Politics

[mdwest]

Interesting and pretty even handed article. What's really interesting is the bottom line in the comparison table. National debt increases more under Trump.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/commentary-3-mistakes-that-could-haunt-democrats-165312691.html

I think the problem with their table is it only accounts for the actual dollar impact of the intended actions.. and not the effect on the actual economy, which would in fact have a huge impact on the national debt (i.e. lower tax rates.. which encourages greater economic activity, which results in greater numbers of dollars being generated in taxes...)...

it also doesnt account for Trumps intention to slash the hell out of the federal government.. labor is one of the single biggest contributors to our national debt.. it costs a hell of a lot of money to pay for the 87K new IRS agents Biden hired.. and to maintain the wages of the 68,000 employees of the US State Department... or the 35,000 employees of the FBI... or the Dept of Veterans Affairs (wholly ineffective agency) that has 400,000 employees (most people dont realize that the DAV employs almost 20% of the entire US Fed Govt civilian workforce)..

Assuming a Trump win... and assuming he does indeed appoint Musk to head up a task force thats sole purpose is making the US Fed Govt efficient (a la Twitter conversion to X...)... I would suspect that hundreds of billions of dollars would be saved annually on wages alone... and God only knows how much would be saved in closing down facilities that are just sitting out on the ledgers, getting funded every year.. but not being used, etc..etc..

Granted, thats going to put A LOT of former US Govt employees in the unemployment line.. and likely be disruptive to the economy in a completely different way (to be honest, I work with the US Fed Govt daily.. and am less than impressed by the work ethic, knowledge, and skills of the overwhelming majority of the people I interface with... there are some I'd hire the minute their resumes hit the street... but there are A LOT that I wouldnt pay minimum wage to, to wash our windows..)...

 

[Brent in Az]

And this so called "Locker room talk" just magically appears 2 weeks from the election.

So what portion of the things Trump says do you think are true? Do we disbelieve the things that come out of his mouth that praise dictators and tyrants, disbelieve his own words about suspension of the Constitution, disbelieve his denigration of service members, but believe the things he says about being the only person who can save the country?

I’m sure it’s all just locker room talk, right?

 

[LivingTheDream]

Just got S&Gs, let's compare these two. One has a Son in Law you got the Abraham Accords in place, the other has a step daughter that was fundraising for Palestine after Oct 7th. Which candidate seems more Anti-Isreal?

Want to do this for taxes? Border? Law Enforcement? Foreign Policy?

 

[Hunt anything]

Video or it didn’t happen…….

Yes sir, I don’t believe anything that they say unless I personally hear it and in full context. Then I believe they said it but I’m skeptical if they really mean what they said.

 

[Tanks]

I don't believe anything a politician says, we could go back and forth all day on some of things said. But I do believe actions, and Trump was far better than what we have today.

So, in that case what they say about policy, how they’d govern etc., etc. doesn’t matter for either candidate. No reason to harp on Harris to not talk about policy or hold press conferences.

Furthermore, given that view I’d say Trump’s “actions” after he lost in 2020 are enough to vote against him.

 

[Hunt anything]

Interesting and pretty even handed article. What's really interesting is the bottom line in the comparison table. National debt increases more under Trump.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/commentary-3-mistakes-that-could-haunt-democrats-165312691.html

I didn’t have time to read the article yet but I will, did it mention anything about how the government actually increased spending under both administrations during Covid, but did tax revenues decrease because both administrations told large segments of the population was told they couldn’t go to work?

 

[sgt_zim]

So what portion of the things Trump says do you think are true? Do we disbelieve the things that come out of his mouth that praise dictators and tyrants, disbelieve his own words about suspension of the Constitution, disbelieve his denigration of service members, but believe the things he says about being the only person who can save the country?

I’m sure it’s all just locker room talk, right?

You mean like when Tampon Tim said he learned how to govern after a trip to China? That would explain why he had police officers shooting at people with paintball guns, just sitting on their porches in violation of the "stay inside" curfew.

Trump had every opportunity to turn tyrant during covid. As I recall, it was all the dem governors acting like tyrants.

It was the deep state, at the behest of the dems, that suppressed the Hunter laptop story, called it Russian disinformation. It was THIS administration that worked with social media to suppress dissent over covid discussions like its origin, gain of function research, the efficacy of the vax, over the laptop - a laptop that this same admin eventually entered into evidence in Hunter's federal trial.

Trump should be taken seriously, not literally. You're worried about what Trump says. I'm a lot more concerned with what Kamala, for one has already done. What is more tyrannical than knowingly sending an innocent man to death row. She was forced by the Cali supreme court to disclose exculpatory DNA evidence, evidence which resulted in a retrial and an acquittal - an innocent man spent 7 or 8 years in prison. She held people past their prison sentences because penal labor is free labor.

 

[LivingTheDream]

So, in that case what they say about policy, how they’d govern etc., etc. doesn’t matter for either candidate. No reason to harp on Harris to not talk about policy or hold press conferences.

Furthermore, given that view I’d say Trump’s “actions” after he lost in 2020 are enough to vote against him.

This election is different since we can compare the governance results of the two.

Harris can talk policy all she wants. She is a gun owner, secured the border, and came from a middle class family. Based on her record, there is no way I would vote for her.

That is what makes our elections amazing, you can not vote for Trump based on the actions after 2020. I have my own opinions but I don't think they disqualify him. We don't have to explain ourselves or our thought process. I'm pretty sure Trump won the 2016 election because everyone thought Hillary would win, and by voting for Trump they felt they had the right to complain.

Its kind of a crazy system when you think about it.

 

[Altitude sickness]

I posted a couple weeks ago that Elon Musk must be careful. He will find the DOJ and half a dozen other federal agencies on his doorstep.

Who knows what the Feds have brewing undercover of the night right now. But here is a shot across his bow

Biden-Harris DOJ Threatens Elon Musk With Criminal Prosecution For Petition Signup Giveaway

The Biden-Harris administration threatened X owner Elon Musk with criminal prosecution for helping to drive voter turnout in the upcoming election by offering $1 million rewards to registered voters who sign a petition to support the U.S. Constitution. Musk’s America PAC states that one winner...

www.dailywire.com

 

[John Wasmuth]

I posted a couple weeks ago that Elon Musk must be careful. He will find the DOJ and half a dozen other federal agencies on his doorstep.

Who knows what the Feds have brewing undercover of the night right now. But here is a shot across his bow

Biden-Harris DOJ Threatens Elon Musk With Criminal Prosecution For Petition Signup Giveaway

The Biden-Harris administration threatened X owner Elon Musk with criminal prosecution for helping to drive voter turnout in the upcoming election by offering $1 million rewards to registered voters who sign a petition to support the U.S. Constitution. Musk’s America PAC states that one winner...

www.dailywire.com

Why are we not surprised………

 

[Mort Hill]

I also think that is most likely.

Assuming she does turn out to be the actual culprit, I would offer a second motivational possibility that she is simply militantly anti-Zionist. Were she an actual spy, I would think that material would have been on the desks of her handlers in Tehran rather than posted on a pro-Iranian Telegram site.

Were it the US, we would have used such material to arrange a reception rather than publicize it to postpone what is likely the inevitable.

I am just catching up on thread after a week of deer hunting. Serious question. IDF knowing and not trusting USA intelligence by keeping details secret, could all this “top security” details have simply been shared by Israel to 1) flush out the leak, 2) get intentionally totally bogus “top secret” info shared with Iran so they are preparing for the wrong set of responses by Israel? IDF has been so smart to keep their plans, as their plans, I cannot fathom them releasing sensitive plans to the USA. Just looking for feedback, and may have been answered elsewhere. Apologies if so.

 

[spike.t]

Unbelievable.....

Commonwealth heads of government to defy UK on slavery reparations

Downing Street insists a discussion about the issue is not on the agenda for the summit of 56 Commonwealth countries.

www.bbc.com

Nigels response....

 

[Tanks]

I posted a couple weeks ago that Elon Musk must be careful. He will find the DOJ and half a dozen other federal agencies on his doorstep.

...

Federal agencies have been on his doorstep for years, ever since he bought Twitter. He already has half a dozen lawsuits against his companies.

I think that is the real reason he went full MAGA. It all started when Biden had an EV summit at the White house and did not invite Tesla even though at the time the big 3 had shipped maybe a few dozens of EV vehicles compared to Tesla's millions. They didn't invite Musk because he had non union labor at his plants.

They also canceled his $900M Starlink contract with FCC for rural locations saying it was not reliable enough but were the first ones to ask for it for disaster areas.

 

[fourfive8]

I posted a couple weeks ago that Elon Musk must be careful. He will find the DOJ and half a dozen other federal agencies on his doorstep.

Who knows what the Feds have brewing undercover of the night right now. But here is a shot across his bow

Biden-Harris DOJ Threatens Elon Musk With Criminal Prosecution For Petition Signup Giveaway

The Biden-Harris administration threatened X owner Elon Musk with criminal prosecution for helping to drive voter turnout in the upcoming election by offering $1 million rewards to registered voters who sign a petition to support the U.S. Constitution. Musk’s America PAC states that one winner...

www.dailywire.com

Yes. Even local Commiefornia politicians/bureaucracies and FAA and Dept of Interior have gotten in on the action by attempting to block or slow walk “permits” for Space X launches

 

[wesheltonj]

I think the problem with their table is it only accounts for the actual dollar impact of the intended actions.. and not the effect on the actual economy, which would in fact have a huge impact on the national debt (i.e. lower tax rates.. which encourages greater economic activity, which results in greater numbers of dollars being generated in taxes...)...

it also doesnt account for Trumps intention to slash the hell out of the federal government.. labor is one of the single biggest contributors to our national debt.. it costs a hell of a lot of money to pay for the 87K new IRS agents Biden hired.. and to maintain the wages of the 68,000 employees of the US State Department... or the 35,000 employees of the FBI... or the Dept of Veterans Affairs (wholly ineffective agency) that has 400,000 employees (most people dont realize that the DAV employs almost 20% of the entire US Fed Govt civilian workforce)..

Assuming a Trump win... and assuming he does indeed appoint Musk to head up a task force thats sole purpose is making the US Fed Govt efficient (a la Twitter conversion to X...)... I would suspect that hundreds of billions of dollars would be saved annually on wages alone... and God only knows how much would be saved in closing down facilities that are just sitting out on the ledgers, getting funded every year.. but not being used, etc..etc..

Granted, thats going to put A LOT of former US Govt employees in the unemployment line.. and likely be disruptive to the economy in a completely different way (to be honest, I work with the US Fed Govt daily.. and am less than impressed by the work ethic, knowledge, and skills of the overwhelming majority of the people I interface with... there are some I'd hire the minute their resumes hit the street... but there are A LOT that I wouldnt pay minimum wage to, to wash our windows..)...

I would agree. For example: I am sure this will not go over well with the active and retired military that post here. But how many health care systems does the federal government need in peace time? Do we need an Army, Air Force, Navy, VA and Public Heath Service. How much administrative overhead could be saved by combining some or all of those systems? I understand that military physicians require gunshot training and practice, but you could have all government physician have that as required training no matter what facility they are located.

 

[Tanks]

it also doesnt account for Trumps intention to slash the hell out of the federal government.. labor is one of the single biggest contributors to our national debt.. it costs a hell of a lot of money to pay for the 87K new IRS agents Biden hired.. and to maintain the wages of the 68,000 employees of the US State Department... or the 35,000 employees of the FBI... or the Dept of Veterans Affairs (wholly ineffective agency) that has 400,000 employees (most people dont realize that the DAV employs almost 20% of the entire US Fed Govt civilian workforce)..

It would be real difficult to slash the Federal employees. Biden/Harris administration is already taking some steps (it was published somewhere) to prevent or make it very cumbersome to do that.

 

[Tanks]

... I understand that military physicians require gunshot training and practice, but you could have all government physician have that as required training no matter what facility they are located.

Just post them in places like Chicago and divert gunshot victims to them. They'd be trained tout de suite.

 

[Dirtdart]

Why are we not surprised………

Considering the petition is for people who support the Constitution of the United States it is no surprise. This administration really hates those first couple of amendments.

 

[mdwest]

It would be real difficult to slash the Federal employees. Biden/Harris administration is already taking some steps (it was published somewhere) to prevent or make it very cumbersome to do that.

difficult doesnt equal impossible... and it absolutely needs to be done..

people have no idea how many employees the US Fed Govt has, and how many of them are in legacy positions that offer zero value to the American people.. the job has just been on the books for 70 years.. so they keep filling it..

an example Ive made here before.. The Japan US Friendship Commission.. Initially funded by Congress in 1975 to help encourage better relationships between US and Japanese industry... here we sit 50 years later.. and they still exist... im pretty sure our relationship with Japan is on solid ground.. and we no longer have a problem convincing Americans that the Japanese are no longer our enemies, that their products are actually pretty good and worth considering for purchase, etc.. but.. we keep on funneling tax dollars to this agency every year..

They have a $38M fund.. and it costs about $2.5M a year to run the agency... they have their own offices in DC..

Do some googling... and tell me 1 thing this agency has done that is productive in the last 20 years or that equals in value to the $2.5M in tax dollars spent to keep them running..

Poll 100 members of congress and see how many members even know this agency exists....

Im willing to bet POTUS and VPOTUS (and Trump for that matter) dont know this agency exists...

While $2.5M doesnt seem like much in the total scope of things.. there are dozens upon dozens of these little federal agencies out there.. all with their own SES sitting at the top of them.. that produce nothing of value, and havent produced anything of value in a very, very long time.. that between them costs us hundreds of millions a year in tax dollars, giving us little to nothing in return... theyre just forgotten in the bureaucratic landscape of DC...

 

[Dirtdart]

Nigels response....

There is at least one politician that has not completely batshit crazy.