Donald Trump is the President Mark IV (Read Mod Warning in OP)

Captain_Crash

I watched a video of him yesterday discussing the hurricane and the PR response and he was saying this was likely going to be the biggest storm on record, which was never correct. At the time it was a Cat4, now its a Cat3 and will be a Cat1 by time it makes landfall which is this evening. It will cause a lot of damage and possibly death, but there was never a suggestion of it being the biggest storm ever. Except by Trump of course.

Then he moved onto PR and said the response was probably the greatest disaster response ever and that it was hit with two hurricanes (at least the "two 'canes" bit was accurate). He reminded everyone it was an island so they couldn't just truck stuff in and also mentioned that the national guard brought a hospital over. No mention of any fatalities or continuing difficulties on the island.

Nothing wrong with hyping up a storm, but when you add the PR response to it, it goes to show he wasn't thinking of anything other than his own illusions of grander. I'll try and find the video and post it.

everlast75

Not at all. I cannot think of one genuine Trump supporter in here.

It is just that sometimes his smaller foibles irritate people, other days they do not.

I glossed over his fist pumping when he got off the plane on 9/11 recently. Other days that kind of inappropriate behaviour irritates me.

In terms of stuff he does that is contemptible and worthy of criticism, the list is a mile long. Of course his conduct re Puerto Rico deserves huge criticism.

I just think that if the poster is like me, some days the lesser stuff will annoy me - like his mannerisms, or hyperbole - other days it won't. Maybe today was one of the those days

Penn

kunst nugget wrote: »

And if he said nothing and it stayed a Cat 4 Storm, he would have been the worst in the world for not trying to alert people to the danger…

There's plenty of things to give the TroglaDon guff over. For me, this isn't one of them and it strays into the realm of the petty.

He should obviously talk about and warn people about the storm, however he simply has form of exaggerating the scale of them to either divert praise to himself and the government, or to use it as a reason for their inefficiencies.

But yeah in terms of things you can complain about him doing this week alone, it's definitely on the lower end.

irishash

Penn wrote: »

He should obviously talk about and warn people about the storm, however he simply has form of exaggerating the scale of them to either divert praise to himself and the government, or to use it as a reason for their inefficiencies.

But yeah in terms of things you can complain about him doing this week alone, it's definitely on the lower end.

To clarify my original post - I was not calling him out on warning about the storm. All presidents issue press releases, give press conferences and in the modern age, tweet about serious storms.

My point was more about the fact that he feels everything associated with him has to be the best, the biggest, the most important (His words, his friends, his chocolate cake....). Everything he fixes was previously the worst, the most broken, disgraceful (the tax system, the ACA, immigration).

Is this a petty thing to be annoyed about? Maybe. But he is tweeting about a storm that has the capacity to kill people and cause widespread destruction and flooding. Who really gives a **** if it is the biggest storm ever apart from his fragile ego!!

My other point is that I predict he will continue to call this the biggest storm ever until after the fact, then claim that what arrived was not as bad as expected, and that his administration did the best job ever.

Just keep rolling over that lie counter.

rossie1977

So the US federal budget deficit has seen a huge increase for the fiscal year 2018. Currently sits at $895 billion, up 32% from same period last year https://www.cbo.gov/publication/54442?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=812526&utm_campaign=Express_2018-09-10_18%3a00

Spending up 7% while revenue has only seen 1% increase. Revenue from individual and payroll taxes up $105 billion or 4% while corporate taxes fell $71 billion or 30%.

kilns

rossie1977 wrote: »

So the US federal budget deficit has seen a huge increase for the fiscal year 2018. Currently sits at $895 billion, up 32% from same period last year https://www.cbo.gov/publication/54442?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=812526&utm_campaign=Express_2018-09-10_18%3a00

Spending up 7% while revenue has only seen 1% increase. Revenue from individual and payroll taxes up $105 billion or 4% while corporate taxes fell $71 billion or 30%.

He brags about the great economy but instead  of preparing the US for the pending recession (which he is actually accelerating the economy to) which will come at some stage, he is making things much much worse but he wont care if he is out of office, but thats a problem with politics in general too

kunst nugget

irishash wrote: »

To clarify my original post - I was not calling him out on warning about the storm. All presidents issue press releases, give press conferences and in the modern age, tweet about serious storms.

My point was more about the fact that he feels everything associated with him has to be the best, the biggest, the most important (His words, his friends, his chocolate cake....). Everything he fixes was previously the worst, the most broken, disgraceful (the tax system, the ACA, immigration).

Is this a petty thing to be annoyed about? Maybe. But he is tweeting about a storm that has the capacity to kill people and cause widespread destruction and flooding. Who really gives a **** if it is the biggest storm ever apart from his fragile ego!!

My other point is that I predict he will continue to call this the biggest storm ever until after the fact, then claim that what arrived was not as bad as expected, and that his administration did the best job ever.

Just keep rolling over that lie counter.

Not trying to be pedantic but in the tweet you quoted he just said it was bigger than anticipated, he never said it was the biggest storm ever.

Water John

We in Ireland, on those figures, could even say he's doing a Bertie Ahern on it.

Captain_Crash

kunst nugget wrote: »

Not trying to be pedantic but in the tweet you quoted he just said it was bigger than anticipated, he never said it was the biggest storm ever.

It was me who mentioned that he said that. He didn't tweet it (that I know of) but he did say it to the press in the oval office.

Penn

Trust Don to save us from "is what we're complaining about too petty" and give us something that we can surely all agree is disgusting

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1040217897703026689

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1040220855400386560

pixelburp

Oh holy sh*t.

Every time I reach peak Trump fatigue, he comes out with a sterling reminder of his inhumanity. What kind of a person tries to score points over dead Americans? That there weren't as many dead when he was over, throwing paper towels at the locals?

The 3,000 as Democrat conspiracy: what do you say to that in a situation where 'this is a new low' has lost all meaning? And of course the language is all about him, some arch conspiracy to make him look bad.

Of course, still waiting on some movement about this revelation from him that his DoJ is conspiring with Russia. But sure, 600 days of this. What an accomplishment.

RIGOLO

rossie1977 wrote: »

So the US federal budget deficit has seen a huge increase for the fiscal year 2018. Currently sits at $895 billion, up 32% from same period last year https://www.cbo.gov/publication/54442?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=812526&utm_campaign=Express_2018-09-10_18%3a00

Spending up 7% while revenue has only seen 1% increase. Revenue from individual and payroll taxes up $105 billion or 4% while corporate taxes fell $71 billion or 30%.

Id hazard a guess and say your new to the game of reading CBO reports and have only recently taken to this as a means to confirm your bias and project anti-Trump sentiment.

Pity you havent been watching them very carefully, if you had you would now how lage a pinch of salt to take when reading them

The Economic Outlook for 2017 to 2020 CBO estimates that, in real terms, GDP will expand by 2.2 percent in calendar year 2017 and by 2.0 percent in 2018 (see Table 7 on page 21)

https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=115th-congress-2017-2018/reports/52801-june2017outlook.pdf

CBO projected 2% yet its hovering north of 3.1 %, thats a 33% miss on their part.

In CBO’s forecast, real GDP growth, spurred by fiscal stimulus, is 3.1 percent this year and 2.4 percent next year

https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=2018-08/54318-EconomicOutlook-Aug2018-update.pdf

To paraphrase one of the other amateur anti-Trump economists on here,
Trump is NOT doing a Bertie, but the CBO are most definitely doing an ESRI (we all remember Dr John Fitzgeralds economic predictions) job on projections and analysis it.

My money is still with the Trump administration and Steve Mnuchin guiding the US economy, the CBO are just grinding their deep state axe.
You should read their 2019-2028 10 year budget projections, CBO already admitted adjusting their baseline deficit down by 3 trillion.

https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=2018-08/53884-apb2019.pdf

Professor Moriarty

Penn wrote: »

Trust Don to save us from "is what we're complaining about too petty" and give us something that we can surely all agree is disgusting

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1040217897703026689

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1040220855400386560

That's just awful. How anyone could vote for a person like that is beyond me.

Professor Moriarty

RIGOLO wrote: »

Id hazard a guess and say your new to the game of reading CBO reports and have only recently taken to this as a means to confirm your bias and project anti-Trump sentiment.

Pity you havent been watching them very carefully, if you had you would now how lage a pinch of salt to take when reading them

The Economic Outlook for 2017 to 2020 CBO estimates that, in real terms, GDP will expand by 2.2 percent in calendar year 2017 and by 2.0 percent in 2018 (see Table 7 on page 21)

https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=115th-congress-2017-2018/reports/52801-june2017outlook.pdf

CBO projected 2% yet its hovering north of 3.1 %, thats a 33% miss on their part.

In CBO’s forecast, real GDP growth, spurred by fiscal stimulus, is 3.1 percent this year and 2.4 percent next year

https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=2018-08/54318-EconomicOutlook-Aug2018-update.pdf

To paraphrase one of the other amateur anti-Trump economists on here,
Trump is NOT doing a Bertie, but the CBO are most definitely doing an ESRI (we all remember Dr John Fitzgeralds economic predictions) job on projections and analysis it.

My money is still with the Trump administration and Steve Mnuchin guiding the US economy, the CBO are just grinding their deep state axe.
You should read their 2019-2028 10 year budget projections, CBO already admitted adjusting their baseline deficit down by 3 trillion.

https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=2018-08/53884-apb2019.pdf

Cui bono? Perhaps the CBO hadn't factored in corporate tax cuts that impoverished government services? Perhaps they hadn't factored in his butchering of environmental laws? Perhaps they hadn't assumed he would make a bonfire of workers' rights? Perhaps they hadn't realised he was selling the next generation's future by creating the largest deficit in a decade?

No sane economist could have predicted what a person like The Donald might do.

irishash

Captain_Crash wrote: »

It was me who mentioned that he said that. He didn't tweet it (that I know of) but he did say it to the press in the oval office.

No he never said the words "This is the biggest storm ever"

What he did say first was the storm is the worst storm to hit the east coast in many years (at that time it was not - Irma last year for example), followed up a day later by the statement that the storm was worse than anticipated.

So it was "one" of the worst, then a day later it was worse than that, so it essence, what he meant was it was the worst (or biggest) in many years. :)

Again my point is why the hyperbole? It is not needed - what is needed is leadership to prepare for what will be serious flooding along the east coast.

rossie1977

GDP is not a good measure to use in modern western society where most growth occurs due to debt accumulation.

My money is on the us economy eventually imploding like it did under Bush Jr. That usually happens when you continually increase spending on things like military while cutting revenue like corporate tax.

Many top economists predict a recession by 2020 http://fortune.com/2018/06/04/recession-2020-trump-trade/

MadYaker

The democrats raised the death toll wow haha! Any idea where he got that from?

Zubeneschamali

MadYaker wrote: »

Any idea where he got that from?

Usually Fox News if you look hard enough.

everlast75

Penn wrote: »

Trust Don to save us from "is what we're complaining about too petty" and give us something that we can surely all agree is disgusting

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1040217897703026689

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1040220855400386560

Only someone insane would actually tweet that.

It appears rock bottom has a basement.

He is simply mentally unfit for office. He should be removed immediately.

irishash

RIGOLO wrote: »

Id hazard a guess and say your new to the game of reading CBO reports and have only recently taken to this as a means to confirm your bias and project anti-Trump sentiment.

Pity you havent been watching them very carefully, if you had you would now how lage a pinch of salt to take when reading them

My money is still with the Trump administration and Steve Mnuchin guiding the US economy, the CBO are just grinding their deep state axe.
You should read their 2019-2028 10 year budget projections, CBO already admitted adjusting their baseline deficit down by 3 trillion.

The CBO - an independent, non-partisan organisation, created by congress to give impartial advice on government spending, is part of the "Deep State"?

Do the CBO always get it right? NO. Are they part of a deep state conspiracy? Yeah, sure why not.

For a guy who has now posted to exclaim his expert knowledge on history and economics, I can't wait to see what subject you will be condescending on next.

You have not argued that the CBO is wrong with their figures (they are not BTW), you simply say they are part of a grand conspiracy to bring down the government and therefore cannot be trusted. GDP projections are not a measure of them being wrong with this report, as they are best guesses on what will happen economically based on the current situation and forecasts.

amandstu

Professor Moriarty wrote: »

That's just awful. How anyone could vote for a person like that is beyond me.

How likely is it that he will drag the "GOP" down with him as he disappears under the slurry?.

mcmoustache

MadYaker wrote: »

The democrats raised the death toll wow haha! Any idea where he got that from?

There are a few possibilities. These are just guesses from myself and I don't know one way or the other.

a. It was on Fox and Friends while Trump was getting sprayed for the day.
b. Hannity either via phone call or on his show yesterday.
c. Breitbart, Daily Caller, Gateway Pundit, True Pundit etc, printed off and shown to him by a staffer.
d. He just made it up.

Normally, I'd go with Fox and Friends because, well, he does that a lot but I think that this time he just made it up. He'll probably tweet soon to say that the hurricane was caused by Clinton, Comey and Strzok with help from the DOJ.

pixelburp

When faced with a sitting President who now openly indulges in conspiracy theory, to the extent of trivialising 3,000 dead US citizens for the sake of a spurned ego, I can see why some would hide behind the safety of economic figures. For anyone who leans towards the nominal social or economic conservatism of the US Republicans, it must be uncomfortable to even acknowledge the verifiable fact 'your' President is a charlatan, detestable and increasingly mentally chaotic individual. Easier to keep your nose in the numbers than look up and see the human chaos.

amandstu

As regards the debate going about whether his mind is going ,are there any on this thread with direct experience of close friends of family who might be able to say whether this could actually be so*?

I don't ,you see and I feel that long distance diagnoses need to be either medically scientific or backed up by experience ,so that people like me can't really say one way or the other.


*I doubt it would be unexpected, Mental illness is not exactly uncommon,is it?
eg https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/sep/13/one-in-three-freshers-show-symptoms-of-mental-health-disorder

Captain_Crash

irishash wrote: »

No he never said the words "This is the biggest storm ever"

Word for word no and I accept did paraphrase a little. What he said was "they haven't seen anything like whats coming at us in 25, 30 years, maybe ever".



There have been 66 hurricanes of equal or greater strength in the Atlantic in the last 25 years, so "they" being FEMA, have very much seen a lot like it in the last 25 years. So either he hadn't looked at the forecast in much detail or he was bigging it up. I do believe it was the former myself.


https://edition.cnn.com/2018/09/12/politics/donald-trump-hurricane-florence-puerto-rico/index.html

mcmoustache

amandstu wrote: »

How likely is it that he will drag the "GOP" down with him as he disappears under the slurry?.

He'll drag them down for a few years but the Republicans have Fox News which will be able to shift as much of the blame away from the party and on to Trump when they're done with him. The gullible base will forget that they ever voted for Trump, much like the now rare GWB voters and they'll jump of board for the next Republican candidate who tickles their feelings.

Professor Moriarty

amandstu wrote: »

How likely is it that he will drag the "GOP" down with him as he disappears under the slurry?.

We can but hope.

mcmoustache

amandstu wrote: »

As regards the debate going about whether his mind is going ,are there any on this thread with direct experience of close friends of family who might be able to say whether this could actually be so*?

I don't ,you see and I feel that long distance diagnoses need to be either medically scientific or backed up by experience ,so that people like me can't really say one way or the other.


*I doubt it would be unexpected, Mental illness is not exactly uncommon,is it?
eg https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/sep/13/one-in-three-freshers-show-symptoms-of-mental-health-disorder

I don't have any expertise in that field but mental illness seems to be a bit of a stretch. I think he's just a narcissist which I'm not sure is an illness but more of a personality type. Basically, everything is about him and he's never at fault for anything and he shapes his reality around that.

one armed dwarf

I think it's just severe arrested development.

I was a bit like Trump (without the racism), when I was 15.

edit: Nevermind, this latest tweet is something my 15 yr old self couldn't even contemplate.

seamus

This is Alex Jones-level stuff.

The only two possibilities here:

1. He thinks that 3,000 number is a lie and they didn't really die in a hurricane. In which case...holy ****

2. He thinks that the Republicans were suppressing the numbers to make him look good...and they would have gotten away with it too if wasn't for those pesky democrats.

There's no redeeming narrative here. This is properly bumping along the bottom. Whoever still supports Trump at this stage is either doing it because it suits their pocket, or because they are irrationally bound to it. Nothing he says at this stage is going to change it.