Want to understand what Trump is doing?

I am doing what I can to remain optimistic.

One of his orders violates my sons civil rights, so I have to start there in my activism. There is so much going on at such a rapid pace, I don't think anyone knows where to start and that is why the response has been so slow.

It is frustrating because I know what Elon is doing in Washington and I know there is nothing anyone can do to stop him right now. It is scary knowing that he has all of our social security records, all of our kids education records and will be getting our tax records soon. He very likely has our voting records too.

When Donald Trump welcomed Imran Khan to the White House in 2019, the then-president of Pakistan expressed his frustration at volleys of aggressive questions from reporters outside the Oval Office.

The president, I was told by a well-connected source, had a ready answer, phrased something like this.

“Look, you’re doing it wrong,” he said to Mr Khan and his entourage. “Every day, I wake up and I tweet the craziest thing I can think of.

“The press run after that, and then I can get on and do what I actually want somewhere else”.

The anecdote – hearsay though it may be – came to mind this morning after Mr Trump’s eye-popping announcement that the US would occupy the Gaza Strip and turn it into the “Riviera of the Middle East”.

Well it seems to me that he is trying to make a point. The Palestinians say that Gaza is not their home and they are refugees there. But when someone threatens to kick them out of Gaza they say that you can’t because it’s their home. Is Trump making the point that Gaza is their home, and that even they accept this?

Federal funds are still apparently still frozen despite 2 legal orders.

People are losing access to child care, people are losing their jobs because businesses can not make payroll due to not getting contracted funds from the government.

This is slowly walking us into a recession.

FriedGreenTomatoes2

Well it seems to me that he is trying to make a point. The Palestinians say that Gaza is not their home and they are refugees there. But when someone threatens to kick them out of Gaza they say that you can’t because it’s their home. Is Trump making the point that Gaza is their home, and that even they accept this?

They were refugees there or are descendants of the refugees sent there in 1948, but they have made the best of it and made it home.

I do think Trump is playing the world.
So, if this is one more crazy thing he has announced (on top of all the rest), what is he actually planning?

FriedGreenTomatoes2

Well it seems to me that he is trying to make a point. The Palestinians say that Gaza is not their home and they are refugees there. But when someone threatens to kick them out of Gaza they say that you can’t because it’s their home. Is Trump making the point that Gaza is their home, and that even they accept this?

So you admit that he’s threatening to kick them out?

MayBee70

FriedGreenTomatoes2

Well it seems to me that he is trying to make a point. The Palestinians say that Gaza is not their home and they are refugees there. But when someone threatens to kick them out of Gaza they say that you can’t because it’s their home. Is Trump making the point that Gaza is their home, and that even they accept this?

So you admit that he’s threatening to kick them out?

🤔

I can see what FGT2 meant.
Who is advising him? He's playing mind games, using psychological manipulation to get the lesser concessions he wants.
Goodness knows if that is what it is, but that's the last thing we need with the world in turmoil at the moment.

As his fellow American would say "You cannot be serious".
It's a dangerous game, someone more powerful might just call his bluff.

But if he threatens to break international law it sends a message to countries like China that they can do the same. And justifies what Putin has done to Ukraine.

imaround

Federal funds are still apparently still frozen despite 2 legal orders.

People are losing access to child care, people are losing their jobs because businesses can not make payroll due to not getting contracted funds from the government.

This is slowly walking us into a recession.

Thank you for the continuing information, so many things to report on of interest, .

It's so valuable to keep this thread for the huge numbers of issues happening in the USA atm, which threaten democracy as far as I can see and may be "imported" into the UK.

Yes I agree Allira about mind games at the highest levels of society.

It's not "clever", it undermines our fundamental need to have enough trust in political leaders not to play the nastiest of psychological game playing backed up in Trumps case by the networks of lies that go out over "truth social".

Trump has offered all employees of the CIA a buy out because he wants his own loyal people there.

He insisted that the CIA send a list of known spies to the White House. The list was sent on unsecured email, according to Jim Himes, a Democrat on the House Intel Committee. I am no expert, but that seems like it would be dangerous to global security.

They are removing data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA) as we speak.

Why? Because it proves we are having climate change? Talk about having "thought police" as in what you are allowed to know.

They have ordered NASA to remove any mention of women in leadership from its website.

Elon has accessed the Department Of Health and Human services system today.

That is who takes care Medicaid repayments to doctors and medical centers. I am guessing that Musk is stopping Medicaid and Medicare repayments. If true, seniors and low income people, including children, will go without Healthcare.

Day care centers who utilize the Head Start program, which helps low-income families with childcare, is still locked out of federal funding. These centers are going to close down soon if they can't pay employees.

Yes climate change. He actually wants to disband the NOAA, which is where all meteorologist get their information. It is literally how we get warning for things like hurricanes.

I guess if he days climate change doesn't exist, the natural disasters stop happening?

We have a new Attorney General. This is her first act.

FriedGreenTomatoes2

When Donald Trump welcomed Imran Khan to the White House in 2019, the then-president of Pakistan expressed his frustration at volleys of aggressive questions from reporters outside the Oval Office.

The president, I was told by a well-connected source, had a ready answer, phrased something like this.

“Look, you’re doing it wrong,” he said to Mr Khan and his entourage. “Every day, I wake up and I tweet the craziest thing I can think of.

“The press run after that, and then I can get on and do what I actually want somewhere else”.

The anecdote – hearsay though it may be – came to mind this morning after Mr Trump’s eye-popping announcement that the US would occupy the Gaza Strip and turn it into the “Riviera of the Middle East”.

You do realise people from Gaza are actually human beings?

Unbelievable really.

imaround, could you explain the Attorney General's acts for me?
Thank you for keeping us informed about how things look inside the storm!

A lot of this is a "shock and awe" process to distract what they sre doing in taking control of Government so they can the government into a profit making machine for themselves. They are trying to shut down US Agency for International Development (USAID) to enrich themselves.

Why do people not believe what us in front of their eyes?

www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/usaid-elon-musk-trump-shutdown-b2692984.html

www.youtube.com/watch?v=5cOttIv2YK0

It's terrifying.

MayBee70

But if he threatens to break international law it sends a message to countries like China that they can do the same. And justifies what Putin has done to Ukraine.

I thought that was what I said?

It's a dangerous game, someone more powerful might just call his bluff.

When is there going to be a unified front against Trump and his madness.

There is no method in his madness, he has no ultimate plan, he is simply a disrupter and showman.

They are trying to shut down US Agency for International Development (USAID) to enrich themselves.

How will shutting down the Aid agency enable them to enrich themselves?

Between 2005 and 2015, almost two-thirds of the growth in US goods exports was to major USAID partners – export growth that helped pull the US out of recession.

By the agency’s estimate, the US generates $231 in exports of US-manufactured goods and services for every $1 spent on development projects in emerging markets.

USAID aids the US. Most of the food aid, medicines and equipment distributed by the agency is purchased in the US and shipped by US carriers.

Since October 2023, USAID has paid $368 million in contracts and grants for activities in Haiti. Only 7.6 per cent of that money went to Haitian organisations.

These quotes show that the US has a very good deal from its provision of aid. A cynic might say that the provision of aid is a mechanism for US to lock these countries into becoming dependent on the US for their imports.

I'm failing to see how withholding aid will help to enrich the oligarchs. Or are you thinking that if the aid is restored it could be dependent on importing only from oligarch owned companies? And that the aid contracts only go to the oligarch's companies?

(Sorry, can't link to my source because it's from a daily email)

Just reading that Palantir an American company which has contracts with the NHS and has access to our entire health data.

Palantir has very close contact with Trump.

Imaround you said above

"That is who takes care Medicaid repayments to doctors and medical centers. I am guessing that Musk is stopping Medicaid and Medicare repayments. If true, seniors and low income people, including children, will go without Healthcare."

They are not stopping payments atm but they are taking over the departments that administer them and of course have access to citizen details with the aim of cutting bills and cutting admin staff

www.reuters.com/world/us/doge-aides-search-medicare-agency-payment-systems-fraud-wsj-reports-2025-02-05/

I agree about "aid" often having strings attached that lock a country into the USA Maizie and how it may seem counterproductive.

Musk has already shut down USAID.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx253xjnxrmo

Perhaps for ideological reasons, how it "looks", or perhaps to us the money for its own projects that cease to offer any real "aid" at all.

Palantir was given the contract to lead on 'overhauling and updating' the NHS' data system in November 2023 by the tories. There was a great deal of upset about this on twitter among the more left wing people I followed.

I wasn't terribly keen on the idea, either as I've always thought that we should keep the USA as far away from our NHS as possible...

www.bmj.com/content/386/bmj.q1712

Palantir also has several MoD contracts, going back several years.

This is the second of two articles about it setting out more detail. I declare the left wing bias before anyone reads it.

corporatewatch.org/palantir-in-the-uk/

Palantir was founded by Peter Thiel, one of Trump's oligarch supporters.