I had to google Rodney Dangerfield

Try watching Caddyshack, you’ll see what I mean. Trunp doesn’t have a sophisticated wit, but he’s very effective at what he does. Problem is, that type of humour is what juvenile males are into, not grown ups.

He motivated huge turnout among rural voters who despise urban “elites” (which includes Republican party establishment figures like Romney and Jeb Bush), but somehow got conned into thinking a billionaire real estate tycoon was a working class hero. Those rural voters live in states that have disproportionate influence in the electoral college, so that tipped the balance for him in 2016.

Good example from the Indie about how he sold out the Rust belt voters..
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-election-rust-belt-trump-steel-manufacturing-pennsylvania-ohio-michigan-b1372995.html

I think it’s a bit more complicated than that. I think people saw in him what they wanted to be. He’s crass and offensive, but he can also be quite funny

I’m reminded of a certain newspaper columnist and some time presenter of HIGNFY who went into UK politics.

I have a sneaky feeling that what they saw in him that looked like looking in the mirror were the stupid, uneducated bits.

And this makes me think of a salient point from the 419 scammers.

They don’t make the scams clever, or polished, or particularly believable, because that draws in smarter people who are far more difficult to get a result on.

They make them with bad grammer, mistakes, spelling errors, non-existent company names, the whole nine yards, because the only people taken in by that level of scam are idiots, who are far easier to defraud.

I read a piece by a celebrity handler who worked on the US apprentice. Essentially they realised that Donald needed rightly scripted pieces as he wasn’t actually a great business mind (no great surprise) he thinks that Americans were duped into thinking that as a reality show it was all Donald and that the image of him [as a great business mind] was the real deal…when in actuality he’s a moron.

I think a lot of his followers were just motivated by a feeling of grievance and believed he would “stick it to the establishment”.

Without his Twitter account, the ability to communicate with his base was muted. The polished videos posted on the White House’s official Twitter account were greeted with suspicion. But in the build up to Inauguration Day, Trump supporters, QAnon acolytes and extremist militias still, at a minimum, held out hope that the outgoing president would stick it to the establishment on the way out the door.

Trump’s pattern of eventually betraying everyone for personal gain now extends to his white nationalist fan base https://t.co/ebmnxw4Pzt pic.twitter.com/1G447vYA7l

— Matthew Yglesias (@mattyglesias) January 21, 2021

nickc
Full Member

I’m beginning to think that the Mexicans aren’t going to pay for his wall.

Even I am beginning to suspect that there is no new healthcare plan

Everyone wants to be good at something even if that is being a colossal ****.

Donald needed rightly scripted pieces as he wasn’t actually a great business mind..

I suspect much the same thing happens with Alan Sugar – the only person I have ever seen with an Amstrad Emailer. 🤣

Qanon is falling!

But, as Mr Biden took his oath and no arrests were made, some in the QAnon community had an uncomfortable meeting with reality.

https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-55746304

I think it’s a bit more complicated than that. I think people saw in him what they wanted to be. He’s crass and offensive, but he can also be quite funny

I think in a weird way he gave certain people a sort of hope. Americas is a very unequal society and any kind of real success generally either takes exception privilege, exceptional talent or exception talent or maybe all three. America produces the Steve Jobs and Warren Buffets of the world but its obvious to most Americans that they are not the next Steve Jobs or Warren Buffet.

If you don’t have it in you to be any of those things then Trump somehow gave the impression that you could be a success, a celebrity, a millionaire, a president without putting in any of the work. He made it look like it was something that could just happen to you. Like winning the lottery.

Qanon is falling!

Cults that have predicted the end of the world all have one thing in common.

Donald who?

This is the kind of sloppiness that gives journalism a bad name.

The most recent former president never said you should drink bleach. He said you should inject it directly into the lungs. pic.twitter.com/mBh692kxhn

— S.V. Dáte (@svdate) January 22, 2021

I don’t use twitter, but saw this from Greta Thunberg. She is a tweet genius, and proves the point that revenge is a dish best served cold…

https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/greta-thunberg-trump-leaving-white-house_n_60084565c5b62c0057c2181f?ri18n=true

but in a worrying development…

stumpy – link is broken?

Qanon is falling!

But, as Mr Biden took his oath and no arrests were made, some in the QAnon community had an uncomfortable meeting with reality.

https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-55746304

It wouldn’t surprise me to learn that Q was silent because he’s on a respirator in hospital.

fadda

stumpy – link is broken?

Weird – works for me!

Yahoo have nicked it here:

https://uk.yahoo.com/news/greta-thunberg-trump-leaving-white-house-154855549.html

but in a worrying development…

<small class=”bbp-reply-post-date”>Posted 1 hour ago</small>

Mrs Startfire?

Mrs Dumpsterfire

I hate Trump as much as the next sane person but I’ll admit to missing him. The news was much more interesting for featuring his craziness, his stupidity, his tantrums and his lunacy. It was a bit like heading over to LiveLeak. You know its wrong, and you don’t want to watch, but it is weirdly compelling. I miss that.

Edit: As I am typing they have announced his Senate trail starts next week. BOOM! new popcorn required. Trump show back on air for Season 2.

Nobody tell frank about the daily mail sidebar of shame, he won’t be seen for 10 years until he emerges from the darkened room paler, weaker and with a beard Osama Bin Laden would be proud of.

The news was much more interesting for featuring his craziness, his stupidity, his tantrums and his lunacy.

I think the problem is more …. the rest of the news was eclipsed. Its hard to think what else important has happened in the world in the last few years. Its even hard to imagine that covid is an issue anywhere other than here or the US. You know the other 1.6million people around the world that have died. We’ve basically ignored the whole of the rest of the world because the global news agenda has been set by one twitter account

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-22/trump-campaign-paid-organizers-of-pre-riot-rally-2-7-million

Former President Donald Trump’s campaign paid more than $2.7 million to individuals and firms that organized the Jan. 6 rally that led to violent rioters storming the U.S. Capitol, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Dinner conversations gonna be a bit awkward in this house.

Chris Cuomo Conducts Heartbreaking Interview With Teen Who Turned In His Capitol Rioting Father Who Threatened Family: 'Traitors Get Shot'https://t.co/tlS2fvkQ6a

— Mediaite (@Mediaite) January 23, 2021

maccruiskeen

I think the problem is more …. the rest of the news was eclipsed. Its hard to think what else important has happened in the world in the last few years. Its even hard to imagine that covid is an issue anywhere other than here or the US. You know the other 1.6million people around the world that have died. We’ve basically ignored the whole of the rest of the world because the global news agenda has been set by one twitter account

Never thought of it like that and very true. He has totally dominated the news to such a degree that things that the world really should have been focused on were simply hidden in the noise.

Another bank cuts ties with Trump and his businesses, this time a Florida one.

Get the feeling these banks know there is a big evation/laundering investigation coming up and are distancing themselves as much as possible?

Former President Donald Trump’s campaign paid more than $2.7 million to individuals and firms that organized the Jan. 6 rally that led to violent rioters storming the U.S. Capitol, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

This seems pretty big news in the context of the impending impeachment trial. Of course there will be denial of any knowledge but it’ll be interesting to see where it is judged that the buck should have stopped. The “I didn’t know that was going on” defence can only take you so far.

Another bank cuts ties with Trump and his businesses,

And I see there are banks refusing to do business with election-result denying congressmen and senators on principle.

Thats the trouble with banks – they’re all just a bunch of  bloody lefty liberals and communists

his NY tax lawyers have dumped him (and his family and his firm)

““We no longer have any depository relationship with him,” said Banks United,”

Neither does Melania apparently.

He has totally dominated the news to such a degree that things that the world really should have been focused on were simply hidden in the noise.

He hasn’t really, at least not in Spain. Here all the news was the Catalan independence movement, up until Covid hit. Then it was all Covid. Brexit and Trump were in the news, but very much as secondary items. No idea about the rest of the world, but I’d be pretty surprised if domestic news didn’t lead the way.

I’d be pretty surprised if domestic news didn’t lead the way.

Brexit and Covid have obviously dominated in the last few months, but it feels like there have been very few days in the last 4 years when Trump hasn’t featured on BBC news reports, which are the ones we usually watch.

My 17 year old lad said yesterday “It’s nice not watching the news and wondering what stupidity he’s come out with today”

Even MrsMC, who isn’t a current affairs kid of girl, bless her, says t feels as though the world has been a calmer place since the inauguration.

No joke, whenever I saw this thread at the top or updated, my thoughts were “Oh gods, what has that clown done now?”.

““We no longer have any depository relationship with him,” said Banks United,”

Neither does Melania apparently.

Once was enough for her.

I think the problem is more …. the rest of the news was eclipsed. Its hard to think what else important has happened in the world in the last few years.

Thanks to my Flipboard habit, I tend to read far more world news than I do U.K., I can go a week without seeing any news on the telly, if I’m on late shifts, for example, but even there the amount of stuff about Angry Tinkerbell has been almost exhausting keeping up with what he’s done now.
The focus may shift to Russia, if what was on the news earlier this evening is anything to go by; huge protests right across Russia, with violent police responses on camera, and hints that Putin is beginning to panic.

I have to say I miss my daily dose of idiocy from the cheeto face shitgibbon. yes he was very dangerous and did dominate the news – but boy did it make me laugh.

Couple of articles from the Independent popped up in my feed this morning, one suggesting the Republican senators may be pushing for a guilty verdict at impeachment, and this about where some of the evidence is coming from

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/supporters-words-may-haunt-trump-at-impeachment-trial-senate-trump-president-time-charges-b1791681.html

I have to say I miss my daily dose of idiocy from the cheeto face shitgibbon. yes he was very dangerous and did dominate the news – but boy did it make me laugh.

I quite like waking up and *not* having his latest tweetstorm derailing everyone’s focus away from solving real problems and back on to him.

I get the feeling that so many Republican senators really want to go that way, the only things stopping them is if Trump runs again (increasingly unlikely) and incurring the wrath of their constituents. Mitch McConnell above all.

The tide seems to be turning away from Trump. The impending split between old school GOP and populist Trumpism can at last give these senators and their voters an alternative that they can see as remaining loyal to their party.

Saying that, if they are not convinced that Trump has turned toxic enough to reach tipping point,  the safer option for GOP Senators (especially any 2024 hopefuls) will be to vote not guilty in the impeachment trial, knowing that the following vote to ban him from running again will easily pass, as it only requires a straight majority.