disclosing (to the Washington Post) General Michael Flynn’s conversations with Russian ambassador Sergei Kislyak. This was done with obvious malevolence to hurt Flynn and Trump (who had named Flynn national-security adviser). The beneficiary, however, was Russia. It received valuable information that its ambassador was under surveillance and that whatever countermeasures the Kremlin’s intelligence services had been taking had failed. This is apt to make Russian operatives more difficult to monitor in the future."

Or are you quoting the Andrew McCarthy who co-starred in "Weekend at Bernie's"; 5/20/17, 1:35 PM
n.n said...: Principals before principles.; 5/20/17, 1:36 PM
Anonymous said...: "Violent times are coming, thanks to the left."

And they complained about us pussyhatter's peaceful protests. What these people don't realize is that there are people on the left, the middle and sane conservatives that will fight back much harder than they can possibly imagine.; 5/20/17, 1:37 PM
Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...: True: It would be good if top Republicans went en masse ...

Equally true or more so: It would be good if top Republicans did their own job first, which is to repeal the Afraudable Care Act; adjust the tax code to a) simplify it and b) ensure every citizen pays some income tax; eliminate burdensome, redundant, and conflicting laws and regulations, and generally return Liberty and freedom of action to the citizenry.; 5/20/17, 1:41 PM
n.n said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/20/17, 1:42 PM
Hagar said...: A year or two ago Newt Gingrich said that when your own voters tell you they hate you more than they do the opposing party, you need to pay attention to that.

Good advice, but the GOPe are not people who readily take advice from anybody, even Newtie.; 5/20/17, 1:46 PM
khesanh0802 said...: @ARM Peggy viewed Trump as the guy who identified and empathized with the people you say he "brought into" the party ( ARM, they voted for him!). No, she did not love Trump but she did not attack him the way Bret Stephens did because she admitted that he was speaking for many who were voiceless.

Here's what she said on November 11. "Those who come to this space know why I think what happened, happened. The unprotected people of America, who have to live with Washington’s policies, rebelled against the protected, who make and defend those policies and who care little if at all about the unprotected. That broke bonds of loyalty and allegiance. Tuesday was in effect an uprising of the unprotected. It was part of the push-back against detached elites that is sweeping the West and was seen most recently in the Brexit vote."

Now she is shilling for the elites again. It's hard to break the habits of a lifetime.; 5/20/17, 1:52 PM
n.n said...: The Republicans need to close ranks, support Trump, and represent the will of the People and our Posterity, the American electorate.

Violent times are coming, thanks to the left

Violent time are here. An unprecedented violence in recent times, before, during, and after the election, that was carried out in the press and in the streets. Trump is opposed by special and peculiar interests, overlapping and convergent interests, from the left, right, and center. Placing Americans, the People and our Posterity, first, has exposed these party's greater demons across the political spectrum.

poor dumb yokels who don't have the IQ and skills to benefit from globalization

This is, in part, why Trump was elected. Americans can compete on merit, some, many, most, but not when they are deprecated through insourcing (i.e. excessive immigration) and outsourcing (e.g. environmental, labor, regulatory arbitrage). It is exactly this perspective that distinguished the candidates.; 5/20/17, 1:54 PM
Viejo Loco said...: Inga - I recognize you as one of the leftover Fifth Columnists from Soviet days, although I haven't seen your name in the Venona Diaries (yet). Keep on believing you r tale about the "Resistance" to the outraged middle; they can bury you with it. You have no idea what boils out here in "real" America. We have had it up to here with you and your kinds snide condescension.
Pat Caddell spoke and wrote about years ago; the working middle are fed up about it. You have no idea in your snotty enclave.; 5/20/17, 1:56 PM
Bill, Republic of Texas said...: Inga,

I don't regret my vote. I not so stupid that I could screw up my vote as badly as you did. I support Trump only on immigration and trade. Those positions need to be expressed and supported.

Maybe if you would open your mind and stop the prejudice, hatred and judgment you would think more clearly and not let your demons rule your intellect.

As for Clinton everything would be calm. Only glowing interviews and fawning press coverage.

While Clinton has is involved in a war in Syria and beating the drums to get us involved in Yemen. And how many Ambassadors would die because of her inattention and disregard for their pleas for help.

Millions of illegals crossing the border to get in on her amnesty agreement. Bill would be raking in billions from the Russians and Hillary would be doing them favors by shutting down fracking. After she gave them uranium and lowered US production of gas she'd look for something else to sell. After 4 years Chelsea would be the richest woman in the country.

Hillary would have Wall Street and the bankers getting everything thing they ever wanted (for the right price of course). Income inequality would be on the rise.; 5/20/17, 1:57 PM
Trumpit said...: Trump will never become a good president because he is a bad person. He's a narcissist, a fool, a bully, a fraud, etc. His ugly personality is immutable. He's not above the law, and he should be held to account for his serious infractions. In my opinion, he won't be reelected.; 5/20/17, 2:00 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: khesanh0802 said...
Now she is shilling for the elites again.

Commenting on Trump's self-evident personal failings is not 'shilling for the elites'. Facts are facts.; 5/20/17, 2:00 PM
J. Farmer said...: @n.n.

This is, in part, why Trump was elected. Americans can compete on merit, some, many, most, but not when they are deprecated through insourcing (i.e. excessive immigration) and outsourcing (e.g. environmental, labor, regulatory arbitrage). It is exactly this perspective that distinguished the candidates.

Agree completely. The libertarian right and the multicultural left are united in their loathing for borders and nation-states.; 5/20/17, 2:01 PM
J. Farmer said...: @Trumpit:

Trump will never become a good president because he is a bad person.

I don't know. Clinton seemed to manage to combine a sociopathic personality with a pretty successful presidency. I doubt a "good person" is even capable of being President of the United States given that "being a mass murderer" appears to be an acceptable part of the president's job duties in today's world of permanent warfare.; 5/20/17, 2:03 PM
khesanh0802 said...: @Hammond X. Exactly. The Congress has the opportunity to accomplish what they have been advertising for eight years. All they have to do is pass the legislation and send it to Trump. He'll sign it. Until legislation is passed in both houses of Congress Trump can't sign anything.; 5/20/17, 2:04 PM
wholelottasplainin said...: Inga said...
"Violent times are coming, thanks to the left."

And they complained about us pussyhatter's peaceful protests. What these people don't realize is that there are people on the left, the middle and sane conservatives that will fight back much harder than they can possibly imagine.

********************
How could they? The Left has already disarmed themselves. Firearms are "ick", remember?
If you think the middle and "sane" conservatives will take up the slack for them, you're nuts.; 5/20/17, 2:07 PM
Earnest Prole said...: Godfather: Exactly right. Noonan's condescending tone shows she values virtue-signaling over persuasion, which is a pity because Trump could really use some sound and genuinely sympathetic advice right now.; 5/20/17, 2:10 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: J. Farmer said...
Clinton seemed to manage to combine a sociopathic personality with a pretty successful presidency.

What standard are we using for 'successful' here?; 5/20/17, 2:10 PM
wholelottasplainin said...: If the Republicans tried to hold an intervention for Trump, I suspect it would turn out like the one for Christopher in "The Sopranos":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_peSCECc4I

(language NSFW)

It's gets really good at about 3:20.; 5/20/17, 2:12 PM
tcrosse said...: Trump will never become a good president because he is a bad person.

If you think Hillary is any better, you haven't been paying attention.; 5/20/17, 2:12 PM
J. Farmer said...: @AReasonableMan:

What standard are we using for 'successful' here?

Depends on your politics there. I would say the 90s were a better decade than the oughts, but only a small number of the reasons could be attributed to Clinton. But that's how these things go. Presidents get blame they don't deserve and accolades they don't deserve,; 5/20/17, 2:18 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/20/17, 2:18 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: When do Americans get a special prosecutor to re-open criminal case on Clinton Foundation, Private Server, and lucrative secret Russian Uranium deals?; 5/20/17, 2:18 PM
Michael K said...: She reasonably sees Trump's incompetence as a betrayal of these people.

No, the betrayal is by the GOPe who live for the checks from donors. A lot of donors are either globalist crony capitalists or libertarians like the Koch brothers who want open borders.

Clinton seemed to manage to combine a sociopathic personality with a pretty successful presidency.

What standard are we using for 'successful' here?

Clinton was successful because he was smart enough to recognize what the 1994 election meant.

Hillary and the left today have no clue about the 2016 election.

I just enjoy watching fools talking about "Hillbillies" as trump voters. You just don't get it.

By all means go farther left with your 2018 campaign.; 5/20/17, 2:21 PM
Earnest Prole said...: If the Republicans tried to hold an intervention for Trump, I suspect it would turn out like the one for Christopher in "The Sopranos"

Exactly. I love that scene.; 5/20/17, 2:22 PM
Anonymous said...: "You have no idea what boils out here in "real" America. We have had it up to here with you and your kinds snide condescension."

You have no idea that the resistance are also "real Americans". Who the hell do you think we are? Did you not see the 4 Million people out in the streets protesting the day after the Inauguration? You sound like the dopey Palin. Are you so insulated in your Fox News view of America that you think only you Trumpists represent America? I don't live on either coast, I live in middle America. The people protesting were not just the "coastal elites". What a narrow small view of America you have.; 5/20/17, 2:22 PM
khesanh0802 said...: @ ARM Here's key section of Peggy's piece:
"But he was duly and legally elected by tens of millions of Americans who had legitimate reasons to support him, who knew they were throwing the long ball, and who, polls suggest, continue to support him. They believe the press is trying to kill him. “He’s new, not a politician, give him a chance.” What would it do to them, what would it say to them, to have him brusquely removed by his enemies after so little time? Would it tell them democracy is a con, the swamp always wins, you nobodies can make your little choices but we’re in control? What will that do to their faith in our institutions, in democracy itself?"

Given the start of this current trip it's not hard to see some competence there.

Just for perspective on contemporary views of "competence" here are some excerpts from an Atlantic article in June 2013 about Lincoln:

"He was called a coward, “an idiot,” and “the original gorilla” by none other than the commanding general of his armies, George McClellan."

“is reelected I shall immediately leave the country for the Fijee Islands.” Susan B. Anthony

“timid vacillating & inefficient.” Senator Zachariah Chandler of Michigan

“There is a strong feeling among those who have seen Mr. Lincoln, in the way of business, that he lacks practical talent for his important place." Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts

“We pass over the silly remarks of the President. For the credit of the nation we are willing that the veil of oblivion shall be dropped over them, and they shall be no more repeated or thought of.” A Pennsylvania newspaper report (or not) of the Gettysburg Address

“a little speech of ‘glittering generalities’ used only to fill in the program.” The NY Herald on the second inaugural address ( " With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations." That one.); 5/20/17, 2:30 PM
DanTheMan said...: In other words: "Now that you've been elected, please stop acting like the person we elected, and be like all the people we rejected in the primary. Please become Jeb Bush."

No, thanks.; 5/20/17, 2:30 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Michael K said...
the betrayal is by the GOPe

The GOPe has many flaws but they are not responsible for Trump's inability to function as a chief executive. They have been doing their best to prop him up in order to pass their shit sandwich of tax cuts for the rich.

Trump's real problems start when the GOPe decides its not worth the effort any more.; 5/20/17, 2:31 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: The collective leftwing press is so over-the-top hysterical and out to get Trump (or any R for that matter)

GOPe to blame? More propaganda from the left. The media are to blame.; 5/20/17, 2:31 PM
buwaya said...: Inga,
This just goes to show that even in the middle of the country the sides are irreconcilable. At that point it becomes a matter of power.
Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to determine where the physical power lies in your locality, in whose hands it is, and thereby the likely outcome of a conflict, of you against them.; 5/20/17, 2:33 PM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: Why shouldn't Trump badmouth Comey, clearly a partisan nutjob, to absolutely anyone? Interesting that his alleged negative comments about Comey were quoted without any context. That's usually a dead giveaway of a hatchet job.; 5/20/17, 2:36 PM
Darrell said...: The 4 million people were Hillary's victory party--organized well in advance, and too late to call off. They will join Inga and the Left in the dustbin of history. Shit on the sidewalk, if you must.; 5/20/17, 2:39 PM
khesanh0802 said...: @Inga Some of us are well aware that the so-called "resistance " is by real Americans. What we question is their judgement and motivation. The election was held among all real Americans and Donald Trump won under the rules of play. He is our President and many of us real Americans are offended by the lies and distortions - and just plain ignorance in some cases - of the so-called "resistance" and their mouthpiece the MSM.

Please don't take the "ignorance" comment as personal. It is a generalization based on some of the unlearned reporting that I have read.; 5/20/17, 2:40 PM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: "You have no idea that the resistance are also "real Americans"."

4 million white, middle-class hysterics egging one another on in their delusions via Facebook. Wow, the hillsides just ring with "Free the People!", don't they?; 5/20/17, 2:42 PM
mockturtle said...: The GOPe is afraid that they may lose ground in the 2018 elections because of Trump. Trump won in spite of, not due to, the GOPe. If they succeed in ousting Trump, they won't be getting my vote next year. They'll get the same demographic that failed to elect Romney. As an Independent, I plan to vote that way. The GOP has done nothing and expects to be rewarded for it.; 5/20/17, 2:51 PM
Anonymous said...: "When the circus comes to Washington" is the American English equivalent of "Coals to Newcastle".; 5/20/17, 2:53 PM
buwaya said...: And to Ingas point, there is a severe imbalance of information between the left-liberal and the right. This is nothing new at all, it was noted back in the 1950s.

The right listens to the left, almost obsessively. The left dominate all forms of media, including social media. Indeed, a great deal of right-wing media, just like Althouse, repeats left-liberal pieces. That is, for instance, the bread and butter of Drudge and Freerepublic and even Instapundit. Most of the "right" nature on this is simply commentary. Much of this commentary is exceedingly well informed, as the right wing bench is very deep.

There is the running gag that the greater part of MSNBCs audience is in fact right wingers.

There was also a running gag, way long ago, that there was 50% overlap in subscribers to "National Review" and the "Nation", and all of these were Republicans.

The left though almost never actually reads or listens to what the right is saying. There is some idea there of contagion. At best they will read a filtered "gorillas in the mist" sort of thing. This leads to ignorance. And the "gorillas in the mist" article is also a right-wing trope, as they are so, so familiar with the opposition media.

The reality of audience bubbles is that there really is only one bubble, and Fox, or Limbaugh, or Instapundit, are not in it, and the balance of ignorance is exceedingly lop-sided.; 5/20/17, 2:53 PM
Jim at said...: "The left is not just out of control, they are severe, violent radicals. Violent times are coming, thanks to the left."

Quoted for truth.; 5/20/17, 2:55 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: Impeachment-hungry #Resistance will NOT like what Alan Dershowitz told Tucker Carlson

watch the video at the link.

Maxine Crazy-Water and Inga hardest hit.; 5/20/17, 2:57 PM
Achilles said...: Inga said...
"Violent times are coming, thanks to the left."

And they complained about us pussyhatter's peaceful protests. What these people don't realize is that there are people on the left, the middle and sane conservatives that will fight back much harder than they can possibly imagine.

I am going to have to make a new list file, maybe theDumbestThingsEverPostedOnline.docx, and use this as the inaugural post.; 5/20/17, 3:02 PM
Achilles said...: I didn't know that Dennis Kucinich was a part of the extreme right.

I am sure Inga can get a bunch of her lefty friends to go kick his ass. They are super tough and scary.; 5/20/17, 3:04 PM
Unknown said...: "...the President trashed Comey [a patriotic American] to two representatives of a regime hostile to the United States."

America First. Make America Great Again.

Ooops! Try again ...

Russia First. Make Russia Great Again.

Way to go Trumpski's.; 5/20/17, 3:12 PM
Comanche Voter said...: Inga keep wearing that pussy hat. It's just a wee bit better than tinfoil--but not much.; 5/20/17, 3:13 PM
Fen said...: No. The "resistance" are not real Americans. They are sore losers throwing a perpetual temper tantrum. They are traitors trying to overturn a fair election with gossip and vague unsupported allegations. They deserve to be drug out into the streets and shot in the face.; 5/20/17, 3:13 PM
mockturtle said...: Rene, thank you for the link. Good interview.; 5/20/17, 3:13 PM
Achilles said...: buwaya said...

The reality of audience bubbles is that there really is only one bubble, and Fox, or Limbaugh, or Instapundit, are not in it, and the balance of ignorance is exceedingly lop-sided.

And the only people that can read and understand your explanation already know this. Inga will never get to this part of your post. She will only read it in my post because I bolded it and put it at the top. Even then part of the reason she is on the left is she is unable to self reflect.; 5/20/17, 3:13 PM
Unknown said...: Like the legendary snake-oil salesmen, Trumpski's got conned by the ultimate con-man.

Once Trump is no longer President, which might end before his first term in office, it is guaranteed there will be almost zero sympathy for people who voted Trump. The blame will be directed at Trumpski's.; 5/20/17, 3:17 PM
Achilles said...: Unknown said...

Russia First. Make Russia Great Again.

Way to go Trumpski's.

I know I am asking too much here but what Trump policies have benefited Russia so far?

Has he sold them Uranium? Did he give them a reset button? Did he scrap East European anti-missile defenses? Did he drive up the price of oil by trying to block fracking? Did he create a massive shit hole in Syria where Russia could step in?

You and everyone else on the left pushing this are very stupid tools of the oligarchs.; 5/20/17, 3:18 PM
Kevin said...: Actually Lincoln got secession, civil war and a daily pounding from an abolitionist press that thought he didn’t go far enough and moderates who slammed his brutalist pursuit of victory. Then someone shot him in the head. So he had his challenges.

It's only been 100 days for Trump . Given what we've seen so far it all seems likely.; 5/20/17, 3:19 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: Mockturtle - most welcome.

It's a great point made by Dershowitz. If he's right, (and he is) this whole thing is a bogus witch hunt.
We know that already, but a Hillary supporter, Dershowitz, makes the case legally.; 5/20/17, 3:20 PM
Achilles said...: Unknown said...
Like the legendary snake-oil salesmen, Trumpski's got conned by the ultimate con-man.

Once Trump is no longer President, which might end before his first term in office, it is guaranteed there will be almost zero sympathy for people who voted Trump. The blame will be directed at Trumpski's.

You are probably stupid enough to believe that you will take Trump out before the end of his term without consequences. If you do it will not be almost zero sympathy for you.; 5/20/17, 3:21 PM
Achilles said...: Actually Lincoln got secession, civil war and a daily pounding from an abolitionist press that thought he didn’t go far enough and moderates who slammed his brutalist pursuit of victory. Then someone shot him in the head. So he had his challenges.

Lincoln was just another republican president facing an evil and disgusting democrat party full of stupid and vicious and violent assholes.; 5/20/17, 3:23 PM
Anonymous said...: "I am going to have to make a new list file, maybe theDumbestThingsEverPostedOnline.docx, and use this as the inaugural post."

I've already done that with your retarded comments describing how Trump the Oligarch and his Cabinet of Oligarchs will save America from the Oilgarchs, LOL! Dupe.; 5/20/17, 3:30 PM
Michael K said...: they are not responsible for Trump's inability to function as a chief executive.

ARM, I used to think of you as an intelligent leftist. Lately, you have been all about a script you are reading.

Trump is doing just fine a chief executive. Congress has been failing and I see little prospect of improvement. The bureaucracy is in rebellion equivalent to the treasonous activities of Army officers in 1861.

Tom Pruitt is dealing with a mutiny at EPA

They should all be fired or transferred to Detroit then new EPA Headquarters.

The CIA and NSA are in revolt as witnessed by the massive leaking. Aldrich Ames was no more destructive than they are,

Inga lives in a left wing bubble around a radical university campus.

The riots on Inauguration Day in DC and the riots in Berkeley show how much she understands what is going on.; 5/20/17, 3:34 PM
Anonymous said...: "Trump is doing just fine a chief executive."

Oh, if you say so Michael. Too bad not even his Party sees it that way.; 5/20/17, 3:35 PM
Anonymous said...: "Inga lives in a left wing bubble around a radical university campus."

Nope. I don't live in Madison, or even in Dane County. I'm in no bubble of any sort. I post here daily and I live in the reddest county in WI.; 5/20/17, 3:38 PM
Anonymous said...: And Michael, the violence on Inauguration Day was not perpetrated by pussyhatted moms and grandmas, like me.; 5/20/17, 3:40 PM
Joe said...: "Hill Republicans" need to worry less about what the like of Peggy Noonan think of them and more what their constituents elected them to do.

Frankly, Trump hasn't gone far enough. "Drain the swamp!" dammit.; 5/20/17, 3:40 PM
Lucien said...: Inga said:

Who the hell do you think we are? Did you not see the 4 Million people out in the streets protesting the day after the Inauguration?

And that's the problem, isn't it? The day after the Inauguration.

The guy had been President for all of one day and "the Resistance" started. Which means that the day after the Inauguration, you and 4 million of your buddies took a shit on the long American tradition of respecting the peaceful transfer of power to a different party.

What other American traditions are you and your buddies planning to take a shit on?; 5/20/17, 3:59 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Michael K said...
Trump is doing just fine a chief executive.

As I said in another thread, Michael K is the most consistently humorous poster on this blog.; 5/20/17, 4:01 PM
Michael K said...: And Michael, the violence on Inauguration Day was not perpetrated by pussyhatted moms and grandmas, like me.

No, just your fellow leftists. The pussy hat showed up months later.; 5/20/17, 4:02 PM
Lucien said...: ARM makes me laugh.; 5/20/17, 4:05 PM
Birkel said...: @ Inga

Ha! Grandmas like you? At various times the first incarnation of Inga had daughters and sons for every occasion. Recently I read you are down to four. Sad to lose so many virtual children.

Easiest predictions ever, if Republicans follow the agenda they promised voters:
1) All this turmoil will cause Republicans to gain seats in the Senate and lose seats in the House, while maintaining control of both.
2) The 2020 Census will reapportion seats to conservative states, leading to an easy Republican win in the presidential race and solidification of Republican majorities in both cameras.

Prediction of they follow the donors:
Cue Clubber Lang.; 5/20/17, 4:06 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/20/17, 4:07 PM
Lucien said...: Thanks ARM. A good laugh is always nice.

Wait, wait - tell the one about how you're a moderate again. Please?

I don't care who you are, that shit's funny.; 5/20/17, 4:07 PM
Anonymous said...: Lucien, we observed him during the campaign, we knew of him before he even ran for President. Birther, bigot and fraudster. By Election Day anyone who didn't see that, wasn't paying attention, or was consumed with the desire to "burn it all down". We knew he wouldn't pivot, wouldn't change and was unsuited to be POTUS.; 5/20/17, 4:08 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Given Trump's dumpster fire poll numbers, I think it is fair to say that most moderates are not fans of Trump's performance as 'chief executive'.

On the other hand, he knows how to sell newspapers.; 5/20/17, 4:12 PM
Anonymous said...: "Ha! Grandmas like you? At various times the first incarnation of Inga had daughters and sons for every occasion. Recently I read you are down to four. Sad to lose so many virtual children."

So Birkel, just who do you think I am? You're really such a dope, lol. And I never had more than four children, but I've got 5 grandchildren! Gawd, you're a weirdo.; 5/20/17, 4:14 PM
Earnest Prole said...: No, just your fellow leftists.

By this measure, every person left of center is implicated in the crimes of Stalin, and every person right of center is implicated in the crimes of Hitler.; 5/20/17, 4:15 PM
Anonymous said...: Maybe Birkel thinks I'm a computer program.🤖; 5/20/17, 4:16 PM
khesanh0802 said...: @ARM You still haven't told me which Andrew McCarthy you were quoting. Given the difference in style and substance between our two Andrew McCarthys I have to conclude you were quoting the one from "Weekend at Bernie's".; 5/20/17, 4:19 PM
Original Mike said...: Blogger Lucien said..."And that's the problem, isn't it? The day after the Inauguration.

The guy had been President for all of one day and "the Resistance" started. Which means that the day after the Inauguration, you and 4 million of your buddies took a shit on the long American tradition of respecting the peaceful transfer of power to a different party."

I was raised on the idea that THE most important property of American democracy was the peaceful transition of power. Over the decades I have seen several Presidents elected that I believed to be bad for America (and I believe the facts ultimately bore that out) but I never felt justified in not accepting the outcome of the election.

This can not be about Trump's performance, he's only been President for 4 months, and it can't be about collusion with the Russians, because nobody knows the facts yet. This is literally a childish temper tantrum by people who feel justified in imposing their will upon the country because they are upset that they lost. They are despicable.

"The true “constitutional crisis” is the concerted effort to “resist” or undermine the “norm” of a peaceful transfer of power after election.
— Randy Barnett (@RandyEBarnett) May 18, 2017"; 5/20/17, 4:19 PM
Birkel said...: @ Inga, so called

I remember your previous incarnation's lies. Your previous self sold as much Absolute Moral Authority as could be manufactured from whole bolts of cloth. It really was fantastical to read.

Tell us more stories, grandmama.; 5/20/17, 4:20 PM
Anonymous said...: Birkel, I'd rather hear about the children you don't have, because you're such a repulsive person I doubt any woman would consent to have sex with you. Now let's hear more about how you think I don't exist in real life, that is amusing indeed, lol! And tell me again how I'm not really "Inga".; 5/20/17, 4:23 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: khesanh0802 said...
You still haven't told me which Andrew McCarthy you were quoting.

ARM: I want to say one word to you. Just one word.
khesanh0802: Yes, sir.
ARM: Are you listening?
khesanh0802: Yes, I am.
ARM: Google.; 5/20/17, 4:23 PM
traditionalguy said...: Another reminder that Preston Bush's kids are
A cabal based on the stolen German stolen loot scoffed up as Hitler went insane. That has European roots that go deep into Roman Empire style of world governance.

Bush III that DJT easily crushed is signaling the Bush Clan retainers to assemble now and start the Chaos they will need to claim power back. And the corrupt to the core GOP is responding under a Noonan written speech as cover. They are blaming their target for his coming assassination.; 5/20/17, 4:31 PM
Birkel said...: @ Inga, so called

When you claim to be "Inga" I "believe" you.; 5/20/17, 4:36 PM
Anonymous said...: Birkel, I ask again, so who do you think I am?; 5/20/17, 4:39 PM
chickelit said...: I seriously wonder why the Presidential double standard by Noonan? It's so obvious that she doesn't like the cut of Trump's jib; where was her concern over Obama's inciting mobs in, for example, the Trayvon case.; 5/20/17, 4:39 PM
exhelodrvr1 said...: So if Trump "toned things down," would the left cooperate with him? I think it's pretty clear that the answer is no. They just use Trump's personality as an easy excuse.

If Sherman and Mr. Peabody used the Way Back Machine and were able to make Scott Walker the victor on November 8th, the Resistance would still be in full force.; 5/20/17, 4:40 PM
Achilles said...: AReasonableMan said...
Given Trump's dumpster fire poll numbers, I think it is fair to say that most moderates are not fans of Trump's performance as 'chief executive'.

You still cannot say what Trump has done to help the Russians or what the Russians did to help him.

End of argument.; 5/20/17, 4:42 PM
Mary Beth said...: President Trump,
It would be nice if you stopped tweeting and bypassing the media gatekeepers.
Signed, the media; 5/20/17, 4:47 PM
Michael K said...: "every person right of center is implicated in the crimes of Hitler."

Have you ever noticed the word "Socialist" in Hitler's story.

I know the left denies his place in the leftist Pantheon. Mussolini was editor of a Socialist newspaper before he organized the Fascists.,

Now, I won't object if you call Pinochet a rightist and probably even Franco but Hitler was a National Socialist.; 5/20/17, 4:47 PM
Achilles said...: Inga said...
Birkel, I ask again, so who do you think I am?

A person who cannot identify a single thing Trump has done for the Russians.

A person that cannot identify a single thing the Russians did for Trump.

nobody; 5/20/17, 4:48 PM
Anonymous said...: Achilles, who was responsible for changing a plank in the Republican Platform that was in favor of arming the Ukrainians, to being in favor of the Russians?

http://www.businessinsider.com/jd-gordon-trump-adviser-ukraine-rnc-2017-3

"The Trump campaign's national-security policy representative for the Republican National Convention, J.D. Gordon, told CNN on Thursday that he pushed to alter an amendment to the GOP's draft policy on Ukraine at the Republican National Convention last year to further align it with President Donald Trump's views.

Gordon's remarks represent a dramatic shift from previous comments, and they come as Attorney General Jeff Sessions faces intense scrutiny over two previously undisclosed meetings with Russia's ambassador to the US — one of which was timed to the convention."; 5/20/17, 4:56 PM
JohnJMac862 said...: I find myself thinking that the media and the IC (I mean who elected them the 4th branch of government?) completely feckless and corrupt; thinking that Trump is completely unfit for office; disgusted with the incompetence and cowardice of the Republicans in Congress who are squandering their moment and not exactly knowing which grown-up to turn to.

Maybe it's like the 1880s. The government is a f*cking mess, but the private sector is doing just fine.; 5/20/17, 4:57 PM
Earnest Prole said...: Have you ever noticed the word "Socialist" in Hitler's story.

Distinctions not cost-effective.; 5/20/17, 5:07 PM
readering said...: Trump daily approval per Gallup--37%; 5/20/17, 5:08 PM
Gahrie said...: Look...Donald Trump is a rude, crude businessman who learned how to successfully game the system to his advantage. He has the wit and bluster of a petty mafioso. At heart his a Democrat. He is not intellectual, or particularly well educated. Let's face it, he is the caricature of the noveau riche businessman. We knew that when we voted for him.

THE AMERICAN PEOPLE PREFERRED HIM ANYWAY>

That is the lesson that the Left and the GOP Establishment refuse to learn. It is also why the constant attacks on him from the Left and the Right are so ineffective.

We know how bad he is....we preferred him anyway.

The problem isn't Trump. The problem is our ruling class, the Washington insiders and the media. But our "betters" have decided to double down instead of do a little introspection.

How long does it take to build a tumbrel?; 5/20/17, 5:10 PM
Michael K said...: Inga wants war with Russia which is quite a switch for the left.

Have you ever noticed the word "Socialist" in Hitler's story.

Distinctions not cost-effective.

I guess if you are a Socialist, you don't like being associated with Hitler. I can understand that,; 5/20/17, 5:10 PM
Michael K said...: The problem isn't Trump. The problem is our ruling class, the Washington insiders and the media. But our "betters" have decided to double down instead of do a little introspection.

Have you seen this article ?

I's a pretty good explanation of how we got Trump. And they don't like him either.

As for tumbrels, pickup trucks would probably be more efficient. Horses are too slow and there are lots to be dealt with.

As for Guillotines, these would be much faster..; 5/20/17, 5:15 PM
Anonymous said...: "We know how bad he is....we preferred him anyway"

This is normal? So you think Trump isn't among the "ruling class"?

Oy.; 5/20/17, 5:16 PM
readering said...: Yeah and Lincoln started as a Whig although he never wore one.; 5/20/17, 5:17 PM
Gahrie said...: Trump daily approval per Gallup--37%

Congress approval per Gallop ---20%; 5/20/17, 5:18 PM
Achilles said...: Inga said...
Achilles, who was responsible for changing a plank in the Republican Platform that was in favor of arming the Ukrainians, to being in favor of the Russians?

From the linked article: "...which originally called for "providing lethal defense weapons" to the Ukrainian army to fend off Russian-backed separatists — was read aloud, debated, and ultimately watered down to "providing appropriate assistance" to Ukraine."

OH SHIT! IMPEACH TRUMP NOW! HIGH CRIMES AND LAWS BROKEN EVERYWHERE!

Nobody is buying this from a Hillary/Obama supporter. Let me know when Trump has more flexibility after the election or takes millions in bribes from Russia and sells them 20% of north american uranium you soulless wretch.; 5/20/17, 5:25 PM
Gahrie said...: As for Guillotines, these would be much faster..

I was thinking wood chippers myself..feet first.; 5/20/17, 5:29 PM
Michael K said...: Inga, I don't expect you to understand this but most of the tyrants of antiquity, and the term had nothing of the modern connotation, were in fact members of the nobility. A lot of the Revolutionaries in 1789 were in fact nobles, especially younger ones.

Trump is not an "elite" by the definition of Angelo Codevilla and is more of a striver, upward mobility type that built this country.

The true elites today are over credentialed but often ignorant and poorly educated. Look at Yale students, for example.

Trump is rich, which gave him a unique opportunity. Maybe this began as an ego trip or maybe he really wanted to give something back for his success. He did not need the donor class which has poisoned the Republican Party.

I would recommend this article as an explanation that is the best I've seen.; 5/20/17, 5:31 PM
Achilles said...: Inga said...

This is normal? So you think Trump isn't among the "ruling class"?

Dennis Kucinich, the warmongering right wing nutjob, discusses the ruling class that is truing to take Trump out.

People like you pretending there is no Deep State and acting as their tools are disgusting.; 5/20/17, 5:32 PM
Gahrie said...: So you think Trump isn't among the "ruling class"?

No, but he wants to be, and thinks he is...which is the biggest sin of all among the ruling class when you aren't.

The ruling class has never accepted him, and sees him as no more than a "climber".

His daughter had been accepted by the ruling class, but Trump killed that when he ran for president.; 5/20/17, 5:33 PM
Anonymous said...: I envision Achilles saying "disgusting!" spraying spit like Daffy Duck.; 5/20/17, 5:36 PM
MaxedOutMama said...: I saw this article, and laughed.

If Trump does not stay in direct contact with the public, the only thing the public will hear and know will be all the negative press coverage (much of it plainly false).

She is recommending such and idiotic step that I don't know if she is senile, or if this article was intended seriously.; 5/20/17, 5:40 PM
Anonymous said...: Trump and Russian Oligarchs are pretty tight.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-03-16/behind-trump-s-russia-romance-there-s-a-tower-full-of-oligarchs

"Behind Trump’s Russia Romance, There’s a Tower Full of Oligarchs
Down on his luck, the mogul found help from émigrés from the old Soviet empire."

"On the 78th floor: a Russian who once was accused of mob ties and extortion by an oligarch. On the 79th, an Uzbek jeweler investigated for money laundering who was eventually executed on the street in Manhattan. And four floors higher, a pro-Moscow Ukrainian politician whose party hired a Donald Trump adviser.

When Trump World Tower at 845 United Nations Plaza began construction two decades ago as the tallest residential building in the country (90 stories), its most expensive floors attracted wealthy people getting their money out of what had been the Soviet Union. Trump needed the big spenders. He was renegotiating $1.8 billion in junk bonds for his Atlantic City resorts, and the tower was built on a mountain of debt owed to German banks. As Trump wrote in The Art of the Comeback, “It crushed my ego, my pride, to go hat in hand to the bankers.”

"Trump’s soft spot for Russia is an ongoing mystery, and the large number of condominium sales he made to people with ties to former Soviet republics may offer clues. “We had big buyers from Russia and Ukraine and Kazakhstan,” says Debra Stotts, a sales agent who filled up the tower. The very top floors went unsold for years, but a third of units sold on floors 76 through 83 by 2004 involved people or limited liability companies connected to Russia and neighboring states, a Bloomberg investigation shows. The reporting involved more than two dozen interviews and a review of hundreds of public records filed in New York."; 5/20/17, 5:41 PM
urbane legend said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/20/17, 5:47 PM
Gahrie said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/20/17, 5:47 PM
Gahrie said...: @ Inga:

As a personal favor to me...just exactly when did the Russians become the bad guys?; 5/20/17, 5:47 PM
Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...: MaxedOutMama:

Yep, that too.; 5/20/17, 5:48 PM
Fen said...: Hey Traitor Inga, where's the beef?

And how amusing - you are still getting your analysis from the same people who promised Hillary would win in a landslide. ..

Can I get your number? I know a broker who can get you a great deal on some Enron stock.; 5/20/17, 5:48 PM
urbane legend said...: Trumpit said...
Trump will never become a good president because he is a bad person. He's a narcissist, a fool, a bully, a fraud, etc. His ugly personality is immutable. He's not above the law, and he should be held to account for his serious infractions. In my opinion, he won't be reelected.

After all this time you still spell Obama wrong.; 5/20/17, 5:50 PM
chickelit said...: Inga wrote: "Trump makes Hillary look like Pollyanna. That's no excuse for hoisting him upon America."

Foisted by her own retard.; 5/20/17, 5:57 PM
Fen said...: BREAKING

An anonymous source claims Trump repaired ice rink in NYC. Russians love hockey. Which is played in ice rinks. Additionally, the Russian goalkeeper's wife's maid once dated a man whose nephew was arrested for war crimes. We must impeach Trump now!; 5/20/17, 5:58 PM
chickelit said...: @Michael K: That is a superb analysis you linked at 5:31. Thanks for that. If only both sides here could read and appreciate it, we could find common ground and stop spinning in circles.; 5/20/17, 6:01 PM
Fen said...: For that to work, the Left would have to be acting in good faith. I can't remember the last time that occurred. They have situational ethics (if any) and no shame.; 5/20/17, 6:06 PM
William said...: I voted for Trump and have no reason to regret my decision. That said, I'm far more supportive of his policy and personnel decisions than of his personality. He's impulsive and says a lot of shit off the top of his head. I don't think it's three dimensional chess. Some of the things he says are flat wrong and complicate his own life needlessly. I would think that there could have been some way to dismiss Comey that didn't make Comey's exit a flaming controversy and inspire a personal grudge against Trump by Comey and his followers in the FBI. It was not nicely executed......I suppose Trump's clumsiness can be read as a form of sincerity especially when juxtaposed with Hillary's filigreed prevarications. It's probably what won him the presidency, but all this endless and needless strum und drang is wearying.; 5/20/17, 6:08 PM
chickelit said...: @Inga: Your latest avatar (you've had much better ones!) reminds me that Trump's non-elite opposition is most older (white) females. A prescient analysis well before the primaries last year argued that Trump reminded many women of their ex-husbands - hence the Melania hatred as well. The other side of the coin is that Hillary reminded too many men of their ex-wives. I've never seen a decent analysis of the gender gap in last year's election - not just Trump's gender gap, but Hillary's as well.; 5/20/17, 6:11 PM
Hari said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/20/17, 6:13 PM
Michael K said...: the large number of condominium sales he made to people with ties to former Soviet republics may offer clues.

Yes, they are called "Big Bucks." I assume you never ran any sort of business, Inga, I doubt you have ever signed the front of a paycheck.

Try to keep from making the left look so stupid.; 5/20/17, 6:14 PM
n.n said...: the Left... situational ethics

It is engendered by a Pro-Choice (i.e. selective, unprincipled, opportunistic) quasi-religious/moral philosophy and twilight faith (i.e. conflation of logical domains). The progressive corruption is not limited by its principal objectives: denying life unworthy, [class] diversity, elective wars, etc. Unfortunately, it is a human failing, which while discouraged by principles, is not precluded by them.; 5/20/17, 6:16 PM
Michael K said...: A prescient analysis well before the primaries last year argued that Trump reminded many women of their ex-husbands

Reminded me of an incident a couple of years ago. I was walking my dog and he peed on the lawn of a neighbor. The neighbor was an old lady and a very angry looking middle aged female was picking her up in her car. Probably a daughter.

The middle aged woman said, "Are you going let that dog urinate on the grass ?" I said, "Yes, of course, Where do you think he should pee?" I added, "Where do you think the coyotes and raccoons pee?"

I took another good look at her and commented, "I am sure happy not to be your ex-husband." She marched to the car and drove away.

Scary looking.; 5/20/17, 6:20 PM
Guildofcannonballs said...: The idea the press was anything like it is today in Lincoln's day is idiotic, but the idea Booth was a member of the crazed media and not a crazy actor makes some sense, even if wrong.

All in all more than I expect of Noonon, the dinosaur.; 5/20/17, 6:23 PM
Hari said...: "The president needs to be told: Democracy is not your plaything." Unstated is the press's belief that democracy is the press's plaything. Trump refuses to play by those rules.; 5/20/17, 6:24 PM
n.n said...: So you think Trump isn't among the "ruling class"?

Does it matter? There has been a "ruling class" since the world's been turning, and thanks to Mother Nature's disparate treatment of individuals over time and space, until the world's end.

What does matter is principles before principals. There will never be a perfect or even optimal reconciliation of moral, natural, and personal imperatives in a diverse (i.e. numerous) society, especially with diverging principles. It doesn't mean we should stop trying and engage, exploit, foment class conflicts.; 5/20/17, 6:24 PM
n.n said...: Anyway, promises of revitalization, rehabilitation, and reconciliation are reasons to be optimistic. The reality of unknown, unpredictable processes (i.e. chaos) is reason to be cautious.; 5/20/17, 6:28 PM
Earnest Prole said...: That is a superb analysis you linked at 5:31

Agreed. Unfortunately, elites of both parties are unlikely to be persuaded by thoughts that threaten both their economic interests and their sense of social superiority bequeathed by their expensive educations. Sadly, people change only when they are forced to.; 5/20/17, 6:29 PM
William said...: I think if Hillary had won the Presidency, Comey would have been axed in short order. I also think Hillary has made some disparaging personal comments about Comey along the way. The difference is that those comments will never be leaked. I'd be interested in hearing about what Hillary's personal opinion is of Anthony Weiner, but we'll never hear those comments either. That's why I continue to support Trump. We know all the bad news. Not so much with Hillary.; 5/20/17, 6:29 PM
Guildofcannonballs said...: One day of Twitter alone has more attacks on Trump than the entire number of attacks throughout Lincoln's life by the press, proving Trump right, again, yet again.; 5/20/17, 6:30 PM
readering said...: Read the Merry piece. Looks like he and I agree about Trump. Greater period of political crisis than the period between January 1998 and January 2001? I don't think so. Or between March 1973 and August 1974? Nope. Or between March and November 1968 (which held the seeds for the later crisis)?; 5/20/17, 6:31 PM
chickelit said...: @William: There's a fear-based omertà among Hillary supporters.; 5/20/17, 6:38 PM
Paco Wové said...: "The president needs to be told: Democracy is not your plaything."

I like where this is going – I can see many possibilities:
The legislature needs to be told: Democracy is not your plaything.
The judiciary needs to be told: Democracy is not your plaything.
The press needs to be told: Democracy is not your plaything.
The Democratic Party needs to be told: Democracy is not your plaything.
The Republican Party needs to be told: Democracy is not your plaything.; 5/20/17, 6:45 PM
Bob Ellison said...: Noonan writes lyrically. I don't like it. It's an emotional style.

V.S. Naipaul writes lyrically, too. It makes good fiction.; 5/20/17, 6:46 PM
brylun said...: The WSJ should retire Peggy Noonan and hire Salina Zito.; 5/20/17, 7:06 PM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: "BREAKING

An anonymous source claims Trump repaired ice rink in NYC. Russians love hockey. Which is played in ice rinks. Additionally, the Russian goalkeeper's wife's maid once dated a man whose nephew was arrested for war crimes. We must impeach Trump now!"

Dammit! That was next week's talking point!; 5/20/17, 7:07 PM
Michael K said...: "The idea the press was anything like it is today in Lincoln's day is idiotic"

No, the press was very ideological and the difference is that each side had a press supporter.

I'm reading biography of James K Polk.

There were two big newspapers in Washington City as DC was called. One was the Democrats' paper and the other was the Whig paper.

The argument was between Whigs and Democrats, Polk was a Democrat, often called "Little Jackson" as he was a protege.

The issues were huge. Mexico and Texas and Oregon and Britain. The Whigs were against Texas admission but the public was in favor.

One big issue was slavery. Texas was admitted as a slave state, although there were not many slaves.

Oregon was about the Columbia River and Puget Sound.

Since the press was all there was, and if you read them, very sophisticated, it was very influential. The difference now is that the press is all on the leftists's side.; 5/20/17, 7:12 PM
Fen said...: I remember in my late 20s living in Austin on the riverside. My weekly treat Sunday mornings was to grab the WSJ, WaPo and NYTs opinion sections. Then settle in with a cup of coffee and immerse. Noonan was one of my favorites. I would pour over her writings and then go back to savour them line by line, over and over again like a favorite song.

She's been a great disappointment since then. Briefly got her groove back during the 2000 recount with pieces like The Greenwood Position, but I think she has spent too much time among the elites in New York City. She has lost touch with the American people.; 5/20/17, 7:19 PM
brylun said...: Salena Zito: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/author/salena-zito; 5/20/17, 7:21 PM
Fen said...: Also, if you are a sophisticated enlightened super smart Democrat who still doesn't understand what us primitives mean by "elites" or "The Establishment", fire up the intertubes and read After The Republic over at the Clairmont Institute. Might even dispel your ignorance about why Hillary lost.; 5/20/17, 7:29 PM
Earnest Prole said...: Noonan writes lyrically. I don't like it. It's an emotional style.

You might as well go all the way and call it a female style.; 5/20/17, 7:37 PM
Fen said...: Spoiler: it had nothing to do with the Russians. That narrative was cooked up when your MSM needed to redirect your anger at being blinded by all their poor analysis and false narratives. And you people fell for it. Again.

Hey, I think I'm beginning to understand where the Marxists are coming from - you people are too easily manipulated and too stupid to be trusted to make your own decisions. I see that now, thanks Inga.; 5/20/17, 7:40 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: From Michael K's link

"Think of those who gave the country Hillary Clinton as the Democratic presidential nominee—a woman who sought to avoid accountability as secretary of state by employing a private email server, contrary to propriety and good sense; who attached herself to a vast nonprofit “good works” institution that actually was a corrupt political machine designed to get the Clintons back into the White House while making them rich; who ran for president, and almost won, without addressing the fundamental problems of the nation and while denigrating large numbers of frustrated and beleaguered Americans as “deplorables.” The unseemliness in all this was out in plain sight for everyone to see, and yet Democratic elites blithely went about the task of awarding her the nomination, even to the point of employing underhanded techniques to thwart an upstart challenger who was connecting more effectively with Democratic voters."; 5/20/17, 7:40 PM
mockturtle said...: Yes, that was a very good article. But pessimistic. I think I'll start knitting some shrouds.; 5/20/17, 7:44 PM
Fen said...: I mean it couldn't possibly be that all your wicked smart pundits and pollsters completely misread the Americans living outside the Blue City State bubbles. Had to be Russian hacking. Or maybe aliens.; 5/20/17, 7:47 PM
Guildofcannonballs said...: Was there a 24 hour news cycle in 1860?

Did all the cable television networks have to fill 24 hours of air time in 1864?

If so then I recant, if not I do not, and neither does Trump.; 5/20/17, 7:48 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: more... Pointing out leftwing proggy collective liar bs talking points.

Now comes the counterrevolution. The elites figure that if they can just get rid of Trump, the country can return to what they consider normalcy—the status quo ante, before the Trumpian challenge to their status as rulers of America. That’s why there is so much talk about impeachment even in the absence of any evidence thus far of “high crimes and misdemeanors.” That’s why the firing of James Comey as FBI director raises the analogy of Nixon’s “Saturday Night Massacre.” That’s why the demonization of Russia has reached a fevered pitch, in hopes that even minor infractions on the part of the president can be raised to levels of menace and threat.

Ross Douthat, the conservative New York Times columnist, even suggests the elites of Washington should get rid of Trump through the use of the Constitution’s 25th Amendment, which allows for the removal of the president if a majority of the cabinet informs the Congress that he is “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office” and if a two-thirds vote of Congress confirms that judgment in the face of a presidential challenge. This was written of course for such circumstances of presidential incapacity as ill health or injury, but Douthat’s commitment to the counterrevolution is such that he would advocate its use for mere presidential incompetence.

Consider the story of Trump’s revelation of classified information to Russia’s foreign minister and ambassador to the United States. No one disputes the president’s right to declassify governmental information at will, but was it wise in this instance? Certainly, it was reckless if he exposed sources and methods of intelligence gathering. But did he?

The president and his top foreign policy advisers, who were present during the conversation, say he didn’t. The media and Trump’s political adversaries insist that he did, at least implicitly. We don’t know. But we do know that when this story reached the pages of The Washington Post, as a result of leaks from people around Trump who want to see him crushed, it led to a feeding frenzy that probably harmed American interests far more than whatever Trump may have said to those Russians. Instead of Trump’s indiscretion being confined to a single conversation with foreign officials, it now is broadcast throughout the world. Instead of, at worst, a hint of where the intelligence came from, everyone now knows it came from the Israelis. Instead of being able to at least pursue a more cooperative relationship with Russia on matters of mutual interest, Trump is once again forced back on his heels on Russian policy by government officials and their media allies—who, unlike Trump, were never elected to anything.

Ross Douthat is an asshole.; 5/20/17, 7:55 PM
Michael K said...: It's been an interesting day. We have been trapped in a back bedroom as men stripped and sealed the tile all through the house. Patrick Frey has ordered me (well maybe encouraged) me to leave his blog because I don't like Trump haters.

For example.The next line’s for Mike K:

Fuck Donald Trump.

Maybe we can avoid his passive-aggressive bullshit for a few weeks. Oh my, Mike K! The derangement is back! You had better scurry off then! Off you go!

And I did. I'm sorry to see the hatred and magical thinking that Trump can be convinced to leave.

It's delusional and Patrick was a conservative. He is now a Trump hater like a couple here.

Trump is not Lincoln and I think times have changed but the future of the country is a bit dark.; 5/20/17, 8:05 PM
readering said...: Douthat has a response to Merry (whom he links) in the Sunday Times. Conclusion:

As a populist he’s a paper tiger, too lazy to figure out what policies he should champion and too incompetent and self-absorbed to fight for them.

So he’s not being dogged by leaks and accusations because he’s trying to turn the Republican Party into a “worker’s party” (he isn’t), or because he’s throwing the money-changers out of the republic’s temples (don’t make me laugh), or because he’s taking steps to reduce America’s role as policeman of the world (none are evident).

No, he’s at war with the institutions that surround him because he behaves consistently erratically and inappropriately and dangerously, and perhaps criminally as well.; 5/20/17, 8:06 PM
Michael K said...: Readering, I hope you don't mind too much if I call your analysis bullshit.; 5/20/17, 8:15 PM
tcrosse said...: Ross Douthat is an asshole.

No, he's a prick; 5/20/17, 8:27 PM
readering said...: Not mine, Douthat's. I cut and pasted.

But I still mind. No wonder you get disinvited places.; 5/20/17, 8:28 PM
eric said...: They aren't wrong. The comments, that is.

To put it another way, if Trump died tomorrow and Pence became president, this wouldn't get better, it would get worse. They've decided to ramp it up to 11 and keep it at 11 until we all grow so tired of it the only choice is to elect Democrats to get back our peace of mind.; 5/20/17, 8:28 PM
Fen said...: Douhat of the New York Times. I don't understand why these people still have jobs. Their analysis was wrong, their polling was wrong, worse - they blinded their own side with false narratives and fake news that left liberals wandering the streets shell-shocked for months. I can get this level of incompetence over at HuffPo for free. So why do these people still have jobs?

And why do people keep going back to them as information brokers? Again, if your stock broker lied to you about Enron would you still use him?; 5/20/17, 8:29 PM
chickelit said...: Ross Douthat is an asshole.

No, he's a prick

Some Brits might call him a cunt.

Holey Trinity!; 5/20/17, 8:31 PM
chickelit said...: Fen, Douthat is token Conservative. His role is only to make the NYT feel balanced.; 5/20/17, 8:32 PM
chickelit said...: I know why I find Inga's avatar so offensive: It depicts an American shaved eagle instead of the traditional bald eagle.; 5/20/17, 8:37 PM
readering said...: Speaking of Brits . . . Enuf about Douthat. Did Kate really make little George cry today for standing on Pippa's trail at the wedding?; 5/20/17, 8:38 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: readering said...
But I still mind.

Waste of effort. The only thing to understand with MK is that he is a masochist, he wants to be beaten. He is begging to be beaten. All his posts should be read as - "beat me, beat me, beat me harder".

The standard drill is to call him a useless fuck-wit or some variant on old/senile a few times and then, if you are lucky, he will get huffy and ignore your subsequent posts. Following a beating he will remain sated for a short period. Unfortunately, the effect wears off relatively quickly and you will have to do the same thing tomorrow and then the next day etc.

This is how it is.; 5/20/17, 8:47 PM
chickelit said...: No, he’s at war with the institutions that surround him because he behaves consistently erratically and inappropriately and dangerously, and perhaps criminally as well.

Readering, I might take that more seriously regarding Trump and the media had the latter not spent 8 years defending most everything Obama did. They wanted another extended vacation; instead they have to work with Trump. They are understandably angry.

Honestly, the nature of journalism has changed so much recently that I think a couple legacy media giants should go bankrupt. The era of that being a free speech danger is long past.; 5/20/17, 8:49 PM
readering said...: ARM I never understood why anyone takes pleasure in publishing stuff like that. Sure, write it, but then admire it and hit delete.; 5/20/17, 8:49 PM
Etienne said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/20/17, 8:50 PM
Etienne said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/20/17, 8:50 PM
chickelit said...: Didn't Douthat all but call Trump a fascist?; 5/20/17, 8:50 PM
Original Mike said...: "They've decided to ramp it up to 11 and keep it at 11 until we all grow so tired of it the only choice is to elect Democrats to get back our peace of mind."

That's exactly what's going on. They don't accept democratic outcomes if they don't win.; 5/20/17, 8:52 PM
readering said...: chickelit If you were unable to find lots of stuff to your liking about Obama for the past 8 years, well I don't understand because I found LOTS of stuff not to my liking. Hell I even read a lot of it.; 5/20/17, 8:52 PM
chickelit said...: readering reprinted: So he’s not being dogged by leaks and accusations because he’s trying to turn the Republican Party into a “worker’s party” (he isn’t), or because he’s throwing the money-changers out of the republic’s temples (don’t make me laugh), or because he’s taking steps to reduce America’s role as policeman of the world (none are evident).

The first two points are in error. Trump did connect with "workers" in key states; Hillary blew those people off (and the DNC continue to do so -- cf. Van Jones). Trump did throw the "moneychangers" out of the candidate selection process. He humiliated JEB and his donors -- costing them lots of money. Most people enjoyed seeing that. I know I did.; 5/20/17, 9:00 PM
Anonymous said...: "Waste of effort. The only thing to understand with MK is that he is a masochist, he wants to be beaten. He is begging to be beaten. All his posts should be read as - "beat me, beat me, beat me harder"."

I used to like beating him, but now I feel sort of guilty, he just can't help himself.; 5/20/17, 9:01 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Original Mike said...
They don't accept democratic outcomes if they don't win.

Is this really true? It seems to me that the problems with accepting the 2000 and 2016 election results revolved around specific failings of the electoral college. There wasn't any fuss that I can recall in 2004.

Say what you may about the actual electoral system that we have, people intuitively expect the person who gets the most votes to win the election. Any other result seems crooked.; 5/20/17, 9:01 PM
Anonymous said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/20/17, 9:03 PM
chickelit said...: They don't accept democratic outcomes if they don't win.

Russ Feingold writ larger.; 5/20/17, 9:05 PM
Anonymous said...: The moneychangers are now in Trump's cabinet.; 5/20/17, 9:07 PM
Michael K said...: But I still mind. No wonder you get disinvited places.

Oh yes, I am disinvited from time to time. Patrick is pretty angry and you would think he would get over it by now.

The only thing to understand with MK is that he is a masochist, he wants to be beaten. He is begging to be beaten.

No, I am just trying to make sense of the hysteria that followed the election. If you were not reading from DNC cue cards, you might recognize that,

Trump is what you get when you follow and support the Deep State which resembles Big Brother. George Orwell (Eric Blair) was describing a leftist do-good organization called the BBC.

He had been in Spain and watched the communists assassinate the other leftists.

You follow a false leader and i don't even know who it is. Maybe George Soros, and I still can't figure out what he wants out of this. Maybe you just follow a faceless bureaucracy like Winston Smith.

I have no problems except some arthritis in the morning.

I'm still working and did 9 hours Friday. Monday will be another 8.

I talk to youngsters and marvel at their ambitions. Some are actually amazing.

Most of you people are not nearly as interesting. A few here are worth having discussions with and some I learn from.

I wish you all well.; 5/20/17, 9:07 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Inga said...
I used to like beating him, but now I feel sort of guilty.

Don't. It is for the greater good. I too am a little squeamish at times, but it only prolongs the agony. Ritmo has the right attitude, start beating him before he even gets started.; 5/20/17, 9:09 PM
Michael K said...: Ritmo has the right attitude !

HAHAHAHAHA

Keep thinking that,; 5/20/17, 9:10 PM