Thoughts on the Trump presidency

[Trackman]

Discussed in the following video:

Judge Andrew Napolitano quotes in the video: 'There's something seriously wrong with him' - 'Don't believe anything that he says'

 

[Bantamzen]

Breaking news!

Trumps just watched Ch4's Suez documentary (we've just watched the first part, what an eye opener, thoroughly recommend it) and has finally realised what a complete f---up he's presided over, so he's declared an indefinite ceasefire extension...

Nah, he wouldn't have the attention span to watch it if it doesn't include him. The reason he changed his mind was because it was TACO Tuesday again!

What did make me laugh was that hours before, press secretary Karoline Levitt was busy shouting on a TV interview how Trump never backs down and always follows through with his plans (in reference to his latest threat to level Iran). She must be p***** right now, and more than a bit worried that she's being pushed towards the front of the Trump Blame Bus.....

 

[martin butler]

Also, I have read somewhere that the general in question has been sacked can anyone confirm this?

If this is true, it does run with how Trump reacts to being told no, A full blown tantrum, followed by the removal of the person who stood up to him, This actually is scary, especially if he is replaced by someone who will always do as told,

 

[jon0844]

You've got to think that every time he TACO's and extends he's making the Iranian's hand look stronger and stronger.

Trump is making Iran look like the good guys, while also helping boost the sales of EVs, solar panels and batteries, making Governments accelerate their plans for renewables infrastructure, and I think Lego sales are probably on the up too!

 

[Annetts key]

What did make me laugh was that hours before, press secretary Karoline Levitt was busy shouting on a TV interview how Trump never backs down and always follows through with his plans (in reference to his latest threat to level Iran). She must be p***** right now, and more than a bit worried that she's being pushed towards the front of the Trump Blame Bus.....

Karoline Levitt is the Trump administration version of Comical Ali (Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf - former Iraqi minister of information). But far less entertaining. She is now known for her unwavering backing of Trump including her giving inaccurate information, deflection and attacking reporters when they are asking legitimate and relevant questions but which are awkward for the administration.

 

[najaB]

Karoline Levitt is the Trump administration version of Comical Ali (Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf - former Iraqi minister of information). But far less entertaining. She is now known for her unwavering backing of Trump including her giving inaccurate information, deflection and attacking reporters when they are asking legitimate and relevant questions but which are awkward for the administration.

As noted previously, she's less 'Comical Ali' and more Ri Chun-hee - aka the North Korean "Pink Lady".

 

[SuspectUsual]

She is now known for her unwavering backing of Trump including her giving inaccurate information

Or in everyday English, being a liar

 

[martin butler]

Karoline Levitt is the Trump administration version of Comical Ali (Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf - former Iraqi minister of information). But far less entertaining. She is now known for her unwavering backing of Trump including her giving inaccurate information, deflection and attacking reporters when they are asking legitimate and relevant questions but which are awkward for the administration.

Is she the one Trump said, she's got a mouth like a machine gun, I thought porn stars was more to his liking

 

[dorsetdesiro]

The womens' tennis team had their photo taken with you-know-who, the optics here seem so wrong. Him, right in front & centre, yep with thumb up and grinning like a loon with the ladies peering over behind him and his lackeys

Is she the one Trump said, she's got a mouth like a machine gun, I thought porn stars was more to his liking

Also she was also known in New Hampshire political circles as KKKaroline for her ultra conservative leanings which the New England states are not really known for being right wing as others like Kentucky & Texas etc

 

[brad465]

If this guy had given Trump a backhander before doing this, he'd be off the hook:

US soldier charged after winning $400,000 betting on removal of Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro

Gannon Ken Van Dyke allegedly made trades on Polymarket on the basis of classified information, the justice department says.

www.bbc.co.uk

A US special forces soldier involved in the military operation that captured Nicolas Maduro has been arrested after he allegedly bet on the removal of Venezuela's former leader before the information was publicly available.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged Gannon Ken Van Dyke after he allegedly made trades on Polymarket, a crypto-powered platform, on the basis of classified information.
"That is clear insider trading and is illegal under federal law," justice department officials said.
Van Dyke, an active-duty soldier in the US Army stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, won more than $409,000 (£303,702) as a result of his bets.
US forces seized Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores from their compound in Caracas in a dramatic, night-time raid on 3 January, and brought them to New York to face allegations of weapon and drug offences, which they deny.
Van Dyke allegedly placed bets on the timing and outcome of the operation, known as Operation Absolute Resolve, "all to turn a profit", the justice department said in a statement on Thursday.
The DOJ alleges that on or about 26 December 2025, Van Dyke created a Polymarket account and began trading on Maduro and Venezuela-related markets. He is accused of making bets of more than $33,000 (£24,500) while in possession of classified nonpublic information about Operation Absolute Resolve.

 

[YorkshireBear]

If this guy had given Trump a backhander before doing this, he'd be off the hook:

US soldier charged after winning $400,000 betting on removal of Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro

Gannon Ken Van Dyke allegedly made trades on Polymarket on the basis of classified information, the justice department says.

www.bbc.co.uk

I'm sure a pardon is being scrambled for this patriot.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 24 Apr 2026 ==

All good fun. The nursery school playground that is international relations continues to give.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cde51y0zgjyo

No 10 says Falklands sovereignty rests with UK after report of US 'review'

Downing Street has said the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands "rests with the UK", following a report the US could review its position on the British claim to the territory.

The same internal Pentagon email, which was first reported by Reuters, suggested measures the US could pursue in retaliation against allies it believed had failed to support its campaign in Iran.

Asked about the report, a No 10 spokesman said: "The Falkland Islands have hugely voted overwhelmingly in favour of remaining a UK overseas territory, and we've always stood behind the islanders' right to self-determination and the fact that sovereignty rests with the UK."

BBC News has not seen the Pentagon email.

The prime minister's official spokesman also said the government "could not be clearer about the UK's position", and that "sovereignty rests with the UK and the islanders' right to self-determination is paramount".

He continued: "We've expressed this position previously clearly and consistently to successive US administrations and nothing is going to change that."

BBC News has contacted the Pentagon about the reported email.

The Falkland Islands review was one of a number of measures suggested in the email, including that the US could seek to suspend Spain from the Nato military alliance over its strong opposition to the Iran war.

A Nato official told the BBC that the organisation's founding treaty "does not foresee any provision for suspension of Nato membership, or expulsion".

Earlier, Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said: "We do not work based on emails. We work with official documents and official positions taken, in this case, by the government of the United States."

The Falkland Islands, a British overseas territory in the south-west Atlantic Ocean, remain the subject of a sovereignty dispute between Britain and Argentina.

A 10-week conflict in 1982 was triggered when Argentina's military dictator, Leopoldo Galtieri, ordered his country's forces to invade the islands.

Then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's government sent a naval task force to recapture them.

Argentine forces surrendered, but the country still claims sovereignty over the Falklands, which it calls the Malvinas and which lie about 300 miles east of Argentina.

 

[The Ham]

All good fun. The nursery school playground that is international relations continues to give.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cde51y0zgjyo

Which leads to the question, do all the UK political parties have a similar stance over choosing between Trump and the Falklands?

 

[najaB]

Which leads to the question, do all the UK political parties have a similar stance over choosing between Trump and the Falklands?

All the major parties do, as far as I know.

 

[Gloster]

I'm sure a pardon is being scrambled for this patriot.

Possibly, if they want to close the matter down. However, they are hardly likely to care about such a small time player. Jeez, only $409,000, that’s nothing to what the friends and family have been making. We shall care for those who make a fortune, not some two-bit small guy.

 

[The exile]

Possibly, if they want to close the matter down. However, they are hardly likely to care about such a small time player. Jeez, only $409,000, that’s nothing to what the friends and family have been making. We shall care for those who make a fortune, not some two-bit small guy.

And issuing a pardon is only likely to draw more attention to the whole topic. Just watch out for the next diversionary tactic.

 

[najaB]

Just watch out for the next diversionary tactic.

What level of diversion are we up to now?

 

[The Ham]

All the major parties do, as far as I know.

I'm mined to agree, however it does potentially weaken those who don't want to align with the EU in favour of better trade with the US.

 

[weeklycommuter]

All good fun. The nursery school playground that is international relations continues to give.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cde51y0zgjyo

Trump has made clear that he very strongly supports the President of Argentina Javier Milei who has declared he supports the US-Israel war against Iran though, unlike the UK, Argentina has not AIUI provided the US military with any facilities to use in military action against Iran.

Clearly the UK Labour Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has responded quickly to reports about this Pentagon email by making clear that sovereignty of the Falkland Islands rests with the UK and the UK Labour Government will not compromise on this. The real question is how this affects UK public support for politicians and parties including Farage and Reform UK that are seen as supporters of Trump. Downing Street probably regards this Pentagon email as a political gift two weeks before what are likely to be a very difficult set of elections for the Labour Government.

 

[najaB]

I'm mined to agree, however it does potentially weaken those who don't want to align with the EU in favour of better trade with the US.

The main one of them being Reform - whose supporters likely are of the ilk who believe the world was better when one third of the globe was coloured pink. I can't see giving up British territory going down too well with them.

 

[The exile]

What level of diversion are we up to now?

Klingon invasion threat?

 

[Altnashin]

The main one of them being Reform - whose supporters likely are of the ilk who believe the world was better when one third of the globe was coloured pink. I can't see giving up British territory going down too well with them.

Remember that Javier Milei is President of Argentina, Trump is a fan, and if I remember correctly, so is Farage.

 

[najaB]

Remember that Javier Milei is President of Argentina, Trump is a fan, and if I remember correctly, so is Farage.

While that is true, you can't simultaneously wrap yourself in the flag and also support surrendering British territory to another power, especially against the clearly-expressed wishes of the British people who live there.

IIRC, the last time the question was asked Falklanders supported remaining British with something like a 90% vote.

Edit: Just checked, it was actually 99.8%.

 

[The exile]

Edit: Just checked, it was actually 99.8%.

So a maximum of 7 people against (fewer than that of course as some of the population will be below the voting age).

 

[Altnashin]

While that is true, you can't simultaneously wrap yourself in the flag and also support surrendering British territory to another power, especially against the clearly-expressed wishes of the British people who live there.

It wasn't that long ago that certain sections of social media were begging Trump to intervene in UK affairs.

 

[Krokodil]

All the major parties do, as far as I know.

Other than one Green Party candidate for Islington who is Argentinian herself.

Trump has made clear that he very strongly supports the President of Argentina

Argentina has a long history of harbouring Nazis who've fallen from power. Miller must be making sure that he's secured his place.

They've even chucked $20bn of US taxpayers' funds at Argentina, as billionaire friends of the administration have bet heavily on the peso.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 24 Apr 2026 ==

So a maximum of 7 people against (fewer than that of course as some of the population will be below the voting age).

1,513 votes in favour, 3 votes against, 2 spoilt ballots.

 

[dgl]

Also Trump was trying to get Spain kicked out of NATO as they wouldn't help him with the Iran war only to be told by the head of NATO that it doesn't work like that.

 

[GusB]

If the US is so concerned about countries with overseas territories, perhaps we should look at Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Guam, etc., or maybe hand Alaska back to Russia.

It's a bit rich, considering that it's casting its greedy eyes on Greenland and Cuba!

 

[Strathclyder]

All good fun. The nursery school playground that is international relations continues to give.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cde51y0zgjyo

Petulant, thin-skinned little cretins throwing a fit cos we ain't bending the knee and kissing the ring of the Orange Fart Cloud. Surprised it took them this long to throw the toys out the pram in this particular way.

The whole lot of them can just sod off and that's, in the increasingly strained channels of diplomactic language of course, is what Starmer's told them to do. Though I really am beginning to think that Starmer needs his own Luther-style anger translator just for dealing with Trump/the US, so he can tell him where to shove it without saying himself.

 

[Killingworth]

It's all very well us in the UK, most of the rest of Europe and the world thinking Trump is an idiot but possibly 30% in the US apparently don't and their wishes still dominate.

He can do a massive amount of irreparable damage to the entire world in his remaining two and a half years. On his usual form he'll ensure he leaves smouldering time bombs for his successors to defuse.

The scope for total bloody mayhem is vast! Can we do much to stop him? Probably not but the King may have a quiet word.

 

[The Ham]

There's a good reason I'm not a diplomat as I'd be tempted to say:

"The UK has never shirked from supporting Allies who have legitimately triggered Article 5 when they were attacked; do so and we will help"