Betrayal Beyond Belief: Dem Priorities Funded; Trump’s Scuttled

[Ryan Ruck]

Betrayal Beyond Belief: Dem Priorities Funded; Trump’s Scuttled

May 1, 2017

During the 2014 elections in my home state of Maryland, there were problems with some of the ballot machines, whereby many ballots cast for Republicans “coincidentally” were automatically rendered as Democrat ballots. With the omnibus deal forged at 2 a.m. last night in Congress, this is essentially what has happened on a national level. People voted for a revolution – to drain the swamp – and out popped a Democrat budget. In fact, one would be hard pressed to find anything different about this budget from the one we would have gotten if Hillary had been elected.

Amazingly, the FY 2017 budget was deliberately held over until this year instead of being completed in October or December 2016, precisely so that the victor of the election would reap the spoils of war. Well, Democrats lost the election but won this year’s budget. The reason why it took an extra few days to forge the “deal” is because once Republicans telegraphed the message that they’d jettison every conservative priority from the budget, Democrats then held out for their priorities. By and large, they got them.

Here is the end result:

Funded

• The bill continues funding refugee resettlement and visas from the six countries from which Trump wanted to suspend immediate immigration, despite this budget being the last recourse against the judicial tyranny. The refugee program gets $3.1 billion, the same as it did under Obama.
• Sanctuary cities were funded, despite the judicial tyranny and the need for Congress to weigh in.
• Planned Parenthood was funded, despite the long-standing GOP promise to fight to defund it, even when they only controlled Congress. Yes, they couldn’t even defund a private organization getting taxpayer funds to traffic baby organs.
• Increased spending for a number of liberal priorities rather than codifying Trump’s requested $17 billion in non-defense spending cuts.
• EPA was saved from the cuts proposed for this year by Trump’s OMB.
• A $295.9 billion bailout for Puerto Rico’s irresponsible Medicaid program. This is on top of the bailout from last year.
• Sec. 543 of the omnibus contains a provision opening the door for more H2-B low-skilled workers this fiscal year.
• $990 million increase of the “Food for Peace” program in Africa.
• Government-run health care? HHS will see a $2.8 billion boost in spending, of which $2 billion will go to the NIH, which was supposed to be cut by the Trump budget.
• Green energy programs within the Department of Energy, programs Trump would have eliminated, received a modest spending increase.
• The federal judiciary saw its budget increased by three percent, to $7.4 billion, from fiscal 2016, despite engaging in civil disobedience against the rule of law.
• The unconstitutional Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is fully funded despite GOP promises to dismantle it. Richard Cordray is still serving as its director despite the change in administration.
• California’s high-speed rail will continue to be funded by the Federal Rail Administration.

Not Funded

• The border wall. Although $1.5 billion in additional “border security” funds were allocated, Democrats made certain to bar funding for the fence. As I’ve noted before, given the legal problems with those who step foot on our shores and the cumbersome nature of interior enforcement, anything short of the permanent deterrent of a border wall will not solve the problem.

Indeed, the 1,665-page, $1.16 trillion omnibus is everything we would have gotten had Democrats been in charge. After they successfully got Republicans to jettison all of Trump’s priorities, Democrats secured the Puerto Rico bailout. And while the bill does not contain an Obamacare bailout (cost-sharing subsidies), the White House agreed to continue illegally promulgating the insurer bailout without congressional appropriations as part of the condition for Democrats affording Republicans the honor of capitulating to them.

The only plus side of this bill is that the president did secure a $15 billion boost for the military, but Democrats always agree to spending more on the military, as it has become a consensus, albeit without offsetting the cost with cuts to non-defense spending. That is exactly the deal they secured. They increased spending in many of the areas where Trump proposed cuts.

Meanwhile, Nancy Pelosi is bragging about blocking 160 GOP priorities in the bill!

Some defenders of this deal will claim that we should wait for “the next time.” The president is coming out with the FY 2018 budget this week, and they will fight for it in September. But that budget is a complete joke. If they can’t fight for modest cuts and their basic campaign promises with control of all of government – with the momentum of the first 100 days – they certainly won’t fight later in the year for real spending cuts. Instead, the fear of a shutdown led them to increase spending. That will not change in September.

I would have more sympathy for the president had he not spent the past month attacking conservatives on health care. He should have, instead, been shaming McConnell and the appropriators into funding his priorities the same way he shamed the Freedom Caucus to accept 20 percent repeal of Obamacare. The way for him to distinguish himself from congressional Republicans is to immediately issue a veto threat.

And now we are to believe this administration that we will repeal Obamacare in any meaningful way and get massive tax cuts when it tossed an interception on the first budget! At some point, conservatives need to wake up and smell the political adultery unfolding. Merely shouting “Gorsuch” as if it’s a punchline in itself to distract from the broader betrayal is sophomoric. Of course, we were going to get a decent judge to replace our very best when we have a GOP president, a GOP Senate, and were rid of the SCOTUS filibuster. Then again, I guess if we are judging expectations for judicial picks based on what just happened with the budget, we could have gotten an Elena Kagan.

But fear not, the best is yet to come. Gary Cohn, the Democrat running domestic policy for the administration, is promising a vote on “Obamacare” this week.

Now we can understand why McConnell and the NRSC are threatening anyone who works for Judge Roy Moore in the Alabama Senate race: They don’t want anyone elected to the Republican Party who will actually support the Republican budget and GOP platform.

At some point, conservatives need to realize they are just not wanted in the Republican Party.

[Ryan Ruck]

Bored With Winning: New Spending Bill Has No Money For The Wall, No Cuts To Sanctuary Cities, Funding For Planned Parenthood

May 1, 2017

Surveying the total fiscal wreckage of this deal, Philip Klein comments that it’s what you’d expect if Democrats controlled the White House and both chambers of Congress rather than the GOP. If you think that’s an exaggeration, spend some time with Bloomberg’s report and take in the full extent of this defeat. A blockquote can’t do it justice.

If Boehner had negotiated this deal, right-wing media would destroy him for it. If Ryan had negotiated this deal under Obama, right-wing media would destroy him for it. But because Trump’s going to sign this deal — I assume — and call it a “victory” since it avoids a shutdown until September, we’re looking at half a day of grumbles. Maybe.

GOP leaders eager to focus on health-care and tax overhauls bowed to Democratic demands to eliminate hundreds of policy restrictions aimed at curbing regulations, leaving the Trump administration with few victories…

The White House sought funding to begin building the border wall, as well as $18 billion in cuts to domestic agencies, and both demands were rebuffed. The spending deal includes money for Planned Parenthood, despite Republican demands to defund the group over its provision of abortions…

Trump will get $1.5 billion for border security, but it can’t be used for the border wall or additional Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, according to one congressional aide. There are also no new restrictions on money going to so-called sanctuary cities that don’t fully enforce federal immigration laws…

The Environmental Protection Agency, which Trump has sought to shrink dramatically, would receive a 1 percent reduction of $81 million in funding and no staff cuts.

“Overall,” Bloomberg sniffs, echoing Klein, “the compromise resembles more of an Obama administration-era budget than a Trump one.” The bill even allows DHS to increase the number of H-2B visas through September, for fark’s sake. As for the scant Republican “victories,” most of them also represent climbdowns from what the GOP was initially demanding. Trump got $15 billion more in defense spending, but that was less than what he asked for; he got $1.5 billion for border security, as noted above, but that was half of the $3 billion he requested and comes with the limitations described by Bloomberg. The only clear win, it seems, was striking a permanent rather than temporary deal on health care for retired coal miners, although I’m sure that was a fight Democrats were happy to “lose.” They need to rebuild their party among working-class whites. That’s something they can point to.

Why wouldn’t Trump at least insist on some showcase concession on immigration that he could tout to his base as proof that this deal was worth doing? Shutting down the government to fund the wall would have been dicey, but he could have gone to the mat on cutting funds to sanctuary cities and/or on adding funds for new Border Patrol agents. All he’s left with, really, is defense spending. If he signs it, it’s another blow to his already wildly overhyped reputation as some master dealmaker. Which element of basic negotiation strategy requires you to bluff ineffectively over and over again and then sign on to a “compromise” in which you give up virtually everything in return for practically nothing?

Daniel Horowitz calls the bill a “betrayal beyond belief.” Is Trump actually going to sign this turd or is he prepared to endure a week or two of “Trump shut down the government!” headlines to block a terrible bill from becoming law?

[Malsua]

Paul Ryan shat this turd out.

Hopefully Trump shuts the government down.

[Ryan Ruck]

President Schumer Agrees To Bill Funding Obamacare, Abortionists, But No Wall

May 1, 2017

The president and Congress agreed to a spending bill to get the government through to September. President Chuck Schumer said.

This agreement is a good agreement for the American people and takes the threat of a government shutdown off the table[.] ... The bill ensures taxpayer dollars aren't used to fund an ineffective border wall, excludes poison pill riders and increases investments in programs that the middle class relies on, like medical research, education and infrastructure.

Since Republicans lost the presidency and the Congress in the last election, it is no surprise that this spending bill hewed closely to the Democrat agenda. Republicans had tried to include funding for a border wall, but since they are in the minority in Congress, they didn't have the power to push it through.

Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi boasted:

... that they were able to force Republicans to withdraw more than 160 unrelated policy measures, known as riders, including those that would have cut environmental funding and scaled back financial regulations for Wall Street.

The bill does include $12.5 billion more for the military and $1.5 billion for border security, but the border security cannot be used for a wall. Likely it will be used for technology, which will better allow the government to watch illegals crossing the border on TV. The legislation also stipulates that none of the money be spent for a "deportation force" and that there be no cut in funding to sanctuary cities, at least while President Schumer is in the White House.

Democrats fought to include $295 million to help Puerto Rico continue making payments to Medicaid, $100 million to combat opioid addiction, and increases in energy and science funding that Trump had proposed cutting[.] ... [T]he legislation will ensure that Planned Parenthood continues to receive federal funding through September.

Obviously, Trump, who lost the election, never had any hope of cutting any of these programs with President Schumer showing such resolve. I mean, Schumer can veto legislation if it doesn't fund what he wants. How can Republicans, in the minority in Congress, oppose him? The answer is, they can't. Their bargaining position is too weak.

What does this spending bill tell us about politics? If we want a government that doesn't fund Planned Parenthood, we need to elect a Republican House of Representatives. If we want a government that doesn't fund Obamacare, we need a Republican Senate. If we want a government to get serious about funding a border wall, we need a Republican president. In the minority, Republicans are powerless to push any of their agenda, just as Democrats are powerless when they are in the minority. That's why we need to push hard to help Republicans win the House, Senate, and presidency in the next election so we can finally get real change in Washington. Imagine what they could do if they won all three and had total control of government!

[Ryan Ruck]

Why Do We Vote Republican? What Trump Must Do to Avoid More Disastrous Budget Deals

May 1, 2017

RUSH: Now, I know what many of you are thinking, and it is next up in the Stack right here. Here is the headline. I don’t care where you see it, this is the headline: “Congress Deal Funds Sanctuary Cities, Obamacare, EPA, Planned Parenthood; Does Not Provide Money for the Wall.” Now, if you look at that headline and you happen to believe that it’s true — which it is. I mean, we extended the budget. There’s not gonna be any shutdown. Republicans are going (sigh), “Thank God! No shutdown.” So we have extended the budget, not for a week, but all the way through September.

In the process, sanctuary cities are continually funded. Obamacare is not repealed nor is it replaced. The White House is saying that they’re very close to having enough votes in the House to actually move forward on Obamacare. But until we see the vote, we will know they don’t have the votes. They’re not gonna conduct a vote ’til they have them. So Obamacare gets funded. Sanctuary cities get funded. The EPA gets funded through September. Planned Parenthood gets funded. The wall does not. So if you’re asking yourself, “Why am I voting Republican?” you have a good question.

Why is anybody voting Republican, if this is what happens when we win?

We won the House, we won the Senate, we won the White House, and the Democrats thwarted everything we supposedly said we were going to do with our victory. Well, I don’t want to use the word “we,” ’cause I’ve got nothing to do with this. This is another reason why I do not get close to these people. I do not… I would not relish having to have you call here today and make me justify what all happened here, had I been out there promoting and ballyhooing. That’s why I keep my distance from these people, ’cause I don’t have any control over what they’re gonna do or say, what their policies are going to be.

But I think this illustrates a much larger problem that we are going to have to recognize, and it’s the real reason Donald Trump was elected. It’s the real thing that he has got to do, and he’s got to start doing it. And it is not going to happen if he continues to work with Republicans, because it is obvious, for whatever reasons — and we can get into them — the Republican Party has no intention of defunding Planned Parenthood, no intention of defunding sanctuary cities. They don’t want to pay for a wall. Who knows what they really want in Obamacare. But then again, is it really the Republicans? I think there’s something much larger going on.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: There’s no reason to keep electing Republicans if this is what we’re gonna get with this budget deal, which pays — continually pays — for sanctuary cities, funds Obamacare, funds the EPA, gives money to Planned Parenthood and no money for the wall. If you’re asking, “What am I voting for Republicans for?” you have a legitimate question. This is one of the reasons Donald Trump was elected. This is the swamp. This is what needs to be drained: The way the budget happens, the way legislation happens, who’s responsible for it. I’ll tell you where I’m going with this. I want to go back and play a sound bite from me on Friday’s program. This is the direction that I’m thinking this has to go…

RUSH ARCHIVE: Where’s Trump on this? For crying out loud, Trump’s elected president! Trump’s got a mandate. This was clearly part of it. Like building the wall, like any number of other things, repealing and place Obamacare was mentioned at every rally, so why doesn’t the president go in there and tell them what-for?

RUSH: Now, I don’t mean to be ragging on Trump there, but my point is this. The legislation making process in Washington, everybody I think is under some misunderstanding about it. Mr. Snerdley, how do you think legislation happens in Washington? I mean, take me from there’s nothing and then there’s a bill. What happens? Where does it start? (interruption) No, it does not… (interruption) No, I’m not asking spending. I’m talking any bill, any bill whatsoever. Where does it start? Who writes it? Who’s in charge? Say you… (interruption) There you go: The lobbyists, the donors.

This is the problem.

The Republican Party is not a party that writes legislation. The Democrats don’t write legislation anymore. You know where legislation is written? Legislation is written by the quote-unquote “special interests.” You know where they’re located? They’re located on K Street. They’re lobbyists; they are donors. They are the people, and 96% of Washington, D.C., — which is where these people live — voted against Donald Trump. He got 4% of the vote in D.C. among this group of people. Not the whole population, but among this group of people. Depending on the Republican Party for this is a loser’s game. Trump is going to have to take over the legislation-writing process himself.

That’s why I was asking, “Where’s Trump on this health care?”

Screw the House leadership! Write your own bill and get it passed.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Let me try to explain this as best I can. When I saw this headline, it brought some things into focus for me, because this is gnawing at the edges here of irritation. The impression that I’ve had — you’ve had it, too — that something’s out of whack, something’s not wrong right. We won the election. I’ve described it, I don’t see the glow of victory on Republican faces. I don’t see optimism. I don’t see happiness. I don’t see confidence. I don’t see an attitude that says, “Man, what an opportunity we have.” And as I say it’s just been eating away at me.

And like everybody else, I’m trying to nail it down, explain it to myself so that then I can explain it to you. And then I see the headline at FrontPage Magazine: “Congress Deal Funds Sanctuary Cities, ObamaCare, EPA, Planned Parenthood, Doesn’t Fund Wall.” This doesn’t make any sense. It makes no common sense whatsoever when you juxtapose it against the election returns.

Donald Trump won the election and he ran and won on a series of issues, and all of them are embodied in this budget, and not a one of these things did Donald Trump seek the presidency by saying he was going to continue. The one thing that is not paid for in this budget is the one thing that Trump made one of his top two vote-getters, and that’s building the wall. And that of course is related to immigration.

So what explains this? Why hasn’t there been a flood of legislation emanating from the Republicans in the House and the Senate to begin the process of implementing the Trump agenda? I know, I’ve answered my question. I’m doing this in a rhetorical sense to set up a premise. As I’ve stated many times, the Washington establishment’s totally opposed to Trump. They don’t want anything that Trump campaigned on to happen. They don’t want an outsider coming in and succeeding and thereby demonstrating how it can be done.

Nobody on the outside is supposed to be able to come in and reform Washington and improve it. The establishment has set it up so they have an exclusive, exclusionary club that very few people are capable or qualified to be part of, and that’s that. So the last thing they can afford is for somebody like Trump, who’s not a politician by trade, to come in after winning an election and totally turn the town upside down. They will not do it.

I go back to Lindsey Graham. He’s changed his mind since, but go back to Lindsey Graham before the election. (paraphrasing) “I would rather lose and be on the outs for 25 years than to win with Donald Trump.” That happens to be the frame of mind and the attitude of Washington, D.C. There isn’t, in that town, folks, in all of the places where legislation is written — oh, and let me issue one other caveat here.

Normally I would be happy that no new laws are being made. Every new law is potentially an erosion of freedom. I’m not one of these people that defines Washington’s success by how many bills get passed and signed into law. But in this case, the legislation needed is that which will unravel and unwind things which are destroying the country or wreaking great harm and damage on our culture, the economy, and what have you.

But the dirty little secret is that there isn’t any evidence that anywhere in Washington is there any aspect of the Trump agenda on display. It doesn’t seem to be that in the House of Representatives that there is a desire to implement any of the Trump agenda. It doesn’t seem in the Senate that there is a desire to implement any of the Trump agenda. It does seem in the House that there is a lot of energy devoted to stopping a Trump agenda. Ditto in the Senate.

So the people who are running the show in Washington are impervious and unconcerned about public opinion and the results of an election and are now in the process of doing what they can to thwart the will of the people in a very clear issues-dominated and issues-oriented election. Trump wins, he has a specific agenda. Where are the members of his party writing legislation to get going on the implementation of his agenda?

When Obama was elected, do you know the stimulus bill was written even before Obama was inaugurated? Who wrote it? Who actually wrote the stimulus bill? It was written before Obama was inaugurated. The stimulus bill was off and running nine days after he was inaugurated. And then they were off and running on Obamacare. And then off and running on whatever else the Obama agenda was. The Republicans didn’t have the votes to stop anything, so they were irrelevant in the process the first two years.

Well, what I said in the previous segment, the fact of the matter is that corporate interests or special interests or lobbyists or what have you, is where legislation gets written, because that’s where the donors and their money are headquartered. And the donors, the big money more than likely determine what does and does not happen in Washington. And I can tell you this. On K Street, the lobbying firms, the Chamber of Commerce, big donors, there’s nobody in that group that is in favor of the Trump agenda.

Now, Trump knew this; it’s why he ran for office. You knew it. I knew it. We all knew this. This is what being opposed to the ruling class, being opposed to the establishment is all about. But now it’s become crystal clear. Now it’s no longer a matter of speculation and theory. Now we know, we’ve just extended a federal budget all the way through September and there’s nothing in it that represents the will of the American people as expressed in the election. There’s nothing in it that represents the campaign pledges, promises, objectives of Donald Trump. Quite the opposite.

This budget is a direct slap in the face. This budget is a stop sign. And it’s throwing down the gauntlet. “You may be elected president, but you’re not getting anything. Nothing’s gonna happen here.” And if Donald Trump cannot rely on the members of his own party — are you really telling me we can’t get a replace and repeal Obamacare bill after all this time? And I don’t mean since Trump won the election; I’m talking about since it was passed seven years ago, six, whatever it is now.

All those repeal and replacement bills that they sent to Obama that he vetoed, where are those? Where’s one of those? The will isn’t there. I’m not harping on any one Republican. That’s not the point here. The point is that if something doesn’t change, then this is going to continue to be the story. What has to change is that the entire legislative writing process is going to have be taken over by the White House, meaning the ball gets rolling at the White House, and there’s gonna be, I mean, tons of opposition to it.

But for Trump to rely on his allies on Capitol Hill to commence with legislation that implements his objectives is not gonna happen. Obviously it’s not gonna happen. We’ve had enough months now under our belt to know exactly what the lay of the land is. Now, you can say, “Well, yeah, Rush, but it was the fear of a government shutdown.” No, it’s not that. That’s such a convenient excuse.

I’m telling you, folks, the will isn’t there. The establishment, whatever you want to call this bunch of people, the ruling class, the establishment, the donors, whatever you want to call ’em, they’re not just gonna roll over and let Trump implement those things that he campaigned on just because he won the office, just because he won the presidency. And he’s going to have to overcome this if he’s going to be successful. And the way he’s going to have overcome it, he’s going to have to have his own staff, legislative staff in the White House that writes this legislation and muscles its way through.

And it’s gonna be tough. You see the obstacles here with Obamacare, the repeal and replace. They’re making this so much harder than it should be, so much harder than it is. One thing that’s become abundantly clear in the Obamacare fiasco is that official Washington does not trust free markets. Official Washington is not interested in letting the free market determine the solution to any problem. Understandably so. They have less power if the free market runs.

These people have control and total say-so over money, how it’s spent, who gets the money, and this kind of thing. Why give that up? So it’s gonna be a knock-down, drag-out. I’m not saying any of this because I don’t think Trump knows it. I think he’s more than aware of this. And I would fully expect a White House official reply to what I’m saying today to be, “Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, but we know what’s going on, but, look, the next budget coming up in September, when we go for the next fiscal year, that’s when we’re gonna put the pedal to the metal.”

Well, okay, fine, I understand that, but that’s what we Republicans have been told for I don’t know how many years: “Well, we got to do it this way now, but I’ll tell you what. The next time this comes up, we’re gonna hammer ’em.” And they never get hammered.

So it is a Herculean battle, ladies and gentlemen, and it’s all compressed right here in this one story about this budget. The Democrats are gloating like you can’t believe. Grab audio sound bite number four. We have a little montage here of the Drive-Bys declaring victory for the Democrats and reminding Trump that he said everybody was gonna get tired of winning so much. They’re starting to now gloat, “Where’s the winning, Mr. President? Where’s the winning?”

ALISYN CAMEROTA: (music) The bipartisan budget deal appears to have more wins for Democrats than for Republicans.

CHRIS CUOMO: A good day for Democrats. The border wall is not in there. The money that goes to Planned Parenthood is in there.

NANCY CORDES: The money cannot be used to build a new border wall. The bill keeps funding for Planned Parenthood.

GRIFF JENKINS: Democrats have been quick to praise the deal as a victory.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Big victory! Democrats are refusing to fund President Trump’s border wall.

AINSLEY EARNHARDT: Democrats getting plenty of concessions, but money for the border wall? Nowhere to be found.

STEVE DOOCY: …money for a border wall nowhere to be found.

JOHN BERMAN: I’m hearing a lot more Democrats crowing than Republicans.

RON BROWNSTEIN: …victories in stopping things that Trump wanted to do.

ADRIANO ESPAILLAT: This is a clear victory for Democrats…

RUSH: And it is! It is, folks. There’s no other way to look at this. If you’re asking yourself, “Why am I bothering to vote Republican?” you’re gonna have a lot of people understand why. The Democrats didn’t win diddly-squat last November. The Democrats continue to have trouble winning elections, and yet they’re carrying the day as always. Is it really the Democrats, though? What’d the Democrats do here other than threaten a government shutdown? I think that’s what they want us to believe.

They want us to believe that the Republicans still haven’t quite gotten the courage to take the Democrats on. I don’t think that’s what’s going on at all here. I think what’s really going on is that the action is not in the Congress, the action is not in the House, and the action is not in the Senate. If the House Republicans are unwilling to implement the Trump agenda, why? Is it because they disagree with Trump’s ideas, Trump’s issues, or is it because there’s outside pressure threatening them if they do? And is that pressure monetarily?

Are donors telling them, “If you help this guy, you can forget being reelected; you can forget our help”? Is that what’s going on? More than likely it is, because that’s what always has gone on. The lobbying effort gets bigger every year, spends more money every year and, as such, has more power every year. And Trump knows it, folks. That’s what draining the swamp really was about, not simply getting rid of all of the embeds in the bureaucracy, in the deep state. It’s also dealing with K Street and overcoming the influence there, because nobody there is elected. Nobody on K Street — no lobbyist, no donor — none of them are elected. And that’s where legislation either begins or is prevented.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Listen to this list of things that were funded in the latest budget deal and ask yourself: Why are you voting Republican? “The bill continues funding refugee resettlement and visas from the six countries from which Trump wanted to suspend immediate immigration, despite this budget being the last recourse against the judicial tyranny.” This was a… This budget was an opportunity to stick it to the judges. It did not. “Sanctuary cities were funded…” Congress could have weighed in in any number of ways to stop this. The American people are tired of it; Trump is tired of it.

Trump ran for office and was elected on this. Sanctuary cities continue to be funded against the law. “Planned Parenthood was funded, despite the long-standing GOP promise to fight to defund it, even when they only controlled Congress. … Increased spending for a number of liberal priorities rather than codifying Trump’s requested $17 billion in non-defense spending cuts. EPA was saved from the cuts proposed for this year by Trump’s [budget director]. A $295.9 billion bailout for Puerto Rico’s irresponsible Medicaid program. …

“Sec. 543 of the omnibus contains a provision opening the door for more H2-B low-skilled workers this fiscal year. $990 million increase of the ‘Food for Peace’ program in Africa. Government-run health care? HHS will see a $2.8 billion boost in spending, of which $2 billion will go to the [National Institutes for Health], which was supposed to be cut by the Trump budget. Green energy programs within the Department of Energy, programs Trump would have eliminated, received a modest spending increase.

“The federal judiciary saw its budget increased by 3%, to $7.4 billion, from fiscal 2016, despite engaging in civil disobedience against the rule of law. The unconstitutional Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is fully funded despite GOP promises to dismantle it. … California’s high-speed rail will continue to be funded by the Federal Rail Administration.” What was “not funded”? “The border wall. Although $1.5 billion in additional ‘border security’ funds were allocated,” and there were a couple of other little things done to ramp up border security and fewer people are coming in because of the fear factor, but this makes no sense.

It makes no logical sense whatsoever if you have a particular view of politics.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Let me be clear about something. It wasn’t just Trump that people voted for. It was Republicans in Congress, Republicans in the Senate. People voted to do the exact opposite of what has happened in this budget. It’s not just Trump voters. Now, you can say it’s betrayal. It certainly is. But it’s much more than that.

All right, now, look. I’m seeing all kinds of adjectives in the media various places how we got screwed, how we got betrayed and all of this. I… Folks, I think, yeah, yeah, yeah. There’s no question. But none of this should be a surprise. It’s disappointing, and the election had specific reasons for happening. People voted for specific reasons. Among them was stopping the current inertia, reinstituting the rule of law throughout our country; trying to save the constantly degrading culture, the growing expanse that is the Washington, D.C., government and the entitlement component of our government that just seems to have no end.

A totally inexperienced nonpolitician was elected because people know — instinctively they know — that official Washington is not interested in any of this. Official Washington is not interested in reducing the size, the scope, the reach of government. Official Washington is not interested in spending less money. Official Washington is not interested in closing the border to illegal immigration. Existing Washington is not in favor of a middle-class tax cut or any tax cut whatsoever. People knew this going in.

What’s on display here is exactly how Washington, official Washington does it — and in that, it’s another learning opportunity. Now, I know what the objections to what I’ve said in the first hour are gonna be. I can predict them right now. “Rush! Rush, come on. You know that this is a stopgap. You know that this was just basically a spending omnibus, meaning we gotta throw everything into it ’cause we gotta keep the government running! Enough of these one-week continuing resolutions. Enough of this one month here. We need to get this funded through the end of the year” well, the fiscal year, which is September, “so that we can turn our attention to things that really matter.”

No, no, no. This is the stuff that really matters.

“But Rush, there was gonna be a government shutdown. We can’t afford a government shutdown. A government shutdown would destroy whatever credibility…” No, no, no. (chuckles) The Republican Party doesn’t have any credibility right now, not after a budget deal like this. It would have been better for the Republican Party to let the Democrats go ahead and shut things down than to do this. What are the Republicans thinking? Ask yourself this: Why are the Republicans probably not worried at all about this? You think they are? Why aren’t they?

They followed instructions to the letter is exactly what they did. Now, you could say their masters are their paymasters, their donors or what have you, but one thing is crystal clear. Can you find any single piece of legislation that is in anywhere near final form since Donald Trump was inaugurated, or even before? As I say, in the case of Obama and his stimulus, it was written before he was inaugurated. He wins the election; he knows he wants to have a stimulus bill because he knows what he wants it to be.

It wasn’t a stimulus. I don’t want to re-litigate this, but it was a payback to his donors and it was a sop to unions. It was not a stimulus. It was not gonna grow anything, and it didn’t, and it was not gonna build roads, bridges or anything. It didn’t. The point is they wanted it done and it got done even before Obama was inaugurated and it was voted on and implemented within a week, two weeks of his inauguration. Where is that corresponding behavior? We won the election. Where is all of this pent-up legislation that we supposedly have been believing in and dying to have passed for the last eight years?

Repealing Obamacare, replacing it, whatever. That’s at the top of the list. Getting rid of a whole bunch of punitive taxes, that’s another thing that’s been at the top of the list. And, of course, immigration reform has been at the top. Not for Washington, but for voters. The point is, there isn’t any legislation being written. Again, I want to restate something so there’s no misunderstanding. I’m universally, almost always opposed to legislation meaning something good’s happening. I long ago ceased falling into that trap. Legislation is just new laws.

The legislation we’re talking about is legislation that fixes years and years and years of mistakes. The legislation we’re talking about is legislation that could have done an end run around these judicial rulings that have tried to stopgap Trump ever since he became president. No effort whatsoever behind any of this. And they’re gonna say, “But, Rush, it’s a stopgap. We really… We’re gonna do all this stuff once we get the real first Trump budget when that kicks off next year.” Okay. If we want, we’ve got no choice but to sit around, wait, and see what happens.

What they mean by that is that the next fiscal year budget, which will be Trump’s first, kicks in October 1st of this year. The fiscal year starts October 1st. So the budget negotiations that we’ve just been through are gonna happen all over again. And Trump’s gonna be back, and he’s gonna be touting the fact that we’re gonna build a wall, we’re gonna have it paid for by somebody. The tax cut that Trump has advanced, that’s going to be part of the budget as well. But, remember, the budget is not the president’s. The budget originates in the House of Representatives.

And by, you know, using intelligence guided by experience, why should we expect anything different in the next budget after what we’ve just seen in this one? Trump is going to have to take the reins, which is what his campaign led people to believe he was going to do anyway. This is a battle between Donald Trump and not the House Republicans per se. It’s not between Donald Trump and the congressional Democrats, House and Senate. This is a battle between Donald Trump and official Washington. And the House members and the Senate members, in large part, are employees, not of us, but of official Washington.

So what’s the process to overcome this? It can be done. It’s going to have to be led by Donald Trump. This is what he does. Donald Trump’s a smart guy. Donald Trump’s a great negotiator. Donald Trump is the guy who fixes things going wrong. Donald Trump is the guy who… He told us — and it’s been true in the way he’s lived his other business and professional lives — that this is the kind of stuff he tackles and overcomes and fixes, and he’s going to have to do it. He’s going to have to be the energy.

He’s going to have to have a staff of people in the White House who take over the process of writing the legislation. Because if he waits for it to happen in Congress, it isn’t going to happen. It’s clear and abundant. And it’s not just since Trump. Throughout the eight years of Obama — do I need to repeat the story for you? — every election year we hear wonderful, marvelous things from the Republicans. We hear exactly what we want to hear. We hear exactly the common-sense that we demand.

We hear it. We hear it so loudly and we’re in favor of it so much that those people win. The Republicans now have the House, the Senate, and the White House. But nothing changes, does it? Republicans don’t act like winners, don’t seem to be excited about winning. I mean, in the sense that the power and opportunity that it presents them. So we’ll see how this next budget fight goes. We’ll see how this all shakes out, if it’s any different. Trump has got to be furious. I don’t know to what extent Trump knows what he’s up against.

I have to think he knows better than I do, better than anybody else does, ’cause he’s living it. I don’t know what his expectations were. I can believe that he expected the Republicans were gonna be deliriously happy at his victory and deliriously happy to work with him, and I fully think that he expected the Republicans to be on his team and that they would be working together to get a whole lot of this stuff done to fix and repair America and stop this descending trend that our country is in.

But he hasn’t found that to be the case. Where is there any legislation to fix — not even the Obamacare repeal — are you telling me it’s this complicated? It isn’t this complicated. There’s no trust in the free market, obviously. It’s not that there’s no trust in the free market. There’s no desire for it. These are people who have control over the market. Why would they give that up? By free market, if you want to fix Obamacare, let the market hash it out. The market will do a much better job of fixing American health care than these so-called Washington experts have been doing for 50 years.

Free markets have been determined to be successful. They work every time they’re tried. That’s the problem. It’s almost the same analogy Trump coming to Washington as an outsider and those insiders cannot afford for Trump to succeed. What would that make them look like? They would be unmasked and illustrated to be close to fraudulent.

Well, they tell us only they are capable, they’re experts, you have to have certain number of years of experience. Your life has to be devoted to this, that, and the other, the way to make Washington work, governance, the policy, process, all of this stuff. And some outsider comes in and inside of a four-year term fixes it all? They can’t let that happen. So it’s gonna be a battle royal, a knockdown, drag out. The thing is, it hasn’t really begun yet, as evidenced by this particular budget.

Now, we’ll present the other side of this. Trump is on a roll in terms of his attitude and his agenda and his objectives. We have the audio sound bites of the rally over the weekend and some of his interviews over the weekend with the media. It was actually hilarious. He was on Face the Nation, said, “You know what I call your show? I call your show Deface the Nation.” Well, I don’t care if we’ve said it here before. You imagine any other president telling the anchor of the CBS show Face the Nation, “I call your show Deface the Nation, Slay the Nation,” whatever it is.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: This budget not only provides no money for the wall, it limits how Trump can use new money for border security. It’s astounding when you get further into the weeds on this thing. I keep trying to get away from it, and it keeps sucking me back in.

[Ryan Ruck]

The Spending Bill Isn’t Complete Garbage Because Some Garbage Can At Least Be Recycled

May 2, 2017

I didn’t write anything about the five month spending bill yesterday for a couple of reasons. For one thing, both Andrew Malcolm and Allahpundit were already digging into it. Also, I wanted some time to digest what we were being fed from inside the Beltway since I was assuming that it couldn’t possibly be as bad as it looked at first glance. I was correct about that part… it was actually worse.

If we needed one indicator of precisely how pear shaped things had gotten it wasn’t the reaction of Republicans however. You need look no further than the Washington Post, because the Democrats are launching what amounts to a victory tour and the media is lapping it up like fine cream.

Democrats think they have set the stage to block President Trump’s legislative priorities for years to come by winning major concessions in a spending bill to keep the government open.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) secured nearly $5 billion in new domestic spending by exploiting disagreements between Trump and GOP lawmakers over spending priorities.

Democrats’ lopsided victory on the five-month deal, which is likely to be approved this week, means it will be very difficult — if not impossible — for the GOP to exert its will in future budget negotiations, including when it comes to Trump’s 2018 budget blueprint.

Why wouldn’t Schumer and Pelosi be celebrating? They were just handed a beating in November that was as bad as any we’ve seen this century and yet they somehow came out of the budget negotiations looking for all the world as if they had won the White House and both chambers of Congress.

So how bad is this stink bomb? Allahpundit asked if Trump was “really going to sign this turd.” Daniel Horowitz said it was nothing short of a betrayal. Philip Klein concluded that if you took out all of the names you would probably assume that it had been written by Democrats. Rush is already wondering why anybody bothers voting for Republicans. I could take up an entire column with more reactions which were, if anything, even more fierce.

Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit drinking.

Let’s leave aside for the moment the list of conservative priorities we were told to expect and start with the total cost of this crapstorm. Ed Morrissey and I have had a running debate here over the years as to whether or not the United States has a spending problem or a revenue problem. (For the record, I maintain that the two are not mutually exclusive.) Let’s also, just for now, forget that we were supposed to be entering an era of building a lean, mean, smaller federal government which focused on its core constitutional responsibilities and would presumably cost less to operate. We are currently on the brink of attempting to pass a massive tax cut. (Attempting is a key word here since Democrats don’t like the idea and they are apparently running everything right now.) Tax cuts stimulate the economy and foster growth, but that’s a slow process which never delivers the promised level of return in terms of revenue. How on Earth are we talking about jacked up rates of spending like this just as we slash the government’s revenue massively? Weren’t we the ones who were supposed to be reducing the debt? Instead it’s going to explode, much like my head at this rate.

And what of that big conservative agenda I mentioned above? I can’t even be angry at Chuck Schumer for doing an end zone dance this week. Why wouldn’t he?The sum total of what he had to “surrender” on seems to be $120 million to cover security costs at Trump Tower and Mar-a-Lago. Aside from a modest increase in military spending (which was not paid for elsewhere, by the way) I can’t see where we got a single thing out of this deal. Whether you’re talking about the generic laundry list of conservative priorities which Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell were supposed to be delivering or President Trump’s ambitious agenda, it all disappeared. Nobody took at stand for a few billion dollars to start the wall. No cuts in funding to sanctuary cities. Was the President planning on actually fighting for any of his ideas or exercising those brilliant negotiating skills he’s famous for?

Trump: We need to get the wall started and bring those sanctuary cities in line.
Paul Ryan: The Democrats said they don’t want to do it.
Trump: Let me tell you something about Andrew Jackson…

Was Trump really that afraid of a government shutdown? I didn’t want to see it happen, but at the same time I was willing to go there since reality dictates that the party in the minority would be blamed for it no matter how the media tries to spin it. Now we’re at the point where the only way to stop this train is for Trump to break out the veto pen and then he’ll shoulder the blame for the shutdown alone. (Not to worry about that, of course, since he already said he plans on signing it.)

I really… I just… it’s all so very…

Screw it.

[Ryan Ruck]

Paul Ryan shat this turd out.

Hopefully Trump shuts the government down.

That's the ONLY solution in this situation.

Trump was elected by people telling us he was the only option because he was the only one who could beat Hillary and put the establishment Republicans in check.

This could be a worse defeat than the healthcare fiasco because the implications of this budget are so far reaching.

If he doesn't actually put his foot down forcefully on the right side of things in this, he may well make himself one of the earliest lame ducks and least effectual presidents in history. People will start asking the question like Rush said, "Why am I still bothering to vote Republican when this was supposed to be our last best chance," and the mid-terms, which usually favor us because of higher levels of informed voters and voter participation, will be an upset in the Dems' favor. Then we lose any chance we had at getting any conservative agenda through and we'll be stuck with another 4 years of this:

Democrats Confident They Can Block Trump’s Agenda After Spending-Bill Win

May 1, 2017

Democrats think they have set the stage to block President Trump’s legislative priorities for years to come by winning major concessions in a spending bill to keep the government open.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) secured nearly $5 billion in new domestic spending by exploiting disagreements between Trump and GOP lawmakers over spending priorities.

Democrats’ lopsided victory on the five-month deal, which is likely to be approved this week, means it will be very difficult — if not impossible — for the GOP to exert its will in future budget negotiations, including when it comes to Trump’s 2018 budget blueprint.

That’s because Republicans are hopelessly divided over how much to spend on government programs, with a small but vocal minority unwilling to support such measures at all. That has forced Republicans to work with Democrats to avoid politically damaging government shutdowns.

And that means Democrats are in the driver’s seat when it comes to budget battles, even with Trump in the White House.

“I think we had a strategy and it worked,” Schumer said in an interview with The Washington Post. “Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate were closer to one another than Republicans were to Donald Trump.”

The extra money for domestic programs will now be that much harder to strip out of future budgets, and Trump’s priorities, such as money for a wall along the border with Mexico, could be more difficult to include.

“We can’t pass anything without them,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.), a top deputy to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), said of Democrats recently.

Hill Republicans remain skeptical of, if not openly hostile to, many of Trump’s plans — including the wall and proposals to slash millions from programs such as the National Institutes of Health and foreign aid.

Democrats’ gains

In addition to the $5 billion in domestic spending, the bipartisan agreement released early Monday morning is packed with Democratic priorities, such as protection for funding for Planned Parenthood, a permanent extension of health care for coal miners and money to help Puerto Rico make up a projected shortfall in Medicaid.

Pelosi celebrated in a letter to House Democrats on Monday, saying that the measure “reflects significant progress defeating dangerous Republican riders and securing key victories for Democratic priorities.”

“In a defeat for President Trump, the [deal] does not fund the immoral and unwise border wall or create a cruel new deportation force,” Pelosi wrote.

Republicans argue they were able to wrest several wins in the legislation, including a greater increase in defense than domestic spending and an agreement to provide money for Puerto Rico if it was shifted from elsewhere and not new money. House and Senate leaders also believe that key changes to environmental policy were taken care of through the administrative process and that they can further antiabortion goals through other budget proceedings.

Nonetheless, Democrats are counting on GOP infighting over spending to guarantee that those parts of Trump’s agenda won’t be funded in the next spending deal, either.

Republicans could try to craft a new agreement to govern spending after Sept. 30, with domestic cuts and funding for Trump’s wall. But such a measure would probably fail in the Senate, where Republicans hold a slim 52 to 48 majority, short of the 60 votes needed to pass most legislation.

Or, as they have often done in the past, lawmakers could abandon broad ambitions and decide to simply extend current spending levels, locking in Democrats’ policy victories for another year.

Republicans in Congress were unusually quiet about the deal. But White House aides sought to put a positive spin on areas where Trump fell short, including the wall.

“I think it’s great that the Democrats like the bill,” White House budget director Mick Mulvaney told reporters during a Monday briefing. “We thought it was a really good deal for this administration as well.”

He said the White House agreed not to “push for bricks and mortar for the wall” but to instead focus on fixing existing fencing and installing new lights and sensors on the border. Mulvaney was one of several top Trump aides who insisted that plans for wall construction would soon begin anew.

“Make no mistake, the wall is going to be built,” White House press secretary Sean Spicer said at his daily briefing, adding that there is plenty the administration can do to plan for construction between now and when Trump gets his next opportunity to secure funding.

But wall construction was one of several areas where GOP lawmakers’ decision to punt this week could doom the president’s priorities for the future.

Language in the deal explicitly prohibits money for border security from being used for building the wall, for instance. Trump has said he plans to revive the push this fall.

Both Spicer and Vice President Pence said they considered the $21 billion in additional military spending — $15 billion from an off-budget war fund and $6 billion in budget increases — to be their biggest victory, even though it was about two-thirds of what Trump had sought.

In addition, there were no reductions in funding to “sanctuary cities”; a federal judge said last week that the Justice Department needed congressional approval to follow through on its threats to cut money for such places, which don’t comply with federal immigration authorities. Nor was there money to fulfill Trump’s promise of a hiring spree to build a deportation force at Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Trump also agreed to continue paying Affordable Care Act subsidies after his aides threatened last week to use that issue as a bargaining chip. The subsidies, which go to insurance companies, reduce out-of-pocket expenses for low-income people who get coverage under President Barack Obama’s signature domestic initiative.

President’s role disputed

Pence celebrated the deal Monday, saying Trump himself played a key role in reaching it.

“I think this morning’s announcement about reaching a bipartisan deal on the budget says that the American people can be encouraged that Washington is working again, thanks to the strong leadership of President Donald Trump,” Pence said on “CBS This Morning.” “Thanks to his direct engagement with members of Congress, we’re seeing real progress.”

But Trump’s involvement was seen by many congressional aides as unhelpful to reaching a deal in the bipartisan talks. Negotiators were nearing an agreement on the spending portions and were ready to move on to unrelated policy measures when Mulvaney publicly renewed demands that the bill include money for a wall along the southern border.

Mulvaney’s demand was out of sync with GOP leaders, who long ago said they wouldn’t seek any funding for a wall or cuts to sanctuary city funding.

It also came weeks after Schumer personally told Mulvaney that the best way to avoid a government shutdown would be for the White House to stay out of budget negotiations and let Congress work its will, according to two people with direct knowledge of the conversation. Mulvaney nodded, they said, and proceeded to make the demand anyway.

His office did not return a request for comment on the subject.

Democrats also think that the White House created a public relations crisis when Trump threatened to end payments for the subsidies, which help cover about 6 million people under Obamacare. The president later withdrew the threat, and the White House decided to continue the payments, in hopes of reducing the number of sticking points in the spending bill.

But the president put a spotlight on the issue just as public polls were starting to show overwhelming support for the subsidies and the ACA in general. Democrats were thrilled to add the attack on the health-care law to the mix in the spending fight because they thought the public would blame Republicans if a deal couldn’t be reached to fund the government, according to several Democratic aides familiar with the strategy.

[Ryan Ruck]

Paul Ryan shat this turd out.

Hopefully Trump shuts the government down.

Well, after listening to Mike Pence try and sell this shit sandwich as a 7 course gourmet meal for an entire segment on Rush's show (Well, half I suppose... He spent the other half talking about NK.), you can pretty much kiss this possibility good bye.

They all, including Trump, see this as a major win because of their successfully reaching across around the aisle and the $21B increase in defense spending (ignoring 8 years of Obama slashing and burning it by, likely, a multitude of that). Somehow those two things are a bigger win than everything listed in the articles above the Dems got.

Even Rush sounded pretty unhappy with Pence's excuses.

Frankly, I'm pretty disappointed in Mike Pence too. I had hoped he would be a Conservative rudder on the administration and it sounds like he'd rather be a "yes man".

I don't see anything except a continuation of the status quo for the foreseeable future. Welcome to GWB's 3rd term...

[Ryan Ruck]

Here's the audio of Pence on Rush's show.

[Ryan Ruck]

I guess it's not enough that the Conservative things Trump campaigned on get abandoned and end up being nothing more than lip service to get elected, now the Liberal policies start getting pushed.

If this is considered "winning" then yes, President Trump, I'm tired of "winning".

Family Leave Expected in New Budget

President Donald Trump's 2018 budget will include a paid family leave plan

May 18, 2017

President Donald Trump's 2018 budget proposal will require states to provide paid family leave programs, a senior budget official said Thursday.

The official said the budget — set to be released Tuesday — will include a plan to provide six weeks of paid leave to new mothers, fathers and adoptive parents. A departure from Republican orthodoxy, the proposal expands on a campaign pledge to provide paid maternity leave, which Trump adopted at the urging of his daughter Ivanka.

The official requested anonymity to discuss budget details in advance.

Under the plan, states would be required to provide leave payments through existing unemployment insurance programs and would have to identify cuts or tax hikes, as needed, to cover the costs. The administration said this approach would give states flexibility and stressed that the administration would provide support to state governments to help them determine how to fund the program. States could opt out if they created a different paid leave system.

Still, the approach would put the burden of funding the program on the states. It also could mean that the benefits could vary greatly by location. Democrats have proposed more expansive programs with different funding streams. During the campaign, Democrat Hillary Clinton pitched 12 weeks of family leave, paid for by taxes on the wealthy.

Trump's proposal is unlikely to win much Republican support. But the president has been an advocate of paid leave, mentioning it in his first speech to Congress.

Trump's broader budget plan promises a balanced federal ledger in 10 years by relying on rosy economic assumptions and cuts to Medicaid and a variety of other benefits programs — though not Social Security pensions or Medicare benefits.

During the budget planning process, Ivanka Trump organized an interagency working group to meet on women and family issues. The group worked on the paid leave proposal, among others.

The administration also noted some other budget items aimed at women and families.

The Child Care and Development Block Grant and Head Start program will maintain the same level of funding. Both fund programs for children.

And two health programs for women and children will get funding boosts. The Maternal and Child Health Block Grant will receive an additional $30 million and Healthy Start another $10 million.

The details provided Thursday were just a snapshot of Trump's budget. The early version of Trump's budget came under fire from family advocates for significant cuts to education, housing and health programs that advocates say could negatively affect women and children.

Advocates for abortion access have also criticized the administration for efforts to restrict funding to Planned Parenthood, saying it would affect women's health. A health care bill passed in Congress would halt most of the organization's federal funding.

Thanks Ivanka!



Can't wait to see what happens "for the children" after the next school shooting.



And it sounds like there's plenty more "winning" where that came from now that Ivanka's husband, Soros lackey Jared Kushner, is leading the overhaul of Team Trump!

Report: Jared Kushner to Play ‘Key Role’ in Overhaul of Trump Team

May 18, 2017

Donald Trump’s son-in-law and close advisor Jared Kushner is expected to play a “key role” in an overhaul of the president’s team, according to a report from The Washington Post.

“If and when Trump does overhaul his team, Jared Kushner is expected to play a key role in rethinking the structure and personnel within the West Wing.

Restructuring his team is just one of a number of delicate problems that Trump expects Kushner to solve. Other tasks include resolving the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, managing diplomatic ties in Iraq and Syria, maintaining friendly ties to the government of Mexico and bridging the divide between the Trump administration and the Muslim community.

Two weeks ago, it emerged that Kushner played a pivotal role in Trump’s decision to back down from its threat to withdraw from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). On the campaign trail, Trump promised to renegotiate the agreement or terminate it, describing it a “disaster.”

[Malsua]

Hillary still would be worse. That said, the media war is taking its toll and obstructing everything he tries to do.

Ah well, if the left wants a war, go ahead, try to impeach him. The left will certainly kill some people this summer, that's the only thing they can do.

[Ryan Ruck]

Hillary still would be worse. That said, the media war is taking its toll and obstructing everything he tries to do.

Ah well, if the left wants a war, go ahead, try to impeach him. The left will certainly kill some people this summer, that's the only thing they
can do.

Yeah, I keep hearing the "better than Hillary" thing and while still true, it's really the only defense for Trump left at this point, which isn't saying much and is getting increasingly meaningless with each liberal thing Trump pushes.

I don't know that I buy the part in red either. Trump has never had a problem going around the media and straight to the people with what he wants.

The problem is what he does this with. We see no use of the bully pulpit to push a good agenda and instead he goes all milquetoast about the solid stuff he campaigned on... Iran deal ripped up? Israeli embassy moved? Obamacare repealed with introduction of a bill? Labeling China a currency manipulator? Locking up "Crooked Hillary"? All day one promises out the window.

How about his 100 Day Plan? What exactly of that has gotten done? What exactly of that has he fought for? What is Trump? Some sort of cuck? He was supposed to be the cuck slayer extraordinaire!

Instead he fights for things like shitty budgets with federally funded maternity leave and shitty Obamacare Lite bills while bullying anyone who doesn't get behind it.

I'm already at peace with the fact that this is just going to be a 3rd GWB term as I said above. What I'm more pissed about is the horde of idiots who voted for him in the primary buying the snake oil that some New York, gun ban supporting, single healthcare supporting, "former" Democrat "deal maker" surrounded by other "big city thinkers" was going to be some Conservative white knight riding in on a winged steed draining the swamp and slaying the swamp creatures, with absolutely nothing to back it up and in fact plenty to indicate that what is happening now is exactly what would happen.

Yeah, we got a Conservative judge to replace a Conservative judge and that's great. And yeah, there may well be at least 1 other court vacancy with an equal chance of it being a Liberal or a Conservative. Fact is, any of the other Republican candidates would have also nominated Conservatives to the court (except probably Jeb, Christie, or Graham but none of them were going to get the nomination anyway) and, all of them had better favorables than Trump versus Hillary, ergo any of them could have beaten her. There's no way around it, by rigging their primary, the Dems ran a deeply flawed candidate in a shitty campaign. We could have nominated a week old, half eaten Limburger cheese sandwich and it would have won. But instead of running someone decent that would advance Constitutional goals, we get someone who is more keen to work with the Democrats than the Freedom Caucus.

Am I bitter? After listening to 20 years of "if we just ran a real Conservative we'd win in a landslide", Republicans nominate, yet again, another RINO after having a stable of good to great candidates in what should have been a cakewalk. Yeah, you could say I am...

[Brian Baldwin]

President Trump has issues with the GOP obstructing him too. Not just the Dems. They didn't field him willingly as you suggest. It was a huge battle he had to fight on that front too. There is very little difference today between the main goal of the GOP and the main goal of the Dems. People didn't expect him to be another Reagan. At least not the majority of people who voted for him. They expected him to stir up shit and hopefully expose to the slumbering masses what their politicians are really doing. Grabbing power and preparing to put American's in "Their proper place". We expected him to do well at the Economy and fail in other regards. I've been around longer than yourself Ryan, and seen far worse presidents. My take away isn't bitterness but rather that we reap what we sow. How did Johnson, Carter, Clinton, GWB, and Obama not to mention the slew of nut jobs that occupy Congress and the Senate all get into office? We the People that's how. So who's to blame? We all knew their agenda ahead of time. It wasn't a shocking surprise. I'll take Trump over everyone of them if it'll wake people up. If it doesn't then they deserve what they get. Politics isn't a team sport but it's treated like one. Until you can vote your own guy out just as easily as say the other has to go then you're going to be disappointed. Using "You" as in the American people and not Ryan Ruck lol.

As for "Stable of good to great candidates" who says? Ted Cruz turned petty and petulant, Carson was out of his depth, Christie was about as trustworthy as the label made in China, and on and on. There is no perfect conservative candidate because Conservatism isn't a political belief it's a way living your life. Most of what people point out politically is just what we take as common sense. And as with everything in life we each have our own way of it. So basically you have Capitalists, Fundamentalists, and something akin to Stratocrats making up the Conservative portion of the GOP field, followed by elites that make it a club of sorts. Then you make that the only alternative to the Communist Democrats and leave no room for the mainstream people to vote without being shushed, shamed, and shunned, and you have today's "Field of Candidates". Donald Trump was inevitable. And if you'd just look at it as a good thing rather than a fail you'd see it means we're beginning to wake up. Not going with Vanilla or Chocolate because we're only supposed to choose those flavors.

A new Reagan may be down the line and we may never see the day ourselves, but if President Trump can wake the masses, he already out did every other candidate. I feel your pain, but you have to let this play out and then make adjustments.

[Ryan Ruck]

President Trump has issues with the GOP obstructing him too. Not just the Dems. They didn't field him willingly as you suggest. It was a huge battle he had to fight on that front too. There is very little difference today between the main goal of the GOP and the main goal of the Dems.

No, not all of the GOP got behind Trump because they wanted their chosen establishment pick to win and Jeb/Christie/Graham not meant their sure chance got shot down. However, a lot did pragmatically. Let's face it, Trump is completely rudderless when it comes to any sort of a principled stand so a number figured they could deal with him. Just ask Bob Dole if he likes Trump or Cruz better.

People didn't expect him to be another Reagan. At least not the majority of people who voted for him. They expected him to stir up shit and hopefully expose to the slumbering masses what their politicians are really doing. Grabbing power and preparing to put American's in "Their proper place". We expected him to do well at the Economy and fail in other regards.

Because Trump was such a blank canvas, aside from the talking points he campaigned on, people painted the picture of him they wanted to see. Just like the sycophants on the left did with Obama.



"Trumps going to deport all the illegals and build a wall! Trumps going to smash all those GOPe cucks and make them his bitches!"

The two are literally different sides of the same coin.

As for "Stable of good to great candidates" who says? Ted Cruz turned petty and petulant,

As opposed to Trump threatening to support primary candidates of people who opposed the shitty Obamacare Lite bill? The Trump that Tweets up a storm at the most ridiculous of "slights" instead of pushing good policy? The Trump that quoted National Enquirer stories saying Cruz's dad assassinated JFK? The Trump that insinuated Carson was a pedophile when Carson was gaining on him in the polls? I could go on... Sorry but Trump gives Obama a run for his money in the thin skin department and Obama was so thin skinned you could almost punch a hole in him with your finger. Maybe it's all the orange spray tan eroding his skin...

Carson was out of his depth,

True enough and he had the personality of a bottle of Xanex but, he is a highly intelligent guy that could adapt. Definitely not one of my top picks though I'd have more enthusiastically voted for him than I did Trump.


And I do believe there were others that would have been better like Rand (for his BLM pandering faults), Perry (not great but pretty good, definitely pro-2A), Jindal (an overall well rounded candidate and pretty Conservative), and even Rubio (though I know Mal doesn't like him! ) since I think he genuinely learned not to bite the Tea Party hand that gave him his seat and he's got a fairly Conservative voting record to back him up.

There is no perfect conservative candidate because Conservatism isn't a political belief it's a way living your life. Most of what people point out politically is just what we take as common sense. And as with everything in life we each have our own way of it. So basically you have Capitalists, Fundamentalists, and something akin to Stratocrats making up the Conservative portion of the GOP field, followed by elites that make it a club of sorts. Then you make that the only alternative to the Communist Democrats and leave no room for the mainstream people to vote without being shushed, shamed, and shunned, and you have today's "Field of Candidates". Donald Trump was inevitable. And if you'd just look at it as a good thing rather than a fail you'd see it means we're beginning to wake up. Not going with Vanilla or Chocolate because we're only supposed to choose those flavors.

I don't necessarily disagree with this but, it does point out one thing. Actual Constitutional Conservatives and Conservatism has become and is a dying breed nationally and within the party. In fact with this past election the word "Conservative" has become so bastardized to be nearly meaningless, almost to the same point "racist" has. Republicans are now by and large the party of "We hate big government, unless it's our big government."

A new Reagan may be down the line and we may never see the day ourselves, but if President Trump can wake the masses, he already out did every other candidate. I feel your pain, but you have to let this play out and then make adjustments.

I don't want the masses awake. I see the masses every day and for the most part, most of them couldn't think their way out of a wet paper bag. I want the masses educated but the odds of that are nearly non-existant.


At the end of the day, who am I to oppose paid maternity leave and all the other big government bullshit we have? What's another $100 billion dollars (I'm just pulling this number out of my ass for hyperbole) when we've already got $100+ trillion in unfunded liabilities? I guess at this point, I'm just here for the shit show and shouting at clouds on the internet. Nothing is going to change...

[Brian Baldwin]

I don't want the masses awake. I see the masses every day and for the most part, most of them couldn't think their way out of a wet paper bag. I want the masses educated but the odds of that are nearly non-existant.

And yet it was the "Educated" that put Obama in charge. I get what you're saying though. My issue isn't this, but the low involvement in our system. People can't be bothered and so they get what they deserve.

I don't necessarily disagree with this but, it does point out one thing. Actual Constitutional Conservatives and Conservatism has become and is a dying breed nationally and within the party. In fact with this past election the word "Conservative" has become so bastardized to be nearly meaningless, almost to the same point "racist" has. Republicans are now by and large the party of "We hate big government, unless it's our big government."

This is my point exactly. Our party forgot why we called ourselves Republicans. We're pro Republic. That's gone and it isn't coming back anytime soon. That's why Donald Trump is important here. He's not really any party no matter what he feels on a certain day. He's the boot to the anthill per se'. Neither party likes him even a little bit. So put him in charge and see who fights hardest against him on which policies so we know who to get rid of come election time. Right now you could resurrect Ronald Reagan and he'd have no chance to change things. We have to crush the problem before we can begin to rebuild the system. It'll take time and unfortunately for this forum of the grouches for the grouches it'll take patience. (Seriously... Anyone here not grouchy? I enjoy it myself, but...)

And I do believe there were others that would have been better like Rand (for his BLM pandering faults), Perry (not great but pretty good, definitely pro-2A), Jindal (an overall well rounded candidate and pretty Conservative), and even Rubio (though I know Mal doesn't like him! ) since I think he genuinely learned not to bite the Tea Party hand that gave him his seat and he's got a fairly Conservative voting record to back him up.

No. None of them for exactly the faults you listed. We need to fix the issue not continue it further. The Tea Party should have formed into a political party and taken on the GOP IMO. They didn't and that's that. Their changes were a band-aid in the end as Rubio is proof of. There are two things I think could happen to get things back on track. First a Constitutional Convention of the States. It's way overdue. Secondly we need to remove everyone from office with over 10 years in the same seat. A President can't do this, but we can. President Trump is not Hillary and is not a GOPe Shill so I'm good with that. He's thin skinned yes. Never seen a thick skinned guy in charge of anything it seems these days. But he does a lot that helps us such as bypassing the Media. He's turned them into the Joke they really are. If you really feel he's done nothing in his campaign promises you're wrong. He's tried to do everything he can within the rigged system he's been given while at the same time allowing idiots like the 9th Circuit court to lose a base of people that allowed them to stay whole. They are making it easier for him to break them apart. Even liberal Law professors are warning them to let up, because they see it coming. Even with them suing him right and left on every executive order and the 9th circuit court trying to stop him they're failing. We're still deporting and making it very difficult for offenders to come into the country. Illegal immigration is way down and the Wall will be built. He pulled out of the TPP and wants to renegotiate NAFTA. He made China say publicly that if N. Korea hurt their profits they'd let America take them out.

His idea on Obamacare lite was to first ween people off it while opening the way for interstate. I think it can be done in one go personally, (that's where I agree with Ted Cruz), But not a single GOPe member other than Cruz has said he'd lend his vote to a complete repeal. Not one. Can't executive order that. But he did executive order the tax on not being insured to be put on hold while they work it out. Like you and I both agree... Too many groups within the Republican Party to be a Party anymore and it shows here.

As opposed to Trump threatening to support primary candidates of people who opposed the shitty Obamacare Lite bill? The Trump that Tweets up a storm at the most ridiculous of "slights" instead of pushing good policy? The Trump that quoted National Enquirer stories saying Cruz's dad assassinated JFK? The Trump that insinuated Carson was a pedophile when Carson was gaining on him in the polls?

Yeah. That's what I love about him. He's not PC at all. The Carson thing was wrong, but the others had it coming for their parts. They weren't clean by any stretch in that primary race. Look, I'm not going to try and change your mind on this. You're a grown man and know your mind. I'm just saying it's not as bad as you're making out to be. President Trump will help the overall economy and we need that for now. Other than that; both sides hate him which means we should fully support him to at least let them know they are on the clock and it's ticking. The more they hate and obstruct him, the more we should support him publicly at least. (Support does not equate to blindly follow). Confuse them and irritate them enough and like any ad agency, they'll try to figure out what we will buy from them. A Buyer's market is always good.

Oh... And the Bengals suck! Just saying.

[Ryan Ruck]

And yet it was the "Educated" that put Obama in charge. I get what you're saying though. My issue isn't this, but the low involvement in our system. People can't be bothered and so they get what they deserve.



This is my point exactly. Our party forgot why we called ourselves Republicans. We're pro Republic. That's gone and it isn't coming back anytime soon. That's why Donald Trump is important here. He's not really any party no matter what he feels on a certain day. He's the boot to the anthill per se'. Neither party likes him even a little bit. So put him in charge and see who fights hardest against him on which policies so we know who to get rid of come election time. Right now you could resurrect Ronald Reagan and he'd have no chance to change things. We have to crush the problem before we can begin to rebuild the system. It'll take time and unfortunately for this forum of the grouches for the grouches it'll take patience. (Seriously... Anyone here not grouchy? I enjoy it myself, but...)



No. None of them for exactly the faults you listed. We need to fix the issue not continue it further. The Tea Party should have formed into a political party and taken on the GOP IMO. They didn't and that's that. Their changes were a band-aid in the end as Rubio is proof of. There are two things I think could happen to get things back on track. First a Constitutional Convention of the States. It's way overdue. Secondly we need to remove everyone from office with over 10 years in the same seat. A President can't do this, but we can. President Trump is not Hillary and is not a GOPe Shill so I'm good with that. He's thin skinned yes. Never seen a thick skinned guy in charge of anything it seems these days. But he does a lot that helps us such as bypassing the Media. He's turned them into the Joke they really are. If you really feel he's done nothing in his campaign promises you're wrong. He's tried to do everything he can within the rigged system he's been given while at the same time allowing idiots like the 9th Circuit court to lose a base of people that allowed them to stay whole. They are making it easier for him to break them apart. Even liberal Law professors are warning them to let up, because they see it coming. Even with them suing him right and left on every executive order and the 9th circuit court trying to stop him they're failing. We're still deporting and making it very difficult for offenders to come into the country. Illegal immigration is way down and the Wall will be built. He pulled out of the TPP and wants to renegotiate NAFTA. He made China say publicly that if N. Korea hurt their profits they'd let America take them out.

His idea on Obamacare lite was to first ween people off it while opening the way for interstate. I think it can be done in one go personally, (that's where I agree with Ted Cruz), But not a single GOPe member other than Cruz has said he'd lend his vote to a complete repeal. Not one. Can't executive order that. But he did executive order the tax on not being insured to be put on hold while they work it out. Like you and I both agree... Too many groups within the Republican Party to be a Party anymore and it shows here.



Yeah. That's what I love about him. He's not PC at all. The Carson thing was wrong, but the others had it coming for their parts. They weren't clean by any stretch in that primary race. Look, I'm not going to try and change your mind on this. You're a grown man and know your mind. I'm just saying it's not as bad as you're making out to be. President Trump will help the overall economy and we need that for now. Other than that; both sides hate him which means we should fully support him to at least let them know they are on the clock and it's ticking. The more they hate and obstruct him, the more we should support him publicly at least. (Support does not equate to blindly follow). Confuse them and irritate them enough and like any ad agency, they'll try to figure out what we will buy from them. A Buyer's market is always good.

Oh... And the Bengals suck! Just saying.

You're a Steelers fan so your argument is invalid.

See?

[Brian Baldwin]

I already played the Rival Team Card first so you already lost the argument. We all know this.... You're just upset you didn't do it first.

[Ryan Ruck]

What can I say, some of us don't instantly sink to our baser instincts.











Like Steelers fans.

[Brian Baldwin]

6 Lombardi Trophies! Nuff said.

[Ryan Ruck]

Oh yeah? Well, how about 6 felony arrests! Just last season!











(Okay, I don't think it was actually that many... )