Who would have guessed that Jared was untrustworthy.

[Alli]

Leaked McGahn memo reveals alarms about Kushner's top-secret security clearance

Trump ultimately intervened to ensure Kushner got his top-secret security clearance.

www.axios.com

We knew he was not eligible for a legit security clearance. What else has he done to harm the United States?

 

[lizkat]

Leaked McGahn memo reveals alarms about Kushner's top-secret security clearance

Trump ultimately intervened to ensure Kushner got his top-secret security clearance.

www.axios.com

We knew he was not eligible for a legit security clearance. What else has he done to harm the United States?

Who knows. What we do know is that Trump has exploited every flexibility in the powers granted to his high office to get most of whatever he has wanted.

Watching that happen in both petty and far more significant ways during Trump's time in office has put us in an agonizing bind: the framers of the Constitution understood that in a time of crisis, our head of state needs to be as unfettered as the enemy he faces on our behalf, whether that enemy is a peer head of state or some inanimate situation like a natural disaster, pandemic or economic collapse.

Yet we now see in ways we have never seen before, that it's possible to have elected someone to that high office who will use its powers as he wishes personally, or for his family, without restraint of norms or traditions, and not necessarily to the benefit of other Americans, never mind "all Americans".

When it comes to matters of keeping unusual secrets (Trump's Helsinki meeting w/ Putin comes to mind), or outright coverups (the spinoff of the Trump-Zelenski phone call) or to matters of who gets to see sensitive information gathered by our and allied intel agencies, we begin to understand --if we never did before-- that we are at the mercy of our own assumption that our President, as a public servant, always has American interests at heart even though he's human and can make mistakes. If he puts himself first, however, we don't always have ways of correcting his behavior even with the (usually way too drastic) tools of impeachment and removal from office.

That said -- and so acknowledging that having laws in place doesn't mean a scofflaw will observe them-- we should at least talk about what some legislation to rein in a President run amok on exercising power for personal benefit might look like in 2021 and forward, no matter who wins the election. Even if it's piecemeal legislation aimed at specific threats Trump's behavior happens to have brought to public attention. After all, it's been piecemeal fashion that Congress has implicitly let slide some of its own oversight powers to the executive branch, for whatever reason or just through inattention.

The tricky bit there of course is how a right-leaning Supreme Court of our own times thinks about powers explicitly or implicitly permitted to the president by action or inaction of the Congress in previous years. But I'd be proud to think that Democrats in federal government might join in considering certain restraints upon powers of the presidency, even as a Democrat serves in that office.

For instance, maybe the ultimate power to grant access to intel should not rest with the Presidency. Everyone in that high office needs counsel on such decisions and may or may not get it. But maybe it should be more like the President needs permission to grant access to our sensitive intelligence, not just counsel. Permission from whom, let the arguments begin, so how about next year, and in Congress?

 

[User.45]

Leaked McGahn memo reveals alarms about Kushner's top-secret security clearance

Trump ultimately intervened to ensure Kushner got his top-secret security clearance.

www.axios.com

We knew he was not eligible for a legit security clearance. What else has he done to harm the United States?

Unrelated, but I think he looks creepy AF because of the amount of botox. I think sacrificing facial expressions for a smooth forehead tells you a lot about a person, especially a man...

 

[Mark]

ah, botox explains it. i didn't know that about him.
he's truly a cardboard character of grifters in general.

seriously though, the above arguments are really interesting.

im not making a comparison of america's federal governing system vs. other countries' systems, as i don't know enough info in total to make a useful comparison.
so just talking about USA's federal governing system right now.

if there is one thing that the trump presidency has shown, its that the ways that the Executive branch can stymie ALL attempts (stymie here means: totally shut out completely, or, just delay the entire process for years and years and years; ignoring subpoenas of all kinds and levels, etc etc).
ignoring or finding ways around traditional sole powers given to the House (for allocating money) etc.

so there is a dilemma for America at this crossroads.

is a governmental system that has (pretty much admitted) dictators in place the best way to govern in the 21st Century, or, is a system that allows itself to be stymied at every turn for years, the best.

i don't know.

but what has proven does not work (for the people, that is), is for the president to be able to appoint a corrupt religious bigot as Attorney General, install political appointees to all key posts, ruin the CDC, FDA, FBI, EPA, etc.
can america not be able to do anything about this?

no political will to combat people like jared. do we think that the back channel he was caught trying to establish with the russians was never realised ?
the r party is heavily seeing russia as a like-minded (i did not say fellow traveler) tool that fights for retaining white domination. this is the common thread between putin's russia and trump people and the new r party.

Grassly of Iowa supposedly made his fame in putting into place Watchdogs, etc.
it hasn't worked, when they can be fired and lackeys put in.

there is absolutely nothing stopping any president from doing all of these things now.
the dam has been broken. it will not be able to be forgotten or considered an anomaly.

the American Voter list is too full of people who don't seem to be able to have a lot of discretion or logical thinking.
i know its a criticism, but after 4 years of this guy, and the dems are just barely ahead in the polls, it means the disafected ranks of old white men clinging desperately to power, and a major political party having made itself into a Q anon front, have been able to subvert the will of the actual American majority time and time again.

it is for sure:
in this upcoming election, america will get the government it deserves - whichever way.

 

[User.45]

ah, botox explains it. i didn't know that about him.
he's truly a cardboard character of grifters in general.

seriously though, the above arguments are really interesting.

im not making a comparison of america's federal governing system vs. other countries' systems, as i don't know enough info in total to make a useful comparison.
so just talking about USA's federal governing system right now.

if there is one thing that the trump presidency has shown, its that the ways that the Executive branch can stymie ALL attempts (stymie here means: totally shut out completely, or, just delay the entire process for years and years and years; ignoring subpoenas of all kinds and levels, etc etc).
ignoring or finding ways around traditional sole powers given to the House (for allocating money) etc.

so there is a dilemma for America at this crossroads.

is a governmental system that has (pretty much admitted) dictators in place be the only/best way to govern in the 21st Century, or, is a system that allows itself to be stymied at every turn for years, the best.

i don't know.

but what has proven does not work (for the people, that is), is for the president to be able to appoint a corrupt religious bigot as Attorney General, install political appointees to all key posts, ruin the CDC, FDA, FBI, EPA, etc.
can america not be able to do anything about this?

no political will to combat people like jared. do we think that the back channel he was caught trying to establish with the russians was never realised ?
the r party is heavily seeing russia as a like-minded (i did not say fellow traveler) tool that fights for retaining white domination.

Grassly of Iowa supposedly made his fame in putting into place Watchdogs, etc.
it hasn't worked, when they can be fired and lackeys put in.

there is absolutely nothing stopping any president from these things now.
the dam has been broken.

the American Voter list is too full of people who don't seem to be able to have a lot of discretion or logical thinking.
i know its a criticism, but after 4 years of this guy, and the dems are just barely ahead in the polls, it means the disafected ranks of old white men clinging desperately to power, and a major political party having made itself into a Q anon front, have been able to subvert the will of the actual American majority time and time again.

it is for sure:
in this upcoming election, america will get the government it deserves - whichever way.

I think Trump's presidency has been the best indicator as to how much the US system relied on decency. Even Nixon had some of that. The way to fight it is to A) Punish indecency through voting. B) Elect decent people. C) Make people accountable after (*and for the love of God, during*) their terms. The sad thing is that if we miss any of these 3 things, we'll lose.

**BTW the botox thing is my hypothesis, but the guy's forehead totally paralyzed. Even his eyebrows have only a minimal twitch in them.

 

[User.45]

I think Trump's presidency has been the best indicator as to how much the US system relied on decency. Even Nixon had some of that. The way to fight it is to A) Punish indecency through voting. B) Elect decent people. C) Make people accountable after (*and for the love of God, during*) their terms. The sad thing is that if we miss any of these 3 things, we'll lose.

**BTW the botox thing is my hypothesis, but the guy's forehead totally paralyzed. Even his eyebrows have only a minimal twitch in them.

I'll express my opinion this... Botox lasts about 3 months, then the motor nerves regain their function. What happens if botox get applied repeatedly is that the muscles atrophy. So it is a recurring decision to sacrifice facial expression for a smooth forehead. I also think it is not even attractive in men, and I suspect Ivanka just dragged him to her botox appointments.

 

[fooferdoggie]

what a dishonest slumlord who would have thunk it?

 

[chagla]

what a dishonest slumlord who would have thunk it?

aren't they all?