• Menu
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Before Header

  • About Us
  • Lexicon
  • Contact Us
  • Our Store
  • ↑
  • ↓
  • ←
  • →

Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

If you are still in the GOP, you are an extremist.

Teach a man to fish, and he’ll sit in a boat all day drinking beer.

I’d try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

White supremacy is terrorism.

The willow is too close to the house.

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

Too often we confuse noise with substance. too often we confuse setbacks with defeat.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. let’s win this.

Impressively dumb. Congratulations.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

He really is that stupid.

Do not shrug your shoulders and accept the normalization of untruths.

Authoritarian republicans are opposed to freedom for the rest of us.

… pundit janitors mopping up after the GOP

Whoever he was, that guy was nuts.

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

We are aware of all internet traditions.

Accountability, motherfuckers.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

They’re not red states to be hated; they are voter suppression states to be fixed.

“Squeaker” McCarthy

It’s the corruption, stupid.

Mobile Menu

  • Winnable House Races
  • Donate with Venmo, Zelle & PayPal
  • Site Feedback
  • War in Ukraine
  • Submit Photos to On the Road
  • Politics
  • On The Road
  • Open Threads
  • Topics
  • Balloon Juice 2023 Pet Calendar (coming soon)
  • COVID-19 Coronavirus
  • Authors
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Lexicon
  • Our Store
  • Politics
  • Open Threads
  • War in Ukraine
  • Garden Chats
  • On The Road
  • 2021-22 Fundraising!
You are here: Home / Politics / An Unexamined Scandal / Another Low: Trump Announces Official Program for Anti-Immigrant Repubs to Hide Behind Crime Victims

Another Low: Trump Announces Official Program for Anti-Immigrant Repubs to Hide Behind Crime Victims

by Anne Laurie|  February 28, 201710:40 pm| 110 Comments

This post is in: An Unexamined Scandal, Hail to the Hairpiece, Open Threads, Republican Stupidity, Republican Venality, Blatant Liars and the Lies They Tell, Get Angry

FacebookTweetEmail

(Jim Morin via GoComics.com)
.

Per the Washington Post:

… Trump met in the Oval Office ahead of the prime-time address with Jamiel Shaw Sr., whose son was shot by a gang member in Los Angeles in 2008, and Jessica Davis and Susan Oliver, who were married to California police officers killed in the line of duty in 2014. All three were guests in the presidential box in the House chamber, as Trump aimed to make a pointed message about the costs of illegal immigration a week after the Department of Homeland Security rolled out sweeping new enforcement guidelines.

Trump was joined several times on the campaign trail by family members of victims of crimes committed by illegal immigrants, including so-called “angel moms,” whose children had been killed. As president, Trump has pledged to raise their profiles, and the new DHS guidelines issued last week included a provision to create a new office to support such victims and their families.

“I have ordered the Department of Homeland Security to create an office to serve American victims,” Trump said in his speech to Congress. “The office is called VOICE –- Victims Of Immigration Crime Engagement. We are providing a voice to those who have been ignored by our media, and silenced by special interests.”

Trump’s spotlight on the victims’ families has sparked an outcry among those who charge the president is exaggerating the risks to sow public fear to make his proposals more politically expedient. Studies have shown that immigrants, including the estimated 11 million living here illegally, have lower crime rates than the native-born population…

With such a kewl acronym, who could be against it?

Every single Republican office-holder owes America a public apology for putting this monster at the head of their party, and then ratfvcking him into the Oval Office.

FacebookTweetEmail
Previous Post: « Trump Hiding Behind A SEAL’s Death: Possibly The Nadir in A Speech Full of Lows
Next Post: Late Night Open Thread: “Class Tells When There Is No Class” »

Reader Interactions

110Comments

  1. 1.

    JPL

    February 28, 2017 at 10:43 pm

    That just should not happen in our country. Is there anyway that the dems and moderate repubs can stop him?
    legally?
    Luckovich already responded to the speech…

  2. 2.

    PigDog

    February 28, 2017 at 10:45 pm

    They have a voice, it’s called Breitbart. This sounds like big government interference into something the free market has already taken care of.

  3. 3.

    Omnes Omnibus

    February 28, 2017 at 10:45 pm

    ::Hulk Smash!::

  4. 4.

    Kropadope

    February 28, 2017 at 10:46 pm

    The office is called VOICE –- Victims Of Immigration Crime Engagement. We are providing a voice to those who have been ignored by our media, and silenced by special interests

    It’s a good thing he’s doing this, immigrants have far too much institutional power and wield it recklessly against everyday Real Americans.

  5. 5.

    Patricia Kayden

    February 28, 2017 at 10:46 pm

    How many standing ovations did Republicans give Trump tonight? They love him. I cringe whenever someone naively talks about impeachment. Not gonna happen. Sadly, Trump has free reign with courts being the one source of pushing back on his most onerous policies.

  6. 6.

    Omnes Omnibus

    February 28, 2017 at 10:49 pm

    @Kropadope: You done well.

  7. 7.

    Baud

    February 28, 2017 at 10:49 pm

    Josh Marshall

    I think purely as a speech, its crafting, the thematic cadence and delivery, it was pretty average to unremarkable. It wasn’t a very good speech. Having said that, I think Trump may pick up a few points of support from the public because he seemed like a fairly normal person delivering it. This is admittedly an extremely low standard. But when you compare this Trump to the meltdown press conference Trump or the rageful, spewing Twitter Trump, he can’t help but seem more balanced and less threatening by comparison. Low bar. SAD! But there it is.

  8. 8.

    liberal

    February 28, 2017 at 10:54 pm

    @JPL: for the thousandth fucking time, there are no moderate Republicans left. They range from right-wing, to extreme right-wing, to Nazi.

  9. 9.

    amk

    February 28, 2017 at 10:54 pm

    @Baud: white privilege at work is fascinating horrifying to watch.

  10. 10.

    Omnes Omnibus

    February 28, 2017 at 10:55 pm

    @Baud: So we have a President for whom mediocre is an aspiration?

  11. 11.

    Kropadope

    February 28, 2017 at 10:56 pm

    @amk: The soft bigotry of low expectations. Donald Trump, our true affirmative action President. A much needed response to too many years of anti-white racist policies.

  12. 12.

    efgoldman

    February 28, 2017 at 10:58 pm

    @Patricia Kayden:

    How many standing ovations did Republicans give Trump tonight? They love him.

    Or maybe they’re just scared shitless that their racist flying monkey base will notice if they don’t, and there comes a primary.

  13. 13.

    efgoldman

    February 28, 2017 at 11:00 pm

    @Baud:

    when you compare this Trump to the meltdown press conference Trump or the rageful, spewing Twitter Trump, he can’t help but seem more balanced and less threatening

    He’ll revert. He can’t not. He yam what he yam.

  14. 14.

    JPL

    February 28, 2017 at 11:00 pm

    @liberal: Then it’s up to us to speak up. You cannot allow a segment of our population to be labeled. That’s been tried before and it didn’t end well.

  15. 15.

    Yarrow

    February 28, 2017 at 11:02 pm

    Didn’t watch, but this was interesting.

    Anybody who saw the faces of the Joint Chiefs tonight when the cam hit them knows exactly what the US military thinks of Trump.— John Schindler (@20committee) March 1, 2017

    Reply to that tweet, with screen grab of generals at the speech, if you click through:

    @20committee I like to call it resting military coup face pic.twitter.com/z92PQ0yVxC— Jason Bainbridge (@WhileInTheWild) March 1, 2017

  16. 16.

    Kropadope

    February 28, 2017 at 11:04 pm

    @efgoldman: He’ll get more credit for not publicly shitting himself than most pols get for long, distinguished, and accomplished careers.

  17. 17.

    MomSense

    February 28, 2017 at 11:04 pm

    Jesus they are totally fucking fluffing 45 on MSNBC. He didn’t rant like a lunatic A+ his polls will be at 50% for two weeks.

    Oh FFS.

  18. 18.

    Yarrow

    February 28, 2017 at 11:06 pm

    @MomSense: MSNBC is NewFox. Not worth watching.

  19. 19.

    danielx

    February 28, 2017 at 11:10 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    So we have a President for whom mediocre is an aspiration?

    It would be nice to believe that he actually aspired to self-improvement, as opposed to self-aggrandizement. I mean, W was mediocre at best, but he at least went through the motions of being president and seemed to take the responsibilities of the office seriously. But he was kind of a picture of mediocrity as president, and we all know how that turned out.

    I don’t think there is yet an adequate adjective for the depths to which the Orange Shitweasel has sunk and those he has yet to plumb.

  20. 20.

    Kropadope

    February 28, 2017 at 11:11 pm

    @Yarrow: I didn’t know Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris were of the JCOS.

  21. 21.

    Mike J

    February 28, 2017 at 11:11 pm

    Hey Omnes, have a professional q for you (and any other law talking type people). Not about law, but about support staff.

    If you were a semi-retired solo practitioner who didn’t understand new fangled e-filing, how much would you pay somebody with tons of experience to take your pleadings and format them correctly and get them all properly e-filed with the court? Not a full time gig, just an hourly freelance deal as cases arise.

    Neither of the people involved is me, but a friend was interested in what sounded fair.

  22. 22.

    MomSense

    February 28, 2017 at 11:11 pm

    @Yarrow:

    Yup. BTW Fuck you Paul Ryan looked especially punchable tonight. He seems so gleeful about taking healthcare away from 20+ million of us and causing people death and financial ruin.

    Where did 45 get those employment statistics? WND? Breitbart? Did Stormfront start a new business channel?

  23. 23.

    Omnes Omnibus

    February 28, 2017 at 11:12 pm

    @danielx: Sadly, point taken.

  24. 24.

    MomSense

    February 28, 2017 at 11:12 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    Bar is so low you could stub your big toe on it.

  25. 25.

    Yarrow

    February 28, 2017 at 11:13 pm

    @Kropadope: Learn something every day!

  26. 26.

    efgoldman

    February 28, 2017 at 11:13 pm

    @MomSense:

    Jesus they are totally fucking fluffing 45 on MSNBC.

    Only masochists watch that channel any more.

  27. 27.

    jl

    February 28, 2017 at 11:15 pm

    @Yarrow: Those are Trumps generals? I will admit Trump is right about one thing, they do look like generals, and admirals, and etc. out of central casting.

    Quite a gallery of expressions, none of them very promising.

    So, Trump is really going to try to rile the country up over a non-existent immigration problem. Undocumented immigrants have been leaving faster than they have been arriving since the onset of the Great Recession. Even poor ol’ Mitt was on to better viewpoint than this fool: the undocumented immigrants would self-deport.

    Saw a news article about how the Trumpsters in some town were all on board the Trump xenophobia wagon, until a very popular local pillar of the community turned out to be undocumented, and got busted.

    Frothing and instigating on this relative non-problem is only good in the sense that it will produce Fail for the Trumpster, and will help keep his administration from causing bigger problems in other areas.

  28. 28.

    Yarrow

    February 28, 2017 at 11:16 pm

    @MomSense: Does it even matter where the numbers came from? Someone wrote the speech and he read it. They could have just pulled those numbers out of thin air.

    Facts don’t matter with him. It’s about image and appearance. From that standpoint he did well. The media is fluffing him. People are saying he looked presidential. It’s a win by his standards.

    I’m hoping the IC has seen this and decides tomorrow is a good day for a leak.

  29. 29.

    mouse tolliver

    February 28, 2017 at 11:16 pm

    Brian Williams says only someone hard-hearted could find fault with the way Trump used the dead SEALs widow tonight.

  30. 30.

    jl

    February 28, 2017 at 11:17 pm

    BTW, what was this thing? Is this Frump’s first State of the Union Address? If it isn’t, what is it? Any lying fool can get up and address a joint session of Congress these days?

    If it is his first SOTU address, no one wants to call it that so as not to degrade past and future addresses?

  31. 31.

    Mike J

    February 28, 2017 at 11:18 pm

    Christina Wilkie‏ Verified account @christinawilkie 17 minutes ago
    Commerce Sec. Wilbur Ross wore $600 slippers by Palm Beach @Stubbs_Wootton, with a custom Commerce Dept logo, to Trump’s speech tonight.

    https://t.co/Be0apnEUkx

  32. 32.

    Kropadope

    February 28, 2017 at 11:19 pm

    Also, since this is an open thread, I want to address the assertion currently on the top right portion of my screen.

    Only Han shot.

  33. 33.

    efgoldman

    February 28, 2017 at 11:20 pm

    @mouse tolliver:

    Brian Williams says only someone hard-hearted could find fault with the way Trump used the dead SEALs widow tonight.

    My heart has turned to granite. So has Brian Williams’ head. He got there first.

  34. 34.

    Yarrow

    February 28, 2017 at 11:21 pm

    @mouse tolliver: Brian Williams lied about his wartime embed experiences. He lied a lot. Who is he to tell us how we should feel about the way the SEAL widow was used? STFU Brian Williams.

  35. 35.

    jl

    February 28, 2017 at 11:21 pm

    @MomSense:

    ” Where did 45 get those employment statistics? WND? Breitbart? Did Stormfront start a new business channel? ”

    Didn’t watch, but from what I read, same bogus stats as Frump and other GOPers used in the campaign. Count everyone over 16, including those in school or college, or disabled, or retired. But the current GOPers have their way, maybe an accurate reflection of their vision: if you are over 16 and not rich, you will be working at a crappy low paying job until you are dead dead dead and dead, Forever, the End.

  36. 36.

    MomSense

    February 28, 2017 at 11:22 pm

    @mouse tolliver:

    The point is that 45 showed himself to be hard hearted by taking advantage of the widow for his own political gain. Pointing out that it was a shitty thing to do demonstrates basic decency.

  37. 37.

    jl

    February 28, 2017 at 11:23 pm

    @Yarrow: “lies’ is harsh. We can say ‘fantasizes aggressively’, maybe?

  38. 38.

    Eljai

    February 28, 2017 at 11:23 pm

    @mouse tolliver: A ham sandwich has a higher IQ than Brian Williams.

  39. 39.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    February 28, 2017 at 11:24 pm

    @Yarrow: Chris Cillizza and Tweety and I don’t know who all else (not watching TV) may have forgotten that Trump blamed “my generals” for that SEAL’s death. Those guys have not, and I don’t think they will. Cause he will insult them again.

  40. 40.

    Thoroughly Pizzled

    February 28, 2017 at 11:26 pm

    The media will never learn. Trump could personally strangle a reporter to death in a press conference and they’d forgive him if he gave a quote after.

  41. 41.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    February 28, 2017 at 11:29 pm

    Ana Marie Cox‏Verified account @ anamariecox 1h1 hour ago
    Trump’s highest compliment to a fallen warrior is that HE BROKE AN APPLAUSE RECORD. That was fucking grotesque.
    And he called CPO Owens “Ryan,” that unearned intimacy compounded by galling presumption that he would be PROUD OF APPLAUSE. Moral monster.

  42. 42.

    Yarrow

    February 28, 2017 at 11:29 pm

    @MomSense: OT – How’s your mom? Did she get to the doctor’s appointment to get checked out? I think that was last week but I didn’t see any comment if you mentioned it. Hope everything is okay.

  43. 43.

    Kropadope

    February 28, 2017 at 11:30 pm

    @Thoroughly Pizzled:

    The media will never learn. Trump could personally strangle a reporter to death in a press conference and they’d forgive him if he gave a quote after.

    And if the quote were a claim he never strangled a reporter in a room full of reporters, they would report it as fact or at least allow for the possibility he was telling the truth.

  44. 44.

    The Lodger

    February 28, 2017 at 11:30 pm

    @Thoroughly Pizzled: Strangling a member of the White House press corps? I’d congratulate him myself.

  45. 45.

    randy khan

    February 28, 2017 at 11:31 pm

    @jl:

    If that stat were accurate, the unemployment rate would be in the 30-35% range, and we would be in a genuine depression. Even U-6 is below 10% right now.

  46. 46.

    Another Scott

    February 28, 2017 at 11:32 pm

    @jl: The incoming president gives an address to a joint session of Congress – not a SOTU.

    HTH.

    Cheers,
    Scott.
    (Who didn’t watch Donnie tonight.)

  47. 47.

    hilts

    February 28, 2017 at 11:33 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    Chris Cillizza and Tweety

    Are useless tools full of hot air.

    @efgoldman, @Yarrow – Given BriWi’s record as a fabricator related to his interaction with the US military, he should have recused himself from commenting on this subject.

  48. 48.

    Yarrow

    February 28, 2017 at 11:33 pm

    I wonder what the ratings for his speech are going to be. Here’s hoping they’re low.

  49. 49.

    Steeplejack

    February 28, 2017 at 11:34 pm

    Yeah, VOICE was the low point of the speech for me. Craven, opportunistic and media-shiny with the acronym.

  50. 50.

    Betty Cracker

    February 28, 2017 at 11:35 pm

    I didn’t watch Dr. Shitgibbon’s Medicine Show, but I took a peek at Twitter awhile back, and it looks like the media rubes are swilling the snake oil. There was a quote from Van Jones saying something puke-inducing and cringeworthy like, “Donald J. Trump became POTUS tonight when he praised the sacrifice of the Navy SEAL.” GTFO, STFU, DIAF, etc.

  51. 51.

    efgoldman

    February 28, 2017 at 11:35 pm

    @Eljai:

    A ham sandwich has a higher IQ than Brian Williams.

    The sandwich certainly is more analytical and more truthful.

  52. 52.

    Yarrow

    February 28, 2017 at 11:35 pm

    I think T better get Barron working the cyber right quick like:

    The National Security Agency risks a brain-drain of hackers and cyber spies due to a tumultuous reorganization and worries about the acrimonious relationship between the intelligence community and President Donald Trump, according to current and former NSA officials and cybersecurity industry sources.

    Half-a-dozen cybersecurity executives told Reuters they had witnessed a marked increase in the number of U.S. intelligence officers and government contractors seeking employment in the private sector since Trump took office on Jan. 20.

    One of the executives, who would speak only on condition of anonymity, said he was stunned by the caliber of the would-be recruits. They are coming from a variety of government intelligence and law enforcement agencies, multiple executives said, and their interest stems in part from concerns about the direction of U.S intelligence agencies under Trump.

  53. 53.

    hilts

    February 28, 2017 at 11:37 pm

    @Thoroughly Pizzled:

    The media will never learn.

    They constantly set the bar too low for Trump and then normalize him for simply reading a damn teleprompter. CNN and MSNBC will not hold Trump accountable for his dishonesty and his dickishness.

  54. 54.

    Betty Cracker

    February 28, 2017 at 11:37 pm

    This VOICE business is a blood libel.

  55. 55.

    Elizabelle

    February 28, 2017 at 11:38 pm

    Colbert:

    “This wasn’t a state of the union, because I think this time the Confederacy won.”

  56. 56.

    efgoldman

    February 28, 2017 at 11:39 pm

    @Betty Cracker:

    “Donald J. Trump became POTUS tonight when he praised the sacrifice of the Navy SEAL.” GTFO, STFU, DIAF, etc.

    He’ll fuck up by the weekend, twittling and/or saying something so stupid and mendacious that the Villagers can’t help but notice. He can’t help it.

  57. 57.

    Elizabelle

    February 28, 2017 at 11:39 pm

    @Betty Cracker: Yeah. It’s like prion disease.

  58. 58.

    Peale

    February 28, 2017 at 11:39 pm

    @randy khan: lies! It’s a disaster! Carnage. I don’t want to come out from under my bed and you can’t market me!

  59. 59.

    Elizabelle

    February 28, 2017 at 11:40 pm

    Colbert: “So many handshakes, such little hands.”

  60. 60.

    Peale

    February 28, 2017 at 11:41 pm

    @efgoldman: on the plus side, I’m sure there will be more dead to praise before his term is done. The chances of him getting credit for every one is low.

  61. 61.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    February 28, 2017 at 11:42 pm

    @hilts:

    They constantly set the bar too low for Trump and then normalize him for simply reading a damn teleprompter.

    I’m old enough to remember when using a teleprompter was a bad thing. Maybe they’re just happy that Dolt45 showed that he could read.

  62. 62.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    February 28, 2017 at 11:43 pm

    @efgoldman:

    He can’t help it.

    The sun rises in the east and the tides go in and go out. Ya can’t explain that.

  63. 63.

    Kropadope

    February 28, 2017 at 11:43 pm

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    I’m old enough to remember when using a teleprompter was a bad thing. Maybe they’re just happy that Dolt45 showed that he could read.

    Well, he can recognize most written words. I’m still not sure he understands the whole punctuation thing.

  64. 64.

    DocSardonic

    February 28, 2017 at 11:44 pm

    Hope no one shows Chief Cheeto TinyHands the German carnival floats

    https://www.thelocal.de/20170227/in-pics-german-carnival-floats-show-trump-no-mercy

  65. 65.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    February 28, 2017 at 11:45 pm

    @DocSardonic: What, ya think he’ll bomb Berlin?

  66. 66.

    jl

    February 28, 2017 at 11:46 pm

    @Another Scott: I didn’t watch it either. thanks for the info. I didn’t know that.

  67. 67.

    FlipYrWhig

    February 28, 2017 at 11:46 pm

    @Betty Cracker: I suppose at least he didn’t say “War hero? I like SEALs who _weren’t_ killed in raids.”

  68. 68.

    danielx

    February 28, 2017 at 11:49 pm

    @Betty Cracker:

    As long as he doesn’t actually froth at the mouth and/or shit his pants at the lectern, everything he emits will be called Churchillian rhetoric.

  69. 69.

    MomSense

    February 28, 2017 at 11:49 pm

    @Yarrow:

    She seems to be ok. We don’t know what happened and they ran all the tests. She is visiting a friend and when she gets back she has another follow up.

  70. 70.

    DocSardonic

    February 28, 2017 at 11:53 pm

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: No idea… but given the relative lack of density of his epidermal layer anything is possible.

  71. 71.

    Yarrow

    February 28, 2017 at 11:53 pm

    @MomSense: Odd. Well, wishing you all the best. I hope it was a one time thing with no other effects.

  72. 72.

    Yarrow

    February 28, 2017 at 11:55 pm

    @FlipYrWhig: If anyone asks him tomorrow what he said tonight, I wonder if he’ll know.

  73. 73.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    March 1, 2017 at 12:00 am

    @Yarrow: He watches “the shows” and all they’ll be talking about on “the shows” is how well he did; so of course he’ll know.

  74. 74.

    workworkwork

    March 1, 2017 at 12:01 am

    Wow, given the comments here at BJ, I’m extra glad that we didn’t watch.

    Instead we spent the evening with season 2 of “The Americans”, i.e. government employees who know how to to do their jobs.

    (Arkady is the man!)

  75. 75.

    chopper

    March 1, 2017 at 12:02 am

    jesus, these MSM schmucks are so fucking obsessed with the idea of trump “pivoting” that they’ll look at this bullshit excuse for a performance as evidence.

  76. 76.

    Timurid

    March 1, 2017 at 12:02 am

    Holy fuck, elites love this guy. Short of a full on psychotic break, they’re going to carry him to the finish line.
    They want their white nationalist King that much.

  77. 77.

    Yarrow

    March 1, 2017 at 12:04 am

    @chopper: And by the end of the week he’ll “pivot” right back to what he has been all along. Because he hasn’t changed. Being able to read a speech someone else wrote is not a sign that he’s “presidential.”

    I wonder if he’ll start attacking the dad of the SEAL? I can see that happening. He brought the widow to his speech and everyone cheered. Why can’t the dad get with the program? What’s his problem? Etc.

  78. 78.

    Elizabelle

    March 1, 2017 at 12:09 am

    On Colbert, I heard a clip of the GOP cheering wildly when Trump talked of repealing Obamacare.

    I wanted to take away their healthcare, from every one of the cheerers.

    They have no decency.

    Made me doubly glad not to have watched any of that shitshow.

  79. 79.

    Steve in the ATL

    March 1, 2017 at 12:15 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    So we have a President for whom mediocre is an aspiration?

    Check my math, but I believe that applies to two of the last three presidents

  80. 80.

    Sandia Blanca

    March 1, 2017 at 12:17 am

    I think a better interpretation of “VOICE” would be “Victims of ICE.”

  81. 81.

    mai naem mobile

    March 1, 2017 at 12:17 am

    I am glad I didn’t watch this. Ive been watching Colbert regularly but not sure if i can handle even just Colbert making fun of Lumpy tonight. I went on Twitter. I am beginning to wonder if Lumpy is really popular among Repubs or if Twitter is just full of Russian trolls.

  82. 82.

    Yarrow

    March 1, 2017 at 12:22 am

    @mai naem mobile: Both/and. He’s still fairly popular with Republican voters. And Twitter is full of Russian trolls.

  83. 83.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    March 1, 2017 at 12:26 am

    David MartoskoVerified account @ dmartosko
    A senior admin. official says the ‘revised’ travel ban order will be signed later in the week. They don’t want to step on tonight’s big win.

    Yashar‏Verified account @ yashar 30m30 minutes ago
    I thought it was an emergency?

    the bad Islamic hombres were at the gates of your local airport weeks ago, so-called judges making you less safe!

  84. 84.

    Steeplejack (tablet)

    March 1, 2017 at 12:27 am

    @Baud:

    That seems relatively fair, if you’re not attuned to all the subtext and dog whistles. But Trump did come across as not completely insane (which is rare for him).

  85. 85.

    mouse tolliver

    March 1, 2017 at 12:27 am

    This is so bizarre. Tweety doing a Hardball special where the guests are Bill Maher, Michael Moore and Kathy Griffin. The professional comedians are doing a better job of cutting through Trump’s bullshit than the professional political commenters.

    Apparently, Kathy Griffin (via the USO) has been to more war zones than Donald Trump.

  86. 86.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    March 1, 2017 at 12:31 am

    @mouse tolliver:

    Apparently, Kathy Griffin (via the USO) has been to more war zones than Donald Trump.

    As has Sen. Franken.

  87. 87.

    bluehill

    March 1, 2017 at 12:36 am

    Snap polls show big approval for speech. If Bannon is smart, which I believe he is, he will keep using Trump this way while they do all the crappy stuff behind closed doors. Most of the public too busy, too dumb to notice/care and the people that criticize what’s happening will be labeled as un-American socialists. The media is already discredited. Sigh … everyday 1984 edges closer to becoming historical fiction.

  88. 88.

    goblue72

    March 1, 2017 at 12:39 am

    @Timurid: The wealthy industrialists liked Hitler too. The rich LIKE fascists. The fascists and the oligarchs are bosom buddies. Of COURSE they like Trump – he will shove through the tax cuts they want, funnel government contracts to all his rich buddies, eviscerate business regulations (and consumer & environmental protections). He will line their pockets, while also stomping on racial minorities and the poor – which is, generally speaking – right up the bigoted worldview that the wealthy classes are RIFE with. The elites are largely NOT nice people.

    As for the privileged class of TV pundits and TV “journalists” – they aren’t going to upset their personal gravy trains by biting the hands that feed them. They are a servant class whose primary service is to keep the lid on the kettle of the public. They know what their jobs are.

    And this goes for Van Jones. For most of America, he’s that “black guy” on CNN. But as someone who travels in Bay Area progressive circles, I’m long familiar with his schtick and the long string of various NGOs he’s founded that seem to do a lot of “awareness building” & “coalition building” without a lot less substance to show for it – save for elevating Van Jones national profile. I have friends in public policy and advocacy who work for some of the orgs he’s founded. They certainly are doing some good work. But Van is always more about Van than anything else.

    The far left, the socialist and anarchist and antifa types – get a lot of snarky sneering flack from a number of commenters here. But they are far more on the money in seeing what is going on with Trump than the usual assortment of liberal technocrats running the Democratic Party. There’s reasons why Clinton lost and its not all about Comey.

  89. 89.

    Yarrow

    March 1, 2017 at 12:39 am

    @mouse tolliver: The court jester telling the truth has a long history.

  90. 90.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    March 1, 2017 at 12:41 am

    @bluehill: not all of them, and not all of it.

    CBS News‏Verified account
    @ CBSNews
    “Great job to the speechwriter, but I will see Donald Trump at 12 a.m. [on Twitter]”, member of @ FrankLuntz’s focus group says.

    WVWVAF‏ @ Women_Vote 3h3 hours ago
    [email protected] realDonaldTrump’s promise to scrap Obamacare was hugely unpopular with #livedial voters

    WVWVAF‏ @ Women_Vote 3h3 hours ago
    In our #LiveDials, white unmarried women aren’t fans of @ realDonaldTrump’s economic diagnosis. @ DemCorps

  91. 91.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    March 1, 2017 at 12:43 am

    @goblue72: Preach it, Dwight! Done any highly successful grassroots organizing lately? Or have things been too busy in Cubicle 12, Row D

  92. 92.

    Yarrow

    March 1, 2017 at 12:43 am

    @bluehill: Bannon may be smart but Trump doesn’t like to be locked down. If he thinks he’s being relegated to reading speeches someone else wrote and doing not much else he’s going to rebel.

  93. 93.

    mouse tolliver

    March 1, 2017 at 12:44 am

    Here’s Kathy Griffin responding to a Tweety question about Republican obstruction on health care reform… “Well, you have to remind them… The Affordable Care Act was the Republican plan. It started out as hoping for single payer… It was the compromise from not being able to get single payer. And for all the Busters out there who turned into Trumpers, or whatever, Bernie wanted single payer and still does more than anybody. So when Obama tried to get single payer and then it turned into ACA that is the Republican compromise.”

  94. 94.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    March 1, 2017 at 12:46 am

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: I thought he was on Row E, moving up in the world, I guess.

  95. 95.

    Steeplejack (tablet)

    March 1, 2017 at 12:47 am

    @mouse tolliver:

    Well, I must have a heart of stone, because I thought it was obscene.

  96. 96.

    goblue72

    March 1, 2017 at 12:51 am

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: No but I have two bills I wrote running through Sacramento involving social safety net improvements with high likelihood of passage. What happens when they hit Jerry’s desk is another thing, admittedly. Will be in DC next month on Congressional visits for some Federal level work, though likely to be a bit depressing given the current lay of the land on domestic discretionary programs.

    So yeah, I’m busy doing real progressive work, chump.

  97. 97.

    Steeplejack (tablet)

    March 1, 2017 at 12:53 am

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    Well said by Cox. My sentiments exactly.

  98. 98.

    bluehill

    March 1, 2017 at 12:56 am

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Un-American socialists

    @Yarrow: Unfortunately, I don’t think Trump is smart enough to realize he’s being manipulated. He really does he have some child-like traits. He’s like a 70-year boy king. Sure he will throw a tantrum here or there but deep down he wants affection and needs direction. His court is filled with people that just see him as a means to an end.

  99. 99.

    Steve in the ATL

    March 1, 2017 at 1:00 am

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: I don’t always agree with goblue72, but everything he says here seems spot on to me. What did you find objectionable?

  100. 100.

    Yarrow

    March 1, 2017 at 1:00 am

    @bluehill: True. But he also has always thrived on chaos. He wants it and to some extent needs it. Chaos is not good for the administration. So we’ll see how it goes.

  101. 101.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    March 1, 2017 at 1:03 am

    @goblue72: such a hero, yet so shy and anonymous….

  102. 102.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    March 1, 2017 at 1:09 am

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    David MartoskoVerified account @ dmartosko
    A senior admin. official says the ‘revised’ travel ban order will be signed later in the week. They don’t want to step on tonight’s big win.

    Trump delivered a State of the Union address and that’s a Win? The guy was a host on a reality show for years, of course he can read a script, good fucking god….

  103. 103.

    goblue72

    March 1, 2017 at 1:10 am

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Having a nym to remain anonymous isn’t exactly some new thing on the Internets.

  104. 104.

    Steeplejack (tablet)

    March 1, 2017 at 1:13 am

    @Sandia Blanca:

    Word.

  105. 105.

    joel hanes

    March 1, 2017 at 1:22 am

    @Patricia Kayden:

    How many standing ovations

    I couldn’t bring myself to watch. (Also: work)

    Did they sing the Horst-Wessel-Lied?

  106. 106.

    goblue72

    March 1, 2017 at 1:25 am

    @bluehill: agree in part, but I also think we need to stop infantilizing Trump. We just wind up massively underestimating him.

    Because at the end of the day, the baboon won. He beat Ms. Perfect. He beat the “most prepared to be President candidate ever”. He beat the combined Clinton and Obama machine. And he did it by winning Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania – three states that a Republican should NEVER have a snowball’s chance in Hades of ever winning. And he came within a whisker of taking Minnesota. (And lets be clear, those 4 states have been a horroshow for the Democrats at the state level for awhile. The rot has been there for quite some time. Its just now reached the head.)

    Maybe its time to stop thinking of our opponent as a caricature, and start respecting him as the guy who whipped our asses. Respect doesn’t mean agree, support or honor. But it does mean accepting he isn’t a fool and he is good at some things. Figuring out what his strengths are. And like Bill Belichick, taking away those strengths and forcing him to play to his weaknesses.

  107. 107.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    March 1, 2017 at 1:26 am

    @goblue72: especially if you’re the kind of moron who calls for the assassination of cops, and casually flings around the word “retard” as a cheap insult. What would “Jerry” and all those progressive legislators you totally really honest-and-for-true work with so intimately think, Dwight?

  108. 108.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    March 1, 2017 at 1:38 am

    @goblue72:

    The far left, the socialist and anarchist and antifa types – get a lot of snarky sneering flack from a number of commenters here. But they are far more on the money in seeing what is going on with Trump than the usual assortment of liberal technocrats running the Democratic Party. .

    What’s the difference between an Anarchist and a Libertarian GoBlue? The answer $40K a year. Of course an Anarchist understand Trump better than any Liberal does.

  109. 109.

    Mike G

    March 1, 2017 at 2:07 am

    So there will be a special office to assist victims of crime-by-immigrants, but tough shit to any others because your suffering isn’t readily exploitable to scare Ma and Pa Nebraska.
    And the feds still won’t bother to track the number of people killed by cops.

  110. 110.

    kindness

    March 1, 2017 at 7:21 am

    The only thing missing to make it a complete NAZI ripoff was Trump introducing Ivanka’s new black leather boots & hat ansamble.

Comments are closed.

Primary Sidebar

Recent Comments

  • Elizabelle on HEY DID YOU GUYS HEAR (Mar 30, 2023 @ 8:56pm)
  • Alison Rose on The Funniest Thing About All of This (Mar 30, 2023 @ 8:56pm)
  • dm on War for Ukraine Day 400: Russia Takes a Hostage (Mar 30, 2023 @ 8:55pm)
  • Sister Golden Bear on Open Thread: Red Staters for Moloch (Mar 30, 2023 @ 8:55pm)
  • Mr. Bemused Senior on War for Ukraine Day 400: Russia Takes a Hostage (Mar 30, 2023 @ 8:55pm)

Balloon Juice Meetups!

All Meetups
Seattle Meetup coming up on April 4!

🎈Keep Balloon Juice Ad Free

Become a Balloon Juice Patreon
Donate with Venmo, Zelle or PayPal

Fundraising 2023-24

Wis*Dems Supreme Court + SD-8

Balloon Juice Posts

View by Topic
View by Author
View by Month & Year
View by Past Author

Featuring

Medium Cool
Artists in Our Midst
Authors in Our Midst
We All Need A Little Kindness
Classified Documents: A Primer
State & Local Elections Discussion

Calling All Jackals

Site Feedback
Nominate a Rotating Tag
Submit Photos to On the Road
Balloon Juice Mailing List Signup
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Links)
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Posts)

Twitter / Spoutible

Balloon Juice (Spoutible)
WaterGirl (Spoutible)
TaMara (Spoutible)
John Cole
DougJ (aka NYT Pitchbot)
Betty Cracker
Tom Levenson
TaMara
David Anderson
Major Major Major Major
ActualCitizensUnited

Join the Fight!

Join the Fight Signup Form
All Join the Fight Posts

Balloon Juice Events

5/14  The Apocalypse
5/20  Home Away from Home
5/29  We’re Back, Baby
7/21  Merging!

Balloon Juice for Ukraine

Donate

Site Footer

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Comment Policy
  • Our Authors
  • Blogroll
  • Our Artists
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 Dev Balloon Juice · All Rights Reserved · Powered by BizBudding Inc

Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

Email sent!