For those who are wondering: Russia does not have an extradition treaty with the US. https://t.co/nu50jNvVr7
— Slava Malamud (@SlavaMalamud) October 17, 2020
Translated: He's definitely looked at extradition scenarios.
— Schooley (@Rschooley) October 17, 2020
— kilgore trout, kiss me mr. president (@KT_So_It_Goes) October 17, 2020
Would Trump get Secret Service protection in prison? What about if he flees to Russia?
— Dana Houle (@DanaHoule) October 17, 2020
Hell, I'll make it a First Class ticket. https://t.co/AYEiACHbYV
— Laurie Garrett (@Laurie_Garrett) October 17, 2020
I just imagine Trump in Russian exile, calling into Fox & Friends, being put on hold.
— Schooley (@Rschooley) October 17, 2020
Silver lining, he’ll be lucky if he’s not under court supervision, with his every phone call monitored.
Medium Cool with BGinCHI – Places!
Fraud Guy
I hear Gitmo has space…
Roger Moore
I’m worried that if he goes into exile, the Republican propaganda network will present him as being the president in exile, forced out of the country by a Democrat coup. Of course they’d do something similar if he were prosecuted for his crimes. Since we can’t let him escape without consequences, we’re just going to have to figure out how to deal with the propaganda one way or the other.
dmsilev
I still think he’s going to tell the crew of AF1 to take him to Moscow, and then be very surprised when the plane lands in Idaho.
dmsilev
@Roger Moore: The organized GOP per se is going to want to unperson Trump as quickly as they can, and that includes Fox etc. The actual voting base of the party though, yeah it’ll take a while before they forget their messiah.
TS (the original)
@Roger Moore:
No sane country will take him. Not sure he wants to spend the rest of his life in a flat next door to Edward Snowden. He really doesn’t know enough about the US and its government to be worth much to Russia as a source of information.
Emma from FL
@Roger Moore: I really don’t think they will. Putin will cut his losses. He’s a realist. Having Trump and his brood around gives him no leverage, and he has big problems of his own.
Mike G
@dmsilev:
Now where have I heard of this scenario before…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicolae_Ceau%C8%99escu
Roger Moore
@dmsilev:
I think he’s a tiny bit smarter than that. If he does flee into exile, I expect him to come up with a plausible, job related reason to go to his chosen exile spot a while before January 20th and then just refuse to come home at the end of the trip. I could also easily imagine him assuming the indictments can’t come down fast enough to keep him from leaving if he waits a day or two after inauguration day to leave. He might even be right. The main thing that I would expect to make him lean toward leaving before his term is up is that it would give him a good reason to avoid being in town for Biden’s inauguration.
HumboldtBlue
Michael Myers of Decatur (Ind.) is back on the streets seeing as it’s October.
Here he is last year out for a ride.
Here is a recent sighting on the way to school.
Roger Moore
@TS (the original):
Just try to convince him of that. His decision will be made based on his own judgment about his worth, and we all know how inflated that is. Besides, I can imagine Putin keeping him on as a symbol to Russia about how badly he can punk his enemies.
RandomMonster
I fantasize that Putin will deliver one last humiliation to US standing by finally releasing a pee tape.
piratedan
and as much as I can share the idea of just getting the bastard gone, he needs to go on trial. All of the people that broke the laws with him need to answer for their crimes. If you coordinated cash with a foreign power in accepting money or logistical help, you need to do time. If you broke laws, national or international, you need to do time.
period….
the only way to get it thru to these fuckers is to make them pay a price… I don’t want to hear about how vindictive they’ll be, they’re already separating families and keeping them in lock ups unconstitutionally, they’re already sending goon squads to break up protests, they’ve already seized land, violated tribal treaties, defrauded the public, perjured themselves, committed treason.. I don’t want to hear about how angry they’ll be about holding them accountable. Fuck them, you do time, you pay a financial penalty, we get to illustrate what an evil set of bastards you were just so you could continue to enjoy your “white” lifestyle. You’ll get a fair trial and if you’re just an incompetent, ignorant fuckwit, you’ll probably walk with what remains of your reputation… enjoy.
the show is over and we’re going to be under new management.
Anne Laurie
The theory I’m seeing — from the Never-Trumpers as well as Democrats — is that Donald Trump is already dreaming of his post-presidency as an endless buffet of flying around the country on a plane painted like AF1, performing at ‘rallies’ where he can pump out the greatest hits for his loyal supporters. All the fun, none of the boring responsibilities!
Not sure he’s actually capable of thinking that far ahead, but I don’t think the Permanent GOP is gonna be as supportive as he imagines. The best he can hope for, from them, is being memory-holed while they root around for a better standard-bearer. And that’s assuming Thiel, Koch, and Mercer don’t approach Putin to bargain for a more permanent solution to this noisy, money-wasting embarrassment.
Calouste
@TS (the original):
That still leaves quite a few options. Russia, Saudi-Arabia, Brazil, and probably at least a dozen others.
If he flees I don’t think he has to worry about the court ordering a tap on his phone, the CIA will probably be doing that before he’s even out of the country.
BlueGuitarist
Saw at Wonkette that Democratic US Senate candidate in Tennessee, Marquita Bradshaw “a long shot – which is why she jumped out of a perfectly good airplane (with a parachute), encouraging Tennesseans to take a ‘leap of faith’ for her campaign”
thought of “Subaru Diane”
https://twitter.com/matthewrpark/status/1309629329886908417?s=20
TS (the original)
@Roger Moore:
I don’t consider Russia in the sane group. I am trying to think of another country that would want him.
….
….
….
No thoughts.
TS (the original)
@Calouste:
Hopefully they have been doing same for quite some time.
The Oracle of Solace
I have long felt it is not out of the realm of possibility that Trump will announce he is going to Russia at the end of January to close the Trump Tower Moscow deal, and then simply not return. Putin can prop him up as a president-in-exile and use him to continue to damage the United States, even if Trump never sets foot outside his penthouse apartment high above the Moskva River again. I don’t think it likely, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it happened.
West of the Rockies
@HumboldtBlue:
What was that? I know who Michael Myers is, of course, but… I guess I’m just not sure if the wife is really angry, if they’re going for creepy or funny or what… Maybe my funny bone is out of whack tonight.
TaMara (HFG)
@BlueGuitarist: HIckenlooper did that with his Gov campaign. Worked for him….
Mary G
This thread and the replies:
The Moar You Know
The GOP will unperson him faster than they did to W. Putin won’t let him in the country. He doesn’t have any money, so the Emirates is out, and that they enthusiastically use the death penalty for defaulting on debts makes that a no go zone for him. He has nowhere to go.
Bruuuuce
If he makes it out of the country (possible before his term ends, improbable afterward) and heads for Russia, Vlad will welcome him with open arms and a nice, quiet, out of the way dacha. Then, after about six months (or however long it takes to get what little classified information the Ex actually memorized out of him), there will come a sad announcement that he dies “from natural causes.”
Which would be a shame, because he deserves to be put into jail for numerous criminal offenses, and then have every penny stripped away in civil suits, and awarded to the SPLC, Planned Parenthood, and BLM.
the pollyanna from hell
It will be interesting to see a fascist refugee advance the legal theory of the stateless person. Extraordinarily rendered.
HumboldtBlue
@West of the Rockies:
I wish I could link to their latest but it’s completely for the laughs.
Roger Moore
@The Moar You Know:
You mean the same W who promptly started featuring in “Miss me yet?” billboards? That W? W kept a low profile after leaving office for his own reasons, not because he was made an unperson.
Captain C
@Roger Moore:
Plus, it will be more convenient if/when Putin (or some other irate creditor) decides to dispose of him.
Arclite
The Biden Justice Dept absolutely needs to indict Trump. This isn’t “revenge” or anything petty like that. This is about letting future politicians know that you can’t blatantly flout the law and get away with it.
Arclite
@Fraud Guy: “I hear Gitmo has space…”
I hear they have great music too.
Bruuuuce
@Arclite: Let NY and other states take their swings first. Their investigations are well along and charges are likely ready to drop on January 20, while anything federal has been tainted by this Administration and its stench (coming down from the top, in waves off of Bill Barr). And if The Hague wanted to discuss family separation, children in cages, forced sterilizations, and other such things, it would be a pleasure to provide a taxpayer-funded ride there for Cheetolini.
THEN, after we’re sure the DoJ has been cleaned out of the Trump crud, it can bring all the obvious charges (emoluments, the Hatch Act, etc) and whatever else they may have solid evidence for, across this entire dumpster fire. (But if they focused on Barr, Jared, and McConnell, dayenu.)
the pollyanna from hell
If Drumpf manages to slip away from his guards I’m sure civic minded benefactors will offer a bounty.
HumboldtBlue
There is a moment in time and in a competition where it all stops and you realize immediately Alfonso Ribeiro is a better dancer than you will ever be.
Kent
@piratedan:
Yes, but the real way to make them pay a price is to trash the filibuster, expand the courts, ram the most expansive voting rights act through that contains an absolute right to vote and a complete end to every form of elections fuckery, and implement the most sweeping permanent progressive agenda ever.
Also empower the IRS to go after ever damn 1% GOPer with a rectal exam to shake loose the trillions that they are hiding.
Make the Russian oligarchs pay for fucking our election by confiscating every dime they have within US reach and sanctioning the hell out of them.
Then take down Fox news, pull big money out of politics, and everything else we can think of to ever let them back into politics.
And yes, sic the DOJ on everyone in the Trump orbit.
The problem isn’t Trump. It’s the whole fucking GOP. They need to be extinguished.
I’d like to see the Trump clan serve time as much as anyone. But there are bigger fish to fry as well.
Roger Moore
@Bruuuuce:
The one advantage of Trump fleeing would be most people would see it as an admission he did something wrong, especially if there are no immediate indictments.
HarlequinGnoll
The phrase that comes to mind for this situation is ” pour encourager les autres”
Redshift
@Roger Moore: “Miss Me Yet?” billboards appeared in 2010, not “promptly.” But it’s true that the GOP started trying to separate themselves from Bush when he became unpopular, not after he left office. Trump won’t let them do that because he demands loyalty to himself, regardless of what’s good for the GOP.
Possibly the best case scenario is if Trump retains his appeal to the base even after losing, rendering surviving office-holders unable to distance themselves from him even as he’s clearly despised by most of the country.
What can I say, I’m an optimist…
Bruuuuce
@Roger Moore: His cult would justify it somehow. Probably as fleeing oppression. You’re right, a majority would see it for what it was — but 30-35% are likely to QAnon it, and that’s a lot of potential problems waiting to raise their ugly heads.
Kent
He’s not going to flee the US.
He’ll settle comfortably into a red state with a MAGA governor like Mar A Lago and use all the campaign cash he is accumulating and not spending to endlessly delay any legal action and use the friendly courts he appointed to squelch any proceedings.
Meanwhile he’ll surround himself with a bunch of sycophants and spend the rest of his days calling into Fox News.
Eventually it will become parody and then farce and he will be like Jim and Tammy Faye Baker doing late night infomercials.
Arclite
@Kent: While Biden strikes me as a bit too conservative to pack the courts, one thing I think he is willing to do to greatly overcome the Dems structural deficit RE: the EC and the Senate is adding new, small, and pro-Dem states to the union: DC, Puerto Rico, and Guam.
oatler.
In Don De Lillo’s “Libra” Oswald defects to Russia for his supposed knowledge of the U2 spy plane but they ended up booting him out. What kind of supposed knowledge would Trump have?
mrmoshpotato
@Mary G: I hear RoJo humped a moose when he was being a traitorous bastard in Russia on the 4th of July.
James E Powell
@Redshift:
If memory serves, Bush had trouble getting Republicans to support the bank bailout. They were setting themselves up for life without him and it worked. The shit all fell on Obama.
HumboldtBlue
Here’s some puppet work that is out of this world.
mrmoshpotato
@HumboldtBlue: Yip yip yip yip yip yip yip.
frosty
@Kent: This actually seems like the most likely scenario. I just don’t see him and the clan going into exile. I don’t see prison either. But late night infomercials and staying barely ahead if his creditors will have to be good enough.
Mary G
Don Jr. is falling apart. He thinks Twitter and Insta have throttled him but I think Vlad has retired some bots.
Amir Khalid
I’m not convinced that, should he lose, there’s a realistic option for Trump to leave the US during the transition period. He’s supposed to be doing the transition to the Biden administration. US Government aircraft won’t take him, and he’s not allowed to fly commercial. Maybe he could pay a people-smuggler to sneak him into Mexico in the boot* of a car.
*boot — BrEng for trunk.
Bruce K
With regard to voting rights, I think we need to submit a new amendment to the Constitution: basically a copy of the 26th, except replacing “on account of age” with “for any reason”.
John Revolta
@HumboldtBlue: I remember that bit! When I was in college Sesame Street was still new and weird, and after some chemical refreshments it was some of the best entertainment on TV.
Stuart Frasier
@Bruuuuce: Note: Trumpie died on the way back to his home planet.
mrmoshpotato
@Mary G: Hahaha. Sounds like someone needs to lay off the nose candy.
mrmoshpotato
@Amir Khalid:
That would an ummmm….. interesting choice given what he said about Mexico and Mexicans in 2015.
I would imagine Dump getting many boots – kicking him in his fat, orange, fascist ass.
mrmoshpotato
@John Revolta: Wet Paint
HumboldtBlue
@John Revolta: @mrmoshpotato:
Y’all motherfuckers are old.
But groovin’.
joel hanes
@TS (the original):
If Trump has enough money squirreled away (and I assume that the very competent Weisselberg has taken care of that for him), I’m guessing Dubai or Bahrain.
– corrupt high-rise resorts
– year-round golf
– savagely oppressed servant class
– no extradition
John Revolta
@mrmoshpotato: @HumboldtBlue: In NYC I would occasionally run across the Muppets shooting a movie or something. Saw Big Bird in Central Park one time, and Gonzo (with Frank Oz’s hand up his butt) over by Grand Central. I got pretty excited.
Amir Khalid
@mrmoshpotato:
On second thought, could an obese 6-foot man even fit into a car boot? Hmm …
Ruckus
@Roger Moore:
I actually expect him to leave after he loses and well before Jan 20.
mrmoshpotato
@Amir Khalid: Smuggle him over in a 53′ semi!
Amir Khalid
You guys might find this YouTube channel interesting: Malaysian husband, American wife, living in America. This video has them spending a whole day speaking only Malay.
Amir Khalid
I hope to see the Republican party, not just Trump lose the election, and have to hear this song.
JoyceH
@Amir Khalid:
Here’s how I see it going down. He has AF1 fly him to Mar A Lago. The Trump jet is warmed up on the tarmac. Eric Prince’s mercs are waiting and provide cover for him as they fend off the Secret Service while he hustles aboard Trump Force 1. And away he goes.
But the truth is that’s too energetic for him in his current state. I suspect he’ll fly to MAL for ‘the holidays’ and then just stay there. I surely don’t expect any high level member of this administration to lift a finger to assist in the transition.
JoyceH
@JoyceH: (Replying to myself) – I talked of the transition like it was a done deal – I expect Toby Ziegler to show up to demand that I go outside, turn around three times and spit. “Do you want to risk the wrath of the Whatever from high atop the Thing?”
JR
Chickens, hatched, etc, we need to beat this guy.
JWR
In the unlikely event that Trump actually does go into exile, it would really shock, (or excite, who knows?), the Fox/OANN news crowd, not to mention the typical American journalist, if he were to appear behind a desk in Moscow, smirking that rictus smirk and speaking perfectly inflected Russian while revealing himself as one of Putin’s high-level military agents!
Speaking of humor: Dueling Town Halls – SNL Cold Open
It’s about 12 minutes, and yes, (spoiler-alert), nodding lady behind Trump’s left shoulder, who I couldn’t help but notice during the actual debate, is, um, mentioned? ;)
Aleta
@Amir Khalid:
Bahasa Melayu sounds beautiful. Thanks.
Ian
7911184″>@James E Powell: Yes and No. Yes, the republicans in the house more voted against doing the bank bailouts than for it. They were obviously positioning themselves for post-financial crises, on the most important votes in the financial crises. The Senate republicans, Bush, Paulson, and McCain were all for the bank bailouts, so to say republicans were against it is a bit of mixed bag.
As to the blame falling on Obama, well that was gonna happen. Most voters don’t have a 30/40 year long term memory of economic issues, and generally blame or credit the president in office for the current state of the economy, which he(and one day she) generally has far less direct control over than most Americans assume.
Sally
@Bruuuuce: It’s my understanding that The Hague only take cases where the home country is not equipped to try an alleged criminal. I could be wrong, but I don’t think they’d try U.S. cases. At least, not under a Biden presidency!
Gin & Tonic
You people are delusional. Trump will never leave the US and will never be prosecuted. Take that to the bank.
satby
@Amir Khalid: Cute family and funny video! Then I got sucked into the reaction one ?
Burnspbesq
He has enough equity in various real estate holdings that Dubai will let him in, and that unique brand of tacky is right up Trump’s alley. That’s been my choice for a while. Although I don’t rule out the possibility that he will overestimate his ability to beat the rap and stick around.
Burnspbesq
@Gin & Tonic:
on what do you base that whimsical notion?
Gin & Tonic
@Burnspbesq: The US is a “look forward, not back” country with no appetite for prosecuting former leaders. And Trump won’t go anywhere else because he can’t stand to be anywhere that’s not the center of attention.
Like I said, take it to the bank (but wear a mask.)
Enhanced Voting Techniques
Also he will promptly announce he’s running in 2024 because he only had one term, deserves two more for the A+ job he did. So endless fundraising rallies as self proclaimed president in exile.
Enhanced Voting Techniques
@oatler.: Oswald did deficit to Russia, and then defected back when instead of being treated like a hero the Russians gave him a job in factory.
fancycwabs
I can totally see him fleeing to Russia.
Then having his assets seized and bank accounts locked, with assorted country clubs and hotels becoming new Federal buildings after a substantial and thorough fumigation.
BC in Illinois
I think that Trump’s future — in terms of location, stature (even among the “base”), and criminal exposure — will be decided on January 20th, 2021, when Joe Biden declares the Freedom of Information Administration to supplement the Freedom of Information Act.
FOIA request for documents that should have come up in the impeachment trial?
Coming right up.
FOIA request for [this]? [that]? [the other thing]?
Do a security check and then send it all out.
To any reporter, any investigator, any student writing a term paper.
I expect many problems to be solved by the FOI Act, under the FOI Administration.
kindness
If only Trump runs off to Russia to escape extradition. Putin would put him up and use Trump on the world stage for a bit. Then Trump being Trump, he would con & burn some Russian Oligarchs. Then Trump would mysteriously ‘jump’ through a plate glass window from a penthouse of some Moscow sky scraper. If only.