Trump's Tuesday Speech to Congress

The Democrats are planning to stage a horror show at the presidential address to a joint session of Congress.  They openly speak of; floor demonstrations complete with shaken fists, signs,  illegal immigrants in the gallery, tearful foreign travelers to the US meditating on their inconveniences.  It will be entertaining.

One must ask why Trump is doing this speech at all.  There is not a requirement in law or custom for this. 

IMO he seeks the confrontation in the belief that the Democrats will look foolish and disrespectful to his office.  There is also the possibility that he fears republican support for him is declining in Congress.  He needs that support to pass important legislation like the corporate income tax reduction.   A Democratic "riot" in the capitol might be helpful in rallying Republican support.

IMO his main interest is in staging a scene that will focus middle America on a need perceived by him and Bannon for a cultural revolution in the country.  That might work.  pl

Comments

[Bill H]

This is the same Democratic Party that, after losing the White House and both houses of Congress, reelected both Minority Leaders in Congress, both of whom promptly said very specifically, "I don't think we need to do anything differently." Brilliant.

Now they plan to throw a collective tantrum in the Congressional house, making themselves look like a bunch of five-year-olds. I cannot imagine how they think that this will make the Republicans look bad. This will delight the radical wing of their party, and will convince the rest of the country that they have become utterly irrelevant. I imagine it will send college students to their "safe spaces" in droves.

[Eric Newhill]

Sir,
One hysterical tirade after another, the DNC and allies are pushing themselves further left and further into obscurity. As you note, they are becoming too crazy and "anti-American" for the typical middle of the road citizen to be comfortable associating with them. Trump has purposely been a catalyst for this movement since he announced his candidacy. It's working!

[Morongobill]

Spot on. Perhaps it will galvanize the "silent majority" out of their slumber.

[Degringolade]

Sir:

At the end of the day, Trump is a consummate showman. He is extraordinarily clever and knows that the diluted pablum that the left so enjoys is not fun for the popular audience and it does not keep eyes on him. So the tweets and the playing to the audience is all bent around keeping eyes on him. Going to the Hill and poking the pseudo-bears with a stick will just help him in this effort.

I think that is the key to understanding his presidency. He draws the eyes and the loathing of his political opponents. He hogs the whole spotlight and draws the fire. All the while the folks down in the trenches will bust their butts seeing how much they can deconstruct while eyes are on the good Mr. Trump.

I am one of the low-to-mid-level minions of the federal government. My peers in the belly of the beast have a pretty good idea of what is coming down the pike.

Remember, along with freeing folks from regulation of a bureaucracy, you can also cripple a bureaucracy by adding more internal regulation to decrease its ability to accomplish the external mission. We are just now starting to see that at the VA.

Nope, what Donald tweets about, and what meta-scale fights he picks with the hippies are just window-dressing. The real work is going to be down in the trenches and how much regulatory stripping can be done.

I would posit that Donald is stirring up the shit to keep folks eyes off the prize, the sunsetting of the suspension of the debt ceiling. Granted, it is political drama and not especially a real thing, but that is the club that Donald will use when it comes time, but by stirring up the noise about other things, it keeps the opposition from noticing you moving out your rooks.

Nope, I think that you are right about staging a scene casting the Democrats as a bunch of grown children having a tantrum. That will cripple the Dem's ability to react to the partial unbuilding of the federal edifice.

[robt willmann]

I think that the analysis in the main posting above is correct. I am surprised that the Democrats are even thinking about a demonstration during the speech.

Another aspect is that all the old war horses are gone, such as Robert Byrd, Bob Dole, and George Mitchell (he of the smiling stiletto in the ribs!). They were sticklers for decorum and would not have put up with any sort of demonstration, lurid or not, at a formal speech in Congress, regardless of which political party was involved. As a friend who spent a lot of time in Washington D.C. said, `nobody messed with Bobby Byrd'. Any smart aleck who tried to pull such a stunt in those days would find out the hard way about how internal dynamics and psychology operate in an organization such as Congress.

The senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, is something of an old timer himself, but he does not have the intestinal fortitude of Byrd, Dole, or Mitchell. Nevertheless, he is big on decorum and I think will be outraged if there is any sort of demonstration during Trump's speech.

[steve]

Democrats would be better off just not showing up at all rather than demonstrating. Trump could certainly be counting on his bad behavior to help his cause. I also suspect that this is about his manifesting his authoritarian side. It would not surprise me to see him make relatively frequent trips to Congress, well televised, to make it clear that he is in charge. Congress would do well, if it wants to retain its own influence, to minimize his appearances.

Steve

[Tyler]

Bannon's speech at CPAC told me he (and by extension, Trump) realise that at this point we are "wrestling for the gun" in this country between the two sides. The Deploreables have the wolf by the ears now, but its kill or be killed at this point - the globalists will never allow another Trump, and what they will try to do to him will make the English freak out after Cromwell look measured by response.

Trump is going to need all eight years to even begin undoing the administrative state and train a successor to carry on his work in order to prevent the current Cold Civil War from going hot if there is a change in power, and even then, I don't know if that's possible at this point. The Left in this country seems to be dead set on starting a color revolution/civil conflict based off invisible pretexts only seen to those steeped in the mysteries of their religion.

Tuesday will give us a better idea of where this is all gonna go.

[Tyler]

Steve,

The Dems will be unable to resist showing up, putting on a big show that appeals to biracial transgender Muslim illegal immigrants and their enablers while making Trump look even more sane to the other 97% of the country.

This kind of street theatre is combination tent revival/struggle session to these sorts. Their psychology won't allow them to respond otherwise.

[David E. Solomon]

Hi Eric,

I don't think the Democrats are pushing themselves left at all. That is really the problem.

Bill Clinton somehow convinced the nation that he stood for the same political goals as the Left. I am thinking of things like universal health care and expanded retirement benefits, and also an end to stupid wars.

In reality, the only things that the Democrats hold dear are self-aggrandizement and increasing wealth for the bi-coastal elites.

That holds true for the current and past house and senate leadership.

If we could stop arguing about bathroom rights and other relatively silly topics, we might actually notice that those people labeled as "deporables" by the Clintons, actually have many of the same goals as people on the left.

Regards,

David

[different clue]

robt willmann,

When we consider that these "Democrats" are mainly the Clintonites and the Obamazoids, should we consider the possibility that they are trying to poison the well ahead of time against the Sanderistas so that the TV audience at home will conflate any future Sanderista movements with just more Clintonites and Obamazoids? And that the current Clintobamazoid owners of the Democratic Party understand exactly what Trump and the Republicans really are doing behind the scenes, beneath the stage and in the trenches? And that the Clintobamazoids consider helping the Trumpublicans achieve that to be an acceptable price to pay for preventing the Sanderistas from conquering the DemParty and purging and burning every malignant Clintonoma cell and Yersiniobama pestis plague bacterium from out of the party?

[different clue]

Degringolade,

What you describe sounds like what the Reagan Administration first worked on doing . . . destroying the Federal departments and agencies from within. What percent of Trump voters thought they were voting for that when they voted for Trump? As against what percent of Trump voters thought they were voting to get some of their jobs back from foreign captivity? And voting to prevent any more Forced Trade Agreements and perhaps cancel the ones we are already in?

If the Republicans take this as their chance to Make America Sick Again, Make America Polluted Again, sack, pillage, loot and destroy every thing of value which has not yet been sacked, pillaged, looted and destroyed . . . how many of the non-rich Trump voters will be happy with that outcome?

I realized there was a risk of getting just this result when I voted "for" Trump in order to stop the Clintons before they kill again. And yet the Clintobamazoids are making a desperate effort to keep control of the Democratic Party to make very sure that no-one is permitted anything better to vote for. If we cannot get Obamazoidal Clintonism exterminated from every corner of American political and civic life, then all the pain and collateral damage of the Trump Administration will have been for nothing.

[Dabbler]

Several salient points in the main posting and comments. A synopsis is that Trump is likely bear-baiting to create a show and a distraction while the real action occurs behind the veil. Also to shore up his slightly eroding base. The most effective Dem response would be non-attendance (Trump shaking his stick at empty seats would be theatrically counterproductive), but Democrats lack sufficient discipline and cohesion to pull this off. "I ain't part of an organized political party; I'm a Democrat" - Will Rogers.

Interesting juxtaposition between the upcoming address to Congress and the recent exclusion of many MSM members from the press briefing. More atypical events likely to follow. Pass the popcorn, please.

[different clue]

Steve,

This is the one opportunity that Sanderistas have to avoid getting tainted by the Mainstream Democrat tantrums. The Sanderistas can make very clear that THEY are NOT showing up to ANY Mainstream Democrat tantrums.

How can the very few Sanderista-minded Democratic officeholders separate themselves very visibly from the mainstream tantrum-throwers? By acting polite and respectable in their seats in the House and the Senate, rising when all rise, sitting when all sit, and clapping at all the clap lines.

Meanwhile, Sanderistas on the "outside" could stage counterdemonstration against the Pink Kitty Cap demostrators with signs like #NotMyResistance and so forth.

The Good Ship Clintitanic may be sinking. The Clintonites are determined to sink every Sanderista along with themselves. The Sanderistas have to get in their own lifeboats and get as far away from the Clintitanic as they can in order to avoid getting sucked down with it.

[different clue]

Eric Newhill,

The Pink Kitty Cap left and the NPR Tote Bag liberaleft will do their best to drown and and suppress the New Deal Reactionary Left. They have been very successful so far. They conspired to cheat Sanders out of any hope of primary victory, for example. And they throw every wet blanket of silence they can over every Sanderista they see in order to prevent even the appearance of a possible choice between the Pink Kitty Cap left and the New Deal Revival left.

This would be a fine time for the Sanderistas to save themselves from Pink Kitty Cap contamination and infection by making clear that they reject any unity whatever with the NPR Tote Bag Liberal Democrats.

#PumasOnTheOtherFootNow. I hope somebody on the Sanders side makes that into a #Twitter-hashtag to see how far it can go.

[sleepy]

I can only speak of the "deplorables" in my neck of the woods, in north Iowa and neighboring Minnesota and Wisconsin, but imho they are not interested in any "cultural revolution" or culture wars, but in economic security, i.e., jobs.

[Tyler]

D,

"Slight eroding support"

Lel.

[Eric Newhill]

DC,
If you want a New Deal type leader, then you need look no further than Trump. You can have your cake and eat it too. New Deal and no pink hats, no gender confused bathroom contests, no aggrieved minority gimme dat grandstanding......why look any further than Trump?

[ex-PFC Chuck]

Just saw that Tom Perez was elected to DNC chair. Looks like the party has condemned itself to another decade or two in the political wilderness.

I continue to lean strongly to the hypothesis that the various protests and shenanigans are being carried out at the behest of the deep pocket funders of the Democratic Party for the primary purpose of distracting the party's sheeple voters away from thinking about why so many of their erstwhile base either voted for Trump, a non-legacy party candidate or voted with their butts at home on the couch.

If Sanders wants to continue having a significant impact he needs to formally withdraw from the Senate minority caucus and focus on building a grass roots progressive movement with the intent of either wresting from below the Democratic Party away from Wall Street's strangle hold on it or, failing that, making it into a viable alternative party. It'll probably cost him his ranking member perch on the Budget Committee and perhaps other committee memberships as well, but being in the minority that's not such a big deal.

[Eric Newhill]

DC,
Reading all f your comments here, you seem convinced that there is daylight between the temper tantrum elements and the Sanders elements. I am not so sure about that. The Sanders people consist of a lot of open borders commies and freebie seekers too, from what I've seen.

[FourthAndLong]

Chuck Shumer's idea of Guerrilla warfare. Imagine if the Israelis had him in place of Ben Gurian.

[Tyler]

Eric,

Equal chances on "HELLO FELLOW POPULISTS" false flag or Michael B Doughtery style virtue signalling.

Flip a coin.

[Tyler]

Chuck,

Boy oh boy I hope Keith Ellison does not take that lying down.

[Tyler]

DC,

They elected Trump to stop unelected federal mandarins from:

- Forcing schools to allow boys claiming to be girls to shower with their daughters
- Claiming running water on one's property during rain meant that the property fell under the purview of the Clean Water Act and you needed an environmental study before you could do so much as landscape
- Dumping refugees on their town and claiming that there was nothing one could do about it
- Ordering you to buy a product that did nothing for you, that you couldn't use, and cost you a significant chunk of your income

Just a few examples.

[Eric Newhill]

Dabbler,
"slighting eroding support"?

I was getting a bit to eat today at a local diner and reading our local county newspaper, which is written and edited by the local SUNY faculty and student body and which, therefore is, of course, a pink hat, free the oppressed tansgender muslim dreamers and please, mommie government, give us lots of goodies, type commie rag.

And it too had several hysterically angry opinion pieces going on and on about Trump supporters are now regretting their vote. This must be a new mass hallucination for lefties. I don't know any Trump supporters that are disappointed. Well, I maybe am a little - Trump is being too reticent to begin tossing lefties out of helicopters. I wish he'd just get on with the inevitable ;-), but otherwise this supporter and all that I know are grading Trump at an A to A+.

[Mishkilji]

"IMO he seeks the confrontation in the belief that the Democrats will look foolish and disrespectful to his office."

IMO the precedent for this has already been set by the other side seven years ago.

All the Democrats need to is hold up signs stating:

LIAR