Ladies and gentlemen, s*** the president said during the previous week:
- “Are you still a believer in Santa? Because at seven, it’s marginal, right?” 12/24/2018 phone call with 7-year old Collman Lloyd. I mean, WTF? This poor kid called NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command), whose radar is used to track Santa’s location every New Year’s Eve, specifically to find out where Santa was. Instead, she was patched through to a president hellbent on destroying the magic of a child’s Christmas. This is Trump’s second Christmas in office, so he may actually be getting worse at this kind of thing. Next year, hear him brag about grabbing Santa’s wife by the….
- “You just saw that because you just got one of the biggest pay raises you’ve ever received…. It’s great. You know what? Nobody deserves it more. You haven’t gotten one in more than 10 years – more than 10 years. And we got you a big one. I got you a big one. I got you a big one.” 12/25/2018 speech at Al Asad Air Base in Iraq. President Trump loves saying our troops haven’t gotten a raise in years and that he, he, heroically secured one against all odds. This is pure fantasy. Our troops have gotten a raise every single year for at least the past 25 years. How could anyone possibly screw this up?
- “They had plenty of people that came up. They said, ‘You know, we could make it smaller. We could make it 3 percent. We could make it 2 percent. We could make it 4 percent.’ I said, ‘No. Make it 10 percent. Make it more than 10 percent.’ Because it’s been a long time. It’s been more than 10 years. It’s been more than 10 years. That’s a long time. And, you know, you really put yourselves out there, and you put your lives out there. So congratulations.” 12/25/2018 speech at Al Asad Air Base in Iraq. Public employee salaries are public info; this year’s military raises are 2.6%. He just flew out there on Christmas and lied to their faces about their own paychecks. It’s like he went to the Michael Scott school of leadership. And you know who delivered our troops a bigger raise than 2.6%? Obama did. Thanks, Obama.
- “The only problem our economy has is the Fed. They don’t have a feel for the Market, they don’t understand necessary Trade Wars or Strong Dollars or even Democrat Shutdowns over Borders. The Fed is like a powerful golfer who can’t score because he has no touch – he can’t putt!” 12/24/2018 Trump tweet. That golf analogy isn’t doing it for me. Anyway, Trump is raging at the Fed for raising interest rates, which is actually a sign of a strong economy – something he seems not to understand. Trump also appointed the Fed’s chairman. He’s been in office long enough now that many of the problems he faces (legal, economic, legal, political, and legal) are driven by people he personally appointed.
- “Saudi Arabia has now agreed to spend the necessary money needed to help rebuild Syria, instead of the United States. See? Isn’t it nice when immensely wealthy countries help rebuild their neighbors rather than a Great Country, the U.S., that is 5000 miles away. Thanks to Saudi A!” 12/24/2018 Trump tweet. No one knew what Trump was talking about here so they asked Saudi Arabia and it turns out, no. They pledged $100 million back in August, which would be a drop in the bucket to rebuild Syria, and have not pledged anything since.
- “We will be forced to close the Southern Border entirely if the Obstructionist Democrats do not give us the money to finish the Wall & also change the ridiculous immigration laws that our Country is saddled with. Hard to believe there was a Congress & President who would approve!” 12/28/2018 Trump tweetstorm, part 1. He won’t be forced to do anything if Democrats don’t pay this ransom. This is the first time in American history the government has shutdown with a single party in control of the White House and both houses of Congress, and what Trump decides to do is on him.
- “….The United States looses soooo much money on Trade with Mexico under NAFTA, over 75 Billion Dollars a year (not including Drug Money which would be many times that amount), that I would consider closing the Southern Border a “profit making operation.” We build a Wall or…..” 12/28/2018 Trump tweetstorm, part 2. Look, this is simple enough that a local idiot such as myself can understand it, so Trump should, too. We don’t “loose” money. We’re at full employment right now, meaning we’re producing all the shit (goods and services) we can. Still, it isn’t enough to meet our demand for shit so we import shit from everywhere else, too. That’s right, we have trade deficits with all these countries because we have a strong economy. The only things that could help our trade deficit are (1) importing more people (immigration) to increase our supply, (2) weakening our economy thereby decreasing our demand – neither of which Trump supports – or (3) cracking down on foreign “cheaters” (primarily China). Rather than work through the WTO to hit China, Trump has threatened to pull out of the WTO and has slapped tariffs on basically everyone. This has the effect of sanctioning ourselves, which may yet cause a recession thus backing us into scenario (2). Not smart.
- “…..close the Southern Border. Bring our car industry back into the United States where it belongs. Go back to pre-NAFTA, before so many of our companies and jobs were so foolishly sent to Mexico. Either we build (finish) the Wall or we close the Border……” 12/28/2018 Trump tweetstorm, part 3. Again, with all the jobs we’ve sent to Mexico and elsewhere due to trade, we are operating at full employment. We just sent Mexico the comparatively less-skilled jobs and kept/created better-paying tech and automation jobs. We win with that trade-off, which is why our economy is still the envy of the world and people from Mexico still look to us for opportunity. This is the system Trump is trying to dismantle.
- “…..Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador are doing nothing for the United States but taking our money. Word is that a new Caravan is forming in Honduras and they are doing nothing about it. We will be cutting off all aid to these 3 countries – taking advantage of U.S. for years!” 12/28/2018 Trump tweetstorm, part 4. End of tweetstorm. I won’t lie – I really have no idea whether Honduras, Guatemala or El Salvador are doing anything with their aid money. You know what, though? Neither does the president.
- “Any deaths of children or others at the Border are strictly the fault of the Democrats and their pathetic immigration policies that allow people to make the long trek thinking they can enter our country illegally. They can’t. If we had a Wall, they wouldn’t even try!” 12/30/2018 Trump tweet. This is sick. Two children seeking asylum in America died in Border Patrol’s custody after five days, despite passing initial health screenings with no evident issues. Seeking asylum is perfectly legal, something Trump has been reminded of dozens of times. He either knows it, or there’s dementia under that hair. Leaders don’t shift blame.
That’s our last report for 2018. Remember to click the links for more info if you’re curious about any of the above, and if you’re going out tonight, be safe! Even Donald Trump wouldn’t drink and drive.
Idiotville 