Trump

[gumboot]

Is this the real campaign advert that people are talking about?


There are so many parodies it's hard to figure out what's real.

[funkstar]

Converse of Poe's law: when sincere expressions of extremism are taken for parody.

Seriously, though. "He will quickly cut the head off ISIS, and take their oil"? "End illegal immigration by building a wall along our Southern border that Mexico will pay for"? Come on, leave the satirists a little something to work with.

[gumboot]

Come on, leave the satirists a little something to work with.

He's trying to starve them out. Put them out of work by being so ridiculous that there's nothing left for them to do. I think it's sort of like dumping.

[zip accident]

Come on, leave the satirists a little something to work with.

He's trying to starve them out. Put them out of work by being so ridiculous that there's nothing left for them to do. I think it's sort of like dumping.

The payoff being that he wins? The gullibiity tax will be so extreme if that happens that the USA will drown in its own mediocrity.

[gumboot]

Come on, leave the satirists a little something to work with.

He's trying to starve them out. Put them out of work by being so ridiculous that there's nothing left for them to do. I think it's sort of like dumping.

The payoff being that he wins? The gullibiity tax will be so extreme if that happens that the USA will drown in its own mediocrity.

Everybody in the world is afraid of Trump becoming president. Commentary all seems to have this concerned "could America actually be so collectively stupid?" tone. It's hard to imagine it's actually possible, but what if it is?

It's disasterous for the US, but it's so disasterous for the whole world that it's not clear that the US would necessarily be worse off than average.

[zip accident]

Come on, leave the satirists a little something to work with.

He's trying to starve them out. Put them out of work by being so ridiculous that there's nothing left for them to do. I think it's sort of like dumping.

The payoff being that he wins? The gullibiity tax will be so extreme if that happens that the USA will drown in its own mediocrity.

Everybody in the world is afraid of Trump becoming president. Commentary all seems to have this concerned "could America actually be so collectively stupid?" tone. It's hard to imagine it's actually possible, but what if it is?

It's disasterous for the US, but it's so disasterous for the whole world that it's not clear that the US would necessarily be worse off than average.

He's not utterly stupid, and I am somewhat drunk, but the world would take so much advantage of his playing stupid for the cameras, that he might as well be.

[OX mkII]

Bored rich idiot alert.

[pogo]

It’s real. Completely unhinged policies but that’s Trump for you. It’s newsworthy as it’s the first advert he’s done. While his opponents spend millions of dollars on adverts to little effect he has relied almost entirely on news coverage and the media to convey his message. They have been happy to do so as so much of what he does is newsworthy. E.g. his policy to register all Muslims in the US. Apart from being illegal under the US constitution, it would certainly be highly contentious and unpopular, not least among other minorities such as Jews and some Christian groups who would worry about the precedent it would set.

His foreign policies are even more of a joke. His idea to build a wall and make Mexico pay is similar to his idea to force ISIS to capitulate. He seems to think he is such a good, persuasive negotiator that the Mexican govt., Iranian govt., etc. would just agree to his terms. But that is ridiculous. He is not a good negotiator. He did not amass his own fortune he inherited it, then almost blew it in the 1990s. He can get deals done but if I had his billions so could I. Foreign leaders will not be interested in his casino empire, persuaded by his wealth. They will be offended by his racism and other offensive attitudes.

The problem (for the Republican party) is his policies and statements are very popular with a certain class of Republican; white middle class voters who have been left behind by the American economy. The people most to blame are the rich, like Trump, who have rigged the financial system and tax system so they can amass billions.

The Republicans, financed by billionaires, have tried to harness that anger by directing it at other targets: liberals, blacks, foreigners including [illegal] immigrants, the ungodly. This has been a struggle in the past, but has blown up for them now as Trump has turned out to be better at all of them at harnessing that anger, saying things no normal candidate would say. He is helped by not being a politician, so has no actual record of voting or campaigning to contradict his loopy statements.

The ultimate problem is he cannot win an election. He appeals to only a fraction of Republican voters, maybe even a majority of them. But Democratic voters make up at least a half of the electorate, and Trump is a massive turn off to them, as well as quite a few Republicans. Most people think he will not be the candidate, but time is running out for another candidate to establish themselves.

[zip accident]

Bored rich idiot alert.

Trump?

Absolutely!

Trumping

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/trump

5. (intr) Brit: to expel intestinal gas through the anus

loud!

[Darkflame]

I wouldn't worry too much. Nutjob though his apparent polices are, the one thing America is pretty good at is their politics ensuring nothing much actually happens if theres any disagreement.

Theres also, of course, the conspiracy theory view that he is only in it to help Hillary.

[pogo]

The only problem with that is, as a conspiracy theory is it only makes sense if the entire Republican party is a part of it. They have been working towards this for years.

Four years ago they had a succession of joke candidates lead the field, until they put Mitt Romney up against Obama. But Romney was a disaster, a man who had made his money as a corporate raider, buying firms only to ruin them with inappropriate financial schemes designed only to enrich his firm (Bain Capital). He refused to release his full tax returns as is customary, leaving questions over his use of tax havens to dodge US taxes unanswered. Most damagingly he was caught at a donors meeting talking about the 47% of Americans that depend on the government and would not vote for him. Obama was hardly popular then but he won a second term quite easily in the end.

Four years before the Republicans had a pretty good candidate, John McCain, a bona-fide war hero, someone often at odds with his party. But because he was too centrist for many Republicans they chose someone barely qualified but from the far right for VP, Sarah Palin, and that probably destroyed McCain’s chances.

In some ways it’s healthy. It’s happening due to all the money flowing into US politics, especially the Republican party. Because people can effectively give unlimited amounts funding is dominated by a few very rich donors. But what is good for them (tax cuts for the super-rich) is not popular with anyone else. So they have to campaign on other issues instead, and have latched onto the culture wars, standing up for “real Americans”, e.g. middle-class whites, against the perceived onslaught of immigration, declining moral standards, crime and irreligiousosity. Issues they can campaign on without fear of having to actually find solutions to them as mostly there aren’t any, or not least any acceptable ones.

It’s not working as trying to create a wedge over these issues is just putting more people off them; they are either on the wrong side of history, or the wrong side of demography, or both. Also people are not that stupid and can see the generous tax cuts for billionaires in all their tax plans. I.e. despite all the money being spent the Republicans are losing the war of ideas and will likely lose the election, unless they somehow manage to find an acceptable candidate (Chris Christie?) among the current rabble.

[gumboot]

5. (intr) Brit: to expel intestinal gas through the anus

loud!

It's pretty clever how he makes it look like he's doing it through his mouth, though, isn't it.

[Little stoned kiwi]

Trump could be the worst thing for the USA and the best thing for the rest of the world, or the other way around. Let's try it and see!

[snaff]

He's not very different to the other candidates. Which of them doesn't want war and economic lunacy?

[gumboot]

Generally it's a matter of degree, but here it's a matter of how many of them want a wall?