Countdown to Extinction: The 2016 Presidential Election

[(poco) Sforzando]

Agony of ObamaCare's Collapse Has Just Begun

Grifters-in-Chief

http://tinyurl.com/jlwmjqg

[zamyrabyrd]

Which is it?

No contradiction there.
Some people already have seen behind Hillary's fakey mask, like Secret Service and Bubba's victims.
If she becomes president, the circus so far will be nothing compared to what's ahead.
She will NOT be able to conceal her true self because she will not be in control as she barely is now.

[zamyrabyrd]

I'm confused about which action you have in mind...or the bit where Hillary collapses due to a neurological disorder you've somehow managed to diagnose. Which actions should I be looking out for, exactly? And have you forgotten, in your quest to condemn all disability, that you've previously had a President in a wheelchair?

Why don't you just go and make Wombat Stew?

https://www.youtube.com/v/vzKIM1SR_Po

[(poco) Sforzando]

No contradiction there.
Some people already have seen behind Hillary's fakey mask, like Secret Service and Bubba's victims.
If she becomes president, the circus so far will be nothing compared to what's ahead.
She will NOT be able to conceal her true self because she will not be in control as she barely is now.

Ah.

[(poco) Sforzando]

Why don't you just go and make Wombat Stew?

https://www.youtube.com/v/vzKIM1SR_Po

Can't. No wombats at my grocery. Guess I'll have to exercise my second amendment rights and shoot a few.

And who is this expert in your video? I mean, I can't get through more than a minute of it, h e   s p e a k s    s  o o o o   s l o o o o o o w.

[Karl Henning]

One of his advisers was quoted just yesterday saying that he will be "cooked" if he cannot prevail in the Keystone State.

And, I mean: how could El Tupé not win Pennsylvania, if the election is not RIGGED?

[Karl Henning]

The Polls Disagree, and That's OK

[Madiel]

Can't. No wombats at my grocery.

Nor mine. What the hell? Who on earth thinks we eat wombats around here? Wombats are adorable.

Koalas. Now koalas I'd consider eating. Nasty little things. Everyone thinks they're SO cute but they are bad-tempered as hell.

Oh okay, so I do eat cute things. I hear lambs are cute.

But back on topic... I'm supposed to be convinced by that Youtube video? ROFL!

[Madiel]

I note that the guy has uploaded video after video on the same topic. I noticed that one of them has a tagline saying how we shouldn't believe "optical illusions". In other words, he's one of those conspiracy theorists where any piece of evidence that doesn't fit the conspiracy is treated as not being real, lest it puncture the conspiracy theory.

What is it about the USA that makes it seem so especially fertile for people who are immune to outside facts? Something about the emphasis on individualism and independence creates people who are so utterly convinced of their own rightness and righteousness that they can weave entire narratives out of some weird idea that came to them one day. And these days they can broadcast that to the world.

There are plenty of medical professionals who participate in the media. Instead we get Youtube - no editorial standards, no fact-checking, just a guy with a video camera who couldn't stick to cat videos.

[Karl Henning]

There are plenty of medical professionals who participate in the media. Instead we get Youtube - no editorial standards, no fact-checking, just a guy with a video camera who couldn't stick to cat videos.

Only I can judge whether a news source is reliable!

[Brian]

Washington Post reporting that Donald Trump says he won a golf tournament in 1999 - at a club which opened in 2000.

THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING

[San Antone]

Donald Trump has run the worst campaign in modern history
By Fareed Zakaria

As this presidential election draws to its close, I keep wondering: Why has Donald Trump run such an ineffective campaign? Trump began with three big advantages. The Democrats were seeking a third consecutive term in the White House, something that a political party has achieved only twice in the past 80 years . In addition, economic growth and income gains remain sluggish. Plus, the Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton, a politician from the past with high unfavorable ratings, couldn't easily represent the desire for change. For these reasons, many models based on "fundamentals" that predict election results favored a generic Republican candidate this year.

But Trump is not a generic Republican. And his campaign has been even more atypical. Start with strategy. It was obvious that Trump needed to pivot to the center to grow his base from his core group of supporters to a majority or plurality of Americans. That meant reaching out to Hispanics, Asians, women and college-educated whites. Trump once said that his core supporters would stick with him even if he shot someone on Fifth Avenue in broad daylight. So he had ample scope in which to woo new supporters. Many Republican-minded voters were desperately waiting for the pivot and would have lapped up any small words or gestures. Instead, Trump alienated potential supporters from these new groups even more than he had during the primaries.

It's true, and one wonders what Trump was thinking.  Or maybe, there's the theory that he was never serious about winning and only wanted to identify a potential angry right wing audience for a website or network.  If the latter is true, he will amount to the worst scoundrel second only to Bernie Madoff, imo.

[zamyrabyrd]

It's true, and one wonders what Trump was thinking.  Or maybe, there's the theory that he was never serious about winning and only wanted to identify a potential angry right wing audience for a website or network.  If the latter is true, he will amount to the worst scoundrel second only to Bernie Madoff, imo.

I don't think Trump wanted or wants to lose but as an astute businessman, did make allowances for that possibility.
If he really wanted to hand it to Hillary, he should sit back and just watch the show.
But he is not doing that, on the contrary. These are his main positions some of which you yourself cited:

Repeal and replace Obama Care.
The 2nd amendment as absolute and no to gun control legislation.
If elected he will nominate pro-life justices to the Supreme Court.
If elected he will overturn all of Obama's illegal executive orders.
If elected he would defund Planned Parenthood.
He would cut personal income and corporate taxes.
He would return educational control to the local school districts.
He would block Common Core.
He would fight for energy independence.
He would bar refugees from terrorist nations.

We should really keep our eyes on the ball, that is, the actual policy of the candidates and not speculations or getting too deeply into character foibles.

[San Antone]

I don't think Trump wanted or wants to lose but as an astute businessman, did make allowances for that possibility.
If he really wanted to hand it to Hillary, he should sit back and just watch the show.
But he is not doing that, on the contrary. These are his main positions some of which you yourself cited:

Repeal and replace Obama Care.
The 2nd amendment as absolute and no to gun control legislation.
If elected he will nominate pro-life justices to the Supreme Court.
If elected he will overturn all of Obama's illegal executive orders.
If elected he would defund Planned Parenthood.
He would cut personal income and corporate taxes.
He would return educational control to the local school districts.
He would block Common Core.
He would fight for energy independence.
He would bar refugees from terrorist nations.

We should really keep our eyes on the ball, that is, the actual policy of the candidates and not speculations or getting too deeply into character foibles.

All correct.  Still, he has inexplicably done things to sabotage his own campaign to an extent I cannot explain other than he is such a self-destructive narcissist that he cannot help but make an ass of himself when certain of his buttons are pushed.

[Karl Henning]

All correct.  Still, he has inexplicably done things to sabotage his own campaign to an extent I cannot explain other than he is such a self-destructive narcissist that he cannot help but make an ass of himself when certain of his buttons are pushed.

And, with respect to you both, I think it is overstating his capacity to call him an astute businessman.

[Karl Henning]

Donald Trump really is building a wall. But his supporters are going to pay for it.

"I want to show you something very special," the candidate says in a video out Thursday. "I am dedicating this wall right here in Trump Tower to a select group. . . . They chipped in whenever and however they can."

In a QVC-worthy pitch, Trump continues: "The wall has only space for 2,000 more supporters. Contribute today . . ."

It was an undignified position for a presidential candidate 12 days before the election, selling off naming rights to a Trump Tower wall for contributions of $49 or more. And the symbolism was unhelpful: Such walls of names bring to mind the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and others that honor the fallen.

[Karl Henning]

Trump's attempt to cast doubt on the sanctity of democratic elections and sow doubt about their integrity (something his pal Vladimir Putin likes to do) backfired in a big way. Politicians of both parties rushed forward to insist elections cannot be rigged and the actual instances of voter impersonation are extraordinarily rare. So, wait, is the hysteria about voting fraud that supposedly requires elaborate voter ID measures unwarranted? Sure seems that way.

(emphasis mine)

[Parsifal]

And, with respect to you both, I think it is overstating his capacity to call him an astute businessman.

He has certainly enriched himself. I suspect his presidential run has the same goal. One of his specialties is siphoning money from failing projects (like Atlantic City). I suspect he viewed his presidential run as a win-win. If he actually wins he goes along with the far right agenda and engineers huge tax cuts on himself, and if he looses he becomes an alt-right media personality. The only way he personally comes out behind is if he looses his audience by acting sensible like the Republican establishment wants him to and then looses the election anyway. He's willing to sacrifice the Republican party to preserve his media ambitions.

[San Antone]

Trump's attempt to cast doubt on the sanctity of democratic elections and sow doubt about their integrity (something his pal Vladimir Putin likes to do) backfired in a big way. Politicians of both parties rushed forward to insist elections cannot be rigged and the actual instances of voter impersonation are extraordinarily rare. So, wait, is the hysteria about voting fraud that supposedly requires elaborate voter ID measures unwarranted? Sure seems that way.

(emphasis mine)

There is nothing wrong with advocating for aggressive oversight of elections and enforcement of voting requirements in order to preserve the integrity of an election.  I am surprised that my Democrat friends seem willing to believe the elective system requires no safeguards.  But then again, dead people always seem to vote for Democrats.

[Karl Henning]

He has certainly enriched himself.

Sure, but not by business acumen;  by cheating on contracts and counting on his resources to intimidate the little guy out of seeking his rights.