The Trump Presidency, Season 2

Noodles

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They have cut so many programs mid-contract that the money spent is being wasted. A lot of ongoing research will be lost as well, as you can't always just pause and still get valid results. My university is scrambling to identify funding so that people don't lose years of their careers due to unexpected cancellation of contracts for research. Even if funding is restored to Congressionally approved levels, it will now take years to recover from these few months of chaos.
Yep, and if we have actual election, the Dems can struggle to spend all their time trying to fix things, and the GOP will just be like, "See, they are useless and can't accomplish anything, let us back so we can break more shit."
 

Bartholomew Gallacher

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Funny plot twist: the airplane to be gifted to Trump was on sale since 2020, but nobody bothered to buy it.

So in other words the Qatari found a great way to get rid of it for free, sparing them scrapping cost.

 

Casey Pelous

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Funny plot twist: the airplane to be gifted to Trump was on sale since 2020, but nobody bothered to buy it.

So in other words the Qatari found a great way to get rid of it for free, sparing them scrapping cost.

It also would save Qatar big storage costs and maintenance costs -- even just sitting there, the thing still needs regular, expensive maintenance. One does have to admire the craftsmanship that went into this con job. There are probably any number of 747 owners who are asking some poor manager, "Why the hell didn't YOU think of that?"

Boeing didn't stop making 747's because people were beating down the hangar doors to buy one. Much like the doomed A380, the 747-8 was the wrong plane at the wrong time. Times have not changed, and they're not going to change.
 

Noodles

The sequel will probably be better.
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I also wonder about the cost of maintaining and using this particular plane.

Like how much more or less fuel does it use compared to whatever they normally use?
 
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Casey Pelous

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I also wonder about the cost of maintaining and using this particular plane.

Like how much more or less fuel does it use compared to whatever they normally use?
The current Air Force Ones are also 747's. They're so heavily modified that it is hard to know what their fuel consumption is -- I rather imagine that is classified. It isn't a concern for them, anyway, since they can just pull up to the nearest refueling tanker plane and top off the tanks.

Even with the whole interior stripped out to make it a cargo plane, the 747 is a notorious fuel hog. Depending on current fuel prices, you can figure $20,000 to $30,000 per hour in fuel alone. With all the armor, shielding, comm gear, etc., in the Air Force Ones, the price just goes up and up.

BTW -- folks with the skill, knowledge, and super-high security clearance to work on those 747's are just getting scarcer.
 

detrius

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Govi

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"The best day of your life is when you buy the boat. The second best day of your life is when you sell it."
 

Innula Zenovka

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GoblinCampFollower

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Sid

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I agree it's not THAT big of a deal, but we all know that if this happened under a democrat, Republicans would act like it was the ultimate proof of incompetence.
No big deal, but a signal of in what direction the current government policies are heading financially IMHO.
 

Jopsy Pendragon

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I agree it's not THAT big of a deal, but we all know that if this happened under a democrat, Republicans would act like it was the ultimate proof of incompetence.
Loyalty above logic. They'll happily spew hypocrisies out of both sides of their mouths all day long, and take the heat for it, rather than risk looking disloyal to the big orange MAGAmind super-villain in the white house. Heck, the more dishonest they can brazenly be, the more they seem to delight in it because it's a "See how much I love kissing trumps ass? I deserve a treat! Woof!" moment.
 

Casey Pelous

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Loyalty above logic. They'll happily spew hypocrisies out of both sides of their mouths all day long, and take the heat for it, rather than risk looking disloyal to the big orange MAGAmind super-villain in the white house. Heck, the more dishonest they can brazenly be, the more they seem to delight in it because it's a "See how much I love kissing trumps ass? I deserve a treat! Woof!" moment.
When I give my cats a treat they promptly disappear.

Y'all see where I'm going with this?
 
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Zaida Gearbox

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This piece of shit followed me on X. I'd say I wonder what I did to attract the attention of the goon squad, but ..... Will you guys miss me when they haul me off to El Salvador or Guantanomo.
 

Free

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Trump warns Walmart: Don’t raise prices due to my tariffs but do eat the costs from those taxes
Trump, in his Truth Social post, lashed out at the retailer, which employs 1.6 million people in the United States. He said the company, based in Bentonville, Arkansas, should sacrifice its profits for the sake of his economic agenda that he says will eventually lead to more domestic jobs in manufacturing.

“Walmart should STOP trying to blame Tariffs as the reason for raising prices throughout the chain,” Trump posted. “Walmart made BILLIONS OF DOLLARS last year, far more than expected. Between Walmart and China they should, as is said, “EAT THE TARIFFS,” and not charge valued customers ANYTHING. I’ll be watching, and so will your customers!!!”
Why does President Trump hate capitalism so much. :hellokitty: