News 2016 U.S. Presidential election - the highs and lows

Mischief

Mischief

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I thought we might have one thread encompassing some of the more salient silliness, of which we are bound to have a lot, since the field on one side now consists of 14 candidates and counting.

My current entertainment is Donald Trump, who is aghast that NBC, Univision and Macy's have cut their business ties with him after his recent comments about Mexico and Mexicans. My favorite of the theories I've read so far is that Trump is really a Democratic mole, on a mission to cost the Republicans every Latino vote.

Then there is Rand Paul, who has recently become cozy with Clive Bundy, the non-lease-paying rancher of the "Negroes were better off as slaves" fame.
 
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Frank Sharry, executive director of immigration advocacy group America’s Voice, said he was surprised that GOP leaders have not come out more strongly against the statement. “Can you imagine if he was talking about Jews? African Americans?” Sharry said. “Would the GOP stand up? Of course they would. ... But the silence of the GOP on this is defining the party.”

Republican strategist Ana Navarro, a longtime advisor to former President George W. Bush, said most Republicans view Trump’s remarks as “cringe-worthy,” but are reluctant to respond.

“It's like getting into an argument with your crazy, distant uncle at Thanksgiving,’’ she said. “Why do it when you know he's crazy and you only see him once a year? Most Republicans would prefer to close their eyes and hope that when we open them again, Trump will be gone. Problem is he's surging in polls and the backlash to his comments is getting bigger and longer. He is the toothache you can't get rid of.”

“Trump is like a trap for us,” said Republican strategist Rick Wilson. Even though Trump’s recent polling figures make it likely he would make the cutoff for any GOP debate, Wilson said allowing the former host of NBC’s “The Apprentice” to take the stage with other candidates would be a “nightmare scenario” that would send voters into the arms of Democrats.

“There’s a segment of people in my party who find this sort of spittle-flecked populism appealing -- the bluster of a bellowing, screaming loudmouth -- because they think that’s the way to win,” he said. “They’re frustrated about a lot of things in the Republican Party. But this is not a solution to their problem. This is a solution to [Democratic candidate] Hillary Clinton’s problem.”
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Donald Trump's comments on immigration complicate GOP's 'Latino problem' - LA Times
 
High: Bernie Sanders throwing his hat into the ring and saying the things Hillary should have been saying.

Low: Too many to count, but I think one of the lowest was Donald Trump calling Mexican immigrants “rapists”. And then defending what he said. And then, after getting shitcanned by Univision and NBC, continuing to defend what he said, filing lawsuits, and acting like they’re bullying HIM.

Apparently Trumpy has a whole batch of new admiring fans: White supremacists.

Donald Trump has some enthusiastic new admirers: White supremacists
 
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Amy SF said:
When Don Lemon refuted Trump's insistence that Mexican immigrants were raping women and children coming across the border, Trump said "Someone's doing the raping. Who's doing the raping?"

So on Larry Wilmore's show last night, he made "Who's Doing the Raping" Trump's new campaign slogan.
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Not defending Trump or his asinine statements (which I admittedly have not read/listened to because he is such a moron I cannot listen to his barking voice), but rape is a huge issue for people crossing the border from Mexico.

Spoilers for triggers.

Rape tree - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Rape trees are trees or bushes that mark where sexual assaults have occurred by arranging the victim's undergarments on or around the trees branches or on the ground.[1] "Rape trees" are commonly and increasingly found along the United States and Mexico borders as illegal immigration grows.[2][3] Immigrant females are particularly at risk of being assaulted by the typically male "coyotes" that illegally guide them through the border area.[3][4] The brazenly marked trees serve to intimidate both the illegal immigrants being guided, as well as local citizens, that the human traffickers are willing and able to commit horrific acts of violence to gain compliance from victims and deter potential witnesses or rescuers.[1][2]
 
ledboots said:
Not defending Trump or his asinine statements (which I admittedly have not read/listened to because he is such a moron I cannot listen to his barking voice), but rape is a huge issue for people crossing the border from Mexico.
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Yes, rape is a huge issue, not just for people crossing from Mexico, but for illegal immigrants generally. If you have no legal recourse because going to the authorities means being deported, you are easy picking for any predator.

This is what Trump said:

When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.
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Donald Trump’s ‘Mexican rapists’ rhetoric will keep the Republican Party out of the White House - The Washington Post

He's calling the immigrants "rapists." As your own link points out, it's the traffickers who use rape to intimidate and control the immigrants.
 
To get a better understanding of the migrant trail in Mexico, I strongly recommend reading The Beast, by Óscar Martínez.
Martínez writes in powerful, unforgettable prose about clinging to the tops of freight trains; finding respite, work and hardship in shelters and brothels; and riding shotgun with the border patrol. Illustrated with stunning full-color photographs, The Beast is the first book to shed light on the harsh new reality of the migrant trail in the age of the narcotraficantes.
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You have a D next to your name:you can't be that bad. You have an R next to your name:you can't be that great. Obviously Conservatives are like as well, but every hardcore liberal I've ever talked to is similar to this. That's politics.
 
Mischief said:
Donald Trump Shares, Then Deletes, Tweet About Jeb Bush's Wife

What an unmitigated ***.
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I can't quite decide if Trump is hurting the Republican party's chances of winning the general election, or if he is actually helping them. On the one hand he gets a lot of negative press and denounciations, but on the other hand he's appealing to a segment of voters that don't have a lot of mainstream representation these days. As long as the Republican party and/or their other candidates aren't really addressing his statements, then it could be interpreted as if they are silently agreeing with him. So even though Trump himself isn't really electable, the other Republican candidates might be benefiting from him.
 
Donald Trump seems like such an egotistical dick but maybe he says things that some people in the US privately think but don't feel like they can say. I think it is like Nigel Farage over here as some people find his honesty refreshing even though what he is saying is usually offensive.

What explains Donald Trump's appeal?
 
Trump doesn't think for a second that he has a chance of winning. He has ulterior motives. He pulls this **** every election. His ad attacking Romney for speaking French last election is still good for a laugh every now and then.

As far as I'm concerned the candidates on all sides can go to hell. The nature of groupthink has virtually eliminated the possibility of anyone not either completely right wing or completely left wing, at least in their rhetoric, of having a legitimate chance. That's a problem because both extremes are just as irrational, and the increasing divide is a bigger problem to the stability of the country than any of the issues being debated. And as I've said before, I blame the people at least as much as I blame the politicians, corporations, etc. The vote still serves its purpose, and we made the choice to do this to ourselves. At any rate, the elections are good for entertainment if nothing else.
 
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Joe said:
I am at a loss to understand what these ulterior motives might be. Care to clue me in?
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There is a sizable group of people who support him. That support equates to leverage against other economic and political figures. His ability to damage the credibility of people he encountered on talk shows and other media forums during the 2012 campaign, despite being mostly full of ****, and the way they began treading very carefully around him as a result, was almost comical. This time around it's even worse. Those who actually like him think he's a freaking genius. Despite not having a chance of winning himself, he has indirect control over a significant portion of the vote, and he's going to take advantage of that.
 
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