Seventeen U.S. intelligence agencies agree that the U.S. 2016 presidential election was hacked by Russia. Yet, the PEOTUS, Donald Trump, does not believe them. He belittles these agencies and instead praises Vladimir Putin and Julian Assange – a man he suggested in 2010 should face the death penalty.
We might well ask why the Democratic Party has not been insisting on a redo of the election. Is that so bizarre under the circumstances? Why haven’t journalists raised this as a possibility? Why is the Democratic Party negotiating yet again from a position of weakness — starting their demands in the mushy middle?
Why, we might reasonably ask, do they insist that a smooth transition of power is more important than at least a delay of the inauguration? You can be sure if the roles were reversed and a Clinton win had been facilitated by foreign actors and the FBI, Donald Trump and the Republican Party would be insisting on a new election.
Having studied persuasion and negotiation throughout my career, I can say that when things seem most surreal it is usually because the rationale of the other side has not been fully grasped.
For those who supported Donald Trump, the ends appear to have justified the means. The most frightening thing is that we do not yet know what those ends will be. We do know that time-honored U.S. values will be taking an extraordinary hit. We know, too, that the concerns of Senators John McCain and Linsey Graham about Russian hacking are being quashed by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell whose wife, Elaine Chao, is expected to join Trump’s Cabinet.
As if this weren’t bad enough, we are about to have a president who rejects input from U.S. intelligence agencies, insists on his own security force, and does not roll with the punches. He takes criticism personally and switches quickly from adulation of foreign leaders to disdain — a habit for which, God forbid, we could one day all pay dearly.
(A slightly revised and updated version (including Donald Trump’s blog of January 5, 2017) of this blog appears on Huffington Post).
The billionaire(s), the 1% are now in charge of the welfare of the 99% (business as usual) – the new “populism.”
The Republicans always smirk…and gloat, when they win unfairly, all they care about is power and their branding on whatever actual work the Democrats achieve – Trumpcare!
We on the left, now, literally, the silent majority, have seen it all before, by the rightwing “not sees.”
“From A song I wrote after the election, with cadence:
“God didn’t make us all white, males, Christian, Republican and straight, we don’t need no registry of the Islamic state, no we don’t need no stinking Proposition H8.
We’re all standing in the need of prayer, stronger together, Everyone does better, when, everyone does better, God Bless you, Madam UnPresidented.”
and I’ll repost my comment from the week after the election (still echoes):
LOCK HIM UP!
Comey’s “pertinent evidence” was neither. The election was hijacked and robbed from Hillary Clinton and the popular vote, in the final countdown to election day, the election was stolen by Trump, Comey, Guiliani and the Republican party through voter intimidation, redistricting/ gerry mandering, voter obstruction, suppression, at the polls and with new voting laws and restrictions, a smear campaign of fake news, a barrage of Murdock/the Enquirer fake news, Russian and Wiki-leaks propaganda.
There was voter intimidation, voter obstruction and suppression, new voting restrictions and voters turned away, at the polling stations in all the battle ground states. There were false accusations and fake news on Benghazi, the content of her speeches to Goldman -Sachs, the espionage of wikileaks and in Trumps communications with Putin/Russia.
Donald stole the election to our highest office from a woman, through fear-mongering, bullying, defamation, libel and slander, while the poor fools, duped by fake news, voted for the man who predicted in 2014, even before he ran: “If I run for President I’ll run as a Republican because those people are such stupid voters! I bet I can get huge numbers of them to vote for me.” –
It’s the Misogyny stupid!
Now Democratic politicians are willing to work with him?!
You’re f-kn me.
I refuse and do not recognize, as my President, someone who is a proven scoundrel, accused rapist, alleged by the mother of his children, who allies himself with another alleged rapist, Julian Assange.
An “effort” to “work with him” (yeah, right) would be as naive as it would be pointless.
A scoundrel who goes bankrupt 6 times in his own business dealings will bankrupt the country. If it walks and quacks like a Donald…
This is NOT the first time dirty right-wing politics steals an election from the people after the democrats have done all the hard work to bring about change, economic recovery and needed progress.
Now we’re going to LET the unqualified and inexperienced, with the mentality of a 5 year old, Trump, dump his rump on the throne, the right wing assume power and take the credit for the recovery, yet again, while they squander the nations wealth as Bush did when he promoted, at a cost of a trillion dollars of borrowed debt, a needless war in Iraq, all the while saying the U.S. “can’t afford the 250 billion dollars it would take to convert the nation from nuclear, coal and oil, to a solar panel energy grid.” to protect the special interest industries
There’s your job losses! There is your investment in our nation’s opportunity for new infrastructure, new jobs and hopes for a stronger middle class and a recovered booming economy down the drain!
Now China buys up all the cement and raw resources, left on the planet, to build their infrastructure, to make their solar voltaic cells and convert to solar as fast as they can, while we flounder under Republican special interest obstruction that is safegaurding the 1%’s 65% of the nation’s wealth, and we won’t have the raw resources to build our country, when it’s too late, when our economy, resources and climate change and our decayed infrastructure demand that we do it now!
Thanks, again, to the f-kn Republicans in control of decision making, the special interest drivers’ will have the front row seat to witness the demise of our country.
Look at all of the masses of heroes who took to the streets to demonstrate against a Trump administration, after the sham election?!
What the hell is wrong with the rest of us in this country?!
The media?! Our democratic politicians, mere sheep now, where is the Tea Party backlash of “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take anymore” from the left, we, who accept this and don’t bother speaking out?
Where is the impeachment and legal pursuit against this criminal and his crooked nefarious/disreputable/ cronies/appointees?
When, do we have voting reform once and for all safe gaurded?
When, does Donald Trump’s wall come tumbling down with his conflicts of interests and illegal business dealings?
Embattle him, from now until he’s dead or in prison! LOCK HIM UP!
We the popular vote must do all we can, resist, push back, advocate, demonstrate and do it now! There are 65,000,000 of us in the popular and 100 million who didn’t vote potentially waiting in the wings.
I demand the FBI force Trump to turn over his taxes in the interests of investigating his dealings with Russia and with Putin.
Romney said it months ago: “Look into Trump’s taxes, he’s hiding something there!”
When do we start using OUR “pertinent evidence” to achieve justice against this man’s illegal actions, his corrupt and criminal history and his thievery?!
Expose him on every turn and level.
Now! Now!
We must relentlessly keep digging deeper!
Like his Taj Mahal – Trumpty Dumpty and his wall, his pomp and brawl, and all, will and must, fall!
Austin texas
Council District: 1
Appreciate your clarity, insight and leadership on many of the challenges put forth as a result of the murkiness surrounding the execution of the American election!