Trump Killed America's Dignity and Integrity. Does The Christian Right Care?

Of course, it is all too obvious that President Donald Trump lacks dignity and integrity.

After all, he killed both.

Dignity in particular fought a brave battle it did, but it was no match for the sheer bombast and inconsiderate crudeness of a con man whose slogan - Make America Great Again - should have been Debase America Always.

Last Memorial Day, President Donald J. Trump visited Arlington National Cemetery for the President's obligatory Memorial Day tradition, laying a wreath at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. He delivered a proper (for him) address: he extolled the bravery of our soldiers.

Then he forgot where he was and proceeded to perplex, shock and amuse everyone with a childlike rendition of dignity, half-mouthing, swaying and smiling to no one. It was a sight: the smugness and arrogance of five year-old.

Integrity, on the other hand, never even had a chance: Trump annihilated it well before the election:

- Thrice married: the second to a woman he with whom he was having an affair. He bragged about his infidelities and said that having a wife and a mistress at the same time was "beautiful."

- Had over 428 liens against his properties before becoming President (50 more to come with his newest venture of the (now) infamous hotel in D.C. He was long known as "the biggest deadbeat in real estate."

- His ties to organized crime go back over twenty years.

The list of undignified experiences and quotations as well as the list of no-integrity dealings have been put forth for years, but supporters managed to brush them all aside during the campaign.

Look for the narcissist. The most obvious target in today’s lineup is, of course, Donald Trump. When he looks at a glass, he is mesmerized by its reflection. If Donald Trump were shaped a little differently, he would compete for Miss America. But whatever the depths of self-enchantment, the demagogue has to say something. So what does Trump say? That he is a successful businessman and that that is what America needs in the Oval Office. There is some plausibility in this, though not much. The greatest deeds of American Presidents — midwifing the new republic; freeing the slaves; harnessing the energies and vision needed to win the Cold War — had little to do with a bottom line.-William F. Buckley

Whatever the attraction of Trump to voters, it did not seem to be based on reason:

After Trump's inauguration, some buyers' remorse had set in: blatant cronyism (look who he appointed today to head an agency she knows nothing about) nepotism, totally undiplomatic dealings with foreign countries, broken promises, self-dealing, all took their toll leading to one of the lowest job ratings in presidential history in a matter of months.

Even Ann Coulter denounced his actions as "living in Dr Strangelove".

Congressmen have been given to questioning Trump's mental health.

You would think that only the most unreasoning and addle-brained American would still support Trump. While not exactly true, the "35 percent" are a dangerous conglomerate of the uninformed, the misinformed, the disaffected and, of course, the Evangelical Christian Right. The main agendas for Trump's die hard supporters have encompassed xenophobia, eradication of governmental restrictions on most everything and discrimination against minorities with a nationalistic ideology that defines Trump's campaign opened doors for these mindsets - mindsets so important that anyone touting them would get their vote no how poor their morals and integrity seemed to be.

The Staunchest of the 35% - Meeting Reason With Violent Unreason ... and God

If good vetting of candidates is not a strong point of Republicans (think Sarah Palin), then any vetting is absolutely anathema to the Christian Right. After all, God vets, God chooses and that's that.

Check out the entire outlandish segment HERE on the David Pakman show.

Fringe craziness? The operative word here is "fringe", a part of the American political scene that is disproportionately influential - and dangerous, with people like Robert Jeffress, Jerry Falwell, Jr. and (prosperity preacher) Paula White bending the ear of the President:

Religious Right activist “Coach” Dave Daubenmire declared on his “Pass The Salt Live” webcast this morning that America needs “a more violent Christianity.” He cited President Trump and Greg Gianforte as examples of violent men who are properly “walking in authority.”

Daubenmire and radio show host Alex Jones like Trump's macho, good-ole-boy misogynistic style.

A "fringe" that supports climate change denial, a rollback of LGBTQ rights, and even a budget that makes the poor poorer and the rich richer is eager to take over:

Religion Dispatches

But the support for tax cuts, over assistance for those in need, is not just a gift from Trump to his rich friends, tolerated by evangelicals because they care more about other issues. These budget cuts are in keeping with the religious right’s understanding of a biblical worldview, and are at the very core of its agenda.

Of course, it is Pence who is the Christofascist's dream come true, but the Christian Right is still very satisfied with Trump, the "Chosen One."

The Chosen One

With all the twisting, spinning and denying that make up the Christian Right's support of Trump, it could lose what little respect it has from the outside world. But what care they when they have their Chosen One leading them to moral (and possibly Dominionist) victory?

A man with no veracity, no dignity, no integrity.

A Chosen One indeed.
Note: Comparisons of Trump to Hitler abound, so this piece from Judgement at Nuremberg might resonate. Pay particular attention to Marlene Dietrich's story (at the 1:30 mark) - it epitomizes in a sophisticated way what many of us would like to say to Trump.

For The Sake Of The Country: Don't Tamper With Delusional Donald!

CLINTON: Well Donald, I know you live in your own reality, but those are not the facts.
Trump's alternate reality will (hopefully) be his undoing.

It might take a while for Trump supporters to catch on, but with reality knocking at their door constantly, they might (hopefully) give in to it sooner or later.

Because in his alternate reality, he will:

- Claim to be the Great Negotiator while the unionized workers at his Las Vegas hotels and golf courses are calling for a boycott because he refuses to negotiate a contract and address serious complaints as proscribed by law. The "NO Negotiator" would be closer to the truth.



Content Trump employees


- Keep telling people that he doesn't have any relationship with foreign countries that don't honor America. He will never connect with "losers". His personal approach to foreign policy, however, makes one wonder if the only "winners" he has dealt with are Russia and Cuba.




http://babalublog.com/wpr/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/newsweek-trump-castro-connection-cover-560x722.jpeg

- Continue to berate former Miss Universe, Alicia Machado. The adulterer and thrice married septuagenarian will continue to act as the moral arbiter of the country. He will berate, in fact, anyone the Christian Right hopes he will: from Machado to the Clintons. He has to, of course, be beholden to God.




- Keep saying that he will build a wall and make Mexico pay for it In doing so, He'll show the country that he doesn't know how our constitutional democracy works: With a project of that size, the President cannot snap his fingers or scream at tCongress what to do. Nor does he have the required respect from Congress to pass any bill. It would become the Congress of NO with anything he proposes, not just a "spite wall".



Certainly a statement: a "wall" around Trump's 

star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame.


- Throw tantrum after tantrum, his surrogates "spinning" out of control, trying to keep up. The latest "He's a Genius!", with Christie and Guiliani whirling like dervishes is providing entertainment so hysterical that even his supporters might be laughing.


 "An absolute ah... what's the word? Oh yeah, GENIUS!"

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/giuliani-christie-trump-genius-skirting-income-taxes-article-1.2814651

CNN:

"The reality is that we are in day six of the meltdown," Clinton supporter Neera Tanden said Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union." "He had a terrible debate performance. Everybody sees that. He sees the state polls moving towards Hillary. Eleven state polls were out this week. She's beating him in every single one. He can't take that. And so this is the latest meltdown."


- Keep withholding his tax returns. He doesn't seem to realize the consequences if he actually becomes President: if Congress decides that any one of his schemes (like Trump University) is worthy of investigation, it could SUBPOENA his tax returns and everything would come out anyway. Delusions such as Trump's never count on consequences.




https://imgflip.com/i/18e75n

- Provide more medical "documents" from a crackpot "physician" who stated that Trump could be "the most physically fit President" simply because he "liked that phrase."


Dr. Bornstein on vacation - 

the very picture of health!

http://www.newsgrio.com/articles/347052-donald-trump-is-in-excellent-condition-and-has-great-mental-health-his-doctor-says.html


- Continue to eschew any advice from anyone because, of course, he doesn't need any. He doesn't take notes either, because, of course, he has the greatest memory!


- Keep staffing his campaign with people who look as if they just came out if a Klan meeting while trying to ensure African Americans they have "nothing to lose" by voting for him. With unwarranted "surrogates", ah, supporters like former Grand Wizards, Trump's bizarre attempts at courting African American votes may have been a bit futile.



Is that an American flag

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2016/02/28/heres-why-trump-says-he-cant-unequivocally-condemn-david-duke-kkk-endorsement/

- Gild everything: his apartment, his wife, his life, his name. Everything must be painted gold. Including all of his tweets. After all, his supporters, all of them designers with taste, expect him to be shrouded in gold because he is so obscenely successful.


Stand in it long enough ....

And finally:

Donald Trump will still contradict himself continuously, saying he "never said that" when googling his phrases shows he did. This last may be the absolute, the last straw against proof of sanity: obvious and immediate concrete evidence does not phase the truly delusional. This is also the reason some people look upon Trump's support as kind of cult.

Poor Donald

To take advantage of someone who has basically lost their mind (even his children are concerned) seems cruel...

... but what's a beleaguered country - one which has gotten tired of the circus of delusions - to do?

If we continue to let The Donald be delusional, we'll all wind up much happier.

Same Old Deadbeat Donald: Cheerleaders Sue, Staff Unpaid. 400+ Liens Against Properties. Where's The Money?

So Much For Financing His Own Campaign Because, Ya Know, He's Really Rich!

Cowardice
Are you serious?
Apologies for freedom—
I can’t handle this!

When freedom rings—

Answer the call!
On your feet!
Stand up tall!

Freedom’s on our shoulders.
USA!
Enemies of freedom
Face the music

Come on, boys—take ‘em down!
President Donald Trump knows how
To make America great
Deal from strength or get crushed every time…

Over here…
USA!
Over there…
USA!
Freedom and liberty everywhere…

Oh, say can you see
It’s not so easy
But we have to stand up tall and answer freedom’s call

USA! USA! USA!
We’re the land of the free and the brave… USA…
USA!
The stars and stripes are flying

Let’s celebrate our freedom
Inspire, proudly, freedom to the world
Ameri-tude…
USA!
American pride…

USA!
It’s attitude, it’s who we are
Stand up tall…
We’re the red, white, and blue
Fiercely free, that’s who!

Our colors don’t run, no sirree…
Over here…
USA!
Over there…
USA!

Freedom and liberty everywhere…
Oh, say can you see
It’s not so easy
But we have to stand up tall and answer freedom’s call!*


So what did these brave young cheerleaders get for preforming this bizarre mishmash?

ZIP

The USA Freedom Kids said in a newly filed lawsuit the Trump campaign broke verbal agreements for performances at two events and refused to pay even a $2,500 stipend for the group’s travel expenses.


"A Verbal Agreement Isn't Worth The Paper It's Written On" - Sam Goldwin

Maybe Trump thought a verbal agreement wasn't worth anything, but things got worse for the little performers and it looked like Trump was actually trying to screw them:

When the USA Freedom Kids' manager complained that they hadn't been paid, Trump's campaign offered to have them set up a table and sell their merchandise at their next performance:
[Jeff] Popick agreed, reasoning that the group could net more than $2,500 in merchandise sales, but, the rally was “chaos,” Popick told The Daily Beast. There was no merchandise table, and it wouldn’t have mattered if there was one: security didn’t allow the girls to bring any of their merchandise into the Pensacola Bay Center. They left it outside in the parking lot, where all of it—the t-shirts, the CDs, the patriotic posters—was stolen while the girls performed their act, Popick says.

And he's stiffing his staff:

According to former employees, they were told they would be paid when Corey Lewandowski was campaign manager. But Paul Manafort, who replaced Lewandowski in July, said the staffers would remain unpaid.

Wonkette:

Others who, according to the FEC filings, have not been paid include finance chairman Steven Mnuchin, national political director Rick Wiley and senior adviser Barry Bennett, who were not available for comment. Nor were Manafort, Gates and Clark.

Many of Donald Trump's Washington, D.C., policy staffers quit working for the campaign after not being paid or publicly recognized, according to a new report in The Washington Post.

“It’s a complete disaster,” a campaign adviser told the Post. “They use and abuse people. The policy office fell apart in August when the promised checks weren’t delivered.”

The Deadbeat Of Real Estate


"Is he that rich,
maybe he's poor,
'til he reveals his returns,
who can be sure?"

- Barbra Streisand sings to the tune of "Send In The Clowns"

For decades, Trump has been known in real estate circles as a deadbeat: with over 400 liens against his properties, by waiters, contractors, and even some his own lawyers for non payment, the man has a lot of splainin' to do to supporters who look upon him as a successful businessman.

An exclusive USA TODAY analysis of legal filings across the United States finds that the [then] presumptive Republican presidential nominee and his businesses have been involved in at least 3,500 legal actions in federal and state courts during the past three decades. They range from skirmishes with casino patrons to million-dollar real estate suits to personal defamation lawsuits.

Some of lawsuits involved the infamous Trump modus operandi: run them down until they go bankrupt with legal fees.

Will Trump surrogates and spokespeople get paid? Supposedly they are ... for now, but time will tell: in eight weeks, Trump might see another battery of lawsuits.

So where does the money go?

Getting something for nothing is lucrative, especially for a man like Donald Trump. Trump's pockets are full of unspent money for projects, tons of money from Trump Branding (mostly in Muslim countries!) and deals where the deposits were lost (to him)




A take on Trump's finances:

- He's worth a lot less than he says he is - maybe not even a billion.
- most of his money has been filtered through his branding to offshore accounts.
- he has dealings with many of the people/countries he excoriates.
- he's had more failures than successes
- his convoluted finances hide that fact that he is (besides the offshore accounts) hocked up to the hilt and in debt to various shady businesses since banks refuse to loan him money.**
- he has piled convoluted deal unto convoluted so that auditing is inevitable and he will never release his returns - keeping his image in his own hands.

There is some irony in the fact that a self-proclaimed business whiz is a deadbeat. Either that or with hundreds of "no-pay-for-shoddy-work" excuses, he demonstrates just how bad he is in scrutinizing potential employees and contractors.

Will surrogates and upper level campaign staff turn on him? Doubtful. They don't want to join the "ranks of rubes/" - the millions who have been duped into thinking that Trump is "the man," because he says so.

Meantime, the suits keep piling up from outside the campaign.

Let's hope the cheerleaders win their suit - after The Donald loses his election.

*Oh, and the Trump campaign has just gotten hit with copyright infringement, since the song itself was taken directly from Irving Berlin's "Over There" and not in public domain.

**Mother Jones: "Trump's disclosure form lists 16 loans from 11 different lenders, totaling at least $335 million, and the aggregate amount is likely much more." His chief lender is the controversial Deutsche Bank which has paid billions in fines for rigging interest rates.

Trump And Supporters Going To The Dogs: Both The Scariest Video and Stupid Geography Show How Low The IQs Can Go!

It's no secret that the demographics of Trumps supporters show some people have certain intellectual challenges, but the latest video of a "focus group" shows that his people will believe anything the Donald puts forth.

Anything.

Including gun dispensers in women's restrooms (to fend off male preditors)and port-o-potties that help whisk away illegal aliens.

Then there's the "Invisible Wall" giving a zap to collared Mexicans.

And houses that lock in illegal domestics and (as the same with the port-o-potties) are taken back to Mexico.

The entire troll is cringe-enducing, with Triumph astounded at the stupidity of these voters.

Triumph the Comic Insult Dog was giving his "poop opinion" throughout the whole thing, but some idiotic comments left him speechless (see below).

After laughing so hard I almost wet my jeans, I decided that the whole thing was an elaborate joke: I googled and googled and googled to find out if the supporters were merely playing parts.

They weren't.

The horror of the stupidity and gullibility is still settling in. I was going to include a terrifying Jay Leno JayWalking clip in comparison, but that would render the reader comatose with fright.

When you view the video, notice that the group repeated the lame reasons for liking Trump: "not a politician", "says what's on his mind", "says what we want to hear," "likes Trump's 'plans'" these reasons have very little substance, giving the supporters the appearance of parrots - or rather Trumpbots.

In the video, notice that not one person objected to force, violence or discrimination. They were, in effect, throwing out basic human rights in throwing people out of the country, treating them like Jews at Auschwitz, while at the same time thinking that no one would object to the treatment. Locking people up, then carting them away like animals is, of course, what Trump has been advocating all along.

And speaking of animals...

Trump Apologizes For Interns' Stupidity But In The Process, Reveals His Own
From The Philipine Star:

According to Agence France-Presse, the Republican Party presidential bet Donald Trump strengthened his fight against immigrants in his rally in Portland, Maine on Thursday (Aug. 4). “We are letting people come in from terrorist nations that shouldn’t be allowed because you can’t vet them,” said Trump. He then named these countries as Afghanistan, Iraq, Morocco, Pakistan, Somalia, Syria, Uzbekistan, Yemen and the Philippines, and piped up, “We’re dealing with animals.”

The uproar was extremely swift and palpable:

President of the Philipines, Rodrigo R. Duterte, challenged Donald Trump to a fistfight and a legislator is proposing Trump be banned from entering the country.

Irony on many levels: Duterte is considered the Philipines Donald Trump for his brash and crude ways and Trump has "branded" a 56-story residential tower in Manila. But the website for the tower has this to say:

In a statement prepared for the event, Donald Trump expressed faith in his partners and said "there will be nothing like it in the Philippines...this will be one of the most significant buildings anywhere in Asia."

In the first "apology" ever to come out of Trump, it's become apparent that The Donald may be as gullible as his supporters and will believe anything his extremely stupid interns will put forth:

Trump, in a statement released today, said that his campaign interns fed him the wrong information, leading him to believe that the entire Philippines was a Muslim country and that it was one of the Republics located in the Middle East.(emphasis mine)

This has elicited a WTF heard round the world. Is he taking geography lessons from Sarah I-can-see-Russia-from-my-house Palin?

The fact that the above excuse was even broadcast was insanely stupid.

It Runs In The Campaign Family

After incorrectly asserting during a CNN appearance on Saturday that President Barack Obama had invaded Afghanistan, Pierson showed up Sunday on Fox News to defend Donald Trump's decision not to release his tax returns.

During the segment with FOX's Arthel Neville (no FOX softballer), Pierson dismissed the idea of candidates releasing their tax returns as a "novelty". And when Neville countered that it has been done for 50 years, Pierson stated that it was a "novelty tradition." 

???WTF??

No knowledge of history. No knowledge of geography. No knowledge of reasoning.

We're waiting for the fat lady to sing. PLEASE! 

Too Little Too Late: The Disingenuous Donald Trump Tries A Pivot While The Fat Lady Is Getting Ready To Sing.

The statue was the coup de gras.

It's fitting that the most outlandishly crass depiction of a Presidential hopeful in this country's history matches the most outlandishly crass candidate in this country's history. The man who has humiliated the country is now being humiliated on an epic scale.

Of course, while few candidates deserve to be treated so rudely, the depiction of a naked Donald Trump titled "The Emperor Has No Balls" can be taken as a sign that the country has had enough of Trump ... As well as his supporters.

It's been pointed out (HERE) that many of his supporters are a hodgepodge of classless and clueless rubes that The Donald has defrauded into thinking that he "alone" can save the country. That the Christian Right has embraced him (as a "baby Christian") says a lot about how they will treat Hillary in the future (Anti-Christ first comes to mind). The man with questionable morals has sunk lower than the rudest fire and brimstone Southern Baptist preacher, but they are OK with that.

The statue has, of course, been depicted as sinking to Trump's level and a crude mistake. But think of it as a desperate sigh of relief that the man won't get to the White House. It's a post-election release of tension before the election. It's a sign that Americans can laugh at the hideous creature of their own making.

And Now "The Pivot"
It's a turnaround that makes Trump lose his balance and fall off his own self-made pedestal.

Because very few believe it. That the man with unbelievable confidence in himself has voiced "regrets" is inconceivable. Even his clueless supporters deserve better than a cowardly afterthought. His flip-flops are reported to be so major and well put, they will be received as if he meant them all along. 

Right. Even his stalwart supporters have better memories than that. 

Huffington Post:

Imagine Trump never said another derogatory thing about women. He’d still be the guy who lashed out at Fox News host Megyn Kelly by suggesting she asked tough questions because of her menstrual cycle. And he’d still be the guy who has at various points called individual women “pig,” “dog” and “fat slob.”

Imagine that Trump never uttered an unkind words about Latinos. He’d still be the guy who claimed that Mexico was sending rapists across the border, who thought he could court Hispanic voters by eating a taco salad on Cinco de Mayo and who questioned the integrity of a judge presiding over an anti-Trump lawsuit because of the judge’s Mexican heritage.

And his "pivot" is at times, like Trump, bizarre: 

West Bend — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump went to the suburbs Tuesday night to talk about America's inner cities, court African-American voters and lay out a plan to restore law and order in the country.

West Bend is a predominantly white suburb: who the hell is he talking to? And he falsely told African Americans that they were so bad off that they had nothing to lose by voting for him. 

Some thoughts by former supporters:

“When he initially began to run, he gave voice to a lot of the frustrations that I was feeling about how government is working or more to the point not working,” focus group member Michael said. “But since then, he’s been running as a 12-year-old and changes his positions every news cycle, so you don’t even know where he stands on the issues.”

"The more he made it about his personality, the less likely that I am to vote for him and it seems like everyone else is going in the same direction here.”

And with the direction Trump's campaign is going, the late-term shake-up in staff says a lot to people:

A Virginia Republican: “You can keep moving people in and out of the car, but so long as the drunk guy is driving it while blindfolded, the ride probably isn't going to get any smoother.”
"Break Glass In Case OF Emergency"

That's what Republican leaders are calling the strategy to steer resources away from Trump and funnel them to Republicans whose political careers are in danger of going down with the ship. Few have hopes that a proper "pivot" along with major flip-flops will halt the downward spiral Trump has engendered. 

Epic public humiliation. Weak turnaround. Supporter defections. GOP despair. 

Next up: Debates? Why bother?  

Some Delusions Are More Harmful Than Others: a The Case of Donald Trump vs Florence Foster Jenkins.

"Every voice deserves to be heard." is the tag line to Meryl Streep's latest opus, FLORENCE Foster Jenkins. That may be true for matters of art, but is it true for elections and the electorate?

People might say that it all depends upon the voice.

Florence Foster Jenkins was deluded in thinking that she was a great opera singer. She received boos and laughter, while telling people that some people were mere "hoodlums" sent by "rivals."

Jenkins was the very first camp artist: her singing was so bad that it was considered good entertainment. Her "life's achievement" at Carnegie Hall was sold out in advance because celebrities (including Cole Porter) wanted to be entertained by a woman with an indomitable spirit. 

The timing of the movie couldn't have  been more perfect: juxtaposed against Trump and his campaign, it gives a picture of a much more benign delusion than Trump's

Who's Voice?

As far as deserving to be heard, in politics it not only depends upon the voice, but what/who is causing it to be used. Who thinks it's THEIR VOICE?

In Trump's case, the delusion is on both sides: The fact that Trump's hardcore fans blithely dismiss his gaffs, inexperience, contradictions and even his fraudulent behavior shows that they are deluding themselves that they are worthy of a voice.

It is self-delusion fueled by mass delusion. 

As numbers drop for The Donald and climb for Hillary, one wonders what a monumental waste Donald Trump has been to America. True, part of America found its "voice" (like Jenkins ) but is it a part that's reasoning or just reactionary?

It may sound elitist and discriminatory, but does that kind of voice deserve a chance to be heard to the extent that a boldly unreasoning, uneducated and exceptionally bigoted voice deserves to be heard in a level equal to the rest of the populace?

Simply put, do fear, hatred and bigotry DESERVE to have a voice and be heard?

Trump rallies celebrated their "voice" with contempt for everything outside their limited ken and environment. They only proved that if an undignified, crass and clueless lot screams loud enough, it will be heard just as offensive (and earsplitting) music from a boombox has to be heard by unwitting passengers on a crowded bus. 

A Singular Voice for a Singular Person

The wall between Trump's narcissism and his patriotism is exceptionally thin. He is quick to call all critics "losers" and keeps on attacking them long after the situation is gone. Criticism of anything he is associated with is personal. When asked what he wanted people to take away from the convention, he said simply "that people like me." No mention of the Republican platform or any issues. To Trump, the election is simply a popularity contest. 

What drives Trump's delusions has been a matter of debate for years,* but it is clear that his delusions drive other delusions, forming a very toxic mess.

Too Far Gone?

Along the campaign trail, Trump's critics have tried to point out when he has gone too far on issues. The "I alone can fix..." the ills of the country, as Clinton, said, raised all sorts of red flags, leaving his stalwart fans looking delusional themselves. Are they too far gone in their zeal for an ideal of bigotry and isolation? Are they now totally blind to Trump's blind vanity?

Back in June, George Will called Trump a "bloviating ignoramus" and Trump shot back with his usual "Loser" response. 

Such a response is undignified to say the least. But Trump's converts don't like dignity, they don't like responsible reasoning and they like the talk, as unreasoning as it sounds. 

Below is a recording of the real Florence Foster Jenkins singing (Florence Foster Jenkins Massacres Mozart) accompanied by some unbelieving and distraught cats. 

As a reasoning human  being, which would you rather hear again - Jenkins or Trump?



*Some of Jenkins' delusions could be attributed to the fact that she contracted syphilis at an early age, and that the toxic combination of mercury and arsenic along with tertiary syphilis were far too much to bear. It has not yet been determined if Donald Ttump also suffers from tertiary syphilis, because his delusions of greatness started very early on in life and his business career.

The Next Deadly Pandemic: Rheumatoid Trumpitis

Major Symptom:

RHEUMATOID TRUMPITIS  causes a chronic pain in the ass while simultaneously making the afflicted person a pain in the ass. 

Forget AIDS! Forget Ebola! Forget the Black Plague! The worst pandemic to hit mankind is the deadly ...

RHEUMATOID TRUMPITIS

Never in the history of the world has there been such a devastating disease! And of all the world's plagues, this one is most assuredly brought on by man himself and not by God - Pat Robertson said so. 

Causes: nature or nurture?

It would s difficult cult to determine whether or not RT is hereditary or developed. We do know that it can be transmitted once it develops to a certain stage. Signs of the dreaded disease have occurred in infants (having a predeliction for reflective, shiny objects, usually gold plated).

Whatever the cause, RT is considered incurable, according to Dr OZ - and who is always right (unfortunately, a primary symptom of the disease) and may slowly but surely take over the world.

And while the cause of this particular condition is not known, what is evident is that it is spread by sheer force of obnoxious ego.

Missionaries have been sent to various third world countries, blaming the pandemic on Hillary Rodham Clinton and, of course, the gays. They tell the people that merely watching the two on television, in political speeches and performing in musicals such as Oklahoma!, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, and South Pacific can trigger the condition.* Africa has been put on alert, allowing no one into its countries sporting rainbow-patterned shirts and foreigners whose initials are HRC. 

The afflicted suffer from:

Symptom #2: The affinity to draw crowds of people who have paintings of clowns on black velvet in their trailer's loving room.

#3: Poor spelling and grammar - even in Spanish

#4: The belief that Donald Trump is not Elmer Gantry but a true savior. 

#5: a tendency to confuse Donald trump with David Duke. 

#6: Dining on tacos everyday while espousing affinity of Hispanics

#7: Keeping 1000 SP 18KT Gold Premium Metalic spray paint on hand - for that decorator urge, just in case.

#8: Asking for passports of everyone approaching them within a 125' radius. 

#9: Referring to all daughters as having a "rack"
#10: Having actually subscribed to Sarah Palin's Channel - after it went defunct.
#11: Ending all arguments with "LOSER!"
#12: Believing that Donald Trump will obliterate left-wing Christian persecution (as if it actually existed)
#13: Swirling ten hairs atop their head for that cotton candy look (better done when bald). 

#14: Unrelenting narcissism causing motor accidents (looking only into rear view mirrors) 

#15: Claiming to have the worlds greatest memory (unless making a deposition in a lawsuit )

#16: Refusing to divulge your financial status while telling people you're obscenely rich. 

#17: Supporting small businesses by not paying for their services. 

#18: Having the I.Q. equivalent to that of a dead battery.

The animosity created by the disease will definitely result in wars, with everyone thinking that they are the center of the universe and should be listened to. The cacophony of bloviating alone will cause deafness. And while production of mirrors will be at an all time high, the supply will not meet the demand - violence and looting will erupt. Shards of broken mirrors will henceforth be kept in elaborate reliquaries. 

Although there is no known cure, the preventative - or PreP - exists, but it is severe:

Tuning out all media until after November 8, 2016.

Good Luck.

*The same goes for every SNL sketch ever written as well as every Stephen Colbert appearance.

Trump As The Golden Calf: How Many Angry, Old, White And Classless Rubes Are There?

UPDATE: Trump's base has now been solidified: the latest endorsement is from ...

The National Enquirer. 

Figures.

“I understand and respect the people who did vote for him. I know many of them. They are not racists or crazies or stupid. While many people call The Donald a fraud or a con-man, there are a lot of voters out there who think they have been conned election after election.” - Carly Fiorina, CPAC - Mar.4)

Ahem, tell that to the rest of the country, Carly. Part of the country that voted George W. Bush into office TWICE, is now making the rest of America dumbfounded with its support of Trump. Trump has now become an obnoxious golden calf: some people's desperate attempt to create a new authority, a new idol because they can't understand America itself and stand stewing in their isolation and (frankly) their stupidity.

It's Follow THE MOUTH, not Follow the Leader. 

Max Ehrenfreund of the Washington Post ...

"... spoke to a number of psychologists and came up with three key sources of Mr Trump's appeal. "We like people who talk big," he writes. "We like people who tell us that our problems are simple and easy to solve, even when they aren't. And we don't like people who don't look like us."

In other words, they'll take loudmouthed white con man "telling it like it is," but don't particularly know (or care) what "it" is. 

Trump Supporters: 

"I have faith that he will learn and develop the policies that will make America the superpower that we want it to be." 

"You get what he really believes in, even if everything that he says isn't what is the right thing exactly."

Unfortunately, Trump is not registering for a class in U.S. Presidency 101 and believes in nothing but himself. The loud Mouth, with all of its insults, crudities, contradictions and outright lies is LOUD. To his supporters, that's what counts. 
Trump Demographics  

The following poll numbers are culled from MSNBC, Real Clear Politics, YouGov, and (Public Policy Polling which is why some categories do not total 100. 

GENDER Male  - 58%
female - 42 %

AGE

Under - 30 2%
30-44 - 14%
45-64  - 50%
65+ - 34%

RACE 

white - 91%


INCOME

Under 50k - 33%

Under 100k - 72%
Over 100k - 28%
Over 100k - 11 %

EDUCATION 

High school degree or less - 43%
College or Postgraduate Degree - 19%

IDEOLOGY

Conservative - 65%
Liberal or Moderate - 20%
Very Conservative  - 13%
Involved with Tea Party  - 32%
In Favor Trump's Ban on Muslims  - 82%
Believe President Obama is a Muslim - 66%
Think Obama Was Not Born in the US - 61%
In Favor of Bombing Agrabah  - 41%
Poor Agrabah. It's the fictional country of Disneys Aladdin. What's next? Annihilating Neverland?

While the polls don't give a clear "typical" Trump supporter, they do look predominantly like uneducated slobs (Demographics #1), angry old white men (Demographics #2) or just plain white trash (Demographics #3). Oh, then there's the evangelical group (Demographics #4)

The Way Things Are

It isn't that Trump's supporters don't have a grip on reality, it's just that they only have a grip on their own reality. The Mouth gives them what they want to hear in the most simplistic terms, keeps them isolated from what's happening in the rest of the country and that's just fine with them. So what if The Mouth has no diplomatic skills? So what if The Mouth has no experience in lawmaking whatsoever? So what if The Mouth might gild everything in the White House and put slot machines in the East Room? Who cares about all that? He's "telling it like it is." 

The reality is that they don't have a clue as to what "it" is. "It" involves experience - the biggest thing lacking in Trump. What if the board of directors of a company were so distrusting of executives, they would not hire an executive to run the company? Trump himself would never hire someone inexperienced (unless, of course, it was for Trump University). 

Another reality, Trump supporters: he has offended so many Americans, so many lawmakers, has gotten such bad publicity (e.g. Trump University class action law suit), that the delegates won in the primaries might change their minds at the last minute. Remember: after the first vote on the floor of the convention, delegates are free to vote for whomever they choose. The RNC could look like Trump- inspired circus clowns after the first contentious vote, hundreds of people shouting at each other, unfettered by their pledges to back Trump. 

Cowboy Diplomacy

Another point the polls make is that Trump supporters care not for any kind of diplomacy on the part of the President. George W. Bush's Cowboy Diplomacy ("Shoot first, ask questions later') has been embedded in their minds since 9/11. That's certainly a hit with the NRA, but with many other countries.

God Is On His Side

So as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and radio and TV hosts like Rush Limbaugh, Greta Van Susteren, Bill O’Reilly, Megyn Kelly, and Sean Hannity ask why evangelicals support Trump – the answer can be found in that poll we did three decades ago. Trump is the “liberator” and “defender” they believe really will “Make America Great Again!”

Another unreasonable position for Trump supporters comes from the evangelicals: he is not the golden calf, but the Messiah, come to rescue them from the enemies of religious freedom. 

That's just what America needs: a crude, egotistical, loud-mouthed Messiah.

2016: Will It Go Down As History's Worst Year in Politics, Or The Most Entertaining?

Nine months of backstabbing, lies, hypocrisy, contempt, bad jokes and slander.

In other words, politics as usual. But with Donald Trump and the political Christian Right in the arena, 2016 may be more entertaining than usual.

I've often said that America has made an entertainment out of religion and a religion out of entertainment: take away all of our rights as American citizens, but never, ever even think of taking away our right to be entertained. References to entertainment pervade our daily lives, with politics always being referred to as a circus.

The trouble with political entertainment is that it lessens serious issues, makes them boring in comparison and therefore not worth thinking deeply about: they are reduced to simple platitudes that are digestible to mass consumption: abortion, environment, climate change, marriage equality, immigration, terrorism, gun control are all placed amongst bombast and spectacle, super expenditures on ad campaigns, stellar endorsements and awesome rallies plastered with flags and slogans and logos.

The Real Political Arenas: Twitter and Facebook

Today, what you tweet (and re-tweet) is just as important as what you say in a long-winded political speech. The number of "friends" and "followers" on Facebook are just as important as numbers in the polls. The impact of social media has been used by politicians in the past, but its usage in 2016 will be phenomenally important. Applause and cheering at political rallies may be immediate gratification, but so are "likes" and re-tweets.

The Trump Bump - To The Extreme Right. Will It Last?

Trump Trump Trump Trump Trump Trump Trump Trump Trump Trump

Exposure may be the key to the Donald Trump polls, but even more indicative to the numbers is the plethora of people running against him: latest count, 16. So, in a sense, it matters not that he is leading a pack of conservatives, but only that he has a handle on 15% of the GOP - for now.

It may be a severe case of xenophobia. Or admiration for trumped up power (sorry). Or a warped interpretation of a Rambo Jesus (Robert Jeffress, see below). Whatever the reason fueling the Trump Train, it's bound to sicken America: America has never suffered a case of xenophobia like this since 9/11. America has nevered lowered its standards for admiration quite like this. America has never pictured Jesus as a brash bully. 

Xenophobia Reigns!

As she has said in her book, Adios, America: "Immigration is how the Left decided to punish America." This is rabid xenophobia cloaked as patriotism. Coulter even has even been interviewed with an "Ann Coulter's America" banner for a show. It doesn't matter that Ann Coulter bashes everyone in "her" country but the worst xenophobes and racists (she once defended the CCC, the group Dylann Roof stated was his inspiration).

Coulter, of course, thinks Trump the best candidate for President because of his stance on immigration. She has never said what kind of job he would do on any other issues: his bullying attitude and total lack of statesmanship, for example, would disqualify America for any peace talks or foreign negotiations. Cowboy diplomacy didn't work for Bush and it certainly wouldn't work for someone like Trump.

Bigger! Better! More Gilding!

Trump's sense of power as opposed to real power has always been circumspect: his power is much less than that of the Wizard of Oz. Instead of "Pomp and Circumstance," his persona is more reminiscent of Billy Flynn in Chicago singing "Give 'em the ole razzle-dazzle." People who prize clown paintings on black velvet only know that Trump has billion$ and is seemingly successful with a bootstraps philosophy.

Reality check: Trump's worth is far lower that the $9 billion he says (current estimates at $4.1 billion). He has filed for corporate bankruptcy in 1991, 1992, 2004 and 2009. He was born into a well-to-do family and has never known what it's like to be middle class, much less poor: his father built a real estate empire through government financing programs as a result of FDR's New Deal.* In other words, his bootstraps were attached to silver spoons. 

Let's hope his fan base notices when the gilding wears off.

The Christian Right Is Right!

If Pope Francis is a pariah in the immigration debate to the Christian Right, then Trump is its Golden Boy. Furthermore, he shows only the faintest patina of compassion:

On Friday Trump introduced grieving relatives and declared: 'People came into the country illegally and killed their children. The illegals come in and the illegals kill their children.

Using victims' families as shameless political props is not compassion, but exploitation. But since his compassion is not the same kind as the progressive "bleeding heart" sanctuary churches, pastors like Robert Jeffress support Trump unequivocally: churches protecting immigrants following "Jesus of their imagination." Jesus, you see, said to render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's (apparently forgetting that his church does not pay taxes). He was also a lot more than "meek and mild", rarely ever spoke of love and looked a lot like Silvester Stallone. Jeffress stopped short of calling Trump the Second Coming, but he put his imprimatur on Trump nonetheless. 

The 15%

So the 15% in GOP polls is comprised of xenophobes ala Ann Coulter, poor Tea-Partiers bedazzled by wealth and the Christian Right who doesn't like anyone coming into the States who can't give to their churches. 

This is a number that will dissolve as time goes by, but the hilarity will be thoroughly enjoyed (see David Letterman's latest Top 10).

*Alternet:

Trump was born in New York City in 1946, the son of real estate tycoon Fred Trump. Fred Trump’s business success not only provided Donald Trump with a posh youth of private schools and economic security but eventually blessed him with an inheritance worth an estimated $40 million to $200 million. It is critical to note, however, that his father’s success, which granted Donald Trump such a great advantage, was enabled and buffered by governmental financing programs. In 1934, while struggling during the Great Depression, financing from the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) allowed Fred Trump to revive his business and begin building a multitude of homes in Brooklyn, selling at $6,000 apiece. Furthermore, throughout World War II, Fred Trump constructed FHA-backed housing for US naval personnel near major shipyards along the East Coast.