The problem is Republicans have not accomplished or passed any specific laws that will help the average American citizens. So what next , we are stuck with a president that has no idea what he is doing . His only interest is self gratification and his rich cronies. So someone has to use this to there advantage , its called politics.Do your jobs , and everything has a way of working out.
As a former Brooklynite, we were part of our Mom's baby carriage brigade many decades ago. It is laudable to cross the proverbial aisle. Nonetheless as Brooklynites by birth the old saying "if you believe me I have a bridge to sell you' flashes brightly in front of me when you're quoted that Trump 'likes you'. Until it doesn't suit him and he derides you once again. It wasn't all that long ago you were called crying Chuck for fake tears. Politics is a game until it isn't. This isn't.
Of course Trump likes them. They have been friends for decades. People forget that Trump is a New Yorker who spent years funding and befriending the Democrats!
Makes you wonder how many political donations Schumer has taken from Trump all these years. Maybe Trump decided to cash in his chips for a political victory.
1
I am obviously happy because not only do we bring one of our great legislative leaders (My Senator Schumer) into making laws instead of his present position as an attack dog for a political party, but a President who understands his job is to administer laws made by our Congress.
We are all aware that our Constitution gives jobs to Legislature, President, but not one word about "political parties"?
What I would like to know what happens to jobs that Americans need, if the DACA is allowed to continue? Seems to me that those jobs would sure help the Americans that need jobs!!!!
2
Schumer and his allies ran for office 40 years ago as a reformers against the political machines in Brooklyn.
Once they gained office, they never gave up the reins of power. Forty years later, NY is a political waste land. Most elections go uncontested. Almost all political contests are fought in religious institutions based on ethnic, racial, or religious issues. Real estate interests rule the city.
It is a sad, undemocratic world, that Schumer and his pals have created.
3
Personally I will wait to be jubilant when it is a done deal. Trump's most consistent personality trait is to play people.
1
Schumer is way out of his league, they need someone like Bernie or Elizabeth Warren leading the party! I'm not even sure how he made captain of that sinking ship?
2
A message to all Democrats that want to end the Trump Presidency, don't be upset with Schumer for stating, 'He likes us'. There is nothing naive in this statement. It was calculated and effective. This is the first time a Democrat has been able stir Trump's base. His base detests Democrats, the thought of Trump building alliances with them shakes his base to the core.
2
Trump needs wins. Dems understand compromise and the need to reign in the far left to get things done. The my way or the highway attitude on the right is just infantile; especially on the far right. Especially when no one can articulate what my way is with intelligence. We live in America, which should be the happiest place on Earth. Why is everyone on the right so disgruntled? Trump likes winners. He probably likes to be around positive people too. Blue States are happy, confident, and prospering despite high regulations, high taxes, and high cost of living. Notice most small businesses are owned by immigrants who thrive in and love America? No job? Just start a business and win like immigrants! When your forefathers came fresh off the boat, that's what they did. Everyone also likes to travel to blue states. Red states have cheap everything yet everyone in Red states are angry, fearful, cowering behind guns, blaming the black man. Does the black man have that much power over you? If he does, guess who's the supreme race? Nobody thinks about visiting red States. Too unhappy. I think Trump, who is from NY, a happy blue State that everyone wants to visit is beginning to see Red States for what it is. He'll say anything to get elected, and to get wins. Trump is for Trump and nobody else. What's up with Red States? Why so angry?
2
He likes to get things done, and if that means making a deal with whoever that is what he will do, but they need to be reasonable to good deals.
1
Apparently Chuck has a short-term memory issue. Only months ago Trump called him "head clown." This connection will last only until Dump's next rage.
2
Schumer said 'he likes me'? So what, even if true. It's disgusting. I don't like politicians who care if Trump likes them. Someone should run against Schumer and use that line in a campaign ad.
2
Dear Chuck: Donald Trump doesn't like you; silly 7th grade statement even if meant humorously.
As to cutting back on immigration, the Democrats are learning that Trump's dealing never ends. There's always something else he will come back for. He's been doing this for his whole business career, so why change now?
5
Republicans have been fractured since the 2010 invasion of the 'Tea Party' - they don't agree on much. Dems will agree if Trump wants to pass legislation that benefits the nation more than just the top 3%.
1
The best comment I can make is a question.
What was the menu?
3
I'm glad a tentative deal was reached on DACA, but, Senator, you like being liked by Trump? Do you not realize that rehabilitating the image of this nightmare of a human being is not what we elected you to do? At least Pelosi had the self-respect not to boast of it. Schumer never met a dog he didn't want to lie down with, if he thought the fleas would give him more power.
4
NFL football season has started. The Democrats Pelosi and Schumer decided to do another end-a-round play against the Freedom Caucus Republicans (the Party of "No") and it worked. The first one worked with the budget and debt ceiling agreement, three points. Lets see if the Democrats can get a touchdown with real DACA legislation. A few deep vertical passes to come.
It is funny that the DACA framework agreement came on a working dinner in the White House with Chinese food. Very American, just like the Big Bang Theory. The Honey Sesame crispy beef must have been outstanding and the fortune cookies enjoyed immensely. I wonder if they ate with chopsticks. LOL
3
Who cares who the Senator or the current President 'like' or whom they 'dislike'. Their job is to do the peoples' business regardless of how they may feel about each other. Let them stop this jejune popularity contest, roll up their sleeves, and get to work on issues important to the country.
5
Let's be honest, Trump never for one second intended to build a wall.
No one believes that Schumer and Pelosi turned him around on immigration by invoking his actions on the Paris Accord and Charlottesville.
And it's comical for him to pretend that he'll have some leverage AFTER he grants a DACA amnesty. If he wanted e-verify or the end of chain migration or anything else he would have made them conditions for an amnesty.
Trump is a fraud. Most people on the left have recognized this for a while. It is now dawning on people on the right now too.
There is only one thing that Trump cares about -- Trump.
5
That was an excellent comment.
2
So 800,000 people who grew up American and are told they have unwittingly (or more correctly, their parents have) violated the law and must be sent "back" to some country which may or may not even want them are irrelevant?
It comes down to "What's in it for me?"
Ah, there is the real America.
All those zombies chanting "Build the Wall."
All those self righteous Republicans echoing the phrase, "We need to follow the law."
Is this the real America? For now, apparently so.
3
Let us see how long this love-fest survives ?
Let us guess- till the next twitter storm?
1
Dear Senator Schumer,
If you honestly believe mr. trump "likes us," trump has a bridge he would like to sell you at the expense of American democracy.
4
Trump got played, period. How is it a deal when he conceded practically everything his racist base wanted and came away with nothing? If he got anything at all out of this its better media coverage for about a week. Schumer knows what he's doing and Trump certainly did not write a single word of Art of the Deal.
1
I'm glad to hear that Mr. Trump is working with Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi.
1
President Trump may be having the sort of moment George W. Bush had when he finally realized that Dick Chaney's advice and counsel was making him look like both a dope and an evil guy. Chaney's influence faded to zilch soon thereafter. Donald Trump reads what people are saying about him. Bannon's gone and the congressional Republican leaders couldn't organize the evacuation of a one car garage. The president may be realizing that if he wants to get anything done, he's going to have to work with the Democrats, who seem to be able to hold discipline pretty well on the easy issues. A sufficient number of Republicans will vote with the Dems on the president's initiatives. On the other hand, the Dems will be almost unanimous in opposing Republican initiatives, few of which will draw unanimous support from the sharply divided Repub caucuses.
3
This is how our government is supposed to work. Instead of confrontation there should be consensus. It's not about "winning" - the job is to do whatever is best for the country. That may seem pollyanna but it is true. The media today, in their frenzy to focus on every bit of minutiae and take their own position thereon, don't help at all. We should be supporting a cross-aisle converation. Keep it up Mr. President, and Chuck and Nancy!
4
Mexico is never gong to pay for 45s fantasy. The ironic thing is if he was able to get the funds to build it the laborers to build it will be mainly people of color. I was assisting the rescue and cleanup efforts prompted by Harvey and you could not see even one or two white faces doing the heavy lifting or running the bulldozers etc. It struck my as odd at first but then as I moved around Houston I realized that this was the reality of our times even here in Red State Texas so good luck 45 on the wall thingee.
1
The only thing I see produced by this meeting was a Chinese meal. But we have to be grateful that at least they didn't have a food fight.
Hint to the Democratic Congressional Leadership - Trump likes winning and responds to bottom lines. So show him the math, the real math, on Medicare for All, and maybe he'll bite.
2
I have noticed that most "conservatives" and many "liberals" who decry the injustice of deporting "dreamers" because they are not responsible for the actions of their parents seem to have little or no concern about the countless injustices inflicted upon so many other Americans who are born into impoverished or otherwise disadvantaged families in a society in which class divisions are increasingly wide. This makes me suspect that many of the persons whose hearts bleed for the "dreamers" are more concerned about promoting a pro-immigration and multicultural agenda than in preventing injustices to individuals. Although there are credible arguments for helping the "dreamers" attain citizenship, there are also strong policy arguments against a policy that encourages and rewards illegal immigration. I see no sound policy reasons at all, however, for the perpetuation of the many injustices suffered by the children of impoverished American citizens, including stingy financing of day care centers and school lunch programs and widespread disparities in the funding of public school districts.
2
The injustice is that the dreamers didn't have the agency necessary to intentionally break the law. It's about fundamental principles of western jurisprudence. Totally unrelated to poverty.
Depending on which way this goes, it's going to be interesting to see if Trump voters really do have an unwavering need to follow.
As for Schumer, getting more publicity than "the Donald," may be a deal breaker. Him and Pelosi both need to zip it.
1
Why do people hate these young adults? Imagine growing up in Italy, speaking only Italian, attending an Italian church and studying at an Italian university and being told that you now must go live in Yemen. These young people have taken nothing from American citizens. Each of us is free to compete for their jobs, their college admissions and their apartments. The fact that they have jobs and attend college and pay for their own apartments just shows us how valuable they are.
DACA recipients ARE citizens, as far as I am concerned. I don't understand the hatred at all.
1
"What's in it for me?" That self-aggrandizing goal and purpose seems to be at the core of just about everything this president does and says. It's his main theme. The sole conviction that moves him. It rules. But It's also blinding and creates unpredictable decisions like DACA, for example, that's unfairly turning Dreamer's raw emotions into yo yo's. So, it could be said, that Donald Trump is like a weather vane changing his mind according to the fickle winds that tell him whether or not he's winning. Thus, in my view, it's inaccurate for Chuck Schumer to conclude "He Likes us." No! He likes himself. But power comes with that knowledge. Namely, whatever decisions Chuck, Nancy and the Dems want this president to make, simply requires that they frame it in how it will benefit him; how it will make him a winner. Sad!
1
So proud of "Chuck and "Nancy." They may be saving America as well as DACA. Thank you both!
Whatever else, Schumer gave Trump sound advice about not boxing himself in - it is a good thing to be able to waltz when appropriate.
He's doing it to keep everyone off balance and guessing, to try to shift the focus away from Russia, because he's angry at the Republican leadership, and because it's his whom if the moment. Anyone who believes this means anything more than that is crazy.
Even the Clintons said Trump can be very charming. Remember "he's a lot of fun"?
Someone who thinks Trump really likes them is someone who has been charmed.
Watch out, Dems!
6
Remember all of those angry FB posts by Democrats claiming they would NEVER, EVER work with Donald Trump on any issue? Well, reality seems to be intervening at last. As Bismark said so famously: "Politics is the art of the possible, the attainable — the art of the next best." Put another way, you get what you can get." The so-called "Progressives" in their coastal bunkers must be having screaming fits about this news, but the rest of us in the great middle of America are (generally speaking) quite happy to see the White House and Congress working together again. Bravo for them. Bravo for the Dreamers!
Full Disclosure: I didn't vote for either DT or HRC in November 2018, but I did vote in all down-ticket races.
3
What DACA agreement? I'll believe it after the legislation has been signed and the Supreme Court has upheld it.
4
Senator Schumer would do well to remember not to upstage or outshine this president throughout these delicate negotiations. Particularly as the flies on the wall are already perhaps strategically doing it for him.
3
Fantasies of Democrats making deals with Trump remain just that until they are written into law. Trump does indeed have one negotiating skill, that of convincing gullible minds into believing that a deal has been made. Think as recently as Trump negotiations with Mitt Romney for Sec. of State. Trump had everyone convinced that Mitt was in the running, and then went out of his way to deliberately embarrass a man who had been corrosively critical of him during the campaign. Trump has not actually made any appointments of anyone who has been that critical of him, yet he had Mitt convinced. Trump told Schumer and Pelosi what he thought they wanted to hear; he'll do whatever he pleases with complete disregard for any agreements that seem to have been made. The Administration is already denying the existence of those agreements that Schumer and Pelosi were convinced had been made at dinner.
7
Limits -- annual numerical limits -- on immigration are needed.
And the limits need to be seriously enforced.
Weak enforcement and endless exceptions and amnesties mean no limits.
America already grants more than one million green cards every year,
the right to permanent legal residence,
more than granted by any other country.
That is plenty.
More are not needed.
On top of that, we are the only major country other than Canada
to grant birthright citizenship without regard to legal immigration status of the parents.
As for Canada, that supposed paragon of immigration virtue,
it has the luxury of a 1500 mile buffer between it and Latin America,
a luxury that the USA does not have.
Thus, Canada can, and is, far more selective about the persons who can get into Canada.
Already, more than 35 million foreign-born persons are citizens or LPRs,
That is plenty.
More are not needed.
We do not need citizenship or LPR status for the 11 million additional who are illegal aliens,
and we certainly do not need more illegal aliens.
More are not sustainable.
All other major countries have limits.
And all other major countries have far more effective control and enforcement.
It can be done.
It ought to be done.
1
Just curious, do you think there is no other solution for the Dreamers other than deportation?
Did I say a word about deportation of Dreamers?
Here is what I said.
No citizenship for current Dreamers.
No LPR status for them.
If they want to stay,
they will have to get used to a perpetually temporary status here.
Their supposed innocence does not entitle them to more from us.
If that is not good enough for them, they have the option to leave.
No more amnesties.
That means no new Dreamers --
i.e. no Dreamer status for those who don't already have it --
they've had five years to take advantage of it,
and if they have not by now, too bad for them,
however innocent they claim to be.
And no amnesty for anyone else of any age.
Enforce the borders to drastically reduce new illegal aliens of all ages from coming in.
i.e. enforce the Southern border
- do not distract with references to the minuscule flow from the North.
If you don't want the Wall, then propose something else to secure the border. If you cannot, then the Wall it will be. Even if Mexico does not pay.
BTW -- the issue is not Trump and his promises. The issue is immigration control -- Trump or no Trump.
Track and monitor visa overstays -- half of all illegals --
but, just keep in mind that half of all visa overstays are Latin Americans --- that is on top of the border jumpers, nearly all Latin American --
-- so, altogether, 80 per cent of all illegal aliens are Latin Americans --
--so, don't distract with tales of European and Asian visa overstays.
Reached my NYT word limit. So that is it for now.
The only thing on Trump's mind is the Mueller investigation and being laid bare in front of congress who can impeach him. So .... Trump throws a Chinese dinner. Everyone knows that Trump doesn't care about anything other than his own well being. Look for Trump to invite over to the White House the blue collar senators and representatives for a fine meat loaf dinner with everyone getting two scoops of ice cream.
2
You have heard of THC? Now hear of THT. THC- Trojan Horse Trump. He got into the GOP or more like under their skins. Just listen to Coulter, Breitbart, and all radio freak-shows. They simply don't know what to do with a THT.
2
Legalization for current DACA only. DACA DEAD for anybody NOT currently in line. No citizenship. No more DACA. DAPA DEAD....they've been here for years and have done nothing to make themselves legal. DAPA..self-deport. FAMILY MIGRATION....DEAD. It's time for the United States to follow the letter of the law and strongly enforce our immigration laws, protect our borders by whatever means are necessary, and make sure President Trump listens to the millions of voters who voted for him. NO AMNESTY.
3
Um, Fox News and Breitbart is that ➡ way buddy.
11
What's with the chandeliers?
2
The Democrats are making a huge mistake in cooperating with Trump, the same kind of mistake - if not of the same magnitude - that German politicians made when they cooperated with Hitler in the 1930`s.
Schumer`s naivete in declaring that Trump likes him is nothing short of astonishing. Schumer never bothered to take a decent course on psychology during his years at Harvard, it seems. It is painfully obvious that he has no idea what a pathological narcissist really is like.
If Democrats lose sight of the true depth of Trump`s immorality, they will end up as manure to grow his ego well beyond 2020.
8
I think Chuck knows exactly who he's dealing with. But if that mercurial man likes Chuck and Nancy, it's easier to manipulate him to get what they want.
OK, then you approve of DACA ending I take it? I disagree.
I think you are vastly underrating Schumer's political and strategic acumen. I've watched him since he was my Congressman in the late 1980s and this man is no ingénue. He and Nancy are playing DT like a fine Stradivarius.
So much for a negotiator! He backed down on DACA so that he can back down on the wall... Expert at lose lose strategy.
2
The nation's business is not being done. Trump sees his ratings plummet and reaches out to legislators who can get those bills passed. Oddly, they are not from his own party. All that really has to happen is that the Freedom Caucus has its legs cut out from under it. Schumer and Pelosi will be more than happy to team up with Trump, McConnell, and Ryan to make that so.
1
Just another example showing Trump is building his own party and following.
Chuck and Nancy,
Please plant the idea in his empty head that the happiest he could ever make the American people is by saying the simple words: "I resign."
Thank you.
5
He can't resign now. Pence won't work with the Democrats. At least Trump finally realized that he's not going to get anywhere with McConnell et al.
5
McConnell, Ryan and the GOP establishment have a big, big problem. Turns out the guy they thought they could control is now going rogue on them and is being outmaneuvered by Schumer and Pelosi who are master politicians dealing with a neophyte. They have him figured out, know his vulnerabilities and how to exploit them. And all the GOP can do is sit on the sidelines and watch the game, having demonstrated their inability to accomplish anything. And then be blamed for that failure by their base.
Mother of Mary, what a sweet day.
9
Schumer and Pelosi know what works in Washington. They know constitutional government They can play Trump like a fiddle. Trump is clueless. He is a charter member of the know-nothing society. And never underestimate the power of "sesame crispy beef."
5
Chuck and Nancy, please beware! I fear 45's deal making with you two will turn out to be another "steak dinner at trump tower with Romney." 45 filled Mitt with all sorts of hope about being the next Secretary of State, which had no intention of fulfilling, and then I'm sure he had a big laugh afterwards when he pulled out the rug. I fear he's doing the same with you two. He talks the talk, then, like he's done so many times before, he'll make an about face and laugh at how he fooled you. And his base will be on board once more. Hope you didn't have steak at your dinner meeting.
6
Well, Kelly is obviously a nut - that's too bad but at least the Democrats are working with Trump and that's how this country works best. McConnell is probably going nuts because he initiated the don't work with Obama policy which left lawmaking in tatters.
So, for a change, kudo's to Trump for bridging the divide in his attempts to get SOMETHING done.
3
Schumer and Pelosi were smart to immediately blast out the news of this alleged deal, doing their best to get out the word in attempt to pin Trump down to honor his words to them.
But despite the public posturing, they are like all of us, they know Trump's word means absolutely nothing.
11
Nice to see the Democrats fighting for the rights of non-citizens at the expense of the citizens. Heaven forbid they do anything but tax the rest of us.
1
People are people. Help those who need it without asking where they were born first.
GOP Congress have been obstructing the work for the American people. I voted for Trump so he would disrupt this logjam. I dont care how he does it.
1
American voters voted to get the Wall build and ensure an orderly immigration and border crossing; no more people from South America dying to make the porous border, no more drug smugglin' and people with a criminal record sneaking in. The Democrats should respect the will of the past election if they want our votes in 2020, (I voted Trump for President, Dems for Congress). They should fund the wall ASAP and put e-verify nationwide in the bill. An amnesty without fixing the issue that created the problem in the first place, makes no sense.
4
I don't believe for one moment the aides who claim that Trump has expressed concern for dreamers. The only concern he has is for himself and if he'll get elected again. (Does he know this is only legally possible to do twice? Somebody really ought to tell him now.) So he's making deals with some Dems because he thinks it's expedient for him to do so. If he changes his mind (today, tomorrow, whenever) he'll do the opposite. Or not. Or . . . the Dems who work with this man closely are playing with fire.
1
I wouldn't be surprised if Trump does yet another 180 on this issue and decides to support a mass deportation of Dreamers after all. Ever the narcissist, he may see too many headlines that imply he was a weak or foolish negotiator on DACA, then renege on the deal to replenish his ego. (It's never about the issue itself; it's always about how triumphant he thinks he may appear in the grand media narrative.)
His cult-like fan base can then resume chanting stupid stuff at his rallies.
1
Trump likes you? Yeah-Right! In the hierarchy of Trumpland; Trump, first and foremost, likes Trump; then he likes his family (as long as they stay in-line); then he likes the people who work for him (as long as they stay in-line); then he likes his customers who buy his products and services (as long as they keep spending); then he likes his business partners (as long as they are willing to re-negotiate every deal); and the list goes on… But, most of all Trump likes Trump!
Schumer figures he made a good deal. Unfortunately, Trumps track record is that no deal is complete without multiple rounds of re-negotiation, revision, more negotiations, more revisions, ad nauseam. Trump loves the constant churn, the infighting, and most of all winning according to his own rules and definitions.
There is no deal yet, and there won’t be until the legislation is signed. Even then Trump will threaten to undo the legislation he signed with yet-another Executive Order.
3
It is unfortunate that Mr. Schumer lacks the graciousness to acknowledge a framework for decision created by coequal branches. Waste no time wasting political capital.
I defy any historian to find a point in our history when the issue of immigration hasn't caused heartburn. Except of course if the immigrant and his/her is rich, then that's a different ball of wax. You can always buy your way into this country.
What vexes politicians are those folks who have little but the shirts on their backs. What do they offer? Potential? The Party of No does not like that one bit.
The population of the world is, after all, growing at an unsupportable pace and much of the world is linked via electronics. Where will they live in the meantime? The GOP's answer is "not on my block."
It seems to me that Schumer's plan is the one that even dippy *45 can understand.
3
If Democratic ideas are enacted, that's a good thing. It's hard to accept anything coming from Trump as a good thing. But it is what it is. I'll take any good thing I can get in these grim times.
3
Here are the keys to working with Trump:
". . . if he wanted to do any big deals" [emphasize BIG DEALS]
". . . if you can sometimes step right and sometimes step left" [appealing to Trump's fondness for being unpredictable, feinting left and then right]
1
What Trump didn’t envision was the ferocious backlash from the very core of his base.
Brietbart is running story after story about self-identified “Deplorables” burning or trashing their red MAGA hats.
Hence the quick reversals on Trump’s part.
1
Love it! Trump playing both sides off against each other, keeping them all off balance and wondering about his next move. Of course he'll likely turn on Nancy and Chuck next week. There is no vision, strategy or clear direction, just a daily parade of media antics. All this diverts attention from his failures on so many fronts, from health care to The Wall). Stay tuned to next week's WH reality TV show!
2
I'm a conservative and I would strongly prefer that the Wall be part of the Dreamer deal. I could support a path to citizenship for Dreamers as part of the deal.
But I trust Trump to not sell conservatives or the country out; something I can't say regarding the Republicans in the House or Senate -- particularly the leadership. And, let's be honest, establishment Republicans and Democrats have done very little for America these past few decades.
If Ronald Reagan and Tip O'Neil, two Irishmen, could partner for the good of the country, I see no reason Donald Trump and Chuck Schumer, two New Yorkers, can't use their personal chemistry to help move the country forward.
3
There will be no wall. Ever. Get used to that idea.
I think the Democrats should be very careful how much credit they let Trump garner for getting deals done. Fundamentally, he and his toadies are doing substantial damage to the country every single day. He needs to be swept out of office at the earliest opportunity.
DACA had to be dealt with, but there's no way Republican tax reform will be good for the country. Protecting the ACA, hurricane relief, and major infrastructure investments might be the remaining issues where a deal is essential. But with bitterly divided Republican caucuses, the Democrats should drive a very hard bargain for their votes. Otherwise, they should cooperate on very little. I hate to say it but obstruction worked for the Republicans for eight long years.
1
This feint-by-feint, schmooze-by-schmooze report , based on information from those in a position to know what really happened (it is said) is the most realistic and believable account I have seen in the media of what actually happens when Trump meets with anyone in the White House at his "deal-making" dinners.How to find out what actually goes on in these meetings is not helped by both sides (e.g. Schumer and Trump) burbling offhand about what went on with microphones inadvrtently opena, and/or to third parties or to the media.
1
Can't we just acknowledge that a deal on DACA is a good thing for the country, and commend all parties- Trump, Schumer, Pelosi, Ryan ( who will get it through the House). Then, avoid the irresistible compulsion to criticize, blame, mock and ridicule as so many have done here.
It has been so rare for our leaders to actually work together that we should celebrate and encourage it, rather than using it to score political points.
1
I think we need to give "priority" status to DACA immigrants who are part of the LGBT community since they have struggled and endured more than other DACA immigrants. It's the right thing to do and anyone who disagrees with me is an anti-immigrant, racist, homophobic xenophobe!
After 240+ years, why do these people still need to learn how to work together for America, not their party? When they go to DC, what causes them to forget about getting things done and focus on just benefiting their party? ... Reelection! Maybe it's time to find a way to take that off the table. Whether it's public financing, a third party, stronger rules with REAL enforcement, whatever, something needs to change.
7
How about this: you can run for re-election, but it must be in a different district. For Senators, a different state. That is a type of trm limit that I would support.
I guess when you think about this it makes sense. The republican party is riven by dissent, with groups like the "Freedom Cacus" whose ideas of good legislation would be to eliminate all government agencies and having the US go back on the Gold Standard. They will never vote for anything and will buck the republican leadership every time. So if the President wants to get anything done, he has to make it attractive enough for the Democrats to vote for it and then those Republicans that agree with him or fear him will go along. Quite a coalition.
5
If, as Trump once said,he could murder anyone in Fifth Ave and not lose a vote, then making a deal with Democrats--particularly over a humane issue like DACA--should not make him lose a single vote or "finish him off"... Interesting values those Republican Americans (especially Christian evangelicals like the Tea Party, Pence, etc. ) seem to hold. Murder is Ok, but DACA is not--or,put another way, DACA is politically worse than murder. A scary view of the souls of those Americans. What would their God say...?
4
Steven Miller needs to go. Home.
5
In due time Auntie, he will.
2
Senator Schumer is winging it in a high-risk political game that may yet burn us.
2
Yes, Sen Schumer is an inexperienced greenhorn in over his head. Not.
1
Does anybody out there still believe Trump will stick with this plan, or any plan, for more than a week or so? The NYT can do itself a big favor by getting ahead of the story behind next week's big headline:
"Trump Backs Away From Dem DACA Agreement; Right Rejoices"
You know it's going to happen, NYT. Go ahead and start reporting on it.
4
I wouldn't trust Trump as far as I could throw him.
Consider his history in business. He has cheated everyone he could -- stiffing workers and suppliers, lying whenever possible, making promises he had no intention of keeping.
Nancy and Chuck -- don't let him fool you, too.
7
Little Sisters of the Poor vs. the Golden State Warriors. Total neophyte vs. seasoned pro.
Go Chuck.
1
Who knows what's going on in Trump's head.
Maybe he was influenced by something his fortune cookie said.
10
I wonder why Mr. Mueller wasn't invited.
1
If this was North Korea, Donald Trump would have done away with both Schumer and Pelosi a long time ago.
2
Did they, um, smoke anything before the Chinese food
1
I didn't know people still ate Chinese food. What with Thai and Vietnamese food, who wants to eat basic moo goo gai pan, chow mein, lo mein, etc?
Maybe the cooks added an extra dose of MSG in Trump's Chinese food that put him in a temporary but drug-addled conciliatory mood. The guy is a reed blowing in the wind. The Democrats need to blow harder.
3
What deal?
2
Trump has never respected any deal he's made. His life is a trail of broken promises, shafted partners (even with his small fingers), lies, cheats, fraud and more. I am shocked SHOCKED that Trump voters are surprised that he has added them to the list of all those he betrayed.
6
The irony of discussions about borders, blockades, deportations and undesirable immigrants while eating CHINESE TAKEOUT food is as laughable as the swiveling about-face this fraud of a President does hourly on people and "official" government positions and policies.
10
"Chinese" food around here [NYC] contains prodigious amounts of broccoli, a vegetable developed by an Italian Botanist named, naturally, Broccoli in the late 1800's. How does it get into american Chinese food and did the white house kitchen use any? Inquiring minds.....
Have to laugh at the Trump base now burning their "Make America Great Again" hats.
Trump showed some sincerity in his remarks about victims of Irma and Harvey but I don't expect him to change his spots. He'll work with Democrats because the Republicans are split into multiple factions, arguing amongst themselves. Trump wants to be a "winner" as he says. His world is still that of the playground where there are only winners and losers.
It's never wise to rely on a candidate's promises following him into the White House.
Trump's supporters wanted a President who would shake things up in government, they just didn't expect he would shake up their world as well.
4
Sen. Schumer and Rep. Pelosi are very sharp people. They know what they are dealing with in Donald Trump. So I have not problem with agreements that give Democrats what they want in return for reasonable concessions to the Republicans. If the Republicans and Trump ask for too much — like the wall or a ban on Muslims entering the country — then no deal. I'm sure that Schumer and Pelosi will hold the line.
3
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said today that the Trump would endorse a bill permitting DACA enrollees to stay if it were part of a package providing both "enhanced border security” and “enhanced interior enforcement." Congress should enact legislation that grants citizenship to DACA enrollees but (1) authorizes state, county and city police to enforce immigration law, (2) empowers states, counties and cities to make it unlawful for unauthorized immigrants to reside within their jurisdictions, (3) makes E-Verify mandatory nationwide, (4) and changes asylum laws to deny asylum to anyone who enters the country illegally. If these measures were put into effect, we wouldn’t need a border wall or a border fence.
2
They should add the anchor babies to the list!
Or, even cheaper and easier, start arresting people who hire illegals, that would put the binders on, as my dad used to say.
I heard the press secretary say that but who can we believe today-The Democratic channels say one thing, the Republican say another and I understood it it until the President met with the Democrats over chinese food and every thing changed. I am thinking of not watching the news any more or reading any political news in the paper.
Trump's mojo is to do a deal and get credit. Feed him and you now feed America. Red or blue is not at issue.
4
The DACA issue is a pimple that Mr. Trump is using to get more security at the border, and to take a stance that his base will support if the Dems don't go along. Then any DACA debacle will be blamed on the Dems. Who could seriously argue about stronger security at the very porous border with Mexico (drugs, human trafficking, illegal immigration = human tragedies)? DACA is a cheap give. Obama’s order was plainly illegal, but nobody is going to send to Mexico (90% of DACA people) people who are now on average 26 and came here on average at age six - i.e. not at age of consent, so committed no offense. Whether they are nice people, go to college or serve in the Armed Forces is irrelevant.
Once the "principled" right wing calms down, it will see this for what it is: a reasonable move by Trump - i.e. he can't lose. Plus: message to establishment Reps and those Reps who would rather hang on "principle" than stand on results: work with me or I'll throw you under the bus. The image of Mr. Ryan, the Hamlet of Congress, in that position is heart-warming.
All in all, well done, Mr. President.
3
"Obama’s order was plainly illegal"
It's not plain to me.
BUT if Obama's order IS plainly illegal, then Trump's order on immigration from Muslim-majority countries is plainly illegal for the same reason.
3
No, Dan, no. Nice try, no cigar.
Obama usurped immigration policy .. who is a legal immigrant, or citizen, or legal resident, and so on, is the purview of Congress, since Congress makes laws, including immigration laws, subject to the Constitution. The President does not make, though through his oath of office he enforces, immigration laws - laws made by Congress.
The travel ban is not a ban on immigration, it is a ban on who physically gets admitted to the US, who can cross our border. Trump formulated it as a national security measure, squarely in his purview. The fact that it is temporary (until conditions are satisfied that would make travelers from those countries not a national security risk) is proof that it is a measure based on the President's judgment at the time, not a sweeping law.
DACA is a sweeping law made by executive decree. Illegal.
You are mistaken in your analysis.
1
He's desperate to get something done, a "deal." If he can't do it with Turtle and the Geek, he's had to turn elsewhere.
As long as Chuck and Nancy can advance what is good for the American people, and with DACA, the debt ceiling, and extending the budget deadline, what's the harm in crossing the aisle.
We certainly don't want our side to pass up a chance to do what's right. Making a deal with the devil as we did with Stalin, ain't bad but keep your eyes open while doing that.
1
I guess takes a New York attitude to take on a New Yorker like Trump. A blunt, take no prisoners, direct frontal assault - with or without well placed profanity. Going halfway or beating around the bush doesn't work. You have to show him you aren't afraid and you have to make sure you're powerful enough to back it up.
.
Schumer was the right guy to do it.
4
The 'dreamers' should be secure in their right to remain in the US. I mean what good is one term of college without the possibility of graduating? What employer will spend the money training a new recruit who's likely to be gone in 6 months? People need to know where they stand. What Republicans need to do is think back to the situation that so many Americans found themselves in in 2008, when we lost thousand of dollars we had counted on for our future financial viability, only the have the rug pulled from under us. As far as future immigration is concerned, we should have a referendum on whether or not we want open borders. It the vote is positive, problem solved. If the vote is negative, we need to have unambiguous, stringently enforced laws governing immigration, with immediate deportation for those who cross the border illegally, unless they can claim refugee status. The current (lawless) situation mostly benefits wealthy individuals & businesses, who can hire illegal immigrants for well below minimum wage, which incidentally, drags the who wage scale downwards.
19
And who would guarantee that referendum wouldn't be rigged and influenced by Russia? But then, maybe with open boarders, they wouldn't need to knock themselves out spying on us.
Doesn't matter what Trump does -- even if he does something that actually is good by encoding DACA in law -- no self-respecting, intelligent person will ever vote for him because ultimately he is a traitorous, racist, grifting, misogynist with one interest -- himself.
5
The election is over and Trump won. A vote is a vote regardless of the qualities of the voter.
...and in other news... RUSSIA RUSSIA RUSSIA RUSSIA...
Somehow I think this is Trump's attempt to preemptively solicit public good will now that the most damning evidence from the Russia probe is just starting to come to light...
NY Times, please keep your eyes on the REAL story. RUSSIA.
8
I must admit to thoroughly enjoying the response to Mr. Trump’s latest escapades. From Anne Coulter calling for impeachment to images of diehard Trump followers burning their Make America Great Again hats, it’s been one treat after another
The one thing Trump’s followers CANNOT say at this point is that no one warned them.
They did.
Mitt Romney labeled Trump a fraud, a phony and a con artist. Ted Cruz stated it better than any liberal has ever managed to: Trump lies all the time, he lies so often that he has no idea when he’s lying.
Trump supporters have no one but themselves to blame. They blindly and boldly marched past dozens of huge flashing red neon warning signs: Trump cannot be trusted about anything. He’ll say anything at any time to make his case. He cares about himself and absolutely nothing else. Trump’s followers sneered at the warning signs as they marched past them, brazenly defiant of all rational thought.
Their motive, of course, was racism. Trump validated their racist anger and resentment. They threw all logic and reason out the window and followed him, exactly as the people of Germany abandoned both their moral values and their brains and followed Hitler into genocide and horror.
Only now, finally, are they realized they were conned. Conned by the greatest con artist on earth. It is not only Mr. Trump who disgraces our country. His millions of supporter bring shame on this country.
7
Trump is not the greatest con artist on earth. He didn't con Romney, he didn't con Cruz, he didn't even con the Bushes.
3
The danger for Democrats is that this mercurial president can change his mind, sometimes within the space of 5 minutes.
On the other hand, they played this one well, going to the cameras early in the AM to announce the makings, even if not concluded, on a deal.
I think Schumer and Pelosi, for a time anyway, can get away with this until Donald Trump gets fed up with having these two "confirm" their understanding. I frankly don't think he's used to having his words played back to him, so soon after making them.
It's a new challenge for him because the GOP seems to roll over and play dead for him. The Democrats will not do this, nor will they let him off the hook the way some Republicans let things pass in the spirit of comity.
Let's see how he takes this and if it continues. I won't be surprised, however, if it doesn't.
6
"How Democrats Hammered Out ‘Dreamer’ Plan With Trump"
i guess you can keep saying this over and over again and hope it happens but in reality there is no deal until actual votes take place and it's highly unlikely something will get voted on that includes amnesty. dems and trump can make plans and deals all they want but they're powerless in introducing legislation and bringing to vote if congressional gop refuses to play.
3
Trump may have realized the republicans can't govern even when they are in the majority and that much of their agenda, from tax cuts for the rich to their rejection of climate change science and clean energy, is not supported by most Americans. Trump needs democrats and moderate republicans if he wants to get anything constructive done. Above all, Trump wants approval and he won't get it if he follows the republican lead.
3
The President only "likes" one person.
5
Because, as we saw with Ted Cruz, 'liking' can be costly.
2
Donald Trump just wants good press. That's why he met with Democrats. It's also why he's flying to Florida__he loves the positive press his trips to Texas achieved.
But if the Democrats__or the people in Texas or Florida__expect Trump to act in good faith and actually do something constructive, (deal with climate change, be humane regarding immigrants, etc), tell them to talk with Al Gore about his "very hopeful" meeting with the president before Trump appointed Scott ("now's not the time to discuss climate change") Pruitt as head of the EPA.
Some people never learn.
www.newyorkgritty.net
7
Please Chuck and Nancy, etc. wipe away your smiles and do not gloat. Be serious and subdued. You are dealing with a dangerous unstable fellow. Play along and be wary. This guy can turn on a dime for almost no reason. Like a hostage that plays along with his captor, this is about survival and escape. We can gloat when he is safely out of power and hopefully locked up someday.
14
Perhaps it is overanalyzing, but is Mr. Trump capable of calculating that working with democrats, and undercutting Mr. McConnell and Mr. Ryan, may lead to primary wins by hard-line, "Freedom Caucus" type Republicans. These candidates may then win in the general elections. pushing the House and Senate further to the right and into truly terrifying territory. On the other hand, these candidates may lose with congress moving towards Democrat control. Either way, what a show. I actually think Trump is showing his true colors, i.e. he has no fundamental belief system (other than his brand) and is just desperate for a success, any success!
3
Here's to hoping that, if any deal is to be made, Trump works it out with Schumer and Pelosi as quickly and quietly as possible. Even if Trump wants an agreement, I'm not confident in his ability to publicly support this reach across the aisle if Republican leadership is vocal in their criticism. He'll back out and stop any negotiations are if he feels like he's being attacked by Republicans-- popularity is more important than progress to him.
1
This is not the last time Mr. Trump will work with Democrats. He will deal with anyone to get the deal done, party means nothing. This President has 50 years of negotiating experience while his predecessor had zero negotiating experience. The previous president when we was elected said "The Republicans can come along for the ride but they have to sit in the back seat." Obama's self centered ideology overwhelmed any negotiating with the other side.
3
Trumpcare = no deal.
Waiting.
1
Give me a break. Before Obama had spent a day in office the republican leadership had met and planned to make sure his presidency failed, They wouldn't even support their own ideas if Obama suggested them.
4
No, Republicans hated Obama because of his skin color, things change but they remain the same, That was why he couldn't accomplish anything.They did not want him to succeed.
1
“He likes us. He likes me, anyway,” If true- this would be a first. I have yet to see any evidence that Doanld J. Trump likes anyone other than Donald J. Trump. I view this as simply further evidence that the man has absolutely no principles and believes in absolutely nothing other than his own greatness. It must be admitted however that occasionally - no principles are better than really bad principles - (see e.g. some of his supporters).
3
There's a story in a story here. Schumer and Pelosi may think they're the straw stirring Trump up. Maybe its Kelly.
In 1993 Colin Powell, who'd just been Joint Chief, made a key argument that pushed NAFTA through the Senate. Without it, he said the US would have a failed state on its southern border. Tens of thousands of troops would be permanently stationed for 'low-intensity' war.
Now Gen. Kelly makes the argument again, this time for border security.
When generals talk, the public yawns. Not Presidents and Senators, constantly reminded of international conflict.
Kelly reputation is a non-ideologue, with little interest in ordinary politics. His intervention in Trump, Schumer, and Pelosi's debate stands out.
Kelly's military view? A wall is a joke. Just don't blindside me with border crossers I can't detect. And any program that brings the undocumented into the system is good. Then they're "known knowns".
Trump is shallow. Kelly will dominate him. Schumer can help, but he's no general.
2
Excellent analysis
1
Our problems with Mexico are not with "illegal immigrants" who were brought here as children and are currently serving in the Armed Services, in school, working productively and contributing in a positive way to our economy. Nor is our problem the large numbers of migrant farm workers, meat packing workers, restaurant bus boys, dish washers, etc., from Mexico who for generations have helped greatly to keep our food prices low....and who have often been egregiously exploited.
Our problem is our insatiable demand as a society for illegal drugs, which has led to a failed "war on drugs", enabled Mexican drug lords to become fabulously wealthy and powerful and has contributed greatly to corruption and misery on both sides of the border. This situation has become beyond hypocritical. Once again, we have met the enemy...and it is us.
140
If our demand for illegal drugs is "insatiable" then it is their illegality that is the problem, not the drugs.
Given too many idiotic and moralist leaders is it any surprise people turn to drugs and alcohol? And those in power (and I don't mean the politicians but instead those behind them who are pulling the strings) have no incentive to change anything as long as they are getting what they want -- and they are. Having no real power to change anything ourselves, we blissfully enjoy our drugs and alcohol....
Mr. Trump’s journey through life has consisted of one swindle after another.
Whether it was his phoney baloney bone spurs to beat the draft, his bankrupting of Atlantic City, his eviction of senior citizens from his properties, his cheap neckties made in China, his defrauding of students at Trump University, his birtherization project, his tax avoidance schemes, his dalliances with Mr. Putin, his alliance with Sheriff Joe or his hanging around beauty contestants to ogle teenagers, his motive has always been the same: to get more of everything for himself in the cheapest, basest way he can.
We need to stop psychoanalyzing this man in hopes of changing him or changing the outcome of future events for the better. We already know that he is a man supremely unconcerned about everyone but himself. We already know that he is a man of profoundly low character. We already know that he is an ignoramus who never should have been elected President. We already know that as long as he remains in office, our very future as a people will remain in danger.
I don’t care about health care, the environment, tax relief or North Korea. These are all minor matters compared to him.
I just want to see him turned out of office. For colluding with the Russians, for tax fraud, for violations of the Mann Act, for unpaid parking tickets or -- if necessary -- for unpaid library fines (yes, I know he doesn’t read); I don’t care which.
Come on, Mr. Mueller, get busy.
4
Let us hope that Kim Jong Un and Pres. Trump don' t have a bad hair day at the same tine.
(Kelly) likened Mexico, one of the United States’ most important trading and law enforcement partners, to Venezuela under the regime of Hugo Chávez
Both countries got this funny idea into their heads they and not big oil had the right to control their own natural resources. Imagine!
The Sound and the Fury, signifying that once the President's matchless instincts get the better of him, nothing and, really, nothing is going to happen here. The President is a neo-Confederate. He's made this clear even when his better instincts-- daughter or in-laws or military chieftains-- say otherwise.
Liberals who oppose the wall and who support unrestricted immigration, why do you have no sympathy for America's working poor? Why do you not want their wages to rise and why do you want for them to be denied the opportunity to work themselves out of poverty? To be able to not need to work multiple jobs and to be able to spend time raising their children and making sure those children stay out of trouble and try hard in school?
Why do you have no sympathy for our legal immigrants who wait years to be able to come here they way they should; by following our laws and regulations? Why do you want to reward people for cutting in line?
Why do you want to see our safety nets overwhelmed and abolished? Why do you oppose employee and labor rights? Why do you oppose the minimum wage laws? Why do you want to reward employers who don't want to hire your countrymen and punish those that do?
The liberal support for illegal immigration is misguided and must end.
6
No one supports "unrestricted immigration." Ancestors of everyone in North Americ a dCanada except the original inhabitants have been colonizers or rimmigrants. Since US and Canada were established people have been screened upon application for citizenship or at the border and are admitted only if there is a reason not to admit to this country, Then there is the Green Card -- unless you make further application for membership and have it confirmed by the Immigration and Nationlization Service.
Imagine having a job in which you had no idea what you're doing, but being responsible for every single life in the United States.
Meet Donald Trump.
Maybe Nancy and Chuck are taking Trump by the hand, leading a way, and hoping he'll catch on. And maybe Trump thinks that's ok.
After all, who would you rather deal with and tell you what to do? The Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer team or General Kelly?
Um, Nancy and Chuck suddenly seem gentler and tamer than getting a whack on the bottom from the General. Right?
1
Trump will throw them under the bus. The news cycle was all he wanted, the deal is null and void now. I hope Schumer and Pelosi know this.
2
Trump is like a shark : he us a single minded machine always looking for the kill. He are Schumer and Pelosi for lunch . The hapless Dens put the Dream Act on the table but Trump conceded nothing. Furthermore Schumer's "he likes me" speech gave Trump more leverage as now Schumer must tack left and right as he advised Trump.
Kelly worries about Mexico's political stability. I'll bet climate change is baked into his analysis.
Trump does pay attention to the polls and may be capable of understanding that eight months of turning the White House over to the extreme right wasn't working for him. So Priebus gone, Bannon gone, Sessions banished, no more attempts to make Ryan and McConnell happy.
His best chance to get re-elected would be to turn bipartisan, like he was before the Republican primary season. The Dems are happy to play because they are in such an incredibly weak position with virtually no prospect of winning either house of Congress in 2018.
This new dynamic probably will last about December and then blow up, and where Trump goes from there is an interesting question. All presidencies have phases; this one goes through them faster than we've ever seen before.
17
Dems play because there are people's lives at stake. GOP play a mean game of obstruction and hardline, no matter how many people get hurt.
Chuck Schumer channeling his inner Sally Fields
12
"He likes me. He really likes me."
3
You could see this coming. Priebus was a pipeline from the RNC to the Oval Office but he's gone. Bannon is gone. Trump isn't talking to McConnell or Ryan. He's not speaking with Sessions. Who's left is anything but Republican die-hards -- Kelly (who is pretty apolitical), Ivanka, Kushner and Cohn. Trump has no intellectual core, no moral core, really no ideas whatsoever, so he's influenced by daytime TV and by whoever helps him understand what he picked up from Fox and Friends.
12
you forgot Miller
"The time had come, Mr. Schumer declared as Nancy Pelosi, the top House Democrat, nodded in agreement, for the president to prove himself to Democrats if he wanted to do any big deals."
Right. You have to deal with him. The more deals made. The more he will likes you.
17
What you need to understand is that Trump has no philosophy or sophisticated understanding of any issues. That makes him very susceptible to praise and being convinced with flattery and by appealing to his emotions. Get him to like you and you have an opening. Everything is personal with Trump. Schumer, who has watched the Trump Empire operate from NYC for many years, fully understands this.
7
You're right, everything is personal with Trump. Which is why we have completely unqualified people heading up Education, Energy and HUD. They're loyal to Trump.
4
I believe that the large majority of Americans, both Republican and Democrat, do not want to see innocent, productive young people deported and also do want to see improved border security to keep out drugs, drug dealers and other criminals and to control the flow of legal immigration. If the President agrees with leaders of the opposite party on these things, that should not even be news to anyone with the possible exception of Steve Bannon. That it is news is only testimony to current level of lunacy in Washington.
10
Let's give Schumer credit for having a sense of humor (unlike Trump). He cannot have been serious when he said he thought Trump liked the Democratic leaders in Congress.
With momentary lapses, Trump has made it pretty clear he dislikes everyone other than his immediate family and his darlings, Hannity and Putin. He doesn't even like pets or babies!
6
Cozying up to this president, as the two Democratic Minority leaders have demonstrated a willingness & ability to do over the last two weeks is fraught with danger & missteps while getting branded as traitors & collaborators.
The problem is there are many major agendas this administration & Republican Congress want to accomplish which are based on beliefs & dogmatic doctrine which fly in the face of science, truth, facts & an honest appraisal of achievable goals.
For both Schumer & Pelosi whose political standing has recently risen by being opposition leaders, hobnobbing with this disastrous & devastating president can brand them as turncoats for their own political gain.
On the other hand, for our government to work effectively, Congress must make compromises on the Capitol Hill & with 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
I see no reason to help prop-up this administration as long as it is willing to drag the country & world down because of half baked notions & mean-spirited treatment of people at the margins of society. At the same time, we in opposition must to not only give aid to those in need, but keep the pressure up on the forces of evil we face every day.
At the rare times we find our positions are parallel with those in power, let us pursue parallel courses to achieve our goals without trading on our principles.
3
First rule of Deal Making "it ain't a deal, till it is signed". Chuck has a tentative framework with one individual. The GOP may not legislate on this. Speaker Bohener refused to even table the Gang of Six bill.
Chuck should work the machinery, and resist from bragging and chest beating, because that gesture is only the privy of the Executive.
1
This is exactly what the Democrats needed to do, don't ridicule the guy, try and understand him so that the country will prosper. It's always crucial to remember the Golden Rule in all facets of life and to all people. Chuck would've appreciated the benefit of the doubt, they know Donald. You can broker a deal with him, if you treat him like a human. In the words of the 80s, DUH.
1
"treat him like a human" - I like your comment and agree with the sentiment with the provision that he is a very unusual human and so it would dangerous to treat him like you would treat other humans - e.g. trusting him would be very dangerous. I hope Schumer knows what he is doing.
"He likes us" - does he seriously believe that?
1
Of course not, but he wants Trump to believe he believes that, so Trump will return to the honeypot, believing that the busy bees, that have filled it with attractive goodies for him, are naive and easily duped.
Trump is just an opportunist that is looking for a PR victory. He is frustrated that his administration has accomplished essentially nothing to date, and feels that the Republicans have stood in the way. "Put something on my desk to sign, I don't care what it says, just let me sign it and I'll take the credit for all your hard work". He has clearly shown that he neither has the interest in nor the intellectual capacity to grasp any serious policy issues. He is untethered to any guiding principles or agenda other than making himself look good. This move shows two things: 1) Trump is willing to deal with anyone that will help his buff up his image. 2) He is sending a message to the GOP that if you don't serve me and my fragile ego, I'm willing to undercut you.
4
I hope Chuck and Nancy and smart enough to recognize that he will ( not may ) dump them without a second thought. If you believe he has country's, republican party's, democrat's or for that matter anyone else dear to him then they are in for a rude shock. Mark my word and wait for it. Already signs are he is saying other things are attached to this legislation. That does not mean that once he gets his way he will honor the deal he made. He will dump anyone he thinks is in the way of his grand design to which he is the only one privy of. He does not care about his own words let alone someone else.
1
I can't help but wonder if this was an intentional "hot mic" from Schumer. He must know that creating a perception that Trump likes and cooperates with Democratic leaders will totally destabilize Trump's base of supporters (as it has).
Clever move by the Dems on this one.
14
So it's beginning to appear President Trump isn't such a "bad guy" after all.
3
Just wait for the other shoe to drop before making that assessment.
1
He is exactly what his tweets, history, and public statements say he is. No more no less. I think everyone understands that and that he is not going to change.
Get what you can while the store is open
2
Activist Bill, no Trump isnt such an irretrievable, total, completely "bad" guy. But what does it say about him that so many people are astonshed, surprised and flabbergasted that he would do something so beneficial and supoortive for young people of color?
1
People searching for meaning in what Trump says or does
are asking the wrong question.
There is no meaning.
"Trump" is the meaning, and it is simply a brand.
If it makes noise.
if it's shiny.
If it likes him back,
Trump will shake it, oggle it. hug it.
If it puzzles him,
or challenges him,
or ceases to amuse him,
he'll smash it.
And this will go on until people understand
that there's nothing more there.
Behind the oggling and the hugging and the smashing,
on the other side of the billboard,
there is nothing but a vacant lot
and the whispering wind.
15
Senator Chuck Schumer may be a master schmoozer but he should not loose sight of who he is schmoozing. If. I were Mr. Schumer, I would not boast or exult too kuickly. Leave the crowing until Congress cements the deal.
5
It is easy to lead this Chump around by the nose. Why shouldn't Democrats get equal opportunities with the white supremacists who have been pulling his strings?
Dan Kravitz
2
Leaders Pelosi and Schumer, heretofore known as " Nancy and Chuck ", have been to a lot of rodeos in this town. They are politicians in every sense of the word who know how to maneuver legislation through both houses of Congress.
They both, especially Nancy, have passed a lot of laws back in the day when members of both parties actually talked to and worked with each other.
This is Trump's first rodeo. Please excuse the metaphor but the broncos are bucking him off and making him look like a clown.
Chuck and Nancy have shown the way to maneuver and be successful at getting SOMETHING done.
They have probably said to Trump " Lets put the Russia thing aside because it's stopping you from doing what presidents do. You can really get things accomplished IF you work with us. This will make you look good. "
Personally, I hope it happens this way. It's only a matter of time before all hell breaks loose when Mr. Mueller comes calling.
In the meantime, for heaven's sake, get something done!
13
It's not safe to assume anything with respect to the political calculations of President Trump or his inner circle. But I nonetheless have to think that it has occurred to at least some of them that every instance of reaching across the aisle will weaken his standing with the Republican base. If he nonetheless continues this pattern of reaching across the aisle, it may serve as a collective prelude to the biggest surprise of all: President Trump announcing, perhaps sometime in the spring of 2019, that he will not seek the Republican re-nomination and will instead run for re-election as an independent. He would probably win a few states even as an independent, and that might be enough to cause something that hasn't happened since 1825: a U.S. presidential election decided by the House of Representatives.
10
Interesting ... but why do you think that would be a good thing?
A House of Representatives with a Democrat party majority! 2018!!
WZ, who said I thought this would be a good thing? It would be interesting and unusual, that's for sure. But there's no way to know this far in advance how such a scenario would unfold. It might add a little bit of added urgency to both parties for the next two rounds of Congressional elections. Which side would get the best of that is anyone's guess.
Are we talking about just the approximately 800,000 who have applied for and received DACA status or do we mean everyone who would be eligible for DACA? While the Obama Administration touted DACA as requiring a high school diploma, its lawyers at Customs and Immigration decided that a diploma would not be necessary. They wrote that it was only necessary to be enrolled in school. This meant that a grade school drop-out (as well as someone who had never been to school) could receive DACA status as long as they now enrolled in an alternative elementary school for adults or in an English as a Second Language Class (which could improve one’s chances of either finding a job or of getting into a job training program).
Most of those who are already in the DACA program are ones who fit President Obama’s description of who would be eligible for DACA. They were brought here at age 6 or 7, immediately enrolled in school, and went on to graduate from high school.
The problem is that DACA was written to cover a great many more people - including those who never attended school and those who dropped out in the elementary grades. It offers protection to those now as old as 35, who came here as 15 year olds, following other members of their villages, to look for work. They are illiterate, even in Spanish. If these people would now enroll in an ESL class, then they would be eligible for DACA.
2
Rules of engagement with Donald Trump, explained:
Regardless of the topic, it ever and must always be about Trump.
There must be something "in it" for Trump. If there's something "in it" for Trump's family as well, so much the better, just so long as Trump comes first.
5
I wonder if Mr Kelly is thinking of the great wall of China,the Berlin wall,or the Maginot line as models for a "beefed up barrier" on the border. Mexico is not Venezuela,and many of its problems are the result of our insatiable appetite for drugs,and desire for cheap labor. Mr Kelly's and Mr Trump's pessimistic view of Mexico may be the result of special secret knowledge unavailable to the general public. Having traveled and lived on and off in Mexico for the past 50 years I cannot agree with them
12
Move aside Ivanka; seems we now know Trump's weak spot - Chinese food!
17
As a nine-year-old, I played the game of "I'm on your side". Such tactics worked for me as I tried to maintain myself on a tightrope in a feud between my roommate and a "spoiled brat" who lived down the hall in our dorm. Will it work for Donald Trump? Time will tell. He's dealing with supposed adults, but they all come from that same environment.
3
Now that Trump is no-longer "their" crook, maybe the Republicans might actually support impeachment proceedings.
9
Schumer and Co. should not jump to conclusions that Trump likes them. They can't be that naive. Trump sees an opportunity to use them. He's probably only doing it to spite the GOP. Old Arab saying: "The enemy of my enemy is my friend."
6
"... Mr. Schumer offered his support for enhanced border security measures ..."
Mr. Schumer was the architect of the 1986 amnesty - the one that promised to tighten border security so foreigners would no longer be able to illegally move into our country and work here.
2
Here today, gone tomorrow...any long lasting "deal" is pure conjecture. This 45th President has no values except loyalty to himself and his family. But certainly Democrats should take advantage of whatever opening they can get to deal with real and substantive issues and values of our hurting democracy. Trump and the Republican Party are truly shameful acts in our country's history.
6
Schumer is delusional if he thinks Trump likes him. Schumer sounds like Sally Fields' acceptance speech. He's a con artist, remember?
5
Sorry, Chuck, maybe Trump does, but none of the rest of us "like" any of you in either party.
That ship sailed a while ago and it will be a long time before it comes back in. Maybe you, Nancy and POTUS should hold off on the self-congratulatory back slapping until you have passed an actual bill. If you can even remember how that's done...
Just a thought.
5
How?
Well for starters, he's not a Republican.
3
Such a counterproductive narrative. Trump really can't win, that's obvious. He's either pandering to his base or caving. The media offers no other options.
4
Trump is "winning" - that is, he is attracting all of the attention he so desperately craves. That it may be with one policy or the opposite or with one party or the other is of no matter to Trump. Just attention. The media is giving it to him.
2
Trump's only motivator is winning. He has figured out that the GOP majority is too divided to deliver him legislative wins. Democrats, together with a part of Republicans, can get things done. Forget about the base!
10
The reality is even the people that voted for trump did not know why and nobody can make heads or tales of what's going on. Allow me to enlighten we in our guts new america is changing and the people are losing control. It does not matter the outer reason for ones vote the spirit of man voted a businessman to run our business america is a corporation as many business people have claimed as they failed in there run for presidency. Well we heard and we acted we chose not Hillary but we chose against life long political figures who have been corrupted. We chose a man who has fallen and risen many times stronger as this country has done, we chose a man who while not perfect perfectly knows survival, fairness, the value of hard work and most of all the diversity of this country. What man sees and what is rarely is the same thing.
2
If you think Trump is not as corrupt as seasoned politicians you are gravely mistaken. He gives favors to those who give him loyalty and praise and money. Other politicians don't crave the attention Trump needs, but they do need the money for campaigns, so if you think politicans are all corrupt, please work towards campaign finance reform.
5
nah. You chose a manipulative, misogynist, bloviating narcissist who was born on 3rd base and thinks he hit a triple.
7
Trump knows hard work? Really ? What evidence do you have to support that. I have worked in factories and sweatshops . Has Trump ever done an honest day's work?
6
I think the MSG in the sesame crispy beef must have mellowed out the trumpster. Or maybe someone put some other "herbs" in the sauce.
4
If Trump and Kelly are seriously worried about the dangers of an imminent collapse of the Mexican government, then perhaps they should invest time and energy in building the country up, not tearing it and its people down at every opportunity. A strong and healthy Mexico is the very best deterrent to Mexicans wanting to leave it to come north.
28
"tearing it and its people down at every opportunity"?
Seriously?
The USA has saved Mexico and its people from utter collapse - for decades.
We've taken in - illegally - tens of millions of it's poorest people, who we then give jobs. Those workers send back around 25 BILLION dollars in remittances to Mexico each year - their second biggest source of income after oil. Then add in all of the tourist money spent in Mexico - mostly by American tourist.
NAFTA is a huge boon to the Mexican economy, often times at the expense of American workers. Mexico has a massive trade surplus with the USA.
Mexico is rife with corruption at every level of society. It is one of the most violent nations on earth. As the NYT as expertly reported, journalists are routinely murdered when they investigate the corruption.
The USA provides aid worth $320 million a year to Mexico.
The US is preparing to normalize the status of almost 1 million largely Mexican DREAMers, who's fortunes in their legal nation would be bleak indeed.
America had done more to help Mexico and its people than any nation in history.
Mexicans should thank Dios everyday for having the good fortune of being the neighbor of the United States of America.
3
Wonderful sentiment, but realistically?
Before you can "build up" Mexico, you need to get ride of 90% of its government and military, and 100% of the drug cartels.
None of that is going to happen without military force.
Are you willing to commit to that?
2
Trump is not even working with Pelosi and Schumer, he is just using them.
Trump never said he would kick DREAMers out of the country. In fact, he has said he likes them and they need not worry about being targeted for deportation. No one - not the Democrats, not the various right wing factions - believed Trump when he said these things, beginning with an ABC news interview days after being sworn in. It turns out, he has been honest about his feelings in this case.
What confused matters is that Trump repeatedly swore he would end DACA. Everyone took that as a sign of scorn for the children of undocumented immigrant parents (and, given his disdain for other immigrant groups, not without reason). But DACA is an administrative action that Trump thought was contrary to law. His solution all along was to change the law. He was having trouble getting the tea party and populist Republicans to support DREAMer legislation supported by Paul Ryan and Lindsey Graham, so he told Pelosi and Schumer they could get him to go along with a DREAMer law (which he wanted all along) if they would sponsor it and bundle it with massive border security programs that Trump wants but the Democrats do not.
Pelosi and Schumer should support the DREAMer law that Trump and mainstream Republicans want. But they are fools to go to bat for border patrol weapons and technologies that are likely to be abused.
4
Trump wants to win something, anything. He's working with Dems because the GOP can't produce results he can brag about. Trump only likes himself and people who can do things for him. Dems should get what they can until he changes his mind.
22
Looks like a deal with the devil to me. I only hope the deal is cemented in unambiguous language so that Trump cannot welsh on it. Even with that, enforcing the terms of an agreement with someone who does not respect the sanctity of a contract is nearly impossible. Let's wait and see how this evolves before shedding the cynicism this man has created.
7
What Schumer and Pelosi practice here is basic math. They eye the common good, the interests of their voters and, judging from history, foremost the interests of their big donors. They see the plain sense of a DREAM Act, from it being the humane solution to it being the economically sane and sensible solution, and they have Goldman Sachs allies on this second take inside the Trump administration, and Trump himself has a clue or two of what he is doing and is their ally too here, but he needs it to get packaged as a win he can sell his base, so he desperately wants a semblance of symbolical Wall building to come with it.
It can't be even thought to give him that. They always have to weigh how their stance will affect their future electability. Aleady this is where a categorical no to getting complicit in symbolical Wall funding pops up as the only option. You can't join short-lived deterrence trolling and feeding the hateful appetites of the Trump base, addicted to prejudice. To give him anything resembling a Wall would be to spite their own face forever. You'd need the scalps of half the Trump administration and to see them replaced by Democrats to weigh up against hitting a triple whammy of stabbing your own back, heart and bone marrow by blessing any vapid, vain, fig leaf Wall funding. And even then you cannot fold here. You cannot sell your own and your nation's soul.
I wish the Democrats sixty pounds bags of wisdom, to throw in the right place over a transparant divide.
2
Shock and awe. The presdient is a New Yorker, was a Democrat, partied with the beautiful people including the Clintons, lived the high life, chased women...and overnight he becomes the savior of coal miners and the deeply religious. Call me skeptical but I'll bet the president thinks many of his supporters are hayseeds and that goes for their pious representatives as well.
10
"President Trump stopped him with a simple question: What is in it for me?"
It is ALWAYS about Donnie the Dunce in his mind. No matter what the topic, he is the only subject of interest to himself. With Donnie, EVERYTHING is personal.
In this discussion, the right answer is "You get a quick WIN." Trump would lap that up like a puppy standing over a bowl of milk.
25
Perhaps Trump's ephemeral pivot to coziness with Democrats is his only real "skill" at negotiating potential deals. His true goal may be self-aggrandizement but sometimes good things happen for unrelated reasons. One can hope. Whatever you think of Chuck Schumer the politician, he's not a fool and he's not crazy.
69
Donald Trump. The Accidental Dealmaker?
Just maybe you might be right. I do not have God's cell phone#.
Apparently Schumer and Pelosi never read what happens when Daniel makes a deal with the devil. One thing for sure is now they don't get to call out republicans when they make their deals.
2
Yes, Trump actually has principles, likes the Democrats and is redeemable. And I'm a tall blonde.
Sincerely,
Short. gray-haired woman who wasn't born yesterday
11
Trumps "Wall" was never more than a transparent lie swallowed by the gullible. To those not politically ignorant it was never more than a joke. There will never be a wall, there never was going to be a wall. Currently our S. border is so militarized a Kangaroo Rat would have a hard time getting trough.
Those of us paying attention recognized decades ago what a phony baloney political football immigration is.
Were either side serious zero tolerance legislation guaranteeing a year or more in prison for anyone employing someone without the required papers would solve the problem overnight. A transition period of six months would be part of the deal. The unspoken truth is that the US is dependent on migrant labor, from hot dogs to ag work and beyond.
The posturing of our elected officials is sickening in the extreme and it is the job of the press to expose these weasels.
Face it American voter, you've been had again, and again, and again.
Just another set piece; "a thing that has been carefully or elaborately planned" or composed to create the desired effect on an audience.
As many of us sense on both sides this is why we have to get rid of the old guard in both parties. If we don't they will continue playing checkers with our future.
And no, electing a lying greased weasel is not the answer. The larger question is how are we going to rescue Capt. Crunch and his Coo Coo for Coco puffs gang from terminal ignorance otherwise known as the trump base.
7
I am amazed that anyone is actually surprised by this: Trump has always been a narcissicist with no mind, playing up to any audience that applauds him...but his a rich New York business man, not a sweaty Nebraska farmer, and anything he ever said that those people liked was ONLY because they liked it. Now that he is of on whatever new questions come his way (immigration, jobs, trade) his moral shallowness (is there a word for absolute shallowness?) is coming out
1
if Schumer thinks that Trump likes him, he is delusional.
6
They ordered chinese take out huh? Say Chuck and Nancy, what's in your fortune cookie? "No walls stand in your way to pursuing your dreamers."
I am a liberal, tried and true, but give Trump at least some credit for working with us to get DACA to work. Go Nancy, Go Chuck!
#chuckandnancy swim in shark-infested waters so we don't have to. I just wish Schmuckie Chuckie had downplayed it more. You know what they say: the most dangerous place to be is standing between Schumer and a microphone.
5
They should have dine on Mexican food, only fitting for the scene.
4
"Why Did Trump Work Again With Democrats? ‘He Likes Us,’ Schumer Says"
Nope. He likes Schumer.
Top Contributors, 1989 - 2018
Goldman Sachs
Citigroup Inc
Paul, Weiss et al
JPMorgan Chase & Co
Credit Suisse Group
Birds of a feather flock together
https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/summary?cid=N00001093&am...
4
If Trump can work with Dems it does not mean he likes Dems but that he finally realized that dingbats from Breibart and FOK News are not really worth acknowledging. On the other hand, he apparently also realized that neither Ryan nor McConnell have much pull among their own extreme comrades of the congressional Bubbleheads Caucus. Thus, the only option is to work with folks who use their heads to THINK, instead of just to wear a silly little red baseball cap. So, it is not about liking a particular group but a matter of which group has the wherewithal to accomplish something. The fellow just reminded the Bubblehead Caucus that for 8 years they babbled about ‘repealing and replacing’ Obamacare, only to fail miserably of both counts. However, with the Schumer-Pelosi Dyanamic Duo the fellow has moved forward. Many more positive steps are awaiting the new partnership.
24
Even Donald Trump can only stomach so much Know Nothing Republican nonsense, nihilism and ill will toward others before he gets disgusted.
Keep sinking, Republicans.
Heckuva' job.
125
Last time I looked, The president, Senate and House plus the majority of states were all Republican. You are right...Huckuva' job.
1
..and accomplishing NOTHING! but division and derision.. heckuva' job.
3
And what have they done with that?
2
Doesn't everyone like Chuck? Charming fellow.
5
Here's a thought to consider. Trump actually is a political outsider with no true allegiance to the entrenched establishment, of either side. He certainly is battling with establishment Republicans. Maybe he made this deal with Dems, to teach Republican power Brokers a lesson. He also probably believes it's the right thing to do. A president willing to "reach across the isle"? How long has it been since that happened? I want more. Why deride it and the man? Don't you want more? Be happy.
13
LOL, I did not mean to suggest Trump reached across England, toward the Continent. Should have written " reach across the aisle".
1
Citizen Seer...Barack Obama continually reached across the aisle and was met with thinly veiled racism and proud White Spite.
The ACA was based on a conservative think tank idea about personal responsibility (personal mandate) and large insurance risk pools, and Republicans participated in shaping the law with a variety of amendments and open hearings, but the Fake News industry has washed the reality from the history books and turned the ACA into 'Obamacare', a racial slur.
Obama tried... and he was treated like dirt by Republican lowlifes, racists and Know Nothings.
57
Socrates buddy! Yup, I'm just sayin' be happy now. Maybe things are looking up? The pattern is breaking down? Though I never thought "Obamacare" was a racial slur. Was "Reaganomics"?
1
To think that Trump is a Republican or a Democrat or holds any allegiance whatsoever to any tribe (except his family) is a complete misunderstanding of Trump. His trump-world has him at the center -- always has been, always will be. The clock ticks, and when a situation arises that suggests a move or a deal or a temporary team arrangement, he'll do it, for as long as it profits him. Then as soon as it no longer pleases him or generates a profit, he divorces from the team, and then looks for new opportunities. Those seeking long-term promises don't get him at all.
78
covfefe may not be a Republican, but Republicans are covfefe. They have long sought (with only slightly more subtlety) the white-supremacist anti-poor corporate state he finally has within his reach. covfefe followed Reagan's footsteps to Philadelphia, Mississippi, lest we forget—and may have followed his brain's steps to dementia as well.
Democrats need to keep the guard posts staffed when they declare victory—and as always, to never trust a Republican with a deal. They exploit technicalities as deftly as they would any other employee.
1
I don't doubt that Trump feels comfortable with Schumer. They share a lot of commonalities, including that Trump held a fundraiser for Schumer at Mar-A-Largo in the past. They are both blunt New Yorkers. Hey, Schumer was his senator.
However, I would be very cautious about trusting Trump to carry anything through to completion and would not upstage him. That is the one thing he really can't forgive. Let Trump make the announcements.
43
But -- sometimes you have to make the announcements yourself, if you need them made. Trump "forgets" to mention key things, like the mutual-support clause regarding NATO, for example.
1
“What’s in it for me?” The president was in full businessman mode and found an accommodation with Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi and the opposition party. The president’s primal instincts apparently will dictate the future course of his administration. It's business before politics. The wonder is why the GOP never really understood what makes this president tick.
As for the president’s reactionary base, maybe they can follow their own advice when, early in this administration, the president stumbled clumsily around Washington without getting anything done. The red base cried out for Americans to “give him time, he’s new at this…be fair”, and to allow him his “rookie mistakes” and to grow into the job of being president. One wonders if they’re as cavalier and as smug in their own demands for understanding today as they were earlier in the year.
24
First thought was 'how silly' that Trump did a deal with the Democrats because he likes them. But, upon reflection, it's probably as good an explanation as any. Most leaders do deals because their advisers tell them to, because they want brownie points with the voters, and in some instances because they've been bought and paid for by big money. If we know anything about Trump it's that he's not a leader, doesn't think like a leader, and - for a politician - has an incredibly thin skin. He craves recognition and praise but more than anything he wants people to like him.
So if he likes Schumer - and Schumer pretends to like him back - you're half way there. He's not crazy about Ryan and certainly not McConnell intensely. And indeed - putting political ideologies aside - Democrats are probably a more likeable crowd on balance than Republicans. One of the reasons Trump won the GOP nomination after all is that many of the 16 or so on offer were thoroughly dislikable characters. I mean really ....who could warm up to a Ted Cruz?
The ultimate in likability politics is the fact that nearly half America's voters chose Trump over Clinton. One was head and shoulders over the other intellectually and in almost every other category - except likability. She was just one of those Democrats people couldn't warm to, and so they went instead with the slightly more likeable ogre with two heads.
16
If you are at all affected by Trump's new stance on DACA, do you really care why or how he made the right decision? Sometimes, the long and winding road leads to the better destination. Trump is a highly flawed individual and a truly incompetent president but maybe this a small sign that he has a few molecules of decency that can be forced to the surface.
90
@rab: "Trump is a highly flawed individual and a truly incompetent president but maybe this a small sign that he has a few molecules of decency that can be forced to the surface."
I hate to be the one who bursts your bubble on this, but Trump has not a shred of decency - he's shown that repeatedly. His ONLY concern is for himself and his money. Stop fooling yourself that he has any decency as you are simply wasting your time 'hoping' for the impossible.
Wrong! Trump is truly incompetent with no sense of decency whatsoever!
"A few molecules of decency..." If that's the best we can say about an American president, then we're truly up the creek.
1
Why Chinese dinner and not American dinner? Did he not want to make American food great again?
27
Chinese take-out is the most American food there is.
1
Because they're outer-borough NYC guys, and that's what they bond over?
5
Chinese food IS a kind of American food, As is Italian food, Indian food, Mexican food....
Donald Trump is conditionally "friendly" If and only if he gets his way. Otherwise, he'll trash anyone who does not kiss up to him.
5
What is this fascination with securing the border with Mexico? Last time I checked, more Mexicans are crossing the border...to go back to Mexico.
16
Trump is wise to accomplish some actual benefits for the USA, such as legislating DACA or replacing Obamacare with Medicare for everyone. Trump could argue that those things are within his campaign promises.
Doing so might protect him from removal as President, but even if it doesn't, history would show that Trump did accomplish something beneficial for the USA.
5
Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi would do well to study the history of appeasement as a strategy (I recommend Winston Churchill's 'The Second World War'). Making 'deals' just strengthens the power of autocratic leaders who use mendacity as an instrument of state.
28
You mean like making a deal with Iran? Or perhaps Cuba? No autocrats in control in either of those places, right?
1
The pre WW2 appeasement included acquiescing in territorial gains by the bad guys. Schumer and Pelosi, on the other hand, have ceded no ground to Trump; rather they are letting him further his feud with the Republican leadership in Congress.
So we should let the dreamers be deported?
Trump does not operate on friendship or fondness; he is transactional. Schumer and Pelosi deserve applause for getting concessions from Trump here. But Trump does not have their backs, either. No room for complacency.
21
Do you really think Schumer and Pelosi now believe Trump has their backs? They have been at this game a long time.
16
so is donnie playing chuck and nancy or are chuck and nancy playing donnie? i would guess the latter since donnie has the attention span of a gnat so probably can't sustain a manipulation for longer than a millisecond.
7
I am so glad to see our two parties working together again ... and I say this as a Republican.
87
but it's NOT both parties.. it's just the patriots. The GOP just sits there and stews
4
They would have been before except the Republicans decided on Obama's inauguration day they would not be doing any of that AT ALL. Remember?
4
They're not really. Paul Ryan has made clear in recent days that HE is not interested in working together on any of this.
Ryan seems willing to enforce the majority-of-caucus rule. In other words, to pass the House legislation has to have a majority of Republicans, not a majority of members. It's one of those new wrinkles the GOP has added to American democracy and it effectively gives the Freedom Caucus veto power over everything. Trump can have meetings with whoever he wants to, but it's kind of pointless if Ryan won't allow the legislation to see the light of day.
1
Who knows what will come of all of this but it's better that there're talking than not.
4
Maybe Mr. T is lonely because his GOP amigos are shunning him, so why not make friends elsewhere? Just like the mean girls do, he'll drop them like a hot potato when his old crew takes him back.
7
TRUMP Is dependent upon others due to his infantile ways--always demanding to be the center of attention and insisting on instant gratification for himself. He has absolute loyalty to himself alone. Trump relates to others based on what he can get from them and how much he can exploit them. By engaging with Chuck & Nancy, Trump gets a huge bang for his buck. He can hang out with them, strike deals, and thumb his nose at the GOPpers by getting over on them. I find it highly amusing that Trump is breaking up the logjam in Congress by working around the logjammers among the GOPpers. I'm sure that Chuck & Nancy both are canny enough to realize that Trump is incapable of genuine loyalty with anyone other than himself. But for now, it's great fun to see the GOPpers fuming and sputtering, red-faced with rage, at Trump's antics being used against them politically. There's lots more where that came from. Trump did state quite clearly that if he ever ran for office he'd run with the GOP because they're stupid and dumb. Right on Trumptee Dumptee! Old timers like Chuck, Nancy, McCain and others who began working across the aisle, forming bipartisan coalitions to get the people's work accomplished, welcome the chance to return to tried and true methods of getting around legislative logjams. GOPpers beware. There's more deals with the Democrats where these last two came from!
4
Sure he does, Chuck. Please, you soften him up, then let Nancy go in for the kill. SHE knows how. Also, iPhones are really, really good for recording conversations. Just saying.
46
I don't think we should assume that Chuck Schumer didn't know he was being recorded. "Open mic" incidents are often staged.
1
If I were meeting with Donald, I would be doing MY own recording. Seriously.
1
Any wind will blow him, as long as he gets some publicity.
10
In comparison to somewhat plain mid-westerners, these two newyorkers look and act as 'goodfellas', as if coming out straight from the Scorsese's movie. And they would probably see this as a nice compliment.
2
In these cynical times, a person has to be cynical. Trump knows all the background about the Russia thing. Mueller is closing in. Trump does not want to be dethroned. If he leaves, he wants to do it on his own terms. Trump has no values, he just makes deals. He knows if Mueller gets the goods on him, then he needs the Democrats on his side to allow him exit on top. The Russian investigation could give the Democrats great leverage in getting Trump to cooperate, just so long as they make it look like everything was his idea.
If Schumer and Pelosi have to eat a little crow to work with Trump, so be it. Trump is no Republican. He just used the Republican Party to get elected. He cares nothing for any of them, only himself.
Let's see how this all unfolds. Let's see If the closer Mueller gets to Trump and then Trump starts getting closer to his new BFF's on the left.
41
I usually adore and admire, and sometimes love and swoon for your comments, but here I don´t see the logic in your line of reasoning.
If Mueller comes up with stuff, that a third of the Senate is willing to ignore or dismiss as insufficiently grave to justify removing "the choice of the American people", it will suffice to save Trump´s skin from impeachment, and these probably far more than 34 coward Senators he needs will all be Republican.
If Mueller comes up with stuff that is an unpardonable offense to New York State law, Trump is out.
So what does Trump need from Democrats to protect him against Mueller? It doesn't add up. Mueller is doing a job, independent from politics, as you certainly know.
The hurricane relief was a no-brainer to do. Trump needed it, the Democrats won zilch concessions on other policies or budgeting over his neediness, which leaves me with the impression of some extremely weak negotiating they've been doing.
The DREAM Act is what all the corporate big shots pulling strings in both camps want, in order to protect the economy, another no-brainer.
There's not going to be much more cooperation, as you not only need Trump wanting it, but quite a few Republican Congressmen to fall in line, and there is not much left for which they will do that.
So, where's your ratio here?
1
To all the media folks going gaga over this 'deal': please stop. No action has been taken and the only thing we have for now is Trump's supposed word which, given his track record, amounts to absolutely nothing. Nada. Zilch. I'll believe this *if* any law gets passed at all.
151
Can I at least enjoy the reactions of Ryan and McConnel?
27
While he goes back and forth on just about everything, and has offended pretty much everyone, including the Dems he's been meeting with, he did manage make a quick deal for the debt ceiling.
Talk is cheap but, given his need for approval, to not be a "loser" and to win, perhaps he'll manage to make another fast deal for the Dreamers.
He's proven to be full of surprises, aside from often being full of it, so we'll have to just wait and see.
1
There is one reason President is working with Democrats. He's too lazy to do the hard work that would be required to build coalitions within his own party. He's too lazy. It is easier to make himself look like he's accomplishing something to strike deals with congressional Democrats, who are more cohesive, and who can find enough moderate Republicans to pass legislation. Sloth. That's it. Nothing more. Lucky Strike cigarettes used to have the slogan: "I'd rather fight than switch." President Trump's new slogan is "I'd rather switch than fight." The man's lazy. Pure and simple.
89
Schummer and Trump are both from the Bronx and Ryan and McConnel are not. Trump understands Schummer.
2
Actually, they're both from Queens. But good guess.
7
While I agree with your observations, Lucky Strike's slogan was "L.S.M.F.T. (Lucky Strike Means Fine Tobacco)". It was Tarryton smokers who'd "rather fight than switch."
2
Schumer should back off and let Pelosi handle any comments. She's the wheeler and dealer who pushed through the ACA, which should be called Pelosicare.
13
Dealing with fellow representatives in roughly your own camp, who want to max out their own rewards that they are going to cash in when the lobbyists accessing them get satisfied, is a whole other thing than dealing with the closest thing to Hitler that the world has ever seen rise to power.
Besides, my instincts go with a Trump - Schumer chemistry.
I also think Schumer will do a better job at second-guessing Trump.
2
Excuse the personal plus, please, but I have been writing for years that the problems in Washington, DC, are between Republicans who have trapped themselves in admante positions and, in the process, have bowed to the most extreme elements, specifically the Freedom Caucus in the House, McConnell in the Senate.
The trap is : "We can't compromise," coupled with trying to assuage the extremists. Instead, they should have told them to shut-up and sit down, but they were convinced by the Gingrich Principle, which holds that they only lose by making agreements, moving forward.
What most of this is about is not supplying weapons, words, to be used against them in campaigns. When problems are resolved, those who helped resolve them take the blame. A large segment of voters are swayed only by negatives, short and often ugly attacks that can be pounded home in television commercials and on talk radio/Fox News.
If Trump were a brilliant thinking politician, other than in self promotion, he would have realized from the start he could cut deals with Democrats better than angry, bitter, divided and often nihilistic Republicans. Instead, he stumbled into happy land. So be it.
The Republicans are not set up to govern. They are set up to continue the war with themselves. There is a generation of members, mainly in the House, who have drawn their ideas and positions from extreme talk radio and Fox. Until they are brought under control, repudiated or thrown out, governing is not an option.
110
To understand the relationship between Chuck and Trump, the best thing to do would be to watch some old movies and TV shows from the 70's, 80's, 90's and even the 2000's that take place in the boroughs of NYC. Watch "The Nanny", "Welcome Back Kotter" "All in the Family" and "Seinfeld". Take a look at "Gossip Girl" Go out and rent "Saturday Night Fever" with John Travolta as Vinny Barbarino. Take notice of how people from the boroughs are portrayed or talked about as accented, unsophisticated, uneducated, bad mannered yet also street smart and savvy. Then think about Chuck and Donald. There is a lot binding these two together. And, all of us that grew up in one of the outer boroughs before Brooklyn became cool are just nodding as we watch this unfold.
19
I wish Chuck Schumer would just keep his big mouth shut. He and Bernie Sanders. The media loves them because, like The Con Don, they are loud and boisterous. This is how Americans get sold a bill of goods by the media - what makes for today's "sensational, exciting, interesting" news is usually not good for society as a whole but people think, because their names get mentioned so often that they are people to be celebrated and rewarded.
Let's hope people are smart enough to realize that Chuck Schumer is simply another Wall Street/International Mafia Good Old Boy pretending to be an America-loving democrat. He will sell 90% of us out, as he and Bernie Sanders have been doing for years, to keep his seat in OUR government.
Let's hear more from U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. She's the real brains behind it these deals. Let's hear more from Senator Elizabeth Warren. She works to protect 90% of us every day. Let's hear more from
Ms. Hillary Rodham Clinton - the peoples' choice to be President. She is brilliant, experienced and is dedicating the rest of her life to strengthening democracy in America and around the world and empowering women to step up and take one-half the power in the world to bring it into balance. It can't happen soon enough.
34
Thank you, niglea. Spot on!
Did Chuck Schumer drink the kool-aid? Trump doesn't like anyone except himself (and possibly a few members of his family). Trump will just as soon throw Democrats under the bus, and his word means absolutely nothing.
9
Trump seems to agree with whomever is sitting in front of him at the moment. And, from one day to the next, there appears to be neither rhyme nor reason to his policy positions. So, while you have his ear, Chuck and Nancy, please, please let throw some mud a the wall and see what sticks. Maybe next time order some pizza and casually bring up the idea of a public option for the ACA and see what happens?
270
Trump is the Democrat's Manchurian Candidate.
4
"Hey, Mikey, I think he likes it"
2
Chuck..don't believe him. You know full well this 'man child' only cares for himself. However, use this knowledge for the citizenry's benefit.
7
The Times just cannot get enough of this agreement, never mind the fact that Trump has contradicted himself repeatedly over what exactly he agreed to.
14
"He likes us". Can anyone in power be articulate anymore?
6
But that's what it boils down to.
4
I am fine with a simple declarative sentence.
3
Dear Ms. Herman,
Brevity is the soul of wit.
2
One quick knee jerk on Stephen Miller: I hope Trump will not lose any more time in getting rid of Miller, who has shown himself to be way out of bounds and in no way should be a "senior" national policy advisor. Same goes for Trump's giving any more credence to Bannon and the Breitbart.
6
Stephen Miller is Jeff Sessions' go to guy from way back. Until Trump gets rid of Sessions (an increasingly unlikely scenario after the Republicans in the Senate rallied around f their former colleague), Miller is staying.
Just the same, I am sure Trump is enjoying a chance to stick it to Sessions and Miller by leading the charge to grant legal protections to the DREAMers instead of trying to get the DOJ to accommodate them with an administrative policy implemented by his nemesis, Obama.
Trump always wanted a DREAMer Act. Even Bannon wanted to use it as a bargaining chip to get big, bad border enforcement and the wall. Looks like Trump is getting everything he wants with a chance to tweak Sessions as an added bonus.
rankly, I see this as plea-bargaining on trump's part. AS the Mueller investigation heats up, he will need Democrats to believe he can work with him and thereby maybe get their votes on impeachment. Don't be fooled, this man is a disgrace to our country and needs to be removed soon. Be careful, Chuck
54
I wish Trump would make up his mind. All those exploded right wing talking heads are going to be difficult to glue back together.
19
My left wing head isn't doing too well either, frankly.
6
On one side, the democratic party is a much more constructive partner than the republican paty of No.
On the other side, Trump is trying to save his presidency by doing the big spread: making deals with democrats while soothing his own supporters.
For now, as long as the right decisions are taken for the country, I don't see any major issue in these deals. Yet, this is still an uneasy alliance of circumstances. Neither Trump nor the democrats should expect too much in the future.
56
Their celebrations are useless unless they produce the intended results. Neither DACA nor any bill has passed yet. Trump has not promised anything and he is not firm on his own promises!!!
Come now his presidency does not need any saving, it has been a massive success so far. A supreme court not changed into a liberal law creating entity. Lots of regulations improved, the entire government held to a much higher productivity and effectiveness standard. Now some departments will be reduced and improved no matter what some might think. See the state department that will probably be reduced a lot forever.
Give me some evidence.
He wants 'wins.' And he doesn't especially care what they are. Sounds like a lot of opportunity to fix problems the vast majority of Americans of both parties share, such as access to affordable health care, poor education, and the lack of opportunities for young people to learn basic job skills. The GOP can't really pretend they aspire to these things anymore. They've tipped their hand and shown that, for them, it's all about tax cuts for the rich and nothing else.
Take out Chinese. A brilliant touch, and I bet it came from Schumer.
20
I love it too. It's sublimely subliminal!
2