Low-Hanging Fruit Won't Last Forever
As metaphors go, "low-hanging fruit" is a pretty easy one to understand. You walk through an orchard while picking fruit that is easy to reach and offers no obstacles to harvest. You just reach up, pluck some low-hanging fruit, and you effortlessly have some apples or oranges in your hands to enjoy. The problem (that the metaphor subtly points out) is what happens after all the low-hanging fruit has been picked. Then you've got to expend a lot more effort to get the rest of it -- with ladders that have to be climbed and whatnot.
The Trump administration is now in the process of picking all the low-hanging ideological fruit they can. There are silly examples (such as renaming the Gulf of Mexico on a whim), but there are also much bigger and more serious ones, such as President Elon Musk eviscerating federal departments he has taken a dislike to, and the increased focus on deporting immigrants. So far, both of these efforts are walking through their respective orchards and grabbing the easiest fruit to harvest (metaphorically speaking, of course). But what happens when all the easy pickings are gone? That's what I've been wondering, so when I came across the subject (and the metaphor) in a Politico article today, I took note:
The early targets of billionaire Elon Musk and conservative technocrat Russ Vought -- including the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration -- were chosen because they carry little political risk, especially among conservatives, according to three people close to the Trump administration, granted anonymity to speak candidly about the strategy.
The agencies are little-known and opaque to most Americans. Trump and his allies, meanwhile, have sold them to their base as examples of an unchecked bureaucracy that is aiding other countries, creating more red tape, researching climate change or promoting policies out of step with their agenda.
"You gotta light things on fire that burn the brightest and have the most distinctive smell of waste, fraud and abuse," said one White House ally, granted anonymity to share insights on the cuts.
A White House official, granted anonymity to speak candidly about the work, described the early moves at the agencies as "low-hanging fruit."
The article follows this up with a warning:
The next phase of the dismantling -- which is likely to include the Department of Education, the Department of Defense and the Department of Health and Human Services, according to some of the people close to the administration and the president himself -- could be more challenging, as it takes aim at programs that are better-known, more popular and have much more support on Capitol Hill.
The overreach is already becoming a little painful, even to red-state Republicans, as the "waste, fraud, and abuse" meat axe has begun slashing things like medical research grants. Many of those grants go to universities -- in both blue stands and red. Eliminating this funding stream is going to hit hard not just in Democratic-run states, to put this another way. And some Republicans are already pushing back on the idea: "Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) has voiced concern on behalf of the University of Alabama, Birmingham, which was among the top 30 recipients of NIH funding in 2024, and Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) called the cuts 'arbitrary.'"
What's going to happen when Musk gets around to eliminating FEMA and "auditing" the Social Security Administration? Some on the right love to hate FEMA, but what happens when it's not around as a useful whipping boy any more? What will happen when the inevitable hurricanes hit red states in the South? Who will the voters blame when disaster relief fails to show up (or is ineffective)? And people call Social Security "the third rail of politics" for a good reason -- namely: "you touch it and you die."
I've already predicted that Musk is going to run into a buzzsaw of pushback when he takes on Pentagon spending, because it seems completely predictable to me. But military funding isn't the only thing lots of Republican politicians actually care about -- to say nothing of their actual constituents. Again, plenty of rightwing politicians love to demonize the federal Department of Education, but gutting it or eliminating it is going to bring a lot of anxiety to parents everywhere about their children's schools getting the funding they need to operate.
This isn't the only way team Trump is going to run out of easily-pickable fruit. Trump ran for office promising to deport millions and millions of immigrants, and he began this effort with a public relations effort intended to highlight "criminals" and "gang members" that were shown being led away in handcuffs. But even these early efforts have swept up a large percentage of non-criminals and non-gang-members. What is going to happen when they run out of dangerous people they've already identified for deportation (previous to Trump even entering office)?
The immigration enforcers have reportedly been given quotas -- hard numbers that they must deport on a daily basis. How are they going to meet these numbers when all the easily-deportable criminals are gone? They'll instead go after the easiest way to round up large numbers of immigrants, which is to launch workplace raids.
This is going to be problematic for them for a number of reasons. The first is that it threatens big Republican donors -- the people who profit from hiring undocumented workers (and exploiting them for low wages). Farmers, meat processors, and construction firms will all feel the pinch. And, assumably, they'll all complain to the Republicans who represent them (and who they've donated lots of campaign cash towards).
The second reason this is going to cause blowback is the law of supply and demand. Some of the farmers and meatpackers and construction firms may be able to replace their lost workforce with American workers. However, this is going to cost them more money. And when their costs go up, the prices they charge will go up as well.
This is assuming that they will even be able to replace such workers. The jobs many immigrants perform are physically demanding and not fun to do, for the most part. Some of these jobs are so tough that American workers will not do them -- for any price. Think of workers in the fields, doing what is called "stoop labor" (since it all involves bending over all day long). What price would you have to pay a young American worker to do such labor? Whatever you think the answer is to that question, at the very least it equals "many times more than what is paid to immigrants." How many American high school graduates apply for jobs in meatpacking facilities? That's another way to look at it.
What this can lead to is having good food rotting in the fields because there is no one left to harvest it. Even if somehow this massive waste can be somewhat averted by employing legal workers, the price of that food is going to wind up being a lot higher (because of the increased labor costs to harvest it, or because of reduced supply because much of the crop rotted in the fields).
There is no computerized A.I. or robotic answer to this, it bears mentioning. These are jobs that cannot be easily automated (if they could have been, they would have been by now). You can harvest corn and wheat with giant machines, but not so much tomatoes and (to return to our metaphor) most fruit.
But with the set quotas for rounding people up, eventually workplace raids on farms and meatpacking plants seem pretty inevitable (historically this has been true, at any rate). There will just be no other way to reach the assigned quotas without doing so -- because (once again), arresting more criminals and gang members (once the ones who have already been identified have been successfully targeted) is a lot harder than ICE rolling up on a field full of ripe celery or bell peppers and just grabbing everyone there harvesting the crops. The farmworkers ironically will become the default "low-hanging fruit" themselves -- and the temptation to target them will be irresistible to those ICE officers looking to meet their quotas.
Depending on how widespread this becomes, it could very easily have an inflationary effect in the place most average Americans are already worried about -- the prices in their grocery stores.
So far, the average voter hasn't reacted all that negatively to much that Trump and Musk have been doing. Few of them are personally impacted if U.S.A.I.D. disappears, to put it another way. But Elon Musk "auditing" Social Security or the Pentagon is going to be a different story. And sticker shock in the produce and meat department in the grocery store is also not going to endear the public towards the effects of Trump's promised roundup of millions of immigrants.
Sooner or later, you wind up picking all of the low-hanging fruit -- and then you're going to have a much harder time with the rest of it. I have no idea when we'll reach that point, but barring team Trump just declaring victory and ending their efforts, they're going to reach that point sooner or later. They're going to start slashing government programs that people deeply care about, and they're going to start impacting the price of food and housing in a big way. Trump could make Elon a scapegoat and get rid of him (if one of his budget-slashing efforts blows up in his face), but he's going to have a tougher time backing down on his plans for mass deportation in the face of consumer outrage in the produce and meat departments.
-- Chris Weigant
Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant
Welcome to another fun-filled day celebrating PRESIDENT Trump and celebrating how much fun it is to be an American!! :D
Ya'all will be chagrined to know that, since it's early, I won't have any vacay pics.. :( Sorry about that..
Anyways...
"... on with the countdown..."
-Kasey Kasem
JL,
which is against the law, since it's a job of the legislature, not the executive (much less an un-appointed, un-confirmed independent contractor for the executive).
I respect your opinion...
But if that were actually the case, I am sure your woke progressive Democrats would have run crying to the courts..
So....
I guess it's just something you are going to have to live with, eh? :D
Since DOGE is doing so much GOOD for this country, I doubt you'll find anyone but America-hating woke progressive Democrats complaining about things.. :D
and the increased focus on deporting immigrants.
Not factually accurate..
There is NO focus, increased or otherwise, on deporting immigrants..
The *ONLY* focus is on deporting illegal immigrant criminals that have committed MAJOR crimes in this country...
Let me ask you a SERIOUS and SINCERE question. You don't have to answer (I am almost positive you won't) but HOPEFULLY it will cause you to at least THINK a little..
You ready??
WHY are you woke progressive Democrats so intent on protecting rapists and murderers and drug dealers???
Are ya'all SOOOO in desperate need to push your ideology that you'll actually PROTECT the scum of the earth???
What gives???
I've already predicted that Musk is going to run into a buzzsaw of pushback when he takes on Pentagon spending, because it seems completely predictable to me.
Are you AGAINST gutting out the fraud and the waste in the Pentagon??
Look at yourself.. You are actually protecting the waste and fraud in the PENTAGON!!!?????
How can you NOT SEE how totally off the reservation you have gone??? You are so fixated on your PTDS that you are actually PROTECTING fraud and abuse and waste in the PENTAGON.. SOLELY because PRESIDENTTrump is going after it... You are so filled with Trump Hate that you are actually going against EVERY LIBERAL tenet there is..
Don't you see how much you have changed since 2010?? The CW in 2010 would be aghast if he saw the CW in the here and now...
Don't you agree???
. But even these early efforts have swept up a large percentage of non-criminals and non-gang-members.
Point Of Fact. They are ALL criminals.. There are no NON-CRIMINALS being deported.. This is fact...
And the ONLY reason that collaterals (people whose only crimes are being illegal immigrants) are being picked up is because woke progressive Democrats in the sanctuary won't assist Boss Homan and his ICE troops. Woke progressive Democrats in the sanctuary cities are actually PROTECTING the hardened criminals.. Therefor a lot of collaterals are being picked up...
So, the solution to the problem of collaterals is clear.. Woke progressive Democrats need to quit protecting the hardened criminals
See??? Problem solved... :eyeroll:
How are they going to meet these numbers when all the easily-deportable criminals are gone?
Easy.. The quotas will be adjusted to reflect JUST the criminals who have committed immigration crimes..
Easy Peezy Lemon Squeezy :D
The first is that it threatens big Republican donors -- the people who profit from hiring undocumented workers (and exploiting them for low wages). Farmers, meat processors, and construction firms will all feel the pinch.
GOOD... But that's not really an issue.. Only 4% of illegal immigrant criminals actually work in real legitimate jobs..
So, that's not going to be a problem you are making it out to be..
Some of the farmers and meatpackers and construction firms may be able to replace their lost workforce with American workers. However, this is going to cost them more money. And when their costs go up, the prices they charge will go up as well.
But at least illegal immigrants won't be exploited any more..
And THAT is a GOOD thing, right?? At least 2010 CW would think so.. :D
This is assuming that they will even be able to replace such workers. The jobs many immigrants perform are physically demanding and not fun to do, for the most part
Again, we're only talking 4% of the total illegal immigrant population in the US works those jobs..
So, it's not going to be as big of a problem as you are trying to make it out to be..
but he's going to have a tougher time backing down on his plans for mass deportation in the face of consumer outrage in the produce and meat departments.
Which, again, won't happen because, as I pointed out above, only 4% of the illegal immigrant population actually works in legitimate jobs...
So, it's not going to be an issue at all..
Given that fact, you can actually be on board with PRESIDENT Trump's deportation program and STILL be on the side of actual Democrat Liberal values...
Like MANY Democrats are... More on that later...
Granted, you will have to disavow and disown your woke progressive values, but those aren't really "values" and they are anti-American so you'll actually feel BETTER by reverting back to your Democrat Liberal values..
Trust me.. I know what I am talking about.. :D
JOIN THE TRUMP TRAIN!! :D
And ANOTHER win for PRESIDENT Trump and America!!! :D
'Trump is a hero’: American teacher speaks for first time after being released from Russian prison
Freed American hostage Marc Fogel lands in US after years in Russian captivity
'MARC FOGEL IS BACK!!! PROMISES MADE, PROMISES KEPT!!!' the White House said
Marc Fogel, an American who had been detained in Russia since 2021, landed back in the U.S. on Tuesday.
Fogel, a history teacher who was working at the Anglo-American School in Moscow, returned to the U.S. after his release from Russia following talks with the Trump administration.
He was serving a 14-year sentence after his arrest in August 2021 at a Russian airport for possession of drugs, which his family said was medically prescribed marijuana.
Fogel was seen in a picture posted by the White House on social media smiling and raising his fist while wrapped in an American flag as he walked off the plane on U.S. soil.
The previous administration just let Mr Fogel rot in a Russian Prison..
His crime?? Possession of medicinal marijuana!!
Of all things, I can't believe that woke progressive Democrats would let Mr Fogel ROT for having marijuana...
But I guess... For woke progressive Democrats, their PTDS and Trump/America hate supersedes all other considerations..
#sad
Ya'all were speaking about a Constitutional Crisis before..
There IS a Constitutional brewing... But it's not the one you think...
The courts are interfering in PRESIDENT Trump's affairs of running the Executive Branch..
Constitutional law attorney and Fox News contributor Jonathan Turley was left bewildered after a federal judge extended a temporary restraining order Monday blocking the Trump administration's buyout offer to federal employees. Turley said the offer/deal is "perfectly within the wheelhouse of the president."
I think that Trump is on very solid ground with the buyout. I'm still a bit baffled by what the court is doing here. If the presidents are allowed to dictate conditions of employees coming into the office, what they're working on, all of that is part of Article II powers of the president controlling the executive branch. I'm not, even today, certain what the constitutional problem is. You've got 65,000 employees who were told, look, we'll let you stay at home and look for a job as long as you agree to resign and to give a number of months. They've agreed to it, the government's agreed to it. That seems to me to be perfectly within the wheelhouse of the president. So I think he's going to win on that.
Congress can make decisions, they're the ones who buy ships, but it is the president that decides who's going to take the ship out and the crew. He can reduce the number of crew members. And so, there are different aspects of authority here. I think that the court is really intruding significantly in the president's authority. He's allowed to downsize, and they're allowed due process. They're allowed employment protections, but they're not allowed to permanent employment.
-Professor Jonathan Turley
So, it's the woke progressive Democrat COURTS that are initiating a Constitutional Crisis...
What do you say to THAT, JL??? Anyone?? Anyone?? Buehler??
It's ya'all's woke progressive Democrats that is sparking the Constitutional Crisis...
And, of course, DOGE is still at it!! :D
In absolutely massive news on X for those wanting to see Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) get into the weeds and slash discretionary spending to the maximum extent possible, it announced on X (formerly Twitter) that it is already making cuts of around $1 billion a day. That news comes as Elon Musk announced it needs to get to $4 billion a day to find a trillion dollars in savings.
DOGE also announced, in what is good and big news for those wanting to see it demolish the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) regime that it has taken a wrecking ball to DEI contracts with the federal government, finding 85 such DEI-focused contracts to obliterate since the January 20th inauguration.
DEI is dead, people.. Couldn't happen to a more deserving concept.. :D
Amiright?? :D
I mentioned before about Democrats getting on board the PRESIDENT Trump train.. :D
Democrat senator backs Trump's 'common sense move' to fire the penny
'I'm not afraid to embrace a good idea,' Sen Jacky Rosen says after Trump revealed his order for the treasury to stop producing new pennies
President Donald Trump has found an ally in the Senate, at least on his plan to stop creating new pennies.
Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., came out in support of Trump's latest proposal on Tuesday, calling it a "common sense move."
The Democrat represents a battleground state that both she and Trump won in 2024.
The Democrat Governor of Colorado has also jumped on board the PRESIDENT Trump train.. :D
"As well as saving taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars, there are major environmental benefits to eliminating the penny. This is a great move," Democrat Gov. Jared Polis, D-Colo., said of the president's plan.
The PRESIDENT Trump train is chugging along... :D
The woke progressive Democrat Party is in full-on depression.. :D
It’s no secret that Democrats are adrift — dare we say “in disarray” — as a party right now. As PRESIDENT Donald Trump and his administration have launched a veritable bombardment of efforts to reshape the government and empower PRESIDENT Trump in potentially long-lasting ways, the blue side has rather meekly responded with what more or less amounts to some news conferences and strongly worded tweets.
Just 7 percent of Democrats picked “excited,” and just 10 percent picked “motivated.” Only 20 percent said they were even “interested.” (And to be clear, respondents could pick more than one option.)
In each case, more than twice as many Republicans said they felt such feelings of animation.
By contrast, many more Democrats said they were “demoralized” (42 percent) and “exhausted” (47 percent).
A few salient points.
The first is that it might be understandable that Democrats aren’t enthusiastic or excited, but only 1 in 5 being even “interested” would seem to be telling.
The second is that this is taking place at a particularly inauspicious time for Democrats, given Trump’s onslaught, and that onslaught doesn’t seem to have awakened the left (at least yet). Congressional Democrats have begun training their fire on Elon Musk, and there is reason to believe that could be working to some extent. But we’ve yet to see it mobilizing people en masse.
And the third is that this is a far cry from where things stood the last time PRESIDENTTrump won the presidency.
Back then, nearly as many Hillary Clinton supporters chose the “energized” option (39 percent) as did Trump supporters (43 percent)
It’s surely true that some of these numbers owe to an electoral hangover that could soon subside. But with everything happening, it’s probably high time that Democrats sober up and figure out what to do.
Woke progressive Democrats are so demoralized because they see the ENTIRE country turning against DEI and turning against woke and progressive ideals and jumping with both feet onto the PRESIDENT Trump train..
The entire country is getting behind PRESIDENT Trump! :D
Maybe ya'all should to... Ya'all will be a LOT happier... :D
Yunno, we were talking about Constitutional Crisis before and how it's woke progressive Democrat judges who are initiating this Constitutional Crisis???
Apparently, CNN agrees with me.. :D
Well, I think there's a difference between saying whether you're complying with the law and then you have these individual district court judges setting effectively broad federal policy that is specifically reserved for the president of the United States.
I think we do have a constitutional crisis and it's being caused by these judges. They're not here to tell us how to spend the money. They're not here to set broad federal policy. That is the president's job as elected by the people. These judges are supposed to be settling discreet, specific matters, not policy setting.
I think Vance is right. I think Trump has a point. And these judges want nothing more to continue the lawfare against Trump.
It is the executive branch's job to figure out how to spend money once it is appropriated by Congress. And sometimes they spend money that's not been appropriated, but the correct political control is between the executive and the Congress, not some random federal judge.
-Scott Jennings, CNN
It's the woke progressive Democrats who are making a Constitutional Crisis here.. NOT PRESIDENT Trump...
The facts are clear...
And now, let's turn to Israel and the Middle East...
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that Israel will end the ceasefire and resume the war in Gaza if Hamas doesn't "return our hostages by Saturday at noon."
PRESIDENT Trump has issued Hamas an ultimatum.. RELEASE all hostages by noon Saturday or PRESIDENT Trump will take the leash off the IDF and let slip the dogs of war...
'CRY HAVOC!!' and let slip the DOGS OF WAR..
-William Shakespeare
I am kind of torn on the issue.. Of course I want the hostages home safe..
But, looking at the big picture, it would be a very VERY good thing to see Hamas eliminated..
So, I would say that this situation is a perfect WIN-WIN...
Either the hostages are home safe and sound...
Or Hamas is utterly obliterated...
That's as bout a perfect WIN WIN as can be in those whole morass of death and destruction...
PRESIDENT Donald Trump has enlisted the help of Elon Musk to explore audits of key federal agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Education, and the Pentagon. This initiative is a refreshing departure from the norm and could signal a new era of financial accountability within the federal government, a notion that many fiscal conservatives find exhilarating.
However, this move has not been universally welcomed. Woke progressive Democrats and woke progressive mainstream media, have expressed outrage, accusing PRESIDENT Trump of overstepping his authority and Musk of seeking excessive power. Yet, taxpayers should be ready to celebrate these efforts aimed at transforming inefficiency into practicality.
One of PRESIDENT Trump's recent directives involved halting the production of pennies, which have become a financial burden for taxpayers. According to the U.S. Mint's 2024 report, each penny costs 3.69 cents to produce and distribute, making their continued circulation a losing proposition. Even The New York Times acknowledged the long-overdue need to eliminate the penny, highlighting the broader issues of waste within government operations.
Musk's relentless pursuit of efficiency is commendable. Recently, he conducted a poll on X, querying his 217 million followers about the necessity of auditing the IRS. An overwhelming majority supported the idea, indicating a public desire for accountability in an agency that employs over 90,000 individuals.
Musk's efforts are just beginning. PRESIDENT Trump has indicated that the newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) will also scrutinize spending within the Department of Education and the Department of Defense. The Education Department's budget for the previous year was a staggering $268 billion, yet American students continue to lag behind their international peers in critical subjects like science and math. As a concerned parent, I question why our educational investments are not yielding better outcomes.
Moreover, the Pentagon's budget for 2025 stands at $850 billion, and taxpayers deserve assurance that these funds are being utilized effectively to protect our nation. PRESIDENT Trump has suggested that Musk will uncover significant waste and fraud within this department, a claim that anyone with more than 2 brain cells to rub together will believe is factually accurate..
Are woke progressive Democrats and woke progressive media REALLY going to die on the hill of PROTECTING waste, fraud and abuse in the Department of Education and Department of Defense??
REALLY!!???
Public sentiment supports this initiative; a recent poll revealed that 61% of Americans back PRESIDENT Trump's plan to reduce the size of the federal government. Even some of PRESIDENT Trump's critics concede that there are likely numerous instances of wasteful spending and fraud to uncover. The American people are behind PRESIDENT Trump on this.. This is obvious.
Despite the backlash from woke progressive Democrats, who accuse PRESIDENT Trump and Musk of overreach, the reality is that ensuring responsible use of taxpayer funds is not an act of tyranny. Rather, it aligns with the desires of the electorate. A CBS News/YouGov poll indicates that nearly 60% of Americans view PRESIDENT Trump as effective, with a majority believing he is fulfilling his campaign promises.
PRESIDENT Trump's commitment to implementing DOGE reflects his responsibility as president to ensure that federal agencies operate efficiently. The current system of checks and balances is essential, but the unchecked misuse of taxpayer dollars has persisted for too long. If Musk can help rectify this fiscal irresponsibility, it is a welcome development.
Imagine a federal government that operates with the efficiency of a leading tech company or the innovative spirit of a space exploration firm. The prospect is not just appealing; it is a vision worth pursuing.
You people are on the wrong side of this issue...
I am amazed that ya'all can't see that...
Let's get Bernie Bro Joe Rogan's take on the state of the woke progressive Democrat Party in the here and now...
"We don't trust you Democrats anymore. We don't trust the New York Times. We don't trust the Washington Post. We don't trust CNN or any other MSNBC, where they're all full with propaganda. That's why the internet rose. It's not because there was some sort of a right-wing conspiracy. No, you guys suck. You're not real people. Nobody wants to hang out with Brian Stelter.
The Democrat Party is going to keep shedding people. They're not going to correct course. This is a buffalo drop. Do you know those buffalo jumps? The Native Americans used to... One of the ways to hunt Buffalo was to get them to the edge of a cliff and just run at them, and they just fall off the other edge of the cliff. Then people are waiting on the bottom, and they butcher them and eat them. The woke progressive Democrat Party is that pile of buffalo. They're going to go off the cliff. There's no way they're not. The Democrat Party is not course-correcting at all. They keep saying stupid stuff. It's all nonsense."
-Joe Rogan
This is ya'all's woke progressive Democrat Party today...
Do ya'all see where ya'all's PTDS and ya'all's Trump/America hate has lead ya??
It's not too late to join the winning team... :D
OK, let's compare SecDefs.
SecDef Lloyd Austin wore medical face masks when meeting the troops and then disappeared from duty for DAYS without telling anyone..
SecDef Pete Hegseth worked out with the troops for morning PT...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8n39c3hjXPY
Now, you people tell me..
WHICH one would be the better SecDef that the troops will actually follow??? :eyeroll:
So... Lemme ask ya'all...
Are ya'all still opting to support packing the SCOTUS and eliminating the filibuster???
I mean, if ya'all STILL want to do that, I am SURE that PRESIDENT Trump will be MORE than happy to accomadate ya'all...
What's a good number?? Ya'all want PRESIDENT Trump to add 5 more SCOTUS justices?? Does an 11-3 Conservative SCOTUS sound good to ya'all??
And what about the filibuster?? With the 53-47 GOP majority in the Senate, ya'all want to lose the filibuster???
WHAT!!??? Ya'all DON'T want to add SCOTUS Justices!!??? Ya'all DON'T want to get rid of the filibuster!!???
I am SHOCKED!!! I am COMPLETELY shocked that ya'all would do a complete 180 on these points!!! :D
Hypocrisy. It's not a bug in Democrat programming. It's a feature.
:D
Out of the mouths of babes..
"The richest man in the world is working for free in order to stop your government from robbing you blind.
Instead of complaining, why don't you sit down, shut up and say thank you."
-Barron Trump
That about sums things up perfectly...
It's hard to take ya'all woke progressive Democrats seriously when ya'all are so hysterically off the reservation..
Ya'all are actually PROTECTING hardened scumbag murderers and rapists and drug dealers and are actually PROTECTING the waste, fraud and abuse in the PENTAGON!!!
And you people think that it's YA'ALL who are the sane ones!!?? :eyeroll:
Yunno... Ya'all got this ELON AS MELAKON idea all wrong.. Completelty and utterly flawed analogy...
Elon Musk is doing all of his work out in the open.. EVERYONE knows exactly what Elon is doing and EVERYONE knows that it's PRESIDENT Trump who is directing all things..
Complete and utter transparency..
Melakon hid in the shadows. The general public didn't have a CLUE what Melakon was doing...
NOW, think real hard..
What part of our American life had a drugged up head of state with a maniacal scumbag pulling the strings from the shadows away from view of the general public??
http://mfccfl.us/melakon.jpg
That's right people..
The PERFECT Patterns Of Force analogy is Joe Biden as Professor John Gill and Barack Hussein Odumbo is Melakon...
So, can we please stop with the Elon = Melakon BS...
All ya'all are doing is simply showing ya'all's complete and utter ignorance about Star Trek... :eyeroll:
Good points about the earliest efforts to gut the federal government being the easiest ones - and anticipating more resistance when more people are directly affected by yet-to-happen cuts and deportations.
But the Musk raids on departmental spending and employment, and the anti-immigrant quotas, are not the only things on the president's menu.
I am waiting to see how the coming budget bill works out - will the GOP be able to avoid shutting the government down? From what I've read the president has taken little interest in the hard work of getting a budget passed; "let it be done and stop bothering me" seems to be his attitude towards his narrow majorities in the Congress.
As well, relative to your last post, we may expect to see what comes of the executive branch choosing to ignore federal court orders and injunctions ordering the low-hanging fruit to be put back into the trees, rather than enforcing them as the constitution requires. What kind of blow-back will that generate, and how will it relate to the budget impasse and the ongoing sacking of the federal workforce?
It's going to be messy, as far as I can tell, if not worse than messy. And the 'lack of any more low-hanging fruit' problem may be the least of the president's struggles this year.
Thanks for the thoughts, though.
So, can we please stop with the Elon = Melakon...
showing ya'all's complete and utter ignorance about Star Trek.
I would argue the reverse - that your inability to understand just how well the analogy fits reveals your own limitations in understanding either the star trek universe or the real universe. mELakON may not have drugged and voice-dubbed Don Gill YET, but in terms of both his position of power and his modus operandi he's VERY similar.
JL
as i've said, Donald is less perfect a fit for professor gill, but it's still similar in that he's used some very dangerous techniques to achieve positive ends, and it's getting out of his control even quicker this time than last. that's the "pattern of force" that the title of the episode is about.
SecDef Lloyd Austin wore medical face masks when meeting the troops and then disappeared from duty for DAYS without telling anyone..
SecDef Pete Hegseth worked out with the troops for morning PT...
I hear that they have video footage of Hegseth playing beach volleyball with Tom Cruise from Top Gun! THAT is how you want our SecDef spending his days?!?! Your knowledge of what the military needs is as pitiful as your lies about working in law enforcement for over 2 decades and your parenting decisions regarding sex with your kids!
Austin wore masks when it was necessary to lessen the likelihood of soldiers being exposed to and infected by the COVID virus. But then you were supportive of Trump refusing to mask up when visiting a military hospital when the pandemic was really spreading quickly. All because masks smeared his make-up! Seriously, you think Trump is such a manly macho guy despite his wearing more makeup than a $3 “mentally challenged” whore???
Because he is getting worse at applying his makeup properly! So many photos of Trump with his terracotta face-paint stopping at his neck, showing off his pastie white neck, ears, and scalp. History books will have photos of Trump that will make future Americans ponder why no one said anything to let Trump know that he looked like a transvestite suffering from dementia!
This isn't the only way team Trump is going to run out of easily-pickable fruit. Trump ran for office promising to deport millions and millions of immigrants, and he began this effort with a public relations effort intended to highlight "criminals" and "gang members" that were shown being led away in handcuffs.
He began his anti-immigrant efforts with
This isn't the only way team Trump is going to run out of easily-pickable fruit. Trump ran for office promising to deport millions and millions of immigrants, and he began this effort with a public relations effort intended to highlight "criminals" and "gang members" that were shown being led away in handcuffs.
He began his anti-immigrant efforts with the total unconstitutional executive order that would ban even the children of legal immigrants from having birthright citizenship. He then terminated the legal immigration of 20,000+ immigrants who had already been vetted for entry, a process that generally takes between 18 months to 2 years... just totally halted their legal immigration and stranded them.
I could go on, but cut to the chase: Trump has targeted legal immigrants and allowed their legal status to be removed in order to bolster the "numbers," which he is upset aren't higher. He's removing the legal status of those who followed the rules allowing them to be deported, and if this continues, it will have consequences in the supply chain and to those who use legal immigrants in their workforce and will cause prices to increase.
Couple those efforts with the institution of new tariffs, and there will be consequences.
https://x.com/atrupar/status/1834656862576283856
Good luck blaming the resultant economy on the prior administration.
Point Of Fact. They are ALL criminals.. There are no NON-CRIMINALS being deported.. This is fact...
Hysterically incorrect.
[7]
Plagiarism
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/02/11/democrats-dejected-trump-administration/
nypoet22
17
I would argue the reverse - that your inability to understand just how well the analogy fits reveals your own limitations in understanding either the star trek universe or the real universe.
Musk is what happens to those who spend an inordinate amount of time immersed inside a feedback loop of their own creation, far removed from reality.
mELakON may not have drugged and voice-dubbed Don Gill YET, but in terms of both his position of power and his modus operandi he's VERY similar.
Becoming a victim of your own self-serving propaganda is part and parcel of the process; in Melakon's case, he's self-radicalized. In simpler terms: He believes his own bullshit. It's the very essence of Trumpism, and I know I don't need to tell you from whence it originates.
ListenWhenYouHear
19
DUI Hire Hegseth worked out with the troops? *laughs* Doesn't surprise me in the least; his resume is ample proof that he's definitely not qualified for much else. He's a Fox Newsian camera-ready talking head hired for photo ops and not much else more PT and the disseminating of Righty propaganda for the gullible mindless regurgitating rubes.
I hear that they have video footage of Hegseth playing beach volleyball with Tom Cruise from Top Gun! THAT is how you want our SecDef spending his days?!?!
Who's gonna break it to DUI Hire Hegseth that Top Gun: Maverick is a work of fiction and not a documentary?