Compiling the Lies and Havoc of the Trump Presidency
Seven articles from this website spotlight “alternative facts,” corruption, incompetence and a sneering disrespect for democracy.
Prologue
I watched shell-shocked as this bright, wonky MSNBC election analyst Steve Kornacki worked his numbers on battleground state maps and gradually and painfully narrowed the chances that Hillary Clinton would be our next president.
Tuesday evening, November 8, 2016.
Florida: down. Wisconsin: down. Michigan: too close to call? And then to my home state of Pennsylvania.
I came to the ghastly realization that I was now living in a red state. I dragged myself down the hall to my bedroom and drowned in shame and regret.
The Articles
I have carefully selected seven articles from Enter, Stage Left that were written in the two years since Trump assumed office. My selection criteria was to cover the central shortcomings of the Trump presidency…with special emphasis on Trump’s chronic deceit.
The articles are presented in reverse chronological order…meaning the first article below was written right after the 2016 election.
Silver Linings Payback (November 13, 2016)
“[Trump’s] thin-skinned impulses and utterances have the potential to do grave damage to the Republican brand. This should bring cheer to progressives who are dreading the unraveling of President Obama’s accomplishments and legacy. It won’t be that easy for conservatives. Remember: Donald Trump is president. The Republican party in now the Party of Trump.
If Trump remains who we know he is, he could drag down the entire Republican Party in the next four years. Keep your eyes on the prize: Capturing the House in the 2018 midterm elections. Regaining majorities of state legislatures and control of the congressional redistricting process following the 2020 census. A silver linings payback. ” Read more…
Trumpsters Now Claim All Mainstream Media Fake News (December 28, 2016)
“Right wing trolls fingered a Washington, DC, pizza joint as the hub of the alleged sex ring. Some weeks later, an armed man, after reading a recycled Facebook post, entered the parlor and fired one shot, scaring the hell out of its patrons and employees. Thus, “Pizza-gate” entered our lexicon.” Read more…
Trump’s Constant Lying has Roots in the Kremlin and Senator Joe McCarthy (August 9, 2017)
“The rise of Donald Trump has brought some unwelcome nostalgia about another political figure who is famous for his attack agenda. Senator Joseph McCarthy (R-WI) used his Senatorial committee in 1950 to make dubious claims about communist infiltration in President Truman’s State Department. “McCarthyism” entered the American lexicon as another word for demagoguery.
“McCarthy and Trump shared similar tactics to intimidate their targets–fear-mongering, baseless defamation, innuendo and showmanship–with today’s Muslims and brown-skinned immigrants taking the place of McCarthy’s communist spies.” Read more…
Taxing Trump. How Do You Lie to the Face of the American People Like That? (December 12, 2017)
“According to the Washington PostFact Checker, Trump has repeated false claims of the bill being the biggest tax cut in US history (40 times), that the US imposes the highest corporate tax rate (19 times), and that the US is the highest-taxed country in the world (31 times).
“All have been proven false or misleading: Treasury Department data predicts that a final bill would rank around number eight (even as they deny that the wealthy would get most of it); US corporate tax rates come with standard deductions, loopholes and benefits; and any internet search would confess that the US doesn’t even make the top 10 of highest-taxed countries.” Read more…
Russia Probe: Paul Manafort’s Secrets are Trump’s Nightmares (February 28, 2018)
“Manafort was paid millions working on behalf of a pro-Putin political party in the Ukraine. He succeeded in getting Viktor Yanukovych–Putin’s boy–elected prime minister of Ukraine as a ‘pro-western democrat.’
“Still, it was so stunning to learn that the Trump campaign worked behind the scenes to include platform language depriving weapons to Ukrainian soldiers fighting Russian territorial encroachment. It contradicted the opinions of most Republican foreign policy experts.
“Of course the Republican National Convention took place while Paul Manafort was chairman of the Trump campaign.” Read more…
Private Prisons the Only Winner in Immigrant Children Tragedy (June 20, 2018)
“President Trump signed an Executive Order to end family separations at the Mexican borders. The document contains no guarantee to reunite the families of the 2,342 children already separated. These kids, many as young as toddlers, are in HHS facilities throughout the country.
“Plaintiffs in a lawsuit to stop family separation contend Trump’s action is as worthless as the fantasies he spins on his Twitter feed.
“The “zero tolerance” policy will still be in effect, so children will remain with their asylum-seeking parents while the parents are prosecuted for “illegal” border crossing, possibly violating a 1997 court settlement that limits the amount of time a child can be held in custody.” Read More…
Impeachment Quagmire: Trading a Bad Liar for a Good One (September 26, 2018)
“Americans caught a first glimpse of Mike Pence’s propensity to lie through his teeth during the vice presidential debate on October 4, 2016. Democratic candidate Tim Kaine of Virginia came out firing with question after question about Pence’s and Donald Trump’s glaring deceptions during the campaign.
“Pence repeated the laughable assertion that Donald Trump would release his tax returns “when the audit is over.” He insisted that Trump had not praised Russian president Vladimir Putin, when numerous statements indicated otherwise.” Read more…
