Has the USA Become a Banana Republic

[Phil1111 1,149]

With speculation all around of pardons, firings of any investigators looking into the president. With the US constitution allowing pardons, rule by semi-decree. Has the USA slid into a banana republic class of government/country?

[yoink 321]

Nah. Certainly not yet at least.

[wmw999 2,447]

What he said. It has a close-to-banana-republic president, but he's hampered (thank goodness) by our system.

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[Phil1111 1,149]

yoink

Nah. Certainly not yet at least.

What about now?

Donald Trump has insisted he has "the complete power to pardon" - fuelling speculation he is considering using the device to extricate himself and members of his team from an investigation into collusion with Russia to interfere in the US election.

The President made the statement during an early-morning stream of posts on Twitter, saying: "While all agree the U. S. President has the complete power to pardon, why think of that when only crime so far is LEAKS against us. FAKE NEWS."..

Just yesterday, White House deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders refused to rule out the possibility Mr Trump would use his pardon power to shield himself, his family, and his administration from federal lawsuits.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/donald-trump-pardon-complete-power-president-tweet-russia-investigation-impeach-latest-a7854561.html

and

It followed US President Donald Trump's comment, as part of his broad-ranging New York Times interview, that the wife of the Japanese prime minister, Akie Abe, cannot speak any English.

When netizens discovered the YouTube video of her giving a speech in English, however, they went on to speculate that she must have pretended to not know the language to avoid having a conversation with Mr Trump.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-40678881

[yoink 321]

If he actually tries to use the power and nothing stops him then I'll revise my opinion. Until then I'm going to stick with 'not yet'.

[ryoder 1,590]

Phil1111

Donald Trump has insisted he has "the complete power to pardon" - fuelling speculation he is considering using the device to extricate himself and members of his team from an investigation into collusion with Russia to interfere in the US election.

An opposing legal opinion from the Watergate era: https://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/olc/opinions/1974/08/31/op-olc-supp-v001-p0370_0.pdf

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[yoink 321]

You have to understand that just because the idiot in chief tweets something doesn't mean that he actually knows anything about it. I see it more of a ' I want it to work like this...'

[yoink 321]

So what do you think the parties would actually DO, if anything, if Trump did start pardoning everyone including himself.

I'd hope that even the Republicans would grow a backbone at that point and point out how fucked up that would be.

[gowlerk 2,192]

yoink

So what do you think the parties would actually DO, if anything, if Trump did start pardoning everyone including himself.

I'd hope that even the Republicans would grow a backbone at that point and point out how fucked up that would be.

That's when America will find out what kind of men McConnell and Ryan are.

Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

[ryoder 1,590]

gowlerk

That's when America will find out what kind of men McConnell and Ryan are.

They are not men.
They are invertebrates.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[wolfriverjoe 1,523]

ryoder

***That's when America will find out what kind of men McConnell and Ryan are.

They are not men.
They are invertebrates.

That's a pretty mean and unfair comparison.

To the invertebrates.


And, not terribly surprising, Trump doesn't know the rules about impeachment.

It has to be a crime against the US, and it cannot be for an impeachable offense.

So for any offense that he might be impeached over, he cannot pardon himself.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

[jakee 1,489]

wolfriverjoe

And, not terribly surprising, Trump doesn't know the rules about impeachment.

It has to be a crime against the US, and it cannot be for an impeachable offense.

So for any offense that he might be impeached over, he cannot pardon himself.

Any crime is an impeachable offense if Congress wants it to be. If he could pardon himself, he could pardon himself for any federal crime. That wouldn't stop him from being impeached and removed from office, only from being tried and convicted in a criminal court.

Do you want to have an ideagasm?

[ryoder 1,590]

jakee

***And, not terribly surprising, Trump doesn't know the rules about impeachment.

It has to be a crime against the US, and it cannot be for an impeachable offense.

So for any offense that he might be impeached over, he cannot pardon himself.

Any crime is an impeachable offense if Congress wants it to be. If he could pardon himself, he could pardon himself for any federal crime. That wouldn't stop him from being impeached and removed from office, only from being tried and convicted in a criminal court.

It doesn't even need to be a crime.
Yale law prof Akhil Amar gives this example:

Suppose POTUS spent all his time drunk in bed, and refused to do any of his duties.
Being drunk in bed is not a crime, but Congress could impeach him.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[correcceo 0]

No, this country has always been the greatest country in the world, and everybody knows it. We don't need the Don, and we don't need him to make it great again. If he's not a good fit for this country, then this country will spit him out. That's how it works.

The opportunity/freedoms here surpass all despite all of it's faults. But don't take my word for it. Ask the millions that flock here from all around the world, year after year. . .even western Europeans.

Don't be deluded by liberalism.

[Phil1111 1,149]

correcceo

No, this country has always been the greatest country in the world, and everybody knows it. We don't need the Don, and we don't need him to make it great again. If he's not a good fit for this country, then this country will spit him out. That's how it works.

The opportunity/freedoms here surpass all despite all of it's faults. But don't take my word for it. Ask the millions that flock here from all around the world, year after year. . .even western Europeans.

Don't be deluded by liberalism.

You mean, E pluribus unum

That would be option #5.

and in other news:
https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/immigrants-full-list
http://www.immigrationworld.com/etc/top-10-countries-where-you-can-immigrate-and-settle-easily/
https://www.smartertravel.com/2017/01/18/9-best-countries-for-americans-to-move-to/

and from NPR:
http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2017/01/26/511625609/for-a-stark-contrast-to-u-s-immigration-policy-try-canada

[correcceo 0]

From your article, rush - I mean Phil:

"The United States of America (USA) is the most sought after destination for immigration. The USA is a multi-cultural nation that attracts people from all parts of the world. The US society is immigrant-friendly. The country has a very strong economy. The education system of the USA is among the best in the world and it has many of the world’s best universities and business schools."

I'm sure the rich people in European countries live well, but the poor don't fare as well as in the U.S

The least European countries could do is offer universal healthcare knowing that their poor will never have a chance. . .

Now you can post all the liberal biased bullshit you want trying to contradict that fact, but would you bet your family's future on it?

[feuergnom 28]

Quote

Suppose POTUS spent all his time drunk in bed, and refused to do any of his duties.

you'd wish he was drunk....
you just can't make this up

The universal aptitude for ineptitude makes any human accomplishment an incredible miracle

dudeist skydiver # 666

[jakee 1,489]

feuergnom

you'd wish he was drunk....
you just can't make this up

I love that. Leaving aside that he's trying to use the president as an authority when the president on Twitter already attributed the comment to an anonymous source...

The president and his communications director both think that Russia is so good at cyber espionage and/or the USA is so bad at cyber espionage that US intelligence agencies would be completely unable to figure out if any hacking had happened (let alone who did it) even if they were told where to look. And not only do they think this is not a problem, they think it is appropriate to broadcast this huge national security vulnerability to the entire world, on Twitter and on broadcast news.

'Hey Putin, come and hack the US some more! I promise you buddy, there's nothing we can do about it. We're totally clueless!' Yep, that's making America great again

Do you want to have an ideagasm?

[ryoder 1,590]

In a serious breach of presidential norms, President Donald Trump urged sailors attending the commissioning of the USS Gerald R. Ford on Saturday to wade into the political fray and help lobby Congress on health care and other topics. “I don’t mind getting a little hand, so call that congressman and call that senator and make sure you get it,” Trump said of his budget, highlighting the defense spending portion. This could have been interpreted as an order from the commander in chief to the service members in attendance to support the Republican Party agenda. “And by the way, you can also call those senators to make sure you get health care,” he added.
...
This is what leaders do in banana republics: Instruct the people with guns to join the political fray.

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2017/07/trump_is_ordering_service_members_to_support_the_republican_agenda.html

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[Phil1111 1,149]

Former ethics chief on Zinke exempting Florida from drilling: You’re making us a ‘banana republic’

Former White House ethics chief on Tuesday blasted Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's decision to exempt Florida from offshore oil and gas programs, claiming it appears to be a conflict of interest to protect the state that houses President Trump's luxury Palm Beach resort.

"So you are exempting the state that is home to the festering cankerous conflict of interest that the administration likes to call the 'Winter White House' and none of the other affected states?" tweeted Walter Shaub, referring to Mar-a-Lago.
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/368258-former-ethics-chief-on-zinke-exempting-florida-from-drilling-youre

Will western US states demand sea-side trump golf courses in order to get the same exemption?