Republicans

Khashoggi Who? Trump Delivers Disgusting Praise for Montana Rep Who Assaulted Reporter

Posted by on October 18, 2018 at 8:34 pm. 1 Comments :

This may be one of the most disgraceful, nauseating things Donald Trump has ever said. Of course, that sentence could have been written a thousand times over the past two years. And it will surely be written again in the future. But for right now this is the moment to be repulsed by what an abhorrent creature is inhabiting our White House.

Donald Trump

At another one of Trump’s now frequent cult rallies, our Cretin-in-Chief took a moment to promote the campaign of Greg Gianforte for Congress. For those who don’t recall, Gianforte is the Republican representative who attacked a reporter who had the audacity to ask him a question about the campaign. Gianforte later pleaded guilty to the assault. But none of that persuaded Trump to hold back in his effusive support for Gianforte’s reelection. Trump even lauded the assault (video below):

“Any guy who can do a body slam, he’s my guy. I shouldn’t say this because – oh there’s nothing to be embarrassed about. […] I had heard that he body-slammed a reporter. [crowd cheers] And he was way up. And I think this was like the day of the election or just before. And I said ‘Oh, this is terrible. He’s gonna lose the election.’ Then I said wait a minute. I know Montana pretty well. I think it might help him. And it did.”

This would be an appalling comment under any circumstances. But coming so soon after the barbaric murder of a journalist at the hands of Trump’s Saudi friends, it is damn near unthinkable. Has Trump already forgotten about the murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a United States resident with four children, three of whom are American citizens? Is he so enamored of the tyrannical privileges of his foreign dictator pals that he’s trying to emulate them? Or is he just this unbelievably loathsome? And what are we to make of the cheering from the audience of glassy-eyed Deplorables who think this is appropriate?

Whatever the explanation, the result can only be a signal to all other despotic leaders who aspire to assassinate troublesome journalists. Trump is sending an unmistakable message that he isn’t going to respond to such hostility. In fact, he clearly approves of it. And the blood of any other journalists – abroad or at home – is on hands. At least we know that he really means it when he says that the media is “the enemy of the people.” And therefore, in his warped mind, they can be assaulted and even murdered without consequence.

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

The GOP News Network (aka Fox News) Is SHOCKED that Billionaires Donate to Democratic Campaigns

Posted by on October 14, 2018 at 1:41 pm. 4 Comments :

It’s just about three weeks until the midterm elections that are forecasting a massive Blue Wave. Most campaign analysts agree that Democrats will secure a majority in the House of Representatives, and some believe the Senate is in play as well. Consequently, Fox News is pulling out all the stops to obstruct that outcome by loading up their schedule with Republican politicians and pundits sermonizing on the urgency of saving the Trump regime’s grip on unchallenged power.

Fox News, Maria Bartiromo

Republicans have abdicated their constitutional role as a check and balance on the other branches of government, particularly the executive branch. Instead, they have been brazenly shielding Trump and company from any legal accountability for their many crimes. And Fox News is aiding and abetting that betrayal of American values. Fox host Maria Bartiromo secured her status as the chief Sunday morning Trump-fluffer with an “interview” of Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy. The segment was pretty much a monologue by the GOP hack intended to boost Republican voter turnout and malign Democrats.

However, one subject dominated the discussion more than the typical gaslighting we’re accustomed to by Republicans. McCarthy raised his “real concern” about former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s donations to Democratic candidates (video below):

“There is a real concern that I have though, because Michael Bloomberg, if you watched who recently registered a Democrat, he is trying to buy the Democrat nomination to run against President Trump. So he has put in $80 million to try and win the House.”

Bartiromo, naturally, agreed with McCarthy. She went on to misstate the truth about which party is getting the most donations from average Americans, and she complained about “a handful of big, deep pocketed donors like a Michael Bloomberg, like a Tom Steyer.” McCarthy took that handoff and ran with it saying that:

“Just think the three individuals who are funding the Democratic Party. George Soros. You’ve got Michael Bloomberg, is not just $80 million into the House, he put another $20 million to try to win the senate. Then Tom Steyer. More than $120 million trying to win. But his main goal is trying to impeach President Trump. He brags that his impeachment list is bigger than the NRA list. Those three individuals are trying to buy our government in this process. It’s very disturbing.”

Why McCarthy correctly noted that there are more people supporting Trump’s impeachment than there are members of the NRA is puzzling, but appreciated. But more to the point, he itemized the contributions of some wealthy Democratic donors and noted how disturbed he was by it. And was it just a coincidence that all three of the rich Dems are Jewish?

What McCarthy didn’t bother to mention is that just one single wealthy donor to the Republicans, Charles Koch, is spending $400 million, more than the total McCarthy said was being donated by all of the Democratic supporters combined. And that isn’t even counting all the other GOP big money donors like the Adelsons and Uihleins. For some reason McCarthy and Bartiromo don’t find that disturbing.

Bartiromo goes on to praise a GOP campaign slogan saying “Build the wall, enforce the law. Yeah.” Then she gives McCarthy an open ended question about where Republicans are running close races with Democrats. And McCarthy took that baton and launched a two minute sprint of races that he wanted to promote on national television to an audience of obedient cult worshipers. It could not have been a more obvious contribution of valuable TV airtime to a political party than if it were branded with a big GOP elephant in place of the Fox News logo.

And this political assist to the Republican Party comes at just the right time. With the midterms approaching, Trump’s frequent cult rallies were boring the Fox News audience so much that Fox cut back on airing them live. The network was also losing a ton of ad revenue because Trump’s speeches could not be interrupted for commercial breaks. So to compensate for the loss of that TV exposure, Fox News is increasing their donations of airtime to GOP shills who will proselytize the right-wing doctrine in a more profitable, TV-friendly format. All in a desperate effort to stave off an electoral bloodbath next month that they probably can’t avoid. Well, as long as Democrats stay focused and turn out at the polls.

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

Trump Implores His Deplorables to Vote for Republicans to Defend ‘Everything We Hold Sacred’

Posted by on October 7, 2018 at 10:12 am. 2 Comments :

The confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the newly “Supine” Court represents just how dangerous Donald Trump’s rule of ignorance and hostility can and will continue to be. Along with his accomplices in the Republican controlled Congress, America is becoming more divided and less free. And given the opportunity to demonstrate leadership by uniting the nation after his ill gotten victory, Trump chose rub salt in nation’s wounds.

Donald Trump Messiah

Immediately following the Senate’s confirmation vote, Trump boarded Air Force One, headed for yet another of his cult rallies, this time in Kansas. It’s what he promised Sean Hannity he would do a couple of months ago, despite railing against such flagrant and wasteful abuse of the taxpayer when President Obama did it:

Trump told Hannity that “I am going to work very hard. I’ll go six or seven days a week when we’re sixty days out.” Of course Trump has never worked hard in his life, and he isn’t starting now. While he has been doing a lot of these cult rallies, it’s been nowhere near six or seven days a week. But they have all been nearly identical presentations of Trump’s “Golden Shower of Hits,” including “Build the Wall,” “Lock Her Up,” and the epic “Witch Hunt.” They have been so tediously repetitive that even Fox News has cut back on airing them live. But that’s probably just to protect him from the increasingly embarrassing and stupid things he says. Plus, their regular cast of sycophants do a better job of fluffing him than he does.

At the Kansas “Take our Country Back – to 1860” revival meeting, Trump did his best to alienate everyone in the nation that isn’t sufficiently worshipful of him. In particular, the opponents of Kavanaugh’s confirmation who are mostly women who are sick and tired of being abused and ignored, and the men who care about them. He told his dimwitted disciples that Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, and the other women who came forward, were liars and that the Democrats in the Senate who supported them were bent on destroying the country. He also maligned protesters as an “angry mob” of professionals who were paid by George Soros. And as a bonus treat for this news cycle, Trump’s lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, called Soros the Anti-Christ.

As if all of that deranged babbling weren’t enough crackpottery for one evening, Trump also unleashed a brief sermonette on the assholiness of his perversion of Republican Party politics. He ragaled his glassy-eyed followers with this divine declaration (video below):

“You have the power, with your vote, to defend your family, your community, your country – and everything we hold sacred and righteous and true. Loyal citizens like you helped build this country and together we are taking back our country. Returning power to every day great American patriots.”

In that pious pontification Trump clearly established his intent to sanctify the mission he believes he’s on. Now voting Republican isn’t merely an expression of preference for a set of political ideas. It’s the defense of your family and country. It’s a “sacred and righteous” obligation by all God-fearing patriots. And anyone not complying is in league with Satan.

This is a demagogic tactic that has been a favorite of dictators throughout history. They insist that supporting them isn’t a personal choice, but a demand by the Lord Almighty. And woe be unto anyone who defies these commandments. The fact that Trump issues these maniacal screeds is reason enough to be worried. But what’s worse is that there are Americans who buy into it like the “good Nazis” of the 1930’s and 1940’s. And those of us who still value little things like logic, reason, and liberty, must not allow them to prevail.

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

Despite His Hysterical Smear Campaign, Americans Still Trust the Media More than Trump

Posted by on September 12, 2018 at 5:53 pm. NO Comments :

For more than two years now, Donald Trump has been attacking what he calls the “fake news” at every opportunity. He does it in interviews, on Twitter, and at his tedious cult rallies where he seems to be on auto-pilot, regurgitating the same old cliches that his disciples devour like nicotine candy. Even after being told that his reckless labeling of the press as “the enemy of the people” was a rhetorical remnant of Joseph Stalin, Trump continues to use the line without the least bit of shame or decency.

Donald Trump

However, after his years-long campaign of denigrating the press, as well as the Constitution’s First Amendment, Trump has gotten nowhere in terms of swaying the favor of the public. A new poll by Quinnipiac asked “Who do you trust more to tell you the truth about important issues: President Trump or the news media?” A majority of fifty-four percent chose the media. Only thirty percent chose Trump. That’s a twenty-four point margin of difference. Broken down demographically, the only group that trusts Trump more, outside of the margin of error, is Republicans. But Independents, Men, Women, and every age and ethnic group trusts the media more.

The poll also asked “Which comes closer to your point of view: the news media is the enemy of the people, or the news media is an important part of democracy?” And by an even bigger majority the media came out far ahead, with sixty-nine percent saying that the media is an important part of democracy. And once again, every demographic breakdown agreed, except for Republicans. Forty-seven percent of the Grand Ole Party actually agrees with Trump (and Stalin) that the media is the enemy of the people. This is an affirmation of the Trump rally-goers who were immortalized wearing a t-shirt that reads “I’d rather be a Russian than a Democrat.”

The poll had plenty of other bad news for Trump and the GOP. On the question of which party voters will back in the November election, a majority of fifty-two percent said Democrats, beating Republicans by fourteen points. Seventy-two percent of voters disapprove of the job the Republican controlled Congress is doing. Perhaps that’s because fifty-eight percent of them think Congress isn’t doing enough to be a check on the President. And both of those last two responses were shared by majorities of every demographic group. These survey results are in alignment with most of the recent polling on these subjects. See also:

It seems that no matter hard Trump pushes on his media bashing, the American people see through his tirades and continue to reject him. That’s reflected in the three latest opinion polls on Trump’s favorability (CNN, Quinnipiac, and NPR/Marist) that all put him in the thirties, and at new lows. Add to that the polls showing that the public trusts special counsel Robert Mueller over Trump, and the future looks bleak for Donnie and his dwindling party. Mueller, of course, has also been the victim of Trump’s persistent, but apparently impotent, outrage.

If these results hold for the next eight weeks, the much anticipated “blue wave” is going to swell into a tsunami. According to the survey statistics experts at FiveThiryEight, Democrats need an eleven point advantage to secure a takeover of both the House and the Senate. That advantage is currently at fourteen points. But these are merely estimates based on numerical analyses. The final election results rely on people actually going to polls and casting votes. So this is no time to become complacent of overly confident. It’s time to work hard every day between now and election day. That’s the only way to achieve the victory that America needs so badly.

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

Trump Can’t Be Shamed. So Why Did He Re-Lower the White House Flag for John McCain?

Posted by on August 27, 2018 at 4:17 pm. 3 Comments :

A rare occurrence took place on Monday that is entirely out of character for Donald Trump and his notoriously petty and obstinate administration. The President reversed himself on his prior decision not to honor the memory of Sen. John McCain by flying the White House flag at half mast. The flag had been lowered on Sunday, but was raised to full staff again on Monday in a breach of protocol that requires it to remain lowered until after the burial of the honoree.

Donald Trump

Trump is not known for having an open mind or for changing his position once he’s figured out (or been told) what it is. Sure, he’ll frequently contradict himself or engage in rank hypocrisy, but that’s different than staking a position and then backtracking. So what might have caused this deviation from his “normal” behavior?

Firstly, it needs to be recognized that Trump is not susceptible to shame. The fact that there was near universal condemnation of his childish dissing of McCain could not have triggered his flip-flop. Even with criticisms from his pals at Fox News and the American Legion. After all, Trump took even more heat after his policy of breaking apart immigrant families became known. The inhumanity of that made most Americans sick as they watched babies being ripped from the arms of their parents. But Trump never backed down from it until he was forced to by the courts.

Likewise, Trump was hammered for his bigoted ban on Muslims entering the country. Majorities of Americans opposed the policy and several federal courts overturned it. But Trump stayed the course without regard for the repudiation of the American people. He continues his crusade to build a wall on the southern border even though polls show that most voters don’t want it. His attacks on the media are rejected by the people who still have more trust in the press than they do in Trump after two years of his anti-constitutional abuse.

So what’s the difference when it comes to this incident with the lowering of the flag? Surely it has nothing to do with Trump’s opinion of McCain. He is openly disdainful of him. He declined to offer any kind of praise following the news of the Senator’s death. And even now that he has acquiesced and re-lowered the flag, he accompanied the action with a pissy statement that still failed to pay McCain any tribute:

“Despite our differences on policy and politics, I respect Senator John McCain’s service to our country and, in his honor, have signed a proclamation to fly the flag of the United States at half-staff until the day of his interment.”

That statement made no gesture to honor McCain’s integrity, patriotism, or any other observance of a positive, personal nature. But he did lead off with the pointless and, under the circumstance, inappropriate mention of their disagreements. Who cares?

There is only thing that marks this affair as unique to the other situations wherein Trump had no problem weathering the storms of criticism. This time many of the attacks are coming from Republicans in Congress who still revere their deceased colleague. Trump desperately needs the support of his congressional confederates to push forward with his abhorrent agenda. He also needs them to shield him from the slings and arrows of investigations and impeachment. The fear of becoming a lame duck or being cast adrift in a rocky political sea must have caused Trump to grudgingly lower the flag and issue a weak proclamation about McCain’s passing.

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

The good news in that is that in November there will be an opportunity to turn Congress into exactly the body that Trump fears most. The much-anticipated “Blue Wave” would subject him to hearings chaired by Democrats who have been chained up too long by unethical Republican leaders. And the prospect of impeachment would become plausible as more and more of Trump’s associates (aka accomplices) are indicted or granted immunity. And that’s not even taking into consideration the looming visage of special counsel Robert Mueller. So stay tuned and have plenty of popcorn at hand.

Paying Tribute: Would Anyone in Trump’s Republican Party Be Remembered Like John McCain?

Posted by on August 26, 2018 at 11:26 am. 3 Comments :

Saturday saw the passing of one of the most storied and respected members of Congress in this generation. John McCain was an irascible political pugilist who managed to nurture close friendships with almost everyone with whom he did battle. And he did battle with everyone. His maverick status may have been an overwrought marketing scheme, but he did have a tendency to skirt partisan divides more frequently than most of his colleagues.

Donald Trump John McCain

Consequently, he earned the respect, admiration, and affection of his congressional peers. The remembrances expressed in the past twenty-four hours have been uniquely non-partisan, especially by today’s Trumpian standards. Naturally, McCain’s passing brought out kind words and loving thoughts from Republicans who regard him as an elder statesman. But he has also been lauded with effusive praise by President Obama, Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, Al Gore, Nancy Pelosi, Bernie Sanders, and many more from the ranks of Democrats.

The tributes generally include recognition of his valiant and selfless service to the nation as a Navy officer and a public servant for more than thirty years. They cite his courage, integrity, honor, perseverance, collegiality, fairness, and above all, putting his principles and his country before himself or his party. And those saluting him specifically used those words to described his enduring legacy. The only prominent Republican who failed to do so was Donald Trump, whose curt tweet offered only obligatory condolences, but said nothing at all about the man or his life’s work.


Compare that to the more fully realized sentiments of the man who defeated McCain for the presidency:

All of these accolades may seem customary under the circumstances when a notable public figure meets his destiny. But on reflection, it’s hard to imagine the same measure of esteem being shown toward any of McCain’s GOP pals were they to expire. Does anyone think that Mitch McConnell would be eulogized with words like courage, integrity, or honor? What about Paul Ryan? Or Jim Jordan? Or Chuck Grassley? Or Kevin McCarthy? Or John Cornyn? Or Mike Pence? Or (do I have to say it) Donald Trump?

What ever one thinks of McCain’s politics, he actually does represent a bygone era of bipartisanship that the GOP has been chipping away at for years. And with the emergence of Trump, the demolition crew has really stepped up their efforts to shred whatever fragile veil of unity has managed to survive.

As a result, it may be a while before America sees another passing of a Republican who garners such near universal praise. Maybe some of the GOP leaders in Congress and elsewhere should start to think about their own legacies and whether they would like to be remembered as heroes or narrow minded zealots.

This applies especially to those who can look the other way as Trump exacerbates partisan divisions, incites racial hatred and misogyny, puts the wealthy and corporations above everyday citizens, and worst of all, kowtows to foreign dictators and sells out the nation to our enemies. Support for that sort of anti-American agenda is unlikely to win over the hearts and minds of grieving Americans once you cast off your mortal bounds. Something to consider.

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

POLL: Trump’s GOP Favors Giving Fascist Authority to the President to Shut Down Critical Media

Posted by on August 7, 2018 at 12:23 pm. NO Comments :

The disintegration of American democracy continues as the Republican Party under Donald Trump embraces the politics of totalitarian dictatorships. It’s consistent with their worshipful supplication to everything that Trump does and says. Any dissent is regarded as betrayal and party members are held to strict oaths of unbending loyalty.

Donald Trump Republican, GOP

In addition to rallying behind Trump’s Stalinist rant that the media is “the enemy of the American people,” a new Ipsos poll shows that a plurality of Republicans (43%) believe that he should be able to shut down any media company that he deems is behaving badly. Can you guess which ones those would be? According to Ipsos:

“Some of the limits of public support for freedom of the press are made stark with a quarter of Americans (26%) saying they agree ‘the president should have the authority to close news outlets engaged in bad behavior,’ including a plurality of Republicans (43%). Likewise, most Americans (72%) think ‘it should be easier to sue reporters who knowingly publish false information.”

For the record, anyone can already sue a reporter or news outlet that knowingly publishes false information. The problem that Trump and his cult following have is when reporters publish truthful and fact-checked information that exposes their lies and the damage they are doing to the country. Their attacks on the press are not intended to produce either fairness or balance. They are intended to intimidate journalists and to poison the minds of the Deplorables so that they trust no other source than Dear Leader.

This strategy is also seen in Trump’s determined efforts to threaten reporters with banishment from White House events and the revocation of their licenses. And his relentless castigation of the media as “sleazy,” “disgraceful,” “horrendous”, “liars,” is bound to lead to violence. Meanwhile, his communications office has made the daily press briefings irrelevant. For one thing, they are hardly daily. There were five briefings in June and only three in July. And when they are held the press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, spends most the time evading questions, haranguing reporters, and exalting Trump.

The good news is that, despite the worst efforts of Trump and the GOP to denigrate the press, the American people consistently say that they trust the media more than they trust the President. Perhaps the fact that Trump is the most documented pathological liar that’s ever occupied the White House has something to do with that opinion.

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

This Creepy GOP Campaign Ad Affirms the Establishment of the Trump Cult

Posted by on July 30, 2018 at 12:55 pm. 1 Comments :

The Republican Party has officially transformed into the Party of Trump. They blindly follow his every word and deed. They pass laws that are tributes to his ignorant worldview. They obstruct any attempt to seek out the truth in matters that may end up reflecting negatively on the President. And they tremble at the thought of arousing his wrath.

Donald Trump, Ron DeSantis

In the Florida governor’s race Ron DeSantis is the Trump-endorsed candidate who mirrors Dear Leader like a shaggy dog’s reflection in a puddle. He is among those for whom Trump has posted one of his infamous robo-tweets that all sound like endorsements for Stepford Republicans. But a recent DeSantis ad featuring his wife and child really struck a tone of Trump worship that is beyond imagination. See for yourself:

https://youtu.be/2BYgM7yWgkY

In this ad Ms. DeSantis performs what would be a hysterical Saturday Night Live satire of a Republican ad. It’s too bad the ad is all too real. She begins by pointing out that her husband is already well known as a Trump flunky. Why on Earth would anyone regard that as a positive image? Then she rambles through a series of Trumpian cliches (“build the wall,” “you’re fired,” “make America great again”) as if that would put some distance between DeSantis and his Messiah. And she closes by facetiously saying that people are wrong to think that DeSantis is “all Trump,” despite that being the entire theme of the ad.

This ad is allegedly a humorous take on the candidate’s emphatic embrace of the President. However, it still articulates a single message to viewers: Ron DeSantis has no agenda other than fluffing Trump. He doesn’t advocate a single issue that might be of importance to Floridians. He doesn’t even try to explain why he’s so infatuated with Trump. It’s just a blind, unquestioning love that is indisputable and all-consuming.

And that’s the whole point of this ad, as well as the whole mythology behind Donald Trump and his rise to power. Despite his innumerable flaws (infidelity, dishonesty, financial incompetence and corruption, racism, treason), he must be loved simply because he demands it. And when he tells you to drink the cyanide-laced Kool-Aid (or to assault a liberal, or a person of color, or a journalist), your only permitted response is “Yes, Master. I will obey.””

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

Gaslighting 101: Trump is ‘Very Concerned’ that Russia Will Be ‘Fighting Very Hard’ for Democrats

Posted by on July 24, 2018 at 11:02 am. 1 Comments :

Perhaps the most lasting legacy of Donald Trump’s presidency will be the ease and frequency with which he passes off flagrant falsehoods to the American people and the world. It’s a display of pathological lying that could keep psychiatric researchers busy for decades. Yet is a daily occurrence for Trump and it is actually increasing in volume and depth of dishonesty every day.

Donald Trump

So it shouldn’t surprise anyone that Trump tweeted another absurdity that he hopes will tickle the shriveled hearts of the glassy-eyed disciples who believe his every utterance. The cult mentality is strong in these adoring StormTrumpers. But this latest Twitter post ought to be recognizably fake news to even the most naive Deplorable:

There is much wrong with this that it’s hard to know where to begin. How about with the fact that just two days ago Trump tweeted that Russian election hacking was “all a big hoax.” And that came only a few days after he insisted that he didn’t see why Russia would interfere with our elections, a statement he supposedly “corrected” the day after he said it. It appears that Trump was arguing that Obama should have told him about the Russian interference that he also says never happened? And what he has been repeatedly calling a hoax and a “witch hunt” is suddenly real.

Secondly, at the joint press conference Trump held with his Russian counterpart (aka boss), Putin was asked directly: “Did you want President Trump to win the election? And did you direct any of your officials to help him do that?” Putin replied, “Yes, I did. Yes, I did.” In fact, Putin has been consistently as flattering toward Trump as the infatuated Trump has been toward him.

Thirdly, Trump has an odd conception of what toughness on Russia is. After all, he just rewarded Putin, who he now believes is intent on interfering with American elections again, with an invitation to the White House. Why on Earth would an American president grant such an honor to someone who the entire intelligence community has concluded was responsible for hacking the last election, and the same president is asserting plans to hack the next one?

Finally, if Trump is so concerned about the election being tampered with by Russia, then why did he and his Republican Party just vote to eliminate funding for election security? These cuts are being imposed even as Trump’s own national security team warn that Russia is still engaging in the election tampering activities that they employed in 2016.

While most of Trump’s tweets are dripping with hostility and deceit, this one is especially infested with his psychotic determination to turn reality on its head. He even said in a speech today to the VFW that “What you’re seeing and what you’re reading is not what’s happening.” In other words my children, “Believe me, not your own eyes and ears.” Is he doing this to put Democrats on the defensive as the beneficiaries of Russia’s cyber war? Or to take the heat off of himself as Putin’s puppet? Or is it just a means of distracting the public and the media from his other scandalous behaviors? Most likely it’s a Trumpian combo-plate of his specialties: blaming others, lying, and treason. And the rightist Republicans who are incapable of coherent thought will eat it up.

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

GOP Deplorables Still Don’t Believe Russia Hacked the Election Even After Trump Said They Did

Posted by on July 18, 2018 at 1:17 pm. 1 Comments :

On Wednesday morning Donald Trump was asked if Russia is still targeting U.S. elections with the intent of influencing future outcomes. He responded with a categorical “No.” That, of course, contradicts his Director of National Intelligence, Dan Coats, who said Monday that Russia is still engaging in “ongoing, pervasive efforts to undermine our democracy.” That’s Trump dismissing the intelligence community that he said on Tuesday has his “full faith and support.”

Donald Trump Voter Symptom

With support like that the intelligence community might as well just lay down in front of the bus and grit their teeth. There appears to be no principle that Trump is not willing to subvert, even within hours of having asserted it. That must make it very hard for his supporters to know what the heck they are supposed to believe. Ordinarily, cult leaders like Trump stake out definitive positions that their disciples can latch onto and recite in unison at rallies. “Lock her up” and “build the wall” are effective examples of that. But there is no such chantable slogan about the Russia affair.

In the meantime, Trump’s base (and I do mean base) is proving to be even more delusional than Trump himself. In a new Reuters/Ipsos poll, Republicans are siding with Vladimir Putin against American intelligence assessments with regard to whether Russia interfered with the 2016 election:

“A majority of registered voters, 59 percent, agree with the conclusions of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia attempted to influence the U.S. election, the Reuters/Ipsos poll found. But only 32 percent of Republicans think that is true compared to 84 percent of Democrats.”

So only a third of the Republicans in this survey agree with the U.S. government agencies that study this matter in their role as defenders of the nation. But what’s even more surprising is that only a third of Republicans agree with Donald Trump, who now says that he agrees with the intelligence community.

To be fair, the Republican electorate can’t possibly know what they are supposed to believe. Trump changes his position almost hourly. So they aren’t getting the sort of cues that cult members are accustomed to. And lord knows that aren’t capable of thinking for themselves. That leaves them scattering like frantic ants whose Capitol Hill has been washed away.

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

And that’s why Trump’s followers are infinitely more dangerous than Trump. He is one person who can (hopefully) be brought to justice and effectively neutralized. But his minions are less manageable and more unpredictable. They include NRA-theists and militias who are convinced of the existence of a “deep state” cabal determined to take their guns and throw them into gay-run, liberal, re-education camps. And they will align with any entity that strokes their egos and affirms their paranoid delusions. Especially if it features the sort of totalitarian control that makes them feel so cozy and pampered and safe. Which explains their affinity for Putin and Kim Jong Un – and Donald Trump.