Day: 11/14/2017

Pathetic: Trump is Relying on His Warped Imagination to Convince Himself That He’s Popular

Posted by on November 14, 2017 at 1:50 pm. 2 Comments :

The historically low approval ratings for Donald Trump are no longer news. It is a state of affairs that is cemented in the public zeitgeist as this President continues to flounder. The American people have made up their minds that he is an offensive blowhard whose policies reek of bigotry, ignorance, greed, and narcissism. That’s a recipe for catastrophe and given his obstinance and inability to learn or repent, there is little hope that anything will change.

As an illustration of just how blinded Trump is to reality, he just posted a tweet bragging about his approval ratings. That’s right, he’s managed to find something positive about being the worst president in history. However his tweet reveals signs of a mental collapse on several points:

Let’s break that down. First of all, Trump is praising Rasmussen Reports as “One of the most accurate polls.” Anyone with knowledge of Rasmussen knows that his reputation as a pollster is toxic. His results are notoriously over-weighted in favor of Republicans and conservatives. The experts at FiveThirtyEight give him a C+, which is generous. Rasmussen polls are conducted by robocalls, a methodology that is widely discredited amongst statisticians. The only reason for his survey company to exist is to provide biased data to wingnut “news” operations and pundits.

Secondly, Trump dismisses all other polls as “fake news.” It’s his typical way of avoiding any facts that don’t exalt him as the beloved Messiah he envisions himself to be. The fact that almost every poll taken by reputable survey organizations place Trump in the thirties is an affirmation of their accuracy. But Trump pulls his MAGA hat down over his eyes and plugs his fingers in his ears to prevent any exposure to the sad truth that he’s universally despised.

Thirdly, Trump drops one of his famous “some people” diversions into the mix. If there is any poll putting Trump’s favorability in the fifties he should be able to cite it. Not even the ultra-right Rasmussen goes there. The only voices articulating those numbers are in Trump’s head.

Finally, if Trump is so pleased with Rasmussen’s survey results he should probably make a more complete presentation of them. Then people would know that his forty-six percent approval rating has already dropped two points to forty-four. His disapproval is at fifty-four percent, hardly anything to boast about. Even worse, Rasmussen tracks his ‘Strongly Disapprove” rating which sits at forty-five percent. That compares to his “Strongly Approve” rating at a pitiful twenty-eight percent. According to Rasmussen, that gives him a negative seventeen percent approval index.

Donald Trump

These are the dismal numbers that got Trump so excited he had to get on the Twitter machine and rejoice. But the only thing these numbers reveal is the depths of his psychological impairment. And his celebration of how much America hates him is just another reason he needs to be removed from office and confined to a padded cell.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Desperation in Trump Land: AG Considering a Special Counsel to Investigate Hillary Clinton

Posted by on November 14, 2017 at 9:50 am. 2 Comments :

There is now definitive proof that Donald Trump is stomping around the Oval Office in a white-hot panic. Whether it is Special Counsel Robert Mueller, a newly energized media, or pressure from his Kremlin handlers, Trump is clearly nervous that the truth is getting closer to daylight. Or at least that someone is getting closer to the truth that Trump wants to conceal.

Jeff Sessions Hillary Clinton

We know that Trump’s anxiety is at fever pitch because of the news just out about what’s going on at the Justice Department. His bootlicking attorney general, Jeff Sessions, has heard the call from his master and is giving consideration to a long sought objective of the President. Specifically the realization of the glassy-eyed rally chant “Lock Her Up.” According to reports:

“Attorney General Jeff Sessions is leaving open the possibility that a special counsel could be appointed to look into Hillary Clinton, Clinton Foundation dealings and a uranium deal during the Obama administration among other matters.”

In a letter to the House Judiciary Committee, a Justice Department official says Sessions has directed senior federal prosecutors to evaluate concerns raised by Republican lawmakers. The letter says the prosecutors will recommend whether an investigation is merited.”

The whole initiative is the manifestation of delusions harbored by right-wing scam mongers. There have already been numerous investigations into these matters that found no hint of wrongdoing. Despite years of baseless allegations, the Clinton Foundation remains a respected charity that has received the highest scores from philanthropic ratings organizations. The Uranium One matter has been repeatedly debunked by fact checkers.

Trump undoubtedly is buoyed by the ultra-conservatives that dominate the Republican Party and hunger for Clinton’s blood. Many have tried to push the DOJ and Trump to punish the former Secretary of State (and current grandma in Chappaqua). And of course Fox News is contributing to the lynch mob mentality. Sean Hannity has virtually given up his entire show to it. And he isn’t alone. Tucker Carlson, Laura Ingraham, and the “Curvy Couch” potatoes of Fox and Friends are all in. Fox’s Jeanine Pirro even met with Trump to urge him to proceed with a Clinton prosecution.

But there are other reasons that consideration of persecuting Clinton is ludicrous and brazenly dishonest. For one thing, if Sessions intends to direct his staff to recommend whether an investigation is merited, he will be violating his statement made under oath to Congress:

“Sessions said he had made comments during the ‘contentious’ campaign about Clinton’s use of the email server and her family’s charitable foundation that could place his objectivity in question.”

“‘I believe the proper thing for me to do would be to recuse myself from any questions involving those kind of investigations that involve Secretary Hillary Clinton,’ the Alabama Republican told senators on the Judiciary Committee.”

That’s an unambiguous promise by Sessions to recuse himself from any Clinton investigations. But his stated consideration of appointing a second special counsel overtly breaches that promise. In addition to Sessions’ prior statements, Trump also expressed his disinterest in pursuing any Clinton queries. this what he said last year on the subject:

However, like pretty much everything Trump says, it will eventually be contradicted by something else that Trump says. More recently he has frantically returned to his obsession with Clinton and has been behaving like the tin-horn dictator he aspires to be. Here he is openly and improperly beseeching his Justice Department to go after Clinton despite not feeling strongly about it.

Legal experts will note that Trump’s pressuring the Justice Department violates long-standing protocol to insure the independence of the department. He has no more business asking for investigations or special counsels than he does firing them. It is a blatant abuse of power and potentially impeachable obstruction of justice.

The fact that Sessions now appears to be caving to Trump’s demands to abuse his legal power and prosecute a former political rival speaks to the fear that must be enveloping the White House. He must feel the warm breath of justice on his neck. And he thinks it’s a proper response to attack his political adversaries with the full force of the government he so incompetently leads. That’s what happens in authoritarian regimes ruled by self-absorbed tyrants. The United States must not allow that to happen here. Donald Trump must be impeached before he’s allowed to inflict more harm on the nation – and the world.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.