It’s telling that there’s no Impeachment thread on VS...

[BBB]

How can you not remember the Tour de Trump? From the video...”Trump had big plans, of course. “This is an event that can be tremendous in the future, and it can really, very much rival the Tour de France,” he told NBC.”

Remembering The Tour De Trump, Donald Trump's Failed Bike Race

Medalist Sports: A Microcosm of U.S. Cycling - PezCycling News

I did actually think of that, but discarded it. Still, a Russian rider won the first ever stage...

[HorsCat]

“For once in his life, Donald Trump has got something he earned.”
- David Frum

[Cookietruck]

^ lololol, that is good.

congrats to trump on his impeachment legacy. brings some accuracy to his brand.

[Mabouya]

I wonder how all those Tulsi supporters feel now.

Voting "Present" - what a cop out.

[Corso]

there's a lot more poor argument techniques being used here which reduce the level of discourse well beyond what some consider bad words.

I'm in tears reading this quote from you considering the rants you have recently posted. Amazing, but keep it up!

[Blue Jays]

"...I'm in tears reading..."

Agreed 100%.
The more emotionally-driven posts throughout the thread are the true comedy gold.

In 2008 when Senator McCain lost and in 2012 when Senator Romney lost...my response was to shrug my shoulders.
I certainly did not perseverate on President Obama for the next two terms like folks do about President Trump.
That was a cue to relax and pretty much "watch from afar" until we received what became a glorious opportunity in 2016.

[theflashunc]

Agreed 100%.
The more emotionally-driven posts throughout the thread are the true comedy gold.

In 2008 when Senator McCain lost and in 2012 when Senator Romney lost...my response was to shrug my shoulders.
I certainly did not perseverate on President Obama for the next two terms like folks do about President Trump.
That was a cue to relax and pretty much "watch from afar" until we received what became a glorious opportunity in 2016.

You were a rarity then. See the Tea Party and Mitch McConnell for starters. Then the Birther movement.

[Blue Jays]

"...You were a rarity then. See the Tea Party and Mitch McConnell for starters. Then the Birther movement..."

I was pretty much just focused on work, family, friends, and riding for two terms.
I figured I did not have "a dog in the fight" and turned elsewhere.
Same hobbies and life drive me now...with extra added interest of presidential politics.

[Colinmclelland]

Colinmclelland...the reason I do not use profanity is because I consider you all friends and we're just chatting.

I must be a bad person, but I swear quite a bit chatting with my friends, including occasionally at them. They do likewise. It might be because they lack an extended vocabulary. I know that's not my issue because it turns out I am part of an educated elite.

Strangers and acquaintances might take it the wrong way. Tend not to swear with them unless I'm not leaving any room for interpretation.

[Corso]

As for name calling: I'm called (or labeled as the left likes to do) a troll simply because my viewpoint does not align with (no one in particular) you? I've been called worse. If it make you feel better, so be it.

Politicians have called the President everything imaginable- and that's called "hardball politics" by some here. Trump name calls and he's "not worthy of the office"... The political arena has to have the same rules, so if Nadler, Shumer & Co can name call, why not Trump? I wish he wouldn't, and it doesn't please me when he does, but I'm not going to call for him to resign for it.

Some choose to ignore the Trump twitter crap just as many ignored Clinton's numerous affairs.

The surveillance of candidate Trump was based on a "fake news" foreign dossier paid for the Dems, pushed by the Dems, FBI misleading the FISA court, and possible ties may lead back to Obama's administration.


Foreign influence by an American President to spy on and influence the election. Sound familiar? Under Obama.

THAT is how this entire shit show began. Let's not forget that folks.

Vote today turned out as expected, except it looks like the Republicans are fired up and solidified. Pelosi didn't want this, and her experience was overruled by the desperation of her party to have a solid nominee.

[Blue Jays]

/\/\/\
Speaker Pelosi was (correctly) furious when the floor burst into applause/cheering.
She wisely recognized immediately how those optics would look to folks at home.
It eliminated the earlier "somber" narrative in less than three seconds and she knew it.

[BBB]

The surveillance of candidate Trump was based on a "fake news" foreign dossier paid for the Dems, pushed by the Dems, FBI misleading the FISA court, and possible ties may lead back to Obama's administration.


Foreign influence by an American President to spy on and influence the election. Sound familiar? Under Obama.

THAT is how this entire shit show began. Let's not forget that folks.

I'm not so sure that's true.

Trump's campaign did have contact with the Russians and this pre-dated the FBI's involvement. The FBI became involved when a drunken member from Trump's campaign (since jailed) blabbed to Australia's High Commissioner to London (who was previously Australia's Foreign Minister) that the Russians had dirt on Clinton. This was relayed through official diplomatic cables and became the basis for the FBI's involvement. The recent report into the FBI's actions found:

The Inspector General finds that the FBI had sufficient grounds to open a probe given the Australian government's "trustworthy" reputation and the fact Downer had provided first-hand information.

"This information provided the FBI with an articulable factual basis that, if true, reasonably indicated activity constituting either a federal crime or a threat to national security, or both, may have occurred or may be occurring," Horowitz writes.

It wasn't based on a "fake" (a Trump description) dossier (and I'm not sure that anyone has found that the dossier was fake).

The Russians tried to, or did, interfere with your election. Your security services tried to nullify this. People from the Trump campaign have been thrown in jail as a result. I'm not sure what the problem here is. Isn't that what security services are meant to do (and do it in relative secrecy)?

[theflashunc]

President directly asks a foreign leader in a call rwsfout he provides to the public for aid in investigating a political for, and then had multiple members of his cabinet and administration confirm that.

But that's not soliciting foreign influence in an election. Instead, this 15 step pile of nonsense that doesn't even directly tie back to the guy who wasn't even running for the office he was term limited out of was.

Sure. Totally makes sense.

[bironi]

Back to the O.P.
It's telling..........
Yes, it is.
Some dogs will sink their teeth and never let go.

[Matthew Strongin]

As for name calling: I'm called (or labeled as the left likes to do) a troll simply because my viewpoint does not align with (no one in particular) you? I've been called worse. If it make you feel better, so be it.

Politicians have called the President everything imaginable- and that's called "hardball politics" by some here. Trump name calls and he's "not worthy of the office"... The political arena has to have the same rules, so if Nadler, Shumer & Co can name call, why not Trump? I wish he wouldn't, and it doesn't please me when he does, but I'm not going to call for him to resign for it.

Some choose to ignore the Trump twitter crap just as many ignored Clinton's numerous affairs.

I snipped the bits on the dossier because others have already addressed that point. The rest of this is a strawman. While having an affair and twitter trolling teenagers and using pejoratives to describe people are all unbecoming, they are not the same. What someone does in private is between them and their spouse. How Trump conducts himself on the world stage has real implications. And even then, people operating in good faith aren't arguing for his resignation or removal based on being a crass bully*. It's the evidence of actions ranging from unconstitutionality to illegality.

*As an aside, if I found out that any of my employees spent hours a day on twitter, we'd have a serious conversation about work performance, but hey, he's the boss of the White House so I guess he can eff off all day if he wants.

[Matthew Strongin]

President directly asks a foreign leader in a call rwsfout he provides to the public for aid in investigating a political for, and then had multiple members of his cabinet and administration confirm that.

But that's not soliciting foreign influence in an election. Instead, this 15 step pile of nonsense that doesn't even directly tie back to the guy who wasn't even running for the office he was term limited out of was.

Sure. Totally makes sense.

Is there a term in psychology that describes a preference for believing the most convoluted, farfetched explanation rather than the simple, likely one? If not, it should be called MAGAphoria.

[Octave]

Is there a term in psychology that describes a preference for believing the most convoluted, farfetched explanation rather than the simple, likely one? If not, it should be called MAGAphoria.

Hickam's Dictum. It's the inverse of Occam's Razor.

"A man can have as many diseases as he damn well pleases."

[Matthew Strongin]

Hickam's Dictum. It's the inverse of Occam's Razor.

Thanks! Though I like MAGAphoria better.

[jclay]

Except for the gravity of the situation I'd think it comical that any adult could observe Trump's general manner of behavior, read the Mueller report, observe and listen to those who gave testimony concerning Ukraine, listen and note the timing and context of him saying that “we need for you to do us a favor” to the Ukrainian President, hear Trump's public invitation (and attempt to normalize his behavior) for other governments to investigate his political rivals, see obvious and naked obstruction of justice and Congress, see Trump and his family benefit financially from his position, and deny that he has misused the power of his office and betrayed the public trust.

It's just laughable to think that his “we need for you to do us a favor” missive was anything but a thuggish attempt to strong-arm president Z in support of re-election efforts. It is similarly laughable, even ignoring the timing, that his “I don't want any quid pro quo” was anything but a smokescreen.

Half of the country is in denial of actions that in any non-contentious context would be considered slam dunk evidence of serious wrong doing. And if all of this were about Hillary, Obama or Bill? His supporters would be apoplectic....furious...and rightly so.

Of course Hunter Biden's appointment was a case of who you know (or are related to in this case), not what you know but that has exactly zero to do with what Trump has done. From where I sit the Bidens are minor leaguers in the influence peddling world when compared to Trump and Family, not that that makes it palatable. Closing the door on influence peddling in government in general is what we would be should be doing. But none of that changes the fact that any dispassionate analysis by any adult who's been halfway around the block would conclude that Trump is guilty as hell and should be impeached, removed and prosecuted.

As to the blather about the dems wanting to overturn the election, that's not what's happening; it's not possible. It's not like Hillary will become president or the Senate will suddenly turn blue. We're gonna get Pence, an unchanged Senate roster and I'm thinking that this impeachment may well not be good for 2020 Democratic prospects.

Every Republican Representative has betrayed their oath of office and the people of this country. Yesterday was a crap day.

[monadnocky]

Is there a term in psychology that describes a preference for believing the most convoluted, farfetched explanation rather than the simple, likely one? If not, it should be called MAGAphoria.

Well, yes, in a sense: psychosis.