Phil1111

In the last week there have been dozens of investigative news stories. All in relation to cash purchases made by the trump organization since 2013. Dirty Russian money is nothing new for the trump group of companies. As stories of all cash purchases, for trump condos, by Russians, have gone on for over two decades. Whats new is all cash purchases made in the sole name of the trump group. When no banks would lend to it and for which leverage, i.e. mortgages. The tax deductibility if interest payments were involved hold substantial tax advantages. The Scottish golf course where trump is at today is but one example. As Trump Visits His Scottish Golf Course, a Mystery Remains Jul. 13, 2018 https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/07/as-trump-visits-his-scottish-golf-course-a-mystery-remains/ Where Did Donald Trump Get Two Hundred Million Dollars to Buy His Money-Losing Scottish Golf Club? July 13, 2018 https://www.newyorker.com/news-desk/swamp-chronicles/where-did-donald-trump-get-200-million-dollars-to-buy-his-money-losing-scottish-golf-club Tower of secrets: the Russian money behind a Donald Trump skyscraper July 11, 2018 https://www.ft.com/trumptoronto None of this is new. Congress in fact was asking about: US Congress asks if Russian money funded Trump golf courses https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jan/20/trump-golf-courses-scotland-ireland-enormous-amounts-capital-from-unknown-sources "It emerged after the permanent select committee on intelligence at the US House of Representatives released a transcript of the sworn testimony of the former Wall Street Journal reporter Glenn Simpson. Simpson, who works for the consulting firm Fusion GPS, was asked to research then-presidential candidate Trump in 2015/16.... “Well, we saw what Eric Trump [the second son of the president] said about Russian money being available for his golf – for the golf course projects, making remarks about having unlimited sums available.... “And these golf courses are just, you know, they’re sinks. They don’t actually make any money. " Well trump will console his banker tomorrow in Helsinki. As usual make many promises of better times ahead. Perhaps President Putin will drop a couple names on trump. Dawn Sturgess, Alexander Litvinenko, Mikhail Lesin, etc. Critics and opponents of President Putin who ended up dead in Washington D.C.,Wiltshire UK and London UK. At least trump can conceal the fact that all the blood drains from his face when these events are brought to his attention. By the orange glow that surrounds him. Or just perhaps President Putin will say nothing. Surely 20 years has taught trump something about dealing with Russian mobsters.

You, I and Madeleine Albright 'I Am an Optimist Who Worries A Lot' http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/interview-with-madeleine-albright-a-1217661.html

Well, it's nice that you decided to believe Trudeau's spin. Maybe Trump will too. Canada seems to have a leader who understands diplomacy. Canada does not spend 2% of his GDP on military. Nor should it. Why not? I don't mean that as an attack, I'm just curious. There is no public support in Canada for more military spending. Every new weapons system is debated endlessly. Current spending is 1.23% of GDP and regardless of promises to increase it to 2%. Its not likely to happen. Canadians will have a free national drug program long before defense spending is 2% of GDP. Canadians support peacekeeping and NATO operations like the current deployments to Latvia. Canada has additional training and support operations to Ukraine. Which is also supported. The conservative party(like republicans)of the last government could not write the check for a new F-35 purchase. So the current liberal (like dems) Trudeau government bought the castoff F-18's of the Australian air force. Part of that calculation was Boeing's trade dispute filing on the CS300 jet built by Bombardier. https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/dec/13/canada-to-buy-fleet-of-30-year-old-fighter-jets-from-australia-in-snub-to-us I'm still trying to figure out why we are. If the other NATO members don't want to, fine. But why sould the US, which arguably has the least to gain from NATO, keep paying the full 2%? It doesn't, the US spends about 3.5% of GDP on defense. Defense Expenditures Of NATO Members Visualized [Infographic] https://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2018/07/10/defense-expenditure-of-nato-members-visualized-infographic/#9f7da0114cff

Well, it's nice that you decided to believe Trudeau's spin. Maybe Trump will too. Canada seems to have a leader who understands diplomacy. Canada does not spend 2% of his GDP on military. Nor should it. Why not? I don't mean that as an attack, I'm just curious. There is no public support in Canada for more military spending. Every new weapons system is debated endlessly. Current spending is 1.23% of GDP and regardless of promises to increase it to 2%. Its not likely to happen. Canadians will have a free national drug program long before defense spending is 2% of GDP. Canadians support peacekeeping and NATO operations like the current deployments to Latvia. Canada has additional training and support operations to Ukraine. Which is also supported. The conservative party(like republicans)of the last government could not write the check for a new F-35 purchase. So the current liberal (like dems) Trudeau government bought the castoff F-18's of the Australian air force. Part of that calculation was Boeing's trade dispute filing on the CS300 jet built by Bombardier. https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/dec/13/canada-to-buy-fleet-of-30-year-old-fighter-jets-from-australia-in-snub-to-us

He was indeed, back when the Republicans were the liberal/progressive party. I hear the point that you're trying to make and this may help; The liberal leanings of George W. Bush https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/the-liberal-leanings-of-george-w-bush/article1086586/ It will take some time for the republican party to recover from the trump clique of apologists. Be it Ryan or the many others that are getting out, not voting, going independent, or democrat. The trump party will end when the economy tanks due to trade wars, actual war,etc. Or the realization that his tribe is destroying what was a cohesive society, more or less.

Throughout our nation's history, conservatives have made it their mission to obstruct positive progress, and have virtually always found themselves on the wrong side of history. Not true. Lincoln was republican. Both Bush presidents were open to compromise. trump is not a real conservative and the entire republican party today has been stripped clean of real conservatives. Replaced by trump followers.

News flash....trump is right for the second time in his life!! Trump says he feels 'unwelcome' in London due to protests http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/396796-trump-says-he-feels-unwelcome-in-london-after-being-told-about-trump Evidently his feeling have been hurt. "But after being asked about the blimp, Trump reportedly told The Sun newspaper: “I guess when they put out blimps to make me feel unwelcome, no reason for me to go to London.”

What amazes me is how a smug asshole like Trump can become President because his opponents are even worse smug assholes. This Country desperately needs a third party. If we don't get a successful challenger to the Democrat and Republican lock out of the last election then nothing will ever do it. we currently have the best president that we've ever had in your and my lifetime. Read them and weep: http://www.people-press.org/2018/07/11/obama-tops-publics-list-of-best-president-in-their-lifetime-followed-by-clinton-reagan/ History will make the final judgement. And right now history is not doing Obama any good You really need to learn how to structure your arguments and limited understanding of facts. Date of poll from the link above. July 11, 2018 The title of the article is self explanatory: Obama Tops Public’s List of Best President in Their Lifetime, Followed by Clinton, Reagan Which means that: A. You don't understand history and/or B. Your memory is defective and/or C. Your "opinion based on my experiences" don't mean squat. Most likely all of the above.

Russia, Not North Korea, Greatest Threat to U.S., Says Pentagon's Top Military Officer 7/24/17 Russia, not North Korea, is the greatest threat to the United States, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff has said. Speaking at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado, Marine Corps General Joe Dunford listed Russia’s military modernization program, its nuclear and cyber capabilities and its actions in Georgia, Crimea and eastern Ukraine as evidence of the security threat posed by the country. Dunford’s stance on Russia has not changed since a June 2015 Senate hearing ahead of his appointment to the chairman position. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, who told Congress in January that Russia was the “principal threat” for the U.S., also named North Korea as the “most urgent and dangerous threat” in a statement to the House Armed Services Committee quoted in Reuters. http://www.newsweek.com/russia-not-north-korea-greatest-threat-us-pentagons-top-military-officer-640926 James Mattis unveils new US military strategy focused on threat from Russia and China, not terrorism US Defence Secretary James Mattis says countering China's rapidly expanding military and an increasingly aggressive Russia are now the main focus of America's national security, outpacing the threat of terrorism. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-01-20/china-and-russia-not-terrorism-main-threats-to-us-mattis-says/9345670 Trump's Pentagon choice says U.S. needs to be ready to confront Russia https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-congress-mattis-idUSKBN14W1KK Top US nuclear commander: Russia is 'the only existential threat to the country right now' Wed, 28 Feb 2018 https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/28/nuclear-commander-russia-is-only-existential-threat-to-us-right-now.html Russia Is a Bigger Threat to U.S. Than North Korea or ISIS: Ex-NATO Commander 10/20/17 Russia remains a greater threat to U.S. security than North Korea or the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) because President Vladimir Putin still views the world in “Cold War terms,” according to an ex-NATO commander. Wesley Clark, a retired four-star U.S. military general, tells Newsweek that President Donald Trump’s flip-flopping on whether the United States will uphold NATO’s key self-defense principle and his affability towards Putin is “very confusing to the American public.” http://www.newsweek.com/trump-russia-nato-vladimir-putin-689195

You do know that Kavanaugh went to Yale? Students, Alumni Urge Yale Law School's Leadership To Denounce Brett Kavanaugh "As of Tuesday night, more than 200 students, staff members and alumni of Yale Law School signed an open letter calling for the institution to rescind its apparent support of Kavanaugh. ... The letter cited several of Kavanaugh’s past opinions, arguing that his conservative bias would place past Supreme Court rulings at risk. It also claimed Kavanaugh would act as a “rubber stamp for President Trump’s fraud and abuse,” pointing to the judge’s support for expanding presidential power. “At a time when the President and his associates are under investigation for various serious crimes, including colluding with the Russian government and obstructing justice, Judge Kavanaugh’s extreme deference to the Executive poses a direct threat to our democracy,” the letter read.... The letter pointed to a dissent penned by Kavanaugh, in which the judge sought to deny an undocumented teen the right to seek an abortion while in federal custody in Texas. It also highlighted another dissent written by Kavanaugh that argued the Affordable Care Act’s contraceptive mandate violated the rights of religious organizations, “even though those organizations were granted an accommodation that allowed them to opt out of” contraceptive coverage. The letter’s authors said Kavanaugh’s past opinions “give us grave concern that he will consistently prioritize the beliefs of third-parties over the oppressed,” including in cases involving abortion and contraception, and medical care for transgender patients." https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/entry/yale-law-school-open-letter-brett-kavanaugh_us_5b45753ee4b0c523e263ec91

Kavanaugh wrote in an article for the Minnesota Law Review from 2009 that Congress should pass a law “exempting a President—while in office—from criminal prosecution and investigation, including from questioning by criminal prosecutors or defense counsel.” https://www.vox.com/2018/7/9/17551584/brett-kavanaugh-president-criminal-investigation The article: http://www.minnesotalawreview.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Kavanaugh_MLR.pdf "Having seen first-hand how complex and difficult that job is, I believe it vital that the President be able to focus on his never-ending tasks with as few distractions as possible. The country wants the President to be “one of us” who bears the same responsibilities of citizenship that all share. But I believe that the President should be excused from some of the burdens of ordinary citizenship while serving in office." Clearly the current one dosn't seem to suffer from such burdens. His golfing and self aggrandizing political rallies come to mind. Answering to criminal and civil charges are "burdens of citizenship". Which shouldn't apply to presidents. trump can sure pick-em.

I would just point out that antisemitism was just as strong in Canada and that Canada's record of accepting Jewish refugees is just as shameful. As was the case for most of the western world. There is a good reason why Israel does not really trust the west. Or anyone for that matter. Canada to Apologize for Refusing Entry to Jews Who Fled Nazis 'An apology will not rewrite this shameful chapter of our history,' Trudeau says in speech "The St. Louis was a German passenger liner that set sail from Hamburg to Cuba in 1939. It carried 936 passengers, most of whom were Jews with visas to enter Cuba. Nevertheless, Cuba refused to honor the visas and let them to disembark. The ship then sailed to the United States and Canada, both of which also refused to let the passengers disembark. Eventually, the ship sailed back to Europe, where Britain, Belgium, France and Holland agreed to absorb the refugees. But most of them were later murdered by the Nazis. " https://www.haaretz.com/world-news/americas/canada-to-apologize-for-refusing-entry-to-jews-who-fled-nazis-1.6073988

Well I don't need optimism with regards to the likelihood of President Putin's upcoming re-elections. Surely Americans can avoid the Italian Berlusconi experience! I especially like German Chancellor Angela Merkel interactions with trump. The concept that a woman who is more intelligent than him, has bigger balls than him, tells him the facts of life to his face and stands up to his B.S. Just seems to set him off. Chancellor Merkel is the defacto leader of NATO now. Given trump's general ignorance and specific stupidity re Putin and NATO security. Thankfully South Korea isn't a NATO member. because trump is likely to F**k up there before NATO is directly threatened. You realize of course that given Chancellor Merkel's slipping political support within Germany. That it may be up to YOUR personal vote to save NATO and the free world from the likes of Putin, trump, et al. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-germany-totally-controlled-by-russia-trump-claims-as-fraught-nato/

Germany didn't attack us. Why did we get involved in Europe? The rest of your post is just your usual America bashing bullshit, intended to get a rise out of us dumb Yanks. I'm not biting. There seems to be some revisionist ideology all around here. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2004/sep/25/usa.secondworldwar http://www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/holocaust/timeline.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/daily/nov98/nazicars30.htm https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2001/04/hitlers-willing-business-partners/303146/ Prior to the declaration of war by the US on Germany and the Axis. There was limited NEW contracts or support of the Axis powers for war materials. There was no violations subsequently prosecuted in the US for collusion of US corporations. No laws were passed and no discussions in congress limiting US corporations business interactions with the (subsequent)enemy axis. and REWRITING HISTORY AT THE HOLOCAUST MUSEUM: Why FDR abandoned the Jews The U.S. Holocaust Museum's new exhibit on America and the Shoah tries to show that FDR did the best he could to help Jews during the Holocaust. Part 3 of a special 3 part series. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/22102 History is a murky place. Rewritten to clarify, confuse and mislead.

Here is a cartoon from 1939 when the US shunned Jewish child refugees. Which subsequently allowed Germany to send them to concentration camps. 1939: John Knott Skewers Congress’ Unwillingness to Pass the Child Refugee Bill Political cartoonist John Knott had little sympathy for the U.S. Congress’ indecision when it came to the Wagner-Rogers Child Refugee Bill, a piece of 1939 legislation that would have opened slots for 20,000 German refugee children to enter the United States. The bill was opposed by anti-immigrant organizations and never became a law. Tens of thousands of German Jewish children went on to die in concentration camps. The title of the cartoon was "Please ring the bell for us".

That sounds really smart...... Be dependent from a country which starts a trade war from one day to another. Ausgezeichnet counterpoint. By the time gas plants could be built, trump will be just another cult leader passed by history. President Putin will still be in power.

Someone at Fox news is in serious trouble for not getting FSB approval prior to instructing trump. Germany and Russia gas links: Trump is not only one to ask questions Politicians and energy experts say Nord Stream 2 will make Europe reliant on Russian gas https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jul/11/germany-and-russia-gas-links-trump-questions-europe-nord-stream2 trump is right and the EU is wrong. I've posted this same issue here before that its a mistake to build this pipeline. That this is an ideal opportunity to teach Russia a lesson Builing gassification plants and terminals in the EU to import N. American gas would punish Russia,secure energy independence from Russia and the balance of trade issues.

Because you can't even admit that our entry into the European theater, which you concede was not due to any threat to American interests, was good. If you can't bring yourself to admit that the US helping to defeat the Nazis was good I can't imagine anything else that we've ever done meeting with your approval. Before and after the US entry to WW2. The US was the factory for war material. President Roosevelt violated and skirted US law in giving war supplies to allies.The law was cash and carry but in fact much was given. Setting that aside. I'll restate that a powerful US military leads mickey mouse politicians to suggest important missions. Important national interests. It allows Fox news and liberal media to create all kinds of political pressure to right some wrong. Using US military force. When political forces, political alliances would do the job cheaper and without risking life or injury to service personnel.

You have yet to refute anything they have put up. Yet you laugh like a clown. There is no refuting anything with you. You simply believe your own reality, without any concern for facts. If it is in favour of Trump you believe it. If it is detrimental to Democrats, you believe it. Once you believe it, nothing can change your mind. It becomes your reality. trump himself could come here and tell you that you are wrong and you will simply believe the Deep State made him say it and he really didn't mean it. This will help you understand the mind of trump and his mindless followers. http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-aslan-trump-cultists-20171106-story.html https://www.salon.com/2018/03/06/is-donald-trump-a-cult-leader-expert-says-he-fits-the-stereotypical-profile/

Well stated. I recently heard a guy, a guy who was old enough and educated enough to know better say "We fought to stop Hitler but Stalin and Mao killed more people each and we never even bothered about that." He was that determined to find something about the US to criticize that fit in with a discussion we were having about war and the US military. The essence of that line of thought is that Mao and Stalin killed their own people. Setting aside the fact that Ukrainian purges, Ukrainian famine, etc. were directed at separate republics. Generally speaking US wars have never been prosecuted for territorial or imperialist aims.

I'm surprised that your high school history teacher did such a poor job of impressing history on you. Or was it an elective only for inquisitive minds which precluded yourself? Just for you, perhaps a history program: The 25 Easiest U.S. Colleges to Get Into While some colleges boast about selectivity, others are happy to accept all applicants. https://www.thestreet.com/story/13361601/1/the-25-easiest-colleges-to-get-into.html

No argument on that. I didn't mean to imply that there weren't some very good reasons for the US entering those wars. And Korea was defending a country that turned into a staunch ally and one of a very few legit democracies in SE Asia. Viet Nam could have been about defending a country against a communist aggressor, but went to shit after Kennedy died. It turned instead into supporting a corrupt regime and Johnson not wanting to "lose face" along with Army leadership that refused to fight the war the way it needed to be fought. But none of them were against any real threat to "American Freedom". Who Killed More: Hitler, Stalin, or Mao? "It is probably fair to say, then, that Mao was responsible for about 1.5 million deaths during the Cultural Revolution, another million for the other campaigns, and between 35 million and 45 million for the Great Leap Famine. Taking a middle number for the famine, 40 million, that’s about 42.5 million deaths."... How, finally, does Mao’s record compare to those of Hitler or Stalin? Snyder estimates that Hitler was responsible for between 11 million and 12 million noncombatant deaths, while Stalin was responsible for at least 6 million, and as many as 9 million if “foreseeable” deaths caused by deportation, starvation, and incarceration in concentration camps are included. But the Hitler and Stalin numbers invite questions that Mao’s higher ones do not. Should we let Hitler, especially, off the hook for combatant deaths in World War II? It’s probably fair to say that without Hitler, there wouldn’t have been a European war. If one includes the combatant deaths, and the deaths due to war-related famine and disease, the numbers shoot up astronomically. The Soviet Union suffered upward of 8 million combatant deaths and many more due to famine and disease—perhaps about 20 million." http://www.nybooks.com/daily/2018/02/05/who-killed-more-hitler-stalin-or-mao/ Genocide Since 1945 Never Again? http://www.spiegel.de/international/genocide-since-1945-never-again-a-338612.html

Or, he has painted America into a corner with no good options. He has threatened fire and fury. Then conceited that Kim "President Donald Trump said Tuesday that North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un -- the man he once mocked as "Little Rocket Man" -- "has really been very open and I think very honorable based on what we are seeing". Countries that are watching, calculating, planning, taking action: -Iran -Russia -China -NK -Syria

Just out of idle curiosity - what has 'the military' done exactly to enable you to go fishing? Who have they defended you against? Being forced to learn to speak German, in my lifetime. Who has forced you to speak German? Let me break it down. The question was, who have they defended you against? My response was, that in my lifetime it was Germany. Vietnam was not a particularly good war but, it was the only one we had at the time. Those of us in the military from 1959 - 1975 have a bond that others simply do not have nor do they understand. We relate well to the Korean War veterans because it was the first of the political wars, not a declared war. Vietnam was also a political war. All veterans relate to WWII veterans. Agree. On the fourth of July some introspective examination of the position of the military in the US psyche should be made. Currently the "rebuilding" of US military might is underway. Which, unfortunately, tends to lead to more wars in the "defense of US interests". In Ron's line of thinking "thank God" that General Mattis is still in charge. When trump babbles on about an invasion of Venezuela. The misuse of military force and the casual disregard for troopers lives can't be understated. Here is an excellent story on how Americans take the deployment of service members for granted. How politicians play the military for political advantage. The Tragedy of the American Military https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/01/the-tragedy-of-the-american-military/383516/ Perhaps West Point needs a 1/2 class on when a officer needs to stand up to a politician. To refuse a mission, make public statements exposing the lies and false missions which the state demands. To resign as an example, or refuse to serve a mission that would result in the deaths of Americans for false political purpose. Perhaps the military code of conduct needs a section for when a service member faces court martial. For refusing the orders of a president, or congress. Such that a promotion is the judicial decision arising when a general refuses a order to go to unneeded, or unjust wars. Alas, such a check on the foolishness of politicians can't work. Mission creep, deployments with vague ideals are the table fare of armchair general politicians. Apathy of the citizens, the cancer that chews at the military.

Thank you for not serving. Our military needs more independent thinkers and less blind followers. Well they need lifetime privates as well. Grunts that will follow orders immediately, without question. Pickett's Charge comes to mind when thinking of Marc.