Trump spoke in front of a fake presidential seal that included a Russian symbol. How it got there is a mystery. https://t.co/og3IF926cQ
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) July 25, 2019
At least, to paraphrase Dave Barry, we old people are guaranteed jobs for life, because the Young Repubs keep stapling their hands to their mouse pads…
… Following a 12-minute video illustrating Trump’s rise to the presidency, music blared as the president’s name flashed across a giant screen in a bold shade of red. Trump took the stage and soaked in the raucous cheers from hundreds of young supporters packed inside the Marriott Marquis in Washington.
Charlie Kirk, Turning Point’s outspoken founder and executive director, was on his left. But the image on the screen to Trump’s right — captured in dozens of photos and videos from the event — is less familiar.
The image almost resembles the official seal of the president; but a closer examination reveals alterations that seem to poke fun at the president’s golfing penchant and accusations that he has ties to Russia. Neither the White House nor Turning Point know how it got there or who created it.
The eagle has two heads instead of one — a symbol historically tied to empire and dominance. It closely resembles the bird on the Russian coat of arms, and also appears on the flags of Serbia, Albania and Montenegro. Its left talons, rather than clasping 13 arrows, appear to clutch a set of golf clubs.
(Also, it looks like the eagle is clutching a wad of cash in the talons of its right foot.)
According to Turning Point, the audio/visual team helped create and coordinate the graphics, images and videos displayed at Tuesday’s event — including the official seal shown behind Trump’s flashing name on the screen.
The Turning Point spokesman said the team was made up of staff from his organization and from the hotel. On Wednesday evening, he was still working to determine who, exactly, was responsible…
Employees at the Marriott Marquis say the hotel generally does not furnish images or video for groups hosting events there. The venue only provides the space and the technology, such as televisions and projectors. The hotel’s event manager who helped coordinate the summit did not return multiple phone messages requesting comment Wednesday.
An online search for the same image yielded no matching results…
LOLOLOL picturing Charlie Kirk trying to figure out who did this like a tight-ass dean in a frathouse movie.#ChugALugHouseIsUnDefeated #NerdlingerFTW https://t.co/u4WcLR14sN
— Zeddy (@Zeddary) July 25, 2019
plato
So much for the yung’uns are color blind and are not bigots any more theory.
jl
DemocRAT Moles in the in the Turning Points graphics team? Or it’s been infiltrated by 4Chan, trolling for the laughs?
No one noticed? Everything about this story is hard to believe.
We are being ruled by idiot goofs. In addition to all the other things wrong with them.
Litlebritdifrnt
I find it amazing that today Mueller basically said, under oath, to Congress that “Yes, POTUS is a crook and should be impeached” and all of the online pundits are saying “meh” how did we get here?
misterpuff
Staggering Incompetence and Stupidity Thy Name is Trumpism.
Brachiator
Swear to Zod, this thing sounded like a Hitler Youth rally.
And this was also where Trump told this strange lie about the Constitution.
Trump never stops. He makes it sound as though the Constitution is his personal chew toy.
I wonder if the adult supervisors later corrected Trump’s lie or just let it ride.
jl
Or, maybe Turning Point graphics team thinks that’s what the presidential seal should look like, customized for their hoped for president for life Trump?
Wiki says a lot of organizations and countries use the double headed eagle symbol. So probably it refers to one of those. Could refer to Perth, Scotland. Trump has a golf course in Scotland. There you go. Or a tribute to the Mercian Brigade. The Trumpster flunkies’ explanations will be fun to read if you don’t have anything better to do, like watching dishes dry or grass grow.
jl
@Brachiator: Sounds like he has lost his damned mind. Onset of dementia. Beside being absurdly ignorant and wrong, it makes no sense.
jl
@Brachiator: Sounds like Trump has lost his mind. Onset of dementia. Besides being absurdly ignorant and wrong, it makes no sense.
Aleta
Soon to pretend that it was planned as a joke to entertain his young supporters of whom there more than a billion.
He has a letter from one in his pocket.
Brachiator
@jl:
I think it’s garden variety megalomania.
Take his recent remarks about Afghanistan.
I bet he was getting excited contemplating out loud all the destructive power available to him.
I’m not sure whether these episodes are increasing, but Trump is getting a thrill telling people how bigly he is.
I'll be Frank
Ok, now the Russians are just showing off, yes we are pownd
HumboldtBlue
There is always Melania … or maybe not.
Aleta
@Brachiator: Yes, some things about him remind me of a childhood friend who later told me about his grandiose thinking before treatment. As a teenager/20-something, his honest plan was to first be elected president, then become so popular that he would be asked to become president of the world. He says it was very hard to get over. (For years after giving that up, he still planned to become a famous musician star, etc.)
BlueDWarrior
@plato: they are on balance, but how many people are under the age of 21 in our fair nation?
Mirror the 30% of Trump’s hardcore supporters onto them, and you got millions that will gladly shove thier peers into the camps to bring about God’s Kingdom.
Aleta
@Aleta: Forgot to say, after president of the world he believed he would be asked to be king.
Iirc he designed his own crest too.
Inventor
@Aleta: Did he have a bullfrog friend named Jeremiah?
cain
Start a whisper campaign on 4chan and 8chan saying it was Qanon + OKeefe.
Aleta
@Inventor: In high school he would sing To Dream the Impossible Dream in the hall, no joke.
Brachiator
More from Trump’s speech to the kids.
Evidently, Trump is making plans for Nigel. He only wants what’s best for him.
Trump sees himself as co-prime minister of the UK. I wonder if Boris got the memo.
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-49094775/trump-farage-and-johnson-are-going-to-do-tremendous-things
Wapiti
Trump clearly got punked by Turning Point if they provided the slides. No one can be so incompetent that they didn’t control their slides and computer.
Sister Golden Bear
@Brachiator: And for those who didn’t get the reference.
#NewWave
Bart
Once upon a time some dude on Twitter posted an image of Charlie Kirk next to some right-wing celeb, but he had altered it to make Kirk look even tinier than he already is.
Then that altered image was used by Kirk and others in promo material.
Because those bozos couldn’t figure out that it was fake and made fun of Kirk.
That’s the kind of galaxy brains we’re dealing with here.
Brachiator
More on the fake seal.
plato
Can’t fix your self-created problems? Blackmail. So trumpian.
cain
@plato:
Well, they could kill a bunch of people.. and gosh what will happen then? Assholes.
Brachiator
@plato:
Smart money says this version of the 737 is done. Government bailout around the corner?
prostratedragon
In which Richard Burton portrays Robert Mueller’s translator.
JWR
God, why oh why does Colbert have Chris Wallace, calling today’s hearing a disaster? Fortunately, Colbert is pushing back on this right-wing version of Chuck Todd.
prostratedragon
@Sister Golden Bear: Thanks, a new one for me, and good.
Aleta
Impeachment proceedings would ruin Christmas.
Melania Trump @FLOTUS
#Christmas planning has begun in the East Wing at the @WhiteHouse. I’m looking forward to sharing our final vision for this unique tradition in the coming months.
(Dems hate baby Jesus.)
MomSense
@Litlebritdifrnt:
Chuck Todd was concerned, concerned I tell you, about the optics.
When Mueller tells you he is worried that the president is compromised that should be an oh shit red alert moment even for the pundits.
BlueDWarrior
@JWR: because he was previously booked and Wallace is who he is. I am not fully comfortable with making booking decisions a totally ideological/partisan litmus test.
Though if someone like Colbert got so fed up he decided not to book certain prominent conservatives, I wouldn’t blame him either.
rikyrah
Katie Hill (@KatieHill4CA) Tweeted:
Republicans JUST blocked 2 election security bills — hours after Mueller said Russia is actively trying to sway the 2020 elections — showing in plain sight that they’re willing to dismantle our democracy & take help from our most dangerous adversary to win https://t.co/yfEdJr7v7U https://twitter.com/KatieHill4CA/status/1154184118093041664?s=17
prostratedragon
@Brachiator: As they say in Hollywood, there’s a tango for that:
prostratedragon
@Aleta:
Phrasing! (Remember last year’s Christmas in the Black Lodge?)
BlueDWarrior
@rikyrah: the biggest problem I have had with the media through this whole sad, sordid affair is WHY it’s only the decidedly liberal pundits that are by at large shouting about the Republicans caring so little about truly fair elections that the myth of millions of illegal and duplicate votes holds more sway than the reality of a multi-level disinformation campaign by Russia (et al) still being waged against us.
What is it going to take for non-liberals to realize the Republican party, from bottom to top, is an organization dedicated to no less than absolute control of society? That as far as they are concerned, the only real Americans are (white) conservative ones?
prostratedragon
@rikyrah: Action time. As commenters on that twitter thread pointed out, the States can counter treachery from the federal level, at least to some extent.
I should get some sleep, but something is really bugging me.
Matt McIrvin
@BlueDWarrior: Maybe non-liberals do realize that; they’ve just decided that if democracy is over they ought to be on the winning side.
JWR
@BlueDWarrior:
Oh, I know all that, and my comment was meant rhetorically. But as for giving Colbert veto power over who’s going to be on, or not, that I’m all for.
JWR
@JWR: Adding… One guest I really wish Colbert would veto? Chris f*ing Christie, who seems to have found that talking over Colbert before finally bringing out the “hard stuff”, (Liquor), and they guffaw and a wonderful time was had by all. It’s kinda sick, much the way David Letterman used to fawn over Brian Williams, (which was truly disgusting.)
Aleta
@prostratedragon: ainalem eybdoog
JPL
MSM will be all over the phony seal. Never mind I forgot that the president is a republican.
Chris Johnson
About as accidental as the white power signs the Trumpers flash.
MSM will be all over the phony seal, huh, JPL? I’m going to predict that the NYT mysteriously never sees this little detail. For SOME REASON it won’t be part of the reality they present. Can’t imagine why not.
If I told you this would happen because the elaborate Russian operation running the President and the Senate are at the ‘drop a pile of hints/reminders’ stage, you’d have called me a madman. (not that Balloon Juicers don’t enjoy doing that anyway, just for fun :D )
Look at it. This is a thing now. This is where we’re at.
And again, much like ‘Epstein attempts suicide’, this is not for the hoi polloi. This is a signal for those who are compromised to be really paranoid, to panic, and to conclude that we are so completely owned that it’s best to not fight it, to shut up or even work to further the Russian control out of fear they will turn their double-headed eagle eye on YOU and then go and hurt you, no matter where you are, as an example to the others.
That’s how this type of warfare is done. Mueller’s right that it’s a big deal. It’s our shame that our own corruption and greed in the West led us to this pass, but corruption and greed is not the only thing we’re about. I say, get to the bottom of the Epstein/Trump/Russia thing, and expose everybody who’s guilty, no matter who they are. If they’ve got Dems, expose them too. It’s gonna be mostly Republicans, and some of the Tea Partiers are willing idiots: the real culprits here are Beltway types and the names of bad actors we’ve been seeing for decades now.
sherparick
@Wapiti: You have not been observing the rather narrow talent range of Trump or young Charlie Kirk, young Right-Wing grifter on the make. Attention grabbing PR and thuggery is about the extent of their skill sets. Attention to detail, strategic planning, and vetting your team members for possible moles, not so much.
Enhanced Voting Techniques
@jl:
4Chan and young Republicans the same from what I’ve seen, They are Republicans because they are nihlist and don’t like the Democrats because the Democrats belive in something.
Lawrence
Another All Up In My Snatch moment.
Enhanced Voting Techniques
@Chris Johnson:
Over think things much?
Epistine is a convinced child abuser and child abusers having long been the victim of choice in jails. The fact that he is rich and douchy Master of the Universe who thinks he’s above the law type likely means the guards just weren’t looking, for reasons.
According to my Russian friend the Russians in general find Trump and his admin so contemptibly pathetic they openly mock him in their press. That fake seal is Russian humor as she described to me with each detail a lovingly done dig at the target; the motto in Spanish, not Latin (he can’t tell the difference between a Romance Language and the Romans), golf clubs instead of arrows (because he’s coward and thinks he mocho because he plays golf) and so on. The only message is “look at this idiot, he so dumb he won’t even notice us insulting him to his face” English humor is irony, American humor is sarcasm, German humor is hyper exaggeration and Russian is elaborate insults.