Talking to Bozo
Another Trump transcript, this one of an interview with CBS for Face the Nation.
They start with North Korea. There was that missile test yesterday. It was a small one, Trump says, as if that makes a difference.
But he understands we’re not going to be very happy. And I will tell you, a man that I’ve gotten to like and respect, the president of China, President Xi, I believe, has been putting pressure on him also.
As if it’s meaningful that he’s “gotten to like and respect” Xi. He likes and respects anyone who puts on a good act for him. He has all the insight of a dish sponge.
JOHN DICKERSON: The Chinese, our allies, have been allies with North Korea. How are you sure that they’re not using this as a way to test you?
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: You can never be sure of anything, can you? But I developed a very good relationship. I don’t think they want to see a destabilized North Korea. I don’t think they want to see it.
That delusion again. He thinks it’s personal, and he thinks he’s good at it.
The relationship I have with China, it’s been already acclaimed as being something very special, something very different than we’ve ever had. But again, you know, we’ll find out whether or not President Xi is able to affect change.
No. No it hasn’t. That’s delusional.
A comedy interlude:
TRUMP: You know, it’s very funny when the fake media goes out, you know, which we call the mainstream media which sometimes, I must say, is you.
JOHN DICKERSON: You mean me personally or?
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Well, your show. I love your show. I call it Deface the Nation.
No wonder he has such great relationships with all the people.
JOHN DICKERSON: What do you know now on day 100 that you wish you knew on day one of the presidency?
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Well, one of the things that I’ve learned is how dishonest the media is, really. I’ve done things that are I think very good. I’ve set great foundations with foreign leaders. We have you know — NAFTA, as you know, I was going to terminate it, but I got a very nice call from a man I like, the president of Mexico.
I got a very nice call from Justin Trudeau, the prime minister of Canada. And they said please would you rather than terminating NAFTA — I was all set to do it. In fact, I was going to do it today. I was going to do as we’re sitting here. I would’ve had to delay you. I was going to do it today. I was going to terminate NAFTA. But they called up and they said, “Would you negotiate?” And I said, “Yes, I will negotiate.”
Because he got a nice call. Because they are very nice. Because he likes them. The man is a stone genius.
JOHN DICKERSON: Presidents have to learn how to adapt. Every president comes into the job, it’s different than they expect, they must adapt. Surely, you’ve learned something else other than that the media is dishonest.
Nope.
Then they talk about the new health care bill, and they go back and forth on whether or not pre-existing conditions will be covered, for real, and that won’t be left up to the states. Trump keeps saying yes yes, and Dickerson keeps pressing for assurances. Then we get
JOHN DICKERSON: But on that crucial question, it’s not going to be left up to the states? Everybody gets pre-existing, no matter where they live?
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: No, but the states–
JOHN DICKERSON: Guaranteed?
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: –are also going to have a lot to do with it because we ultimately want to get it back down to the states.
JOHN DICKERSON: Okay. Is it a guarantee?
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Look, because if you hurt your knee, honestly, I’d rather have the federal government focused on North Korea, focused on other things, than your knee, okay? Or than your back, as important as your back is. I would much rather see the federal government focused on other things–
Yes yes yes totally covered – but we don’t want to cover your knee, dude, because we have other things to do.
Then they talk about his tax returns. He’s still being audited. He thinks it’s very unfair.
Because he likes them. The man is a stone genius.
That reminds me of Willy Loman’s oft-repeated “That man was well-liked” — it’s the same delusional mindset about what moves the world. And we know how well that turned out.
I’m not American and don’t have much more than a basic knowledge of the workings of the U.S. government, but even so, I’m pretty certain that the government dept. that deals with healthcare is not the same dept. that would be focussing on N. Korea. In any case, surely any government worthy of the name can cope with two things at the same time – even if its leader can’t keep a single coherent thought in his head for any longer than it takes to think it.
“Look, because if you hurt your knee, honestly, I’d rather have the federal government focused on North Korea, focused on other things, than your knee, okay? Or than your back, as important as your back is. I would much rather see the federal government focused on other things–”
But what does Trump know about North Korea?
He sounds like the guy who never studied, trying to bluff his way through the teacher’s questions.
Reminds me of this (which I could not find on Youtube)
Here is comedian David Steinberg’s old routine about taking an exam when you are so clueless, you don’t even understand the question:
(As if reading the test question:) “Refute the allegation that the literature of the middle ages was moribund.”
(As if writing:) “Some believe that the literature of the middle ages was moribund. Some believe that the literature of the middle ages was not moribund. I believe that the literature of the middle ages was not moribund. In order to refute the allegation that the literature of the middle ages was moribund, one would need to have a detailed knowledge of the literature and history of that period.”
(Whispering to self) “which I wish to God I had.”
Except Trump would not even have enough introspection to even think the final line.
What a fuckin’ idiot.
I assure you, my dish sponge has much more insight than Trump. It has enough insight to realize it is a dish sponge and not a vacuum cleaner. I know this, because my dish sponge has never once tried to vacuum my floors. But Trump does not have that much insight. He is a poorly educated barely literate person with no knowledge that counts, and he believes he is a genius. So he tries to run a government that is larger than he knew, and he takes on a job that he didn’t realize required real work. He is much less insightful than a dish sponge that never pretends to be anything but a dish sponge.
I can’t bear to listen to him. Especially now, when he’s talking about a war with North Korea like it’s aboard game. He’s so stupid and – vulgar, is the word I’m looking for.
No it has not been acclaimed as that or as anything else. It continues to astound me that someone so utterly obsessed with himself pays so little attention to the things he actually does, says, and knows.
And his example of the fundamental unfairness of the media is… NAFTA, and how he “decided” not to scrap it after he got some phone calls? (Wha?)
Everything about this nobody is grating.
Re learie/can’t bear to listen to him:
Likewise. I was trying to work out the scope of that the other day, the reason or probably many reasons _why_ he’s so annoying…
A huge part of it: the grating combination of a) incredibly dumb. and b) incredibly, arrogantly confident, and thus obviously also c) utterly oblivious. It’s a bit like hearing an internet kook who didn’t even take high school physics and is now on about how the world is out to suppress whichever brilliant discovery of a perpetual motion machine. And, worse, in his case, people actually put up with it, because, well, I guess, he’s (technically, for now, anyway) the president of the US… Man’s too clueless for any cure to this; even if people _did_ just say ‘Fuck, but you’re an idiot’, say to hell with it, and and walk out to get a beer, but you kinda wish they would, all the same, just to see him treated with all the respect and seriousness he’s otherwise have earned…
… and that’s a lot of it, I think. It’s how, in a lot of cases, you can get to a point where you can mostly just ignore these idiots; they gravitate to whichever embarrassing corner of the web to talk amongst themselves. But, then again, sometimes they get into the school board, or whatever, become a real problem, if, you know, you’d like your children actually to learn things in school. This is like that on steroids. You _can’t_ ignore him, because of the office he now holds, but ignoring him is really all he’s ever merited. And this, too, is infuriating.
(Oh. And you hear me, certain asshole idiots who elected and promoted him? We all know, of course, this is most of the reason some of you _did_: because all you’re any damned good for is breaking things, and because you _wanted_ the the relatively informed and slightly less nihilistic than yourselves to be infuriated. Good job then; it worked…
But reminding you, even though you probably already know and don’t much fucking care: mostly, you’re just fucking _everyone’s_ world up, including your own, and wasting everyone’s time. As usual, in the case of the Pepe crew… Well done; you have achieved your high ambition.)
… anyway, and all that said: I _might_ watch this one, if I’ve a minute later. Maybe turn on subtitles and mute while Trump’s slobbering out loud the way he does, in a mockery of language; at least it keeps the pollution he represents out of the audio. In this case, just to see Dickerson’s reaction. Man does have a way of letting people show their stupid in bright highlighter. Maybe a bit redundant, in this case, but might be a mite diverting, I guess.
It’s also how this fool assumes he knows more than anyone else about everyone, and we’re all five-year-olds. Because he just learned the basics the day before. “There are things called nuclear weapons. They’re bad.” Nu-clear wea-pons bad. Got it. What’s next?
Right, Ben. For him, it’s perfectly obvious that, if he just learned it, no one else knows it, either. Because he’s like a smart person. So a smart person would know things, and since the rest of us are not like smart people, we wouldn’t know these things.
But the EPA has just removed content from their site, announcing that they can’t have information on the website contradicting the actions taken over the past two months, it seems unlikely he will continue to learn things. His mind will remain mired where it is, because he is being protected from the consequences of his own actions. The site now says that it is being updated to better reflect the priorities of President Trump and Administrator Pruitt. Scary.
You know, it seems like a big mistake to me that any agency created by Congress for a purpose like that should have a leader appointed by the President. This agency should not be reflecting the president’s priorities (no matter who that president is) but the mission that it was created to serve. This particular agency has been a political hot potato ever since it was created, so there can be little consistency in standards and expectations. Wouldn’t it be better for business if it were just a tad more consistent so they would know where they stand?
iknklast @10: The good (not awful?) news for today is that Trump the Negotiator sucks at negotiating (surprise), so he caved on practically everything to avoid a shutdown. The EPA’s budget will be reduced (for now at least) by about 1% (with no staff cuts) and not the ~30% Trump was looking for.
That is much better news. The EPA really needs a budget increase, but with this Congress, all one can hope for is that they don’t lose too much.
And it is highly unlikely Scott Pruitt will cave. During the Reagan years, Anne Gorsuch was able to do plenty of damage.
Trump is that guy at the bachelor party who brags about how much the stripper really liked him.
(The best bachelor parties do not involve strippers. In part because it encourages such assholery.)
How I wish there was a way to turn on the subtleties! Oh. Guess I just missed one.
Anyway, he does share one quality with a dish sponge: the ability to produce lather.