The Trump Card...

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
Yesterday, while reading the news, I stumbled upon the Centrist Project. While participation in this EO forum has provided fun breaks from work and truly interesting conversations, it does not leave me with a feeling that it is meaningful political involvement. By meaningful, I mean taking action that makes an actual difference in the world. For me, participation here has been more about entertainment than civic engagement.

The Centrist Project is different. This initiative stirs the soul of a guy like me who once founded a third party and helped grow it to the point where we elected a governor. In America today, at the national level, the Democrats can't win and the Republicans can't govern. Trump is neither the answer or the problem. If he is impeached, the political divide between the left and right will continue and the hopelessly dysfunctional and corrupt two-party system will continue to be exploited by the far-left and far-right extremists who now control it.

There has to be a better way and I believe the Centrist Project may help us find it.

Accordingly, I'm shifting my focus off this forum and onto the Centrist Project. I may pop in from time to time but if you see less of me here, it's because the Centrist Project is providing a more meaningful and more satisfying way for me to scratch my political itch.

You are correct Phil.;..if just for entertainment this is the place....but if you truly want to make a difference you have a new avenue open to you and actually try to make a difference besides just casting your vote....Best of luck to you and your new endeavour....Ken aka OVM
 

davekc

Senior Moderator
Staff member
Fleet Owner
Not sure about the whole third party thing. Wishful thinking maybe but they have few funds and cant compete on National levels. Especially now with a dumbed down electorate.
 

Worn Out Manager

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
US Air Force
This should be fun! Mr T put his boot up Mitch McConnell's butt today. Wait, what's that sound I am starting to hear? Could it be The Donald being sucked under in the swamp?

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Turtle

Administrator
Staff member
Retired Expediter
People (desperately) want to label Trump is crazy, unhinged, out of touch, yet these two videos from 18 years ago show that Trump is remarkably in touch, very hinged, pragmatic and measured, and remarkably consistent over the years. He's certainly off on the North Korean timeline, but the underlying issue is spot on.

The first video is a CNN interview with the Wolfeman, and the second is an NBC Meet the Press interview with Tim Russert.


 
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Worn Out Manager

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
US Air Force
Anybody ever see the movie FaceOff? Makes you wonde?
9bc68a7e80cb0064b5a1e80263b7a0e6.jpg


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Pilgrim

Veteran Expediter
Retired Expediter
Homebuilders Association predicts a back log of new homes....it has felt the effect of the Immigration being enforced
prices are on an upward trend as they are in a labour shortage instead of nearly 1 million new homes this year they predict maybe only 800,000....
But from another perspective...
The U.S. real estate market is currently experiencing the worst inventory deficiency in 20 years, which new data from our realtor.com® Housing Shortage Study suggests can be attributed to two primary reasons – boomers’ reluctance to sell and homes fitting current family needs....

A key reason for homeowners staying put for a longer period, according to the National Association of Realtors®, is because of inadequate levels of new home construction over the past decade.

https://research.realtor.com/housing-shortage-boomers/
Inadequate levels of new home construction combined with the tepid Obama economy that never fully recovered from the Recession likely kept the housing market stagnant. Labor participation rate was at record lows and the median household income fell almost $6000.

Now the Trump effect is starting to show positive results on the economy according to - believe it or not - CNN Money :eek:

Trump economy: These charts show how it's really doing
 
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OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
Homebuilders Association predicts a back log of new homes....it has felt the effect of the Immigration being enforced
prices are on an upward trend as they are in a labour shortage instead of nearly 1 million new homes this year they predict maybe only 800,000....
But from another perspective...
The U.S. real estate market is currently experiencing the worst inventory deficiency in 20 years, which new data from our realtor.com® Housing Shortage Study suggests can be attributed to two primary reasons – boomers’ reluctance to sell and homes fitting current family needs....

A key reason for homeowners staying put for a longer period, according to the National Association of Realtors®, is because of inadequate levels of new home construction over the past decade.

https://research.realtor.com/housing-shortage-boomers/
Inadequate levels of new home construction combined with the tepid Obama economy that never fully recovered from the Recession likely kept the housing market stagnant. Labor participation rate was at record lows and the median household income fell almost $6000.

Now the Trump effect is starting to show positive results on the economy according to - believe it or not - CNN Money :eek:

Trump economy: These charts show how it's really doing
I guess that's an alternative theory ...that fits certain political beliefs.
Mines not a knock on Trump... just a point of what lack of a proper legal immigration policy can hurt this country. With an aging work force of the baby boomers legal immigration becomes a bigger issue.
 

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
From Forbes....things weren't all bad pre Trump...
The top-performing sector of the Obama stock market was the consumer discretionary sector, which returned 338%, or 20% annualized, according to FactSet Research Systems. The sector was driven by hot stocks like Under Armour and L Brands.
Energy stocks were the worst performers during the Obama years as the price of oil and other commodities plunged. But even the energy sector managed to stay in positive territory and eke out a 53% return during Obama’s presidency.

Both Silicon Valley and Wall Street did well under Obama. Information technology was the second-best performing sector of the U.S. stock market during the Obama presidency, returning 285%. And while bankers complained about being political targets and dealt with new regulations limiting their risk-taking activities, Wall Street recovered in the years after banks received bailouts. Financial stocks were the third-best performing sector in the U.S. stock market during the Obama years, rising 261%

Foreign policy was really crappy tho...
 
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Pilgrim

Veteran Expediter
Retired Expediter
From Forbes....things weren't all bad pre Trump...
The top-performing sector of the Obama stock market was the consumer discretionary sector, which returned 338%, or 20% annualized, according to FactSet Research Systems. The sector was driven by hot stocks like Under Armour and L Brands.
Energy stocks were the worst performers during the Obama years as the price of oil and other commodities plunged. But even the energy sector managed to stay in positive territory and eke out a 53% return during Obama’s presidency.

Both Silicon Valley and Wall Street did well under Obama. Information technology was the second-best performing sector of the U.S. stock market during the Obama presidency, returning 285%. And while bankers complained about being political targets and dealt with new regulations limiting their risk-taking activities, Wall Street recovered in the years after banks received bailouts. Financial stocks were the third-best performing sector in the U.S. stock market during the Obama years, rising 261%

Foreign policy was really crappy tho...
The millionaires and billionaires who Barack Hussein Obama was always berating for not "paying their fair share" of taxes did very well during his presidency; Silicon Valley, evil Wall Street, but especially the insurance business which benefited from the regulations of Obamacare and the expansion of Medicare and Medicaid - also according to Forbes.

The Standard & Poor’s stock index returned 135.6 percent in those seven years through Thursday, a performance that we may not see again in our lifetimes. But the managed care stocks, as a whole, have gained nearly 300 percent including dividends, according to calculations by Bespoke Investment Group...

“They are making a lot of money from government programs like Medicaid and Medicare — and they are likely to keep doing so,” he said, regardless of what happens in Washington.

Gripes About Obamacare Aside, Health Insurers Are in a Profit Spiral
Those around the poverty level also did better as judged by the expansion of entitlement programs such as welfare and food stamps. However, the middle class kind of got lost in the system.
 

Turtle

Administrator
Staff member
Retired Expediter
but especially the insurance business which benefited from the regulations of Obamacare and the expansion of Medicare and Medicaid - also according to Forbes.
Shouldn't be any surprise that the insurance industry benefited from the regulations they helped write.
 
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ATeam

Senior Member
Retired Expediter
Some months ago I offered here the prediction that the Republicans who have the power to do so will move to impeach Trump. Significant movement in that direction developed today when Trump disbanded two of his business advisory councils.

He did so because the council members, who are some of America's top corporate leaders, were leaving, one after another, in response to Trump's recent comments regarding Charlottesville. Yesterday's comments made by Trump made it clear to everyone that Trump is not going to change. These comments were defended by only a tiny few. The corporate leaders and a large number of Republicans condemned them.

Immediately after the remarks were made, business leaders began to abandon Trump (the great negotiator, the man who was going to run government like a business). They are no longer willing to be part of a Trump photo op. They are no longer willing to be publicly associated with him.

This is significant because those now abandoning Trump represent the corporations that contribute millions if not billions of dollars to political parties and candidates for public office. With Trump now widely regarded as a full-out racist, no mainstream companies or their leaders are going to want their names appearing on a campaign finance report in support of a candidate or entity that can be linked to Trump.

It's also significant that the companies the corporate leaders represent spend billions of dollars on advertising. You can be sure the advertising departments at all major media organizations are intensely observing the abandonment of Donald Trump by America's corporate elite.

Elected officials who previously traded on the Trump name are going to have to distance themselves from Trump if they want to maintain favorable connections with big-money contributors.

Trump's Charlottesville remarks were a defining moment in his presidency. The rapid distancing from Trump done by America's corporate leaders is a significant indicator. This is like a new "bridge out" sign on MAGA road, and everyone knows Trump blew the bridge. With the new sign now up, millions of political GPS units are recalculating.

Additional items to note: One of the Republicans who has a vote in the impeachment question is Mitch Mcconnell. Trump recently stunned Mitch with attacks against him. Trump's job approval ratings hit new low yesterday. See this chart and notice the increasing distance between approve and disapprove.

Declining popular support, departing corporate leaders, pissed-off Republican legislators and more ... all coming together at once. Where does it lead?

About the re-calculation, CNN put it this way today:

Republican lawmakers and administration aides found themselves again Wednesday weighing the costs and benefits of remaining loyal to President Donald Trump, whose equivocal statements about neo-Nazis and white supremacists marked a dramatic shift in presidential rhetoric.

By Wednesday afternoon, most appeared to have made their calculation: deserting Trump now could only harm — and not help — their agendas or political fortunes.
Republican leaders in Congress, including House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, released statements affirming their disavowal of white supremacist groups and neo-Nazis — but not explicitly condemning Trump, ...


That's the way it is now, which is a shift from the way it was before. Watch next for Republicans to start naming Trump when they speak against him. The Republicans who make their living by winning votes will be the last to move publicly against Trump. But they will eventually move as they see support for Trump fade and Trump grow crazier in response.
 
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muttly

Veteran Expediter
Retired Expediter
Some months ago I offered here the prediction that the Republicans who have the power to do so will move to impeach Trump. Significant movement in that direction developed today when Trump disbanded two of his business advisory councils.

He did so because the council members, who are some of America's top corporate leaders, were leaving, one after another, in response to Trump's recent comments regarding Charlottesville. Yesterday's comments made by Trump made it clear to everyone that Trump is not going to change. These comments were defended by only a tiny few. The corporate leaders and a large number of Republicans condemned them.

Immediately after the remarks were made, business leaders began to abandon Trump (the great negotiator, the man who was going to run government like a business). They are no longer willing to be part of a Trump photo op. They are no longer willing to be publicly associated with him.

This is significant because those now abandoning Trump represent the corporations that contribute millions if not billions of dollars to political parties and candidates for public office. With Trump now widely regarded as a full-out racist, no mainstream companies or their leaders are going to want their names appearing on a campaign finance report in support of a candidate or entity that can be linked to Trump.

It's also significant that the companies the corporate leaders represent spend billions of dollars on advertising. You can be sure the advertising departments at all major media organizations are intensely observing the abandonment of Donald Trump by America's corporate elite.

Elected officials who previously traded on the Trump name are going to have to distance themselves from Trump if they want to maintain favorable connections with big-money contributors.

Trump's Charlottesville remarks were a defining moment in his presidency. The rapid distancing from Trump done by America's corporate leaders is a significant indicator. This is like a new "bridge out" sign on MAGA road, and everyone knows Trump blew the bridge. With the new sign now up, millions of political GPS units are recalculating.

Additional items to note: One of the Republicans who has a vote in the impeachment question is Mitch Mcconnell. Trump recently stunned Mitch with attacks against him. Trump's job approval ratings hit new low yesterday. See this chart and notice the increasing distance between approve and disapprove.

Declining popular support, departing corporate leaders, pissed-off Republican legislators and more ... all coming together at once. Where does it lead?

About the re-calculation, CNN put it this way today:

Republican lawmakers and administration aides found themselves again Wednesday weighing the costs and benefits of remaining loyal to President Donald Trump, whose equivocal statements about neo-Nazis and white supremacists marked a dramatic shift in presidential rhetoric.

By Wednesday afternoon, most appeared to have made their calculation: deserting Trump now could only harm — and not help — their agendas or political fortunes.
Republican leaders in Congress, including House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, released statements affirming their disavowal of white supremacist groups and neo-Nazis — but not explicitly condemning Trump, ...


That's the way it is now, which is a shift from the way it was before. Watch next for Republicans to start naming Trump when they speak against him. The Republicans who make their living by winning votes will be the last to move publicly against Trump. But they will eventually move as they see support for Trump fade and Trump grow crazier in response.
Defining moment in his presidency? That's funny right there. You had him condemn the violence within hours of the incident and his DOJ open an investigation the same day. But the news media and cowardly politicians on both sides won't even acknowledge the violence from the left. Very cowardly of them and dishonest. Trump was at least being honest by stating 'there was violence on both sides'. The truth. And mostly for that he's being called a racist? Ridiculous
 

ATeam

Senior Member
Retired Expediter
Defining moment in his presidency? That's funny right there.

Yes. a defining moment in the Trump presidency. It's not a joke. I'm not trying to be funny. By defining moment, I mean a very precise incident (the press conference) in which something happened that changed how people see things. This is the moment that Republicans resolved themselves to the fact that Trump will not change. They may have known that before but after this moment, they now understand this fact has consequences. They can no longer back president Trump without feeling the consequences (like corporate America walking away). They can no longer tie themselves to Trump without getting the Trump negatives on them.

This collective shift of perspective is a turning point. It is a moment in time, marked by this incident, that historians will reference when they write about the rise and fall of Donald Trump.On this date, new lows were hit in the polls, corporate chiefs walked away and the overwhelming majority of Republicans rose to speak in opposition to Trump's remarks. And those are Trumps friends. His foes became more energized than ever in a way that will persist with time. Trump terrifies the left and that fear fuels action.

The corporate activism I expect to follow will not be insignificant. We saw it with the bathroom bill in North Carolina. Behind the corporations' will to act was the public's will to act. Corporations may not have cared one way or another about the bathroom bill itself but they care deeply about how they are viewed in the public eye. When millions of consumers rise in opposition on a hot-button social issue, corporations tend to act.

Racisim is one such issue. The corporate chiefs who abandoned Trump showed a tender spot. They showed they are sensitive about being branded racist. That provides an opening for Trump opponents to exploit. Even if corporations did not care one way or another about racism, they wold be forced to care because consumers will act to weaken Trump by branding his supporters as racists.

To a degree, this has been going on for a while. What's different now is this defining moment in the Trump presidency. The civil disturbance in Charlottesville provided TV images that brought things into stark relief. Trump's remarks had the effect of pouring gasoline on the fire. That fire ignited the souls of millions in a way they did not previously burn and the Republicans are feeling the heat.

Standing by is calm, gentleman Pence, waiting to step in when called. At some point, the Republicans are going to have more of Trump's antics than they care to take. At that point, the call to Pence will seem like the perfect solution.
 
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OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
.IMO Trump didn't go far enough...he should have said...Blacks were also the cause...that left the door open to all this speculation...The blacks need to be responsible as well....they need to quit thinking the Civil war was all about them....it wasnt...they were just a byline in the story....
The Jews have made concentration camps museums of learning and education...
The Coliseum still stands where christians and Jews were fed to the Lions...
Pyramids stand to the slavery of the Jews as well....
Americans need to smarten up and get off the pulpit...what happened to the blacks was just history....now get over it and learn to let it go and educate future generations to work together!
 
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