Three of This President's Best Critics

3 favorites of mine to read in this Age of Trump:

• David Frum
• George Will
• Bill Kristol

All 3 are deepset, longtime conservatives, Republicans and all 3 rightly savage him. The best critics are from the inside. Herewith, just a few quotes from each, highlighting the horribleness. First up, David Frum.

“President Donald J. Trump did not start the pandemic of course. But at every step of the way, Trump has acted as if guided by one rule: ‘How can I make this trauma worse?’”

Next, George Will, one of Donald Trump's most scathing critics:

"I believe that what this president has done to our culture, to our civic discourse ... you cannot unring these bells and you cannot unsay what he has said, and you cannot change that he has now in a very short time made it seem normal for schoolboy taunts and obvious lies to be spun out in a constant stream. I think this will do more lasting damage than Richard Nixon's surreptitious burglaries did."

So finally, Bill Kristol:

“I'm very honestly just agnostic about what the future looks like,” he says. “I do think in the short term, I think a second term of Donald Trump is very dangerous.”

Important side note---while researching this post, I found the following, too.

George Will: Republicans Will 

Forget Trump 'Fast' After 2020

I'd like to make clear here--we can never let this happen, folks. Once Donald Trump is out of the White House, we can never let the Republicans conveniently "forget" about this man and what he did and tried to do to our nation, our people, our Democracy. Heck, to Democracy itself. It's why I so frequently and repeated write "Thanks, Republicans!" on social media posts. We can never let them forget this man or what they unleashed on this nation and on the world. This will be, must always be a scourge on them and their political party. We, the nation, must never forget---so we never repeat.

Links:

David Frum Rethinks Conservatism

George Will's startling assessment of Donald Trump

Neoconservative Thinker Bill Kristol Says 2nd Term Of Trump Would Be 'Very Dangerous'

George Will calls Trump ‘sad, embarrassing wreck of a man

Conservative Icon George Will Urges November Sweep: Vote Out Trump, All GOP Enablers

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Donald Trump Is Crazy, and So Is the GOP for Embracing Him

Further Proof The Donald Will Lose

After last night's final presidential debate between Hillary "I Got This" Clinton and Donald "I'm Losing It" Trump, it's clear Mr. Trump's declaration that he may or may not accept the results of the election hurt him and badly.  Check out just some of the headlines this morning.

First, on what Mr. Trump actually said:

Trump on Whether He’ll Accept Election Results: 'I'll Keep You in Suspense'

Herewith, some takeaways, responses to Mr. Trump.

CNN's Cuomo Drills Conway On Trump Rejecting Election Results: He's Disavowing the Process!

David Gregory on Refusal to Accept Election Results: 'This Is a Death Blow for Donald Trump'

This, from the very Right Wing pollster Hugh Hewitt. Even he admits Mr. Trump took a hit.

Hugh Hewitt: Trump 'Knocked Himself Out' With Rigged Election Claims

Another Right Wing voice:

Krauthammer on Trump's Refusal to Accept Election Results: 'This is Political Suicide'

Here's one from a Republican strategist:

Steve Schmidt on Rigged Election Claims:  ‘A Moment of Clear and Present Danger’

Two takes from Jake Tapper.

Tapper: Trump Maybe Not Accepting Election Results Was 'Disastrous Answer'

Jake Tapper Points Out That 'Rigged Election' Talk Could 'Hurt Republican Turnout'

Four takes from mainstream media:

Brian Williams on Rigged Election Claims: 'A Disqualifying Moment For Americans' Who 'Respect a Peaceful Transition'

Brit Hume: Trump 'Stepped On' His Best Debate Performance by Hedging on Election Results

Tom Brokaw: 'A Lot of Republicans' Will Have 'Hands Over Their Heads' After Trump's Debate

Chris Matthews: 'There's No Justification' For Trump to Question Election Results

The Associated Press had this rather more maybe official and rather dour evaluation of Mr. Trump's comment.

AP Lede on Trump at Debate: 'Threatening to Upend a Basic Pillar of American Democracy…'

For what it's worth, two opinions and descriptions of last night's comments from Mr. Trump from Rachel Maddow.

Rachel Maddow Calls Giuliani and Conway's Rigged Election Defense: 'Insane'

Maddow: 'It's Inarguable' the Moment of Debate Was Trump Not Committing To Election Results

Mr. Van Jones take on it all will likely surprise no one.

Van Jones Rips Trump's 'Appalling Lack of Patriotism'

Of course, one can always take the course of denial.

Kellyanne Conway Says Trump Will Accept Results of Election — Because Trump Will Win the Election

Bill Kristol Works Himself Into Screaming Fit, Insisting Trump Is a 'Fluke' and Not Representative of GOP

The New York Times conclusion, turning Mr. Trump's own words on him:

Who Won the Debate? Hillary Clinton, the 'Nasty Woman'

Finally, then, today, one last result from last night's debacle for Mr. Trump.

Fox News Drops in 2016 Brand Index Ranking Among Republicans

Ladies and gentlemen, what you are witnessing, what we are all witnessing is the freefall of one Mr. Donald J. Trump, electorally and popularly, and what was formerly known as the Republican Party in America, let there be no doubt.

My only concern is the power vacuum it will create. We have to hope for who and what will replace it.

I will say this, this has been the most fascinating, bizarre, unpredictable and even dangerous election, all, and solely due to Mr. Trump, his candidacy and his pronouncements and reactions in it. The only explanation that seems to make sense about it all is that he put himself up to do this, to run and run in the campaign as far and long as possible, in order to destroy the Republican ticket, if not the entire political party. I'd heard that rumor. It's out there. But by doing this, he's hurt himself, his corporate brand and, yes, the political party.

It's the only thing that makes sense. What little sense it does make.

Links:   Hillary's Best Takedown of Trump During Debate

Donald Trump's Clueless Debate Answers Spawn #TrumpBookReport Tweets

The Trump Effect: The Impact of the Presidential Campaign

'The Trump Effect': Hatred, Fear And Bullying On The Rise In Schools

Journalists Are Calling Out Trump's Lies At The Final Presidential Debate

We Need To Be Better Than This, America

Since when do we tolerate and take seriously a presidential candidate for whom articles can be written about how many insults they've thrown out?

This, from The New York Times today:

Donald Trump's Twitter Insults: The Complete List (So Far)

How and why did we lower our standards to this point?

More importantly, can't we be smarter than this?

Shouldn't we?

And as if that isn't bad enough, from the front-runner in the polls from the Right Wing and Republican Party, there's also this:

The GOP Candidates Are Shockingly 

Uninformed About Foreign Policy

This is no way to run a nation, folks.

Links:  Tucker Carlson reveals incredibly vulgar first encounter with Donald Trump

Murdoch: GOPers Must Be Looking Forward to Debate ‘Without Donald Getting All Attention’

RNC Chair: ‘It Doesn’t Matter’ if Trump Sits Out Debate

Biden Tells Dems the GOP Presidential Field Is ‘A Gift from the Lord’

Saudi Billionaire Responds to Trump’s Photoshopped Attack: ‘I Bailed You Out Twice’

Links:  Trump's most notable insults

10 times Donald Trump insulted groups this fall

All the people Trump has insulted in September so far

All the people Donald Trump insulted in 2015

Donald Trump Finds New City to Insult: Brussels 

Republican Party and Right Wing in Freefall

I keep finding, by pure chance, more and yet more indications, at least weekly, of Right Wing and Republican Party splintering. So much so that even the word "splintering" doesn't seem strong enough to describe it. They seem to be nothing but attacking one another and tearing the party apart.

I just ran across a few examples today, again, by pure chance. All came from the site Mediaite  today.Here's the first.

National Review's Lowry Responds to Critics: 'Faith in Trump Is Misplaced'

Here's the very Right Wing, very conservative, very Republican-supporting National Review attacking Donald Trump, really, and the people who support him, even though he's the frontrunner in the polls. How fantastic is that?  Well, at least for the rest of us, anyway.

Here's the second internal attack within the Party I saw today:

Fox's Watters: National Review Writers 'Putting Pure Conservatism Over the Country'

Get that. Nearly unbelievable. Right Wing, ultra-conservative, Republican supporting Fox, attacking the, again, very Right Wing and Conservative and Republican Party supporting National Review, of all things, for being too conservative and, as it says, "putting pure Conservatism over..." the interests "...of the country."

And the third:

Pat Buchanan: National Review 'Gave Up Pretense of Objectivity' Attacking Trump

Again, a staunch Right Winger, Pat Buchanan, attacking a long time, staunch Right Wing media source for daring to criticize Donald Trump, one of the two, if not the most popular candidates for the presidency this year, in polling.

Here's the fallout of the National Review issue:

National Review Publisher: RNC Disinvited Us From February Debate

Finally, check out what some of the heads of the party took up:

GOP Civil War: Leading Conservatives Pen Massive Anti-Trump Manifesto

More on this diatribe by Conservatives on the horrors of the Donald:

Conservative Writers Explain Anti-Trump Manifesto: 'Terrible Face of America to the World'

And of course they're correct. I can't even imagine Donald Trump as president. Who knows what horrors and gaffs would come from the man?

This is phenomenal, really. The Democratic Party and anyone not supporting the Republicans couldn't write or ask for anything better for this group. It's clear they are, for all practical purposes, self-destructing.

Darn the luck, huh?

Pass the popcorn.

Is America turning into a Third World "banana republic"?

Since the 2008 financial near-collapse in America and for the last 30 years, there's been an attack on the middle class in this country:

The Attack on America's Middle Class

7 Things the Middle Class Can’t Afford Anymore

Then, more recently, the UN says Detroit is violating human rights there by cutting off water to the poor:

UN Reps ‘Deeply Disturbed’ That Detroit Is Shutting Off Water To People Who Don’t Pay Their Bills

Now Amnesty International weighs in on the Ferguson, Missouri debacle:

Amnesty International: Ferguson Cops Committed Human Rights Abuses

Take this into consideration:

America Has The Worst Wealth Inequality Of All Developed Nations

What's become of us, America?

What's becoming of us?

And maybe most importantly:

What are we going to do about it?

KC Cop Hits Big National News

The article:

Cop Maybe Shouldn't Have Posted This Fake Michael Brown Photo to Facebook

Yeah, maybe that wasn't a great idea:

Kansas City police officer Marc Catron is under internal review following Facebook posts aboutMichael Brown, including one photo erroneously purported on social media to be a picture of Brown.

Catron posted to his feed comments like, “Remember how white people rioted after OJ’s acquittal? Me neither.” But it was the following photo that really got him in trouble:

That’s actually a picture of a murder defendant from Oregon.

People in the community saw Catron’s photos and alerted the police; the department said it was handling the case internally. Meanwhile, a Facebook page, “Marc Catron Isn’t worthy of the shield,” is already up and running.

In the meantime, there was yet another shooting/killing of a citizen in St. Louis today:

St. Louis Cops Shoot and Kill Man Near Ferguson

I nor no one else can declare guilt or innocence of Michael Brown nor the policeman who shot him nor this man, today, or his shooter, certainly. What we can tell is that Michael Brwon shouldn't be dead, first, and that this man, today, maybe should have been tased instead of shot.  Fact is, apparently tasers aren't standard issue for St. Louis police.

If things were going to quiet down over there on the East side of the state, it very likely won't be tomorrow.

Quote of the day -- on Ferguson, Missouri, Racism and Freedom of the Press in Today's America

I saw two things last evening on the awful Ferguson, Missouri situation this past week. This is the first:

'Get the F*ck Out of Here!' Riot Police Threaten to Shoot Reporter in Ferguson

Then, from Facebook, FB friend and Kansas City photographer Roy Inman wrote this, on a completely different thread:

A person can be DETAINED for up to 24 hours without charges in most jurisdictions. It is a typical law enforcement technique: Using intimidation to discourage the truth being told. In my 60 years of knocking around the news photography trails I have observed that whenever someone does not want photos taken that person has something to hide. There are no exceptions. You see, dear fb friends, The Camera is a wicked tool, a device abhorred by dictators, would-be controllers of society. It can be brutally honest, totally revealing, unflinching. It can show the grotesque, blood-dripping raw fangs of oppressors in a way that mere words never can. Although in some corners of the Earth writers are put to death or imprisoned for what comes from their pen. Let’s face it: NONE of us likes to hear the truth about ourselves. If the truth is revealed about those in power, with the most guns, things can get nasty quickly. 

Trust me. #chicagopoliceriot1968

Missouri State Rep Allegedly Tweets What?

This:

GOP State Rep. Denies Tweeting Giant Penis Photo

Earlier this week, the Twitter account of Missouri state representative Mark Parkinson accidentally sent his followers an image of a comically large penis, along with a caption joking about the difficulties of men waking up in the morning.

He reportedly is quoted saying "Is that so WRONG??"

(not actually.

More nearly unbelievable ugliness and meltdown at CPAC

I'm telling you, I can hardly believe these people, the Right Wing and the Republicans, both, for their ugliness and just utter stupidity and callousness:

They Can't Help Themselves: Fox Contributor Trashes Ashley Judd At CPAC With Rape Joke

There's noting I or anyone has to even say about this, it's so clearly stupid, ugly and irresponsible, other than noting that, once again, this is coming from the Right Wing.

And they want to get votes.

The Republicans suddenly, amazingly admit we have no big debt crisis after all

The heads must be exploding all across America today, from Washington, D.C., out. I know mine certainly is.  Check out what came from the Sunday morning news programs today. First there's this:

John Boehner Tells ABC He Trusts Obama, Agrees Debt Is 'Not An Immediate Problem'

House Speaker John Boehner downplayed the national debt as a major problem for the country during his appearance this morning on ABC's This Week. Boehner told fill-in host Martha Raddatz that not only does he think the debt is not an immediate threat but that he trusts the president and that "they're trying to bridge some big differences."

And then closely followed by this one:

Paul Ryan Tells CBS' Bob Schieffer 'We Do Not Have A Debt Crisis'

Congressman Paul Ryan downplayed concerns that the United States is in the midst of a debt crisis on Face The Nation this morning by saying that the country hasn't arrived there yet because it is buoyed by factors unique to America. 

What on God's green Earth is going on in and with the Republican Party? First they say we're going to hell with debt and now their two leaders come out today, this morning, and say that's not the case at all. THEN WHY ARE THEY PUTTING US THROUGH THIS SEQUESTER??

What in the world is with the Repubs right now?  I can't believe Boehner and Ryan could or would both come out and say we're not that bad on debt right now since they've been screaming about it for what? years? All of a sudden, these people both sound like and agree with economist Paul Krugman and Robert Reich, who have been saying this FOR YEARS. Sheesh.  Hypocrisy, anyone?

If this is all true, then are we surely not, then, now very close to having these people compromise and get a budget for the nation?

I doubt it seriously but I certainly hope so and it seems as though, with these positions on both their parts, that's where we should be--on the cusp of getting a budget from Congress.

I wouldn't put money on it but geez, what other conclusion can you come to?

You have to excuse me now, I have to go do something for my exploded  skull.

Challenge for the Kansas City Star and/or St. Louis Post-Dispatch

I saw the following post today on Senator Roy Blunt's Facebook page:

"My husband is a retired electrician and has worked all over the country in them. So I think he would know best what goes on in them....  Right now at the Labadie Power Plant in Labadie Mo there is radioactive waste and sludge being dumped on the grounds next to a highway close to the MO river. It has been dumped there for years, in hopes that the river will flood and wash it somewhere else."

I would think this is something one of those two media outlets or a television station or someone in the state should explore. Or the Columbia Daily Tribune or the Columbia Missourian or some such.

Let's see if this is so.

And then, if it is so, is it legal?

Because, even if it is legal, it surely can't be safe. Or wise.

It's right outside St. Louis, just East of Columbia. You can see the location here: https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&biw=1012&bih=479&q=labadie%20power%20plant&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=il

Here's hoping some media outlet does some research.

The Right Wing, Republicans and this President

The Right Wing on this President

"Obama's had to be the Jackie Robinson of American politics -- never reacting to the taunts from the stands," --Bill Maher, from "Real Time with Bill Maher", HBO

Video TKC will love (and since it's Bill Maher, you know I do)

http://www.mediaite.com/tv/bill-maher-the-problem-in-this-country-is-older-white-people/

To quote Representative Alan Grayson: "The forces of white Christianity are fighting back."