This "president" stood up in front of the media and said, in effect, Don't be too hard on the Nazis. There were other bad hombres gathered there as well. Kind of like when, confronted with the fact Putin is a "killer," the "president" said: He kills people? We kill people too. There's a lot of killing going around. The president has toxic waste for a brain. Hopefully at some point we'll be able to declare the Oval Office a Superfund site and begin the cleanup.
11
Our government is morally bankrupt. That means the GOP, which has bought him, paid for him, and stole a Supreme Court seat for him. They can't wash this one away by saying now what they've known all along, that Trump is a racist, sexist, anti-Semitic bigot. They've known for months, even years, that he thinks it's perfectly fine to lie, cheat, steal, bankrupt small businesses, take away health insurance with no replacement, use the White House as a cash cow bank, and grab any woman and thrust his tongue down her throat and hand in her pants whenever he feels the urge. They knew all this, yet they still supported him. Supporting the KKK and the Nazi party is just icing on the cake. They can't wash that away by saying, they're shocked, shocked, shocked by his behavior now.
14
Complaining about something all the time gets tiresome. Those who did not vote for Trump knew who he was. Those who voted for him didn't care who he was. The democrats as a whole are stale and outdated. Unless they come up with something better we are going to be stuck in this Hades of republicans for a while.
Maybe in the mean time those citizens who did not vote at all, tens of millions of them, can come up with a good reason to vote in their country's elections in the future.
Maybe in the mean time those citizens who did not vote at all, tens of millions of them, can come up with a good reason to vote in their country's elections in the future.
3
I can't be the only non-church attending reader to find myself saying "Amen" after every paragraph.
Thank you, Mr Blow.
Thank you, Mr Blow.
14
Charles, You've said it all, and rightly so! Thank you. If we stand by silently, these hate crimes, and allowing this person & his storm troopers to continue to be in the White House, becomes a collective act of cowardice by us all. Is it possible that the 2016 electoral college "election" can be overturned & a new & honest election be held. and a new and capable president & vice president be voted in by US citizens only?
1
Blow: "This man doesn’t care about facts..."
This is why competence is lacking and why we, as a nation, are in peril.
This is why competence is lacking and why we, as a nation, are in peril.
6
Does anyone imagine Trump would have sided with the Liberals protesting the Nazis ? No way ! The White Supremacists and Nazis are his people. He is just doing damage control by distancing himself from them now that he is President. You could see how hard it was for him to reject them.
3
The fact that 67% of Republicans support Trump's response on this highlights the main issue: 67% of Republicans have no objection to being allied with Nazis. Charles Blow is absolutely correct. There is no such thing as a good Nazi. And if you are so oblivious of reality that you cannot see that there is something not just fundamentally un-American, but also inhumane, about allying yourself with this vile subset of humanity, then you are no better than they. There is no middle position here. The lines are clear. You either reject the concept of racial supremacy, or you accept them. The fact that Republicans accept these ideas tells us a lot about who they really are.
6
How many people must die before we as a country realize the danger we are in?
This is no ordinary president. This is a man who is willing to sacrifice millions of lives to simply embarrass liberals. This is a man who condemned violence "on all sides" after the horrific murder of Heather Heyer, a woman who wanted to make a difference in this world.
The presidency of this vile man has brought forth Nazis, who now have the courage, and practically the permission, to commit atrocities against their enemies.
I am Jewish. When I find out someone I know supports Trump, I just feel sadness.
How can I possibly support a Nazi? How can I support a man who wants me and so many others dead?
You cannot just pick and choose which parts of his presidency you support or oppose. If you support Trump, that is saying that you are okay with the crimes committed against Muslims, women, LGBT, black people, and others he hates.
"I like his economic plan!" you say. That doesn't undo the fact that he has sexually assaulted women. "You liberals are being too sensitive!" you sneer. I'm sorry I care about my existence, and I'm even more sorry that you don't.
Every time this man speaks, I feel sick to my stomach. The venom and the detestation he has for us is despicable. This man is supposed to lead our country, not kill us.
Trump you have let us down. America, I urge you, if you have any love for this country, to make the right decision while you still can. Impeach him.
This is no ordinary president. This is a man who is willing to sacrifice millions of lives to simply embarrass liberals. This is a man who condemned violence "on all sides" after the horrific murder of Heather Heyer, a woman who wanted to make a difference in this world.
The presidency of this vile man has brought forth Nazis, who now have the courage, and practically the permission, to commit atrocities against their enemies.
I am Jewish. When I find out someone I know supports Trump, I just feel sadness.
How can I possibly support a Nazi? How can I support a man who wants me and so many others dead?
You cannot just pick and choose which parts of his presidency you support or oppose. If you support Trump, that is saying that you are okay with the crimes committed against Muslims, women, LGBT, black people, and others he hates.
"I like his economic plan!" you say. That doesn't undo the fact that he has sexually assaulted women. "You liberals are being too sensitive!" you sneer. I'm sorry I care about my existence, and I'm even more sorry that you don't.
Every time this man speaks, I feel sick to my stomach. The venom and the detestation he has for us is despicable. This man is supposed to lead our country, not kill us.
Trump you have let us down. America, I urge you, if you have any love for this country, to make the right decision while you still can. Impeach him.
10
Too bad that the Demos ran about the only person that could not beat this dolt- the odious H.Clinton. I and many other moderates took the day off or voted for a third party candidate. Clinton ran the most incompetent campaign in the last 100 years. I still cant see how she managed to lose to a buffoon.
What's frightening is how many people are amazed and shocked, both Trump supporters and Trump detestors.
I am not. I am not amazed. I am not shocked. Trump is EXACTLY what I expected him to be. I listened to every disgusting thing he said throughout his campaign, every thug and racist he encouraged, every blatant, ridiculous lie he told, every crooked, thieving act that was uncovered, and denied dipped in usual lies, and every personal attack on people who were in no position to fight back.
It was blatantly obvious that this was the one man elected to the White House who could not be changed by it, but would only exploit it for his own gain and glory.
Anyone who is surprised and amazed wasn't paying attention. And not enough of us were paying attention.
I am not. I am not amazed. I am not shocked. Trump is EXACTLY what I expected him to be. I listened to every disgusting thing he said throughout his campaign, every thug and racist he encouraged, every blatant, ridiculous lie he told, every crooked, thieving act that was uncovered, and denied dipped in usual lies, and every personal attack on people who were in no position to fight back.
It was blatantly obvious that this was the one man elected to the White House who could not be changed by it, but would only exploit it for his own gain and glory.
Anyone who is surprised and amazed wasn't paying attention. And not enough of us were paying attention.
11
Listening, right now, to his Monday address right now. This is different, while it is "studied" somewhat robotic he is citing widely accepted facts and atleast to this point (8-10 mins. in) he has refrained from the usual insults even mentioning in a good tone our allies. He is speaking broadly of Pakistan and their harboring of Afghani rebels. 18-20 mins. in he seems more deliberate in both tone, tenor and true resolve to deliver a msg. aimed at both the citizens but mostly to the rank and file soldiery. He wants more money from our fighting partners, says no nation building, speaking broadly to nations in "the region" and stating many times "we" will not try to change these nations cultures or mode of governing. At 25 mins in his tone started to get away from him, but he ended it at the 30 min. mark. I don't like Donald Trump but this is, in my opinion his most presidential effort PERIOD. While my sense is he wanted to "cut loose" and do that "whole look at what i've done thing". He didn't, I probably won't sleep tonight. But I hope those that know their gonna' go there soon..I hope they know how much we love and respect them, Trump didn't stomp on that this time.
1
Thank you, Charles Blow.
How can we get words like yours out to 'the base'? How can we, and you, help 'the base' understand that the truth is different from what they're being fed?
Is the truth not loud enough? Are facts not clear enough? Surely there are sane ways to help...without screaming, without dumbing down the facts. Listening to our comment-writers. reading & reading. Wanting to make a difference.
How can we get words like yours out to 'the base'? How can we, and you, help 'the base' understand that the truth is different from what they're being fed?
Is the truth not loud enough? Are facts not clear enough? Surely there are sane ways to help...without screaming, without dumbing down the facts. Listening to our comment-writers. reading & reading. Wanting to make a difference.
1
Watching Paul Ryan weasel and wince though a 'town hall' (HA!) with Jake Tapper ... so, so, so discouraging.
It's utterly clear that 'Congressional leadership' will not lift a finger to get the menace that is Trump out of office.
I'm not even sure a finding of misconduct or worse by Mueller would move them to act.
Complicit. All of them.
It's utterly clear that 'Congressional leadership' will not lift a finger to get the menace that is Trump out of office.
I'm not even sure a finding of misconduct or worse by Mueller would move them to act.
Complicit. All of them.
6
We elected a president who is on a permanent vacation with taxpayers' money.
2
A partisan is, I have learned to see, just a few steps away from a narcissist.
So weak is their sense of self, so ravenous their desire to feel strong and dominant, that reason is a trifle.
That is who we elected, and that is largely who elected him. Damaged souls who somehow have never learned the big lesson, that all of us are in the same boat.
So weak is their sense of self, so ravenous their desire to feel strong and dominant, that reason is a trifle.
That is who we elected, and that is largely who elected him. Damaged souls who somehow have never learned the big lesson, that all of us are in the same boat.
1
I assume that most folks directly working for Trump in Washington are there because they are opportunists. They believe that their association with the Boorish One will somehow make them wealthier than they already are.
That will, in fact, turn out to be true for 1 or 2 of them, but not for the dozens of others. It will be the result in 1 or 2 cases because Trump will profit by rewarding those 1 or 2. But even the 1 or 2 who financially profit will be disgraced because of their association with Trump. Richer, but disgraced.
And the rest will be left empty handed and disgraced. As it should be.
That will, in fact, turn out to be true for 1 or 2 of them, but not for the dozens of others. It will be the result in 1 or 2 cases because Trump will profit by rewarding those 1 or 2. But even the 1 or 2 who financially profit will be disgraced because of their association with Trump. Richer, but disgraced.
And the rest will be left empty handed and disgraced. As it should be.
2
Charles,
You keep harping on Drumpf and forget about the calamity waiting to happen in 2018.
How many more pieces are you going to write about him?
It's an overkill already.
When do you think it will be time to turn on Dems failed leadership in Congress?
Have you considered asking yourself: why CNN is hosting a town hall today with Trump Doorman Ryan, and not careerist Pelosi?
Because all MSM-including NYT-have long decided Dems are dead as long as Pelosi sticking @ top and refuses to leave.
We will not win the House with Pelosi and her two deputies.
You keep harping on Drumpf and forget about the calamity waiting to happen in 2018.
How many more pieces are you going to write about him?
It's an overkill already.
When do you think it will be time to turn on Dems failed leadership in Congress?
Have you considered asking yourself: why CNN is hosting a town hall today with Trump Doorman Ryan, and not careerist Pelosi?
Because all MSM-including NYT-have long decided Dems are dead as long as Pelosi sticking @ top and refuses to leave.
We will not win the House with Pelosi and her two deputies.
2
Charles, there are other subjects to write about. I despise Trump also. But enough already.
7
Sir, I think you column is much to generous to Trump.
13
The Trump presidency has convinced me that the number one priority for the Congress should be to correct the elections process to insure that the President is elected by popular vote. The Constitution should be amended to eliminate the Electoral College and to make voting as fool proof as possible to prevent tampering or hacking the vote. We can do it but we will need to invest.
The second priority should be to strengthen the primary voting process. Not enough people participate so I think we should make vote day a national holiday and use the voting week as a national teach-in.
There are still some barriers to voting that exist in certain states and I believe voting for Federal candidates should be made in a uniform manner for the entire US.
I don't know what the several investigations will discover in the case of the Trump election but the investigations should be acted on quickly.
Bottom line: The President of the United States has huge responsibilities. the President has the power to get us all killed or wishing we were dead in the powers granted the President as Commander in Chief under our Constitutional Democracy. This power requires the greatest attention of the citizens of this country.
I don't know exactly how to address the issue but I would like to drastically change how we finance campaigns and the treatment of political messages funded under the provisions of Citizens United.
I hope you will join me in taking this on prior to the next election.
The second priority should be to strengthen the primary voting process. Not enough people participate so I think we should make vote day a national holiday and use the voting week as a national teach-in.
There are still some barriers to voting that exist in certain states and I believe voting for Federal candidates should be made in a uniform manner for the entire US.
I don't know what the several investigations will discover in the case of the Trump election but the investigations should be acted on quickly.
Bottom line: The President of the United States has huge responsibilities. the President has the power to get us all killed or wishing we were dead in the powers granted the President as Commander in Chief under our Constitutional Democracy. This power requires the greatest attention of the citizens of this country.
I don't know exactly how to address the issue but I would like to drastically change how we finance campaigns and the treatment of political messages funded under the provisions of Citizens United.
I hope you will join me in taking this on prior to the next election.
36
I certainly agree with your tone about Trump in general, but I have to raise my hand.
Not all demonstrators were Alt-right. Some just didn't want their confederate statue taken down -- probably main-line Republicans or Democrats. It is quite conceivable to see the President's remark about "fine people" as referring to non-Alt-right people who were demonstrating.
I do not think that the counter-demonstrators were unreasonable; and the President was dead-wrong in trying to draw an equivalence. That seems to be where he went off the rails.
Not all demonstrators were Alt-right. Some just didn't want their confederate statue taken down -- probably main-line Republicans or Democrats. It is quite conceivable to see the President's remark about "fine people" as referring to non-Alt-right people who were demonstrating.
I do not think that the counter-demonstrators were unreasonable; and the President was dead-wrong in trying to draw an equivalence. That seems to be where he went off the rails.
4
But as Charles and others have said, when the protesters saw that the white supremacists and nazi sympathizers were leading the rally, they should have gotten the heck out of there. Once they decided to stay in spite of the clear message of hate these folks were sending out, then they become accomplices, plain and simple. Let's be honest, you are no longer innocent once you are marching side by side with nazis.
6
If we truly believe Mr. Trump presents an immediate danger to us, perhpas a brave mental health professional in DC is willing to exercise their duty under DC Code Title 21, Chapter 5, Subchapter III, Sec. 21-521, and hospitalize Mr. Trump pending a full evaluation. Should such evaluation reveal an illness or suggest a danger to us, then Pence and Congress can transfer power under Amendment 25, Section 4 to Pence. Nothing in this comment is intended as an instigation or threat, but a true and legitimate fear of harm to myself and others by the continued actions of Mr. Trump.
18
Trump's fans typically use their fandom as a means of telling themselves who they are. Trump-the modern gladiator promoter- gets his affirmation, acknowledgement, attention and affection from making sure his fans have a good show/game to keep his ego soaring.
8
And that's why it'll only get worse.
As decent people move away from Trump he will have to become more and more vile to get his "hit" from the most rabid of his crowds. They'll feed off each other and Trump will throw anyone, any group of people under the bus for applause.
To save his ego or his skin this man he will tear your country to pieces. Bannon explained it in his interview. He want "the left" to be talking about racism every day, so that when Trump talks about the economy people will listen. The cynicism is appalling. A deliberate and planned strategy to tear the country apart in order to "crush" the opposition.
Most of congress sees it now. It's like their fever is breaking. Slowly. The GOP must impeach Trump before the year is out or they will not do it- for then their own skin will be at too much risk so close to the mid-terms. By the years end they sink or swim with Trump.
Will the GOP move whilst Trumps base sticks with him? The base will not budge, if they'll stick with him after this week, bar Trump moving to overthrow the rule of law by granting pardons, they'll stick with him to the bitter end.
It all comes down to Mueller finding evidence. If he finds collusion they'll be rid of Trump for obstruction of justice, but without collusion the GOP will not move on obstruction. Quite the pickle you find yourselves in.
As decent people move away from Trump he will have to become more and more vile to get his "hit" from the most rabid of his crowds. They'll feed off each other and Trump will throw anyone, any group of people under the bus for applause.
To save his ego or his skin this man he will tear your country to pieces. Bannon explained it in his interview. He want "the left" to be talking about racism every day, so that when Trump talks about the economy people will listen. The cynicism is appalling. A deliberate and planned strategy to tear the country apart in order to "crush" the opposition.
Most of congress sees it now. It's like their fever is breaking. Slowly. The GOP must impeach Trump before the year is out or they will not do it- for then their own skin will be at too much risk so close to the mid-terms. By the years end they sink or swim with Trump.
Will the GOP move whilst Trumps base sticks with him? The base will not budge, if they'll stick with him after this week, bar Trump moving to overthrow the rule of law by granting pardons, they'll stick with him to the bitter end.
It all comes down to Mueller finding evidence. If he finds collusion they'll be rid of Trump for obstruction of justice, but without collusion the GOP will not move on obstruction. Quite the pickle you find yourselves in.
As I understand, one of the integral characteristics of Narcissistic Personality Disorder in Narcissistic Rage. Trump appears to have lots of that.
25
Blow is right on point with this column because when talking to people about Trump no one refers to him as President Trump. When I do hear an occasional President Trump referenced it sounds foreign. People just can't imagine that Trump is really our president. The whole thing seems like a bad B movie that we the American are being forced to watch.To those who keep telling us Trump's base still supports him I say so what. I truly believe there are more of us than them.The fear of Trump's base is causing leaders on the right to sit on their hands while Trump makes us the laughing stock of the world. If the right refuses to grow a spine and stop this downward movement of our country under Trump they will surely regret it in the future. It is telling that it took two females senators and John McCain to have enough spine to put an end to the repeal and replace train wreck of the ACA. Monthly we are told there will a new handler in Trump's inner circle to protect us from Trump. Now we are told there is a four-star general trying to tame Trump and we are told since Kelly is a former Marine he will succeed. If the past seven months is any sign of what we can expect it is only a matter of time before the cast is changed again. It is time to accept Trump's base will stay his base and we the people of America need to corral the other than Trump's base and vote these guys out.
33
The Republican congress shares responsibility in this, and inevitable future POTUS debacles. No matter how hard they tweet and air their disgust and disagreement, the ONLY way we will know for sure they mean it, is to lead impeachment proceedings.
20
Bravo Charles! All this from a man who really needs "spell check " before he Tweets "here instead of hear".Don the Con , some people never learn.However, those from the NYC area know better. #notmypresident.
14
"Tell me, Dear Charles, what else we can DO as ordinary citizens. That's what you need to write about. Give me the 'to do' list." --Patricia of Atlanta
Here's what you can do:
Google your county Democratic Party and volunteer to help get out the vote in your precinct; many local parties have been energized by the election of His Impotency and are organizing for action. Get friends and neighbors involved as well. Take reassurance, determination, and inspiration from like-minded people at meetings of the Party and other established groups like Democracy for America and League of Women Voters. Participate in rallies and marches with resistance groups such as Indivisible. Write letters on specific issues to your local paper. Send post cards to your legislators in support of important issues on which votes are imminent. Support local candidates, from dogcatcher to Senator, as a volunteer and/or by contributing financially as you are able.
VOTE in every election!
That's a start; other commenters would surely add their own ideas to the list.
Here's what you can do:
Google your county Democratic Party and volunteer to help get out the vote in your precinct; many local parties have been energized by the election of His Impotency and are organizing for action. Get friends and neighbors involved as well. Take reassurance, determination, and inspiration from like-minded people at meetings of the Party and other established groups like Democracy for America and League of Women Voters. Participate in rallies and marches with resistance groups such as Indivisible. Write letters on specific issues to your local paper. Send post cards to your legislators in support of important issues on which votes are imminent. Support local candidates, from dogcatcher to Senator, as a volunteer and/or by contributing financially as you are able.
VOTE in every election!
That's a start; other commenters would surely add their own ideas to the list.
16
And fight voter suppression because if we can't vote, this is never going to change.
9
Yes. We get it. Winter is here. The night is dark and full of terrors. Now is the time to come up with some concrete strategies to get Trump out of office. I don't see any suggestions as to how that can be done -nothing coming from the media, lame liberals or dithering Democrats. Yes, Trump lacks leadership, morality. common sense and more. But so do his opponents.
6
The liberals you speak of did not put Donald in office. We are in exactltly
The same place you are---stuck in a room with a tantruming, impulsive child. And yes you are right we do have ethics, morality and common sense.
We just lack an effective route through which we can bring them to expression.
The same place you are---stuck in a room with a tantruming, impulsive child. And yes you are right we do have ethics, morality and common sense.
We just lack an effective route through which we can bring them to expression.
2
This is why I cried when he was elected. I knew he would be a disaster.
23
It's bloody tragic to watch.
2
I'm almost sixty and I've never felt this country so rudderless and our leader so hollow. I agree with the congresswoman that introduced the bill requiring a mental health evaluation. The man has no morals, no conscience, and bears all the signs of a severe personality disorder. That Republicans would defend him just to salvage their agenda makes no sense to me--I mean, Pence is just conservative, if not more so, but at least he's got all his marbles. I don't like his marbles, but at least he's got them.
21
Thank you Charles M. Blow for telling it like you see it. And what you see is what many of us do also. We saw it during the campaign and tried to warn. We saw it in his inaugural address and beyond. We have been and will continue to sound the alarms until either he destroys us or he is gone from our midst. We live in dangerous times now. Continue to sound the alarm.
16
It is impossible for any sane person not to condemn Trump's statement about there being "good people" at the unite the white rally. I listened many, many times to that interview. Trump was not referring only to people who care about statues as being 'good people.' He also included the neo-Nazi marchers among the 'good people' tag. To think that Trump was talking only about statues is a delusion. Besides. there are so many ways to teach history other than putting up huge statues of white men in the midst of populations of people whose ancestors were brutalised by slavery. Where is the sensitivity in this? Trump is sensitive only to his own needs, and does not know that he is there to serve the public, not be enriched by them.
9
I think Trump supporters jump for joy every time a journalist like Charles M. Blow vents his spleen over Trump and that Trump is counting on their approval to keep himself in office for 8 years. The fact that the ostensible POTUS can ruffle so many feathers 24/7/365 is a delight to his fans.
The question is, are there more Trump supporters who revel in his every provocation or are there more patriots who see the extraordinary damage being done by this phony placeholder? I think some of these excellent writer such as Charles M. Blow and David Remnick (of the New Yorker) need to write columns that educate people about what they are personally losing during this presidency. It won't affect the core (Trump could shoot someone dead on Fifth Ave and retain them), but if we're lucky it will peel off enough moderates and independents to dump him on the next go-round.
The question is, are there more Trump supporters who revel in his every provocation or are there more patriots who see the extraordinary damage being done by this phony placeholder? I think some of these excellent writer such as Charles M. Blow and David Remnick (of the New Yorker) need to write columns that educate people about what they are personally losing during this presidency. It won't affect the core (Trump could shoot someone dead on Fifth Ave and retain them), but if we're lucky it will peel off enough moderates and independents to dump him on the next go-round.
17
Trump has no moral compass, he is a hollow man, to paraphrase one of your most poignant articles. As a narcissist, I wonder if somehow he were to be praised by the left for ... well anything... Would he shift toward that praise regardless of the subject matter. Just a thought. He is truly insane.
5
Mr. Blow,
If it is the case that Trump is failing on all counts
then you should be very, very worried as to how and why
he became President.
The discontent among the voters has only increased since the election.
What politician/would be dictator is watching all of this
and planning on how to become President ?
If it is the case that Trump is failing on all counts
then you should be very, very worried as to how and why
he became President.
The discontent among the voters has only increased since the election.
What politician/would be dictator is watching all of this
and planning on how to become President ?
6
Let's see what happens in Phoenix tomorrow. In front of his "base" there is no way that he is going to be able to restrain himself from being himself. I want to be wrong, but I think things are going to get even uglier than Charlottesville tomorrow night.
13
I know, I know Mr Blow!! What are we to do now? All of our wounded, offended, and disenfranchised cannot put this broken country back together again! We are broken and busted. We have been cognizant of this disastrous conceit of a president since his first blunders as a candidate. It gets worse by the month. Where is our hope? From where do we draw strength and hope for change?? I don't see it.
4
The positives that I have seen include the millions who participated in the Women's March on Washington after Trump's Inauguration, and the 40,000 who just marched in Boston against white supremacists. There have been many protests now - pro science, pro- environment, against racism. A new generation of activists and a revived generation of activists who will march, will protest on behalf of their country.
Some of the signs are small. On the S.F. Bay Trail on my morning walk, there is a window near a curve that has LED or small neon-looking lights with anti-Trump messages that change most weeks. The last one read "Trump Unhinged". The only viewers would be those on the trail.
The other positives include the free press that seems to be in a Renaissance these days with excellent reporting in all directions from multiple sources.
And the final positive is the inexorable continuing progress of the Mueller investigation.
Truth counters lies, democracy in action counters voter suppression and apathy, and justice is the antidote for crimes, personal, political and global.
Some of the signs are small. On the S.F. Bay Trail on my morning walk, there is a window near a curve that has LED or small neon-looking lights with anti-Trump messages that change most weeks. The last one read "Trump Unhinged". The only viewers would be those on the trail.
The other positives include the free press that seems to be in a Renaissance these days with excellent reporting in all directions from multiple sources.
And the final positive is the inexorable continuing progress of the Mueller investigation.
Truth counters lies, democracy in action counters voter suppression and apathy, and justice is the antidote for crimes, personal, political and global.
11
Thank you SMB Savannah. I need to be reminded of the positives.
3
'This man doesn’t wait for facts. This man doesn’t care about facts, or much else for that matter. He only cares about himself, his image and his positioning.'
This is not completely true. Trump cares also about banning the muslims into the country, ridding people of their basic rights such as health insurance, stealing from poor to give to rich, destroying public education, dismantling ambiental protection agency etc etc. Fortunately he and his buddies are not so effective (as yet) but that is hardly reassuring.
For lovers of latin and history: Trump destituendo est.
This is not completely true. Trump cares also about banning the muslims into the country, ridding people of their basic rights such as health insurance, stealing from poor to give to rich, destroying public education, dismantling ambiental protection agency etc etc. Fortunately he and his buddies are not so effective (as yet) but that is hardly reassuring.
For lovers of latin and history: Trump destituendo est.
5
And we're paying the Secret Service how much to protect his awful family? Business trips for Eric and Donald Jr.? Forced to stay at Trump hotels? Is anyone paying attention to these people????
17
The Republican Party brought us Donald trump...The "GOP" has brought us to
this point and we should have recognized the first Reagan dog whistle loud
and clear in Philadelphia, Mississippi, where he initiated his campaign.
So, so close to the dead bodies of 3 young men working toward racial reconciliation........
Power, money.....so many Americans envy those who have achieved those
goals, and only those goals ......the American "character" is withering.....
this point and we should have recognized the first Reagan dog whistle loud
and clear in Philadelphia, Mississippi, where he initiated his campaign.
So, so close to the dead bodies of 3 young men working toward racial reconciliation........
Power, money.....so many Americans envy those who have achieved those
goals, and only those goals ......the American "character" is withering.....
7
Mr. Blow it is extremely frightening that an ignorant bigot like Donald Trump is in our White House. Hopefully this is 'hitting rock bottom' for our nation and there's nowhere to go but up.
When a person defends people who walk with white nationalists and neo Nazis and calls them "fine people" I believe calling him 'an ignorant bigot' is just and on the mark.
When a person defends people who walk with white nationalists and neo Nazis and calls them "fine people" I believe calling him 'an ignorant bigot' is just and on the mark.
14
Today I heard a news story on the radio about an organization that was described as "headless." For a second I thought it was about the United States of America. Turned out it was about Uber. The similarities, though, are striking. Both have hate-spewing, misogynist narcissists for CEOs.
6
There are no good Nazis. There are no good white supremacists. There are no good members of the KKK. Such belief systems are antithetical to a pluralistic democracy because they deny by their very nature, the value of certain clearly identifiable citizens and groups of others. There is no place for such belief systems in a modern democracy, and if allowed to grow, like a tumor, threaten the whole political system.
President Trump, as the democratically elected leader, has to protect the democracy: he can have no truck nor trade with them. He has to work to stamp them out. And freedom of speech arguments simply miss the point. Just like your freedom of speech does not give you the right to recklessly argue fire in a packed theater, it certainly doesn't extend to espousing hatred towards clearly identifiable groups and individuals.
Call evil by its name. Shine a light on it and destroy it.
President Trump, as the democratically elected leader, has to protect the democracy: he can have no truck nor trade with them. He has to work to stamp them out. And freedom of speech arguments simply miss the point. Just like your freedom of speech does not give you the right to recklessly argue fire in a packed theater, it certainly doesn't extend to espousing hatred towards clearly identifiable groups and individuals.
Call evil by its name. Shine a light on it and destroy it.
7
I am sorry that Ms Heyer was killed and the jerk will never see the light of day that killed her(no death penalty as not premeditated) . However a week ago Friday we were concerned about No Korea and the week before that health care..real issues of iimportance. The last week have been little TV heads and writers going on and on about Nazis..even recommending that the stature of Italo Balbo! be torn down in Chicago(he flew with his team of pilots with accolades to the 1932 Worlds Fair Chicago) as he was a Fascist. Now we see less than 100 skinhead types(despicable for sure) compared to 40000 "antifa" (who know nothing about the lead up to the Spanish Civil War, WW2, etc) who seem mostly well meaning rabble rousers). Korea is promising "merciless strikes", we may leave Afghanistan, health care still up in air, 8 trillion in public sector pensions..Please writers cover REAL issues..this is sophomoric fun for the media.
3
Of course he's failing all the tests...he's a fake president!
16
Saggio- Mr. Blow wasn't writing an article about economic issues, so your comment was essentially a non sequitur.
Sady- Your shout out to Saggio is, consequentially, off topic.
Glad you are both reading NYT. But Mr. Blow has written an opinion piece, not a news piece, and therefore, Sady,, it can't be "fake news."
Sady- Your shout out to Saggio is, consequentially, off topic.
Glad you are both reading NYT. But Mr. Blow has written an opinion piece, not a news piece, and therefore, Sady,, it can't be "fake news."
4
Well the good news is the so called man is now the face of the the republican party and if the majority of We the People have not drunk the stupid kool aid we might wrest the Nation from the amoral and immoral republican party. There is no more dodging for republicans; their brand accommodates nazis and klansmen because they need their votes to win elections.
5
He got the message from someone on his staff that it was O.K. to equivocate over Nazis. Who? Bannon? Gorka? The little right wing bigot that lives between his ears?
It is important, very important, that we know. They too have to leave.
Maybe Breitbart has a roll for them. We do not.
It is important, very important, that we know. They too have to leave.
Maybe Breitbart has a roll for them. We do not.
9
Those of us know Nazis when they were in full bloom at the end of WW2 have a real horror of any hint of reemergence. Serving on the USAirForce lasts a lifetime. JGAIA
5
HEALTHCARE-NO. NAZIS, KKK & WHITE SUPREMACISTS-YES. ALL 40 OREGON ELECTED REPUBLICANS STILL OK WITH TRUMP AS PRESIDENT.
ALL 40 elected Oregon Republicans continue to support Donald Trump as FIT to be President of the United States of America.
Greg Walden - U.S. Representative, 202-225-6730
Dennis Richardson - Secretary of State, 503-986-1523
Every Republican state senator
Every Republican state representative
Knute Buehler - representative, 503-986-1454 [Will Buehler ask Trump to campaign for him in Oregon as he runs for governor? Perhaps Knute will invite his $500,000 patron, Nike’s Phil Knight, to join him and Trump at a campaign event where they can discuss how many Oregonians would lose their health care if Trump had signed a bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Then they could move on to guess how many Nike customers wear their Nikes to Nazi, KKK & White Supremacist rallies. Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, is on the Nike board. Pay attention Tim.]
By NOT revoking their support they are saying that every policy position, appointment, decision, public utterance and tweet by Donald Trump from his inauguration on January 20, 2017 to August 20, 2017 does NOT, separately nor in the aggregate, disqualify him as unfit to be president.
Richard Ellmyer
Author of The Ellmyer Report, a newsletter that informs, educates and influences on public policy. Occasionally distributed to more than a quarter of a million readers in Oregon and beyond. Facebook, Portland Politics Plus
ALL 40 elected Oregon Republicans continue to support Donald Trump as FIT to be President of the United States of America.
Greg Walden - U.S. Representative, 202-225-6730
Dennis Richardson - Secretary of State, 503-986-1523
Every Republican state senator
Every Republican state representative
Knute Buehler - representative, 503-986-1454 [Will Buehler ask Trump to campaign for him in Oregon as he runs for governor? Perhaps Knute will invite his $500,000 patron, Nike’s Phil Knight, to join him and Trump at a campaign event where they can discuss how many Oregonians would lose their health care if Trump had signed a bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Then they could move on to guess how many Nike customers wear their Nikes to Nazi, KKK & White Supremacist rallies. Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, is on the Nike board. Pay attention Tim.]
By NOT revoking their support they are saying that every policy position, appointment, decision, public utterance and tweet by Donald Trump from his inauguration on January 20, 2017 to August 20, 2017 does NOT, separately nor in the aggregate, disqualify him as unfit to be president.
Richard Ellmyer
Author of The Ellmyer Report, a newsletter that informs, educates and influences on public policy. Occasionally distributed to more than a quarter of a million readers in Oregon and beyond. Facebook, Portland Politics Plus
8
Good article, but you really said it all in three sentences:
There are no good Nazis. There are no good white nationalist accommodators. There are no good people who see racists and don’t want to retch.
There are no good Nazis. There are no good white nationalist accommodators. There are no good people who see racists and don’t want to retch.
6
By his own estimate Mr. Trump is one of the best presidents we have ever had. Here in his own words is why:
"I am the least anti-Semitic person that you’ve ever seen in your entire life."
"I am ... the least racist person."
"I just have great respect for them [blacks] and you know they like me."
"Laziness is a trait in blacks."
"I love Mexican people."
"They're rapists."
"Nobody respects women more than I do."
"I just start kissing them... Grab them by the ..."
"I know more than the generals."
"Is Obama a total racist?"
"There were some very fine people [at the neo-Nazi march]."
"Maybe he should have been roughed up."
"Please don't be too nice."
"Like when ... you’re protecting their head .. You can take the hand away ..."
"Fake news."
"I'm a very honest person."
"Honestly ..."
"I'm very truthful."
"I tell it straight."
"To be honest with you ..."
"I am the least anti-Semitic person that you’ve ever seen in your entire life."
"I am ... the least racist person."
"I just have great respect for them [blacks] and you know they like me."
"Laziness is a trait in blacks."
"I love Mexican people."
"They're rapists."
"Nobody respects women more than I do."
"I just start kissing them... Grab them by the ..."
"I know more than the generals."
"Is Obama a total racist?"
"There were some very fine people [at the neo-Nazi march]."
"Maybe he should have been roughed up."
"Please don't be too nice."
"Like when ... you’re protecting their head .. You can take the hand away ..."
"Fake news."
"I'm a very honest person."
"Honestly ..."
"I'm very truthful."
"I tell it straight."
"To be honest with you ..."
15
Forget the monuments and whatever distraction gets tweeted
out, Trump pals around with Nazis.
Word
out, Trump pals around with Nazis.
Word
5
Trump is perpetrating a massive fraud on the American people. He is taking up space that is reserved for our president. Instead of a president we have someone who uses the presidency for his and his family's enrichment. The Republican party has failed us. When they sit quietly and don't speak forcefully about the wrong the president is doing, e.g., excusing white supremacist racist actions), they are in effect validating his actions, saying they approve. If they won't do what is necessary to get Trump out of the president's office, we will elect people who will.
10
Blow, Krugman, Dowd, et al. on the Times, thousands of others all over the country, say these same things day after day, week after week, and still Donald Trump is in office. The base still supports him. Congress does nothing. Next week, next month, six months from now, it'll be more of the same. When will this nightmare end?
10
Welcome to the Global Village foreseen by Marshall McLuhan. Village life is awful - ruled by bullies, gossip, disinformation, small-minded personal grievances, and vendettas.
The New York Times is basically the newspaper of record. In the future, when people want to look up this whole ugly episode, the record will be clear. Trump is that primitive person trying to drag us all back to a less tolerant and open-minded era.
The New York Times is basically the newspaper of record. In the future, when people want to look up this whole ugly episode, the record will be clear. Trump is that primitive person trying to drag us all back to a less tolerant and open-minded era.
3
Trump has acknowledged on multiple occasions that his philosophy is "when they hit you, you hit back harder." He is demonstrating his belief in this idea at every opportunity. The press that notes his evidence-documented lies is "the fake news." Only media who support Trump are "real news."
I don't know what's going to happen with North Korea, where bombast is the largest export. I hope that neither Trump nor Kim Jong Un are stupid enough to actually strike out with nuclear weapons, but between Kim's god-like status in North Korea and Trump's god-like status in his own mind, I don't feel particularly safe.
It seems clear, however, that as long as Trump is president, he will adhere to his belief in raising the stakes every time he gets offended. And as we've seen, unlike when he was a private citizen and merely boorish and laughable, when he holds the most important job in the United States, people take his lies and lack of moral compass seriously, and react with alarm...which offends him, and the circle continues...
I don't know what's going to happen with North Korea, where bombast is the largest export. I hope that neither Trump nor Kim Jong Un are stupid enough to actually strike out with nuclear weapons, but between Kim's god-like status in North Korea and Trump's god-like status in his own mind, I don't feel particularly safe.
It seems clear, however, that as long as Trump is president, he will adhere to his belief in raising the stakes every time he gets offended. And as we've seen, unlike when he was a private citizen and merely boorish and laughable, when he holds the most important job in the United States, people take his lies and lack of moral compass seriously, and react with alarm...which offends him, and the circle continues...
3
I don't bother leaving comments on NYT's board much anymore because it is mostly preaching to the choir. I prefer to do battle directly with the trump trolls on sites like breitbart or infowars. I suggest other nyt readers do the same as personal acts of resistance.
4
Make no mistake, Trump's victim is the world and the whole world knows this except a large percentage of Republicans. The Jews and people of color who support him, will define their lives with this act and will NEVER shake the stink of supporting him from their legacy.
5
Who knew that racism, bigotry and hatred would be so hard?
5
Mr Blow. I share your views yet your own paper published and article 2 days ago interviewing a successful 35-year old African American woman who supported Trumps remarks and added she felt like she was from another planet ( I agreed with her there) and she couldn't understand the resistance against Trump. These folks (67% of Trump supporters) are still drinking the Kool-aid and think were are the deranged ones. I don't see any of them changing their minds anytime soon. Facts mean nothing to these people. Until they are directly hurt by this administration, and it's just a matter of time, and, more importantly, they attribute the pain to Trump, only then will they be in a position to change their minds. If they do....
7
Dear Mr. Blow,
How many times more are you going to supply us with another aggrieved essay explaining why you do not like or respect President Trump? Are there other topics that might engage you? A suggestion: please share with us your thoughts about the just-departed Jerry Lewis--because it will be a break for once not to know what you are going to say before you expend yet more effort in saying it.
Your friend,
Alan
PS We, the readers, don't necessarily disagree with you. We are just bored to distraction hearing you repeat yourself. AB
How many times more are you going to supply us with another aggrieved essay explaining why you do not like or respect President Trump? Are there other topics that might engage you? A suggestion: please share with us your thoughts about the just-departed Jerry Lewis--because it will be a break for once not to know what you are going to say before you expend yet more effort in saying it.
Your friend,
Alan
PS We, the readers, don't necessarily disagree with you. We are just bored to distraction hearing you repeat yourself. AB
2
Charles, your commentary throughout the Trump saga - campaign and presidency - has been right on, has called out Trump's ignorance and bigotry and unfitness to hold the Office. But beware that your zeal does not jeopardize your health and well being.
I say this is in sincere regard for you, not in a rejection of your view of Donald J Trump. He deserves whatever fate those who constantly appear red of face, frantic in hyperbolic emotion, over the top in the loss of control and reason earn.
You don't.
Keep writing, keep exposing and denouncing this man and the danger he poses to us. But also, keep your sanity and your health. He's not worth your losing both!
I say this is in sincere regard for you, not in a rejection of your view of Donald J Trump. He deserves whatever fate those who constantly appear red of face, frantic in hyperbolic emotion, over the top in the loss of control and reason earn.
You don't.
Keep writing, keep exposing and denouncing this man and the danger he poses to us. But also, keep your sanity and your health. He's not worth your losing both!
8
Honestly, if good prevails over bad, then Trump should be obliged to learn the job right or resign with the approval of most voters and most of the Congress. Unfortunately, power dictates political outcomes most of the time and Trump has and continues to enjoy the power that enables that to happen because of his popularity amongst Republicans. To remove Trump will require having the Democrats win so many seats in 2018 that they have a commanding majority who are committed to expelling Trump from office. That must be backed up by continuing voter advocacy to get him out and anyone the Republicans nominate who is not a centrist and highly competent for 2020. To make real change means expending huge amounts of time, energy, and money.
4
I've been following this for months. Blow needs to get a life and find a new topic to write about. Trump is Trump, for better or worse. Trump hasn't changed a bit and his supporters care not what anyone else thinks. To be fair, the KKK and Nazis were around for many decades before Trump was even born. Trump is just a manifestation of our current political system....since fifty percent of the population supported him, his successful election was a protest vote. And those die-hard supporters who claim they'll support him no matter what he says or does are not going to change their minds. They knew what they were getting when they cast their ballots.
1
To the misguided Trump supporters below who promote alternative facts (e.g., Obama's "nothingness" regarding the GDP, when all he did was save the economy after 8 years of GOP incompetence and fanaticism), you're going to have to wake up at some point. It likely won't be until the pain Trump ends up causing you and the ones you care about is just too much to bear (perhaps a default on US debt or finally succeeding in destroying your health care?). The fact that you read the NY Times, the gold standard of journalism, which your ilk mindlessly ridicules as the MSM, is a step in right direction. But it continues to amaze me how any rational person, at this late date, could continue to defend such an amoral president and threat to our democracy. Country before party, fellow humans before tribe.
14
To cut to the chase, when a US President fails to recognize and oppose self-avowed Nazis and white supremacists as enemies of the US Constitution, he violates his oath of office.
Claiming there were some "bad people" is grossly inadequate in the face of threatening armed groups loudly advocating Nazi and aryian ideology. We bled and died in some big wars defeating such groups.
The President voluntarily takes a solemn oath to preserve the Constitution, in which he gives up his individual constitutional right to remain inactive and silent.
Mr. Trump voluntarily promised to "preserve, protect, defend and uphold the Constitution of the United States".
He should have long ago placed Nazi and white supremacists on notice, by name, that he abhors their ideology and will oppose them to the fullest extent of the law, while upholding their right to peacefully assemble, unarmed, and expose their identities and poison for Americans and law enforcement to witness and mark.
Trump should introduce legislaiton to support local and state law enforcement at Nazi and white supremecists rallies to ensure that never again are citizens threatened by armed militia groups, particularly in small towns and on college campuses, not accustomed or prepared for armed Nazi militia thugs and their ilk.
Mr. Trump should uphold his oath and do his job.
Claiming there were some "bad people" is grossly inadequate in the face of threatening armed groups loudly advocating Nazi and aryian ideology. We bled and died in some big wars defeating such groups.
The President voluntarily takes a solemn oath to preserve the Constitution, in which he gives up his individual constitutional right to remain inactive and silent.
Mr. Trump voluntarily promised to "preserve, protect, defend and uphold the Constitution of the United States".
He should have long ago placed Nazi and white supremacists on notice, by name, that he abhors their ideology and will oppose them to the fullest extent of the law, while upholding their right to peacefully assemble, unarmed, and expose their identities and poison for Americans and law enforcement to witness and mark.
Trump should introduce legislaiton to support local and state law enforcement at Nazi and white supremecists rallies to ensure that never again are citizens threatened by armed militia groups, particularly in small towns and on college campuses, not accustomed or prepared for armed Nazi militia thugs and their ilk.
Mr. Trump should uphold his oath and do his job.
9
Blow says Trump. Many voters say Hillary. Until Blow recognizes that Hillary, and support of Hillary by the likes of Blow, is what gave us Trump, Blow fails to recognize the true problem. As bad as Trump may be, why couldn't Hillary beat him? For too many, Trump was not so good, it's just that Hillary was thought to be far worse. Hillary may have won the Democrats in the deep South, but Bernie won the Democrats in the industrial heartland. That's why trump is President, and we are all paying for it.
1
Nice try Tony but, the Russians were the critical factor in Trumps installation.
Not the Clinton didn't reckon herself a bit too entitled. He didn't listen to anyone, she didn't listen to herself.
Not the Clinton didn't reckon herself a bit too entitled. He didn't listen to anyone, she didn't listen to herself.
1
Sorry, Mr. Blow. As a long time rogressive, I have consistently admired your eloquent editorials in defense of both democracy and justice. But this time you are wrong. And you are doing not only our President but the nation at large a huge disservice by allowing rage-fueled rhetoric to replace your usual respect for both fact and logic.
What you heard Trump say was what you expected to hear, not what he actually said. He did NOT express sympathy with nazis or racists. He condemned them. He did NOT characterize torch bearing white suprematists as "nice people." The nazis and KKK were not the only ones protesting -- many decent people are also opposed to the destruction of these statues. And yes, there were violent acts on both sides.
What bothers you and so many others is the fact that Trump refuses to employ the usual sort of empty rhetoric so favored by the hollow men (and women) of today's politics. What bothers you is his blatant disregard for political correctness in favor of saying things his own way and expressing himself from his own perspective, not that of some "savvy" political adviser who cares only about image.
While I have some serious reservations about Trump as President, and certainly did not vote for him, the manner in which mainstream media pundits have been so eager to jump on anything and everything he says as though some sort of horrible outrage were involved is extremely disturbing -- if not disgusting.
What you heard Trump say was what you expected to hear, not what he actually said. He did NOT express sympathy with nazis or racists. He condemned them. He did NOT characterize torch bearing white suprematists as "nice people." The nazis and KKK were not the only ones protesting -- many decent people are also opposed to the destruction of these statues. And yes, there were violent acts on both sides.
What bothers you and so many others is the fact that Trump refuses to employ the usual sort of empty rhetoric so favored by the hollow men (and women) of today's politics. What bothers you is his blatant disregard for political correctness in favor of saying things his own way and expressing himself from his own perspective, not that of some "savvy" political adviser who cares only about image.
While I have some serious reservations about Trump as President, and certainly did not vote for him, the manner in which mainstream media pundits have been so eager to jump on anything and everything he says as though some sort of horrible outrage were involved is extremely disturbing -- if not disgusting.
2
Strongly reminds me of Kaizer Wilhelm II. Well, that one ended up after a disastrous WWI in a tiny village, mainly chopping wood, next door in the Netherlands. (There's a thought...!)
Narcissist, sociopath, paranoid, uncontrollable and "acting a leader" with all the pomp and bling to keep himself topdog, which you see Trump do also. Definitely not up to the job. Mr.Trump is a perfect example of the "Peter's principle": a step onto the next level and, yep disaster strikes.
In fact,that he is President now is the responsibility of the GOP which has itself become hollowed out from the inside by the teaparty and alt-right influence.
Gosh, what a, perhaps dull and run-of-the-mill-,but at least normal, president Hillary Clinton might have been, wish we had her there.
Narcissist, sociopath, paranoid, uncontrollable and "acting a leader" with all the pomp and bling to keep himself topdog, which you see Trump do also. Definitely not up to the job. Mr.Trump is a perfect example of the "Peter's principle": a step onto the next level and, yep disaster strikes.
In fact,that he is President now is the responsibility of the GOP which has itself become hollowed out from the inside by the teaparty and alt-right influence.
Gosh, what a, perhaps dull and run-of-the-mill-,but at least normal, president Hillary Clinton might have been, wish we had her there.
6
Charles - it IS frightening, but this has been hiding in plain sight for decades. Everyone in Manhattan, who is at all aware of The Donald, knows he is a repugnant guy. He's the kind of guy many women are familiar with - the leering catcalling idiot leaning on the bar. He's the braggart with little to brag about, the sleeze who stiffed and stole, the guy who gives you the creeps when you're in his company. He and his father were notorious biggots. He has openly spoken about his superior genes, his German heritage. He looks at his wives as "breeders." People who knew all this were absolutely horrified that this know-nothing had a shot at the Presidency. Why weren't the press on top of this? Friends of ours who were realtors KNEW that the Trump buildings were occupied by American and Russian mobsters. This was KNOWN! So, none of this surprises me. What is terribly shocking is that Republicans have sold their souls to this man and won't call him out. That is what is heartbreaking to me. As a life-long Democrat, I could not believe that Republicans were actually evil; I just thought they saw the world through a different lense. Bad on me. We can only hope that, one way or another, he'll leave office early. It is terrifying otherwise. Think of all the damage he has done since February. Fast forward over three years. What is going to become of us?
15
sometimes you can't farm a field forever. you let it go for a year. so, maybe the political field needs four years to lie fallow (i think is the term). then go back and farm it again. for me, he is keeping the obama legacy going more than hillary clinton would have done. and that may be entirely unintentional. same with rebuilding a house. sometimes a contractor tries to hard to save the thing. it gets dangerous to work under it. so, easier sometimes to knock it down. then rebuild. the more people get up in arms over trump, the more the wonderful legacy of Obama is diminissed.
3
What? Keeping Obama's legacy? He's dismantling it from top to bottom. Climate, ecology, education, national parks. You name it. Piece by piece. This is not what Hillary would have done.
4
Trump's tacit support of neo-nazism is an insult to those who fought and died in WWII. Indeed such sacrifices allow him the continued right to say what he wants but he should have enough class to know that his statement was a bridge too far.
6
Trumps not totally polished and everyone tears apart his every word, but you'll never have to guess what he's thinking and I like that much better than a politician who just gets up there and buoyantly lies and is bought by lobbyists. He's just straightforward, and like I said, it rocks the boat but we need it.
What hidden thoughts could be worse than sympathy for nazis?
3
That the various groups comprising the ridiculous right-wing marchers (which we can be confident included zero well-meaning art preservationist) were violently opposed by the equally pathetic Antifa among the anti-protesters, in the garage and elsewhere, became a moot observation when the nut-job Fields committed murder. I don't think it's so much that Trump is evil as he is supremely immature and, so, automatically combative with the press, which as a public service should treat him as a teacher treats a high-school student. "What an interesting point, Donald, but have you considered why some people might arrive at a different point of view?" These angry screeds by Mr. Blow are fair, honest, and unhelpful--this guy needs all the help he can get.
I cannot wait until the day this rag of a newspaper finally goes out of business. Allowing something this childish, petty, and small to be printed is unforgivable.
Imagine the outrage if someone wrote something like this about Obama in a reputable newspaper.
It is so sad what the left has become.
Imagine the outrage if someone wrote something like this about Obama in a reputable newspaper.
It is so sad what the left has become.
Don - Trump LIED about Obama's birth and lied about "his investigators" and all they were finding in Hawaii. Right-wing papers published all kinds of criticism about Obama. Where were you? I think it is justified to feel outraged when our President backtracks on a strong condemnation of Neo-Nazis and anti-Semites. It is terribly sad to me that Republicans don't take a stand against Trump and his awful prejudices, biases and off-the-cuff hate speech. It's beyond sad - it's shameful. The "failing New York Times" is just another one of Trump's lies. I think you're going to be waiting for quite some time.
5
Dontwohig writes: "Imagine the outrage if someone wrote something like this about Obama in a reputable newspaper."
It wouldn't happen. President Obama's response to something as ugly as the Nazi march would be level-headed, well thought-out, and a clear message that - while he would defend their right to free speech - America will not tolerate the assaults and riots and inciting violence that we saw last week, nor the ideology these groups espouse.
So many of us hope the crowd that voted for this poor excuse of a man will see the light. Many of us also hope the anti-Obama crowd will finally acknowledge President Obama's remarkable achievements and appreciate the quiet dignity he demonstrated as our president.
No one complained when the economy turned around and pulled us out of the recession he inherited. No one complained when the stock market recovered and better than anyone could have hoped for. No one complained about robust job growth, the resuscitation of new home construction, the assassination of Bin Laden, environmental protection, and his ability to keep America safer through his work with international leaders, even North Korea. And that's just a start.
President Obama earned respect, even if we have an anti- group that refuses to recognize that. He is a remarkable man who loves his family and loves America. We are so incredibly fortunate that he, not Trump, was in office for the critical eight years in our history.
It wouldn't happen. President Obama's response to something as ugly as the Nazi march would be level-headed, well thought-out, and a clear message that - while he would defend their right to free speech - America will not tolerate the assaults and riots and inciting violence that we saw last week, nor the ideology these groups espouse.
So many of us hope the crowd that voted for this poor excuse of a man will see the light. Many of us also hope the anti-Obama crowd will finally acknowledge President Obama's remarkable achievements and appreciate the quiet dignity he demonstrated as our president.
No one complained when the economy turned around and pulled us out of the recession he inherited. No one complained when the stock market recovered and better than anyone could have hoped for. No one complained about robust job growth, the resuscitation of new home construction, the assassination of Bin Laden, environmental protection, and his ability to keep America safer through his work with international leaders, even North Korea. And that's just a start.
President Obama earned respect, even if we have an anti- group that refuses to recognize that. He is a remarkable man who loves his family and loves America. We are so incredibly fortunate that he, not Trump, was in office for the critical eight years in our history.
12
Besides his narcissism, Trump is obviously suffering from some mental disorder.......could be Alzheimers or dementia. I have relatives that had both diseases and the way this man acts sure seems familiar behavior to me.
15
If so, it was early onset. From birth methinks.
5
"America is functioning, barely"? Chuckie, time for another sedative. Apparently economic #'s aren't required reading for your profession. Glad the NYT is restricting you to an article every 7-10 days, probably on advice from their health care provider so you wouldn't have to start paying your $5,000 deductible under #44 Care. Time for another 7-10 days of rest.
"There are no good Nazis," you wrote, Charles.
That's right, there aren't. No matter how lofty your dreams and schemes, if you are a Nazi, then that one belief swallows ALL of it.
"I have a beautiful mind," Trump has told us, and, now, this last week, he said that statues to slavers, racists and insurrectionists are also "beautiful" and that those who revere them are "nice people".
So, there we are.
We now know trump's definition of "Beautiful": a bunch of racists clinging to the top rung of their self-made ladder, kicking in the faces of anyone trying to crawl up to them (to rip them off - or to join them, that IS the question, isn't it?).
"Beautiful" is defined as racism.
"Nice people", "good people" are racist, sexist, ignorant, violent, sly, sneaky Nazis.
THOSE are the "good" folk.
This is simply another "re-definition" by the Republican Right. Just as 'once upon a time' a "Christian" was one who fed the hungry and nursed the sick, now "Christian" means one who cuts the budgets on food, housing, maternity and child care and rips the guts out of "Meals On Wheels".
These are the new "Nice Guys" and "Good People": Nazis, liars, gropers, people who stiff their sub-contractors, the sly, the sneaky, the ones who "trickle down" into the faces of those "below" them.
The USA has been slithering down to this level for decades and it shows, doesn't it?
Trump is Republican, Tea Party, Libertarian, Freedom Caucus... and Nazi.
He ain't no "nice guy".
Nor is he "beautiful".
That's right, there aren't. No matter how lofty your dreams and schemes, if you are a Nazi, then that one belief swallows ALL of it.
"I have a beautiful mind," Trump has told us, and, now, this last week, he said that statues to slavers, racists and insurrectionists are also "beautiful" and that those who revere them are "nice people".
So, there we are.
We now know trump's definition of "Beautiful": a bunch of racists clinging to the top rung of their self-made ladder, kicking in the faces of anyone trying to crawl up to them (to rip them off - or to join them, that IS the question, isn't it?).
"Beautiful" is defined as racism.
"Nice people", "good people" are racist, sexist, ignorant, violent, sly, sneaky Nazis.
THOSE are the "good" folk.
This is simply another "re-definition" by the Republican Right. Just as 'once upon a time' a "Christian" was one who fed the hungry and nursed the sick, now "Christian" means one who cuts the budgets on food, housing, maternity and child care and rips the guts out of "Meals On Wheels".
These are the new "Nice Guys" and "Good People": Nazis, liars, gropers, people who stiff their sub-contractors, the sly, the sneaky, the ones who "trickle down" into the faces of those "below" them.
The USA has been slithering down to this level for decades and it shows, doesn't it?
Trump is Republican, Tea Party, Libertarian, Freedom Caucus... and Nazi.
He ain't no "nice guy".
Nor is he "beautiful".
14
Do you ever get tired of bloviating against Trump Charles? Enjoy the next 8 1/2 years, you may need medication.
Fake President
6
It's horribly frightening, Mr. Blow. Trump is a monster, pure and simple. Never, never in all my 70 plus years have I seen everything turn inside out. Black is now white - literally as well as figuratively; down is up; evil is good. But..here is the rub. No one is helping this troubled nation. No one is rescuing us from this abyss into which Trump is pulling us. Where are our elected representatives, and I am speaking of the Republican-led Congress? They are our only hope. But they are just as amoral as their "leader". They are just as guilty of swearing allegiance to the swastika and doing their goose steps through the halls of Congress.
Finally, there are more Americans who are truly good people, not racist, not bigots. Yet those who are the dark souls of humanity are now the voice of this nation. They now have a green light to wreak havoc among the innocent, anointed by their debauched leader in the White House and abetted by the likes of his soldiers, McConnell and Ryan.
Finally, there are more Americans who are truly good people, not racist, not bigots. Yet those who are the dark souls of humanity are now the voice of this nation. They now have a green light to wreak havoc among the innocent, anointed by their debauched leader in the White House and abetted by the likes of his soldiers, McConnell and Ryan.
15
He's not a leader, but he's leading us anyway, right down a dark alley. And too many rats (R) are following him.
4
tRump isn't even a mediocre man. Not MY president, but neither will pense be My president. He's a really creepy, lying, evangelical nut ball. Leadership is not one of the Republicrooks' strong suits. Lying and cheating are, though.
7
No reasonable person can deny that every word of every sentence of every paragraph that spews from #45's bloated face are lies.
Yet the media, including the Times, continues to euphemistically call them "contradictions" or other such lame descriptions, Shame on them. When will they finally call a lie a lie and do so every time #45 lies? The Amercan people deserve better and are waiting .
Yet the media, including the Times, continues to euphemistically call them "contradictions" or other such lame descriptions, Shame on them. When will they finally call a lie a lie and do so every time #45 lies? The Amercan people deserve better and are waiting .
5
There are no good NAZIS. So why do you keep using this hurtful term? Many Jewish people have had enough.
Yes, Donald Trump fails miserably as a president, as a business person and as a human being. Why 75% of Repub voters don't see this or remain in denial is beyond me. However, there's another group of people in leadership positions and they are called the U.S. Congress. How can the vast majority of Repub Senators and House members condone Trump as POTUS? Their silence and even outright support of this man demonstrates that the real issue is a near complete lack of leadership all around. Elected Republicans are failing their country and they still call themselves "patriots"- more accurate is "idiots". Where is America's courage? Where is the American spirit that fought for our freedom from tyranny in the late 1700s, who fought for emancipation of all people in the 1860s and who risked their lives to fight Nazis and facist in 2 world wars in the 20th century? Where are those who should be standing at the podium - en masse - and clearly denouncing Trump, Pence, Pruitt, DeVos, Sessions and the other low life cronies who are clearly intent on destroying our nation and the natural world, for what? A few more $? An ideology that screams "anti-American", anti-human, anti-community? History is calling on us all and only very few are answering the call. Most are too busy - like Mr. Trump - trying to make a few extra bucks (or a few extra billions) for themselves and doing that at ALL costs. If this is leadership, it's time to get some good followers at the front of the train.
5
A "beautiful mind" = Der Gropenfuhrer. Sorry, Arnie, but he tops even you.)
"Beautiful statues" to slavers?
Trump has worms in his brain.
Nazis? Slavers? These are "beautiful"?
This ain't rocket science: There are no Nazi/slaver "nice guys".
"Beautiful statues" to slavers?
Trump has worms in his brain.
Nazis? Slavers? These are "beautiful"?
This ain't rocket science: There are no Nazi/slaver "nice guys".
6
In America, we are free to hate, to believe abortion is good, that God does not exist, and to say all manner of vile slogans. Cultural pornography can be tattooed on your chest or just blasted on social media for a one or two-day event experience. An exceptional few like Mr. Blow are paid to bear false witness against the President of the United States day after day. It takes a perverse talent never to say anything fair or good about our President or his supporters. The occasionally inspired perspective of Mr. Blow has been reduced to a rank out session as inept as those we had to weather in junior high school. It seems the President has succeeded in bringing out the worst of his adversaries.
1
Trump knows military strategy. He studied at a military high school academy. He knows how to deceive, using threats, distractions and decoys.
=========================================================
We should not sell him short. He has many tricks up his sleeve.
If the economy continues to rebound, he may be unstoppable. Money talks. It's the economy stupid.
Don't count Trump out!
-----------------------------
=========================================================
We should not sell him short. He has many tricks up his sleeve.
If the economy continues to rebound, he may be unstoppable. Money talks. It's the economy stupid.
Don't count Trump out!
-----------------------------
1
We are so proud of our President, the snowflake.
Like your colleague Maureen Dowd, you also Mr. Blow wring your hands again and again and again telling us how awful this man who claims to be our president really is. True enough. But too many of us take to venting on social media, or in their opinion columns, and propose nothing. It's time for all good Americans to take this to the streets and remove this so-called president. It's time for columnists like yourself, and friends and colleagues of mine to act. Remove Trump now. By whatever legal means are necessary. Enough of the hand-wringing. Take the step, Mr. Blow.
1
>
As a Dem, I'd stop worrying about the GOP and start worrying about the Dems and DNC.
DNC is getting crushed in fund raising $$ by the GOP
The Cook Report in no way favors the Dems in 2018.
https://cookpolitical.com/ratings/house-race-ratings
If the Dems can't take the House back in 2018, you can put a fork in them.
2018 should be a slam-dunk for the Dems as to the House.
Don't be fooled by the polls; once there is a Dem candidate against a Republican and the GOP machine fires up into action turning war heroes into cowards, good people into criminals etc.....
The fundamental problem is that you are certain at the end of the day that America is overflowing with good people, because that is what is you eyeball on TV, but the numbers prove different. We would not be in this situation if America was overflowing with good people.
"General Corman: "Well, you see Willard... In this war, things get confused out there, power, ideals, the old morality, and practical military necessity. Out there with these natives it must be a temptation to be god. Because there's a conflict in every human heart between the rational and the irrational, between good and evil. The good does not always triumph. Sometimes the dark side overcomes what Lincoln called the better angels of our nature. Every man has got a breaking point. You and I have. Well, Walter Kurtz has reached his. And very obviously, he has gone insane."
From Apocalypse now
As a Dem, I'd stop worrying about the GOP and start worrying about the Dems and DNC.
DNC is getting crushed in fund raising $$ by the GOP
The Cook Report in no way favors the Dems in 2018.
https://cookpolitical.com/ratings/house-race-ratings
If the Dems can't take the House back in 2018, you can put a fork in them.
2018 should be a slam-dunk for the Dems as to the House.
Don't be fooled by the polls; once there is a Dem candidate against a Republican and the GOP machine fires up into action turning war heroes into cowards, good people into criminals etc.....
The fundamental problem is that you are certain at the end of the day that America is overflowing with good people, because that is what is you eyeball on TV, but the numbers prove different. We would not be in this situation if America was overflowing with good people.
"General Corman: "Well, you see Willard... In this war, things get confused out there, power, ideals, the old morality, and practical military necessity. Out there with these natives it must be a temptation to be god. Because there's a conflict in every human heart between the rational and the irrational, between good and evil. The good does not always triumph. Sometimes the dark side overcomes what Lincoln called the better angels of our nature. Every man has got a breaking point. You and I have. Well, Walter Kurtz has reached his. And very obviously, he has gone insane."
From Apocalypse now
2
trump is in violation of the emoluments clause on a daily basis. IMPEACHMENT NOW!
2
No one says it better than Charles Blow!!
3
The never-was "soldier" Bannon plans to go to war with "globalist" conservatives within his party. If the left can keep from eating its own over hurt feelings about which identity group deserves attention, it might have a real shot at flipping Congress and the WH. If.
2
Nikki: I do believe that "globalist" is another dog-whistle from the right-right, used to talk about those of the Jewish faith. It's not really about global corporations or people with global outlooks. Just to let people know.
1
It's amazing how mute ryan and mcconnell have become. They're hiding behind their mothers' skirts.
8
According to his first wife his bedside reading was Mein Kampf.
Not that he reads......perhaps absorbed through osmosis.
However, that book and his father's influence have been evident for decades.
How can we ever forget the birther lies upon lies upon lies? Despicable!!!
Many in this comment section wax philosophically about resisting.
It is easy to say......please help by making suggestions HOW we can change this other than voting and continually contacting our reps.
It seems quite futile, the darkness of the kleptocracy looms over the entire system. And now more troops to Afghanistan.
As a Jewess it is horrifying what this monster and his enablers ( many the people we voted into office to serve us) do and say every single day.
Thank you Mr.Blow for your words every week.
Your words help many know that we are not crazy.
Not that he reads......perhaps absorbed through osmosis.
However, that book and his father's influence have been evident for decades.
How can we ever forget the birther lies upon lies upon lies? Despicable!!!
Many in this comment section wax philosophically about resisting.
It is easy to say......please help by making suggestions HOW we can change this other than voting and continually contacting our reps.
It seems quite futile, the darkness of the kleptocracy looms over the entire system. And now more troops to Afghanistan.
As a Jewess it is horrifying what this monster and his enablers ( many the people we voted into office to serve us) do and say every single day.
Thank you Mr.Blow for your words every week.
Your words help many know that we are not crazy.
6
And yet, with all this truth before us (thank you Charles Blow), my good racist Trump-supporting relatives continue to post mimes about preserving history and "get over it." And these are good people in terms of caring for family, bringing dying parents into their home to bath and dress every day. Even welcoming us liberal folks in for a meal. And, yet, they use the N word in our presence just to rile me and my husband, who posts Blow's editorials on FaceBook regularily. They never comment. I assume they never read them but watch FoxNews instead.
9
Why don't we replace all the statues of the confederacy with statues of Donald Trump?
Make the statues larger than life.
Paint the statues gold.
Have big crowds visit the statues daily.
Have "his" statue surrounded with small statues of his cabinet, the senate and house members groveling.
Have statues dedicated to his passions of Nazi's, KKK, white supremecy
and money laundering.
Have the "fake press" distribute an insert to the Sunday newspaper extolling him on why he is so great in his own mind.
Name the next Federal prison after him.
You get the point...
Make the statues larger than life.
Paint the statues gold.
Have big crowds visit the statues daily.
Have "his" statue surrounded with small statues of his cabinet, the senate and house members groveling.
Have statues dedicated to his passions of Nazi's, KKK, white supremecy
and money laundering.
Have the "fake press" distribute an insert to the Sunday newspaper extolling him on why he is so great in his own mind.
Name the next Federal prison after him.
You get the point...
4
No, there are no good people who see racists, white supremacists and Nazis who don't want to retch.
As Max Liebermann, the world famous Berlin impressionist, said while observing the rallies of Nazis in the 1930s: "I can't gorge enough as I want to throw up".
As a native of Berlin, I never imagined I would feel the same about my adopted country.
"It can't happen here". It did happen....
As Max Liebermann, the world famous Berlin impressionist, said while observing the rallies of Nazis in the 1930s: "I can't gorge enough as I want to throw up".
As a native of Berlin, I never imagined I would feel the same about my adopted country.
"It can't happen here". It did happen....
4
Mr. Blow, instead if reiterating what we already know is your opinion, why don't you dig a bit deeper and offer some constructive solutions. Instead of telling us your values over and over again, which we get, start looking for ways to move policy forward and win elections. Note: no-one cares how you feel about Trump, its turning into pathetic moping. Move forward.
2
What is so ludicrous is how poorly the Democrats and Progressives have been able to repudiate Trump's true character to his supporters. The party's "political correctness" and timidity has kept them from looking these supporters in the eye and saying, "HELLO ... you idiots put this mentally ill man into the most powerful position on Earth, and your cowardliness to admit your mistake is keeping him there. You were all conned by a top propagandist, and you should be smacking yourselves in the head for being so stupid. These are Trumps' true colors and we all knew it months before the election".
What we need is a Dwayne Johnson (The Rock) type to look into the camera and tell Trump supporters the truth ... they were manipulated like lemmings, and they fell for it. Shame on them! Where is the courageous Democratic leader who can ball out the minority of this nation who voted for Trump, and turn them against the Republican Party for so easily playing them for fools? I hope someone steps forward soon. With this dangerous man solely in charge of our nuclear arsenal, with Global Warming destroying our climate, and with Nazis now having a voice in the media, the welfare of the entire planet is now at stake.
What we need is a Dwayne Johnson (The Rock) type to look into the camera and tell Trump supporters the truth ... they were manipulated like lemmings, and they fell for it. Shame on them! Where is the courageous Democratic leader who can ball out the minority of this nation who voted for Trump, and turn them against the Republican Party for so easily playing them for fools? I hope someone steps forward soon. With this dangerous man solely in charge of our nuclear arsenal, with Global Warming destroying our climate, and with Nazis now having a voice in the media, the welfare of the entire planet is now at stake.
5
It is terrifying, on a daily basis, Charles M. Blow. Thank you for this exceptionally clear-headed piece, and for continuing to give voice to what so many of us are aghast at, all the time.
2
As Susan Bro, whose daughter, Heather Heyer, was killed in Charlottesville, said last week, “You can’t wash this one away by shaking my hand and saying, ‘I’m sorry.’ ” Susan Bro = a strong, beautiful human being.
7
It all is quite simple.
Donald Trump and all Republicans who support him are moral, intellectual and emotional swine.
Donald Trump and all Republicans who support him are moral, intellectual and emotional swine.
4
censure, then impeach. or force resignation. its time. we have seen enough. most of us knew this from the beginning. he is an embarrassment. he is a failure. he is dangerous. he is not even american. i guess the only thing worse than being a russian plant, is being a nazi lover.
4
If you care to hear from the other side, dear NYT readers, we think all this hatred is silly and counter-productive. Trump was elected to be President for 4 years. We understand you hate him but writing 10 articles against him per day gets boring, if not mentally demented. Plus, it seriously the image of America abroad, all this bickering. Instead, Mr. Blow and all the NYT editors should champion positive issues and try to nudge Trump toward them. Why waste 4 years? 99% of opinion pieces have been highkacked by anti-Trump hate. It's a waste of energy. Trump is not going away, his base support is not going away, he is as strong as ever among those who voted for him.
If the Democrats were indeed confident that they were superior to Trump, they would rest assured they'd re-capture White House in 3.5 years and focus on drafting a populist message that offers more than well-polished banalities and beautiful-wrapped "nothings" (like in the last election cycle).
I fear that the Democratic establishment has chosen to change nothing and offer nothing better in 4 years, thus they have to sell hate all this time, so people will vote them back into office not for what they stand for, but for what they hate. I think it's a losing strategy.
Stop the whining and the hate and focus on what can be done positively for this country and try to help!
Sounds sensible, NYT?
If the Democrats were indeed confident that they were superior to Trump, they would rest assured they'd re-capture White House in 3.5 years and focus on drafting a populist message that offers more than well-polished banalities and beautiful-wrapped "nothings" (like in the last election cycle).
I fear that the Democratic establishment has chosen to change nothing and offer nothing better in 4 years, thus they have to sell hate all this time, so people will vote them back into office not for what they stand for, but for what they hate. I think it's a losing strategy.
Stop the whining and the hate and focus on what can be done positively for this country and try to help!
Sounds sensible, NYT?
1
Oh, Irony. The Rightstream media is still complaining about President Obama with vicious lies and virulent hate. "Stop the whining and the hate..."
Having an incompetent and corrupt narcissist (extreme self-regard) at the helm ought to be scary for the health of this democracy, given that he is unable to 'feel' for 'the others' he is supposed to represent as well (other than 'white supremacists' and Neo-Nazis). Further, we still sense some Egocentrism in him, a phenomenon usually gone in early adulthood, as we mature and realize one's thoughts may differ from others'. Being in a position of immense power is scary because , Trump being reckless, it impinges on a whole nation, and even on others, in a negative way, perhaps irreparably bad for some. Crooked lying Trump was elected on false pretenses; he must be ousted before he destroys the U.S.'s standing in the world.
4
In the gym Saturday, side by side TV'S showing March in Boston. Fox's high up camera showed massive crowd. Their crawler said protestors marching against conservatives' free speech rally. MSNBC' said protesting against white supremists, neo-nazis and cameras showed the signs people carried with that exact message. The President watches Fox and generates his tweets from them. Disturbing lack of intellectual curiosity!
1
There are no good Nazis and no good trumps. But calling this hollow shell of a being "a man," that's going too far.
3
Short of comparing our "president" to a certain farm animal that roots around its abode, you're remarks are a perfectly accurate portrait of this miserable, pathetic man.
3
Any republican who is not lobbying their republican representative is complicit with the nazi in the White House. The republicans squeezed out this bit of offal in their convention last summer, the democrats shot themselves in the foot by rigging their nomination for a wildly unpopular and corrupt person, and now we have someone occupying the presidency who is not fit to lick my dogs foot let alone run the country. Republicans CLEAN UP YOUR MESS and get this guy impeached.
2
For Donald Trump to pass any presidential test, it would require that he sit down, roll up his sleeves inside the White House with some competent advisors and get to the work of the American people: tax reform, income inequality, the looming debt ceiling debate, funding the government, and civil unrest in America.
Yet, Donald Trump cannot do any of these things because he has the attention span of a two year old, and as you have pointed out, Mr. Blow, he is only concerned with his image and attacking those who criticize him. He probably does not care that a young woman is dead because his presidency has fanned the flames of the civil divide in this country; and that he has provided renewed life to the “Nazi/white nationalists.” Trump probably believes that his hollow words of condolence to Ms. Heyer’s family is all that is owed to them.
I am certain it is hard work to be president of the United States; especially during moments like Charlottesville. Donald Trump failed mightily at his job of doing that because he has not sat down, rolled up his sleeves to get the job done.
I think the only time Trump rolls up his sleeves with any great interest is to sit down with a Domino’s pizza and a liter of diet coke to watch Fox News – sad!
Yet, Donald Trump cannot do any of these things because he has the attention span of a two year old, and as you have pointed out, Mr. Blow, he is only concerned with his image and attacking those who criticize him. He probably does not care that a young woman is dead because his presidency has fanned the flames of the civil divide in this country; and that he has provided renewed life to the “Nazi/white nationalists.” Trump probably believes that his hollow words of condolence to Ms. Heyer’s family is all that is owed to them.
I am certain it is hard work to be president of the United States; especially during moments like Charlottesville. Donald Trump failed mightily at his job of doing that because he has not sat down, rolled up his sleeves to get the job done.
I think the only time Trump rolls up his sleeves with any great interest is to sit down with a Domino’s pizza and a liter of diet coke to watch Fox News – sad!
2
Solid writing and thinking from Mr Blow, as usual. But almost as depressing as this wretched wreck of a president (and the vile cowardice of the Republican lemmings who leap off his cliff) is the lack of inspiration and leadership from Democratic politicians. The demonstrations against Trump and his neo-Nazi/supremacist brigades are heartening and vital, but there is no one on the other side to lead, to rally, to admire. Not Pellosi (criminy!) or Schumer - who are barely adequate. And not Sanders (please). We live in a time of political Lilliputians. We need at least one moral giant.
1
What more is left to say? This man is one of the sorriest specimen of human beings on the planet. That he became President of the United States of America, allegedly the leading country of the free world, is still supported by millions of Americans, and is tolerated by a power-hungry and amoral GOP-led Congress make me weep in shame for my country.
I can only hope that Mr. Muellers completes his investigation as quickly and thoroughly as possible and rid the country of this cancer ASAP.
I can only hope that Mr. Muellers completes his investigation as quickly and thoroughly as possible and rid the country of this cancer ASAP.
3
And in this same issue of the paper, Mnuchin continues to apologize for him. When will hie minions wake up?
Keep telling yourself that and you'll wake up on the day after the presidential election to find the country has reelected Trump. Nothing he says ever surprises me and yet everyone on this board act surprised like they were born yesterday. During the last election, he has offended Muslims, Latinos, women, and almost every demographic group on the planet, and he still won the White House. Why? Democrats are addicted to identity politics and Trump knows it and is feeding their addiction. Working class America is more interested in job growth and law and order. With everyone distracted by Confederate statues and a small lunatic group of white supremacists, the Republicans are sneaking in through the back door and plotting to take more seats in both houses in the next election. Yes, keep fanning the flames Mr. Blow. Identity politics may you feel superior than your average basket of deplorables, but sadly they don't win elections.
And of course, the real danger lies with The Base (isn't that what Al-Qaeda translates into?)--the intellectually helpless, morally bankrupt, anti-American hordes who still support Pumpkinhead. Charlottesville was just the beginning. When next the country's emboldened fascists attack innocents protesting the illness they represent, it's likely to be a real bloodbath. And The Base will turn a deaf ear and blind eye yet again, because to them, "He won, get over it" is all the justification needed for anything he or his vicious supporters say or do.
I'm no longer interested in knowing what these animals are thinking, what their problems are that make them so stubbornly stupid and deliberately ignorant, why they can't see what freedom-loving people who celebrate humanity have from the beginning of this nightmare. Pumpkinhead, as a "leader", is a worse choice than anyone since Rome, and those who support him are guilty of every one of his transgressions by supporting him, and worse because of the effort they put into covering for him and his Nazi pals.
Real Americans kill fascists. It's called WWII.
I'm no longer interested in knowing what these animals are thinking, what their problems are that make them so stubbornly stupid and deliberately ignorant, why they can't see what freedom-loving people who celebrate humanity have from the beginning of this nightmare. Pumpkinhead, as a "leader", is a worse choice than anyone since Rome, and those who support him are guilty of every one of his transgressions by supporting him, and worse because of the effort they put into covering for him and his Nazi pals.
Real Americans kill fascists. It's called WWII.
2
Trump in his first year has already become a lame duck. There is nothing this most odious creep can do to win US, not enough to be enact any of his mindless draconian legislation. Trump is the biggest sham pulled on the American electorate. Trump is a obnoxious, sexist, racist , and millions voted for him. Incomprehensible. America is now the world's laughingstock, and deserves every bit of ridicule coming its way.
DD
Manhattan
DD
Manhattan
1
No moral person marches with the KKK or the Nazis for any reason.
2
Lord, please free my country of this degenerate and his
sycophants.
sycophants.
1
46% of voters elected a flawed con-man.
1
Big money, concentrated; gerrymandered districts, with a mere handful of seats genuinely contested. Add to that Tocqueville's sharp reminder that we really don't care who is in charge as long as we are not prevented from getting all we can. Trump in his horrible way took advantage of a democracy grown sloppy. We can, should we want, be grateful to him for reminding us of what it takes to have and maintain a liberal constitutional democratic republic. It's up to us. We get the kind of leadership we deserve.
1
I'm afraid that the putative President of the United States is not going to be welcomed as he imagines he should be when he arrives in the Valle del Sol. There are a great many people there who have his number - and they all believe that number is up. I am quite sure that the citizenry will behave themselves apropriately. I am equally sure that the President* will not.
1
"He cannot offer moral guidance because he has no moral compass."
Trump's moral compass doesn't work, because of his magnetic personality.
Trump's moral compass doesn't work, because of his magnetic personality.
You know, looking at pictures and video of those protesting crowds in Charlottesville, Boston, and the like, there was only one segment of the crowd in legal carry states that had weapons strapped to the shoulders.
Hint: it wasn't the antifa.
It amazes me that anyone could even tacitly label as "good people" those whose entire ideology is based on subjugating one class of human below another, whose entire ethos basically leads to a support of slavery and/or genocide for certain categories of human beings.
But, I am open to the argument that if you want even the quiet support of the great uninterested mass, you can't be seen as violent or property destroying, because then you are hard to distinguish from the other side. The antifa, all economic and political theory notwithstanding, will only get greater support if it cannot be conflated tactically with the racist ideologues. As Gandhi pointed out, you must conquer the masses through your own suffering, your own stoic refusal to engage in violence and destruction. It worked in India, and it worked for the civil rights movement here, because it made the racists look foolish.
Make the alt-right, the Nazis and the white supremacists, look foolish. Don't look foolish yourselves. Keep your righteous anger in check. And maybe put some flowers in those Nazi gun barrels.
Hint: it wasn't the antifa.
It amazes me that anyone could even tacitly label as "good people" those whose entire ideology is based on subjugating one class of human below another, whose entire ethos basically leads to a support of slavery and/or genocide for certain categories of human beings.
But, I am open to the argument that if you want even the quiet support of the great uninterested mass, you can't be seen as violent or property destroying, because then you are hard to distinguish from the other side. The antifa, all economic and political theory notwithstanding, will only get greater support if it cannot be conflated tactically with the racist ideologues. As Gandhi pointed out, you must conquer the masses through your own suffering, your own stoic refusal to engage in violence and destruction. It worked in India, and it worked for the civil rights movement here, because it made the racists look foolish.
Make the alt-right, the Nazis and the white supremacists, look foolish. Don't look foolish yourselves. Keep your righteous anger in check. And maybe put some flowers in those Nazi gun barrels.
41
You hit upon an important fact. The Neo-:Nazis and white supremacists who marched in Charlottesville were armed and geared up as a militia. They went out of their way to show how they do drills. They are preparing for violence. You can't have freedom of speech with someone with automatic weapons and wearing riot gear. Intimidating someone you don't agree with a show of fire power is not protected by the 2nd Amendment.
2
Thank goodness for your writing this, Glenn Ribotsky. Guns only excite the gun-nut Confederates and Nazis. Showing the difference is what will win over Americans.
The nation is adrift, all creep and no paddle.
2
Exactly. When did the moral character of Nazis become a debate? It's as if we're living in an alternate universe where some people see virtue in Nazism.
No, no, no! There are no good Nazis. End. Of. Discussion.
No, no, no! There are no good Nazis. End. Of. Discussion.
3
In conclusion, we are stuck with him and the Nazi Republican Party, unless Mr. Mueller upsets the situation. No one else is going to do anything.
2
Many of the same people for whom Bill Clinton's in-office (though not so directly job-related) sexual affair eclipses (sorry) any other aspect of his presidency will say that Donald's Nazi sympathizing (not to mention his admitted pattern of sexual assault) is not germane. The Republicans in Congress aren't the only ones willing to employ a double standard to enable this terrible stain on our country because it happens to dovetail with this or that conservative ideology.
1
We could do "ad hominem" against #45 until the cows come home. But the GOP is behind Trump 100%. Mc Connell and Ryan and all of the GOP back #45 and his racism and his misogyny and his ignorance to the hilt. As do his voters. They will cheer for him as they send their kids to Afghanistan to die in another Tuchmanian march of folly. We live in two countries, really. The powerless, sane majority are ruled by the Nazi, KKK, rascist, knowledge-fearing minority. It's Orwell and Huxley and a lot of Kafka thrown in for bad measure. Who in our enclaves of sanity, Charles, would ever believe this could happen? But keep the faith, my brother! Justice and decency will survive and thrive these low-lifes.
3
When a murderer drives into a crowd in Barcelona he is called s terrorist.
When a murderer drives into a crowd in Charlottesville the "president" says there were some "very fine people there."
NOT MY PRESIDENT!!!!
When a murderer drives into a crowd in Charlottesville the "president" says there were some "very fine people there."
NOT MY PRESIDENT!!!!
4
As the president Donald Trump presented a more nuanced and distanced analysis of Charlottesville. He had to call out both sides for the ensuing violence. Neither has a president the luxury to ignore the victims of leftist or rightist violence or pick sides as Charles M. Blow does. Ours is clearly a time of hysteria.
No, not hysteria. It's called moral outrage at a person who cannot even summon up the tiniest bit of sympathy for a woman who was killed, and name her killers for what they were. The young man driving the car was aided and abetted by his cohorts, so they are all guilty.
If Trump had wanted to criticize the portion of the left antifa protestors who came with clubs, he should have simply made a warning that violence and fascism cannot be met with more civilian violence.
But first and foremost, he should have said KKK, Neo Nazis and other fascists have no place in our democracy. He should have told people to avoid such ideologies.
HE should have been the person to come up with the slogan "love trumps hate".
We would be such a different society at present if that were one of his slogans!
But first and foremost, he should have said KKK, Neo Nazis and other fascists have no place in our democracy. He should have told people to avoid such ideologies.
HE should have been the person to come up with the slogan "love trumps hate".
We would be such a different society at present if that were one of his slogans!
4
BAD MEDIA? I am 60 and have been watching our media since the 70's and they do get it right, and most all of the time we get it right, but the RIGHT and ALT RIGHT seem to think America Media is out to get the so called Grumpy Trumpy .. due to lies in the Media...look at that on real time TV interview last Tuesday when Grumpy told the WORLD how he felt about NAZIS and their brethren...and tell ME that THAT is fake news..GOP..WAKE UP!!
3
The economy is accelerating, the consumer confidence index is at or near an all time high, unemployment at a 16 year low, stock market at or near all time high, deportations are up, illegal immigration is decreasing, and the military once again has loud, affectionate praises for its Commander in Chief. At the very least, these are the metrics by which alleged writer Blow is simply wrong.
The rest of his article is typical, predictable rancor from a hard-left leaning partisan disguised as a reasoned political observer. Blow and his ilk are hyper-critical of Trump's every utterance. As was already said by others, if Trump's delay in denouncing the racist Nazi's means that he is a defacto racist Nazi, then that same logic means that Obama was, and still is, an Islamic Terrorist Sympathizer.
Alphabet Media was wrong about the election, wrong about Russia, wrong about the electoral college, so this whole Charlottesville episode is simply their next direction.
The rest of his article is typical, predictable rancor from a hard-left leaning partisan disguised as a reasoned political observer. Blow and his ilk are hyper-critical of Trump's every utterance. As was already said by others, if Trump's delay in denouncing the racist Nazi's means that he is a defacto racist Nazi, then that same logic means that Obama was, and still is, an Islamic Terrorist Sympathizer.
Alphabet Media was wrong about the election, wrong about Russia, wrong about the electoral college, so this whole Charlottesville episode is simply their next direction.
Trump was known as a racist all right when he started the birther movement against our very popular President Barack Obama .
Shame on all who thought Hillary Clinton was not good enough or those who would not vote for a Woman for a President and now we all suffer.
Steve Bannon was underground spewing hatred and the alt right KKK racists were in the woodwork .Until Donald decided to bring Bannon in together with all these who came out with him and chanting nonsense of having an all white homogeneous nation.
Let me tell you they are not wanted in our rainbow America they can go back where they came from and take Donald with them.
Shame on all who thought Hillary Clinton was not good enough or those who would not vote for a Woman for a President and now we all suffer.
Steve Bannon was underground spewing hatred and the alt right KKK racists were in the woodwork .Until Donald decided to bring Bannon in together with all these who came out with him and chanting nonsense of having an all white homogeneous nation.
Let me tell you they are not wanted in our rainbow America they can go back where they came from and take Donald with them.
1
No, there are no good Nazis. WWlI proved that and now Trump is proving it again with his crazy hateful talk.
Undisciplined, uneducated, unprincipled ... Yeah, that's our president.
The chief-of-staff Mr. John Kelly is the de facto President of the United States, or at least we hope that is the case. While it may not be desirable to have an unelected leader, there is some comfort to believing that there is a disciplined adult close to Donald who can keep a lid on the situation. With the recent culling of the White House, perhaps Kelly will be unimpeded and can filter what oozes out of Trump's bizarre head and brain. Let us pray.
The chief-of-staff Mr. John Kelly is the de facto President of the United States, or at least we hope that is the case. While it may not be desirable to have an unelected leader, there is some comfort to believing that there is a disciplined adult close to Donald who can keep a lid on the situation. With the recent culling of the White House, perhaps Kelly will be unimpeded and can filter what oozes out of Trump's bizarre head and brain. Let us pray.
Something that has not received much attention is Trump's phone conversation with Malcolm Turnbull, Australia's prime minister, back in January. Trump is whining to Turnbull, and he says, "I am the world’s greatest person..."
What national leader that is not a dictator can you think of would say that? Only one, our narcissistic, thrasonical president.
And people voted for him.
What national leader that is not a dictator can you think of would say that? Only one, our narcissistic, thrasonical president.
And people voted for him.
3
I think I should read your thoughtful and cutting my honest articles only on the weekends! The truths are always deep and sadden me.
Trump has displayed racist and White Supremacist conduct throughout his life. Yet he is president.
I expected it would be a horrible presidency run by an anti intellectual and corrupt narcissist. I did not know, he, Sessions and other White Supremacist types around him, would wage an overt (Trump) and covert (Sessions and others) act of hate and disruption against all who are not male and White. It is terrifying to witness this obvious failure of our democratic experiment embodied in Donald Trump.
Today, he gives a Telepromter speech to try and restart his presidency for the umpteenth time. Its too late. This time we saw the hate, horror and heard the drivel he spewed.
Nothing for him can change. We know him!
He lost all moral and executive rights to lead our diverse union.
He is an embarrassment to our Union. He makes it less perfect and fractured by the day.
Our president is a racist. That is incontrovertible and horrifying.
Trump has displayed racist and White Supremacist conduct throughout his life. Yet he is president.
I expected it would be a horrible presidency run by an anti intellectual and corrupt narcissist. I did not know, he, Sessions and other White Supremacist types around him, would wage an overt (Trump) and covert (Sessions and others) act of hate and disruption against all who are not male and White. It is terrifying to witness this obvious failure of our democratic experiment embodied in Donald Trump.
Today, he gives a Telepromter speech to try and restart his presidency for the umpteenth time. Its too late. This time we saw the hate, horror and heard the drivel he spewed.
Nothing for him can change. We know him!
He lost all moral and executive rights to lead our diverse union.
He is an embarrassment to our Union. He makes it less perfect and fractured by the day.
Our president is a racist. That is incontrovertible and horrifying.
2
You're no more accurate. The Boston group were not racists. But now the definition had been stretched too include anyone who favors free speech. Your hysterics are silly.
Troubling to read that most Republicans still stand by this unruly, incompetent bigot. Whose ego is bigger?
Keep burning the midnight oil, Mr. Mueller.
Keep burning the midnight oil, Mr. Mueller.
2
You have articulated my feelings exactly. Please do not stop writing about the total lack of character of the person who resides in the White House. We need more people like you, Mr. Blow.
1
Trump most probably has a brain disorder that would be revealed by brain scans, such as SPECT, along with other neuropsychological tests. He is dark and dangerous as Mr. Blow suggests. He is even more dangerous than the young white supremacists he extolled because of his power to cause world wide destruction.
It is very common to find that the brains of killers are damaged or deformed in some way. It does not surprise me that Heather Heyer's killer was a troubled child who threatened and beat his mother. He probably had the brain disorder then, perhaps congenital or due to head trauma. Long ago, this man needed to be hospitalized and medicated, but even then doctors know very little about repairing a damaged brain.
Whether or not Trump has a damaged or developmentally disordered brain, he is dangerous and should be removed from office. His behavior is psychopathic, just like the man who pulled a knife on his mother and later killed Ms. Heyer. In his capacity as president, Trump will be responsible not just for the loss of American lives, but for the loss of America.
It is very common to find that the brains of killers are damaged or deformed in some way. It does not surprise me that Heather Heyer's killer was a troubled child who threatened and beat his mother. He probably had the brain disorder then, perhaps congenital or due to head trauma. Long ago, this man needed to be hospitalized and medicated, but even then doctors know very little about repairing a damaged brain.
Whether or not Trump has a damaged or developmentally disordered brain, he is dangerous and should be removed from office. His behavior is psychopathic, just like the man who pulled a knife on his mother and later killed Ms. Heyer. In his capacity as president, Trump will be responsible not just for the loss of American lives, but for the loss of America.
1
This is the same guy who blamed Obama for every terror attack domestically and abroad as well as our involvement or non involvement in the Middle East and yet bungle Charlottesville. I am wondering if Obama had two Navy collisions with loss of life what his (Trump) response might be-'Too bad'. Look this guy is in charge now and his navy can't sail straight and his response to reporters was'too bad'. You know it was too bad rubes in Wi, Pa and Mi put this guy in the WH-I guess too bad for them and the those 3.5 million who rejected the mere notion of a Trump presidency!!
1
For me, this goes back to the infamous bus audio, where he is heard admitting to felonious serial sexual assault of women, which correlates with his life-long vulgar rhetoric, even about his own daughters. That the most qualified person to run for president, a woman, couldn't defeat this overtly disturbed, sick, ignorant fool of a "man" was, and continues to be, very depressing to me. "Hillary is a flawed candidate." How often did we hear that?
Well, she's looking pretty darn unflawed compared to this Nazi sympathizing, perverted, thoroughly ignorant of all things, profoundly mentally disturbed broken person. The problem is, she did during the campaign too, but sexist and misogynist voters and Bernie Sanders whiners inflated her flaws (as Hillary was routinely subjected to throughout her career!) while completely dismissing Trump's truly demented "flaws", which we saw and heard directly form him, not from decades of FOX and right-wing drumbeats of propaganda with no evidence of anything but which sank into the psyche of too many Americans. We can actually hear Trump say McCain is a loser for having gotten captured and tortured in war, but the real serious flaw is that Hillary ran a pedophile ring out of a pizza parlor! Frankly, we got who we deserved, because too many of us are stupid to the point of being brain dead, or might as well be.
Well, she's looking pretty darn unflawed compared to this Nazi sympathizing, perverted, thoroughly ignorant of all things, profoundly mentally disturbed broken person. The problem is, she did during the campaign too, but sexist and misogynist voters and Bernie Sanders whiners inflated her flaws (as Hillary was routinely subjected to throughout her career!) while completely dismissing Trump's truly demented "flaws", which we saw and heard directly form him, not from decades of FOX and right-wing drumbeats of propaganda with no evidence of anything but which sank into the psyche of too many Americans. We can actually hear Trump say McCain is a loser for having gotten captured and tortured in war, but the real serious flaw is that Hillary ran a pedophile ring out of a pizza parlor! Frankly, we got who we deserved, because too many of us are stupid to the point of being brain dead, or might as well be.
2
Once again, Charles Blow accurately describes Trump and his singular motivation: how he is perceived by the public. Nothing else matters. However, I got a little squeamish when reading the history of James Alex Fields Jr. There is no doubt that identifying with Nazism or the KKK is the antithesis of humanity. But I couldn't help but wonder if that, if rather than the police, James' mother called a psychiatrist or social worker, or if that high school teacher raised some alarm bells and got James' some mental health support, his trajectory might have changed...and Heather Heyer might still be alive. I see this as an example of where Trump is most dangerous. At a time when mental health care is almost impossible to access, and getting worse thanks to Trump, Trump is also inflaming and agitating people like James, who likely have undiagnosed mental health issues, creating an enormous potential for violent acting out. So while I think Charles' Blow is right to call out white supremacy for the cancer that it is, and Trump for the empty vessel that he is, I think we can't ignore how, once again, our woeful mental health system is also to blame.
2
Hillary said it best when she called trump's supporters "deplorables." And trump is the deplorable in chief.
1
I have said it before and will say it again. Trump is not just arrogant and stupid. He is the personification of EVIL!! When will Americans realize that a resurrected Hitler occupies the office of the presidency? The Republic is under attack by evil forces. I hope and pray that my opinion is wrong.
1
Susan Bro, whose daughter, Heather Heyer, was killed in Charlottesville, said last week, “You can’t wash this one away by shaking my hand and saying, ‘I’m sorry.’ ”
The truth is that Donald Trump can't even bring himself to admit wrongdoing in anything, much less say he's sorry. He's sorry all right, but in an entirely different way.
The truth is that Donald Trump can't even bring himself to admit wrongdoing in anything, much less say he's sorry. He's sorry all right, but in an entirely different way.
1
One of Trump's new lines yesterday was, "Sometimes you need protest in order to heal, & we will heal, & be stronger than ever before!”
By this, he wants us to know he is still in charge, and defining Nazi/white supremacist marches chanting Third Reich slogans, and the far greater number of Americans who turn out to protest them, as part of Trump's yuge vague plans to "make America great again."
But when he says "Sometimes you need protest in order to heal," does he imagine this describes what the neo-Nazis are about? Does he think the thousands who protest them are "anti-police agitators"?
To me, such words are so far off the mark that the man who utters them is revealed, yet again, not to possess the minimal grasp of history that even the smallest public office requires. I cannot imagine he know much about what might help a nation to "heal." He constantly pollutes the atmosphere with nastiness, no matter what projected images he is putting forth.
By this, he wants us to know he is still in charge, and defining Nazi/white supremacist marches chanting Third Reich slogans, and the far greater number of Americans who turn out to protest them, as part of Trump's yuge vague plans to "make America great again."
But when he says "Sometimes you need protest in order to heal," does he imagine this describes what the neo-Nazis are about? Does he think the thousands who protest them are "anti-police agitators"?
To me, such words are so far off the mark that the man who utters them is revealed, yet again, not to possess the minimal grasp of history that even the smallest public office requires. I cannot imagine he know much about what might help a nation to "heal." He constantly pollutes the atmosphere with nastiness, no matter what projected images he is putting forth.
1
If the Democrats had any leadership qualities at all, they'd be barnstorming the nation removing the name of Senator Robert Byrd (D-W. Va.) from every street, building, base, school, as well as destroying every statue, portrait, and likeness of him. Robert Byrd was leader in both the KKK and the Democrat Party. But the Democrats would never even think of angering their white supremacist base and their sizable KKK membership
We have reached a new low in our President. We have a man who has admitted being a SEXUAL PREDATOR in the office of our President. Instead, he belongs in a prison cell. For far too long he has told us his income taxes are undergoing an audit. Now his spokesman says that his tax records are not of interest. He has no morals.
1
Thank you, Mr. Blow. A fine, deserving denouncement.
Put us in Germany, the day after Hitler. Statues to his legacy, anyone? Statues to the greatness of Germany and Austria with so fine a moment as the destruction of Europe, anyone? A speech by Merkel when Neo-Nazis clash with good people of today's Germany, using the phrase: "Here's to the very fine people on both sides!"
Yes, this is the Trump we have wrought. Not a shred of character in any single speech or tweet.
Now, please, on to the denouement of our country's future: Since no one is writing a Democratic or even Republican platform of principles we can rally around, why don't we, the people. Let's write them in a specially set out comment section by the NY Times. What should we say? Can we try this?
No one else seems to be standing up with words we can live by as a country!
We need to do this ourselves!
Put us in Germany, the day after Hitler. Statues to his legacy, anyone? Statues to the greatness of Germany and Austria with so fine a moment as the destruction of Europe, anyone? A speech by Merkel when Neo-Nazis clash with good people of today's Germany, using the phrase: "Here's to the very fine people on both sides!"
Yes, this is the Trump we have wrought. Not a shred of character in any single speech or tweet.
Now, please, on to the denouement of our country's future: Since no one is writing a Democratic or even Republican platform of principles we can rally around, why don't we, the people. Let's write them in a specially set out comment section by the NY Times. What should we say? Can we try this?
No one else seems to be standing up with words we can live by as a country!
We need to do this ourselves!
1
Trump is the greatest President of my lifetime, going back to Truman. HE is a great humanitarian and incredibly competent. Trump makes Obama look like one of the Three Stooges. Blow is a hate-filled liberal propagandist.
1
There are no good Nazis. You know that. I know that. Why is it that so many other folks do not? Why is it that so many had failed to see the fascist tendency in Trump long before now? I know that from time to time we (I) have to go to the polls and cast a vote with one hand pinching my nostrils together. Always I have been able to tell which one spelled worst. And in this case the stench rose to high heaven. And what do we have? A ranting raving Hitler enabling the worst of the KKK and Nazi elements in this country. They do NOT deserve a seat at the table. They are NOT the other side of any decent dialogue. To eve pretend that they are is to move the marker in their direction. Danger signs abound. Can the nation do something about it before it tis too late? I am not at all certain that it can.
According to the polls today, about 35% of voters in MI, WI & PA still think Trump is great. If the GOP is half of that (it's a bit less, but I'll be generous & say it's half), then 70% of the GOP in those states are totally OK with a white supremacist & Nazi apologist in the White House. THAT'S what we're dealing with.
1
The antifa, which stands for “anti-fascists,” may be the sworn enemies of Nazism and racism, but the radical left-wing protesters also aren’t fans of the First Amendment, having shut down scheduled speeches by conservatives Milo Yiannapoulos and Ann Coulter earlier this year in Berkeley, California.
That’s by design. The guiding principle behind the movement, which has its roots in prewar Europe, is to defeat “fascists” before they can gain a foothold in government and society in order to avoid another Nazi Germany.
If that means using threats, intimidation and even violence to muzzle so-called “fascists,” then so be it, said Mark Bray, author of “Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook,” which is scheduled for release Sept. 12.
“Antifa are anarchists and communists and socialists who are revolutionaries and don’t have any inherent regard for the law,” said Mr. Bray, a visiting scholar at the Gender Research Institute at Dartmouth College. “To try to put it within that framework is kind of missing the fact that they don’t really care.”
That’s by design. The guiding principle behind the movement, which has its roots in prewar Europe, is to defeat “fascists” before they can gain a foothold in government and society in order to avoid another Nazi Germany.
If that means using threats, intimidation and even violence to muzzle so-called “fascists,” then so be it, said Mark Bray, author of “Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook,” which is scheduled for release Sept. 12.
“Antifa are anarchists and communists and socialists who are revolutionaries and don’t have any inherent regard for the law,” said Mr. Bray, a visiting scholar at the Gender Research Institute at Dartmouth College. “To try to put it within that framework is kind of missing the fact that they don’t really care.”
1
There once was a self-centered blowhard
Who held himself in utmost regard
But when the chips were down
His words brought a shutdown
Leaving our entire government scarred
Who held himself in utmost regard
But when the chips were down
His words brought a shutdown
Leaving our entire government scarred
Enough! Trump has got to go away . . . Now!
1
Many of us agree with you BLOW.
How do we get out of this mess?
No congressmen on the REPUBLICAN side have enough courage to do more than risk TRUMP's backlash by a few comments against him let alone impeachment.
How do we get out of this mess?
No congressmen on the REPUBLICAN side have enough courage to do more than risk TRUMP's backlash by a few comments against him let alone impeachment.
1
The predicament for those who now regret having voted for him and those who didn't vote for him is that there is no short-term solution to this mistake that avoids another through the Constitutional imperative of the office of the Vice President Pence succeeding a disgraced President who resigns or is removed by legislative prerogative.
2
I'm happy today bc of the eclipse and seeing such common good. I don't want to think about trump today. I'll deal w him tomorrow.
1
I know how you feel.
I would have expected by now to see feverish debates on the failure and end of representative democracy. It clearly does not work. It doesn't work at all in third world countries, and the United States seems to be competing with those failed, corrupt states for a leading place. It should be clear by now that no small group of people can ever be entrusted with the destiny of the world, a nation, or even a city. We have become too large, too complex to leave even small decisions to individuals who act on behalf of millions. Direct democracy is the way, look to Switzerland for a pilot project.
If you think that sounds crazy, just think: Donald Trump is your president.
If you think that sounds crazy, just think: Donald Trump is your president.
Having watched this obscene soap opera displaying Donald Trump's personal incompetence, lack of morality etc. (the list of negatives could fill a book) I have one extremely important question: Where is America, where are the almost 300 million Americans? Do they matter at all?
1
Anyone tired of winning yet?
2
I appreciate all your writing and agree completely with today's column except for one thing: You write, as many do, that Trump has no moral compass. I don't believe that is true. He has one, and it is firmly pointed in the wrong direction; towards bigotry, misogyny, and total self-centeredness. Raised by a racist crook and mentored by Roy Cohn, why would he be any different?
3
According to Thomas Jefferson "The will of the people... is the only legitimate foundation of any government; and by and through their votes and in accordance with the Electoral College systems Trump won the election thus he is the president. Unfortunately we cannot protect the people against the consequences of the political choices
Could you tell us, Toronkawa, what beyond the Constitution of the United States and the laws of the federal government an the states would you see as appropriate to "protect the people against the consequences of the political choices?
Are we not a democratic republic based on the rule of law? Aren't the legislatures and executives of the state and federal government granted the right to make law and enforce it?
Are you arguing that some unseen hand...likely the hand of all-seeing truth tellers abounding in our political society...has the right to usurp the powers that the law and our constitution allows our elected officials?
Are you arguing that some unseen hand...likely the hand of the all-knowing, pseudo-intellectual elites...should be able to stifle discussion about issues that affect us all?
Are you arguing that some unseen force...likely the force of the infallible intellectual nobility...when it unilaterally declares a matter "settled" that all challenge should cease and The People must willingliy comply?
I fear you have little clue about how our nation, its institutions and its powers are limited, and limited for legitimate reading.
I fear that you are one of those more interested in silencing other than you are of joining into a community where we govern ourselves by consensus and reason.
I fear your view of governance for obvious reasons. And were we to live in a world where your view political choices hold sway, you, too, would be as fearful as I.
Are we not a democratic republic based on the rule of law? Aren't the legislatures and executives of the state and federal government granted the right to make law and enforce it?
Are you arguing that some unseen hand...likely the hand of all-seeing truth tellers abounding in our political society...has the right to usurp the powers that the law and our constitution allows our elected officials?
Are you arguing that some unseen hand...likely the hand of the all-knowing, pseudo-intellectual elites...should be able to stifle discussion about issues that affect us all?
Are you arguing that some unseen force...likely the force of the infallible intellectual nobility...when it unilaterally declares a matter "settled" that all challenge should cease and The People must willingliy comply?
I fear you have little clue about how our nation, its institutions and its powers are limited, and limited for legitimate reading.
I fear that you are one of those more interested in silencing other than you are of joining into a community where we govern ourselves by consensus and reason.
I fear your view of governance for obvious reasons. And were we to live in a world where your view political choices hold sway, you, too, would be as fearful as I.
I would add that some of the top Engineering Schools here had up to 90% foreign students. Most have more than 50%. Under Trump, enrollment is down 30% this year, and I realize some would cheer that number.
But consider this. Those students are now staying in China, India, and the Middle East. There, they will build up their local Engineering Programs. They will develop new weapon systems for their native nations. And these students were the cream of the crop.
Think long term. Global Warming, Future Tech, Global competition. Oh, Sorry. "Business Leaders" like Trump can't seem to look past the next Quarter's profits, can they?
But consider this. Those students are now staying in China, India, and the Middle East. There, they will build up their local Engineering Programs. They will develop new weapon systems for their native nations. And these students were the cream of the crop.
Think long term. Global Warming, Future Tech, Global competition. Oh, Sorry. "Business Leaders" like Trump can't seem to look past the next Quarter's profits, can they?
1
What amazes me is that the event of the heavily armed racist militia who confronted and battled with the protestors who were rightfully claiming that the Confederate monument of Robert E. Lee should be removed were centered in Charlottesville’s Emancipation Park !!!
Charlottesville’s Emancipation Park !!!
Do not the ultra right wing heavily armed racist militia, the Ku Klux Klan, neo-Nazis and other assorted racists, mentally deranged idiots, wingnuts and social deviants see the dark and sick irony in this ??? … including the Bully in Chief ???
Emancipation Park !!!
The Civil War is over … the Civil War was conducted by the Confederate States to support slavery … Abraham Lincoln ended slavery when he proclaimed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 … yet racism still exists and is practiced by too many … and these racists still deny the Emancipation Proclamation and the laws of the land.
Thomas Watson, the founder of IBM, famously said:
“…it's very difficult to build and very easy to destroy.”
Charlottesville’s Emancipation Park !!!
Do not the ultra right wing heavily armed racist militia, the Ku Klux Klan, neo-Nazis and other assorted racists, mentally deranged idiots, wingnuts and social deviants see the dark and sick irony in this ??? … including the Bully in Chief ???
Emancipation Park !!!
The Civil War is over … the Civil War was conducted by the Confederate States to support slavery … Abraham Lincoln ended slavery when he proclaimed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 … yet racism still exists and is practiced by too many … and these racists still deny the Emancipation Proclamation and the laws of the land.
Thomas Watson, the founder of IBM, famously said:
“…it's very difficult to build and very easy to destroy.”
3
Breaking: Trump announces plans to be ome grand imperial wizard of the Ku Klux Klan post-presidency. 'There are so many terrific neo-nazis out there!"
2
Worst of all, he fails as a man. All we seem to be able to do about it, though, is to continue to say this over and over, wring our hands and hang our heads. I think we all keep wondering when the people who supported him, his base, are going to realize he's a loser as a President (and dangerous) and as a Man! They don't seem to notice. So we must step up and push this thing out of our institutions, government, our foundations; cleanse our nation of him and his ideology (whatever it is) and save our people and our country from further demise.
4
This is such over the top ridiculous hyperbole. Screaming Trump is a Nazi hundreds of times does not make it so. Obama sat in the Racist Reverend Wright's church listening to "GD America" and the populace was assured it meant nothing. President Trump assigning blame to the Leftist Antifa as well as to the Klan gathering was recognized by all but the most partisan Lefties to be simply identifying the problem. Week after week of insults to our President is unhelpful and a degradation to the 60 million + who voted for him and want to see him succeed. This column belongs under the Sore Loser spread with the other failed attacks of rigging the votes, Russian collusion, obstruction of justice, now racism, blah blah blah. I expect this comment will be blocked in order that this paper can burnish its credentials with the Left that Freedom of Speech is not allowed here in a safe space.
3
THE problem has nothing to do with who was responsible for violence during some rioting. The problem is that our thug of a president thinks there are good nazis, good white supremacists and good KKK members. Once that is clear, it becomes even more clear that he has the moral authority of a rattlesnake. THAT is a problem.
1
Trump befouls everything he touches.
4
By the time the first trump set his German foot upon American soil Black's had fought and died in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican American War and the Civil War. They had provided 250 years of free labor, building plank roads, railroads, outhouses, plantation houses and White Houses.
This list had grown by the time our racist-in-chief stepped up to the White House podium to declare the removal of monuments glorifying the bloody effort to keep Blacks in chains in perpetuity a desecration of OUR history. It then included the Mexican American War, World War One, World War Two, the Korean Conflict and the Vietnam War.
What this unambiguously tells us that trump's breezy dismissiveness of the Black experience is born of his profound belief that the eugenic bar precluding Blacks from being members of the American Civic Family is impervious to blood shed, sweat excreted and tears cried. It also tells us that his sympathies for those who morn the fact that the Lost Cause lost reveals a longing to take America back to the days when calling Blacks "My African-Americans" could be taken literally and not just seriously.
Moreover, what trump's antebellum postering should tell Blacks, any and all, is that when urged to call trump "my President" indulge his love for all things Russian and quote the poet Marina Tsvetaeva: "To you insane world but one reply-- I REFUSE!"
This list had grown by the time our racist-in-chief stepped up to the White House podium to declare the removal of monuments glorifying the bloody effort to keep Blacks in chains in perpetuity a desecration of OUR history. It then included the Mexican American War, World War One, World War Two, the Korean Conflict and the Vietnam War.
What this unambiguously tells us that trump's breezy dismissiveness of the Black experience is born of his profound belief that the eugenic bar precluding Blacks from being members of the American Civic Family is impervious to blood shed, sweat excreted and tears cried. It also tells us that his sympathies for those who morn the fact that the Lost Cause lost reveals a longing to take America back to the days when calling Blacks "My African-Americans" could be taken literally and not just seriously.
Moreover, what trump's antebellum postering should tell Blacks, any and all, is that when urged to call trump "my President" indulge his love for all things Russian and quote the poet Marina Tsvetaeva: "To you insane world but one reply-- I REFUSE!"
2
What about people who enable Trump and the Nazis? What about the conservative medias?
There were articles on Fox News and other conservative medias promoting the use of a car to plow through protesters. They did take out the articles after the Charlottesville incident.
Some Conservatives lawmakers were contemplating making it legal for a driver to plow through protesters.
Why doesn't the New York Times make it front-page news? These people and conservative medias are as dangerous as Trump.
There were articles on Fox News and other conservative medias promoting the use of a car to plow through protesters. They did take out the articles after the Charlottesville incident.
Some Conservatives lawmakers were contemplating making it legal for a driver to plow through protesters.
Why doesn't the New York Times make it front-page news? These people and conservative medias are as dangerous as Trump.
1
Trump is a monster. Got it. So please talk about the worse monsters, the moneyed thugs who are dismantling all U.S. rules and regulations to line their pockets at the expense of their own children and grandchildren. They are addicts to money and cause far more havoc than ordinary drug addicts.
When Trump gets impeached or caught wandering the streets naked, ranting incoherently, Pence will take his place as the next soulless puppet of these worse monsters, who already control all lesser addicts in the GOP.
The worse monsters, the Kochs, Mercer and all other evil old white male money junkies, will wreck everything in this country and on this planet for their next fix. How do we stop them?
When Trump gets impeached or caught wandering the streets naked, ranting incoherently, Pence will take his place as the next soulless puppet of these worse monsters, who already control all lesser addicts in the GOP.
The worse monsters, the Kochs, Mercer and all other evil old white male money junkies, will wreck everything in this country and on this planet for their next fix. How do we stop them?
2
Sharon. "Represent.US" is a useful starting point for getting money (corruption) out of politics. Both the Left and the Right are getting stiffed by lawmakers who respond only to their Big Money donors. All of us will get more responsive government when the Kochs and the Mercers, and their left-leaning fellow billionaires can't buy legislators.
A post from CA wonders: “What do [the 30% of American voters with an undying support for Trump] see in him that so inspires their devotion?” It seems that those “30% of American voters,” at least, had political goals that they believed were achievable only under DT. At the critical moment in the voting booth, in spite of DT’s warts and all, the 30% kept their eyes and gaze on the “prize”. The NYT’s Jeremy Peters reported (Feb. 13, 2017) on some of the reasons why religious conservatives, for instance, fell for DT: nomination of a conservative for the SCOTUS, to ensure a conservative Court; and the “[enactment] of new policies that the religious right considers important.” On the other hand, many progressives and Democrats, apparently angry at the DNC and its candidate, refused to be as pragmatic as the religious right, and so abandoned the only progressive candidate who could realistically defeat Trump. We all know - don’t we? - how much Supreme Court decisions affect issues that we claim to care about. Thus, how the GOP Senators treated the nomination of Judge Merrick Garland for the SC, alone, should have energized progressives to ensure that a Democrat was elected, to prevent a non-conservative Court. But, even if elections have consequences, hey, many on the left had a family score to settle above all else. Trump's Executive Orders are thank-you notes to lefties who withheld their votes from Hillary. A case of cutting the nose to spite the face.
3
Trump is the worst American who ever lived. Seriously, it's not even close.
1
No explanation other than this man is morally corrupt, with a side order of crazy.
2
Trump has forgotten nearly all the history he was ever taught. How he could imagine that there are good people amongst the Nazis, KKK, and white supremacists who showed up in Charlottesville is like some kind of strange derangement of the mind. Some of the counter protestors were eager to show that they had the guts to standup to the bigots right up to trading blows. Amongst the protestors in Boston, where people who had likely protested against police, since the organizers organization was founded upon protesting against police. A very complex set of situations but we all know that Nazis, the KKK, and white supremacists have a long history of doing extreme violence against innocent people and feel entitled to do so. There is no relative equivalence between these groups. But, Trump asserted that there was, in his typical truth is what he wants it to be fashion. He's a jerk.
The era of Jim Crow and later the era of desegregation was accompanied by racist people holding up Confederate heroes as examples justifying opposition to racial equality, so getting them out of public places is probably justified.
Judging the people portrayed by the monuments with today's standards of conduct and right behavior is inappropriate. The nation created the circumstances which resulted in the Civil War from the signing of the Declaration of Independence to the years leading up to Secession. While the South wanted slave owning in all states, the North favored racial segregation.
The era of Jim Crow and later the era of desegregation was accompanied by racist people holding up Confederate heroes as examples justifying opposition to racial equality, so getting them out of public places is probably justified.
Judging the people portrayed by the monuments with today's standards of conduct and right behavior is inappropriate. The nation created the circumstances which resulted in the Civil War from the signing of the Declaration of Independence to the years leading up to Secession. While the South wanted slave owning in all states, the North favored racial segregation.
The fact that the leader of America is a xenophobic, misogynistic, Nazi-supporting, Narcissistic, greedy, virulent racist, with a clear hatred of all the USA stands for -- including an outright attack on the media [the First Amendment] -- is the leader of the US, is appalling. Unfortunately, Trump supporters love the Fuhrer as their savior, and no matter what the horrific reality is of what he's up to, supporters will continue to support him. All we can do is pray that he and his vile apostles are a brief part of history.
2
I have read in several places recently that " if you just turn off the news and talk to your neighbors, you'll find things are more harmonious than you thought."
There you have it. Advice to disengage and let this slide by. That only emboldens the people who would run you over with a car. Trump's poorly thought responses to Charlottesville prove once again that he is unfit and perhaps not of sound mind. One only has to watch video of self professed neo nazis talk of supporting Trump to understand that nothing will get better while he is in the White House. My parent's generation fought against fascism . Their president led the fight. Our president today considers some of them to be "fine people". What madness.
There you have it. Advice to disengage and let this slide by. That only emboldens the people who would run you over with a car. Trump's poorly thought responses to Charlottesville prove once again that he is unfit and perhaps not of sound mind. One only has to watch video of self professed neo nazis talk of supporting Trump to understand that nothing will get better while he is in the White House. My parent's generation fought against fascism . Their president led the fight. Our president today considers some of them to be "fine people". What madness.
1
Excellent! A few weeks ago I could have sworn I saw some of trump's hand gestures look like hand signals so I started paying close attention to those horrible obnoxious little hands (a hard thing to put myself thru). I googled "trump, white nationalists, neo-nazi, hand signals" and low and behold, the sign for okay is a facist hand signal. Trump makes that signal all the time and there's photographs of Steve Miller doing the same thing. Look it up folks and watch trump awful hands tonight, you'll see the same thing. God, we're in trouble.
1
I'd rather have Trump's little hands on the presidency, Ms. Parris, than all of the little minds on the left who have lost any sense of reason, decorum, or civility.
Your comment is a very good example of the efficacy of what I have said.
Your comment is a very good example of the efficacy of what I have said.
Blow deserves the Pulitzer Prize for Hypocrisy.
He dedicates himself to "Trump Resistance" and has mercilessly attacked and smeared him to undermine his Presidency.
Now he is "frightened" that America lacks a "functioning president".
That is unmitigated Chutzpah.
He dedicates himself to "Trump Resistance" and has mercilessly attacked and smeared him to undermine his Presidency.
Now he is "frightened" that America lacks a "functioning president".
That is unmitigated Chutzpah.
2
Charles, you can't blame radical racists of anti semitism, when Bibi Netanyahu would rather stay silent over Trump's shameful statements post Charlottesville than condemn Nazi groups who unmasked themselves to open public view.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-40966720
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-40966720
Bigley frightening.
2
America, what a disgrace your president is. The Kardasians would be better in the WH.
1
The news is real.
The president is fake.
The president is fake.
2
There are no good Nazis.
There are no good Nazi sympathizers.
There are no good Nazi bystanders.
Nazis carrying automatic weapons at their protests are not exercising free speech - they are engaged in violence.
These are not people we should unite with in our country - they need to be cowed back into the dark hole that Trump exhorted them to come out of.
There are no good Nazi sympathizers.
There are no good Nazi bystanders.
Nazis carrying automatic weapons at their protests are not exercising free speech - they are engaged in violence.
These are not people we should unite with in our country - they need to be cowed back into the dark hole that Trump exhorted them to come out of.
4
I think another way of looking at recent events is to see the maturation of our tribalistic schism.
We are now Palestinians and Israelis, and there will be no reasonable solution until one side is entirely subjugated. The realities of right and wrong are entirely buried by ideologies of a promised homeland and a dispossessed innocent people. Like the West Bank checkpoints, our digital communities and divergent news sources minimize personal contact between the parties, leading to permanent intransigence. For those in power, the suffering of the individuals is of minor consequence, as long as they continue to derive their legitimacy from that suffering.
It is ironic that Trump is sending Jared to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conundrum, when he is a major participant in a disruption much closer to home.
We are now Palestinians and Israelis, and there will be no reasonable solution until one side is entirely subjugated. The realities of right and wrong are entirely buried by ideologies of a promised homeland and a dispossessed innocent people. Like the West Bank checkpoints, our digital communities and divergent news sources minimize personal contact between the parties, leading to permanent intransigence. For those in power, the suffering of the individuals is of minor consequence, as long as they continue to derive their legitimacy from that suffering.
It is ironic that Trump is sending Jared to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conundrum, when he is a major participant in a disruption much closer to home.
1
Trump clearly is the Anti-President; to call him the antichrist would be a stretch since he's no fallen angel, merely the Devil's disciple in a red tie. Obeying the Ten Commandments, nyet! Moses was a Jew so he has no use for that stone tablet. Moses parted the Red Seas...no big deal, this Anti-President promised to drain the swamp, a tough act when he's wallowing in his personal sewer of rancor and narcissism. The Congress now only sits on one hand, the other hand is for nose holding
7
Who do great Christian fathers do when their begotten children marry Jews?
Donald J. Trump will do anything for his children, even lose America in a poker game if it brings fame and fortune to his beloved children. He's a grandfather.
He's a golfer. He should spend more time with his family and leave warring to professionals. If he's unable or unwilling to drain the swamp, he may be fired.
Donald J. Trump will do anything for his children, even lose America in a poker game if it brings fame and fortune to his beloved children. He's a grandfather.
He's a golfer. He should spend more time with his family and leave warring to professionals. If he's unable or unwilling to drain the swamp, he may be fired.
Leaderless!!!
4
International headlines describe trump as amoral. His lies are strung together with lies. And asking kkk/white supremacist/nazi supporters if they changed their minds about him is like asking a rabid dog the same question.
Let's ask those who held their nose when they voted. If the extremely low rating is accurate, something is missing in the news. Ask those who seem very quiet now, is this the great America you had in mind?
And as trump, his cohorts and his media marketers continues to overflow his cesspool, let take time to notice that most of the world and our USA communities are continuing to peacefully enjoy and support each other’s diversity & company as good neighbors with a watchful eye on this very dangerous assault on our civil society.
Let's ask those who held their nose when they voted. If the extremely low rating is accurate, something is missing in the news. Ask those who seem very quiet now, is this the great America you had in mind?
And as trump, his cohorts and his media marketers continues to overflow his cesspool, let take time to notice that most of the world and our USA communities are continuing to peacefully enjoy and support each other’s diversity & company as good neighbors with a watchful eye on this very dangerous assault on our civil society.
3
While American voters look on aghast at what comes out of the mouths of the 'leaders of the democracy', we in Canada look on in wonder at the resulting dance with lunacy taken on by our creative political class: apparently, the 'alt-right' in the US and Canada are a bunch of misguided losers who have become hopelessly enamored with the most vile tenets of 'the left'! (reference: "You'll hear people today, any time they don't like someone on the right they'll trot out these labels without understating that national socialism, that fascism, that alternative right thinking, comes out of the left." http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/andrew-scheer-free-speech-toronto-nation.... Please clean up the alt-right, USA, because the rest of us are stuck with this hateful stupidity until you do. And a special note to alt-right and alt-left: why does free speech only ever apply to those who recite the words of your religion?
4
What is sadder is those who see things his way. They are not narcissists, not even in his league at all. Just sheeple who would follow him off a cliff like lemmings. Sheeple who would still support him if he shot someone on a NYC street. But how many would sign up as volunteers to go to war for him? Nary a hundred.
3
3how frightening is that"? you ask: very, very,very, very,very,very,very,very,very,very,very,very,.....frightening!
2
The fact remains he is still the President of the United States and fifty percent of the population voted for him. Trump may be what he is, but for that fifty percent he was a protest vote and they knew exactly what they were getting when they cast their ballots.
Trump is just the symbol of a a bigger problem in this country. Racial polarization has been going on for many years. The KKK started about 150 years ago and the Nazi's started their activities in the 1920's, long before Trump was even born.
These extremists were active during a lot of previous administrations: Obama, the Bushes, Clinton, Carter, LBJ, Kennedy.....you name it...and no one addressed the issue during those decades.
So suddenly (in order to feel good and be politically correct) we're going to yank down all Confederate statutes of people long dead. Evidently the civil rights leaders were lacking new issues to complain about and this gets them back in front of the TV cameras.
Trump is just the symbol of a a bigger problem in this country. Racial polarization has been going on for many years. The KKK started about 150 years ago and the Nazi's started their activities in the 1920's, long before Trump was even born.
These extremists were active during a lot of previous administrations: Obama, the Bushes, Clinton, Carter, LBJ, Kennedy.....you name it...and no one addressed the issue during those decades.
So suddenly (in order to feel good and be politically correct) we're going to yank down all Confederate statutes of people long dead. Evidently the civil rights leaders were lacking new issues to complain about and this gets them back in front of the TV cameras.
50% of the population did not vote for him - Hillary Clinton received 3 million more votes than he did - only 58% of eligible others cast ballots - disturbing nonetheless.
4
The issue with Hillary died last November. Trump won the electoral college. Maybe if she had bothered to campaign in Wisconsin and numerous other place she elected to ignore, she might be sitting in the Oval Office today. So it's a moot point and the rest of the world knows it.
For 8 long and deadly years the Terrorist-in-Chief Obama never once condemned Islamic terrorism. President Trump has done so, proving that he's man enough for the job
2
Amen
3
Thanks again, Mr. Blow
Reading your column every week keeps me sane.
Reading your column every week keeps me sane.
3
Amen
4
A recent NEW YORKER cartoon - Wife to husband, "Remember how nice America was before it was great?"
RESIGNATION NOW! Before the inevitable impeachment and/or jailing.
RESIGNATION NOW! Before the inevitable impeachment and/or jailing.
8
"What America saw clearly in Trump’s disastrous handling of the violence in Charlottesville was a Nazi/white nationalist apologist if not sympathizer, a reactionary rage-aholic, a liar, and a person who has absolutely no sense or understanding of history."
And to think, just a few short years ago how the Republicans howled and wailed about Obama's "Apology Tour"! Apparently apologizing and excusing Nazis is OK.
And to think, just a few short years ago how the Republicans howled and wailed about Obama's "Apology Tour"! Apparently apologizing and excusing Nazis is OK.
2
Someone wrote earlier, in the comments, that it is likely that the President is suffering from Alzheimer's. I completely agree. Having been around Alzheimer's, his behavior: his reactive anger (in defense of Nazi's, fake news), his defaults (electoral college win, exaggerating the size of his crowds), his fantasies (he came up with "Prime the pump," the phone calls from Boy Scout Leader and President of Mexico), his confusion, his inability for restraint or thoughtfulness all suggest early signs of Alzheimer's.
He needs to be diagnosed. GOP, you need to pay attention and act on this. The man is unfit to run our country.
He needs to be diagnosed. GOP, you need to pay attention and act on this. The man is unfit to run our country.
8
Alzheimer's diagnosis requires a degenerative change from a prior higher functional capability.
Mr. Trump's behavior is consistent with his behavior many years ago, so his cognitive and behavioral issues are not ascribable to Alzheimer's.
Mr. Trump's behavior is consistent with his behavior many years ago, so his cognitive and behavioral issues are not ascribable to Alzheimer's.
When the IRA put on the Dana Loesch video, it inspired and enabled the Charlottesville "Storm Troopers" to arm themselves and, eventually, kill and mame those who oppose the fascist message of white supremacy and Trumpist Americanism. The IRA is the supreme cancer that may, if we don't stop them, bring down our democratic experiment and finally assure the victory of the Confederacy.
The insane violent fanatics on the Left have come completely unglued and have demonstrated that these hysterical lunatics are far too unbalanced to hold power at any level for generations. It'll take decades for the Democrat fever to subside
1
It was Charlottesville Mayor Mike Signer’s and Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe’s responsibility—not President’s Trump’s responsibility—to manage the violence in Charlottesville. A federal court ruled that Charlottesville’s revocation of Unite the Right’s permit to assembly at Emancipation Park was unconstitutional. But having lost the free speech issue in federal court, Charlottesville police and Virginia state police permitted counter-protesters to block the entry to the park. An article headline “Antifa’ Grows, Swinging Fists at Far Right” in today’s New York Times introduces readers to an Antifa activist who goes by the nom de guerre Frank Sabaté. According to the Times, Sabaté “came ready for battle. He joined a human chain that stretched in front of Emancipation Park and linked his arms with others, blocking waves of white supremacists — some of them in full Nazi regalia — from entering.” This blockade is what initiated the violence. Police colluded with the counter-protesters by doing nothing. They should have arrested the counter-protester who formed the barricade and charged them with civil rights violations. Instead, the police colluded in the violence by doing nothing. The ACLU should file suit against the city and state.
2
"Even if one were merely protesting the retirement of a statue of Robert E. Lee, doing it from within a gathering of neo-Nazis and KKKers probably wasn't the smartest thing to do unless one sympathized with their views".
Is there no end to what you will say to support this group are in chief? Of all the pro trump people who comment here Richard, you are the most despicable. Clearly you are an intelligent person. Clearly you have a relatively good knowledge of history. That said, you still find some way to defend this "person". There comes a time in every person's life, when they have to admit they are wrong. I can't tell you how many times I've admitted that I made a mistake. It takes a strong person to know when they erred, and acknowledge their goof. You, on the other hand, can't seem to conceive of the fact that you might be wrong about this faux leader.
"If the aging hipsters in this forum didn't have The Donald to get their blood flowing, why, they'd need to take a LOT more pills to demonstrate a pulse and keep regular." You see, this is what you do, Richard. You try to deflect by demonizing and disparaging others, just like the Groper. You try to use statistics about other bad things happening, to make your guy seems sane. There are many things that get the blood flowing, not the least of which is the rest of the GOP. Our energy could be better spent helping people instead of having to call out the person who is supposed to be the leader of our country. Too bad.
Is there no end to what you will say to support this group are in chief? Of all the pro trump people who comment here Richard, you are the most despicable. Clearly you are an intelligent person. Clearly you have a relatively good knowledge of history. That said, you still find some way to defend this "person". There comes a time in every person's life, when they have to admit they are wrong. I can't tell you how many times I've admitted that I made a mistake. It takes a strong person to know when they erred, and acknowledge their goof. You, on the other hand, can't seem to conceive of the fact that you might be wrong about this faux leader.
"If the aging hipsters in this forum didn't have The Donald to get their blood flowing, why, they'd need to take a LOT more pills to demonstrate a pulse and keep regular." You see, this is what you do, Richard. You try to deflect by demonizing and disparaging others, just like the Groper. You try to use statistics about other bad things happening, to make your guy seems sane. There are many things that get the blood flowing, not the least of which is the rest of the GOP. Our energy could be better spent helping people instead of having to call out the person who is supposed to be the leader of our country. Too bad.
5
There are no good Nazis. I beg to differ. The Only good Nazis, are Dead Nazis. With " good" still being a relative term. Seriously.
4
Few men are able to speak from the heart unless they’re speaking to the heart of their spouse. It’s Trump’s actions, not words, that will tell. Everyone will be watching, and they expect a robust federal response, in coordination with state and local law enforcement, against domestic terrorism.
I don't see how any of this is new, or news. Trump is a racist, a life-long, lifetime racist. His father was a racist. He has proven himself racist long before now, with his rental practices dating back decades. His son-in-law is a racist (see recent news about HIS rental practices).
A real focus of his racism is Barrack Obama - the birther thing for starters, and anything with Obama's name on it - I think that is the biggest reason Trump is out to GET the ACA; he will not rest until he has slain that nasty Obamacare, and anything else Obama accomplished, real or imagined in Trump's mind, and undone every regulation Obama put in place, or championed.
A real focus of his racism is Barrack Obama - the birther thing for starters, and anything with Obama's name on it - I think that is the biggest reason Trump is out to GET the ACA; he will not rest until he has slain that nasty Obamacare, and anything else Obama accomplished, real or imagined in Trump's mind, and undone every regulation Obama put in place, or championed.
6
The Charlottesville Nazi flags and white (brown)-shirted white separatists found their leader in trump's "moral cavity". It brings to mind the Niemöller quotation: "First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—“ Contrary to Trump's characterization of the Boston protesters as "anti-police agitators" , tens of thousands did speak out. However, he could only hear the megalomaniacal echo of Germany leadership in the 1930s. Sad.
4
Said it before, will say it again: The Trump Presidency is the result of a publicity stunt gone horribly, horribly wrong.
5
You could also say that those who cooked up the stunt succeeded beyond their wildest dreams. Trump is conspicuously lacking in any sense of humor about himself and I'll always wonder if the Vacationer-in-Chief ever really wanted to win the Presidency, except possibly as revenge on Obama for his teasing at the WH Correspondents' dinner.
Whether you see it as success or failure, we're stuck with the result.
Whether you see it as success or failure, we're stuck with the result.
1
Amen, Charles Blow! As always your column speaks the Truth both eloquently and succinctly. Those who would defend Trump's comments -- and overall pathetic "performance" as "president" -- are as dishonest (and probably racist) as Trump is himself.
4
Yes, what you say about Trump is true Charles, but here's what's even worse:
We have a Republican-controlled Congress that is standing by and doing NOTHING!
Every ounce of scorn heaped upon Her Trump, should be equally piled on our hypocritical Congress.
We have a Republican-controlled Congress that is standing by and doing NOTHING!
Every ounce of scorn heaped upon Her Trump, should be equally piled on our hypocritical Congress.
4
I wish that you, Charles Blow, were not so right about Trump, but you are. Every column you have written re- this horror of a "leader" is spot-on.
Trump is an intentional racist. He may seem like a buffoon since he cannot spell or adhere to noun-verb agreement, but he is racist by choice--not by ignorance. He has no idea what empathy is or why it is so important in leadership. Go away.
Trump is an intentional racist. He may seem like a buffoon since he cannot spell or adhere to noun-verb agreement, but he is racist by choice--not by ignorance. He has no idea what empathy is or why it is so important in leadership. Go away.
5
All of which means that the thirty-something percent of the country that still supports such a malevolent, narcissistic hysteric is either malevolent, narcissistic, or hysterical. If you cannot support the inability to distinguish between Nazis and protestors against Nazis, then you cannot support a man who does not have the ability to distinguish between Nazis and protestors against Nazis. There is no other reading of this. Ignorance is no longer possible. Fear of the future is no longer an excuse. “I feel disrespected by the elites” is not relevant. “I don’t want to admit my mistake” is morally unacceptable. If you support Trump you are supporting the unsupportable. Full stop right there. Decide who you want to be and what kind of country you want to live in. Now. History is watching. And it will not be kind.
5
This is what America gets for electing Barry Sorento who promised to "fundamentally change America". Well he sure did that.
If football is a problem, think about boxing and other fighting games. On the other hand we have some of the best warriors in the world. What to do?
"We are leaderless. America doesn’t have a president."
While I admire Charles Blow, I do not agree with this opening statement. Because, I believe America has exactly the leader and President that the Republican party desires. A man that believes that financial wealth is a measure of one's worth. A man who believes in "makers" and "takers." A man who believes that pain, suffering and disease are just dues for those without wealth. A man who believes that his wealth gives him the right to pollute your water and air, to cause disease and famine to afflict the least wealthy, to avoid paying taxes, to break his word in business and personal dealings without repercussion, and to literally wound and kill with devastating effect those who he dislikes. A man who believes that poor people who receive life-sustaining financial support are "welfare queens," yet fully supports massive government supervised wealth transfer to his real estate businesses and to his crony capitalist friends in the oil, defense, coal, etc. businesses.
Trump is the manifestation of 30+ years of Republican dogma, from Tricky Dick, to Saint Ronnie, right up to W and now Don-the-Con!
While I admire Charles Blow, I do not agree with this opening statement. Because, I believe America has exactly the leader and President that the Republican party desires. A man that believes that financial wealth is a measure of one's worth. A man who believes in "makers" and "takers." A man who believes that pain, suffering and disease are just dues for those without wealth. A man who believes that his wealth gives him the right to pollute your water and air, to cause disease and famine to afflict the least wealthy, to avoid paying taxes, to break his word in business and personal dealings without repercussion, and to literally wound and kill with devastating effect those who he dislikes. A man who believes that poor people who receive life-sustaining financial support are "welfare queens," yet fully supports massive government supervised wealth transfer to his real estate businesses and to his crony capitalist friends in the oil, defense, coal, etc. businesses.
Trump is the manifestation of 30+ years of Republican dogma, from Tricky Dick, to Saint Ronnie, right up to W and now Don-the-Con!
5
Can anyone tell me how removing Confederate memorials will improve anyone's life?
Thus far, there have been three deaths and as far a I can tell Baltimore is still infested with gangs, drugs, poverty and lousy schools.
Thus far, there have been three deaths and as far a I can tell Baltimore is still infested with gangs, drugs, poverty and lousy schools.
4
As an independent, I voted for Trump because my only other choice was a non-democratically annointed Hillary, who was going to do more of the Obama policies of enriching the top 1% while the health of the middle class wasted away. I am hopeful that the left can produce policies and candidates better than the ones they served up the last eight years, and at the very least, better candidates than Trump. However, all you have to do is read the "echo chamber" comments below that clearly point to a population of extremists obssessed with Trump's childish antics rather than solutions for the middle class. Given the amount of time liberal progressives spend on unhealty obssessing with Trump, it is unlikely they will have the time to generate better policies and candidates than Trump, and therefore, at least right now, it appears that Trump will be here for eight years.
2
Not likely, no, not likely at all, thank God.
1
Yawn. Ok, Charles, after a long series of editorials of increasing spleen and vitriol we get it: You're not a fan of President Trump. In fact, you hate every fiber of his being. Fine.
What you and the rest of your anti-Trump ilk have to get through your hate filled fog is what you ARE FANS OF? You can't beat something with nothing and right now, that's what you've got: NOTHING. Opposition will only get you so far and calling huge numbers of your fellow citizens rascist, pro-nazi, alt-right extremists just because they don't condemn the crazy right as loudly as you'd like while at the same time giving the crazy left a free pass is hardly going to gain you much support. And until you and the Democrats have something to offer besides hating President Trump, you're going to continue to lose. Big.
Do you really think that just because people disagree with the President they are just going to turn control back over to Pelosi, Schumer, Sanders, Warren and the rest of the whiny left who so far have only put forth a pathetic rehash of already repudiated policies while moving inexorably further left? Single payer health, free college tuition, $15 min. wage, open borders and all the rest of the well known liberal mantra are non-starters with huge opposition across the country.
So keep it up. Stay focused on President Trump. Keep talking to yourselves. The longer you do, the less likely you and the Democrats are to develop any policy plans that might help actually regain power.
What you and the rest of your anti-Trump ilk have to get through your hate filled fog is what you ARE FANS OF? You can't beat something with nothing and right now, that's what you've got: NOTHING. Opposition will only get you so far and calling huge numbers of your fellow citizens rascist, pro-nazi, alt-right extremists just because they don't condemn the crazy right as loudly as you'd like while at the same time giving the crazy left a free pass is hardly going to gain you much support. And until you and the Democrats have something to offer besides hating President Trump, you're going to continue to lose. Big.
Do you really think that just because people disagree with the President they are just going to turn control back over to Pelosi, Schumer, Sanders, Warren and the rest of the whiny left who so far have only put forth a pathetic rehash of already repudiated policies while moving inexorably further left? Single payer health, free college tuition, $15 min. wage, open borders and all the rest of the well known liberal mantra are non-starters with huge opposition across the country.
So keep it up. Stay focused on President Trump. Keep talking to yourselves. The longer you do, the less likely you and the Democrats are to develop any policy plans that might help actually regain power.
1
Speaking truth to and about power is not whining. Period.
1
Amen! In short, Donald Trump is a corrupt, ignorant business man who has no idea how government works, cannot put together a team of people, is obsessed with creating his own realities (note the 3 to 5 million people who supposedly committed voter fraud in the popular election where even the dead voted), and doesn't shy away from continually lying. Is that a leader for the most powerful nation on earth? Woe to his facilitators! Indeed, he cannot lead himself as evidenced by his constant presence on Twitter. The world's first and hopefully last Twitter leader!
2
When you choose a non-politician to be your politician-in-chief, you're hoping for the best. But you can't be surprised when you get the worst. Which we got.
I am shattered every time I think of the history and traditions of this country -- indeed the best hope for our planet -- and the blood and treasure sacrificed by generations of Americans, to and through The Greatest Generation and Korea and Vietnam and Iraq and Afghanistan. And all of it casually discarded on November 8th for a con man who promised we could turn back the clock to a time that never was and a country that only a white supremacist could love.
I am still working my way through the grieving process. I know that the tarnish of Trump can never be scrubbed away, but I am going to work my way forward with the hope that the now-historic 75 years of American leadership has left a world that has learned to honor peace and progress.
I am shattered every time I think of the history and traditions of this country -- indeed the best hope for our planet -- and the blood and treasure sacrificed by generations of Americans, to and through The Greatest Generation and Korea and Vietnam and Iraq and Afghanistan. And all of it casually discarded on November 8th for a con man who promised we could turn back the clock to a time that never was and a country that only a white supremacist could love.
I am still working my way through the grieving process. I know that the tarnish of Trump can never be scrubbed away, but I am going to work my way forward with the hope that the now-historic 75 years of American leadership has left a world that has learned to honor peace and progress.
4
Unfortunately, Trump represents his own constituency very well. We are going to have to live with these clueless fascists for decades to come.
5
Charles, I wholeheartedly agree with your assessment of Trump, but I'm afraid that articles like this do not make any difference. Most of us who agree with you already know what you're saying. You are preaching to the choir. Are you trying to reach other audiences? Well, unfortunately for most of his supporters these words would fall on "deaf ears" on the heads of denial. We need other messaging to address those supporters. It may even require going back to Civics and Morality 101 and try to make them understand that this is not OK, and why. As diplomatically as possible (because they're as volatile as gasoline near a flame).
2
Mr. Blow calls it as it is, but misses the point regarding motivation (or lace thereof) of the House. So a petulant, insecure and neurotic septuagenarian, with zero political experience, find himself president of the United States as his FIRST job where he has to answer to people besides his late father. It's utterly surreal. And now, people calling for the House/Senate to act in the country's best interest, based on the politicians' love of country, is a quaint and laughable act.
trump's base are the same folks who put the GOP in their cushy jobs. No way will they put our country before their long vacation days, job status, or stellar health care (at taxpayer expense). Thus it is up to us to excise this cancer from the peoples' White House.
trump's base are the same folks who put the GOP in their cushy jobs. No way will they put our country before their long vacation days, job status, or stellar health care (at taxpayer expense). Thus it is up to us to excise this cancer from the peoples' White House.
5
You could have ended this fine article with the first sentence. We have no leader. We have an anti-intellectual, incurious racist sitting in the Oval Office.
That's it. Nothing more to say, for now. Until his uncontrollable rage and thin skin get us into something catastrophic.
Which to your last sentence, is frightening. No, beyond frightening. It would make a good Twilight Zone episode. But that show was fantasy.
This is real. Live and in color. Film at 11.
That's it. Nothing more to say, for now. Until his uncontrollable rage and thin skin get us into something catastrophic.
Which to your last sentence, is frightening. No, beyond frightening. It would make a good Twilight Zone episode. But that show was fantasy.
This is real. Live and in color. Film at 11.
4
Thank you for your eloquent words. You have voiced my opinion and feelings exactly. In the first few (and only) minutes of watching the first (and only) episode of The Apprentice, I knew then what a person of very low character he is and that's putting it politely! I am somewhat appalled that there are people who don't see through his scams, bluster and ignorance. Trump is only about one thing: Trump. Total arrogance.
5
Fascinating that an occasional reader points out that unemployment is down, GDP is up better trade policies on the horizon etc etc. THIS is our number one problem. The inability, for whatever reason, for people to think critically. This is not a right/left divide, though we live in a world where intellectualism is both maligned and suspicious- perpetuated by the alt right. This is a social phenomena, like obesity, but of the mind. How was he elected in the first place? Inability for many to think critically. This is the core problem. Combine this with corporations that have more rights than some humans and voila
5
Well done, Sir. Thank you.
8
Keep it up, Charles. Your posts are music to my ears!
8
As noted by a Guardian UK editorial early this month: "Trump is running a reality TV presidency, one whose chief objectives are ratings and drama."
The only thing POTUS cares about more than the size of his crowds and body parts is his total net worth and the extent of his media coverage.
Heaven help us if there's a natural or manmade catastrophe.
The only thing POTUS cares about more than the size of his crowds and body parts is his total net worth and the extent of his media coverage.
Heaven help us if there's a natural or manmade catastrophe.
4
And since our government is suppose to check an off balance, Trump is not the only one guilty here. Congress is complicit in Trumps bigotry if they let him continue. The 25th Amendment should be invoked.
6
Mr. Blow - I wish I could ask you why you believe Mr. Trump garnered 63 million votes? Is it because a good portion of our country is racist? Is that the going narrative? If it is the "going narrative" what do your columns do to change things??
Men like Dr. MLK, Nelson Mandela and Gandhi had no hatred for their enemies, did not speak or write a harshly about them but offered the most effective opposition. Where is this sentiment today in the resistance today? It's gone ! How sad.
Men like Dr. MLK, Nelson Mandela and Gandhi had no hatred for their enemies, did not speak or write a harshly about them but offered the most effective opposition. Where is this sentiment today in the resistance today? It's gone ! How sad.
1
With respect you are kidding. We are fighting for our country. Everything we've struggled to create in America is threatened by this regime and yes, by the people who voted for an open and unabashed bigot. It was on full display throughout the campaign. Even if you knew nothing of DJT before the campaign you got it right in the fact at his rallies. Everybody saw it. Everybody heard it.
And yet they voted for it.
And they haven't abandoned their hero even though he stands up for nazis.
Exactly what are we supposed to think?
And yet they voted for it.
And they haven't abandoned their hero even though he stands up for nazis.
Exactly what are we supposed to think?
2
Surely, you do know those "63 million votes" evidence the real cancer in America where, as well, many of those voters likely did "speak or write (or at least thought) harshly" of the incumbent's predecessor. History tells us there has been no "effective opposition" against tyrannical hatreds short of war.
I have issues with anyone who voted for trump, based on his comportment and views. That said, I do not feel that all 63 MM are racist. His approval ratings are darn low right now, and that is because at least some of his voters did not realize who/what they were really voting for. In other words, some are surprised. Some are grossly disappointed. He is no populist, that's for sure. He is exactly as Blow describes him.
1
All this was known. Trump never hid who or what he is - and yet millions of people voted for him and millions still support him. The shame is on them!
5
After 200 plus years of gestation, America birthed Obama. It WAS glorious, our Country as it could, and should, BE. Trump is the nasty afterbirth.
9
Thank you for repeating my very thoughts and opinions Charles. In all, Donald is a rich moron who does us damage every day, every time he opens his mouth or sends out another juvenile tweet. But he got elected. The voters that joyously put him in office still twirl giddily around when his name is mentioned, revering him as a second coming. There's a lot of low class chest pounding out here. I hear it every time I'm in a diner. Or in line in a big box store. (Avoid these places.) Blah, blah, blah. What are we going to do with him??? Continue to comfortably whine and criticize? Wait for him to hang himself? I've known Trump for 25 years, here in South Jersey. He will never admit error. He will never resign. He has to be IMPEACHED ----and fired.
3
When you walk with skinheads and neo Nazis, you are not a fine person. When you have hate in your heart and ignorance and stupidity in your mind, you are a fake president.
6
Okay, I'm there with you...I was there last summer, for that matter. Yet media and e-mails elected him...so now what? Yes he is the most bizarrely disgusting human to ever occupy the "People's House" and the GOP and their handlers are still wetting themselves over how much of their agenda will get done. Till they too are brought into the light nothing will change. ALEC is Trump...this needs daylighting! Paul Ryan is hiding, find him, hound him, bring him up by the short hairs.
2
I'm sickened by the man usurping the presidency. I'm tired of the pervasive feelings of rage, embarrassment, fear, loathing and anxiety that have prevailed since this so-called presidency began. Every day, I invoke Dorothy Parker: "What fresh hell is this?" when I look at the Times, or the local newspaper, or the television. It's all so exhausting and frightening.
5
Freedom of speech that promotes hate, open-carry guns in most states, free to wave Nazi emblem flags, KKK groups all this and more needs to be stopped and people arrested for any hateful display. Empty prisons of minor drug offenders and make room for this scum. My father was a major player in the Resistance during WW2 in Holland, so I grew up with what the Nazies were. America has to take a immediate strong stand against this. I am a liberal but that doesn't mean anything goes. And this so called "leader" we have must go also.
1
I'm nervous about his Afghan war strategy announcement tonight. If (when) he gets people killed, things are going to get real. I spent 2008-9 in Kabul and I have friends who are still there. This idiot is scary!
5
A Nazi in the White House. Is the Russophile narrative done? Be careful what you wish for, Charles.
Succinctly and perfectly stated Charles.
I'm not sure how we'll survive this abomination of a President so bent on personal gain and ego stroking.
Perhaps we should hire a team of hookers, sycophants, white nationalists, and nazis who could stroke him physically and emotionally and keep his finger away from the nuclear codes.
The only positive news is that it appears America can actually function without a President. Trump has shown us that.
Sad!
I'm not sure how we'll survive this abomination of a President so bent on personal gain and ego stroking.
Perhaps we should hire a team of hookers, sycophants, white nationalists, and nazis who could stroke him physically and emotionally and keep his finger away from the nuclear codes.
The only positive news is that it appears America can actually function without a President. Trump has shown us that.
Sad!
We are coming to realize - "with great shock and horror", Charles Blow - that our democracy is damned under the presidency of Donald Trump. Trump showed his true colours as a white supremacist apologist during his outrageous rant at Trump Tower last week . Steve Mnuchin, his loyal supporter (and Elaine Chao, wife of Mitch McConnell and Sec'y of Transportation) flanked Trump like chopped liver or potted plants. Trump cannot defend the indefensible - American white supremacists. We condemn president Trump for his raging venom against those Americans who decry racism, bigotry and Trump's "fine people" - the neo-Nazis who marched at Charlottesville, VA. Who wants a champion liar, a tv huckster, a condemned man who is not able to function - whose character is an appalling failure - as America's president? Not us.
2
~”What some have always known about Trump, others are slowly coming to realize, and with great shock and horror. “~
While I wholeheartedly agree with the content of this fine column, I have come to realize that there is an alternate Universe (or perhaps multiple Universes) of people who either don’t care or have given up. These folks are not the Nazi’s, but are not from the era to understand (or care) that we fought a War to eliminate Nazi’s. They look beyond the inner Nazi in trump.
These people have been conned (lied to). trump has played upon their fantasies and they voted on an illusion. In his book, The Art of The Deal, is the following:
*** “I play to people's fantasies. People may not always think big themselves, but they can still get very excited by those who do. … People want to believe that something is the biggest and the greatest and the most spectacular. I call it truthful hyperbole. It's an innocent form of exaggeration, and a very effective form of promotion." ***
As you say, at some point these folks will come to the realization that there are no new “great” jobs; there is no better economic future; there is no “beautiful” health care coverage that will cost less. But trump does not care. It’s all about the Ratings.
While I wholeheartedly agree with the content of this fine column, I have come to realize that there is an alternate Universe (or perhaps multiple Universes) of people who either don’t care or have given up. These folks are not the Nazi’s, but are not from the era to understand (or care) that we fought a War to eliminate Nazi’s. They look beyond the inner Nazi in trump.
These people have been conned (lied to). trump has played upon their fantasies and they voted on an illusion. In his book, The Art of The Deal, is the following:
*** “I play to people's fantasies. People may not always think big themselves, but they can still get very excited by those who do. … People want to believe that something is the biggest and the greatest and the most spectacular. I call it truthful hyperbole. It's an innocent form of exaggeration, and a very effective form of promotion." ***
As you say, at some point these folks will come to the realization that there are no new “great” jobs; there is no better economic future; there is no “beautiful” health care coverage that will cost less. But trump does not care. It’s all about the Ratings.
5
"His interests center on the self; country be damned."
The question is does the country care?
So far, in special elections, Republicans have prevailed by and large, they of the party whose elected leaders don't seem to make it a priority to make the self-centered-"county be damned" president accountable. Trump has insulted Speaker Ryan and Majority Leader Sen. McConnell at various times. Yet, they're with Trump, mostly.
Focusing on Trump and his many shortcomings have not helped the Democrats in special elections and they would do well to focus on bread and butter issues.
The country is with Trump as to whether the statues of Confederate figures should be removed or not. So Democrats would be foolish to make that an issue.
The Daily Mail said, "Days after a violent rally by right-wing groups to protest removal of a statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee in Charlottesville, Virginia, the NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll found that 62 percent felt the statues should remain as historical symbols." http://dailym.ai/2w5JN4t
Until the majority of the country gets tired of Trump, our "national nightmare" will be four years long or even longer, perish the thought.
The question is does the country care?
So far, in special elections, Republicans have prevailed by and large, they of the party whose elected leaders don't seem to make it a priority to make the self-centered-"county be damned" president accountable. Trump has insulted Speaker Ryan and Majority Leader Sen. McConnell at various times. Yet, they're with Trump, mostly.
Focusing on Trump and his many shortcomings have not helped the Democrats in special elections and they would do well to focus on bread and butter issues.
The country is with Trump as to whether the statues of Confederate figures should be removed or not. So Democrats would be foolish to make that an issue.
The Daily Mail said, "Days after a violent rally by right-wing groups to protest removal of a statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee in Charlottesville, Virginia, the NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll found that 62 percent felt the statues should remain as historical symbols." http://dailym.ai/2w5JN4t
Until the majority of the country gets tired of Trump, our "national nightmare" will be four years long or even longer, perish the thought.
Bannon has been quoted in the last 24 hours as having said, delightedly, that "Hell, Trump is Archie Bunker" and then giving him an air slap on the back and an approving laugh. I know Trump looks man size but he might as well be a 3D printed shell containing a small, mean, left-out, reviled, tantrum prone, selfish narcissistic child carrying on about every slight or every disappointment that comes his way. He had enough money to intimidate his employees all these years and his wealthy father bailed him out of his atrocious grandiosity when he bankrupted in Atlantic City and left a lot of good people unpaid and holding the bag for his idiotic bad business in anybody's book. Everyone else is supposed to come a distant second to his flamingly stupendously horrendous First. Shine in any way that takes away his light and you're done, not that most of those surrounding him should be cast into permanent darkness. It will be interesting to see what this disgusting quivering cretin does as he becomes more and more isolated and less and less able to defend by even his most adept defenders. The one good thing he's done for us, with a back-hand to the good, is drag the entire population of Nazi, Supremacist, KKK, Alt R knuckle draggers out for all the rest of us to behold in all their ignorant, spoon fed hatred so we are able to see just who they are. It is very gratifying that many of them have lost their jobs and have had to leave their communities. Good. Look hard.
4
Trump is the leader of his own tribe and that's all that matters to him-for now. Every cock-a-manie idea he puts for is for one thing only- to keep his base 'locked and loaded'. That's his very own praetorian guard. With it he keeps those in the GOP Congress at an arms length as these craven, bought and sold politicians will not muster any true resistance unless and until they see their own poll numbers tank and jeopardize their re-election. Again, another sign that tribalism is alive and well and festering -on both sides of the aisle I might add.
During a time in our evolution as people and a planet, when we should be evolving in the direction of true brotherhood/sisterhood (no, the concept is not utopian, but necessary, vital, and universally inspiring), we instead give voice to the wrong voices-those of division, manipulation, and self-aggrandizement.
During a time in our evolution as people and a planet, when we should be evolving in the direction of true brotherhood/sisterhood (no, the concept is not utopian, but necessary, vital, and universally inspiring), we instead give voice to the wrong voices-those of division, manipulation, and self-aggrandizement.
1
I am very frightened by this thing we call a president because I believe he is nuts pure and simple. I consider Rex Tillertson to be the worst secretary of state, a former oil man who knows nothing of diplomacy and I see the military brass running our country and finding ways to get us into more war. We are adrift as I have never witnessed. It is worse than the 1960's and 1970's demonstrations and upheaval. There are no moral voices to speak the truth or willing to be a leader in this time. Amerika is ripe for the picking. Damn the polls. Let us vote.
4
The only leaders in Washington DC are the ones with memorials and monuments
2
Trump by means of extensive attention upon the media and entertainment has learned to attract audiences, play to audiences, and to win audiences. It has enabled him to win elected office, the highest in the country. That is the first test of a President and the most decisive. As for serving in the office, fulfilling all the responsibilities, and exercising the fine art and rigorous science of leadership, Trump is a chump and he does not even try to learn what he hasn't to be a good President.
The problem with Trump is not Trump, it's all the thoughtless voters and political leaders who elected him and continue to cater to his nonsense behaviors. Trump by himself is just a spoiled rich kid who likes attention. People giving him authority over others are the real problem.
The problem with Trump is not Trump, it's all the thoughtless voters and political leaders who elected him and continue to cater to his nonsense behaviors. Trump by himself is just a spoiled rich kid who likes attention. People giving him authority over others are the real problem.
6
Another lecture from Charles on how not to hate, totally ensconced in it. His disdain for Trump to him I'm sure feels like righteousness. He can call his hatred whatever he wants.
1
Perhaps you read a different article to the one published. The article I read doesn't come across as ensconced in hate. Mr Blow clearly hates the fact that a completely unqualified con artist is president of the United Stateas And he clearly hates his total failure of leading the nation, and his blatant lies. When discussing trump it is not hard to rail against such an incompetent and spiteful figure, a figure who clearly has more than enough hate to shrivel his tiny hands. But don't confuse Mr Blow's passion for blind hatred, that is what the so-called alt right, or as I prefer to call them, cry baby nazis are fuelled by.
2
Why attack the columnist? Can you defend Trump's bigotry and racism? Trump actually lied even at the press conference where he claimed that he liked to get all the facts before he spoke out. He said at that press conference that the counter-protesters had no permits when in fact they had two.
Trump just defended neo-Nazis, the KKK, neo-Confederates and other white supremacists while Trump attacked the counter-protesters, one of whom was killed and a number of whom were hospitalized due to assaults by white supremacists.
It is not just Charles Blow who does not feel that Trump has diminished the role of the president: it is virtually all polls that show the majority of Americans feel like this.
And this week, the covers of Time, Der Spiegel, the New Yorker, and The Economist all portrayed Trump with the white hood or with the Nazi salute. This is now the picture of Trump's presidency.
The odd ones out are Trump supporters, many of whom must also be racists and bigots to still support him after this episode.
Trump just defended neo-Nazis, the KKK, neo-Confederates and other white supremacists while Trump attacked the counter-protesters, one of whom was killed and a number of whom were hospitalized due to assaults by white supremacists.
It is not just Charles Blow who does not feel that Trump has diminished the role of the president: it is virtually all polls that show the majority of Americans feel like this.
And this week, the covers of Time, Der Spiegel, the New Yorker, and The Economist all portrayed Trump with the white hood or with the Nazi salute. This is now the picture of Trump's presidency.
The odd ones out are Trump supporters, many of whom must also be racists and bigots to still support him after this episode.
2
The Nixon tapes showed that Trump is not the first president to have at his center a huge moral cavity. Nixon's paranoia and Trump's narcissism produce similar thought processes. The difference was that Nixon understood that he had to hide his core and knew how to do it well enough to get elected and reelected. Those who sensed his core and shared his enemies voted for him, but so did those who ignored and discounted what they dimly sensed because they liked his policies and the facade he erected to mask his core.
4
Never let it be forgotten that it is the evangelicals who are Trump's most ardent supporters. Hitler was not an atheist. Claiming to be a Christian and living according to Jesus' message are often diametrically opposed. Some people are devought haters.
19
This was true in slavery times also when too many churches supported slavery. These so-called Christian leaders have zero Christianity in them when they support white supremacy as they have this week.
5
It is useful to vent our extreme frustration at seeing the White House occupied by an ignorant, hateful narcissist like Trump, who was placed there by a minority of ignorant and uninformed voters - it relieves stress. But the key questions remain: How do we recover from the Trump disaster? What can we do as concerned citizens going forward? How do we take control of our nation back from the fascist forces that control the government?
10
Trump still believes that the Central Park Five (black teenagers coerced into false confessions after someone attacked a Central Park jogger years ago) are still guilty, and should be put to death even after they were exonerated. The real perpetrator was caught using DNA evidence. Their lives are now ruined. Trump's message to black people, what have you got to lose by voting for him? I would say, your lives.
15
Mr. Trump who is not a good man knows a very fine Nazi when he sees one.
Since 2001, 62 of 85 terrorist acts on American soil were committed by neo-Nazis and others in the alt-right. Since 2001, alt-right terrorists killed almost as many Americans as did Islamic radicals. A neo-Nazi terrorist killed one and injured many in Charlottesville last week.
The fact is, Trump loves anybody who loves him including the neo-Nazis. Anybody who loves Trump is a very fine human being indeed.
Since 2001, 62 of 85 terrorist acts on American soil were committed by neo-Nazis and others in the alt-right. Since 2001, alt-right terrorists killed almost as many Americans as did Islamic radicals. A neo-Nazi terrorist killed one and injured many in Charlottesville last week.
The fact is, Trump loves anybody who loves him including the neo-Nazis. Anybody who loves Trump is a very fine human being indeed.
12
Treasury Secretary Mnuchin standing faithfully and loyally alongside his leader. Silent as his emperor tells America and the world that there are "many fine people" among Neo-Nazis and white supremacists. So fine that from 1939 to 1945, they wouldn't have blinked while ordering Mnuchin along with millions of other Jews at gunpoint onto rail cars with one way tickets to the Third Reich's death camps. Mr. Mnuchin's silence in the face of open bigotry and anti-Semitism is deafening.
17
Trump has a lot in common with Fields.One wrote essays extolling Hitler and his might ,the other apparently kept a book of Hitler's speeches by his bedside (according to his first wife) because he admired their power.Both Trump and Fields are profoundly ignorant and devoid of any metacognitive skills.Both are attention seeking and believe the only real Americans are white Christians.
7
"Does the media treat him fairly? " He equates "fairly" with "favorably". Any media that doesn't praise him is not treating him fairly. He is a total embarrassment to our country, to our people.
11
I hope each day more people will realize what kind of man President Trump is. But I fear mostly about the ones who still support him after all we know about him so far.
13
In an interview on NPR today, one of the commentators said that we cannot rely on the organs of government and the judiciary to get us out of the death spiral we are in. And that we must organize ourselves, and protest, march, and resist- for the sake of the country and the future. It's our only chance.
This is true.
This is true.
23
Why don't you try to construct a viable political program that wouldn't be laughed out of town and could get some votes? You know, Democracy.
2
Dear Winston, maybe you should do a bit of research. Orwell wrote 1984 as a critique of democracy. US intelligence agencies, among others, funded a campaign to have it's wrath directed at the Soviet Union.
I believe this, too. But have a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach almost daily that the doors have been flung open now to equating (and greatly diminishing) all our organizing and protests as just "one side" , even some commenters here call articles like this self-righteous" contempt, no different than the hate and anger that fuels facisism. And, the willful, even proud, ignorance of so many to rationalize their stubborn support of a con man like Trump, when all evidence shows he cares nothing for justice, freedom, and our democratic values, is a form of nihilism I could never have imagined in our country, in the 21st century. It does feel like a death spiral, but why the death wish? Neither Trump or is base seem to understand by killing us, killing our democracy, they are commiting suicide.
1
At least for several hours today, Trump is being totally eclipsed.
19
Yeah, I bet he tries to take credit for it too.
3
And he'll undoubtedly take full credit for it!
2
LOL :))
2
35 years ago, my wife and I traveling with our one-year-old daughter, moved from 35 years ago, my wife and I left Pasadena, California traveling South 100 miles to attend to my wife's mother; who was in the first tri-mester of Alzheimer's Disease; no one who hasn't lived 24/7 with a loved-one suffering dementia can adequately imagine the amount of emotional strength it takes to withstand the inevitable progress of this disease; but after hearing Lawrence O'Donnell slowly and carefully read a transcript of the President's 'impromptu' answers to random questions thrown at him by reporters, I turned to my wife and said,"Oh my God, Sarah; he's (Trump) suffering from the beginning of dementia; something we had observed in older members of both our families; and something that appeared clearly to be plaguing our Commander-in-Chief. We are in denial.
Someone must be brave enough to make the case for Congress to prepare the 25th Amendment AND to bravely make-the-case, as we believe we are watching an individual who is not only addicted to 'Me-ism'; but apparently, according to the 'facts' that follow by his actions since the Inauguration, clearly show that
President Trump has very little empathy for the 'Working-Class'
Trump still believes he is the 'Boss' of the entire Country AND cannot be challenged.
Someone must be brave enough to make the case for Congress to prepare the 25th Amendment AND to bravely make-the-case, as we believe we are watching an individual who is not only addicted to 'Me-ism'; but apparently, according to the 'facts' that follow by his actions since the Inauguration, clearly show that
President Trump has very little empathy for the 'Working-Class'
Trump still believes he is the 'Boss' of the entire Country AND cannot be challenged.
17
Mike of Encinitas... While I can understand your identification and sensitivity to the possibility of Alzheimer's in "President" Trump, I have long
proposed a different diagnosis; though I know this is not an "argument"
issue. Our lovely daughter was diagnosed, at 50, with Early Onset
Alzheimer's 6years ago. We moved to Be 3minutes from her and her
husband...and have been able to care for her when he is on the Road.
I contend that Trump has been a very successful Sociopathic Personality
Disorder (at least). My life (at 80, I am a long retired Licensed Marriage
and Family Therapist), counseling and working with the Psychiatric community for at least 50 years, leads me more in that direction of the
"Mental state". With you though, Mike, I am deeply, even desperately
concerned that this powerful and wealthy man has the Power of his Position, as well as the support and enablement of others...I think of
Bannon.....who are also driven by their Own designs to also seize and use Power. Parenthetically, I share your deep concern and frustration over
Our Public loss of Sanity in our "Station" in our Government. We Need
Leadership with Conscience as well as civil consistency. Trump does not
Know enough to Care or care enough to Know.
proposed a different diagnosis; though I know this is not an "argument"
issue. Our lovely daughter was diagnosed, at 50, with Early Onset
Alzheimer's 6years ago. We moved to Be 3minutes from her and her
husband...and have been able to care for her when he is on the Road.
I contend that Trump has been a very successful Sociopathic Personality
Disorder (at least). My life (at 80, I am a long retired Licensed Marriage
and Family Therapist), counseling and working with the Psychiatric community for at least 50 years, leads me more in that direction of the
"Mental state". With you though, Mike, I am deeply, even desperately
concerned that this powerful and wealthy man has the Power of his Position, as well as the support and enablement of others...I think of
Bannon.....who are also driven by their Own designs to also seize and use Power. Parenthetically, I share your deep concern and frustration over
Our Public loss of Sanity in our "Station" in our Government. We Need
Leadership with Conscience as well as civil consistency. Trump does not
Know enough to Care or care enough to Know.
1
It was finally revealed that Reagan had Alzheimer's halfway through his second term. His handlers concealed the fact so that they could hold onto power, line their pockets and force their right wing agendas on the country.
Does this tune sound familiar?
Does this tune sound familiar?
1
Very frightening!
8
Donald Trump did not hide his true nature before the election-- he eagerly displayed it. No amount of economic or cultural anxiety can justify stepping into a voting booth Nov 2016 and intentionally vandalizing your own country.
20
Hillary said deplorables, she meant only that slice of republicans that are so filled with animus toward others that they are virtually unreachable. This is Trumps core as we all know. Unfortunately the relationship between them and Trump is symbiotic. He goes to them when he needs reinforcement, his mini Nuremburgs. How can we invade their consciousness sufficiently to pull marginals away? To degrade this unhealthy relationship. The real fake news industry, through web browser connnection and marketing has created a self reinforcing bubble. I am disheartened by this reality, and wonder if Trump is just a one up phenomenon, or simply another step down that path. My only hope is the demographic changes in the works that will permanently alter the political dynamics in play.
8
Those accustomed to parliamentary forms of representative democracy are absolutely horrified that American system does not allow for snap elections whenever the governing majority is hopelessly dysfunctional.
If such elections are not possible, to what extent is the American system democratic?
As I recall, when American constitutional experts were called in to advise politicians in emerging democracies after World War II, the majority did not advise that nations establishing or re-establishing constitutional democracies should follow the U.S. two-party model. Advice that recovering nations establish parliamentary systems dominated discussion and was followed by all the emergent post-war democracies.
If my recollection is incorrect, please advise me of my error. I am by no means an historian.
If such elections are not possible, to what extent is the American system democratic?
As I recall, when American constitutional experts were called in to advise politicians in emerging democracies after World War II, the majority did not advise that nations establishing or re-establishing constitutional democracies should follow the U.S. two-party model. Advice that recovering nations establish parliamentary systems dominated discussion and was followed by all the emergent post-war democracies.
If my recollection is incorrect, please advise me of my error. I am by no means an historian.
15
We already know that most republican congresspersons are just like mine, hiding during this recess instead of talking to the people. They know better but are not willing to speak the truth to the Trumpsters. such as my neighbor who proudly flies a big Trump flag from a pole that should have an American flag flying. They refuse to educate the uninformed. These uninformed are still tuned to Faux so will remain so.
15
"Again, it was all about him, not us"
That's what the donald is all about.
Thanks Charles for your great comment on Trump.
That's what the donald is all about.
Thanks Charles for your great comment on Trump.
16
Mr. Blow is right. Mr. Trump has proven to be a uniquely divisive and incompetent president.
If he were to go, would the situation be less divisive under the troika of Pence, McConnell and Ryan?
Other than Speaker Ryan and Senate Majority Leader McConnell, what recent legislative leaders have set such an anti-democratic and pro-plutocratic agenda? These congressional leaders promote environmental and financial deregulation, reduced taxes for the wealthy, promote union busting and advocate “reform” or privatization of the social safety net. This agenda assures that mergers and acquisitions will continue to result in too-big-too-fail financial institutions and in an increased number of quasi-monopolistic business enterprises; that competition will continue to decrease; that entrenched wealth will continue to dominate the political and legal systems; that disparities between the wealth and incomes of the top 1% and the lower 99% will continue to increase; and that many members of the lower-middle and working classes will continue to feel in their bones that the system is rigged against them.
McConnell and Ryan not only seek to implement this program, they do so by resorting to procedurally unprecedented and secretive means. This approach is clearly exemplified in McConnell’s unconstitutional—or at least anti-constitutional—Scalia-replacement strategy and in his current ram-it-through-quickly attempt to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.
Dire times ahead!
If he were to go, would the situation be less divisive under the troika of Pence, McConnell and Ryan?
Other than Speaker Ryan and Senate Majority Leader McConnell, what recent legislative leaders have set such an anti-democratic and pro-plutocratic agenda? These congressional leaders promote environmental and financial deregulation, reduced taxes for the wealthy, promote union busting and advocate “reform” or privatization of the social safety net. This agenda assures that mergers and acquisitions will continue to result in too-big-too-fail financial institutions and in an increased number of quasi-monopolistic business enterprises; that competition will continue to decrease; that entrenched wealth will continue to dominate the political and legal systems; that disparities between the wealth and incomes of the top 1% and the lower 99% will continue to increase; and that many members of the lower-middle and working classes will continue to feel in their bones that the system is rigged against them.
McConnell and Ryan not only seek to implement this program, they do so by resorting to procedurally unprecedented and secretive means. This approach is clearly exemplified in McConnell’s unconstitutional—or at least anti-constitutional—Scalia-replacement strategy and in his current ram-it-through-quickly attempt to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.
Dire times ahead!
21
These folks comprise the "God's Will" Party. If they can't find some other scapegoat for their blunders, they blame them on God's wrath about abortions.
1
As much as I despise Pence's ideology, his desire to turn the country into a fundamentalist Christian theocracy, (yes, he has much in common with extremist, fundamentalist Muslim terrorists preaching jihad against all "infidels"), frankly, I think Trump is much, much more dangerous: there is no there with Trump to
argue with, to hold accountable. Pence is an evangelist, Trump is a super, pathological narcissist and has no core values or spiritual underpinnings to check his madness. Pence is not insane. He's just wrong. Trump
has a messianic complex, he really believes he can and will "fix" everything. Pence does still bow down to his God as greater than himself. Trump only believes in his own greatness. If the choice comes down to Pence vs Trump, give me Pence. This liberal, progressive woman can handle that. Our Democracy can handle that.
argue with, to hold accountable. Pence is an evangelist, Trump is a super, pathological narcissist and has no core values or spiritual underpinnings to check his madness. Pence is not insane. He's just wrong. Trump
has a messianic complex, he really believes he can and will "fix" everything. Pence does still bow down to his God as greater than himself. Trump only believes in his own greatness. If the choice comes down to Pence vs Trump, give me Pence. This liberal, progressive woman can handle that. Our Democracy can handle that.
Watching the awesome total eclipse of the sun today, interviews with so many inspiring upstanding scientists and NASA personnel around the world, there is a perspective of the breathtaking intelligence, wisdom, and infinity of the universe, even on the heels of a Sunday night MoveOn telephone conference instruction for countering white supremacy throughout the U.S. and world.
This too shall pass.
This too shall pass.
3
Maybe people will get over God when they realize it can't be less than 13.5 billion light years distant.
1
Sad to say, but some people improve the situation by not being present. Scalia improved the Supreme Court by his absence.
8
Here on the Dark Side of the moon it has been extremely distressing watching so many of those who, in the age of trump, claim to cast light on our perspectives do so in the rote servility of volunteer slaves. So, Big Ups to Mr. Blow for increasing the candle power of his subversive beacon in 1-to-1 correlation with the mounting dimness!
As we once did to a voice descending from atop a soapbox positioned on the side of Harlem's long-gone Theresa Hotel we encourage Mr. Blow to be relentless in making it plain, Brother!
As we once did to a voice descending from atop a soapbox positioned on the side of Harlem's long-gone Theresa Hotel we encourage Mr. Blow to be relentless in making it plain, Brother!
10
I'm sure that when Mueller issues his report, it will be airtight. I hope we can wait that long.
13
The "there were good people there" rant, is a window into how Trump has rationalized his affairs his entire life. We know theres a fair amount of evidence that he was bailed out a few times using Russian mob money. But, "Hey, they were good guys, I likedthem, they were nice, tremendous guys."
Sure, there are good dads and sons in any organized crime syndicate, but we dont excuse their behaviors over it.
Trumps definition of good has always been perverted from the standards of normalcy. Look at those around him. He says they are all good people, and in some respect they probably are...to those who are close, but as advisors and strategists, the remaining few from the campaign and some appointments (Mnuchin, etc) are not good people who wish to do good for the American people. Profiteers and shameless careerists, the lot of them. And some of them like Gorka are racists. But he's a good guy, according to the Don of Good Guys.
I put no faith in DTs definition of the term good, anymore then I would his opinion of a properly cooked steak.
Sure, there are good dads and sons in any organized crime syndicate, but we dont excuse their behaviors over it.
Trumps definition of good has always been perverted from the standards of normalcy. Look at those around him. He says they are all good people, and in some respect they probably are...to those who are close, but as advisors and strategists, the remaining few from the campaign and some appointments (Mnuchin, etc) are not good people who wish to do good for the American people. Profiteers and shameless careerists, the lot of them. And some of them like Gorka are racists. But he's a good guy, according to the Don of Good Guys.
I put no faith in DTs definition of the term good, anymore then I would his opinion of a properly cooked steak.
11
Once again, you are speaking truth, Charles. Your words are the most direct, accusing, and correct. Thank-you. I've warned against American fascism going mainstream for decades, because beginning in the nineties, it started to gain steam. The "movement" Trump rose to power on is still cleverly recruiting naifs by appealing to their sense of grievance and calling themselves by a new name, under which Nazis hope others will gather and by promoting a dark vision of an America in decline. The national response against fascism is heartening.
The resistance, if it remains peaceful and numerous, will prevail.
The resistance, if it remains peaceful and numerous, will prevail.
11
Trump doesn't know what he doesn't know, the trait of the truly ignorant and dangerous mind. God Save the United States of America.
12
The claim to know what God thinks is the most presumptuous of all.
1
I'm frightened by so much! The racism , bigotry and general dislike of all of us Americans by the entire Trump Administration. McConnell, Ryan, Cruz, Sessions, Pruitt, Tilerson, etc.all terrify me! We are doomed! I have no hope and that is why I have been on a shopping spree. At least I can look good while going through this misery with all of these haters!
5
trump holds everyone in disdain, except maybe some of his family members.
His supporters earn an extra measure of disdain because, : 1) they have been such an easy touch , and, 2) Trump’s psychological (or “psychodynamic”) constellation.
Trump's sensitivity to criticism, lack of empathy, and hostility towards the vulnerable flow from his sense of his own self as weak, vulnerable, dirty and bad. His meanness and aggression towards others allows him to experience relief by displacing the negative feelings and impulses away from himself.. And thus we have seen moments that defy belief, such as when in full view of the world he made fun of a reporter who displayed the signs of a movement disorder.
Displacement is an unconscious defense mechanism utilized to manage psychological conflicts
However, there is the “return of the repressed”. Displacing the aggression might provide temporary relief for an individual, but inevitably we find the expression of the original impulse. Trump exhibits himself as a loathsome creature and in time, when the various distractions and camouflage falls away “(slough off”) people will see him for what he is and turn on him. And thus they will exact revenge on Trump for their own failure: falling for his deceit.
His supporters earn an extra measure of disdain because, : 1) they have been such an easy touch , and, 2) Trump’s psychological (or “psychodynamic”) constellation.
Trump's sensitivity to criticism, lack of empathy, and hostility towards the vulnerable flow from his sense of his own self as weak, vulnerable, dirty and bad. His meanness and aggression towards others allows him to experience relief by displacing the negative feelings and impulses away from himself.. And thus we have seen moments that defy belief, such as when in full view of the world he made fun of a reporter who displayed the signs of a movement disorder.
Displacement is an unconscious defense mechanism utilized to manage psychological conflicts
However, there is the “return of the repressed”. Displacing the aggression might provide temporary relief for an individual, but inevitably we find the expression of the original impulse. Trump exhibits himself as a loathsome creature and in time, when the various distractions and camouflage falls away “(slough off”) people will see him for what he is and turn on him. And thus they will exact revenge on Trump for their own failure: falling for his deceit.
8
You don't have to be charming a sweet and say all manner of cute things to be an effective leader. Trump knows that, and the country will realize that soon enough. We've had Presidents like Trump before but they were never featured 24/7 on electronic media.
We ALSO know that the most failed, ineffectual president in American history said ALL the politically correct things, smiled, sang well, dressed well, and told jokes when he wasn't throwing brick shots at a basketball hoop.
That man managed to spend thirty trillion dollars of taxpayers' money and fixed absolutely nothing. So, between Donald Trump and Barack Obama, we are a thousand times better off with this guy the media decided to hate than the polite do-nothing who got all the money he ever wanted from Congress but had no ideas about jobs.
We ALSO know that the most failed, ineffectual president in American history said ALL the politically correct things, smiled, sang well, dressed well, and told jokes when he wasn't throwing brick shots at a basketball hoop.
That man managed to spend thirty trillion dollars of taxpayers' money and fixed absolutely nothing. So, between Donald Trump and Barack Obama, we are a thousand times better off with this guy the media decided to hate than the polite do-nothing who got all the money he ever wanted from Congress but had no ideas about jobs.
3
They won't turn on him because they can't admit the were wrong. Many of these supporters have a dark side. They will never accept we are not a WHITE America. 44 drove them over the edge. Eight years of unending hate for the elected president who was African American.
3
Trump appeals to people with very high preferences for authoritarianism and very low standards for effective leadership. He's all talk. He is also weak and prone to giving into to dangerous people and to bullying people who he thinks have not the ability to fight back. The only way anyone can think that he is a better President than President Obama is to indulge in self deception.
3
There is a more important and truthful test that has been failed. Trump is as he has always been. His comments were not shocking to anyone who has been paying attention. The true test is the one his supporters, both passive and active, have been failing, and continue to do so. Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell consistently condemn the bile and bitter nonsense he spews, but will never have the courage to condemn the man himself. The same is true of 90% of Republican elected officials. And the biggest failure comes from his voters. It is still astonishing and disheartening that he received such a high percentage of the vote. His racism, sexism, dishonesty and incompetence were right there in the open long before last November. None of it mattered to over 40% of the voting public. And sad to say, I think it probably still doesn't matter to them. Those are the people who have truly failed this country.
3
From a recent NYT editorial: "Mr. Trump has always said . . . things that are self-contradictory or untrue or breathtakingly mindless. It didn’t matter so much back when he was just a rich guy who liked to share his opinions with the world the way some people talk at the TV."
President Trump has shredded whatever credibility he may have once had.
We have never elected a president like Trump. Many persons--his ghostwriter, numerous psychologists and psychiatrists who have observed his public behavior, liberal and conservative columnists, and persons such as myself who have had years of experience dealing with malignant narcissists within our own families--generally view Trump as extremely self-centered, erratic and flawed.
The man is not morally, intellectually or psychologically fit to serve as president. The thought of such an amoral and disturbed individual having any say in the launching of nuclear weapons should fill us all with dread. Unfortunately Trump possesses full presidential authority to do so.
We are now aboard the U.S./U.S.S. Caine, with President Trump/Lt. Commander Queeg at the helm.
Our congressional representatives, especially the few remaining "moderate" Republicans, should take a cue from the crew of the U.S.S. Caine.
What's the Twenty-Fifth Amendment for, if it is not employed to rectify this current horrific situation?
President Trump has shredded whatever credibility he may have once had.
We have never elected a president like Trump. Many persons--his ghostwriter, numerous psychologists and psychiatrists who have observed his public behavior, liberal and conservative columnists, and persons such as myself who have had years of experience dealing with malignant narcissists within our own families--generally view Trump as extremely self-centered, erratic and flawed.
The man is not morally, intellectually or psychologically fit to serve as president. The thought of such an amoral and disturbed individual having any say in the launching of nuclear weapons should fill us all with dread. Unfortunately Trump possesses full presidential authority to do so.
We are now aboard the U.S./U.S.S. Caine, with President Trump/Lt. Commander Queeg at the helm.
Our congressional representatives, especially the few remaining "moderate" Republicans, should take a cue from the crew of the U.S.S. Caine.
What's the Twenty-Fifth Amendment for, if it is not employed to rectify this current horrific situation?
7
The aim of the Nazi is simple: deny at least some degree of liberty to those not controlling the government. For them, the people are to serve the government, not the other way around, and the government belongs to the people with enough power to take it and hold it.
Nothing could be further from "the consent of the governed" that ALL of our founding fathers stood for. That end game is what the conversation should be about. Any discussions on "political correctness gone wild" or "forgetting our history" are red herrings.
Think, America. Please think.
Nothing could be further from "the consent of the governed" that ALL of our founding fathers stood for. That end game is what the conversation should be about. Any discussions on "political correctness gone wild" or "forgetting our history" are red herrings.
Think, America. Please think.
3
Yes, it is all about him. It is so pervasive that I think it is safe to use the word pathological. In other words, he is mentally ill. I sometimes have the weird feeling when I wake up that I am like a Rip Van Winkle; only instead of waking up twenty years in the future, I am waking up in a World that is actually run by a lot of Lunatics. Frankly, while growing as a human being, I have often looked at my own life and questioned my own actions and motivations. I haven't always liked what I saw. This process has led to a conscious desire to salvage my initial childhood innocence and be as good as I can be. I do not see this trend in that part of the world around me which is subject to my scrutiny. I know that on an individual level, maybe billions of people are actually trying to do what I am trying to do. I just wish that the person most almost all kids and most adults traditionally look up to would exhibit a modicum of humility. I would like to remind him that, as the actuaries promise, and in spite of his wealth and pomposity, he will no longer be with us sooner rather than later. But everything else will still be here. He will not have done a thing to make it better. All of his attention is focused on that which matters least - his own life.
Will he experience an epiphany or, like Saul, a bolt of lightning experience that changes his perspective and kicks him out of the prison of introspection? I hope so. There is still time.
Will he experience an epiphany or, like Saul, a bolt of lightning experience that changes his perspective and kicks him out of the prison of introspection? I hope so. There is still time.
1
President Trump's response to the Charlottesville horrors is but one more last straw in an unending series of should-have-been last straws.
President Trump openly disdains ethical, constitutional and traditional political norms. What other recent American president has boasted that there are no laws prohibiting presidential conflicts of interest? Has been so disdainful of the judiciary, of the intelligence community, of the free press, of diplomacy and of international agreements? Has congratulated and praised dictators? Has refused to release his tax returns? Has allegedly engaged in secret meetings with lobbyists for foreign interests? Has so frequently resorted to lies, misrepresentations and diversions? Has done more to inflame prejudices within the body politic?
It is increasingly evident that President Trump is morally, psychologically and intellectually unfit for office.
Mr. Trump's GOP legislative enablers must do an about face and remove him from office. Mr. Trump must not be allowed to blunder on in his kleptocratic and democracy-destroying ways.
President Trump openly disdains ethical, constitutional and traditional political norms. What other recent American president has boasted that there are no laws prohibiting presidential conflicts of interest? Has been so disdainful of the judiciary, of the intelligence community, of the free press, of diplomacy and of international agreements? Has congratulated and praised dictators? Has refused to release his tax returns? Has allegedly engaged in secret meetings with lobbyists for foreign interests? Has so frequently resorted to lies, misrepresentations and diversions? Has done more to inflame prejudices within the body politic?
It is increasingly evident that President Trump is morally, psychologically and intellectually unfit for office.
Mr. Trump's GOP legislative enablers must do an about face and remove him from office. Mr. Trump must not be allowed to blunder on in his kleptocratic and democracy-destroying ways.
6
A commentator put it beautifully that Trump "is not the disease, merely the symptom, the ugly boil on the surface that betrays the rot within. Good luck America, this is not anywhere near over"
Very well said exactly reflecting my view point.
For that matter mere scratching the surface will reveal ugly deep rooted cancer affecting the American society.
The genius of Karl Marx prophesized the problem when he observed that modern free-market economies, left to their own devices, produce gross inequalities. Laissez-faire capitalistic economic model resulting " in the United States, according to the Federal Reserve, the top ten per cent of the population owns seventy-two per cent of the wealth, and the bottom fifty per cent has two per cent. About ten per cent of the national income goes to the top two hundred and forty-seven thousand adults (one-thousandth of the adult population)".
It is this extremely glaring inequality throwing America in a tailspin possibly irrecoverable.
Very well said exactly reflecting my view point.
For that matter mere scratching the surface will reveal ugly deep rooted cancer affecting the American society.
The genius of Karl Marx prophesized the problem when he observed that modern free-market economies, left to their own devices, produce gross inequalities. Laissez-faire capitalistic economic model resulting " in the United States, according to the Federal Reserve, the top ten per cent of the population owns seventy-two per cent of the wealth, and the bottom fifty per cent has two per cent. About ten per cent of the national income goes to the top two hundred and forty-seven thousand adults (one-thousandth of the adult population)".
It is this extremely glaring inequality throwing America in a tailspin possibly irrecoverable.
6
Bring this problem a little closer to home and maybe learn something from women. What is a wife and mother to do when the "male role model," the "head of household," the primary breadwinner, the chief disciplinarian, the physical protector of women and children, the culture-appointed moral, ethical and spiritual leader, and the Mr. Fixit for everything mechanical in the home doesn't, or can't, do his "job" Millions of women, I might say all women, have to figure it out every day, on one or more of the "tests" their husbands fail in our patriarchal culture. Look backwards a few generations and you will see more clearly how we got to where women in our culture are today. Basically, wives and mothers had to step up and do what their husbands wouldn't or couldn't do. They had to get jobs and provide for themselves and their children. They had to protect their children or flee for their lives. They taught values and religion themselves. They had to learn to fix things. So when we have a president that is incompetent, irresponsible, self-centered, amoral and cruel, somebody else has to step up and operate the government, act morally and teach virtues, and protect those who are weaker among us. Those can be Republicans or Democrats, Independents, Libertarians, Greens, hopefully all, and last but not least, every citizen and voter with whose consent they govern. When a leader is unfit, ask a woman what to do about it.
6
It's now ckear that the Trump presidency has failed. His moral failure in equating anti-semitic, neo-Nazis, alt-right white supremacists with those opposing them sealed his fate. When both the business and military elite abandon you, the end has arrived. It's now up tp the Republican political elite to follow by finally rejecting their Southern racist Nixon era strategy and standing as "the Party of Lincoln" against this neo-Confederate rebellion that would overthrow our democratic Union for an "America [aka Whites] First" autocracy.
2
Trump demands to be carved into Mount Rushmore, we consent.
Now please leave.....
Now please leave.....
Trump's monument should be carved next to the unfinished Crazy Horse monument.........with Apologies to Crazy Horse.
Where have Ivanka, Jared, and their adorable children gone? Usually, Trump has them parade around to give an appearance of sanity and civilized behavior. Have the enablers finally become as frightened and appalled as us terrified citizens and frustrated military brass in the White House?
Where are Ivanka and Jared? It's time for them to come over to the right side. They could accomplish a great deal just by leaving Washington and returning to New York - after of course they resign as Trump's Senior Advisor and Special Advisor.
Where are Ivanka and Jared? It's time for them to come over to the right side. They could accomplish a great deal just by leaving Washington and returning to New York - after of course they resign as Trump's Senior Advisor and Special Advisor.
1
In Germany, you won't find statues honoring Hitler, Goebbels, Himmler, or Eichmann. In fact, in Germany, even carrying a Nazi swastika flag like the ones we see at "alt-right" neo-nazi rallies would get you arrested & put in jail.
When it comes to Nazis, there are three types of people in the world: Nazis, those who stand silent (enablers), and resistors. That's it.
BTW, statues are NOT histories, but are intended to HONOR people or events. I bet every person who is speaking out to defend the Confederate statuary was cheering as an American armored vehicle pulled down the giant statue of Saddam Hussein in 2003. The Confederates chose to go to war against their own Union, thus committing sedition & treason. Had they won, they would have, of course put up statues of Confederate heroes and just as quickly torn down statues of Union soldiers or commemorations to Union battle victories. The same thing happens all over the world. No sooner than Stalin died in 1953, down came his statues. Only in the United States do people 165 years later still respect & revere statues of people who fought & lost against our country. When Great Britain erects a statue to honor Rudolph Hess, I'll listen to the argument that we should protect our statues of Confederate enemies.
When it comes to Nazis, there are three types of people in the world: Nazis, those who stand silent (enablers), and resistors. That's it.
BTW, statues are NOT histories, but are intended to HONOR people or events. I bet every person who is speaking out to defend the Confederate statuary was cheering as an American armored vehicle pulled down the giant statue of Saddam Hussein in 2003. The Confederates chose to go to war against their own Union, thus committing sedition & treason. Had they won, they would have, of course put up statues of Confederate heroes and just as quickly torn down statues of Union soldiers or commemorations to Union battle victories. The same thing happens all over the world. No sooner than Stalin died in 1953, down came his statues. Only in the United States do people 165 years later still respect & revere statues of people who fought & lost against our country. When Great Britain erects a statue to honor Rudolph Hess, I'll listen to the argument that we should protect our statues of Confederate enemies.
6
What is terrorism? Merriam-Webster says,
The systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion.
and Terror? one that inspires fear
Our current president uses terror to conduct his everyday business affairs. Has for years. He has always used terrorism and it's not shocking for a simple man to continue to do the same things that have brought him so much personal success that he hasn't had to learn anything else. Because of his wealth and privilege, this pampered adult baby has never had to change from an infant terror to an adult terrorist. There is plenty of evidence he has conducted his personal and private affairs as a terrorist. (Using the above definition) He knows he is above the law above morality above God and religion, above everyone else. He is a stone cold terrorist with obvious conflicts of interest with our most powerful enemy Russia. Liar liar pants on fire, a child's rhyme is the new reality. Did I forget to mention he supports Nazi's and white supremacists both of which the United States of America fought wars against.
One more definitions, I find it helpful to remember they are so short.
Traitor: one who betrays another's trust or is false to an obligation or duty
Is swearing an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States as president an obligation or duty? It's clear, our President has betrayed his sacred oath and in doing so has sacrificed his honor.
The systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion.
and Terror? one that inspires fear
Our current president uses terror to conduct his everyday business affairs. Has for years. He has always used terrorism and it's not shocking for a simple man to continue to do the same things that have brought him so much personal success that he hasn't had to learn anything else. Because of his wealth and privilege, this pampered adult baby has never had to change from an infant terror to an adult terrorist. There is plenty of evidence he has conducted his personal and private affairs as a terrorist. (Using the above definition) He knows he is above the law above morality above God and religion, above everyone else. He is a stone cold terrorist with obvious conflicts of interest with our most powerful enemy Russia. Liar liar pants on fire, a child's rhyme is the new reality. Did I forget to mention he supports Nazi's and white supremacists both of which the United States of America fought wars against.
One more definitions, I find it helpful to remember they are so short.
Traitor: one who betrays another's trust or is false to an obligation or duty
Is swearing an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States as president an obligation or duty? It's clear, our President has betrayed his sacred oath and in doing so has sacrificed his honor.
4
Donald Trump’s stand on the Charlottesville violence is akin to saying there was no moral difference between Franklin D. Roosevelt and Adolph Hitler because both killed many people.
5
“Trump has personalized the presidency in unprecedented ways — making every battle and every war about his personal feelings."
Obviously. But that’s what you and other columnists are doing---personalizing the despicable Trump with endless columns justifiably attacking him. But this alone just fans the flames, and adds nothing constructive to the political debate.
I totally agree with your points. But stop indulging your emotions week after week and with your raised voice on CNN. We need thought as well as revulsion.
How about this more constructive approach?
Devote 1/3 of every column to exposing the truth about Trump.
1/3 to the distorted political culture that had led up to his nomination and election.
1/3 to how the Democrats must change and be more responsive to the crucial needs of the public.
This is what’s missing from your columns. How daring is that? In this time of peril, we the readers/citizens/voters need your eloquence and moral outrage to transmit ideas for improvement. Trump bashing is cathartic, but we deserve better.
Compare and contrast the policies of other leaders you admire, with concrete examples. Take from America’s own past and also other democracies with politicians who are more responsive to majority needs.
Don’t you think how our campaigns are financed is an underlying factor in the problems you lament? Or don’t you want to go there for some reason? But it's a major factor that distorts our politics.
Obviously. But that’s what you and other columnists are doing---personalizing the despicable Trump with endless columns justifiably attacking him. But this alone just fans the flames, and adds nothing constructive to the political debate.
I totally agree with your points. But stop indulging your emotions week after week and with your raised voice on CNN. We need thought as well as revulsion.
How about this more constructive approach?
Devote 1/3 of every column to exposing the truth about Trump.
1/3 to the distorted political culture that had led up to his nomination and election.
1/3 to how the Democrats must change and be more responsive to the crucial needs of the public.
This is what’s missing from your columns. How daring is that? In this time of peril, we the readers/citizens/voters need your eloquence and moral outrage to transmit ideas for improvement. Trump bashing is cathartic, but we deserve better.
Compare and contrast the policies of other leaders you admire, with concrete examples. Take from America’s own past and also other democracies with politicians who are more responsive to majority needs.
Don’t you think how our campaigns are financed is an underlying factor in the problems you lament? Or don’t you want to go there for some reason? But it's a major factor that distorts our politics.
3
This is, as Scott Adams so eloquently explains, is the current day's mass hysteria in the blue bubble. Please give it a read and some serious thought. The nation depends on it.
http://blog.dilbert.com/post/164297628606/how-to-know-youre-in-a-mass-hy...
http://blog.dilbert.com/post/164297628606/how-to-know-youre-in-a-mass-hy...
1
We are not a kingdom. Mr. Trump defiantly represents a minority of the U.S whether by voting & non-voting populous. Nor does he represent the majority's ideals. He does not represent us.
Tomorrow, he will hold an event in Phoenix, which considering recent rally events and his firmly stated position empowering hate-groups, this will be a haters-rally.
This is a failed presidency, we passed a time of it's failing. Tonight, after 213 consecutive days which Trump has lied to us, tonight he ask we trust him. I say no! Let's all say no. Please understand that Trump is sacrificing our best if you agree to support Trump's request for more troops in Afghanistan. He has not earned rights to sacrifice our best people. We must write a new War Powers Resolution. However, immediately we have the best chance now to remove Trump by not providing him approvals to sacrifice our troops. Call your representatives and tell them to say no!
Tomorrow, he will hold an event in Phoenix, which considering recent rally events and his firmly stated position empowering hate-groups, this will be a haters-rally.
This is a failed presidency, we passed a time of it's failing. Tonight, after 213 consecutive days which Trump has lied to us, tonight he ask we trust him. I say no! Let's all say no. Please understand that Trump is sacrificing our best if you agree to support Trump's request for more troops in Afghanistan. He has not earned rights to sacrifice our best people. We must write a new War Powers Resolution. However, immediately we have the best chance now to remove Trump by not providing him approvals to sacrifice our troops. Call your representatives and tell them to say no!
2
We must never forget that 1) beneath every narcissistic thing he says and does,Trump is always primarily pandering to his base, and 2) polls consistently keep showing that over 80% of all Republicans approve of what he is doing.
This is the real subliminal unrelenting problem/danger for our country.
This is the real subliminal unrelenting problem/danger for our country.
165
I am sure that Charles Blow is not naive. When he excoriates President Trump for essentially telling the truth about the Charlottesville riots , that there were people with legitimate motives and also people with violent intent on both sides, which is now becoming clear, he is being disingenuous, at the very least.
16
So fighting against evil is wrong.
1
Keeping a monument to a Confederate general in a public place does not reflective a legitimate motive. The purpose of the statue is to honor a man whose orders caused the deaths of tens of thousands of United States soldiers for the sole purpose of insuring the survival of slavery, The purpose of the statue is to glorify a traitor. Supporters of such a monument argue that it represents their heritage. What does an act of treason have to do with the many wonderful attributes of Southern culture? To extoll these historic figures is to extoll their treason and the inhumanity of their cause. So let's stop sanitizing their defenders.
People with legitimate motives would march side by side with the folks shouting racist slurs? I think not.
2
Based on the style and fluidity of his verbal communication, it is very easy to conclude that Trump is in some kind of decline, that the way he speaks today bears little resemblance to the way he spoke 10 to 15 years ago.
Perhaps linguists could lead the way in encouraging psychologists who might, in turn, encourage the appropriate lawmakers to consider invoking the 25th amendment, for the sake of the country.
Failing this, you could easily be endangering the world by letting someone very possibly quite sick to carry on with the power that he has.
Please. Someone act. Now.
Perhaps linguists could lead the way in encouraging psychologists who might, in turn, encourage the appropriate lawmakers to consider invoking the 25th amendment, for the sake of the country.
Failing this, you could easily be endangering the world by letting someone very possibly quite sick to carry on with the power that he has.
Please. Someone act. Now.
8
If the Lord wants Trump removed from office, he should give us a sign.
Like, this afternoon.
Like, this afternoon.
17
"How frightening is that?" Very frightening. As opposed and appalled as I am at Trump and his presidency, I hope people around him who are committed to the Constitution and the rule of law, who may also find him appalling, stay so that there will some adults in the room. There was a novel titled SEVEN DAYS IN MAY; we may be living through more frightening non-fiction: EIGHT GENERALS IN AUGUST.
1
Thanks, Charles. It encourages me when I see you and others keeping the issue of Donald Trump's brokenness alive. The danger of not doing so is that it will eventually become so predictable as to seem normal, which it is SO not.
10
Along with him go his republican enablers, also bereft of character or morals for standing by and implicitly endorsing trump's hateful views.
6
In Response to Rene Descartes.
Dear Sir;
Your assertion that there are good people who may not approve of the removal of monuments to Confederate leaders may be true. Those people, if they do exist, were somewhere else. There were no "good people" among those who were there in person to protest the removal of Lee's statue. None. They were all possessed of malevolent intent. They were all white supremacists.
There are no "good" white supremacists. If you cannot agree with that statement, then you have a skewed sense of morality.
And I did watch - not all, but most - of Trump's debacle of a news conference on Tuesday. Apparently you missed the anger and vituperativeness in his comments, and his delivery which I think can be characterized as extreme duress. The derangement is his, not the media's. We who are more equable are all collectively appalled.
Dear Sir;
Your assertion that there are good people who may not approve of the removal of monuments to Confederate leaders may be true. Those people, if they do exist, were somewhere else. There were no "good people" among those who were there in person to protest the removal of Lee's statue. None. They were all possessed of malevolent intent. They were all white supremacists.
There are no "good" white supremacists. If you cannot agree with that statement, then you have a skewed sense of morality.
And I did watch - not all, but most - of Trump's debacle of a news conference on Tuesday. Apparently you missed the anger and vituperativeness in his comments, and his delivery which I think can be characterized as extreme duress. The derangement is his, not the media's. We who are more equable are all collectively appalled.
7
How do you know all that? Have you been there? Talked to all the people who protested the removal of the statues? There are many testimonies online for perfectly fine people.
1
People knew exactly for what it was they were voting on 8 November 2016 when they voted for trump.
Those who claim they didn't know should henceforth stay home on Election Day; they're essentially confessing they ruined the country out of ignorance.
Those who claim they didn't know should henceforth stay home on Election Day; they're essentially confessing they ruined the country out of ignorance.
4
I agree Charles. I watched Saturday and Monday. Then I watched Tuesday's meltdown. I usually can't watch the. whole. thing.
What I noticed was how much Tuesday resembled Trump's campaign rants that his supporters waited in line to attend and happily watched with applause and cheers -- those rants that our television stations happily broadcast across the world.
Has he only now somehow crossed the line? What did you (we?) expect when we've seen this same performance ever since the golden escalator?
What I noticed was how much Tuesday resembled Trump's campaign rants that his supporters waited in line to attend and happily watched with applause and cheers -- those rants that our television stations happily broadcast across the world.
Has he only now somehow crossed the line? What did you (we?) expect when we've seen this same performance ever since the golden escalator?
4
Worst is that his approval rating alway bobs up toward 40%. How could it be even 15%? I recall elections from 1952 but I can't explain that situation.
3
Once again, Charles, your words are exquisite truth about our ugly presidency. 'What can we do?' frustrates us who haven't the power of politicians or writers who reach millions.
Our only power is daily compassion to others, teaching history and knowledge, respecting the law and the Constitution. Every tiny unexpected act of kindness is power. Every peaceful protest will fill the murky hate-filled air and will help construct a peaceful future for our kids. These are our powers.
And every 1918 vote and beyond by Democrats is our most urgent prospect to restoring sanity and wisdom.
Vote, and tell others - make it a priority to get friends and strangers to the polls. Lobby your state for paper ballots.
Vote!
Our only power is daily compassion to others, teaching history and knowledge, respecting the law and the Constitution. Every tiny unexpected act of kindness is power. Every peaceful protest will fill the murky hate-filled air and will help construct a peaceful future for our kids. These are our powers.
And every 1918 vote and beyond by Democrats is our most urgent prospect to restoring sanity and wisdom.
Vote, and tell others - make it a priority to get friends and strangers to the polls. Lobby your state for paper ballots.
Vote!
5
Oops, make that 2018 to vote in Dems.
1
Trump himself said, "I stand for nothing." The recent navy boat collision in which 10 sailors are missing, "That's too bad."
Anyone who thinks Trump speaks for them, he can't even do silence right.
Anyone who thinks Trump speaks for them, he can't even do silence right.
7
Trump is a man who lives in the moment. He will turn on a dime if in the moment he things that it strenrghrns his position with his loyal base and Charles like it or not he has a loyal base. He never envisioned being president as being so hard. He never realized that if he wanted to set himself up in the WH with his friends and family so they could exploit the presidency for financial gain that he had to have people in administrative positions who could actually run the government for him. He made very bad choices.
5
What I still can’t figure is Trump’s die-hard support. One stalwart, quoted in a recent Times piece, likens him to the nerd with the courage to stand up to the class jocks and cheerleaders. This gets things precisely backwards. Trump may pose as a champion of forgotten Americans, but his sympathies are entirely on the side of the class jocks and Greeks of this world, not those he derides as “losers.” For another, Trump has never “stood up” to anyone, unless one counts his name-calling tweets and off-the-wall attacks on allies like Sessions and McConnell as courageous truth-telling. Actually, it’s all just the impotent flailing about of a man seriously out of his depth. (One must be grateful to those “class jocks,”—CEOs, military brass and the few Republican senators -- who have had the courage to stand up to Trump, and hope that more can see their way clear to joining them.) But maybe there’s a clue here to Trump’s enduring appeal to people most of whom are not neo-Nazis or white supremacists. Here is a man surrounded by all the trappings of power and authority who nevertheless exudes insecurity. He campaigned as an agent of change but heads a mostly dysfunctional administration. All he has going for him is his bad-boy attitude and the (well-deserved) contempt of most thoughtful people. He is a bit actor reveling in the lifetime role of strongman. Many who feel they have no real control over the direction of their lives look at him and feel virtually empowered.
6
Whether it comes in three months or three years, we can all look forward to a time when we can go weeks, months, even years without thinking about Donald Trump. Forcing their fellow Americans to contemplate daily that loathsome man was the cruelest thing his supporters inflicted upon this country.
9
What's even more frightening is that Trump still has the support of over 30% of the American population. And that someone who is mentally ill could be elected in the first place.
5
And another editorial from the New York Times, highlighting the inadequacies of President Trump. What are we hoping for? Impeachment? Then we would have President Pence. Will that really be an improvement? It would be an exchange of one flawed leader for another, and one who might actually do more harm. So far Trump has whipped the liberals into a frenzy. His fans still love him. He has drawn a circle around the differences of Americans, and now there are only losers left standing. Color me depressed.
3
President Pence will be a disaster; in other words, an infinite improvement over what we now face.
This country has faced and overcome disasters before. We have before never had to confront an existential threat to who and what we are as a people. I will gladly trade seven-and-a-half years of Pence for not another day of Trump.
This country has faced and overcome disasters before. We have before never had to confront an existential threat to who and what we are as a people. I will gladly trade seven-and-a-half years of Pence for not another day of Trump.
Seat Holder --at whopping price.
3
How many times are we expected to forgive the abhorrent behavior of Donald Trump before our elected leaders in Congress (from both parties) take the action necessary to rid the nation of this grifter and his family, who seem to believe that we as taxpayers are here to support their rich and famous lifestyle. I suspect that they will never spend a day behind bars for their crimes (based on their status - like it or not - as the nation's First Family) but at this point I'll settle for just getting them out of The White House before they cause more harm to the nation.
Our country will spend years putting back together that which has been broken by this unscrupulous con artist and his family. We will need to come to a moment of shared understanding, truthfulness, and recognition of what took place while Trump occupied the Oval office. We will need to work toward a national recovery from Trump's inadequate presidential performance, his illegal behavior while in office vis-à-vis a blatant disregard of the emolument clause, and we must deal with the fallout from Trump's bestowal of legitimacy upon racist and anti-semetic hate groups following the tragedy in Charlottesville. We must figure out if we can ever trust a politician again, as what we have learned recently is that a majority of them are more talk than substance, and that when it comes to the question of service, most of them forget that we elect them to represent all our interests, not just those of a few.
Our country will spend years putting back together that which has been broken by this unscrupulous con artist and his family. We will need to come to a moment of shared understanding, truthfulness, and recognition of what took place while Trump occupied the Oval office. We will need to work toward a national recovery from Trump's inadequate presidential performance, his illegal behavior while in office vis-à-vis a blatant disregard of the emolument clause, and we must deal with the fallout from Trump's bestowal of legitimacy upon racist and anti-semetic hate groups following the tragedy in Charlottesville. We must figure out if we can ever trust a politician again, as what we have learned recently is that a majority of them are more talk than substance, and that when it comes to the question of service, most of them forget that we elect them to represent all our interests, not just those of a few.
8
Charles , once again with great insight , analysis and eloquence you have nailed this fop to a T . You are courageously outspoken , and I ( and your readers , for sure ) admire that tremendously , for we are in dangerous times , principally due to the very sick , dangerous man . To me you have become the principal spokesperson for the Resistance . You never mince your words - always telling it as it is . I'm pretty sure that not that many people read our comments , although some of them are wonderfully insightful and eloquent . But you
have the vantage point of your readership , and you use it with great skill ,
dexterity and intelligence . Since the election ( and even before ) I have been very depressed , morose and pessimistic about our politics . However my finding you , via your stellar column - better than on tv - has brightened my outlook enormously . I look for the Times as soon as I am awake , and after reading the headlines I head immediately for the breath of fresh air of your column . And it energizes me that you never equivocate , you never pull your punches , you never slide around an issue of importance - and those are the ones you always address - you always deal with the truth . For many of us that are truly horrified about the warped and bleached slug , the racist , self-involved and corrupt occupant of the White House that unfortunately doesn't have gold toilets , you offer hope through your courageous and honest words .
Carry on , sir , you serve us well.
have the vantage point of your readership , and you use it with great skill ,
dexterity and intelligence . Since the election ( and even before ) I have been very depressed , morose and pessimistic about our politics . However my finding you , via your stellar column - better than on tv - has brightened my outlook enormously . I look for the Times as soon as I am awake , and after reading the headlines I head immediately for the breath of fresh air of your column . And it energizes me that you never equivocate , you never pull your punches , you never slide around an issue of importance - and those are the ones you always address - you always deal with the truth . For many of us that are truly horrified about the warped and bleached slug , the racist , self-involved and corrupt occupant of the White House that unfortunately doesn't have gold toilets , you offer hope through your courageous and honest words .
Carry on , sir , you serve us well.
3
There is not one country in the world that does not have a troubling past. There are places ravaged either by war or internal turmoil. With new leadership and better thinking, they have all chosen to seek new directions. There is always an experience to learn from. What is interesting is that it was the US that contributed and helped most of those countries. Showing them what human rights, equality and opportunity is all about.
Today, what we are seeing is that we have someone elected to Office to serve as our POTUS, wanting to embrace the very same evil and hate which we helped to destroy.
How much more appalling can this be?
Today, what we are seeing is that we have someone elected to Office to serve as our POTUS, wanting to embrace the very same evil and hate which we helped to destroy.
How much more appalling can this be?
5
I hope someone in authority will disprove my statement here:
"Fact is, there will be no orderly resolution removing Trump from the presidency, let alone change the mindset of those who voted him there or the members of the House and Senate who are besotted with special interests."
"Fact is, there will be no orderly resolution removing Trump from the presidency, let alone change the mindset of those who voted him there or the members of the House and Senate who are besotted with special interests."
1
So, who resigned from the WH staff because they did not share his views on Charlottesville? Where is the condemnation that should come from the Congressional leadership? Are all these people in agreement with Trump? What else has to happen before some of these folks show some integrity? And does it only bother me that there are several generals at the highest ranks of our government?
6
It is totally and completely frightening, and the level of denial on all too much of our country, and the entire Republican Congress, is equally as frightening and beyond rational comprehension. Where are our leaders? Where it the voice, the compelling Democrat who takes him on point by point every day? I get fundraising requests from the DNC every day, not a strategic and tactical plan about what we can all do to change this and minimize the damage in the interim. You continue to make eloquent and compelling statements and yet who is marching forward with the platform that you continue to present to those of us willing to listen? Please continue to try to educate, motivate and mobilize.
3
As horrible as this POTUS is, the ones in the wings to jump up if he leaves before his term ends are no prizes either. Think of a Pence or Ryan presidency. There is no help unless we turn out a lot of Congress in 2018 to provide much better check on this bunch of loons.
15
Excellent!
I have to wonder about this one "the truest thoughts of his soul". I would not lay that one on a soul. Souls do not do that. These are the ear marks of the soulless, the heartless, the zombies that are running around in human bodies. There's lots of them in the Administration and congress. I would make a list but we are limited to 500 words or something. But you make a list. Start with Pence, Ryan and McConnell ......
I have to wonder about this one "the truest thoughts of his soul". I would not lay that one on a soul. Souls do not do that. These are the ear marks of the soulless, the heartless, the zombies that are running around in human bodies. There's lots of them in the Administration and congress. I would make a list but we are limited to 500 words or something. But you make a list. Start with Pence, Ryan and McConnell ......
4
Trump is everything republicans feared an African American president would be.
*never read the constitution
*doesn't respect our military
*Doesn't receive military dead at Dover Air base
*might blunder into armed conflict
*corrupt
*racist
*ill informed
A sucker is born every minute and Trump seems to have cornered the market.
*never read the constitution
*doesn't respect our military
*Doesn't receive military dead at Dover Air base
*might blunder into armed conflict
*corrupt
*racist
*ill informed
A sucker is born every minute and Trump seems to have cornered the market.
12
You just described Barak Obama to a tee.
We've been giving presidents and most other politicians and bureaucrats more and more power as a necessary concomitant to the burgeoning federal government. Progressives loved this situation when Obama held the reins of presidential power, but with Trump the pigeons are coming home to roost. Enjoy.
1
Trump's asinine behavior is the perfect smoke-screen for all the destruction his cabinet heads are secretly inflicting on programs to protect labor, the environment etc..----that is the real reason why Rep. remain silent.
12
And still the banner runs beneath the talking heads on both CNN and Fox "Can Trump unite the country?" Well, no. He never had any intention of or interest in doing so. He sees himself as a disruptor and a destroyer, and that is his most successful role to date. We must stop expecting anything else from him, and figure out how to unite this fractured country ourselves.
6
The end of Barack Obama`s Presidency at the height of his popularity and Trump has taken over with lowest approval ever for any Presidents. And no one was prepared for this moment not even Trump as I understand.
The whole World is uneasy to have this self serving corrupt man as the leader and are on their toes and so are we.
Trump is the President now and I watched him first few minutes, he remained the same mean, dark and insulting to the outgoing President.
The whole World is uneasy to have this self serving corrupt man as the leader and are on their toes and so are we.
Trump is the President now and I watched him first few minutes, he remained the same mean, dark and insulting to the outgoing President.
7
I wonder, not only the questions about Trump's instability and imbalance of mind, and defects in character - but also about his ignorance. Trump appears to have a willful ignorance so wide and deep, about most things. Not only is he stunningly ignorant to the core, he seems completely OK with this, and not even remotely interested in closing all his knowledge gaps, or even covering for them. It's like showing up for a Presidential Debate every day, completely unprepared, and not caring that he comes across as ignorant as a child.
This apparently is one element of Trump's life that has been consistent for decades. Among those closest to him, or who have dealt with him, this one constant keeps emerging. it seems Trump cannot read anything more than a relatively few simple words at a time, without constantly losing his way, or being unable to keep up. We should face facts:
All evidence would indicate that Trump is Functionally Illiterate!
Stop and consider this. We must face this issue as a nation, as it seems to be at the root of so many of Trump's behaviors and competency issues. If true, we are the victims of the greatest Cons of modern times. To think that he would be so self absorbed to see only the visibility and adulation that comes with the role - without remotely considering the tremendous Responsibility too. That his hubris and mental imbalance would be so unchecked that he even ran for President.
Consider the danger to us all! This alone is reason for removal.
This apparently is one element of Trump's life that has been consistent for decades. Among those closest to him, or who have dealt with him, this one constant keeps emerging. it seems Trump cannot read anything more than a relatively few simple words at a time, without constantly losing his way, or being unable to keep up. We should face facts:
All evidence would indicate that Trump is Functionally Illiterate!
Stop and consider this. We must face this issue as a nation, as it seems to be at the root of so many of Trump's behaviors and competency issues. If true, we are the victims of the greatest Cons of modern times. To think that he would be so self absorbed to see only the visibility and adulation that comes with the role - without remotely considering the tremendous Responsibility too. That his hubris and mental imbalance would be so unchecked that he even ran for President.
Consider the danger to us all! This alone is reason for removal.
7
Bil Moyers just described Trump as "an open sore," "unfit" & "without a conscience."
An open sore! Moyers, a former Baptist preacher & journalist for 40+ yrs, was assistant to President Johnson in one of the most troubled, fractured administrations in our history. Moyers saw LBJ near a breakdown, announcing he wouldn't run again. Doesn't Moyers have credibility describing Trump as unfit? Moyers, who spent years advising a distraught, struggling president, describes Trump as "dangerous" & "a man without a conscience."
Carl Bernstein, instrumental in reporting on & bringing about the downfall of the lunatic criminal Nixon presidency describes Trump as crazier than Nixon in his paranoid drunken final days. Members of the intelligence agencies & military tell Bernstein Trump is unfit, dangerous, crazy. Bernstein, one of the greatest living journalists, reports terrifying facts.
Moyers & Bernstein are dialing 9-1-1 on Trump.
Trump - mean, crazy, angry - is out of control to the 'handlers' trying to stabilize him. Trump's red-faced, ranting press conference, describing Nazis as 'very fine people," was stunning. Shocking to see Gen. Kelly, Trump's babysitter, staring at the ground & repeatedly grimacing.
We aren't listening to the professionals who are warning us about Trump.
Trump is Shakespearean in his malevolence. None around Trump can restrain him - as he reportedly considers launching a military strike on N. Korea in which millions would die.
America dialing 9-1-1.
An open sore! Moyers, a former Baptist preacher & journalist for 40+ yrs, was assistant to President Johnson in one of the most troubled, fractured administrations in our history. Moyers saw LBJ near a breakdown, announcing he wouldn't run again. Doesn't Moyers have credibility describing Trump as unfit? Moyers, who spent years advising a distraught, struggling president, describes Trump as "dangerous" & "a man without a conscience."
Carl Bernstein, instrumental in reporting on & bringing about the downfall of the lunatic criminal Nixon presidency describes Trump as crazier than Nixon in his paranoid drunken final days. Members of the intelligence agencies & military tell Bernstein Trump is unfit, dangerous, crazy. Bernstein, one of the greatest living journalists, reports terrifying facts.
Moyers & Bernstein are dialing 9-1-1 on Trump.
Trump - mean, crazy, angry - is out of control to the 'handlers' trying to stabilize him. Trump's red-faced, ranting press conference, describing Nazis as 'very fine people," was stunning. Shocking to see Gen. Kelly, Trump's babysitter, staring at the ground & repeatedly grimacing.
We aren't listening to the professionals who are warning us about Trump.
Trump is Shakespearean in his malevolence. None around Trump can restrain him - as he reportedly considers launching a military strike on N. Korea in which millions would die.
America dialing 9-1-1.
7
In my humble opinion, not enough people are waking up to the realities of this snake oil president. Look at all the people who still stand by their man regardless of what he does or says. He may have a moral vacuum but he is filling the despair vacuum of many people. This is the most frightening aspect of all of this; how a man with such a limited character can hoodwink so many.
5
Thank you Mr. Blow for not couching things in soft language. Only you tell it like it is, although the majority of the blame should be put on the gutless Republicans, few of whom condemn him to this day.
God help us!
God help us!
5
What an utterly useless occupation - getting paid to insult others while the insulter has no accomplishments himself to speak of.
4
I with the Times would publish a Charles Blow column every single day.
1
I don't have a lisp, just didn't proofread!
1
Tromp L'oeil. Our fake president.
He can not trick all the people all the time. He can not trick most of the people any of the time. It's time to get rid of this illusion.
He can not trick all the people all the time. He can not trick most of the people any of the time. It's time to get rid of this illusion.
4
When he was young, donald trump crawled into an empty suit. It has remained empty all these many years.
3
The U.S. has a perfectly useful leader who wants tens of millions more workers to find jobs. But if that happens, it will devastate Charles political friends. Thus, Charles hates this President.
5
I want to thank Mr. Blow for speaking out against Trump vigorously from the beginning. While at least half of the country knew that we were for in a horror show, Mr. Blow seemed to know before almost everyone that this disaster would surpass anything in history. Sadly Mr. Blow was right.
I do take exception with one point Mr. Blow makes- that others are coming to realize that Trump is disaster. Yes, at the margins but I doubt his poll numbers will fall much lower. In my summer travels I have spoken with a number of Trump supporters and it appears the delusion remains strong.
But it is also clear that Trump is becoming radioactive even for the likes of McConnell. The GOP is comfortable with the sort of dog-whistle racism of Reagen but even people like McConnell know that embracing the KKK by suggesting they have valid concerns just doesn't fly even in most red states.
This is Trumps Waterloo. It was also predictable. I don't even think Trump is particualrly racist. I mean he is but it isn't something he is passionate about. he simply used racism as a tool to get power. It would have been easy for him to disavow and condemn these mouthbreathers. But his enormous ego would not allow him to back down. He decided to die on a worthless stupid hill for a dead-end cause. It is a tribute to the size of his ego, his stupidity and pettiness.
Amercians are ready to pull the plug on this reality tv show gone wrong. But we can't.
I do take exception with one point Mr. Blow makes- that others are coming to realize that Trump is disaster. Yes, at the margins but I doubt his poll numbers will fall much lower. In my summer travels I have spoken with a number of Trump supporters and it appears the delusion remains strong.
But it is also clear that Trump is becoming radioactive even for the likes of McConnell. The GOP is comfortable with the sort of dog-whistle racism of Reagen but even people like McConnell know that embracing the KKK by suggesting they have valid concerns just doesn't fly even in most red states.
This is Trumps Waterloo. It was also predictable. I don't even think Trump is particualrly racist. I mean he is but it isn't something he is passionate about. he simply used racism as a tool to get power. It would have been easy for him to disavow and condemn these mouthbreathers. But his enormous ego would not allow him to back down. He decided to die on a worthless stupid hill for a dead-end cause. It is a tribute to the size of his ego, his stupidity and pettiness.
Amercians are ready to pull the plug on this reality tv show gone wrong. But we can't.
5
If we don't get this fool out of office and soon, this country is done....
It may be already
It may be already
6
Again, it was all about him not us... He only cares about himself, his image & positioning
Sure sums it up.
And to those who think that this belief is held only by Democrats resentful at HRC's loss, or folks with some leftie political or cultural axe to grind, trust me, millions of common sense folks clearly saw this a year-and-a-half ago.
All you folks still supporting this guy, he has already done what he said he could do. He has walked into your home town and pulled the trigger. And he's still got your vote? Well, he IS really good at that "all about him" thing.
Sure sums it up.
And to those who think that this belief is held only by Democrats resentful at HRC's loss, or folks with some leftie political or cultural axe to grind, trust me, millions of common sense folks clearly saw this a year-and-a-half ago.
All you folks still supporting this guy, he has already done what he said he could do. He has walked into your home town and pulled the trigger. And he's still got your vote? Well, he IS really good at that "all about him" thing.
3
All that you say is true Mr. Blow.
The real troubling problem is the 50% of Americans who think The Donald did a good job in handling the Charlottesville 'affair'. That Trump spoke the truth and the true problem is the violence of the left that the Nation should be focusing on. The clear underlying message being that we should not obsess about Neo-Nazis or White Supremacy because those 'issues' are just not that important.
Our GOP Congress loves their cover of "I'm on vacation" so that they don't have to think about these problems at all.
After Labor Day, all good Republicans will return to DC to face the business of the country. They are praying that no one brings up you know what and that all can be forgotten.
It is time for all people of good conscience to become Boston 'strong' and make sure that Trump and the Congress know every day that we have not forgotten and never will.
The real troubling problem is the 50% of Americans who think The Donald did a good job in handling the Charlottesville 'affair'. That Trump spoke the truth and the true problem is the violence of the left that the Nation should be focusing on. The clear underlying message being that we should not obsess about Neo-Nazis or White Supremacy because those 'issues' are just not that important.
Our GOP Congress loves their cover of "I'm on vacation" so that they don't have to think about these problems at all.
After Labor Day, all good Republicans will return to DC to face the business of the country. They are praying that no one brings up you know what and that all can be forgotten.
It is time for all people of good conscience to become Boston 'strong' and make sure that Trump and the Congress know every day that we have not forgotten and never will.
5
The problem is, the Mayor, and the Governor of Virginia, were responsible for handling the demonstrations in Charlottesville.
Trump may have responded to incomplete information and we all know he doesn't handle extemporaneous speaking or tweeting well at all so what did you expect?
I don't blame Charlottesville on Trump.
Trump may have responded to incomplete information and we all know he doesn't handle extemporaneous speaking or tweeting well at all so what did you expect?
I don't blame Charlottesville on Trump.
2
Charles Blow, you expressed my thoughts exactly. I think I love you!
5
A very good summary of Trump, who, as it turns out, has now exposed the Republican Party. The latter consists of factions that in varying degree, and for an assortment of reasons, demean themselves by sticking with the rationally and ethically unsupportable. Among these overlapping groups are "the base" hard-liners that are commonly included under the term "alt right" (e.g. KKK, Nazis); the marginally not-quite-so-alty, (e.g. Tea Party/Freedom Caucus); the Evangelicals whose professed morality doesn't carry over into politics (e.g. Pence?); and a great silent majority(?) that elects to see no evil in exchange for a hand that literally will sign anything (e.g. McConnell, Ryan).
If Trump fails all tests of the presidency -- and he does -- the bulk of Republicans fail the test of what constitutes a democratically defensible political party. Thus, what is left are Democrats, who now by necessity must step up to that proverbial plate.
If Trump fails all tests of the presidency -- and he does -- the bulk of Republicans fail the test of what constitutes a democratically defensible political party. Thus, what is left are Democrats, who now by necessity must step up to that proverbial plate.
4
President Trump and white nationalism, indeed Trump and equivocal statements to the effect that good people are found on all sides of the political spectrum no matter how far right (Nazis? Confederates?) or left and that the primary thing is that all sides simply have to stop violent response to each other?
America appears in a very dangerous situation. As various peoples, races, ethnic groups, religions reach a level of balance, representation, it seems they operate in parallel and similarity to corporate business entities, trying to thrust themselves into prominence and taking on all sorts of advertising and legal language and underhanded maneuvers to come out on top and brand competitors as less worthy.
Currently in the U.S. corporate brand "white folk" must be broken up, not be a monopoly, and smaller groups racial, ethnic, must be protected and allowed to compete; ironically these smaller groups, where they hold a majority (blacks in Africa, Jews in Israel, Asians in say Japan or China) are allowed to behave not too dissimilarly to how far right white groups behave today.
In short taking the U.S. and the world as a whole, a minority group might be "good" and protected when faced with a particular "bad" majority, but this "bad" majority might in turn be "good" where it is a minority in a nation or the world. Things are getting to be a treacherous and confused language game with respect to protection of races, ethnic groups, cultures, religions, nations in the world.
America appears in a very dangerous situation. As various peoples, races, ethnic groups, religions reach a level of balance, representation, it seems they operate in parallel and similarity to corporate business entities, trying to thrust themselves into prominence and taking on all sorts of advertising and legal language and underhanded maneuvers to come out on top and brand competitors as less worthy.
Currently in the U.S. corporate brand "white folk" must be broken up, not be a monopoly, and smaller groups racial, ethnic, must be protected and allowed to compete; ironically these smaller groups, where they hold a majority (blacks in Africa, Jews in Israel, Asians in say Japan or China) are allowed to behave not too dissimilarly to how far right white groups behave today.
In short taking the U.S. and the world as a whole, a minority group might be "good" and protected when faced with a particular "bad" majority, but this "bad" majority might in turn be "good" where it is a minority in a nation or the world. Things are getting to be a treacherous and confused language game with respect to protection of races, ethnic groups, cultures, religions, nations in the world.
Unless the weak-spined GOP takes action, or Mueller finds anything truly incriminating implicating Trump, we will be at this place for another almost four years. It's going to be a long haul folks.
2
After the Liar-in-Chief was elected, I wondered how Trump would ever rise to the occasion when a future tragedy would require leadership or empathy. I naively thought he'd pull it off somehow, even if he had to fake it. Boy was I wrong! As Charles writes, Trump has the narcissist's trait of "making every battle and every war about his personal feelings". Thus we witnessed the President say about the mother of a murdered child: no, I haven't spoken to her but I hear she said some very nice things about me.
Let's just all acknowledge that Donald Trump is a moral midget and an embarrassment of staggering proportions.
Let's just all acknowledge that Donald Trump is a moral midget and an embarrassment of staggering proportions.
5
This is just the tip of the iceberg of the damage Trump will be causing. The blame of our downfall lies squarely on the shoulders of the GOP. For many years white conservatives have been gobbling up all the racism they can swallow from their neighborhoods and their churches. Yes a civil war is coming because the racist GOP won't change or admonish their president. For people who claim the love of Jesus how can they possibility support this most immoral person? Hypocrites all.
4
Anyone who doubts whether the devil still exists need look no further than this poor excuse for a president. Let us pray or prey.
4
I disagree with those who tell Mr. Blow to stop writing about Trump. It's like asking someone to stop writing about a hurricane blowing thru their hometown that never lets up. Yes it can be redundant but it is also absolutely necessary. Take your eye off this ball and we don't stand a chance. The time has come for every citizen to see as sacred duty some form of resistance. With all power on the side of the right it is the only power available outside of hope and for those so inclined prayer. Please continue the paramount work you are doing on behalf of our nation.
5
For the moment, Trump can say anything he likes and get away with it - as long as the market continues to rise. His diminished, but rotten core of supporters are newsworthy but superfluous, focus instead on the money. Whatever corporate pangs of conscience we've seen so far have just been cold, hard, calculations based on shareholder value anxieties, not on any supposed morality as claimed, but once there is a massive market correction all his plutocrat abettors will throw Trump to the wolves faster than you can say Mike Pence. Even his two worshipful bookends Cohn and Mnuchin will miraculously find their inner mensch.
2
What I'm hearing on the news is that trump and family are going to make the last dollar they can from this administration. Whether is Kuschner or Ivanka or the main man himself. Kind of reminds you of Cheney and Haliburton. Republicans; Americans in name only. Oligarchs in reality.
3
We will never be the same. If this country survives the radical self-interested minority running our country at the moment, we will never have the moral authority or standing to be who we were before. American exceptionalism will mean people who have the right to open carry weapons but not have healthcare. It will mean privatized wars, public sector management of private lands and privatized schools. Equality will not be for brown people or immigrants or gays or women....but for very fine white spremicists. This is the darkest time since the Civil War and instead of being in the capable stewardship of Lincoln, we have a nincompoop.
3
OK - we got it . Trump is a bad dude. Of course, he spent a year telling us that in person, but OK - we got it from you, too. Now stop these attacks and bring the focus to his enablers - the elected GOP Senators and House - which are going to fight to the death to keep this reprehensible cartoon character in office through the 2018 election cycle, no matter what he does.
3
America did not get what they deserved since Trump the man-child did not win the popular vote. This man-child is so monstrously inept and his sycophants are already doing damage. ie; the environment et al. The man-child only sees one person and that's himself. Charles, I'm frightened! Trump did not 'save our nation' he's taking us down a black hole from which will take years to recover from. Yes, I'd rather have Hillary Clinton. I do not think of her in the same light as some.
3
Mr. Blow, President Trump is failing all the tests of Presidency ONLY for the people who never liked him and his agenda, the die-hard Democrats, and the establishment Republicans.
For us, the people who voted for Trump and his agenda, he is not failing any tests and we support the President as ever. It is only frustrating 9if not tragic!) to see him attacked all the time and then blamed for the very attacks other people have planted or framed against him. Every issue and every negative development in the US and in the World is framed as a Blow to Trump (no pun intended Mr. Blow).
It is also frustrating to see his fellow Republican congressmen and senators obstructing the Trump agenda that 30 out of 20 states voted for: The wall, No more wars, Repeal and replace NAFTA and Obamacare, drug price control, stop illegal immigration and outsourcing as a way for big business to use wage-slaves and shift the American workers.
For us, the people who voted for Trump and his agenda, he is not failing any tests and we support the President as ever. It is only frustrating 9if not tragic!) to see him attacked all the time and then blamed for the very attacks other people have planted or framed against him. Every issue and every negative development in the US and in the World is framed as a Blow to Trump (no pun intended Mr. Blow).
It is also frustrating to see his fellow Republican congressmen and senators obstructing the Trump agenda that 30 out of 20 states voted for: The wall, No more wars, Repeal and replace NAFTA and Obamacare, drug price control, stop illegal immigration and outsourcing as a way for big business to use wage-slaves and shift the American workers.
1
* I would like to correct the above mistake: "The agenda that 30 out of 50 states voted for."
"Trump is failing every test of the office. How frightening is that?"
What is TRULY frightening is how quickly this one damaged individual has been able to wreak such destruction to our political system, our standing in the world, and the defense of our planet. In less than one year, this toxic infection has revealed a degree of vulnerability in our democracy which has been unseen until now. The question is, do we learn from this crisis, or has the high bar having been debased, been lowered forever?
What is TRULY frightening is how quickly this one damaged individual has been able to wreak such destruction to our political system, our standing in the world, and the defense of our planet. In less than one year, this toxic infection has revealed a degree of vulnerability in our democracy which has been unseen until now. The question is, do we learn from this crisis, or has the high bar having been debased, been lowered forever?
2
Every day I wake up sick at heart. And fearful. Not only for myself and my children, but even for those people who voted against their best interests...without thought of consequences, or for reasons I still cannot fathom. We were given perfectly useful brains, but in the case of Donald J Trump, this segment of our population has forfeited or abandoned that use. My only hope is that they, and the current congress, will also wake up and remove him from office before he drags us past any redemption and into war.
2
The silence of our congress is deafening. Where is the vote to censur? Where are the calls for impeachment, revoting, or using the 25th amendment. Where is their moral compass ?
Two wrongs still dont make a right.
When will congress do the right thing?
Two wrongs still dont make a right.
When will congress do the right thing?
5
I agree RjW, Congress are you listening?
2
Donald Trump is not a fact based person. He doesn't like being called out on his lies , his twisting of the truth . His constant mantra of fake news has become so commonplace , that those still awake and not in his thrall , need to keep and hold him accountable.
1
I protested against the Vietnam War when I returned from the war as a US Army Nurse. Arrested many times.
I had posters of the Chicago 7 on my wall along with Huey Newton sitting in his wicker chair.
Then I found that finishing med school, then law school made me a better citizen as I was then able to “fight against The Man” with positive outcomes.
I set up medical clinics in underserved areas and helped Nurse Practitioners become independent health care providers to work these clinics. Then using my law degree I lobbied the state legislatures in Utah and Nevada to pass a Rural Pharmacies Act so that NPs and RNs could dispense meds already packaged and sealed to provide to patients who were hundreds of miles from pharmacies.
Today this law allows parents in areas without 24 hour pharmacies the ability to start antibiotics for their little ones with ear infections or BP meds to folks who need the drugs right away.
Sitting in jail cells became a waste of time. But here in the USA I found a better use of my time. Do something that is REALLY hard...change the world one law at a time.
Saturday it was time to protest again. Atlanta was a city chosen by the alt-right. This is a “guns everywhere” state. Carry is allowed on all school campuses. But I went at age 70. Two thousand of us showed up to peacefully protest the evil that our fathers fought in WWII.
The alt-right “canceled” its own protest as it got “death threats.” From women without guns? I laughed at these children.
I had posters of the Chicago 7 on my wall along with Huey Newton sitting in his wicker chair.
Then I found that finishing med school, then law school made me a better citizen as I was then able to “fight against The Man” with positive outcomes.
I set up medical clinics in underserved areas and helped Nurse Practitioners become independent health care providers to work these clinics. Then using my law degree I lobbied the state legislatures in Utah and Nevada to pass a Rural Pharmacies Act so that NPs and RNs could dispense meds already packaged and sealed to provide to patients who were hundreds of miles from pharmacies.
Today this law allows parents in areas without 24 hour pharmacies the ability to start antibiotics for their little ones with ear infections or BP meds to folks who need the drugs right away.
Sitting in jail cells became a waste of time. But here in the USA I found a better use of my time. Do something that is REALLY hard...change the world one law at a time.
Saturday it was time to protest again. Atlanta was a city chosen by the alt-right. This is a “guns everywhere” state. Carry is allowed on all school campuses. But I went at age 70. Two thousand of us showed up to peacefully protest the evil that our fathers fought in WWII.
The alt-right “canceled” its own protest as it got “death threats.” From women without guns? I laughed at these children.
5
As long as the man 'filling' the office will sign Republican legislation when it get's there, Congress will allow him to be there.
1
Excellent article I will share with many! Honest, frank, real. Now tell us how to get a REAL President in his place!
1
We've seen more than enough of this total reprobate, Charles. Trump is not a man. He is a creature of no "character". A "moral cavity"? More like a moral crater that keeps enlarging, like those earthly sinkholes but swallowing the principles, norms, civility, and basic decency of our country along with him.
2
But, but ... what about Hilary's emails? And Bernie was too old and couldn't get things done, right? We needed a businessman to run things, just like he did in Atlantic City, and to treat people fairly, just like he always has, right? I did the right thing, right?
4
Thing is, it's now up to the VP & Cabinet, Congress or the Military to actually DO something to get this terrible whatever-he-is out of office. Everything else is just talk as we go further and further down the rat hole.
3
After his performance Tuesday night Trump must stand aside. He is a disgrace.
3
Carl Bernstein, a man who broke the Watergate scandal and who has almost 50 years of contacts in Washington DC, today writes that virtually all top intelligence, military, business leaders who have dealt with Trump, and even most top Republicans, now believe that Donald Trump is mentally unfit for his office. Not just incompetent. We've survived that very recently. But stark raving nuts! (I assume the nuclear chain of command reflects this stark realization.)
ANYONE paying the SLIGHTEST attention the past 30 years knew, or at least suspected this.
Those who sat on their hands last November, or literally wasted their ballots on hapless and hopeless third party vanity "candidates" are to blame. THEY knew better. They failed their most basis duty as citizens, which was to get off the couch and vote. We didn't ask them to join the military and spend a couple of years fighting religious nuts in 120 degree deserts heat! Nope. Just vote for one of the two viable candidates for president. Perhaps the non obviously crazy one. That's all.
They couldn't do it.
SHAME!
ANYONE paying the SLIGHTEST attention the past 30 years knew, or at least suspected this.
Those who sat on their hands last November, or literally wasted their ballots on hapless and hopeless third party vanity "candidates" are to blame. THEY knew better. They failed their most basis duty as citizens, which was to get off the couch and vote. We didn't ask them to join the military and spend a couple of years fighting religious nuts in 120 degree deserts heat! Nope. Just vote for one of the two viable candidates for president. Perhaps the non obviously crazy one. That's all.
They couldn't do it.
SHAME!
4
It's Hollywood major blunder. Miscast. He has instinct for kill on sell. That's why he is in perpetual Campaign Mode--it's the sell stupid. Totally unequipped for demeanor, class, intellect for Presidency. His base not calling shots now. Congress knows this and refuses to amend. Up to the People now.......
I'm dismayed after reading some of the previous responders in this thread. They read what Blow wrote...then they ticked off his 'economic accomplishments' and of course sounded off with the prerequisite 'MAGA'. It's tantamount to a young child getting berated by their parent - both index fingers shoved in their ears yelling 'LA!LA!LA!' at the top of their young voices. Does the President not showing the will to lead the morality of the nation in a positive manner NOT MATTER ANYMORE?!?! I would argue wholeheartedly it most assuredly DOES MATTER. -Chase T.-Tulsa, OK.
2
I'd like to joke about him really saying there are "Fiyad" people on both sides, but this is too, serious a matter.
Fields was once diagnosed with a thought disorder, Schizophrenia,
He was a perfect candidate for a hate group. Apparently he was also a perfect candidate for a Trump support group. Trump is looking more and more like history's worst. I just hope we, (the public) can soon tell him, "Your impeached!"
Fields was once diagnosed with a thought disorder, Schizophrenia,
He was a perfect candidate for a hate group. Apparently he was also a perfect candidate for a Trump support group. Trump is looking more and more like history's worst. I just hope we, (the public) can soon tell him, "Your impeached!"
3
Just think that every last one of the conservative writers, journalists, editorial writers, and politicians who now are trying to back away had all the information they needed to realize what this man was like and how he would govern. Now they say they 'hoped for a more presidential person' to show up. Well he didn't change his spots. He is a vulgar spoiled child in a man's body running the country.
1
A majority of silent Americans have discovered Trump's flawed personalities and incompetence. Unfortunately, he won the election. So, the Americans have to blame themselves, and nobody else but themselves. On the other side of the coin, Trump and his cronies already passed all the tests before becoming Bannon's mannequins. Gods bless America and mankind.
1
Is it too late to say 'We know'? Another litany of transcretions rotting in front of everyone. Again.
Again.
The individuals whose solemn duty to act are not just silent. Absent is apparent to many. Is there really no line?
Another reader wonders if we are leaderless. We know.
Again.
The individuals whose solemn duty to act are not just silent. Absent is apparent to many. Is there really no line?
Another reader wonders if we are leaderless. We know.
1
Congress is a coequal branch of government, or are supposed to be. I am disappointed in both Republicans AND Democrats for the lackluster response to Trump's disgusting response to the attack on Charlottesville by a vile group of white supremacists. The military spoke out, as did corporate America. Trump should be impeached, but short of that, he should at least be censured.
Charles: Again, a cry from the heart; and not much else is left to us in the wilderness. Anyway: Bill Clinton's team told us: "it's the economy, stupid." But we know now that the economy began its forked pathways in the 1970s, making the few ever richer and leaving the rest static. But the majority didn't notice.
I used to think it was because they were distracted--wars, the master magician, scandals, impeachment, the end of the USSR and of the Cold War. I now think that their enabling myths had remained intact: America was the greatest; the American Dream brought millions to our shores. And then, the acid of Murdoch and his minions, and of Limbaugh and his imitators, finally ate through the membrane of myth. And then, especially after the one-two punch of 9/11 and 2008, the people woke up, but they found themselves in an unmapped world. While any party continues to emphasize the economy and disregard the myths of Ameircaness, the demagogues will go on winning. Apart from better minimum wages, what do we have to offer, besides white superiority, the Pony Express, kicking butt in Afghanistan...?
I used to think it was because they were distracted--wars, the master magician, scandals, impeachment, the end of the USSR and of the Cold War. I now think that their enabling myths had remained intact: America was the greatest; the American Dream brought millions to our shores. And then, the acid of Murdoch and his minions, and of Limbaugh and his imitators, finally ate through the membrane of myth. And then, especially after the one-two punch of 9/11 and 2008, the people woke up, but they found themselves in an unmapped world. While any party continues to emphasize the economy and disregard the myths of Ameircaness, the demagogues will go on winning. Apart from better minimum wages, what do we have to offer, besides white superiority, the Pony Express, kicking butt in Afghanistan...?
If you review the transcript of Trump's press conference, he frequently defames the counter-protesters using terms such as "very, very violent", "bad people", "vicious", etc., while he characterizes those defending the statue as peaceful. This is wrong on multiple levels including the fact that when the torch-bearing neo-Nazis were marching the night before, it was the students defending the statue, and the white supremacists assaulting them. One UVA staff member who was trying to defend the students had a stroke, and was hospitalized.
It was of course not the counter-protesters who were carrying assault guns, torches, and other weapons. Trump also lied about the permits: the counterprotesters had two permits, and were in their correct places.
The worst thing this worst president in the history of America did though, besides lying and mischaracterizing the entire event, was that he did this when one young woman had died, and many were in the hospital. He was throwing out insults when the victims were still being treated, and when one family and friends were mourning their loss. When people were still in shock, he was out there lying.
This is not a president, it is true. He is the white supremacist symbol of hate.
It was of course not the counter-protesters who were carrying assault guns, torches, and other weapons. Trump also lied about the permits: the counterprotesters had two permits, and were in their correct places.
The worst thing this worst president in the history of America did though, besides lying and mischaracterizing the entire event, was that he did this when one young woman had died, and many were in the hospital. He was throwing out insults when the victims were still being treated, and when one family and friends were mourning their loss. When people were still in shock, he was out there lying.
This is not a president, it is true. He is the white supremacist symbol of hate.
5
Article 25 needs to be applied in a new, creative manner. Even GOP politicians must see that their existential future requires eliminating Trump before the 2018 elections. They cannot win re-election if 75% of all voters are totally alienated from their party. If impeachment and removal is a political versus legal process, applying Article 25 to this so-called president is not beyond the realm of possibility.
3
"as he waits for the day when a real president arrives to replace him"
Then you better find one to run against him in 2020, and it better be someone a lot better than Hillary so you don't blow another huge lead in polls and money.
Then you better find one to run against him in 2020, and it better be someone a lot better than Hillary so you don't blow another huge lead in polls and money.
2
Only in the 21st century and its idiotic adoration of the rich would millions of marginalized souls be counted on to install a billionaire to even things up a bit.
Trump was installed by the wealthy to make sure that the few $$ that got away are shoveled to the proper individuals. That is all he is there for. And he will not be dislodged until he fulfils this solemn (and non-public) oath.
Trump was installed by the wealthy to make sure that the few $$ that got away are shoveled to the proper individuals. That is all he is there for. And he will not be dislodged until he fulfils this solemn (and non-public) oath.
6
The problem is not Trump, the real problem is the 35%+ of people who support him and the lack of courage, self-interest and partinship by the Republican leaders who has put the rest of us in such great peril.
7
"America is functioning, barely, without a functioning president. Trump is failing every test of the office. How frightening is that?"
So frightening. How long must we wait for him to be removed? Each day brings more horrifying news of this environmental regulation being rolled back, or that new attack on our collective morality. How long must we wait?
So frightening. How long must we wait for him to be removed? Each day brings more horrifying news of this environmental regulation being rolled back, or that new attack on our collective morality. How long must we wait?
7
It should be abundantly clear to Republican members of Congress that Senator Corker is right--Trump is unstable as well as incompetent. What are they waiting for? Cut him a deal: pardons for him and his family immediately upon his resignation; get him out of the Obal Office before he does irreparable damage to the country.
5
Thank your so accurately expressing my wife's and my thoughts and feelings about trump. How I wish the part of middle America that supports him would realize that his past and history shows clearly that he does not support them. He is using them for his own self aggrandizement. He seeks to divide and the only loyalty he demonstrates is to his own ego.
4
Not as frightening as a Republican congress who backs him or a Supreme Court justice who was chosen by him illegally. I hold some solace in the fact that he is afraid to appear in non-controlled public settings--throwing out the first baseball of the season, appearing at the KennedyCenter Honors ceremony--for fear of being booed. Must be tough on a guy who has everything tied up in a fragile ego, to be so widely reviled.
3
Mr. Blow, I was born in America, and for the first time I am afraid of the president of my country. I have disagreed with, been disgusted by, and laughed at others, but none ever invoked fear in me. As president, Donald Trump is an abomination. As a man, a disgrace. As a decent human being, a failure. How much longer can this travesty continue? How much longer must we be compelled to suffer under Trump? And least there be any doubters, the people of this country are suffering mightily, the evidence under the noses of those who care to look. Where are the knights in Congress; when will they come to our rescue? Are they, like me, quaking with fear, powerless to respond to the demon lurking behind the Oval Desk, lurking with his finger metaphorically on the nuclear button? Have we become a nation with a mark on our foreheads that reads fear all ye who enter and reside here? Donald Trump is not a leader of my nation and its people, he is an imaginary being representing a thing or abstraction. Donald Trump is a menace, an obstacle to the stability of America and the world, and I will continue to live in fear as long as he is president.
5
Where are the democrats? Why are they not daily at the microphone, using brief comments, espousing the positives of their program? People believe the republican lies because they are repeated incessantly, literally indoctrinating the listeners. Nothing will change under a president Pence except superficial calm. The policies are the same, hurtful to all, but their wealthy supporters. Please, democrats, talk positively about how you will help the entire populace. Blind us with uplifting positive messages.
5
Charles, right on. We hear the personalization every time he says, "My generals..." It's always, "My, my, my." In hindsight, it's amazing he didn't boot Justice Roberts off the dais and inaugurate himself, Napoleon style. Waterloo can't arrive too quickly.
3
Benny Hill preempted my comments and said it better than I could. And raised the same question: what will it take to convert the Trump base into Americans who support the real values of this country?
The more outrageous Trump gets, the more they dig in. They don't think for even a moment about the damage he....and they....are doing to the country,and to themselves.
The more outrageous Trump gets, the more they dig in. They don't think for even a moment about the damage he....and they....are doing to the country,and to themselves.
4
Understand Secret Service have run out of money to pay Agents for protecting the Trump clan due to large family and excess travel. Answered is simple. Just "stiff" them like he does to all his sub contractors and lawyers.
3
That was the plan all along: driven by a far-right demagogue whose job is to keep the far-right Americans (of which almost half the country is) believing in the cult.
I am done with outrage at Trump. Outrage is against the Americans who support him unconditionally. Trump is making it so that both sides hate the other even more. That is the plan for a divider who lies and his supporters keep believing. Right wingers are believers. They believe. Ask them. That is the most dangerous thing - blind faith in someone or something.
We never had blind faith in Obama. If he messed up he heard it. He wasn't a loser. Trump is a loser.
I am done with outrage at Trump. Outrage is against the Americans who support him unconditionally. Trump is making it so that both sides hate the other even more. That is the plan for a divider who lies and his supporters keep believing. Right wingers are believers. They believe. Ask them. That is the most dangerous thing - blind faith in someone or something.
We never had blind faith in Obama. If he messed up he heard it. He wasn't a loser. Trump is a loser.
6
Right on point! Beautifully stated! It has been quite a few days since we have heard from Trump. As a leader of the free world he abdicated his responsibility on many deep and profound levels. There has not been an apology( I know that would never happen) or any sense of regret( I know that would never happen either) about the pain he has unleashed in the world by his poor choice of hurtful words. Past Presidents, world leaders, business leaders and Congress, members both Republican and Democrats, have implored him to "fix" what he has done and yet all we hear about is his upcoming trip to Arizona ( a ridiculous and taunting rally given the crossroads we face as a nation) and his speech on Afghanistan. The news cycles are diminishing about this important issue of Charlottesville and I fear that what has happened will be swept under the rug? Will this just become another one of Trump's idiotic mistakes that comedians make fun of and people just add to the list of horrible Trumpisms?
4
What is truly frightening is that so many Republicans, including members of Congress and members of his own Cabinet, continue to support this monstrously unfit and unpresidential "president," knowing the damage he is doing to our country and our international reputation, without doing anything to remove him. How long will it take for the GOP to right this horrible wrong?
4
Great article. The answer: Very frightening. A President who can make equivalent those who took up arms AGAINST the United States to those imperfect individuals who literally CREATED it is a chief executive who doesn't have a clue what leadership is all about and what country he's leading. It doesn't matter to him, he's just jealous he's not going to get a statue.
He thought "great" would be easy, so easy. No, it isn't. And what we've seen isn't even close, unless you're talking "great" failure of moral leadership.
I'll answer the question that closed your article with another one posed by our POTUS when he was a candidate: "What the he-- do you have to lose?" Well... I fear my generation will spend the rest of our days tearfully answering that question as we grapple to repair the wounds this man has reopened and worse yet, inflicted anew.
He thought "great" would be easy, so easy. No, it isn't. And what we've seen isn't even close, unless you're talking "great" failure of moral leadership.
I'll answer the question that closed your article with another one posed by our POTUS when he was a candidate: "What the he-- do you have to lose?" Well... I fear my generation will spend the rest of our days tearfully answering that question as we grapple to repair the wounds this man has reopened and worse yet, inflicted anew.
2
It is very frightening. But we DO have a man in that position that has a lot of power. We inaugurated him. So we are not without a president. We might be better off with no president rather than this one who is as you describe Mr. Blow. Don't forget we have this president because of a craven GOP, Congressional majority and their elders, formerly respected, who are content to make statements but els wise do little.Too, we have a large enough section of the public who are just fine with the "job" he is doing on the country.
Thank you for staying angry.
Thank you for staying angry.
3
Michelle Obama said that being president doesn't change who you are, it reveals who you are. Tragically for the country and the planet, too many Americans either didn't see or ignored what voters like me saw--that he was a petty, vindictive, malignant narcissist who knew nothing, and worse, didn't care to learn. Donald J. Trump is the Grand Poobah of Shallow Thinking, and the rest of us are having to live with the consequences of his supporters' poor judgement. It's great that many are beginning to have buyer's remorse, but it's much too late for that to be of any help. Anybody with character, knowledge, or even a smidgen of statesmanship are avoiding this dumpster fire like the plague because their reputations actually mean something to them and working for this horror show would destroy them. During the campaign he said that he'd "hire all the best people." Well, again he lied because with very few exceptions, all he's managed to recruit are the political equivalent of Hollywood D-List celebrities, much to our shame.
4
Mr. Blow I feel extremely sad for you and for the millions very decent and civilized Americans waiting for the day when a real president arrives to replace Trump.
"Real President" is the hope in vain as Trump is no more than a messenger of the predicted collapsing West "into a universal empire, with a culture that would ultimately become as stiff and curatorial as Egypt’s during the New Kingdom" This is the Spengler’s idealization of the history of High Cultures had obvious implications for the West.
Spengler predicted , money and democracy would increasingly hollow out the traditional forms of society, until both collapsed in the face of power politics. Wars would reach a climax of technical sophistication and speed, even as nations disintegrated internally.
Oswald Spengler was a German historian of the last century who preceded Toynbee with the idea of analyzing major civilizations to extract a general theory of history. The clues were to be found not just in parallel events but in parallels in culture, and culture includes lifestyle and religion.
Nothing much can be done to stop or alter this inexorable movement. Since the momentum of these huge historic cycles is so great, the implication is that nothing can be done to stop them.
"Real President" is the hope in vain as Trump is no more than a messenger of the predicted collapsing West "into a universal empire, with a culture that would ultimately become as stiff and curatorial as Egypt’s during the New Kingdom" This is the Spengler’s idealization of the history of High Cultures had obvious implications for the West.
Spengler predicted , money and democracy would increasingly hollow out the traditional forms of society, until both collapsed in the face of power politics. Wars would reach a climax of technical sophistication and speed, even as nations disintegrated internally.
Oswald Spengler was a German historian of the last century who preceded Toynbee with the idea of analyzing major civilizations to extract a general theory of history. The clues were to be found not just in parallel events but in parallels in culture, and culture includes lifestyle and religion.
Nothing much can be done to stop or alter this inexorable movement. Since the momentum of these huge historic cycles is so great, the implication is that nothing can be done to stop them.
I agree with all you have said here....but there is little that can be done in that moment, that unscripted press conference HAD a script, but when you make this man the President of the United States, he is in charge. Kelly was filmed back stage, listening, tense...but could he appear at the President's side at the podium and give him The Hook as he went 'off the rails?' Could anyone? It has been almost a week, there has been condemnation from many quarters, analysis galore and this one has more stick then most, even up against the Barcelona terror, but what about the next time? The inevitable next time, because there is no one who has convinced him to move to public (or private) contrition. He whipped off that Boston Tweet. My fear and disgust is that this particular personality, still with the support of 34% of the American public, has NO capacity to learn. If you have someone in your life, a student, a neighbor, a family member who refuses to learn, you see how dire our situation has become. My experience is that only after a tragic experience.... prison time, a car accident, repeating a grade level, does someone like that get an inkling of reality....and many times, not even then. We have such a man as our President, and he holds the power to take us with him. We have tools built into our democracy for remedy. Will we have hands with those tools wise enough, brave enough to use them? Or we be that 'family' that nation that is destroyed by our inability to act. Tough Love
2
Once again Mr. Blow I thank you for speaking truth. What scares me most is what this tiny man might do when desperate. Surely there can be no doubt he would use every iota of the power of the presidency to protect himself by any means. What keeps me awake at night is the question: Will the generals, will the CIA the NSA the FBI will they also speak truth? Or will they obey the Commander-in-Chief no matter how insane the rationale? They are in a terribly delicate situation, but I sense that this debacle will not end quietly, and our future indeed the world's future may hinge on a most extreme test of the integrity of our foremost soldiers.
3
Trump is a success by his own terms. He dominates the news, he is making tons of money, and his name is a powerful brand which stands for the rich and crass.
1
Hands down, the most successful con man in history. Great businessman? Had every advantage, including multiple bailouts. Builder? Sometimes, but usually just sells his name? Billionaire? Maybe, but his main skills at wealth are to stiff everyone in sight, hustle and lie. Moral beacon? The man can't speak for five minutes without lying and insulting anyone and anything in sight. He's not even an adult, developmentally speaking. In spite of all of this, there's McConnell, Ryan and company effectively holding the door wide open for Trump. "Winning's everything", as the old coach once said.
3
Trump is just the current clown headlining the Republican political circus. His domination of the news cycle is a distraction that acts as a cover while they continue to work to overthrow our democracy.
Having prevented Obama from appointing a non-partisan supreme court justice, they installed a right-wing ideologue, and are on a rampage to gut every regulation & policy Obama fought hard for to stem the further destruction of our democracy and the earth, and to promote fairness, and help all of us, not just the wealthy.
I'm a liberal & am angry as anyone of the alt-right that our government is not working for us. But beyond my anger and the scapegoating I see that we're both victims of unscrupulous divide & conquer tactics to deliberately turn us against each other & keep us from working together, the only way we'll ever get government to work for the rest of us.
If we can only get past the handful of wedge issues use to turn us against each other & keep us from seeing the bigger picture, we'd see we share many more things in common than not: a desire for decent jobs, affordable healthcare, housing & education, access to opportunities to advance in life, a secure future on a healthy earth for us & our children, etc.
It's time to put our anger to use to work together to fight for our common interests, not waste it unproductively in fighting each other. Otherwise, we'll continue to get charlatans as politicians, who will keep fueling our anger, and nothing else.
Having prevented Obama from appointing a non-partisan supreme court justice, they installed a right-wing ideologue, and are on a rampage to gut every regulation & policy Obama fought hard for to stem the further destruction of our democracy and the earth, and to promote fairness, and help all of us, not just the wealthy.
I'm a liberal & am angry as anyone of the alt-right that our government is not working for us. But beyond my anger and the scapegoating I see that we're both victims of unscrupulous divide & conquer tactics to deliberately turn us against each other & keep us from working together, the only way we'll ever get government to work for the rest of us.
If we can only get past the handful of wedge issues use to turn us against each other & keep us from seeing the bigger picture, we'd see we share many more things in common than not: a desire for decent jobs, affordable healthcare, housing & education, access to opportunities to advance in life, a secure future on a healthy earth for us & our children, etc.
It's time to put our anger to use to work together to fight for our common interests, not waste it unproductively in fighting each other. Otherwise, we'll continue to get charlatans as politicians, who will keep fueling our anger, and nothing else.
1
The original sin(s) of American (and all) politics is nationalism and opportunism.
You accurately say about Trump - "This man doesn’t wait for facts. This man doesn’t care about facts, or much else for that matter. He only cares about himself, his image and his positioning." Very true.
However, that infects the Democratic Party as much as the Republicans. At various points in his life Trump has been one or the other.
Trump's ability, with the malevolent assistance of Steve Bannon, to channel voter discontent against the obvious opportunism of the Clintons was the key to his success.
Trump's banging of the racist drum last Tuesday was an effort to keep up the charade of "outsider" as he simultaneously sought to create a new "relationship" with Bannon. To keep up his creds with the base he sought to out-Bannon Bannon. And in spite of the brouhaha - it's working.
People in Washington have short memories when it comes to personal opportunity and by Saturday Trump was congratulating the marchers in Boston for taking a stand against "bigotry". Speaking with a forked tongue is an old American tradition. Ask Native Americans.
If Stephen Colbert is as good as it gets when it comes to a serious critique of this presidency I agree with Ta Nahisi Coates that no one should count Trump out for 2020.
The only thing permanent about these people is their espousal of nationalism and the pursuit of personal advantage stripped of any moral principle other than "me first". And it works.
You accurately say about Trump - "This man doesn’t wait for facts. This man doesn’t care about facts, or much else for that matter. He only cares about himself, his image and his positioning." Very true.
However, that infects the Democratic Party as much as the Republicans. At various points in his life Trump has been one or the other.
Trump's ability, with the malevolent assistance of Steve Bannon, to channel voter discontent against the obvious opportunism of the Clintons was the key to his success.
Trump's banging of the racist drum last Tuesday was an effort to keep up the charade of "outsider" as he simultaneously sought to create a new "relationship" with Bannon. To keep up his creds with the base he sought to out-Bannon Bannon. And in spite of the brouhaha - it's working.
People in Washington have short memories when it comes to personal opportunity and by Saturday Trump was congratulating the marchers in Boston for taking a stand against "bigotry". Speaking with a forked tongue is an old American tradition. Ask Native Americans.
If Stephen Colbert is as good as it gets when it comes to a serious critique of this presidency I agree with Ta Nahisi Coates that no one should count Trump out for 2020.
The only thing permanent about these people is their espousal of nationalism and the pursuit of personal advantage stripped of any moral principle other than "me first". And it works.
He does not frighten me, I have known how he operates for years. What frightens me are his supporters who have closed the curtains over their eyes so they do not see the insanity, the absence of intellect, heart and soul of the man. It makes my heart hurt to know people that do not see this man as he is, even as he does nothing to hide it.
Yet, a third of the nation adores him. They especially love the uncouth, erratic behavior - the bluster and boasting, the whining and the blame-casting, the twisted stories of pigs' blood and blood coming out of wherever (seriously, the man has a real thing about blood).
Rather than viewing this verbal diarrhea as shameful and downright dangerous as the other 70% do, Trump supporters see themselves mirrored in it. If they were president, they would do the same, or want to do the same. If they could, they too would belittle their "enemies" on Twitter for all the world to see. They view Trump as a worthy aspiration. Trump taps into their resentments and their own sense of victimhood.
The real question is what will convince this 30% that there are other, more effective paths? How do you reach people who don't want to be reached?
Rather than viewing this verbal diarrhea as shameful and downright dangerous as the other 70% do, Trump supporters see themselves mirrored in it. If they were president, they would do the same, or want to do the same. If they could, they too would belittle their "enemies" on Twitter for all the world to see. They view Trump as a worthy aspiration. Trump taps into their resentments and their own sense of victimhood.
The real question is what will convince this 30% that there are other, more effective paths? How do you reach people who don't want to be reached?
2
Daily this president shows us who he truly is. Last night as news about another US destroyer involved in a collision broke, the president's initial response was to say, "That's too bad." It wasn't until a tweet later that he offered his "thoughts and prayers" to the sailors aboard the ship (and I'd note here that he forgot to mention their families). Again, he had to be coached in order to respond correctly. To paraphrase, "he is who we thought he was."
1
Frightening and sad. When, exactly, might we all find that it is time to impeach the little Prex? Do perpetrators of hate crimes suffer increased penalties? Is it a felony to encourage people to commit hate crimes? And as to Trump -- when, exactly might "the right people" conclude that "enough is enough." Or better: "This is too much."
None of this is new. Americans have known who and what Donald Trump is for decades. And they voted for him anyway.
I think it's time to stop talking about what's wrong with Donald Trump and start talking about what's wrong with Americans. I've read several articles diagnosing Trump's mental illness. It's time to put America on the couch.
Donald Trump is a lost cause that isn't worth the time or effort. Heal yourselves, America.
I think it's time to stop talking about what's wrong with Donald Trump and start talking about what's wrong with Americans. I've read several articles diagnosing Trump's mental illness. It's time to put America on the couch.
Donald Trump is a lost cause that isn't worth the time or effort. Heal yourselves, America.
3
Est am watching msnbc
Sue Collins / maine is gentle on him politically. And today the buzz is his important 9 pm message. About more war troops
Now our wars are getting stronger and more threatening due to our escalation
Maybe this is a test for him to see if he decompensates again.
Why are we propping this straw man up.
Sue Collins / maine is gentle on him politically. And today the buzz is his important 9 pm message. About more war troops
Now our wars are getting stronger and more threatening due to our escalation
Maybe this is a test for him to see if he decompensates again.
Why are we propping this straw man up.
1
"I can remember how the media excoriated the republican congress for the lack of respect and willingness to work with Obama, even though politically, that's their job."
Rocket, if you are up to it, read our Constitution to learn what the "job" of Congess is. Hint...It is NOT to show a president lack of respect and be unwilling to work with him.
Rocket, if you are up to it, read our Constitution to learn what the "job" of Congess is. Hint...It is NOT to show a president lack of respect and be unwilling to work with him.
In Charlottesville, if Heather Heyer had not died and if her mother, Susan Bro, had not been outspoken and unforgiving, would Trump have exposed himself so blatantly that even his most ardent supporter would at least see in no uncertain terms who they have supported? Heather's sacrifice has precipitated an unheard of frank national conversation about intolerance that has always existed but has been conveniently ignored, or disguised by a dog whistle of code words. Time will tell, but maybe a statue of Heather will be erected to accompany one of Rosa Parks, two simple citizens who stepped forward in their own way to start a revolution.
1
The really sad part of it all is the deafening silence from almost all Republicans in congress. Aside from a handful of people, the GOP is fine letting things go on with a madman running (ruining) our country.
Exactly what level of depravity and/or destructive stupidity will it take to convince them their leader must be removed.
I shudder to imagine how far they'll go.
Exactly what level of depravity and/or destructive stupidity will it take to convince them their leader must be removed.
I shudder to imagine how far they'll go.
3
Mr. Blow, a third of this country still approves of Trunp and the job he is doing. Nearly 70% of Republicans agree with Mr. Trump's handling of Charlottesville. I agree with everything you say about Trump and I agree he is incompetent and needs to go, but here in the Midwest (Trump country), he is doing just fine. I regret to say, we have a bigger problem than you think.
1
Melania is on record as saying he hits back 10 times harder when crossed. The poor woman must have learned to live with this dysfunctional behaviour within the confines of their personal relationship. But when transferred to his presidential responsibilities he will learn soon enough that sort of behaviour in public life will bring him down.
1
You say " Donald Trump is a man of flawed character and a moral cavity". How do we reconcile that with the Majority of the Evangelical leaders are behind him or said nothing about him? That is religion for you my friend, the land of Hypocrisy.
3
I agree with Charles' opinion - #45 has failed every test of being a president.
My question is why .... WHY? .... in the world can Congress not throw him out?
The dangers of keeping him in office are glaringly obvious. Where is the Congress?
My question is why .... WHY? .... in the world can Congress not throw him out?
The dangers of keeping him in office are glaringly obvious. Where is the Congress?
1
Instances of shock regarding the characteristics of President Trump reveals a moral stench in our Nation and a decline of wisdom, knowledge and understanding among practicing Christians. Even individuals who no longer attend church know this one scripture found in 1 Timothy that states,
"For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows."
Anyone that is shocked should review videos from 2015 to present and count how many times Mr. Trump said the word (New Jack City Soundtrack) "Money, Money, Money, Mo...ney, Money!"
Great article as always Mr. Blow, but puhleeeese to all the individuals who are in disbelief.
"For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows."
Anyone that is shocked should review videos from 2015 to present and count how many times Mr. Trump said the word (New Jack City Soundtrack) "Money, Money, Money, Mo...ney, Money!"
Great article as always Mr. Blow, but puhleeeese to all the individuals who are in disbelief.
1
I made the comparison more than once, and I would like to continue doing it.
The people of South-Africa and Venezuele are confronted with the same nightmare, having a president who is corrupt, undecent, dangerous, and not fit for being president.
That this happens with the United States, is not the fault of the Americans; it is due to the power of the presidential prerogatives. A prime minister Trump would have been sacked a few monthsago, president Trump is practically irremovable. Is it not time to rewrite the Constitution and the role of the American president?
The people of South-Africa and Venezuele are confronted with the same nightmare, having a president who is corrupt, undecent, dangerous, and not fit for being president.
That this happens with the United States, is not the fault of the Americans; it is due to the power of the presidential prerogatives. A prime minister Trump would have been sacked a few monthsago, president Trump is practically irremovable. Is it not time to rewrite the Constitution and the role of the American president?
1
Trumps greatest hoax is tricking people into believing a white male, born to wealth, Ivy League educated, earns $Billions is somehow being unfairly treated.
A sucker is born every minute and Trump seems to have cornered the market.
A sucker is born every minute and Trump seems to have cornered the market.
1
"People get the government they deserve." This was never truer than 2017. The people who voted for Trump knew who he was and they loved him. They still love and support him. Until the country as a whole purges itself of its racist, xenophobic, compassionless, selfish urges, there will always be Donald Trumps who get elected to office.
1
We don't have a president, but we have the beginnings of a military junta in McMaster, Mattis, and Kelly. Will they neutralize the weak and stupid man they "serve"? Will that be a good thing?
Tonight Trump announces "his" Afghanistan strategy. Does anyone believe he has any thoughts about that country except maybe "I heard they love me over there"?
Tonight Trump announces "his" Afghanistan strategy. Does anyone believe he has any thoughts about that country except maybe "I heard they love me over there"?
3
Failing ALL tests? Last I heard, Gorsuch is still on the Supreme Court (with two more conservatives, at least, to follow).
He said there were 'fine' people on both sides. The people who came there to protest the removal peacefully and those to protest the the statues peacefully. Using the logic of so-called progressives and MSM; they must be all Antifa members because they agree with Antifa that the statues must go; and, therefore, must agree with the tactics of violence used by Antifa.
Trump is revolting! And people are revolting against him.
==========================================
But my fear is that if the economy continues to succeed, Trump will be impossible to replace. It's the economy, stupid. Money talks.
Now, it is up to the resistance to put the country back together, again.
==========================================
But my fear is that if the economy continues to succeed, Trump will be impossible to replace. It's the economy, stupid. Money talks.
Now, it is up to the resistance to put the country back together, again.
3
I have been no Trump fan but Charlottesville was his Waterloo in my mind. It doesn't matter what he does or says at this point. He went over the brink and there is no return. He's toast. Past tense.
1
What do you need in a President? Humility, high ethics and morals, Intelligence, dedication, love for his country and people, ability to attract and keep the right people to assist him in pursuing an agenda of peace, tolerance, security and safety of his country's citizens, and to elevate levels of health, education, housing and economics , among many other values.
DT fails in every one of these.
Americans have chosen this president, and must share the blame and now have to rely on the upstanding Press to protect them from the consequences of this totally imperfect man. Do not make this same mistake again, and pray that we will all survive this next 3 and 1/2 years.
DT fails in every one of these.
Americans have chosen this president, and must share the blame and now have to rely on the upstanding Press to protect them from the consequences of this totally imperfect man. Do not make this same mistake again, and pray that we will all survive this next 3 and 1/2 years.
As I often do, I've read through 100 or more of the comments on Mr. Blow's column. And again I'm struck by the continuing unequivocal support so many express for Mr. Trump. Again I would ask them to put aside their clear distaste for Mr. Obama and Ms. Clinton, which they often use as context for their support of Mr. Trump, and instead judge Mr. Trump on his own merits, unfiltered. Judge him based only on uncut, full length video tape of his campaign rallies, his appearances at the Republican debates, his public speeches and remarks, and his tweets. Put aside all opinion writers, talking heads, and journalists, both left, right and center. Watch and listen to the man unfiltered. It is entirely possible.
Now you are looking at the man in the way that formed my evaluation of him. I see, and saw starting with the campaign, an incredibly self centered man, a man with a rather poor grasp of history, a man who seems to morph his positions depending on the forum, a man who blames others while accepting absolutely no blame, an incredibly thin skinned man who dismisses all criticism, a man prone to boasting while showing no humility, a man who more often than not sees women in terms of their physical appearance rather than their character, and a man prone to incendiary rather than thoughtful language.
What do you see?
Now you are looking at the man in the way that formed my evaluation of him. I see, and saw starting with the campaign, an incredibly self centered man, a man with a rather poor grasp of history, a man who seems to morph his positions depending on the forum, a man who blames others while accepting absolutely no blame, an incredibly thin skinned man who dismisses all criticism, a man prone to boasting while showing no humility, a man who more often than not sees women in terms of their physical appearance rather than their character, and a man prone to incendiary rather than thoughtful language.
What do you see?
That Democracies are vulnerable is beyond question. Can we heal ? THAT is the question.
The tens of thousands in Boston who showed up to cast a shadow on the handful of 'Free Speech' rallyers near the 'Common' give reason to hope.
People are wired to Love.... justice and kindness nurture that sentiment. When we fail to be a just and a kind society, hate takes root.
The cure is Justice. The cure is Caring.
The tens of thousands in Boston who showed up to cast a shadow on the handful of 'Free Speech' rallyers near the 'Common' give reason to hope.
People are wired to Love.... justice and kindness nurture that sentiment. When we fail to be a just and a kind society, hate takes root.
The cure is Justice. The cure is Caring.
103
According to Trump, he may want you to heel.
2
Disease and rot in our world are out doing the cure. Money, hate, greed, power, radical religious people, violence and tribalism, are too powerful for justice and caring to overcome. Evil has befallen the people of our planet. It will take centuries for us to evolve if ever. I fear it will take a nuclear war or the invasion of aliens from other worlds for us to cooperate with each other.
1
faith, my friend, can move mountains....
1
We cannot keep talking about how bad we think Trump is. We know he's failing. His party knows he's failing. Middle class workers who voted for him realize they are getting nothing from him. The big question: What are Democrats doing about it??
Yes, YOU, the Democratic Party. I'm waiting for a platform. I'm waiting for you to quit talking about statues and come up with a PLAN that will turn over the Congress in 2018. What do you stand for? WHAT?? Do you have ANY ideas to relieve the middle class of stagnant wages and bring them back into the party? You used to be the party of workers. I heard a great quote that said that politics is all about addition. You need to add people to your side, and to your base. The worker base has abandoned you, and you need to soul search and find out why. Stop chasing down every distraction and tweet that Trump throws out there. Get a message and get it OUT where people can hear and understand it.
Don't let things like removing statues take your eye off the ball. Search for great candidates and give them a unified message to run on. Health care, better wages, and bringing back the middle class would be a good place to start.
Yes, YOU, the Democratic Party. I'm waiting for a platform. I'm waiting for you to quit talking about statues and come up with a PLAN that will turn over the Congress in 2018. What do you stand for? WHAT?? Do you have ANY ideas to relieve the middle class of stagnant wages and bring them back into the party? You used to be the party of workers. I heard a great quote that said that politics is all about addition. You need to add people to your side, and to your base. The worker base has abandoned you, and you need to soul search and find out why. Stop chasing down every distraction and tweet that Trump throws out there. Get a message and get it OUT where people can hear and understand it.
Don't let things like removing statues take your eye off the ball. Search for great candidates and give them a unified message to run on. Health care, better wages, and bringing back the middle class would be a good place to start.
345
It is time to follow the 25th amendment and have our political leadership find sufficient reason to call Trump "unable to serve". Ideally, General John Kelly should begin talking quietly to all cabinet secretaries, not through their intermediaries, but directly and with Vice President Pence. There should be a quiet expiration of fitness on several levels: emotional, intellectual, fund of knowledge, political skill, and ability to consult sufficiently and to message appropriately. The effort should stay out of the press until General Kelly has sufficient backing to bring it to the Speaker of the House and the President Pro Temp of the Senate.
The wording of the 25th amendment is sufficiently vague that broad reasons could be chosen to unseat this president. It is time for that effort to begin quietly. The way this amendment was written, there would be no Supreme Court review that would be pertinent. This would be a decision of Congress, not a decision of the Supreme Court.
The wording of the 25th amendment is sufficiently vague that broad reasons could be chosen to unseat this president. It is time for that effort to begin quietly. The way this amendment was written, there would be no Supreme Court review that would be pertinent. This would be a decision of Congress, not a decision of the Supreme Court.
1
The bought and paid for corporate Democrats remaining in Congress will never do this. Their donors won't allow it...
The Democrats have a lot of groundwork to do even to cogently explain the optimization of mixed economies. All the most successful economies develop synergies between public and private sectors in ways ideologues oppose here.
All true as enunciated by Mr. Blow. Sadly, "despicable" is not an impeachable offense. It probably ought to be.
Trump fails the test of the 25th amendment. That is, he is in all ways - psychologically, intellectually, morally, professionally - unfit to be president. However, those who could legitimately move to remove him, will not.
Thus must thoughtful, patriotic voters remove this disgrace - and his lackey, Pence (among others) - from public office in 2020. If we do not, he will truly be the wretched president this country deserves, for we will have proved no wiser than he.
Trump fails the test of the 25th amendment. That is, he is in all ways - psychologically, intellectually, morally, professionally - unfit to be president. However, those who could legitimately move to remove him, will not.
Thus must thoughtful, patriotic voters remove this disgrace - and his lackey, Pence (among others) - from public office in 2020. If we do not, he will truly be the wretched president this country deserves, for we will have proved no wiser than he.
183
In fact, being despicable could be grounds for impeachment. Congress may impeach a president for any reason it thinks sufficient. Impeachment is a political process, not a legal one.
Actually, the Constitution does provide for impeachment of a president who is fundamentally unable to fulfill the requirements of the job. While it is harder to do than waiting for Mueller to find something illegal, it is still possible. But the Republicans have lost their sense of moral rightness a long time ago. But one thing is sure, if they don't do the right thing and get rid of that fraud in the Oval Office, we will be electing a lot more Democrats. It may not be enough to take control of both houses of Congress, but it will make it harder for Republicans to pass any of their horrendous legislative wish list items.
"Despicable" can be an impeachable offense. Congress decides. If it could impeach Bill Clinton for a sexual escapade, it can impeach anyone for anything. But it won't. Not this "Congress of the Billionaires' Puppets".
The focus must move to congress. Checks and Balances, where art thou?
5
Mr. Blow has once again blown away Trump, but Trump is still there. How many times can our favorite opinion writers write about what a nasty human being Trump is? I suggest that the first Sunday of the month be dedicated to stories by NYT opinion writers about how Trump went down.
None of the stories would be real, but we haven't been living in reality for some time now with a man child acting as the leader of the free world. It would be so much fun to read in detail how Trump was brought down, a look behind the closed doors of the Oval and the Master Bedroom in the White House during the final days. Trump at the helicopter door doing a Nixon? Well, I could go on and on with my fantasy because it feels so good to be rid of him.
None of the stories would be real, but we haven't been living in reality for some time now with a man child acting as the leader of the free world. It would be so much fun to read in detail how Trump was brought down, a look behind the closed doors of the Oval and the Master Bedroom in the White House during the final days. Trump at the helicopter door doing a Nixon? Well, I could go on and on with my fantasy because it feels so good to be rid of him.
4
You give Donald Trump too much credit Mr. Blow. He is a child who has learned an expletive. The more horror he elicits from saying it, the more often he says it. The child has no tie to the word nor does he understand its import. He says it because it creates a huge reaction in the adults around him.
And thus you have the squatter in chief. He supports the neo-nazi and white supremacists because they like him. Not many people like him once they get to know him. But again like a child, he bases his opinion of those around him on how much they like him, not their character.
Donald Trump isn't our problem. It's the people around him using him for their own agenda that should concern us.
And thus you have the squatter in chief. He supports the neo-nazi and white supremacists because they like him. Not many people like him once they get to know him. But again like a child, he bases his opinion of those around him on how much they like him, not their character.
Donald Trump isn't our problem. It's the people around him using him for their own agenda that should concern us.
3
My wife and I recently watched an episode of "Broadchurch" and in one scene an angry wife berated her husband for his secretive schemes and yelled "Your so stupid you think your smart." Paraphrasing and applying it to 45 we can say "He is so amoral he thinks he is righteous!"
8
Yes, Charles, you nailed it. DJT failed every test of leadership and governance. His complete failure as the representative of the GOP needs to be immediately heeded and acted upon by the complicit Republicans -- AKA MacConnell and Ryan and the other in power in Congress.
8
Anybody who is surprised by the behavior of this creature has been playing Rip van Winkle for a long time. Anybody who aids and abets this creature--whether as a member of its administration or as an elected official--is, as Hillary Clinton so aptly put it (for which she was pilloried by this newspaper in its religious devotion to False Equivalence), in the basket of deplorables.
8
This column sums up trump. Well said and unfortunately, all that you cited was easily foreseen before this putz claimed the White House. Keep up the drumbeat to remove this parasite from our government...
7
Two words for Trump, "You're Fired!"
8
Mr. Blow, I concur.
7
Thank you so much for your work Mr. Blow. Moral cavity, love it. The short-fingered vulgarian has to go before he takes us all into that rotting morass of a cavity with him. Resist, impeach, restore, renew!
7
self enrichment has been the trump goal from the beginning..nothing else.
8
The president has a great sense of timing. He called Mrs. Susan Bro, mother of the slain Heather Heyer, during her daughter's funeral to offer condolences and offer a word of healing which should have come immediately after learning of the young woman's murder. The fact that Ms. Heyer was killed by a "very fine" person seemed not to enter the president's thinking, such as it may be.
The comparisons between this president and President Obama represent the wide chasm that's present in America today. President Obama offered compassion and empathy in the wake of national sorrow and anger at the events of Sandy Hook, Charleston and Orlando. He appealed to the country's better angels to come together to heal the nation's wounded psyche and offered prayers for a better tomorrow. His words were a healing balm that was so desperately needed by a nation in mourning.
The current Agitator-in-Chief only sows more seeds of discord and division as the country plummets headlong descent into uncontrolled civil unrest. His incendiary words only incite his white nationalist supporters to riot while he directs his anger to counter-demonstrators who will have none of the KKK and Nazi tactics of burning crosses, white hoods and brown-shirt intimidation by racist thugs who inflict themselves on communities with full intent to do hurt and harm, as they themselves admitted was their goal.
The current president is suborning treason and division by word and deed. He is indeed, a failure.
The comparisons between this president and President Obama represent the wide chasm that's present in America today. President Obama offered compassion and empathy in the wake of national sorrow and anger at the events of Sandy Hook, Charleston and Orlando. He appealed to the country's better angels to come together to heal the nation's wounded psyche and offered prayers for a better tomorrow. His words were a healing balm that was so desperately needed by a nation in mourning.
The current Agitator-in-Chief only sows more seeds of discord and division as the country plummets headlong descent into uncontrolled civil unrest. His incendiary words only incite his white nationalist supporters to riot while he directs his anger to counter-demonstrators who will have none of the KKK and Nazi tactics of burning crosses, white hoods and brown-shirt intimidation by racist thugs who inflict themselves on communities with full intent to do hurt and harm, as they themselves admitted was their goal.
The current president is suborning treason and division by word and deed. He is indeed, a failure.
9
Remember all those times when Pres. Obama embraced mourning families? Any mourning mother that Trump came after, would jump away in disgust.
1
Charles Blow, Thank God for your voice.
8
Ryan? Mitch? Mister and Misses Average Republicans? Where are they? Why the silence? Do they not hear the words? Actions? Sickness?
Do they not see the vicious, unethical, unAmerican values that run counter to all we hold as a model for decent behavior in Trump? If they don't, WHY not?
Do they not see the vicious, unethical, unAmerican values that run counter to all we hold as a model for decent behavior in Trump? If they don't, WHY not?
7
For a moment lets forget about all the things Trump has said and done that shock the majority while his supporters sit back and yawn. It should still be abundantly clear to everyone that, love him or hate him, he has no governing skills to speak of, and he is far more dividing than uniting.
Other than holding out hope based on some half baked promises to bring back their old jobs, what do his supporters expect from a president like that?
Other than holding out hope based on some half baked promises to bring back their old jobs, what do his supporters expect from a president like that?
6
I am not frightened or worried; fear and worry are useless emotions that stand in the path or reason and critical thinking. We must put emotion aside to work together against Trump, the Republicans, and (other) Nazis to hold the country together and to bring better times. We saw the manifestation of a greater good in Boston on Saturday. Let's do it again and again. Trump won't last long. Then Pence will step in and calculate hate and discrimination. What shall we do? We can speak out loudly and proudly as Americans and stop being afraid.
4
Cupidity, stupidity and evil have taken up residence in the WH thanks to the ahistorical narcissistic selfie world we live in.
4
There are plenty of good NAZIs. They are buried in cemeteries across Europe and other places where the forces of good meted out justice for their crimes. Good people put them down, just as good people will prevail in this struggle against evil. The person in the White House is evil and there must be no mistake about that.
5
I hate to be the one to burst your bubble, but this very newspaper ran a story specifically about people who went to Charlottesville to protest the statue coming down and isn't a nasi (the actual abbreviation for National Socialist) . Look it up dear...
Shame on the Republican Party for never questioning President Trump for hiring Steve Bannon as his White House Strategist and confidant; they knew Mr. Bannon had resigned as the Executive Chair of Breitbart News, an alt-right platform to go work for the President. Mr. Bannon was fired last Friday under the recommendation of President Trump’s National Security Advisor, H.R. McMaster who’s trying to clean sweep the White House and of improving the President’s image among the American people.
Mr. Bannon went back to Breitbart News with a bag full of goodies; the official secrets of our inept, unreliable Commander in Chief who is an alt-white supremacists - for untruthfully passing blame upon non-racist Americans and minority Groups.
Mr. Bannon went back to Breitbart News with a bag full of goodies; the official secrets of our inept, unreliable Commander in Chief who is an alt-white supremacists - for untruthfully passing blame upon non-racist Americans and minority Groups.
6
Lol you don't even know what the alt-right is. Hint: it's not big. 3000 people in the whole country max...
67% of Republicans approve of the way Trump handled Charlottesville with his lies and insults to the counter-protestors.
The Republican Party is no longer the Party of Lincoln. It is a party that has embraced white supremacy, neo-Nazis and hate. Only a handful of Republicans spoke out against this atrocity: they have become corrupt and evil.
The Republican Party is no longer the Party of Lincoln. It is a party that has embraced white supremacy, neo-Nazis and hate. Only a handful of Republicans spoke out against this atrocity: they have become corrupt and evil.
1
Yes to all to say so clearly and so well.
When a murderer drives a car into a crowd in Barcelona he is called a terrorist.
When a murderer drives a car into a crowd in Charlottesville, our "president" remarks that " there were some very fine people there."
NOT MY PRESIDENT!!!!
When a murderer drives a car into a crowd in Barcelona he is called a terrorist.
When a murderer drives a car into a crowd in Charlottesville, our "president" remarks that " there were some very fine people there."
NOT MY PRESIDENT!!!!
8
Trump's incompetence and madness are settled issues. All the words have been used, all the lies exposed to convince everyone that this President is as big a threat to America as any enemy we have.
It's past time to do the same to his enablers in the House and Senate. There is no gray area, you either support this treasonous group or you condemn it.
It's past time to do the same to his enablers in the House and Senate. There is no gray area, you either support this treasonous group or you condemn it.
7
So who is next to bat? Mid West American hero Mr Pence? That is frightening.
Donald Trump took offense that "the uppity" Barack Obama panned him and has never nor will he ever forget. Two men engaging in a fight which has ramifications well beyond the the poison in which they dipped their darts. Mr Trump is now President which if he had any presence let alone understanding would have left well enough alone and kept his mouth shut. I use the phrase because it is the most apt description with regard to the level to which our national conversation has stooped.
President Obama is more than smart enough to have had a good idea that then simply executive Trump would not have taken the thoughts he expressed with humor. Nonetheless, he chose to launch them anyway with the fallback excuse of a roast which any regular guy would understand. Mr Trump may be perceived at some level to be a regular guy, but he is not nor has he ever been. Mr Obama may have pushed a humorless and apparently vengeful man closer to the edge.
I hope that Mr Trump comes to the realization he is President of all the people whether he likes or agrees with all of us or not. He is smart enough to consider all our views and not just the ones he thinks his backers want to be forwarded, but I'm not holding my breath.
Seems like the Central and South American solutions of reliance on Generals are trying to cross our mental borders and stopping that influx requires healthy minds and clear eyes.
Donald Trump took offense that "the uppity" Barack Obama panned him and has never nor will he ever forget. Two men engaging in a fight which has ramifications well beyond the the poison in which they dipped their darts. Mr Trump is now President which if he had any presence let alone understanding would have left well enough alone and kept his mouth shut. I use the phrase because it is the most apt description with regard to the level to which our national conversation has stooped.
President Obama is more than smart enough to have had a good idea that then simply executive Trump would not have taken the thoughts he expressed with humor. Nonetheless, he chose to launch them anyway with the fallback excuse of a roast which any regular guy would understand. Mr Trump may be perceived at some level to be a regular guy, but he is not nor has he ever been. Mr Obama may have pushed a humorless and apparently vengeful man closer to the edge.
I hope that Mr Trump comes to the realization he is President of all the people whether he likes or agrees with all of us or not. He is smart enough to consider all our views and not just the ones he thinks his backers want to be forwarded, but I'm not holding my breath.
Seems like the Central and South American solutions of reliance on Generals are trying to cross our mental borders and stopping that influx requires healthy minds and clear eyes.
Are you serious? Trump is Mr. Obama's fault? Please! Give me a break! Trump is Trumps fault.
1
Not my intent. Simply saying Mr Trump may have entered the race because he felt humiliated by Mr Obama who I am sure is smart enough to know his remarks would get under Mr Trump's thin skin. However, I'd be surprised if Mr Obama ever thought Mr Trump would run.
OK, fair enough. But still you're talking about a 71 year old, seemingly adult person that is constantly bragging about his real or imagined accomplishments. Try to grasp the bizarre concept that he is so damaged, so thin skinned that he would run for the office of the presidency to somehow get back at one of the truly accomplished public servants in recent history after spending years disparaging Mr. Obama with his Kenyan / Birther nonsense. . The fact that you would think of that as some sort of explanation or validation means that the notion that Trump is so malformed, so dysfunctional as a person that this sickness he carries has become the norm. That, in and of itself is terrifying. This man, no matter what you might think he reasoning was for running for office is now the living embodiment of an unqualified poser.
1
Everything falls into place with him when you realize, he is an entertainer, not a figure interested in governing anything, but an impersonator of those who love him. As long as they all remain Republican -- he remains in place.
3
When he's forced out--and he surely will be--we get Pence until 2020. He'll be just as bad with a more controlled brand of evil. And if somehow the investigations include him, then we get Paul Ryan. Talk about slim pickings. In any case, the racist agenda will remain intact: passive or tacit inaction is just as bad as a blowhard making overt equivocations (I presume that he wants us to extend it: the original Nazi was opposed by FDR and Churchill. Who in their right mind would equivocate those two with Hitler on a moral plain?)
My late dad, who spent four years in tanks in WWII, must have been one of the original "Anti-fa" members.
The poll numbers keep dropping for the Cretin-in-Chief. One wonders how far down they must go before the spineless GOP Congressmen do something about it.
My late dad, who spent four years in tanks in WWII, must have been one of the original "Anti-fa" members.
The poll numbers keep dropping for the Cretin-in-Chief. One wonders how far down they must go before the spineless GOP Congressmen do something about it.
5
If, as can been claimed, anyone who marches with Nazis is a supporter of Nazis. does the same apply to the other side? Can we then presume that anyone who has ever marched with Al Sharpton is anti-semitic? And anyone who ever protested along Louis Farrakhan was obviously a racist as well, right?
Or do we adopt a more nuanced viewpoint and state that sometimes people with unacceptable views may share a common cause with good people, and we accept their support on some issues while not agreeing with them on others? Or is that too subtle for today's black and white world?
Or do we adopt a more nuanced viewpoint and state that sometimes people with unacceptable views may share a common cause with good people, and we accept their support on some issues while not agreeing with them on others? Or is that too subtle for today's black and white world?
1
Your wise words will fall on deaf ears with these ideologues...
1
Walk with the marcher bearing the banner of evil and you march under that banner. To put it perhaps over simply, you are known by the company you keep.
Losers like a Loser if it makes them feel like they are OK- he's one of them. The more he loses and defies sensibility and becomes the swamp that they all are swimming then it is more out of some sense retribution or acknowledgement that the President - the highest office holder in the country- is just like them.
Denial and subjective fact shifting are their life preservers.
Denial and subjective fact shifting are their life preservers.
2
Fake President Trump has more important things to do than criticize those "fine people" who join protests by Nazi white supremacist anti-Semites. First and foremost, there's his golf game. Do we know his handicap? Yes and no. His handicap as Fake President is lack of informed intelligence. His handicap as golfer is a national secret that even the FBI doesn't know. Our best hope is that he decides to devote the remainder of his fake presidency to golf and delegate the real presidential functions to Generals McMaster, Kelly and Mattis. And assign twittering functions to Jared and Ivanka.
2
So, where in the White House is trump's official portrait going to hang? Most likely a corner space in the basement. A what about his library? Maybe, a storefront on the Upper EastSide. I'm certainly not worried about such things. I'm just saying.
A good spot for the Trump Library would be that swamp he's hard at work draining.
I'm almost fearful of saying we've hit rock bottom.
We've hit it so many times before with this president.
But the bottom has really dropped out with his reactions to events in Charlottesville, and afterwards.
This is not to say they were surprising. Because they weren't.
Anyone who had been paying attention to Donald Trump since the beginning, like most New Yorkers had no choice in doing, knew the deal.
Trump has always been Mean. Avaricious. Vindictive. Racist.
His endorsement by the Ku Klux Klan and white supremacists were hardly surprising. Neither are his core-base of supporters.
But his equating race-hating bigots to the protesters who were confronting their hate was a new low.
So was Trump's declaration that those neo-Nazis were "fine" people.
There's something very wrong with this picture.
One starts to wonder if it's already too late to change it.
If Donald Trump can accomplish all this in only seven short chaotic-filled months, where is this country headed?
AMERICA. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
We've hit it so many times before with this president.
But the bottom has really dropped out with his reactions to events in Charlottesville, and afterwards.
This is not to say they were surprising. Because they weren't.
Anyone who had been paying attention to Donald Trump since the beginning, like most New Yorkers had no choice in doing, knew the deal.
Trump has always been Mean. Avaricious. Vindictive. Racist.
His endorsement by the Ku Klux Klan and white supremacists were hardly surprising. Neither are his core-base of supporters.
But his equating race-hating bigots to the protesters who were confronting their hate was a new low.
So was Trump's declaration that those neo-Nazis were "fine" people.
There's something very wrong with this picture.
One starts to wonder if it's already too late to change it.
If Donald Trump can accomplish all this in only seven short chaotic-filled months, where is this country headed?
AMERICA. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
8
Trump's father Fred was arrested for taking part in a Nazi march/demonstration in NYC....the "fruit doesn't fall far from the tree". No wonder he can't condemn the Nazi marchers. It was in his own family. His empty criticism of Nazi marches came at the command of his 3 handlers in the White House....the 3 generals. Remember the movie "Three Men and a Baby"? The 3 generals trying to control the infantile, narcissistic overgrown baby that is Trump. What a national tragedy!
6
America would have been much better off leaderless than having a president who inflicts damage on us on a daily basis. With the stroke of a pen he erases regulations and programs that were designed to improve our environment, social justice and potentially our national security.
Worse, he poisons the very fabrics of our society by making contradictory statements that at best make no sense and worst cause violence, even death.
And then there are his venomous tweets, a daily reminder why he should be replaced as soon as possible, or at least be restrained to a point where
he causes as little damage as possible while he's still president.
Worse, he poisons the very fabrics of our society by making contradictory statements that at best make no sense and worst cause violence, even death.
And then there are his venomous tweets, a daily reminder why he should be replaced as soon as possible, or at least be restrained to a point where
he causes as little damage as possible while he's still president.
4
He only damages left wing ideology. I can see why you would be upset...
"Trump has personalized the presidency in unprecedented ways — making every battle and every war about his personal feelings."
and so too, has charles m blow (and lots of his colleagues) personalized his analysis, or rather abdicated analysis for one of the most basic devices of failed argument, the ad hominum attack, which we've learned from experience can indeed do harm to the person attacked, (see all the internet/social media assaults and, of course, the hounding of lady di, for starters) but offer no insight or assistance in addressing the issues rather obscured by fervor than illuminated by reason.
trump is no bargain, no vote here, in fact a voice that tried to tell a media distracted by its own clever
"clown" commentary that, like sentries asleep at their posts, they were leaving the gate wide open for a trump victory and all that's sure to come with it.
so now, the condescension a memory, we have the rage which obfuscates the issues, say, for one example (as space permits) the killer who drove the car in charlottesville (who trump did call a killer straight off) was another one of those characters "on the radar" like the lot of terrorists in europe, who walk free because of lax vetting and enforcement which could use some serious attention and reform, some serious journalistic effort in piercing the wall around these slack policies and practices would do a lot more good than blindly lashing out at a sitting clown.
and so too, has charles m blow (and lots of his colleagues) personalized his analysis, or rather abdicated analysis for one of the most basic devices of failed argument, the ad hominum attack, which we've learned from experience can indeed do harm to the person attacked, (see all the internet/social media assaults and, of course, the hounding of lady di, for starters) but offer no insight or assistance in addressing the issues rather obscured by fervor than illuminated by reason.
trump is no bargain, no vote here, in fact a voice that tried to tell a media distracted by its own clever
"clown" commentary that, like sentries asleep at their posts, they were leaving the gate wide open for a trump victory and all that's sure to come with it.
so now, the condescension a memory, we have the rage which obfuscates the issues, say, for one example (as space permits) the killer who drove the car in charlottesville (who trump did call a killer straight off) was another one of those characters "on the radar" like the lot of terrorists in europe, who walk free because of lax vetting and enforcement which could use some serious attention and reform, some serious journalistic effort in piercing the wall around these slack policies and practices would do a lot more good than blindly lashing out at a sitting clown.
The clock is ticking down on this pathetic chapter in our history. It can't wind down fast enough. America is shamed by this man's ignorance, bombast, and his defiance. That he was even elected to the presidency will be a stain on our country for years to come.
3
He was elected to serve the PEOPLE; he serves himself.
Trump is so bad he can even make the despicable worse by association. Witness the general public's justifiable and apparently recently energized repulsion, and willingness to act (removing monuments etc.) against the racism and hatred demonstrated so recently in Charlottesville!
Charles, I can't imagine what is left to say. You've covered it all. I would like to suggest that you focus on the Republicans in Congress. They reign and yet through their cowardice refuse to contain our maniac faux leader.
Oh, I realize that we would end up with Pence and that thought is scary too, but Trump must leave. America doesn't need him.
Oh, I realize that we would end up with Pence and that thought is scary too, but Trump must leave. America doesn't need him.
4
America will go around DT
1
Trump is what writers of the original Star Trek must have had on their minds when they developed the plot for The Doomsday Machine episode...
1
"You don't need a weather man to know which way the wind blows". Bob Dylan
You don't need to see the wink that confirms the signaling that is clear when Donald Trump's opens his mouth either.
A disgrace of a human being as a businessman, as a candidate and now as President. The only pattern of consistent accomplishment.
You don't need to see the wink that confirms the signaling that is clear when Donald Trump's opens his mouth either.
A disgrace of a human being as a businessman, as a candidate and now as President. The only pattern of consistent accomplishment.
1
The pretender in the white house lives in a miasma of nastiness. He even breaths evil. He is a disaster as are his choices for government and his family. Be gone. Get out and vote folks. This is so important.
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"..the person we now call 'president' " .... that is how I shall now refer to him.
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The Great President Trump has withstood and thrived on the most criminal and vicious assault on the Presidency, freedom, and democracy that the fascist left has ever unleashed.
Amen. Check out Ruben Navarette's latest column about how the media has lost its collective mind. And Scott Adams post about how to tell if you are in a media hysteria bubble is very instructive.
There is plenty to criticize about DT, being a NASI isn't one of these things.
There is plenty to criticize about DT, being a NASI isn't one of these things.
I've just heard that 10 Downing Street is going to rename the official cat. (And my neighbor's son, also a Larry, is considering doing the same.)
A very sad and accurate analysis. Vote for Democrats at the midterm election.
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You stated in a previous column that all white supremacist ideology has the ultimate goal of genocide for anyone who is not white. That is as a clear and accurate statement of the mission of all these groups throughout their history. It is the central theme of their own mythology be it Teutonic knights, Aryans, or Confederates.
Hitler told everyone what he was going to do years before he took power in Germany. Trump too has told us so through words and actions, as a landlord denying rentals to blacks, in a full page ad spewing racial hatred over the (later exonerated)Central Park Five, in fomenting hatred by stereotyping Mexicans as rapists, even Muslims fleeing the killing zones of Syria are a threat to his White America. Now, he espouses a logic through his twisted White Supremacist propaganda that Washington and Jefferson being slave holders would have joined with Lee to destroy the nation they founded.
Perhaps most disturbing are the 60% of Republicans who still believe in the leadership of this man.
Hitler told everyone what he was going to do years before he took power in Germany. Trump too has told us so through words and actions, as a landlord denying rentals to blacks, in a full page ad spewing racial hatred over the (later exonerated)Central Park Five, in fomenting hatred by stereotyping Mexicans as rapists, even Muslims fleeing the killing zones of Syria are a threat to his White America. Now, he espouses a logic through his twisted White Supremacist propaganda that Washington and Jefferson being slave holders would have joined with Lee to destroy the nation they founded.
Perhaps most disturbing are the 60% of Republicans who still believe in the leadership of this man.
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Trump saved our nation from a treasonous and corrupt Hillary Clinton Administration. Honestly, DNC, DWS, you sold your soul to install a deeply, hopelessly flawed candidate--and got what you deserved!
For that feat alone, Donald Trump has my admiration and respect.
For that feat alone, Donald Trump has my admiration and respect.
Until both houses of Congress are ordered to act by their handlers, the billionaire boys club, is there any hope to end this nightmare?
At the risk of redundancy, there are no "both sides" to blame. There is no dressing up nor defending of Nazis, the KKK or National Supremacists.
For many Charlottesville was the deal breaker but for most of us it is another insupportable , ignorant act of this amoral man
At the risk of redundancy, there are no "both sides" to blame. There is no dressing up nor defending of Nazis, the KKK or National Supremacists.
For many Charlottesville was the deal breaker but for most of us it is another insupportable , ignorant act of this amoral man
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The Democrats have certainty met the tests of modern-day America: an indiscriminate disregard for the truth, the ability to lie about anything, anywhere, anytime; the will to violently attack all who dare think illegal thoughts, hatred of America, and a Taliban-like fanaticism to destroy historical monuments and burn books
Great description of 45 and the deplorables.
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wake up Larry. Democrats had nothing to do with supporting the apologist in Chief that provides cover for racists.
Charles I emailed you yesterday my Times pick on white racists being "White by law." Here the short version.
End the USCB race system totally. Or start a discussion and watch what the white racists say.
Yes I know, many others embrace that system, created by racists.
End it.
Only-NeverIn Sweden.Blogspot.com
Dual citizen US SE
End the USCB race system totally. Or start a discussion and watch what the white racists say.
Yes I know, many others embrace that system, created by racists.
End it.
Only-NeverIn Sweden.Blogspot.com
Dual citizen US SE
Have you no shame, Mr. Trump? Rhetorical question. It's obvious that you don't. Shame on you, nevertheless.
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As bad as Pence is, he would be better.
Thank you Charles.
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Trump is pandering to the silent majority. Beware !
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Trump got one thing right, Commissioner Evans did a great job.
The pundits argue about how the Democrats will need a coherent and easily explained economic policy that will lead them out of the political wilderness. Though there might be some truth to this, maybe we could use ten million blue caps emblazoned with the catchphrase 'MAKE AMERICA SANE AGAIN".
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No need to reference anything related to Trump's fraudulent campaign that put him in the position he currently holds.
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As Churchill said - If Hitler invaded hell I would make a positive reference to the Devil in the House of Commons.
While the victim in chief embraces Nazis ( and their next of kin, "White Supremacists) and the Republicans hide from view, what is distressing and almost incomprehensible to my simple mind is how his 'followers" still see him as "doing a good job", "getting things done", and as a "great leader".
Try as I might I cannot see what they are seeing. Perhaps Mr. Luettgen can, and can explain it to us.
Try as I might I cannot see what they are seeing. Perhaps Mr. Luettgen can, and can explain it to us.
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There are many women in this country that, while they would never admit it, feel deep down that a woman President is a bad idea.
Where was this opposition when George Bush was elected, uh, I mean appointed?
He was trying to force access to internet provider information six months before the attacks of 9/11 and after that we got the Patriot Act. We got legalized torture, Guantanamo illegal imprisonment, extraordinary renditions, an illegal war in the middle east, a stupid education bill, etc etc.
Liberals are cowards. Trump is nowhere near as dangerous and deadly as George Bush.
He was trying to force access to internet provider information six months before the attacks of 9/11 and after that we got the Patriot Act. We got legalized torture, Guantanamo illegal imprisonment, extraordinary renditions, an illegal war in the middle east, a stupid education bill, etc etc.
Liberals are cowards. Trump is nowhere near as dangerous and deadly as George Bush.
Mr. Blow,
I used to read your columns with some regularity. I thoroughly enjoyed many of them. You are undeniably a gifted writer, and deploy some beautiful imagery.
But with the greatest possible respect, please get a grip. Every single one of your columns, over the past eight months, has been essentially identical. Please do not spend the rest of the Trump Presidency in such a state of hysteria. Yes, Trump is a thug, a liar, a deranged narcissistic who is doing incalculable damage to the United States. But you write for the New York Times, and these facts have been obvious to most of your readership since before Trump was elected. You are preaching to the choir. There is no need to squander your position of public prominence hammering this point home again, and again, and again. There are other stories out there. No one will forget that Trump is an absolute horror. Take a deep breath.
I used to read your columns with some regularity. I thoroughly enjoyed many of them. You are undeniably a gifted writer, and deploy some beautiful imagery.
But with the greatest possible respect, please get a grip. Every single one of your columns, over the past eight months, has been essentially identical. Please do not spend the rest of the Trump Presidency in such a state of hysteria. Yes, Trump is a thug, a liar, a deranged narcissistic who is doing incalculable damage to the United States. But you write for the New York Times, and these facts have been obvious to most of your readership since before Trump was elected. You are preaching to the choir. There is no need to squander your position of public prominence hammering this point home again, and again, and again. There are other stories out there. No one will forget that Trump is an absolute horror. Take a deep breath.
Repeal and Replace must now apply to only one thing and one name : Donald Trump. USA Congress: It is far past time for you to Stand up and be counted.Do your job. Now.
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And just how morally bankrupt are the Republican politicians and appointees who have not repudiated the racist monster in the White House? If they were moral beings they would resign en masse from this horrendous administration.
3
In the past Trump has packed his rallies with paid fans and hired toughs. He has also prohibited protesters to enter thus cancelling ethical freedom of speech. We are all fully aware now of the fascist stylistic of any Trump rally. All Fake!
Trump Must know that his presence anywhere right now, including Phoenix, can only cause violence.He should therefore stay away for his sake, the sake of the country and the sake of the world.
Trump Must know that his presence anywhere right now, including Phoenix, can only cause violence.He should therefore stay away for his sake, the sake of the country and the sake of the world.
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Trump has not only failed as President, he's failed as a human being. He needs to resign.
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While we are correcting the mistakes of the past by removing monuments to a civil insurgency based on legalized enslavement of another human being, why don't we remove the monument to arrogant ignorance we elected President, the biggest mistake this country has ever made?
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Most of us are dumbfounded. Perhaps we will once again vote in greater numbers for the lesser of two evils with the knowledge that it can actually get this bad.
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