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What I find fascinating about the Trump-Russia phenomena is that the system has clearly failed by both sides of this discussions assessment, but both sides continue to look to that same failed system expecting a solution/resolution.
Congress and the parties aren't going to remove Trump by most estimates, so we're left with voting him out, which was the same option we started with when he won.
That's to say the only solution our system offers to the next Trump is voting them out, provided they respect the results.
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I don't think it is that cynical GH. As voting persons in the US, we expect change. And we expect fellow voters to do the right thing. When this expectation is not met, we are left with what we currently have; dysfunction at all levels. Hence the wave of freshmen congress members with wildly different backgrounds and seemingly outrageous ideas. Most of us know we cannot continue on this path, so we try to change it. So far, the results have left us wanting.
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There has never been a successful vote to remove a president in US history. Nixon resigned. Clinton was acquitted. It is a monumental task. Even a report as bad as this one doesn’t make it easy or political possible.
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On April 19 2019 11:52 ZerOCoolSC2 wrote: I don't think it is that cynical GH. As voting persons in the US, we expect change. And we expect fellow voters to do the right thing. When this expectation is not met, we are left with what we currently have; dysfunction at all levels. Hence the wave of freshmen congress members with wildly different backgrounds and seemingly outrageous ideas. Most of us know we cannot continue on this path, so we try to change it. So far, the results have left us wanting.
"cynical" is a weird word so I'm not sure exactly what you mean by that.
This
when this expectation is not met, we are left with what we currently have; dysfunction at all levels. Hence the wave of freshmen congress members with wildly different backgrounds and seemingly outrageous ideas. Most of us know we cannot continue on this path, so we try to change it. So far, the results have left us wanting.
Is what I find fascinating. For me it was Obama that taught me this lesson for the last time.
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On April 19 2019 11:01 xDaunt wrote:Show nested quote +On April 19 2019 10:59 m4ini wrote:On April 19 2019 10:46 xDaunt wrote:On April 19 2019 10:29 FueledUpAndReadyToGo wrote:On April 19 2019 09:25 xDaunt wrote:On April 19 2019 09:01 JimmiC wrote:On April 19 2019 08:59 xDaunt wrote:On April 19 2019 08:53 NewSunshine wrote:On April 19 2019 08:45 xDaunt wrote:On April 19 2019 08:38 ZerOCoolSC2 wrote: No it isn't.
I'm gonna hit up NPR over the weekend and try to get through the report as quickly and understanding...ly, as possible. But from the excerpts I've read posted here...2020 is indeed, gonna be lit. To quote P6 This is a little premature. You should wait for Trump's counter punch. You mean like the one he gave before everyone got to see the report, on account of him and his team having access to it before everyone else? That's a sucker punch, in my book. He hasn't responded at all yet. With regards to Trump's people seeing the report before anyone else, did you listen at all to Barr's explanation for why that happened? The idea that there was some impropriety there is utterly absurd. Do you believe what in the report to be true. Specifically in regards to the requests he made that were not followed through on? Also on how he wanted to fire people but was unwilling to do it himself? Also, what parts of the report do you believe to be untrue? I don't know. I haven't read the report yet. I plan to tomorrow while traveling. I doubt that there will be any particular reported fact that is untrue. For example, if the report says "Mr. X said Y," I probably won't have any reason to doubt that. Like I said before, my larger concern with the Mueller report is the extent to which certain facts have been omitted and downplayed, thereby creating a situation where readers will digest harmful information out of context that really isn't harmful. We already see this happening with selecting quoting of certain elements of the report. This is why the underlying conclusions of the report -- that there was no collusion and that the Mueller team did not exercise their prosecutorial judgment to find that there's probable cause that Trump obstructed justice -- are so important. Every fact should be scrutinized through those lenses. The problem with you not having read it is that these are not at all the conclusions in the report. In fact the report immediately notes that it didnt look at collusion since its not a legal term. It looked at tacit or explicit agreement between Trump campaign and the russian government and for this it didnt establish evidence beyond readonable doubt. Theres plenty of things that regular folk would call collusion in there. Barr spouting the no collusion keyword while the report says it didnt look at collusion is just another example of him toting propaganda lines. And in obstruction Mueller didnt indict because he followed guidelines that presidents cant be. There is plenty of cause. The idea that Trump did all this because of his emotions and it is therefore not acting with intent is absurd. Yes, Mueller discusses the technical conspiracy charge and notes that “collusion” isn’t really a thing. But everyone understands that collusion refers to criminal conspiracy. And like I said, the bottom line is that Mueller did not charge Trump with a crime or recommend that he be so charged. Everything else is just noise. Quite the different song to what you sang a week ago, innit? Weren't we supposed to be blown away by how squeaky clean Trump is? Remember, "fully exonerated", all that jazz? Now we're down to "well he didn't charge him, the fact that he tried and is crooked as shit is just noise"? It feels a bit like the slope republicans went down when it came to emails about HRC. No, never met them, well, did meet them but didn't get anything, and Trump didn't know anything, well he did know something, well yeah they met and trump knew but it's not illegal. You haven't read it, but you're drawing definitive conclusions. Even if you just go from soundbytes or excerpts, isn't it in your best interests to withhold commenting on it until you have read it?
He had those definitive conclusions long before it was released already. We were supposed to be astonished by the report, and how dare we doubt the "Trump is fully exonerated" claim by Barr, no reason to lie or conceal facts. Nothing changed. No criminal charge = fully exonerated. There is no middle ground here, despite Mueller’s best attempts to create the appearance of impropriety out of whole cloth.
Isn't this like saying that the two opposing verdicts in a courtroom are Guilty and Innocent, as opposed to the reality of Guilty and Not Guilty? Not providing a strong or technical enough case for guilt doesn't prove innocence.
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On April 19 2019 12:15 GreenHorizons wrote:Show nested quote +On April 19 2019 11:52 ZerOCoolSC2 wrote: I don't think it is that cynical GH. As voting persons in the US, we expect change. And we expect fellow voters to do the right thing. When this expectation is not met, we are left with what we currently have; dysfunction at all levels. Hence the wave of freshmen congress members with wildly different backgrounds and seemingly outrageous ideas. Most of us know we cannot continue on this path, so we try to change it. So far, the results have left us wanting. "cynical" is a weird word so I'm not sure exactly what you mean by that. This Show nested quote +when this expectation is not met, we are left with what we currently have; dysfunction at all levels. Hence the wave of freshmen congress members with wildly different backgrounds and seemingly outrageous ideas. Most of us know we cannot continue on this path, so we try to change it. So far, the results have left us wanting. Is what I find fascinating. For me it was Obama that taught me this lesson for the last time. But we know that Obama was halted in congress. He couldn't do anything without a massive amount of EOs. Which is why people were dissatisfied. Give him a functioning congress and things would have been wildly different. It's like the scene in Interstellar. Obama was trying to solve a complex problem with both hands tied behind his back. He did the best he could. I won't fault him for that. I have my other grievances with him though, so he's not a saint in my eyes.
And by cynical, I meant that it isn't as bad as you make it seem. The political discourse in this country has taken a different flavor than the one we grew up knowing.
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I don't see the political race to the bottom to stop, McConnell way of burning bridges is backed up by the Senate Republican Conference continually electing him to leader
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On April 19 2019 12:27 ZerOCoolSC2 wrote:Show nested quote +On April 19 2019 12:15 GreenHorizons wrote:On April 19 2019 11:52 ZerOCoolSC2 wrote: I don't think it is that cynical GH. As voting persons in the US, we expect change. And we expect fellow voters to do the right thing. When this expectation is not met, we are left with what we currently have; dysfunction at all levels. Hence the wave of freshmen congress members with wildly different backgrounds and seemingly outrageous ideas. Most of us know we cannot continue on this path, so we try to change it. So far, the results have left us wanting. "cynical" is a weird word so I'm not sure exactly what you mean by that. This when this expectation is not met, we are left with what we currently have; dysfunction at all levels. Hence the wave of freshmen congress members with wildly different backgrounds and seemingly outrageous ideas. Most of us know we cannot continue on this path, so we try to change it. So far, the results have left us wanting. Is what I find fascinating. For me it was Obama that taught me this lesson for the last time. But we know that Obama was halted in congress. He couldn't do anything without a massive amount of EOs. Which is why people were dissatisfied. Give him a functioning congress and things would have been wildly different. It's like the scene in Interstellar. Obama was trying to solve a complex problem with both hands tied behind his back. He did the best he could. I won't fault him for that. I have my other grievances with him though, so he's not a saint in my eyes. And by cynical, I meant that it isn't as bad as you make it seem. The political discourse in this country has taken a different flavor than the one we grew up knowing.
I'm as familiar with that story as anyone, I've told it myself right here. Like I said though, Obama taught me the lesson many are slowly learning from Democrats in the Trump era. About their ineffectiveness, their trash performance in places like Baltimore, Chicago, etc... their support for mass incarceration, prison labor, on and on.
Basically the naive (imo) worldview that held together longstanding US myths and their own realities is finally falling apart for people that had prior to Trump been able to avoid noticing, or confronting it seriously, by one way or another.
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On April 19 2019 13:35 JimmiC wrote: I mean America has issues no doubt. Lots of them, but it is not Gotham from the batman comics. It is still a pretty good country to have been born into when compared globally. So hopefully you are right that Trump has opened the eyes of people to how corrupt it is and how without proper checks and balances how close it is to falling into the hands of a guy so incompetent that the only saving him from obstruction is that he is such a poor leader that none of his people followed his orders.
Hopefully the people speak with their votes and demand more accountability and a higher standard for their leader.
Gotham at least had Batman?
US comparisons being "pretty good...when compared globally" necessitates that we ignore the disparate amount of wealth we wield as a nation.
When you compare apples to apples (per capita and similar situation comparisons) we lag behind almost all of our peers in almost every metric that matters (imo, though I could dig up some data if this is a point of contention).
As to gaining awareness of the current situation, yes at least some people are, the politicians and most of corporate media however still seem as hopeless as ever to me.
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On April 19 2019 11:03 ZerOCoolSC2 wrote:Show nested quote +No criminal charge = fully exonerated. There is no middle ground here, despite Mueller’s best attempts to create the appearance of impropriety out of whole cloth. If Mueller deferred to Congress to decide to indict or not, that doesn't mean he was exonerated. It just means that Mueller punted to Congress, which he should do. Edit: I suck at formatting BBCode lol.
"Exonerate" comes from the Latin: exonerō, exonerāre — to discharge, to unload; hence to our modern usage meaning "to free from accusation" or "to acquit."
Are we really going to say that he wasn't exonerated?
OJ Simpson was exonerated. Until he wasn't.
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On April 19 2019 14:54 IgnE wrote:Show nested quote +On April 19 2019 11:03 ZerOCoolSC2 wrote:No criminal charge = fully exonerated. There is no middle ground here, despite Mueller’s best attempts to create the appearance of impropriety out of whole cloth. If Mueller deferred to Congress to decide to indict or not, that doesn't mean he was exonerated. It just means that Mueller punted to Congress, which he should do. Edit: I suck at formatting BBCode lol. "Exonerate" comes from the Latin: exonerō, exonerāre — to discharge, to unload; hence to our modern usage meaning "to free from accusation" or "to acquit." Are we really going to say that he wasn't exonerated?
Leave it to IgnE to one-up my dictionary post, nonetheless, that does seem like a useful clarification. So that that conversation can progress should it return.
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United States42258 Posts
On April 19 2019 14:54 IgnE wrote:Show nested quote +On April 19 2019 11:03 ZerOCoolSC2 wrote:No criminal charge = fully exonerated. There is no middle ground here, despite Mueller’s best attempts to create the appearance of impropriety out of whole cloth. If Mueller deferred to Congress to decide to indict or not, that doesn't mean he was exonerated. It just means that Mueller punted to Congress, which he should do. Edit: I suck at formatting BBCode lol. "Exonerate" comes from the Latin: exonerō, exonerāre — to discharge, to unload; hence to our modern usage meaning "to free from accusation" or "to acquit." Are we really going to say that he wasn't exonerated? OJ Simpson was exonerated. Until he wasn't. There is an implication of innocence in the claim of exoneration which is completely at odds with Mueller’s conclusion of wrongdoing.
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He was exonerated. He is not innocent. Two completely compatible statements.
Edit: I mean look, we all know what dauntless meant, and he knows we know what he meant, so what's the point in arguing about connotation? The better response to "he was exonerated" is "fine, but he's not innocent," not "he wasn't exonerated." You can clarify the connotation without getting mired in an unwinnable argument over "semantics."
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So what will be the aftermath of the report's release, realistically speaking?
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On April 19 2019 17:21 PoulsenB wrote: So what will be the aftermath of the report's release, realistically speaking?
a treasure chest leading into the 2020 election. impeachment was off the table once Dems felt that Republicans would never impeach Trump - their side's President. which in turn means that they are in a bind. one's demise also dooms the other. so a clean 2020 victory is the way to go for Dems.
problem is, Trump is many things, and many things he says he is not. though one thing he is for sure, a survival expert. a 2020 win is anything but certain. for both sides. and Trump has got a lot to lose. by losing the next election he could lose just about everything. the(winning?) persona he created around his narcicissm and inherited wealth, a lot of personal wealth, his brand.
there are so many court cases in the pipeline, and as President he proves quite the challenge for the justice system. just read some key parts of the Mueller report.
so the best way to get rid of him is by showing him the door in 2020...
it somehow feels like on party is there to game the system for their gain, the other is playing not to lose or play to keep it intact. which makes for great drama don't get me wrong, but 4 years of this seemed plenty. for the next 20 years. at least.
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On April 19 2019 15:21 IgnE wrote: He was exonerated. He is not innocent. Two completely compatible statements.
Edit: I mean look, we all know what dauntless meant, and he knows we know what he meant, so what's the point in arguing about connotation? The better response to "he was exonerated" is "fine, but he's not innocent," not "he wasn't exonerated." You can clarify the connotation without getting mired in an unwinnable argument over "semantics." Mueller specifically says Trump was not exonerated. The report lays it out very well.
Mueller could not charge the President because of DoJ guidelines, additionally because a declaration of guilt without a trail would remove the ability of the defended to defend himself the report cannot reach a guilty verdict. The only conclusion Mueller could reach was exonerated, which is specifically says it did not reach.
Additionally Mueller has a whole section about how it is Congress job to protect investigations from Obstruction of Justice through the use of the Presidents official powers. So yes, Mueller does pass the buck to going after Trump over Obstruction of Justice to Congress and he does so rather explicitly.
This is what you get when you make up your mind on the report and say dumb things without actually reading the report. I look forward to xDaunt's rebuttal when he has read the report and has been unbanned.
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So having read most of the actual report (still need to get into the meat of the obstruction stuff, having read only the introduction and conclusions of Volume 2)
Less redacted stuff then I expected, tho some things that could prove juicy because there is a lot of black lines surrounding contact between Wikileaks and the Campaign which I assume revolves around the ongoing case with Roger Stone.
Biggest question I had coming in was the Trump Tower meeting, which basically comes down to Yes Jr. broke the law by going to the meeting but since no information was actually passed on its hard to prove it had sufficient value and more importantly the law requires 'wilful' acts which means you need to know the law exists before you can break it and its reasonable to assume Trump Jr. didn't know he couldn't accept info from a foreign government.
Lots of contact between the Campaign and Russia but since collusion is not a legal term the investigation focused on Coordination between the 2 parties, of which no evidence was found. Basically I do something good for you, you do something good for me. But since we never actually discussed with each other that we would do these things its outside the scope of the investigation. I'm going to say they get off on a technicality there, and yes that is just my personal opinion.
The Obstruction investigation is a lot more interesting. Lots of events that can all constitute obstruction, and in my eyes did, but the report lays out that it can't reach a verdict other then exonerated because DoJ guidelines means Meuller won't indict the President and you can't declare someone guilty in a report without going to a trail to allow the defended to defend himself. Specifically lays out its the job of Congress to handle the President obstructing an investigation through the use of his constitutional powers (firing Comey, trying to fire Meuller ect).
The big question is will, and more importantly I guess, can the Democrats actually do anything with this in Congress. I doubt they will start impeachment proceedings considering it has no hope of getting past the Senate and I don't know what other tools they have.
Funny note, the report mentions its entirely possibly to charge Trump with Obstruction of Justice after his Presidency ends, This could still get nasty for Trump even if Congress isn't able to act now.
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Northern Ireland24417 Posts
Exonerated is a tricky word whose meaning alters both in general understanding of it, or in combination of others.
‘Exonerated of the charges’ to me means basically just that, when people say ‘totally exonerated’, or I do it means an individual is cleared of what they were accused of, but also of wrongdoing in the area, in a moral/spirit of the law sense.
Some legal codes have a ‘not proven’ verdict in addition to the innocent/guilty, which is how some of Mueller’s report reads.
As to why we and wider society are arguing distinct from each other’s frameworks is confusing and irritating to me. At least within here, maybe not elsewhere opposition to Trump haven’t set the bar at nailing him if he does anything illegal, and anything else is fine so it’s not really a refutation of criticisms if he’s merely not prosecuted.
Likewise many of us actually don’t like the partisanship and increasing polarisation of things and concede there are problems there, it’s not really a good defence as Trump is he is probably the single biggest courter and flamer of the phenomenon.
Oh no poor Donald felt attacked by a bogus investigation, makes his conduct totally explicable and fine. I seem to recall a certain man throwing his lot in with the birther conspiracy crowd not all that long ago.
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Northern Ireland24417 Posts
On April 19 2019 13:54 GreenHorizons wrote:Show nested quote +On April 19 2019 13:35 JimmiC wrote: I mean America has issues no doubt. Lots of them, but it is not Gotham from the batman comics. It is still a pretty good country to have been born into when compared globally. So hopefully you are right that Trump has opened the eyes of people to how corrupt it is and how without proper checks and balances how close it is to falling into the hands of a guy so incompetent that the only saving him from obstruction is that he is such a poor leader that none of his people followed his orders.
Hopefully the people speak with their votes and demand more accountability and a higher standard for their leader. Gotham at least had Batman? US comparisons being "pretty good...when compared globally" necessitates that we ignore the disparate amount of wealth we wield as a nation. When you compare apples to apples (per capita and similar situation comparisons) we lag behind almost all of our peers in almost every metric that matters (imo, though I could dig up some data if this is a point of contention). As to gaining awareness of the current situation, yes at least some people are, the politicians and most of corporate media however still seem as hopeless as ever to me. The US has its cultural tropes though, kinda hard to punch through. Which are actively courted to justify bad systems and bad outcomes.
I get dismissed as some whiny pinko Euro when I point some of these things out. Even though it’s not from a sneering Euro superiority point, more bafflement that a country like the Us doesn’t have some of these things.
So either I can try to argue against people’s culturally ingrained beliefs, or argue that they don’t really have them or they’re actively manipulated by those that benefit.
Basically all of which are exercises in futility up there with headbutting a wall.
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