Thoughts on the Trump presidency

[dorsetdesiro]

Possibly a heart attack, nothing sinister?

 

[Killingworth]

Possibly a heart attack, nothing sinister?

But what provoked the heart attack?

 

[edwin_m]

I suggest someone needs to do some pretty thorough toxicology testing as part of the post-mortem.

 

[dorsetdesiro]

But what provoked the heart attack?

Stresses of the job, with the Big Bad Orange Monster as your boss

 

[jon0844]

I suggest someone needs to do some pretty thorough toxicology testing as part of the post-mortem.

While they continue to keep us in the dark on the condition of Mitch McConnell (including whether he's even alive), it did seem a little odd how the statement was made about Lindsey Graham as if he suddenly got ill, died and now it's time to move on - nothing to see here.

Obviously that's more how the media reported it, but they report on what they're told so it still seems a little weird.

I am sure it was just a simple heart attack, but given how important he was in so many ways under the Trump regime (despite having originally been against Trump) it does seem like even tonight there's not much being said and the narrative is to just carry on and forget about it.

Edit: FBI Director, Kash Patel has posted:

The FBI is assisting local authorities and has made every necessary resource available.

So I wonder if he thinks there's a bit more to it than a simple heart attack?

 

[martin butler]

I would think there's as much that we don't know about that we do, same as other senators who seem less than clean, honest people,

One thing though, that I think will be clear, is that once Trump is forced, either by congress or ill health to leave the white house, and things start to become clear, that Trump will be remembered as being the most corrupt president of the US ever,

The trails of his cabinet for various mis use of their office will be headlining news for months, possibly years to come,

 

[brad465]

Tell me you're feeling insecure without telling me you're feeling insecure:

"High-T Department": Hegseth approves testosterone screening in military

Hegseth says he is authorising hormone screening to ensure US troops "operate at your absolute best".

www.bbc.co.uk

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has announced that military personnel aged 30 and older will undergo testing for testosterone deficiency as part of annual health screenings.

In a video posted on X, captioned "High-T Department", Hegseth said he was authorising the screening programme for troops to ensure "you have the right testosterone levels to operate at your absolute best".

Troops with low testosterone levels will be offered voluntary hormone replacement therapy.

Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said: "All Active Duty and Reserve Component personnel aged 30 and older will undergo mandatory screening for testosterone deficiency during their Periodic Health Assessment."

Personnel younger than age 30 would also be able to request the screening voluntarily, Parnell added.

"We owe our warriors the absolute best medical care in the world, and this programme delivers on that obligation," Hegseth explained in Wednesday's video.

"Taking care of your long-term health means ensuring you remain strong, resilient and capable - not just for your next deployment, but for the rest of your life, so you can thrive long after you take off the uniform," he added.

Taking testosterone for non-medical reasons, like artificial muscle enhancement without a doctor's prescription, is strictly prohibited in the military.

Hegseth said in the video that the new programme was "not about artificial enhancement".

In his written statement, Parnell added: "The protocol will enable the Department to establish a comprehensive baseline and offer targeted testosterone therapy, ensuring that it sustains a healthy, capable, and decisively dominant fighting force."

Asked whether both male and female troops would be tested, and if female troops would be able to be evaluated for oestrogen-based therapy as they enter perimenopause, the Pentagon said it had no comment to add to Hegseth and Parnell's statements.

Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, an Iraq war veteran and member of the armed services committee, called on the defence secretary to make hormone testing available for both men and women.

Congresswoman Chrissy Houlahan, a Pennsylvania Democrat and Air Force veteran, dismissed it on X as Hegseth's "latest culture-war obsession".

 

[AlterEgo]

Tell me you're feeling insecure without telling me you're feeling insecure:

"High-T Department": Hegseth approves testosterone screening in military

Hegseth says he is authorising hormone screening to ensure US troops "operate at your absolute best".

www.bbc.co.uk

Finally, HRT in the military.

 

[ainsworth74]

Tell me you're feeling insecure without telling me you're feeling insecure:

"High-T Department": Hegseth approves testosterone screening in military

Hegseth says he is authorising hormone screening to ensure US troops "operate at your absolute best".

www.bbc.co.uk

I'm just glad that the Pentagon has agreed to gender affirming care for at least some of it's personnel.

 

[martin butler]

Clearly, he feels that he needs to be surrounded by big butch men, it must be getting quite crowded in that closet

 

[Bayum]

Slightly off topic, but Mitch McConnell seems ((un)fortunately) still be around…

 

[najaB]

Slightly off topic, but Mitch McConnell seems ((un)fortunately) still be around…

Has there been more than the "proof of life" photo previously released?

 

[jon0844]

Has there been more than the "proof of life" photo previously released?

Satirical image of Mitch McConnell in hospital with other people, including Michael Jackson and Elvis.

 

[brad465]

As always, there is nothing Trump won't corruptly monetise for personal gain:

Trump Media to sell fast feed of 'market-moving' posts to Wall Street

Trump Media is launching a fast, paid feed to its most influential posts for Wall Street traders.

www.bbc.co.uk

Trump Media & Technology Group, which owns Truth Social, is launching a paid service to give Wall Street firms high-speed access to its most influential posts.

Launching 1 August, instant updates will be delivered from key accounts, it said. President Donald Trump currently has the most followers on the platform.

The company behind the app hopes it will create a steady new source of money for the firm which is currently loss-making.

It is likely aimed at financial traders who want to see market-moving news fast. Trump’s social media posts often cause sudden swings in global markets, especially when he writes about trade and tarriffs. For firms, a delay of even seconds can be costly.

Until now, banks and traders had to monitor the app manually. The new system will send posts directly to paying clients.

"Markets already move on Truth Social posts", said Kevin McGurn, the interim boss of Trump Media, adding that the service will create a steady profit.

The new commercial data feed, named Truth API, promises to deliver posts to paying institutional clients in "milliseconds".

The service will run 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The company, which launched its social media app in 2022, said some firms have been copying its data for months without permission.

McGurn warned that Trump Media will soon block these methods, forcing firms to buy the official feed instead.

President Trump could benefit substantially from the move. Since the Trump family remains the majority shareholder in the company, the president stands to profit directly from selling expedited access to his own public statements.

The BBC has reached out to Trump Media for comment to confirm if his posts will be included in the paid feed, but did not receive an immediate response.

While other social media networks already sell data, the move highlights the unique overlap between Trump’s private business and his public role as president.

 

[The exile]

As always, there is nothing Trump won't corruptly monetise for personal gain:

Trump Media to sell fast feed of 'market-moving' posts to Wall Street

Trump Media is launching a fast, paid feed to its most influential posts for Wall Street traders.

www.bbc.co.uk

I suppose that as well as raking in the money it takes the sting out of accusations that those close to him are exploiting their advantage in the first few seconds of legal trading. Those sources woukd of course never dream of exploiting their knowledge of the press-release before it became public. After all, that would be insider trading, but presumably exploiting the fact that you don’t have to read the statement once it enters the public domain isn’t!

 

[The Ham]

I suppose that as well as raking in the money it takes the sting out of accusations that those close to him are exploiting their advantage in the first few seconds of legal trading. Those sources woukd of course never dream of exploiting their knowledge of the press-release before it became public. After all, that would be insider trading, but presumably exploiting the fact that you don’t have to read the statement once it enters the public domain isn’t!

I wonder how far "in the definition public realm" could be pushed?

For example, a truth social post means it's in the "public realm", only those who don't pay can't see it for (insert time period of your choice).

 

[brad465]

This is not The Onion, this is an actual Trump story:

Trump Says Canada Must Pay Extra Tariffs Because Of ‘Filthy’ Wildfire Pollution

Trump accused Canada of “willful negligence” and failing to properly maintain their forests.

www.forbes.com

Topline​

President Donald Trump said he would increase tariffs against Canada over the wildfire smoke causing poor air quality in some parts of the U.S., though it’s unclear exactly what mechanism or authority he will use to tax Canada for the pollution.

The sun rises behind the U.S. Capitol building as smoke from wildfires in Canada fills the air on July 17, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Kevin Carter/Getty Images)
Getty Images

Key Facts​

Trump accused Canada of “not properly maintaining their Forests, and Brush,” and said the U.S. is “being unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted, and unhealthy air” in a Truth Social post Friday.
He said the “cost of this pollution must of necessity be added to the TARIFFS Canada is currently paying.”
It’s unclear how Trump would tax Canada for the smoke as tariffs can only be imposed on physical goods.
Trump said he would call Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to “find out what they are going to do” about the wildfires and air quality.

Tangent​

Most Canadian imports to the U.S. are subject to a 10% tariff, with the exception of goods covered by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement. Canadian-made automobiles, steel and aluminum are taxed at 25%.

 

[edwin_m]

This is not The Onion, this is an actual Trump story:

Trump Says Canada Must Pay Extra Tariffs Because Of ‘Filthy’ Wildfire Pollution

Trump accused Canada of “willful negligence” and failing to properly maintain their forests.

www.forbes.com

Time for everyone else to hit the US with tariffs for their CO2 emissions.

 

[RichJF]

Time for everyone else to hit the US with tariffs for their CO2 emissions.

The same guy that asked if you could nuke hurricanes to make them go away.

How does a country elect someone so stupid? Oh wait...

 

[Annetts key]

Time for everyone else to hit the US with tariffs for their CO2 emissions.

Maybe put the word out that if Trump keeps talking about increasing / adding tariffs, other countries should tax oil and other fossil fuels and associated products that are exported from the U.S.

Make the bully cry is what I say.

 

[edwin_m]

Maybe put the word out that if Trump keeps talking about increasing / adding tariffs, other countries should tax oil and other fossil fuels and associated products that are exported from the U.S.

Make the bully cry is what I say.

Tariffs hurt the exporter who has them applied to their products. They also hurt consumers (including businesses) in the importing country who either have to pay the tariff or to accept a more costly or less attractive alternative product (it must be one or both of these, otherwise people wouldn't have been buying the original product in the first place). So governments applying tariffs should do so in a way that inflicts maximum pain on the exporting country for minimum pain on the importing country. The EU has been quite clever about this in past trade wars, hitting products such as Tennessee whiskey and Harley-Davidsons which are iconic, produced in districts represented by Republicans, and also luxuries rather than necessities and have alternatives produced in other countries. Needless to say Trump considers tariffs to be a sledgehammer, and every problem to be a nail.

 

[najaB]

Tariffs hurt the exporter who has them applied to their products. They also hurt consumers (including businesses) in the importing country who either have to pay the tariff or to accept a more costly or less attractive alternative product (it must be one or both of these, otherwise people wouldn't have been buying the original product in the first place).

Though, only if the imposition of tariffs results in a reduction in sales. It isn't always the case the importers move to an alternative supplier. In many cases there either isn't an alternative, and in others the importers choose either accept a smaller profit margin or pass the costs along to consumers rather than changing their supply chains.

 

[edwin_m]

Though, only if the imposition of tariffs results in a reduction in sales. It isn't always the case the importers move to an alternative supplier. In many cases there either isn't an alternative, and in others the importers choose either accept a smaller profit margin or pass the costs along to consumers rather than changing their supply chains.

If they pass the tariff on to the consumer they probably will lose sales, and/or consumers in the importing country will be poorer. And if they accept a lower margin then that harms the importing company's finances. However it pans out, it's likely the importing country will suffer to some degree from imposing tariffs.

 

[najaB]

However it pans out, it's likely the importing country will suffer to some degree from imposing tariffs.

Agreed. My point was that tariffs don't always hurt the exporting country, especially blanket rather than targeted tariffs.

 

[brad465]

What could possibly go wrong:

US signs landmark nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia - follow live

The agreement could be worth billions of dollars to the US, whose companies could be involved in building a facility to produce enriched uranium.

www.bbc.co.uk

US and Saudi Arabia set to announce agreement on nuclear power deal
​

Washington and Riyadh are set to announce they have reached a deal that would see Saudi Arabia able to develop nuclear power for the first time.

The two countries have reached a commercial agreement for US companies to run nuclear power plants on Saudi Arabian soil, a regional official familiar with the agreement told the BBC's US partner, CBS News.

An official announcement is expected later today.

The deal may allow the Saudis to enrich their own fuel for nuclear reactors, CBS reports.

The companies involved have not yet been disclosed, but Congress would need to be consulted, according to CBS.

The BBC has asked the White House for comment.

 

[SuspectUsual]

The companies involved have not yet been disclosed

Presumably because the Trump family haven’t all bought loads of shares yet

 

[najaB]

Presumably because the Trump family haven’t all bought loads of shares yet

Don't be silly. Of course they've bought their shares. Just waiting for 9AM for the trades to settle.

 

[SargeNpton]

Could be a setback for Trump in his libel case against the BBC.

Judge rules Trump must hand over financial records sought by BBC in defamation case

The judge grants a motion to compel the release of files held by the Donald J Trump Revocable Trust.

www.bbc.co.uk

A judge in Florida has ruled President Donald Trump must hand over financial records sought by the BBC as it defends itself in his $10bn (£7.5bn) defamation lawsuit.

The order came during the first hearing in the case, in which the US president is suing the corporation over an episode of Panorama that edited together different sections of his speech on the day of the US Capitol riot on 6 January 2021.

 

[jon0844]

Could be a setback for Trump in his libel case against the BBC.

Judge rules Trump must hand over financial records sought by BBC in defamation case

The judge grants a motion to compel the release of files held by the Donald J Trump Revocable Trust.

www.bbc.co.uk

In other news, Trump drops his lawsuit....

(That hasn't happened yet by the way, but I suspect he's going to let this fade away)

 

[The exile]

In other news, Trump drops his lawsuit....

(That hasn't happened yet by the way, but I suspect he's going to let this fade away)

I doubt it’ll fade - the BBC will quite rightly want to recover their costs (and possibly now have a claim for defamation themselves -Though I suspect in that front it would be wise to let sleeping rabid dogs lie)