W.J. Astore
In The Maltese Falcon, Humphrey Bogart famously tells Mary Astor that he won’t play the sap for her. It’s an immortal cinematic line:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPT49WXC0Zo
It’s election time in America, meaning there are plenty of candidates wishing we’d all play the sap for them. Don’t do it. Vote for those you believe in: candidates who are principled and have a record of taking bold stances and of telling the truth. People like Matt Hoh, who’s running for the Senate as a member of the Green Party in North Carolina.
Occasionally, I need to state the obvious, if only to remind myself of the realities of this world. All governments lie and all have their instruments of repression. The most dangerous government is most likely your own government, whatever country you live in, because that governing party has direct power over you, and also because you’re likely to have some allegiance to it, perhaps even some affection for it. As an American, for example, it’s far easier to play the patriot than to act as a dissident. The patriot gets applauded and rewarded; the dissident gets attacked and punished.
The U.S. government, like any other government, lies. Think of the Pentagon papers, the Afghan War papers, the “slam dunk” case of WMD in Iraq that were never found, and so on. All governments lie, as I.F. Stone said.
The message is simple: Always question authority, whether it’s Russian or Chinese or American. Be skeptical. Don’t play the sap. Make Humphrey Bogart proud.
Bracing Views 
Well said, Bill; but what are the options, when there are NO candidates who are principled and have such a record?
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Well, I know one: Matt Hoh. And there are others. They’re most likely not Democrats or Republicans, since both parties are corrupt and corrupting. So you have to do a little research and be willing to vote for candidates that you’re told are going to lose because they’re not mainstream.
And to that I say, so what? “Mainstream” is what’s keeping us in this mess.
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Are You sure there are “others”? How many Matt Hohs are there on all the ballots across the US for Election2022? And how many were candidates in 2020?
And what if there are no Mr Hohs on Your ballot? What if there are no candidates on Your ballot from any party that You can honestly and sincerely vote FOR, as opposed to using Your vote merely to vote AGAINST one or all of the other candidates on the ballot, Mainstream or otherwise?
Or is that where You hold Your nose and vote for that honored American political standby and favorite: the so-called “Lesser of Two Evils”?
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Do I count six questions there? How can I write “bracing views” with all these questions to answer?
Seriously, Jeff, you’re no dummy, and you know the answers here. Certainly, don’t look to an officer for answers when there’s an NCO available!
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Heh. Well, Colonel Bill: One possibility would be to do a BV that answers Questions 4 and 5. Or You could refer folks to an earlier BV at https://bracingviews.com/2022/04/10/reforming-americas-elections-the-notc-way/ .
And i didn’t ask all those questions as an NCO asking an Officer, Bill. i asked them as one retired Centurion of The Empire to another.
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And speaking of Governments that lie… . 59 years later, what is the US Government hiding from the American people. And why is it hiding it?
BIDEN AND NATIONAL ARCHIVES SUED OVER JFK ASSASSINATION RECORDS by Emily Mae Czachor
The Mary Ferrell Foundation, a nonprofit organization and online database containing the most comprehensive archive of records pertaining to the assassination of John F. Kennedy, has sued President Biden and the National Archives and Records Administration for postponing the release of ROUGHLY 15,000 DOCUMENTS CONCERNING THE FORMER PRESIDENT’S MURDER.
The claim, filed in San Francisco federal court on Wednesday, alleges that federal officials have acted outside the law in their failure to make those redactions available to the public, thereby “depriving” researchers and historians of opportunities to learn about the JFK assassination. Almost three years into his presidency, Kennedy was fatally shot on live television while riding in a motorcade through Dallas, Texas, on Nov. 22, 1963, in what is considered the most infamous and widely discussed political assassination of the 20th century.
A lengthy federal investigation found former U.S. Marine Lee Harvey Oswald solely responsible for the shooting, but murky details about the circumstances of JFK’s death invited a number of conspiracy theories and ongoing conjecture from academics, authors and filmmakers as well as the general population. Rising public interest in the assassination records, plus speculation about a rumored government cover-up, prompted the passage of the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act in 1992, mandating the eventual publication of all unreleased documents.
That law, which was signed by former President George H.W. Bush, ORIGINALLY ESTABLISHED AN OCTOBER 2017 DEADLINE FOR THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO PUBLISH ALL REMAINING DOCUMENTS RELATED TO THE ASSASSINATION. THAT INITIAL DEADLINE WAS EFFECTIVELY PUSHED BY THEN-PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP, WHO AT THE TIME ORDERED THE RELEASE OF ABOUT 2,800 PREVIOUSLY UNSEEN FILES BUT WITHHELD THOUSANDS OF OTHERS FOR NATIONAL SECURITY REASONS, SAYING THEY NEEDED FURTHER REVIEW.
Then, in a memo issued LAST OCTOBER, MR. BIDEN ANNOUNCED ANOTHER DELAY AND SET A NEW DEADLINE FOR THE RECORDS’ RELEASE, WHICH NOW FALLS ON DEC. 15. The pandemic had prevented the national archivist from conducting its review as planned, according to the White House, and finishing the job would require more time than expected. Biden cited security concerns as the basis of his decision to support the archivist’s request to postpone.
Continued at https://www.cbsnews.com/news/lawsuit-president-joe-biden-national-archives-jfk-assassination-records/ [EMPHASES added.]
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Pretty much. Although I doubt that an honest candidate could get past our dishonest news media.
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And as I have repeated ad nauseam here, if you live in WA state you might as well take the George Carlin approach on voting day! “I stay home”.
Pattie Murray (D), the Senator for Boeing, will get re-elected for her 6th(!) term in a landslide.
Her Republican challenger is polling in the low teens!
A Matt Hohs type candidate is pissing in the wind. A wasted vote.
You just can’t beat that MIC money!
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Dennis, this is another form of lesser-of-the-evils logic. LOTE is, at a glance, always logical if one is guided primarily by pragmatism in the immediate moment. “Lord knows”, I’ve been there and done that; holding my nose far more times than I’d like to remember. Until I was clear that it was only making things worse. As you know, and the author implies, every time we give in to that pragmatism, we enable, more or less, the status quo to persist. We empower that lesser evil to continue on the same path…basically confirming to them that they are on the right one and that their messaging (about not being as bad as the other guys) is effective.
At the same time, when we skip past the Matt Hohs, we add to the discouragement of any un-bought folk who might give up their own efforts because even those whose values they represent won’t support them.
I’m with WJ Astore on this.
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I’m with Bill as well Roger.
But I lived in Seattle for 41-years.
The last 30 with a do-nothing bought-and-paid-for Senator, now 72, running for her 6th term.
When is WA states “Matt Hohs” going to come along?
I’m 74. In my lifetime? Sadly not?
Until the US chances, its economy not dependent on the MIC, another bought and paid for politician, D or R it does not matter, will come along to be the Senator for Boeing.
And it won’t be a “Matt Hohs” type. Guaranteed.
Any challenger to the status quo will be pissing in the wind
Sorry to be so negative.
Cheers
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And Roger the majority of Washingtonians have just given up.
In Washington recent primaries, turnout was 37.3% across the state and 39% in King County. (Seattle). In 2018, the last midterm primary election, 40.8% of voters across the state and 42.6% in King County voted.
In WA 6 in 10 voters take the George Carlin option, and stay home on voting day!
Despite the low participation rate, Democrats performed the same or better than in 2018 and 2020. In the U.S. Senate race, five-time incumbent Democratic Sen. Patty Murray won 53% of the vote, with her Republican challenger Tiffany Smiley garnering just over 33%. In total, Democratic candidates outperformed Republicans by a 15%.
The chance of WA going red is slim to none.
The chance of a 3rd Party candidate is none!
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Murray likely plans to die in office like Ted Kennedy and John McCain. George Washington was in office for 8 years and called it quits (a real public servant). His example for the Presidency was followed up until FDR who was in his 4th term when he died. Harry Truman took over with nary a glitch in the war effort. The 22nd Amendment was passed to prevent anyone else from pulling an FDR.
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So, with a life expectancy of 82 – Pattie has 10 more years.
What’s that, another 3-terms!
God help us!
And as said above, then another bought-and-paid for politician, will assume the mantle and will carry on as the Senator for Boeing for another 30-years! Wonder if Boeing will even exist that long? LOL
No “Matt Hohs” for WA state eh ALEX!
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Senate terms are 6 years, so 10 years would be just shy of 2 terms. But I would guess life expectancy for an American female is somewhat more than 82, so you might be right about the 3 terms – 18 years. That would put Patti at 90, well within reach. She might even make another 4 terms.
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The experience, as Bill related, of Matt How getting on the ballot is an example of the problem with third-party candidates. The Democrats and Republicans control the machinery of elections in most to all states and want no one else crashing their party. And even if an Independent breaks through and is elected, they’re still forced to caucus with one of the parties to have even minimal influence – and their corruption begins.
To change this situation will require many years. An organized third-party that organizes itself in multiple states, and begins to win elections in local and state elections, is the only way to break the stranglehold of the D’s and R’s on state election rules. Then, winning House seats and Senate seats leads to eventually having viable Presidential candidates. The hero model of a Ralph Nader, Marianne Williamson, etc. will never work until one gets one’s hands on the processes and structures that limit choices – and provides the structure in DC to actually govern.
And to Dennis – yup, I live in Washington. Patty Murray only becomes a presence in election years, but will still win given the vote in the populated western half of the state. Tiffany Smiley has a rather sparse record of any kind on which to judge her. Between the two, I vote neither.
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And to make it even worse, WA’s other Senator, Maria Cantwell (D), the most senior junior Senator(?), is literally invisible! Worse than do-nothing! Her notable achievement: In the 2016 United States presidential election, Cantwell received one electoral vote for vice president from a faithless elector in Washington!
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And at this point, the Democrats increasingly control the voting machinery and election rules, policies, and procedures in some States, and Republicans increasingly control all that in others,
Election2022 promises to be very, Very interesting. Assuming it happens.
And if it does, January 3, 2023 ~ when the new 118th Congress is scheduled to take its seats ~ will be very, Very interesting, as well.
At this point, can anybody rule out another January 6?
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Uh oh TOM!
Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray holds an 8-point lead over Republican challenger Tiffany Smiley in a new poll commissioned by The Seattle Times, a result that shows Smiley gaining 10 points since a similar poll taken in July.
The new WA Poll shows Murray, who is seeking a sixth term, at about the same level of support she had in both the July survey and in the August primary election. Murray is at 49% in the new poll, and was at 51% in July.
But the new poll shows substantial gains for Smiley, who is now at 41% now, and was at 33% in July.
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Dennis,
As I think back to all the elections I voted in, I suppose I started with naive beliefs in the words of one candidate or party. That eventually evolved into understanding I was voting FOR deeply compromised candidates that appeared to offer some hope. Then came the elections of Lesser of Two Evils (LOTE) and understanding those votes were AGAINST the other candidate.
Then in 2008, I was seduced after the horrors of the Bush years by the More Effective Evil (to use the term of Glen Ford of the Black Agenda Report) of Obama. By 2012 I was onto third parties.
Now, I think we’re at the end game. The choices are a hawkish Democratic Party deeply enmeshed with Big Finance and Big Defense (including the Intel community) – led by a confrontational, doddering old fool that is surrounded by holdovers of Obama – all seemingly intent on pushing nuclear wars with China and Russia. Second, a Christian Nationalist/White Fascist party that appears intent on ending popular government unless they win.
Either Murray or Smiley would change nothing (as Murray has demonstrated over her five terms). They’ll go along with the status quo. I think this year I’m with Carlin – this year on Election Day, I stay home (figuratively, as you know we have mail-in voting).
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The so-called “Carlin Option” accomplishes absolutely nothing.
How does staying home because You have nobody You can honestly and sincerely vote FOR send any kind of message to anybody? All that makes You is just another Non-Voter.
That alternative to staying home is very simple and, given sufficient numbers, would send a very powerful message to America’s Ruling Political Class and its Media : Write-In “None Of These Candidates.”
And work to have “None Of These Candidates” as a mandatory, official choice on every ballot of every federal election in 2024.
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Its so discouraging Bill.
FACT: if a Matt Hohs gets elected, he will be no more than a bench warmer in Congress. If you don’t toe the Party line in Congress you will likely not get reelected, and even if you do, like Pattie Murray, you need to be kissing arse for 25-years before you get on any committees and have a modicum of power. How much power does AOC have? Very little I’d say.
For me that’s what makes Rand Paul so attractive. A skillful politician, a dissenter, and a guy who has got many committee assignments in a short time. For that reason, if he ran for President, IMHO voting for him would not just be wasting your vote.
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Holy cow – you think American politics is screwed up.
The poor Limeys have got themselves in a real mess.
Whether our British cousins will continue to support the US/Nato proxy war will be the next big question.
And does this mean anything for poor old Julian Assange?
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Re. Truss: she lasted even fewer weeks than I was anticipating. (I gave her 2-4 months.) In answer to your questions, don’t expect a single change of direction on the foreign policy front. This, despite the fact that the economic trouble that Truss quickly got in is contributed to by the Brit’s seemingly blind allegiance to the U.S.-driven NATO and its proxy wars.
The neocons have largely captured foreign policy there just as they had done here, with support of the neoliberals. And though Truss was actually forced to resign because the economic fallout from her ill-timed, ill-advised tax cut proposals make the Tories look bad (even though I imagine her agenda matched that of most of the Tories) and they’ll focus on damage control at present, you can expect that none will honestly connect the dots between their blind allegiance to the ‘new’ Empire and longer-term economic instabilities.
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Roger, my man in Britian is Nigel Farage! Leader of the Brexit Party! Don’t laugh! LOL
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Dennis, I wouldn’t laugh! As to Brexit and the EU, I don’t consider myself truly knowledgeable enough to have a firm position. I can find pros and cons. For one thing, globalist tendencies COULD reflect a broad human desire for transcending mere nationalism towards a more cooperative, collaborative and peaceful world.
However, given concentrated private capital’s control and influence over governance in places like the U.S., and likely many of its allies, the ideal is not realized because less principled, less humane agendas are reflected in both the organizational structures as well as in the policies. Instead of collaboration towards the solving of the most essential human (and ecological) needs, zero-sum competitiveness and dominance of lesser powerful groups is often manifest.
In the bargain, democracy is often lessened: less local control, more centralization of power and with it, elites increasingly removed from the peoples they ostensibly represent make decisions with significant effects upon the peoples’ lives, with little opportunity for the latter to have any voice or to hold their ‘representatives’ accountable. And given that warfare takes both military and economic forms and that the EU, for example focuses heavily on the economic relations of the partners, it seems fairly likely that the EU would become a further ‘tool’ of warfare against ‘enemy’ states (like Russia).
So while I certainly don’t ascribe to the nationalistic jingoism that accompanied much of the Brexit proponents’ rationale, there was in my opinion good reason to question the validity and model that is the EU.
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Roger as much as politics is as much showbiz, I got attracted to Nigel Farage in the days he gave those outrageous speeches in the European Parliament chambers. This one in particular I could watch 100-times!
He addressed the former Prime Minister of Belgium and first long-term President of the European Council, saying that he had the “charisma of a damp rag” and the appearance of “a low grade bank clerk” He further questioned the legitimacy of Van Rompuy’s appointment, asking, “Who are you? I’d never heard of you, nobody in Europe had ever heard of you.”
He really is a gifted speaker and in any debate, such as in TV appearances, he always got the better of anybody who dared challenge him on any issue. He is no dummy! But as a right winger, and a rabid Brexiteer, he has a lot of enemies in the UK. And his palling around (Sara Palins words) with Trump made him a bit toxic! LOL He would get a lot of votes, but like Trump, the system couldn’t handle him and political chaos would ensue! LOL
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You have that a bit backwards, Dennis.
The System handled Trump completely. Ie, he accomplished virtually everything that he was sent to Swampland to do: To lay the foundation for and then unleash the early stages of the chaos that is engulfing American society, its economy, and its system of government and governance.
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Heh. Yeah; just what England needs… another Trump. And I wonder who in the White House approved that exemption in the name of “national interest.” ,,, :
“… After gaining no seats in the 2019 UK general election under the Brexit Party banner, Farage said he would leave the country to work as a warm-up speaker for Trump’s 2020 campaign rallies.[219]
“June 2020, FARAGE WAS EXEMPTED BY US OFFICIALS FROM THE COUNTRY’S TRAVEL BAN UNDER A “NATIONAL INTEREST” CLAUSE, while Trump prepared for his first major election campaign rally since the COVID-19 pandemic.
“On 20 June, he posted a picture from the US and was later spotted at the Trump rally, taking part in a “Team Trump on Tour” panel discussion.[220] Farage appeared in the audiences of rallies in states such as Michigan and Pennsylvania.[221]
“In an Arizona rally on 29 October, TRUMP CALLED FARAGE “ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL MEN IN EUROPE” AND INVITED HIM TO SPEAK ON THE STAGE, WHERE HE DESCRIBED TRUMP AS THE “MOST RESILIENT AND BRAVE PERSON” HE HAD EVER MET.[222] After the day of the election, Farage conceded that Trump lost “fair and square”, but said “DONALD TRUMP LOSES THE ODD BATTLE, BUT HE DOESN’T LOSE WARS. HE KEEPS FIGHTING UNTIL HE WINS THEM”.[223]”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigel_Farage
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Come on Jeff, you have got to get a laugh out of the Donald and Farage. You can’t barrage the Farage! They both know how to stir the pot and to bring issues into the debate that are untouchable by regular career politicians. Always telling the truth about things you were not supposed to tell the truth about! Thats what I liked about both guys. And as populists they still have huge followings.
But sadly, in both the US and UK parliamentary systems, with their holier-than-thou piety and anachronistic elements, their systems choke on these populists. And like the US Military they both leave destruction and chaos wherever they go!
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i’m sorry, Dennis, but i find nothing about Trump that merits laughing at.
And can You cite any examples of his “always telling the truth about things you were not supposed to tell the truth about!” ?
“During his term as President of the United States, Donald Trump made tens of thousands of false or misleading claims. The Washington Post’s fact-checker had tallied the number as 30,573 by January 2021, an average of about 21 per day by the end of his presidency.[1]
[ ]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veracity_of_statements_by_Donald_Trump ]
And Trump is no “populist”; he is first, foremost, solely, utmost and only a Trumpist.
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That any person made 21 false claims per day is not believable. Lets assume person was speaking out to others 8-hours per day. 21 false claims per day is about 3 every hour. How can this be a credible claim? It does not pass the laugh test Jeff.
Populist: a person, especially a politician, who strives to appeal to ordinary people who feel that their concerns are disregarded by established elite groups.
The approach used by Trump with great success to beat the unpopulist Hillary, convincing voters, ordinary people, that she only cared about herself, her donors, and her establishment elite buddies.
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Trump knew Hillary so well because they’re so much alike. Narcissists. Grifters.
Crooked Hillary rings true and so would Crooked Donald.
I don’t know if Trump lied 21x a day, but the Trump Administration surely did. As do they all.
You know the old joke: you can tell they’re lying when their lips move.
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The Washington Post despises Trump and will say anything to make him look worse than he is.
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Actually the lie that he told an average of 21-untruths per day is even worse when you think about it.
Let’s say he spoke to outsiders 3-days per week for about 6-hrs each of those days. Thats reasonable, since he surely had days when he was just in his office doing the daily business of the President, or travelling, or in meetings with his cabinet and staff, or just reading on the internet.
So that’s 18-hrs a week he spoke to outsiders. Say 20-hrs.
The claim is he told 5 x 21 = 105 lies per week!
But seeming he only spoke to others at most 20-hours per week. And during those talks he spoke say three quarters of the time. Thats 15-hours he was yapping away! 105/15 = 7 lies for every hour he spoke!
Ridiculous. But a typical claim from those with Trump derangement syndrome (TDS)
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How much bigger was America’s National Sovereign Debt at the end of Trump’s regime compared to what it was at the end of Obama’s?
How much bigger was America’s “National Defense/Security” when he left Swampland than it was when he arrived?
Why ~ under Trump’s “leadership” ~ did America [with 4.1% of the world populations] suffer 16% of the Total COVID Cases and 17% of the Total COVID Deaths [at one point, as high as 25%]? This is an America that spends more money total and per capita on Health Care than any other nation on the Planet?
How did America’s Trade Deficits do with him in charge?
On the other hand, how did the Stock Markets do and which Core Group of Trump’s fans have benefited from that?
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Perhaps the Post will double down on the claim and make it 42 lies a day. After CNN and MSNBC repeat it ad nauseum a good percentage of the population will come to believe it.
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Heh. i’ve often wondered if Clinton was just part of the plot to put Trump in the White House. Whether she was or she wasn’t, it certainly worked. The Dems couldn’t have picked anybody better than The Hillary to ensure that The Donald got to play in the Big House.
And WHO specifically in America was better off in any way when Trump left office as compared to how they were when he took office? Other than the recipients of his “tax reforms” and the MICC and others who had an inside track to the Oval Office?
How’d the quality and cost of Health Care in America do under his watch? Or the cost and quality Education? How about the Crime Rates of both Criminals and Cops do?
And which Wars did America win with him as Commander In Chief? And how much money did America spend in losing them?
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Donald Trump said. “When you talk about George Bush, I mean, say what you want, the World Trade Center came down during his time. … He was president, OK? Don’t blame him or don’t blame him, but he was president. The World Trade Center came down during his reign.”
Just one example of Trump telling the truth about things you were not supposed to tell the truth about.
The inconvenient truth is that Trump is correct. 9/11 occurred on George W. Bush’s watch. If nine months into the Obama administration such a terrorist attack had occurred, Republicans would squarely put the blame on Obama. A fact that Trump exposed – is that there was ample information that should have had the Bush administration on alert and Bush was to blame for 9/11.
The joker who became President served an important function, waking Americans up to what they had not yet admitted in themselves or accomplished in their country. He challenged American to grow in self-awareness, and to act in ways that respect and fulfill what is best in themselves and their democracy.
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Some twenty-four million people tuned in to the first Republican debate in this election cycle and I’ve hardly heard a mention of the most jaw-dropping and inflammatory comment said by anyone on that stage. Of course, the one to make it was The Donald. For having the gall to tell us the truth we should thank him, and frankly, invite him to all of the debates. After all, it concerns all Americans no matter if you are a Republican or a Democrat, Independent or Libertarian.
If you were wondering what he could say that was more worthy of our outrage than his comments related to immigrants and women, here it is:
“I will tell you that our system is broken. I gave to many people. Before this, before two months ago, I was a businessman. I give to everybody. When they call, I give. And you know what? When I need something from them, two years later, three years later, I call them. They are there for me. And that’s a broken system.”
Let it sink in for a moment. One of the richest businessmen in our country, an insider and power broker of epic proportions admitted that he donates to politicians so they will owe him something in the future. Put another way, THE POLITICIANS WILLINGLY ASK FOR HIS MONEY IN RETURN FOR FAVORS in what they do for a living, which is to make laws that affect all Americans.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/donald-trump-told-the-truth-and-you-didnt-listen_b_7965700
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That rich power broker’s donations to politicians who wanted his money in return for favors is not some sort of earth-shattering confession and the paragon of honesty. They were and are all matters of public record.
And that’s exactly how Swampland and America’s system of $ 1 = 1 Vote politics, government, and governance works. Always has, and always will. Until it is replaced.
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Yes, Trump blurted out the truth at times. He deserves credit for this.
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Trump also blurted out the Truth when he said that the American Civil War did not need to happen, and that America post-Cold War I America is not “innocent” when it comes to inflicting pain and suffering all over the planet.
Unfortunately, he did virtually nothing to lessen the pain and suffering that America continued to inflict during his time on the throne, and set the stage for what is going on under Biden today.
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Trump noting that Bush as the President on 9/11 is “talking about a truth nobody is supposed to talk about,” eh?
How is that different from noting that Lincoln was the President during what will in time be termed as merely the First American Civil War?
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On the surface, Trump and Farage can be entertaining. They’re bully boys who play to the crowd.
But look inside and there’s not much there. Lots of narcissism, lots of insults, lots of bragging.
Men like this remind me of my father’s favorite saying: the empty barrel makes the most noise.
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Every country needs a Trump or a Farage to keep the rest of them honest. Or at least slightly more honest.
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Exactly ALEX, Trump did a huge service to Americans by exposing the slimy underbelly of how they were being governed. That is why he is so hated by The Washington Post and all WA DC beltway swamp critters.
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And why they are scared shitless that he will get another term. With one term under his belt, learning all their dirty tricks, he will be ruthless, relentless, and affective at cutting a lot of the DC crap.
Who knows, we might even be friends with Russia to the huge benefit for all. We might even drop out of Nato. It’s about time! We might even pull all troops out of the middle east. Syria for example. And get Universal healthcare like all other civilized countries have. And stop the F35 bleeding.
Back in 2000, he advocated for it as both a potential Reform Party presidential candidate and in his book, “The America We Deserve.”
“We must have universal health care. Just imagine the improved quality of life for our society as a whole,” he wrote, adding: “The Canadian-style, single-payer system in which all payments for medical care are made to a single agency (as opposed to the large number of HMOs and insurance companies with their diverse rules, claim forms and deductibles) … helps Canadians live longer and healthier than Americans.”
Will Roper, who served as Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics for the last three years of the Trump administration, recommended that Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Brown, former Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Ellen Lord, and others reduce the number of jets purchased from 1,763 jets to about 800, the officials said. Roper questioned the cost of the jet.
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Your dream of what Trump could be smacks up against the reality of what Trump is: a blowhard and a narcissist with no real spine.
Of course, the Democrats are no better. Just awful in a different way.
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Dennis: Who is this “we” You keep referring to? Are You including New Zealanders with Americans in that?
And Trump wrote his what-America-deserves manifesto back in 2000. i’m surprised You didn’t also cheerlead his 2015 masterpiece CRIPPLED AMERICA: How to Make America Great Again [ https://www.amazon.com/Crippled-America-Make-Great-Again/dp/1501137964/ref=pd_bxgy_sccl_1/141-1031446-9343067 ]
Heh. i can’t help but wonder who wrote all his books for him.
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If Trump even tried to do any of those wonderful things You dream of, Dennis, he would be replaced. And not necessarily at the next election.
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Exactly what “slimy underbelly” of American politics, government, and governance did Trump “expose”?
And what, specifically, did he do about it to change it? Except to cash in on it and leave it even slimier than it was before he made launched his new reality-tv show that he hosted from the Oval Office.
Was America’s political underbelly any less slimier the day POTUS Maxximmuss XLV left office than it was when he assumed the throne? Was ANYTHING about American politics, government, and governance less slimier ~ dishonest, corrupt, and bought out ~ when he took all those classified documents to Mar-a-Lago?
And i can assure You, Dennis, that hatred of Trump extends far, far beyond the WaPo and Your “swamp critters.”
But again, The Donald accomplished exactly what he was sent to Swampland to accomplish: to set the stage for the political, economic, social, and cultural Chaos that is unfolding and taking root in America today. For that, he will have earned his place in history.
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Well, with Bills permission let me try to answer that Jeff,
He kept his promise to move the US Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, something his three immediate predecessors promised yet failed to do. He promised to “crush and destroy ISIS,” and eliminated the Islamic State’s physical caliphate.
He promised to impose a travel ban on countries he saw as posing a terrorist threat, and his ban was upheld by the Supreme Court. He promised to punish Syria if it used chemical weapons on its people, and, unlike his immediate predecessor, he followed through — not once but twice.
Trump pledged to nominate Supreme Court justices “in the mold of Justice Scalia,” and now Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh sit on the high court. Trump pledged to fill the federal appellate courts with young, conservative judges. Over the course of his presidential term, he nominated 234 lawyers, judges, and politicians for federal judgeships.
During the campaign, he told African-American voters, “What do you have to lose? I’ll bring jobs back”. On his watch, African-American unemployment reached the lowest level ever recorded, and his tax reform included a provision creating “Opportunity Zones” to try to revitalize struggling towns and inner-city communities.
Trump promised to cancel President Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan, withdraw from the Paris climate accord, approve the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines and open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil exploration. He fulfilled all of those pledges.
On trade, he kept his promise to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership and impose tariffs on steel and aluminum. He also renegotiated NAFTA and the US-Korea Free Trade Agreement — and signed new deals with Mexico, Canada and South Korea. He committed to imposing tariffs on China to force it to open its markets and stop its theft of intellectual property — and was following through on that. Whatever one thinks of Trump’s trade policies, he is doing exactly what he said.
The President pledged historic increases in defense spending, and delivered.
He pledged to bring back manufacturing jobs, and manufacturing jobs on his watch were growing at the fastest pace in more than two decades.
He pledged to sign “Right to Try” legislation, and did.
He pledged to take on the opioid epidemic and signed the Support for Patients and Communities Act into law. The Act received overwhelming bipartisan support in both the Senate and the House. Congress subsequently appropriated $8.5 billion towards fighting the opioid crisis.
And the list goes on – but you probably stopped reading after “let me try to answer”.
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i will respond to Your list of “Promises Trump Kept” in a bit, Dennis. Item-by-Item. Even tho You’ll probably stop reading it after You see what it is about.
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So Jeff, which American politician do you admire and have respect for? I asked you this once before – and you said Eugene Debs. But I was looking for one that is alive!
I’ll broaden the question. Which American person do you, did you, look to for inspiration? I have never heard you say one complimentary thing about a fellow American. Brent Scowcroft. Ralph Nader. Tulsi Gabbard. General Norman Schwarzkopf. James Baker. Who?
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Give me a fucking break, Dennis.
Are You actually suggesting that Your boy Trump sought and got his bought-and-paid-for-with-Daddy’s-money deferment because he had “moral” objections to America’s War in Vietnam?
His only objection to being drafted was that it would interfere with his life as “The Donald Comes of Age” and all that it promised him. That was about the extent of his “moral” objections; it went no further than his own butt.
Has Trump ever said anything Negative at all about America’s War in Vietnam? Ever?
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First of all, exactly where and when did i say i admire and respect Eugene Debs?
And second of all, i admire and respect no current or recent American politician except California Congresswoman Barbara Lee, the ONLY member of the House or Senate that voted against the Authorization to Use Military Force, which launched America’s Forever War back on September 14, 2001: https://theintercept.com/2016/09/11/barbara-lees-lone-vote-on-sept-14-2001-was-as-prescient-as-it-was-brave-and-heroic/ .
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How ~ specifically ~ did Trump make America or its elected politicians, entrenched bureaucrats, anointed political appointees, and the people who own, operate, command, and control them any more “honest”?
About as much as he made America “Great Again,” i’d say.
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Jeff, he may not have made elected politicians, entrenched bureaucrats, anointed political appointees, and the people who own, operate, command, and control them any more “honest”.
But when Trump says he will do something, you can take it to the bank. Yes, he takes liberties with the truth. But unlike his predecessor, he did not pass his signature legislative achievement on the basis of a lie (“If you like your health care plan, you can keep it”).
The fact is, Trump compiled a record of presidential promise-keeping.
When it comes to the real barometer of presidential honesty — keeping his promises — Trump was a paragon of honesty. For better or worse, in office Trump did exactly what he promised he would.
For example, he promised to pass tax reforms – and signed the first major overhaul of the tax code in three decades. He vowed a regulatory rollback with a policy to eliminate two existing regulations for every new regulation, and in his first year he achieved $8.1-billion in regulatory savings. And many other examples of his successes abound – but are not ever mentioned by a corrupt press intent on destroying the man.
And he was on his way to making America great again, until he was derailed by a concerted effort by the media, dishonest career politicians on the take who did not want their gravy train derailed, and a military junta and State Department policy making bureaucracy inherited from his predecessors. Given another term he would have made progress in mitigating these cancers from America. And still might.
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How much did Lower and Middle Class Americans benefit from Trump’s so-called “tax reforms”?
And how much did federal government Spending go down while he was in charge? And how much did the National Debt go up as the result of decreased federal government Revenues because of those “reforms”?
And how much in so-called “regulatory savings” did Trump accumulate after that first year, and in total at the end of his reign?
The real barometer of Presidential honesty has nothing to do with keeping campaign promises.
It has to do Only with whether or not that President and his Administration tell the American people The Truth about whatever it is that they want to do next and Why they want to do it.
Something that has not happened in this country in a long, long time.
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Perhaps Boris will come back.
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Nigel Farage will be great – he will rip all those inbred Eton boys a new one!
Nigel is good value!
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Go Nigel!
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And speaking of our cousins…
Our Russophobic Aussie friends across the ditch – cheering for more war.
This video surely shows – what’s happening here is that we don’t know what is happening
1,573,273 viewers and 3,102 commenters know RUSSIA : BAD. US/NATO: GOOD!
Love the way he says “British and American intelligence services are absolutely sure”. WMD anyone?
One Aussie commentor dared to post “Zelensky is sacrificing his people for his own pocket”. But not one “thumbs down”, and 15,000 “thumbs up”. Oh dear!
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@JG MOEBUS
Jeff my friend, I am sitting in a home in Port Orchard Wa as I type this. In a neighborhood I lived for over 30-years. But whether I am a New Zealand citizen or an American, what does that have to do with my thoughts on geopolitics? Are you saying John Pilger cannot comment on American geopolitics. Or Christopher Hitchens who lived in both the UK and the US?
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i just asked You who this “WE” is You keep referring to that would have had all these wonderful things if Trump had stayed in office. Do You include New Zealanders among those “We” who would have benefited?
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Yes I do.
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Jeff, we get it. You don’t like Trump. And have a case of Trump Derangement syndrome (TDS).
But that’s yesterday’s story. (Until gets re-elected in 2024 – tee hee!)
Move along folks – nothing to see here!
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Wrong again, Dennis. i don’t have TDS.
i have a very strong case of Totally and Completely Fed Up With The American System Of Politics, Government, and Governance, or the TCFUWTASoPGGWT Syndrome.
And Your boy Trump is a wholly owned and operated Cog in that System.
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Correction: That’s TCFUWTASoPGG Syndrome.
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How?
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If Trump had of stayed in office, the Ukrainian proxy war for regime change in Russia would not have happened. That would have benefitted every person in the World. Just on the energy situation alone.
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On what FACT-BASED basis do You make the claim that “If Trump had of stayed in office, the Ukrainian proxy war for regime change in Russia would not have happened”?
Because Trump or his mouthpieces in the Media say so? Because he and Putin are Buds?
What was the U.S. doing in, around, and about Ukraine while Trump was in charge of the show? Or did all this bullshit start with Biden?
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FULL DISCLOSE; or Why i Dislike Trump. [Uncensored]
i personally disliked Trump from the moment he emerged out of his festering hole back in 2015 to launch his new reality tv show “Destination 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.” That happened when i remembered that he was, is, and ever will be a fucking Draft Dodger, just like Clinton, Cheney, and whole bunch of other prime time politicians from that era.
What was it his Daddy paid that deferment for? Pilonidal Cysts? No, that was that other Super Patriot Chicken Hawk, the scumbag Limbaugh.
How about keeping whoever his wife was at the time pregnant? No, that was the scumbag SPCH Cheney.
How about getting a perpetual “education” deferment? No, that was that scumbag Clinton; a man too stupid to get a blowjob in the Oval Office from a woman young enough to be his Daughter, and not get caught.
Ahhh, now i remember. It was “bone spurs on his tender heels” that kept our future POTUS Maxximmuss XLV as far away from Vietnam as he could possibly be without going to Canada.
Hence the moniker “Corporal Bonespurs.” Once a scumbag always a scumbag.
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So Jeff, I hate to ask this, but didn’t the kids who went to Canada to avoid the Vietnam conflict in the long run have the moral high ground when all is told?
Wiki: Estimates of the total number of American citizens who moved to Canada due to their opposition to the war range from 50,000 to 125,000[26] This exodus was “the largest politically motivated migration from the United States since the United Empire Loyalists moved north to oppose the American Revolution.”[27]
These young men were often well educated,[1][28][29] and alienated from American society, showing a knowledge and distaste for American social problems at the time. Most felt the Vietnam War was immoral, and felt supported by the era’s counterculture and protests to make the decision to flee to Canada. Despite a general distaste for the war, only a minority were active political radicals. Many may have made the decision to immigrate to Canada not because of a major opposition to the morality of the war, but in fear of a removal of personal independence brought by conscription. Many were middle class and needed little assistance assimilating in Canada.
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Like i said earlier and put it in the wrong spot:
Give me a fucking break, Dennis.
Are You actually suggesting that Your boy Trump sought and got his bought-and-paid-for-with-Daddy’s-money deferment because he had “moral” objections to America’s War in Vietnam?
His only objection to being drafted was that it would interfere with his life as “The Donald Comes of Age” and all that it promised him. That was about the extent of his “moral” objections; it went no further than his own butt.
Has Trump ever said anything Negative at all about America’s War in Vietnam? Ever?
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And to the best of my knowledge, none of those Americans who went to Canada to avoid being sent to Vietnam have in later life emerged as the self-proclaimed Super Patriot and Savior of America, and that everybody should trust him because he was such a great success after he dodged the draft.
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And speaking of Trump’s Lies…:
THE 15 MOST NOTABLE LIES OF DONALD TRUMP’S PRESIDENCY by Daniel Dale [Overview and Extracts]
Trying to pick the most notable lies from Donald Trump’s presidency is like trying to pick the most notable pieces of junk from the town dump. There’s just so much ugly garbage to sift through before you can make a decision.
Trump is, at his core, a huckster. Every moment of his presidency was a chance for him to sell someone on something, whether or not that something actually existed. And if they asked when they could actually see the magic elixir he said was being brewed just over there behind the curtain, he would just have to delay them until they forgot about it.
Here are the 15 Trump lies that stand out from his four years in power – for their importance, for their egregiousness, for their absurdity, or for what they say about the man:
~ 1. THE MOST TELLING LIE: It Didn’t Rain On His Inauguration.
~ 2. THE MOST DANGEROUS LIE: The Coronavirus Was Under Control
~ 3. THE MOST ALARMING LIE SAGA: Sharpiegate
~ 4. THE MOST RIDICULOUS SUBJECT OF A LIE: The Boy Scouts
~ 5. THE UGLIEST SMEAR LIE: Rep. Ilhan Omar Supports Al Qaeda
~ 6. THE MOST BORING SERIAL LIE: The Trade Deficit With China Used To Be $500 Billion
~ 7. THE MOST ENTERTAINING LIE SHTICK: The Burly Crying Men Who Had Never Cried Before
~ 8. THE MOST TRADITIONAL BIG LIE: Trump Didn’t Know About The Payment To Stormy Daniels
~ 9. THE BIGGEST LIE BY OMISSION: Trump Ended Family Separation
~10. THE MOST SHAMELESS CAMPAIGN LIE: Biden Will Destroy Protections For Pre-Existing Conditions
~ 11. THE LIE HE FLED: He Got Veterans Choice
~ 12. THE CRAZY UNCLE LIE AWARD: Windmill Noise Causes Cancer
~ 13. THE MOST HUCKSTERISH LIE: That Plan Was Coming In Two Weeks
~ 14. MY PERSONAL FAVORITE LIE: Trump Was Once Named Michigan’s Man Of The Year
~ 15. THE MOST DEPRESSING LIE: Trump Won The Election
The nation’s Truth Problem, clearly, isn’t just a Trump problem. With this last blizzard of deception and the Capitol insurrection it fomented, Trump has shown us, once more, just how detached from reality much of his political base has become – or always was.
Full article and details on the 15 Most Notable Lies at https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/16/politics/fact-check-dale-top-15-donald-trump-lies/index.html
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I give you 21-specific promises Trump kept, pledges he fulfilled and legislative action he took.
Of the many he accomplished – but will never be reported by the Washington Post.
…..”I will respond to Your list of “Promises Trump Kept” in a bit, Dennis. Item-by-Item”….
And you counter with a corny list of 15-most notable lies.
Half of them – well dumb!
That Trump lives rent free in your head* being evident in your every post.
Cheers mate!
*slang of a person, to be a source of antipathy or exasperation to one to the extent of becoming a frequent or continual subject of one’s agitated thoughts. The term indicates that such a person is able to negatively impact one without any repercussions (with the implication that one should not allow such a person to have such an effect on them).
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Wrong again still, Dennis.
Sorry to confuse You, but i can see how You could easily be.
That article about Trump’s 15 Lies was not my response to Your litany of all his promises kept.
As i told You, i will respond to Your “21 Kept Promises” List in a bit. And when i do, You will be able to tell by the title, fair enough?
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Dennis, the only time Trump is in my head is when somebody like You comes along and mouths all his Talking Points.
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How long was Trump in office?
4-years x 260 working days per year = 1,040 working days.
You and the Washington Post, who hates Trumps guts, claimed Trump told an average of 21-lies per day ….
That 1,040 x 21 = 21, 800 lies. (actually you claim 30,573 by January 2021 – he must have been lying in his weekends too! LOL)
You only can come up with 15 eh! LOL
Come on Jeff, you are letting the side down my man!
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Wrong again, Dennis. I didn’t claim anything about Trump and his Lies. All i did was quote WaPo. Send Your complaint to them.
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And you willingly propagated their rubbish here because Trump lives in your head for free! LOL
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Heh. And where does he live in You? And do You charge him for that privilege? Or does he charge You?
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And when are You going to respond to my question about Trump’s Draft Dodging: That Daddy got him his deferment because The Donald had “moral objections” to the war in Vietnam?
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