Politics

[mdwest]

Trump nominates Mike Huckabee as ambassador to Israel

Im going to guess there is going to be a LOT of message traffic between Qatar, Lebanon, Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas over the next few weeks... things just got a whole lot worse for them than they originally imagined when they first heard the news last Tuesday...

Huckabee in that job is a "we are all in" statement from Trump on his position regarding support for Israel (not that anyone should be surprised).

Homeboys are going to need a serious, no shit exit strategy (that Israel will agree to) that they can have completed by mid January 2025, or my guess is the consequences are going to be severe... not only will all of the "humanitarian" funding dry up, but so will any/all other funding to all of those states/organizations.. and our position I am sure will turn from passive to active support of Israel (advisory support, munitions, intel, etc..etc..)..

While I am doubtful.. it wouldnt surprise me if that active support turned kinetic in pretty short order if Trump believes that is whats necessary to put Iran and its proxy groups into deep check... I dont see "troops on the ground"... but my jaw wouldnt drop if a news cycle in mid March wasnt dedicated to a carrier battle group blocking all ships from approaching Gaza from the Mediterranean.. and multiple MQ9 and MQ20 sorties being flown over the West Bank taking out targets..

 

[WAB]

Frankly I couldn’t care less.

Why in the world do you come on this forum? Is it just a vain attempt to make everyone else as miserable as yourself?

 

[Hogpatrol]

 

[sgt_zim]

+1

Life is a roller coaster.. Ive definitely experienced my share of ups and downs... but its been a rare moment (perhaps never happened at all) that politics has had much influence on my happiness... other than maybe occasionally getting frustrated and having to turn off the TV a few times back when we still had cable television (we killed cable at the end of the last Obama election cycle and have never looked back)..

Ive had a great career and have ascended to a position at least a few rungs higher on the ladder than I ever envisioned.. and have managed to spend most of my adult life in career fields and working with and for people that I truly love..

While we are far from "rich".. we are financially secure, and live a very comfortable existence.. there are always a few things I "want", but there is nothing I can imagine that I "need" that I dont already have...

Everyone in my immediate family is in reasonably good health for their respective age..

Ive been blessed over and over again by being allowed to see a huge amount of God's green planet, experience different peoples, different cultures, different foods, etc..etc..

In the scope of things.. the biggest complaints I could possibly muster in life are immaterial compared to the blessings and grace I have received.. and I make a concerted effort daily to remind myself of that...

and... like @Red Leg had Harris been elected last week (I was reasonably sure she was going to be our next POTUS until about 9PM last Tuesday night).. not much would have changed.. I would still have lived a blessed and grace filled life.. and would still be thankful for it.. and wouldnt expect much would have changed moving forward...

American politicans have pretty much always sucked... Anyone else around here been alive long enough to remember Jimmy Carter? Does anyone think Herbert Hoover did wonderful things to advance the US? How about Millard Fillmore?

And.. we're not just limited to terrible Presidents coming and going... anyone remember the Ray Nagin NO Shakedown? It was just 15 years ago that Ray Cunningham was stealing millions and caught taking bribes... any of us want a return of Tammany Hall and Boss Tweed?

If anything, the US has proven to be pretty resilient.. and the US people always seem to overcome what inevitably seems to be the worst possible leadership we could put into public office... doesnt matter if you are an R or a D.. both sides have put truly HORRIBLE people behind the resolute desk, in state capitol buildings, in the Speaker of the House role, in major metro area mayors offices, etc..etc.. you'd think we prided ourselves on finding the biggest bags of shit on the planet and then giving them the opportunity to lead our nation into the next era.. Its almost like we purposefully test ourselves to see just how hard we can make things lol...

but... at the end of it all... the Jimmy Carters of our great nation come and go.. and our nation continues to move forward..

+2. Like you, @Red Leg @WAB and a few others, my life is great. I'm making more money than I've ever made, I have an awesome and hot wife, my kids all exceeded my wildest expectations (and those were pretty lofty to begin with), I work from home and can afford to work from my parents and help take care of my dying mother. I buy prime steak when I want it, top shelf liquor when I want that. Other than my mortgage, my only debt is income-producing rental property debt.

I do not live in fear of really bad times coming, but I'm fairly certain they are. Nobody in Sarajevo in 1990 would have foreseen what it would look like in 1995. How do companies go bankrupt? Slowly at first, then all of a sudden.

Perhaps a bit melodramatic, I still think there's a great passage from LotR (written by a VERY devout Catholic) for the times I believe are coming.

• Frodo: I wish the ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened.
• Gandalf: So do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. There are other forces at work in this world Frodo, besides the will of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring. In which case, you were also meant to have it. And that is an encouraging thought.

Live as well as you can, be thankful, take nothing for granted.

Despair is a lie told by Satan. I will never give in to it.

 

[Brent in Az]

I think Newsmax and NewsNation were fibbing about the GOP house win

 

[Wishfulthinker580]

I think Newsmax and NewsNation were fibbing about the GOP house win

It looks like the jury is still out on a lot of them. Little nerve wracking

 

[mdwest]

Looks like Ratcliff is going to be the CIA Director

https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/12/politics/john-ratcliffe-cia-director/index.html

 

[Wheels]

Looks like Ratcliff is going to be the CIA Director

https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/12/politics/john-ratcliffe-cia-director/index.html

Should be a good pick. I would like to see Patel and Cohen involved in the IC at some level.

 

[Neophyte]

Why in the world do you come on this forum? Is it just a vain attempt to make everyone else as miserable as yourself?

You assume I’m miserable.
You know what they say about assumptions.
I disagree with most of you politically and quite frankly I consider most of you a political enemy. I think a civil war is coming and we are headed to third world status. Quite frankly I welcome it.
I’ve gone from unemployed and homeless this year with significant health issues to making the most I’ve ever made and better health. I have my priorities and they aren’t the same as yours. I’m planning for hunting Africa in 2026. As that time gets closer I’ll probably participate more in other forums.
This forum, Politics, is merely a brief interlude in an otherwise profitable day.

 

[Wheels]

The wins just keep piling up.

CNN to Fire Major Stars as Part of Layoffs

Just after news broke of Chris Wallace ditching CNN, the network is now slated to cut “hundreds of jobs,” according to a new report from Puck News’ Dylan Byers. The outlet, which is a frequent news-breaker when it comes to TV news shakeups, reports that CNN’s CEO Mark Thompson will lay off tons...

popculture.com

MSNBC ratings plunge after Trump election victory — as more than half of primetime audience flees

While MSNBC viewership dropped 31% in the days after Election Day, Fox News ratings grew a whopping 61% in the same period, according to Nielsen data reported by Fox News.

nypost.com

 

[Brent in Az]

It looks like the jury is still out on a lot of them. Little nerve wracking

Yes indeed. Considering how desperate & unscrupulous democrats are.......

 

[Hunt anything]

Yes indeed. Considering how desperate & unscrupulous democrats are.......

The longer this drags out the more worried I become. It seems to always in the same areas , year after year.

I think the judge in New York delayed his decision again today so he can wait and see if the dems take the House. If they do impeachment articles will come sooner than later and the judge will sentence Trump to help their cause.

 

[John Wasmuth]

Pete Hegseth as SOD

 

[Brent in Az]

The longer it takes, the easier it is for nefarious things to be done. I don't trust democrats or the poll workers any further then i can throw them.
The only way they can shut down Trump, is too take the house.

The longer this drags out the more worried I become. It seems to always in the same areas , year after year.

I think the judge in New York delayed his decision again today so he can wait and see if the dems take the House. If they do impeachment articles will come sooner than later and the judge will sentence Trump to help their cause.

 

[Red Leg]

I could quibble about Homeland Security, but I an stunned by his pick for SECDEF. Hegseth is a Princeton Grad which I guess means he is smart, a Fox talking head, and a major in the reserves with I believe two combat deployments. I am sure he is loyal to Trump and a genuinely nice guy, but what would give anyone the confidence that he is the best choice to run the largest military industrial conglomerate on the planet? With the exception of Noem, I had been genuinely impressed - but this reeks of farce. I may be wrong, but I would guess @WAB would no more turn his business over to him for a month than I would my old business unit. What is worse, who other than absolute partisans, will take this seriously?

 

[Wishfulthinker580]

Pete Hegseth as SOD

Just saw this. That was out of left field

 

[Newboomer]

View attachment 646931

What goes around comes around. All the dem dirty tricks have come around and not just bit them in the ass but taken a big chunk out of it. They will still, and always try to upset the applecart but are now quite toothless.

 

[Brent in Az]

I hope Ratcliffe knows how to sniff out the rats.

 

[USN]

This Pete for SOD is something that will come back to haunt this administration. Imagine you are just some enlisted guy considering reenlisting.

 

[Hunt anything]

Just saw this. That was out of left field

Left field? Not even in the same ballpark!

Maybe he’ll be a surprise. I wonder what his degree is in ?