comment: >
  
  It is the Republican Party who is. I was happy to see her Dewitt become Arizona's new GOP leader, then one of the first things he does is go hang out with conspiracy theorist party keeper Arizona legislator Wendy Rogers who believes the big lie and also Kari Lake. He decided it as he is trying to "unite everyone." The Republican party is irredeemable and is poisoned.
context: It says a lot about our justice system's inability to discipline the rich & powerful when we are at 'wait until he dies' as an option. >
  
  I get the sensation that every alphabet agency has a press release at the ready, stating, "we had plans to charge Donald Trump with X, Y, and Z crimes and had all the evidence in the world to do it, and we were totally going to issue the charges this month, but he's dead now so oh well," and they'll use his death to sweep all of it under the rug rather than confront the game of proscutorial musical chairs/hot potato they've found themselves in. >
  
  I hope he lasts as long as the 2024 election so that he can split the GOP voter base >
  
  If not his mini me in Florida can do it. >
  
  If you mean DeSantis I don't think he'd split the GOP vote, I think Republicans will really rally behind him.  That man is a real threat.  I'm just waiting for Trump to start screaming the primary election was stolen from him too when he inevitably loses it.  Maybe then some of the election deniers will start to see the light. >
  
  I don't think DeSantis is crude enough for the base.  He sounds like such a wimp when he talks.
  If DeSantis gets the nom, I can easily see Trump splitting the vote. >
  
  The base will vote for whomever is the GOP candidate on the ballot, whether they’re into them or not. As such, it can go his way and the American Experiment will die. >
  
  That was the thinking in 2008, with GOP nominee John McCain. And in 2012, with Mitt Romney.
  The same proposition applied to Democrats in 2000 with Al Gore, and 2004 with John Kerry.
  One of the key factors in any election is likability. While I regard Donald Trump as a grotesque and despicable person, many Republicans harbor some affection for his personality - wealth, swagger, 1950's "good ol' boy" attitude, etc. His image is the basis of the cult of personality that has cropped up around him.
  Take that principle and look backwards. Barack Obama has great personal charisma and rhetorical skill. George W. Bush projected a similar "good ol' boy" sensibility as Trump, but less cruel and more bumbling. Bill Clinton was described as having a JFK-like aura. George Bush Sr. had a more tepid presence, but he also served only one term. And before him, we had a movie star.
  In sum - personal likability of a candidate drives turnout, and turnout drives election results.
  Now consider Ron DeSantis. Nobody likes Ron DeSantis. He is a nasty little hobgoblin with no sense of humor. He's an indoctrinated right-wing culture warrior and he takes everything too seriously, especially himself. I don't think I've ever seen the guy smile.
  Finally, keep in mind that a 2024 Biden vs. DeSantis election wouldn't be a question of whether people like or dislike DeSantis. It would be whether they like him enough to unseat an incumbent president, which, historically, has been a high bar. In recent times, voters have evicted an incumbent president only in the case of clear error, such as George Bush Sr.'s mismanagement of the economy or Donald Trump's mismanagement of, well, everything. In the absence of a huge national crisis or some other problem (such as health issues), Biden will retain a big incumbency advantage that DeSantis likely cannot overcome. >
  
  I want to believe that still, but I can’t. I was doing that same kind of thinking coming up to the 2016 election - looking at case studies and stuff  from the past that could give some informed observations that could suggest that Trump probably win. Then, Trump won in 2016, and the shocks have continued unendingly since then.
  I’m not giving in or saying the R side will win the next Presidential election. I’ll fight like hell against that. >
  
  I understand the PTSD effect of the 2016 election. But defaulting to pessimism isn't good for one's mental health - it leads to cynicism.
  I believe that it's possible to hold an objective view of the realities of politics and the likelihood of various outcomes, while also remaining vigilant and avoiding overconfidence. That should be the goal. >
  
  I didn’t indicate that I’m pessimistic, though. I just don’t feel any comfort looking at data from another time in this instance. >
  
  Well, well, well....that's just too bad for the American people.  Don't you guys know that he had the best results his doctor had seen from a physical exam on someone his age, maybe even EVER!! He's in perfect health and medical professionals are in awe of his vigor!
  ​
  **don't mind the sarcasm....but I am reminded of when he was bragging about the results of his physical during the first few years of his presidency. >
  
  The fact that he feels no guilt or anxiety over the awful things he does probably contributes quite a bit to his unfortunate longevity. Anyone with a conscience would have stroked out years ago. >
  
  His mother lived to be 88 despite multiple health issues from the time of Robert's birth. His father lived to 92. His two older sisters are still alive. He has some of the best healthcare the country offers. >
  
  Plus, he doesn't exercise, so he doesn't drain his body's finite energy resources, which we all know will kill ya real fast
  ^(/s) >
  
  I strongly suspect he went around bragging in college about how he could have been a professional athlete until someone challenged him and humiliated him in a game. Then he came up with that excuse to avoid participating in sports in front of his peers. 
  He still skied and went to baseball games after that (although he only played with his kids and their cousins.) Ivana said he always resented she was a better skier and his first three children laughed about him pulling them back or trying to knock them over to win family skiing races. >
  
  Except when he does, prepare for the onslaught from MAGA to want to build statues in his name, rename airports, post offices, military installation sites, highways, etc. >
  
  Waste processing plants sound like good candidates, or maybe landfills >
  
  No those things are useful >
  
  Wastewater treatment residual biosolids holding tanks.  That's what's left after they drain the swamp - seems appropriate. >
  
  Rename the solids to trumps >
  
  "We generate an average of 10,450 kilograms of Trumps every day here!  Once they've been completely cleared for application, we can use Trumps as soil treatments or even substrates to absorb toxic metals in polluted sediment!" >
  
  He legitimized the right being able to state some of their more heinous views out loud (racism, antisemitism, etc).  But he’s also a mentally ill imbecile, so now that he let the cat out of the bag and socially legitimized their awful behavior, they’d rather have someone more competent take the mantle >
  
  Honestly, he'd make a great martyr.
  Their idea of him is vastly greater than he actually is. The biggest weakness in his messaging is that he exists and constantly fucks it up. If he was dead he couldn't fuck anything up anymore and they could just stuff whatever words they want into his mouth like they already do for their God. >
  
  I hope it works out that the longer he lives and keeps talking, the less impactful his legacy will be. Every stupid sentence he utters has to be woven into an already torturously convoluted make-believe storyline. He just makes it more and more worthy of ridicule. 
  But OTOH, there seems to be plenty of political contenders wanting to carry his idiotic torch forward after his death or retirement from politics. I guess only time will tell how the maga hat legacy shakes out. >
  
  Trump had some unique advantages that they don't have. He was a first mover which is always beneficial. And he was independently wealthy and has - even if you don't like it - personal charisma unavailable to most. Guys like Blake Masters, and even Dr. Oz and Herschel Walker, lack some or all of these things. Trump also had the luxury of running against the most hated woman in American history.
  He was the wrong man at the wrong time but because of those and some other factors (the FBI announcing an investigation into Hillary and not into Trump, even though he was also under investigation) he won. But those same cards got less effective the second time around and were way less effective when played by others. >
  
  i grew up in the 80's on the opposite coast & even as a kid who had zero interest in rich new yorkers, and everyone knew who trump was, & associated him with success in the cultural shitbucket of lifestyles of the rich & famous era. none of these other scum have that 40+ year name recognition head start. >
  
  Even I took a picture of Trump tower when visiting NYC in the 80s. I barely knew who the guy was. >
  
  he also speaks fluent numbskull, just a singularity of stupid. >
  
  Anti-US military comments and pro Putin comments in just the last 24 hours. He hates this country. >
  
  And yet so many still follow and worship him. Interesting times. Thanks for the comment. >
  
  That statement probably applies to the majority of the human population >
  
  I wish him a long life behind bars. >
  
  Same here.  I don't want him to weasel out of consequences. 
  Would the entire human race be better if he had never been born?  Absolutely.  But now that he's here, I wish him a long miserable sunset in Florence ADX. >
  
  It’s really the only way he’ll go away.
  But his kids will just pick up the mantle. We’ll never, ever be shut of the Trumps >
  
  They don’t have the secret sauce or have checked out.  Ivanka and Jared want to go back to being rich socialites, and Jared already cashed in on Trump’s name with his recent Saudi deal.  Tiffany has shown no interest in politics, and Eric is a stone moron with zero charisma
  The only one with any traction in politics might be Don Jr >
  
  Eric Trump is the real-life equivalent of the Matt Damon puppet in Team America: World Police. >
  
  You are so right, I can’t unsee that now >
  
  Maaaatt Damon! >
  
  When he dies on the shitter, with a "hamberder" in one tiny hand and the classified documents he was using to wipe in the other,  the GOP will still turn him into a martyr. >
  
  "10, 15 flushes" >
  
  Forgot about that; made me laugh out loud. Thank you.  :) >
  
  When it happens we should make it a national Holliday >
  
  I bought the cheapest bottle of champagne I could find for that day, I’ll start with mimosas then Moscow mules in the evening >
  
  Go for a Bellini.  Then you can have champagne with imPeach nectar. >
  
  On the one hand, Dems would welcome an indictment of Donald Trump. He should answer for all his crimes - which ultimately amount to treason. But on the other hand if Trump becomes the GOP candidate for the 2024 election then right now it looks as if that would mean a huge win for the Dems. >
  
  So true. I would like for him to live long enough to see repercussions for his many, many bad actions. >
  
  What sucks the most is that, when he does pass, there will be a million conspiracy theories about how he was murdered, or how it was suspicious, or how Hillary/Biden must have done it.
  Instead of just being the passing of an elderly man who never took care of his body. >
  
  It will be fake news and he will rise from the dead on day 4. Donald Christ. >
  
  Politicians are supposed to work for the benefit of the American people, not themselves or a wannabe autocrat. 
  All this tells me is that there is such a severe lack of integrity in the GOP that they’d rather watch the government burn to the ground than to stand up for what is right and just. It’s sickening. >
  
  It is just plain sad. Imagine what this country would look and function like if politicians actually cared and worked hard for the betterment of their constituents. >
  
  I doubt it’s only them thinking that >
  
  And when he dies they will canonize him. They will totally whitewash everything he ever did and continue to use his false image to motivate the insecure rabble to keep themselves in power. >
  
  Ronald Regan clears throat... >
  
  I can’t wait to hear the Q stuff after he dies. Should be some award winning sci-fi >
  
  The genetically engineered child of Alex Jones and L. Ron Hubbard on bath salts. >
  
  I'm not religious so I have no religious reason to feel bad about it, so I think morally is where my guilt over my impatience with him still being alive must be. >
  
  It helps when you admit the facts. His death will improve the lives of many and hurt absolutely nobody. >
  
  The truth is that his existence has been a net loss for humanity.  Our species is objectively worse off because of his existence. >
  
  Well yeah, but what's Rudy gonna do with himself without Trump? Will you not think of the poor, lonely Nosferatu? >
  
  He'll have to make friends at the Four Seasons Memory Care Unit and Alcoholism Treatment Center. >
  
  It’s too late. 
  The need and pathetic desire for massive conspiracy will keep people from believing he even died. 
  We already see politicians using his compulsive and unrepentant lying as a mode to success. 
  This is going to be a lasting strategy and will prove to be Trump’s most successful effort: destroying the American political system. >
  
  American Carnage. >
  
  He proves the axiom "Only the good die young", I mean damn who knew that "hambergerders" could lead to such a long life. >
  
  Hard to die of heart disease when you have no heart. >
  
  MAGA = Make the Asshole Go Away >
  
  You win. Show's over. Time to go home. Thanks and good night! >
  
  “… it just speaks to the desperation in the party.” Understatement if there ever was one. >
  
  When it happens I will dance a jig! >
  
  Finally, something I can agree on with Republicans >
  
  Anti-MAGA’s, too! >
  
  Not at all surprising. Remember the reported struggle to stop him during the 2016 GOP convention? They knew. Now, 6 1/2 years later, they’re still suffering from their lack of spine. >
  
  “I can’t believe we got into bed with this guy. Why didn’t anyone warn us???” >
  
  Because they would love to wash their hands of him — without his base knowing they want that.
  Fuck that. They need to lie in the bed they made. May their party be ripped to shreds. >
  
  That stain will not wash off >
  
  Nazi party tactics right here folks. Read up on Ernst Röhm, he brought the party to power, then they killed him off so they could expand their reach. >
  
  
  “You have a lot of folks who are just wishing for [Trump’s] mortal demise,” former Rep. Peter Meijer (R-Mich.) told Coppins, according to his report in The Atlantic. “I want to be clear: I’m not in that camp."
  
  Translation: I would be so happy if he were dead. >
  
  They had numerous chances to make Chubby Cheeto irrelevant. Thanks to the cowards we are all stuck with him. >
  
  The MAGA base, his cultish followers, his QANON christian nationalist are dangerous. What these people fear is actual violence from some right wing loony. If no one calls him out on his stochastic terrorism he will continue to create chaos for his own sake and just to be a dick. 
  Prosecution is the only way he is extricated from politics.