Trump's polling is getting worse and worse... what's he going to try to turn the tide this time?

[hal2kilo]

Yes, IT. I don't consider either half of it human.

That's rational.

 

[Jhhnn]

Eh, I'm no fan of Hillary and Bill should have stayed in a cabin during that whole election...but she also got more bullshit propaganda thrown her way over the years than anyone. Now you can argue that made her a poor candidate to win the General, and there I'd agree...not fair to her, but I'd agree.

I think she'd be doing a far, far better job now with this pandemic than Trump and the clowns he has appointed is--Mike Pence running a virus task force, let that sink in--- but we'll never know.

It was a triumph of propaganda, a new & audacious synthesis for the internet age. Social media. Big data. Hacking. Foreign meddling. It worked so well that some of those affected are still fucked in the head 4 years later.

 

[kage69]

Trump is boned and he pretty much knows it. Either that or he's just getting really depressed. Still OKing whatever people suggest it seems, he's always up for buying votes and influence. He'll say whatever he's told to about statues and bases apparently. Try and keep the utterly worthless Susan Collins in office? Sure let's try it.

Saw they added Maine's seafood industry to the list of those getting a bailout. Bootstraps! Il Douche didn't miss an opportunity to blame Obama for the damage his trade war did either, of course.

I can't imagine how bad it would suck to be in his group of enablers and handlers. To have him sink their official talking points so flippantly again and again, to just outright say yeah Biden is going to have this job soon. Maybe the weight of so many dead Americans is why he has such trouble with ramps? No, he'd have to have a heart first. Nm.

 

[zinfamous]

See, here's the thing. I hated it before the rest of them started their campaign against it. I figured Daddy Bush was a slam dunk in '92. When Bubba won, I thought we were all done for. Then the Billaries seemed interchangeable, one holding the office, the other calling the shots. I was never sure which was which since they talked alike, walked alike, dressed alike .....

When it lost to BO, I hoped it would go away forever but then he elevated half of it again.

It shouldn't have even been eligible to run in '16 since it had already served two terms.

jesus fucking christ.

 

[soundforbjt]

Trump is boned and he pretty much knows it. Either that or he's just getting really depressed. Still OKing whatever people suggest it seems, he's always up for buying votes and influence. He'll say whatever he's told to about statues and bases apparently. Try and keep the utterly worthless Susan Collins in office? Sure let's try it.

Saw they added Maine's seafood industry to the list of those getting a bailout. Bootstraps! Il Douche didn't miss an opportunity to blame Obama for the damage his trade war did either, of course.

I can't imagine how bad it would suck to be in his group of enablers and handlers. To have him sink their official talking points so flippantly again and again, to just outright say yeah Biden is going to have this job soon. Maybe the weight of so many dead Americans is why he has such trouble with ramps? No, he'd have to have a heart first. Nm.

You know why Maine' seafood industry needed a bailout? Because Trump's China tariffs stopped China from purchasing 85% of Maine's lobster catch as they usually buy.

 

[Viper1j]

Something that needs to be able to be undone.

He can't pardon himself. That's like an inmate granting himself parole. If he resigns and Pence pardons him, he can only do that for federal crimes. New York state is going to make him a prison bitch.

 

[eelw]

It still needs to be tested in court, can a pardon happen before sentenced for the crime? Nixon’s pardon was never challenged.

And how often has someone pardoned a family member?

 

[SMOGZINN]

It still needs to be tested in court, can a pardon happen before sentenced for the crime? Nixon’s pardon was never challenged.

And how often has someone pardoned a family member?

The pardon power has been used many times to pardon someone that has not been sentenced, it is probably used that way more often than not. I doubt that SCOTUS would even hear a case about that.
As far as pardoning a family member, on his last day in office Bill Clinton pardoned his brother, Roger Clinton.

 

[Jhhnn]

Bill didn't keep Roger out of prison. Roger did his time back in the 80's.

 

[SMOGZINN]

Bill didn't keep Roger out of prison. Roger did his time back in the 80's.

Right, but he did pardon him which allowed the conviction to be expunged from his criminal record. I think it still counts.

 

[Jhhnn]

Right, but he did pardon him which allowed the conviction to be expunged from his criminal record. I think it still counts.

It's nowhere near the same thing. Don't pretend. He did pardon Marc Rich who'd been on the lam for 17 years.

 

[Muse]

I've always thought this pardoning thing, in particular when you are going out the door is just big time bad news.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

I've always thought this pardoning thing, in particular when you are going out the door is just big time bad news.

Not really it allows President to forgive drug crimes or people convicted for crimes that now carry lesser sentencing. Overall it is a good thing.

 

[senseamp]

Vote suppression and pray that people suck it up.

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

I've always thought this pardoning thing, in particular when you are going out the door is just big time bad news.

Not really it allows President to forgive drug crimes or people convicted for crimes that now carry lesser sentencing. Overall it is a good thing.

Allowing it during the bulk of the term is one thing, but there need to be limits put in place.

Once you've been voted out, I think this 'power', among others should be revoked as soon as the results are official. Lame Ducks have done a lot of damage and have used this 'power' for revenge in some cases. Again, look at Bevins.

 

[Thump553]

Allowing it during the bulk of the term is one thing, but there need to be limits put in place.

Once you've been voted out, I think this 'power', among others should be revoked as soon as the results are official. Lame Ducks have done a lot of damage and have used this 'power' for revenge in some cases. Again, look at Bevins.

Very good analysis, but unfortunately the pardon power is expressly granted in the Constitution and a Constitutional amendment would be required to modify it. Otherwise I totally agree-it has devolved to a bad system .

 

[SMOGZINN]

Very good analysis, but unfortunately the pardon power is expressly granted in the Constitution and a Constitutional amendment would be required to modify it. Otherwise I totally agree-it has devolved to a bad system .

It was always a bad system. It was put in place because some of our founding fathers did not really grok the system they were creating and thought that there still needed to be a king like authority to rule a nation and dispense justice. This power, if it needs to exist at all, should have resided in the Supreme Court and be a joint decision of several people, but our founding fathers didn't really foresee what SCOTUS's role would be. SCOTUS has more or less evolved into it's current role from a hazy idea of our founding fathers that a nation needed a court that states could use to settle disputes and keep them from arguing too much. They then just kind of said in the Constitution 'Oh, yea, and there will be a supreme court that is over all the other courts' and then failed to give it any real powers, those had to be inferred from the vague statements in Section 3 of the Constitution.