The Trump Presidency, Season 2

[detrius]

Trump claims triumphal arch will serve as a ‘top grade military complex’ to store weapons



It's unclear why the US military would want to station snipers in the middle of Washington DC -- against whom are they protecting the area? No Kings demonstrators? Ducks crapping in the Reflecting Pool if it ever reopens?

Also, don't the US military have rules about not storing large quantities of ammunition and explosives in the middle of civilian areas, for obvious reasons?

Why not build one of these beautiful flak towers?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flak_tower#Flakturm_IV_%E2%80%93_Heiligengeistfeld,_Hamburg

 

[Noodles]

Trump claims triumphal arch will serve as a ‘top grade military complex’ to store weapons



It's unclear why the US military would want to station snipers in the middle of Washington DC -- against whom are they protecting the area? No Kings demonstrators? Ducks crapping in the Reflecting Pool if it ever reopens?

The RaDiCaL lEfT, duuuh. All those crazies COMMUNISTS with blue hair coming to forcibly trans everyone and take all your hard earned trailer park riches to give them to ILLEGAL MEXICAN GANG BANGERS.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Also, don't the US military have rules about not storing large quantities of ammunition and explosives in the middle of civilian areas, for obvious reasons?

Why yes they do, lots of them, at least according to ChatGPT. There are also plenty of rules about flying drones near airports in general and in Washington DC in particular.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

BREAKING: Trump Tried to Punish Canada With Belarus Potash. Belarus Says It Doesn't Have Any.

He announced a massive deal to spite Canada. Hours later, Lukashenko said every tonne is already sold as Trump hit’s historic polling low of 29% approval. LOLZ.

deanblundell.substack.com

Donald Trump woke up Monday morning with a 29% approval rating, picked up his phone, and announced that the United States is working on a “massive Deal” to buy potash from Belarus for “substantially less than we are currently paying to Canada.” A few hours later, the dictator of Belarus told his own customs chief, on the record, that he has no potash to sell to the West. So here we are in September 2026, and Alexander Lukashenko, a man who steals elections and jails anyone who complains about it, is a more reliable source on American trade policy than the American president.

And even if Belarus did have potash to spare, sanctions wouldn't allow it to be moved through EU territory and ports

Pretend Lukashenko found a few million spare tonnes behind the couch. Belarus is landlocked. It used to move about 12.5 million tonnes of potash a year through the Lithuanian port of Klaipeda, and Lithuania shut that rail route down in 2022. The EU still refuses to let Belarusian fertilizer transit through Baltic ports, and that hasn’t changed no matter how hard Trump’s people lean on them. His envoy John Coale was in Minsk six days ago and came home with nothing on that front.

 

[Free]

Why Trump May Not Serve Out His Presidency

He will only get crazier, and at some point Republicans will cut their losses.

newrepublic.com

I started to read it, checked the sub-head, and thought: Oh sure, that'll happen!

Every once in a while, someone at The New Republic sneaks into the liquor cabinet and doesn't work their way out of it until they're violently pulled out.

 

[Free]

I prefer Sesame Street in the Mirror Universe, which stars The Reverse Count.

Donald Trump’s Approval Rating Falls Below 30% For First Time Ever

President Donald Trump's approval rating dropped below 30 percent for the first time across both his White House terms Monday, as the midterms draw closer.

The new poll, from American Research Group, conducted September 16-20 among 1,100 American adults, showed the president with a 29 percent overall approval rating, with positive views on the economy at 26 percent.

 

[Free]

Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com)

Trump to the UN: "Do I annihilate the Islamic Republic, and do it quickly? Do I drive them into hell?"

bsky.app

The Peace President, everyone.

 

[Free]

Good to know that long after the Big Beautiful Ballroom is built and Trump is gone, if we have a fire break out in it then we can expect a lot of the people will die horribly because Trump was a raging egotistical asshole.

‘I am the code’: Trump clashed with ballroom architect over safety issues

James McCrery II withdrew from the project last October after warning repeatedly that Trump was insisting on a preliminary design that did not provide adequate emergency exit routes or fire-containment measures, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the private discussions.

Trump brushed off McCrery’s concerns, they said, and the president countered that no building codes apply to White House construction.

"I am the code," Trump said.

 

[Sid]

I wonder if he has plans somewhere to invade the Netherlands too, because of the Peace Palace in The Hague.

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

The Den Hague Invasion Act is a brain child of George W. Bush jr.

But since the Dutch national bank is now pulling gold reserves back from NYC to NL Trump now has many golden reasons to do so.

 

[Free]

I should not have started reading political news so late tonight...

Trump administration launches pro-Trump TV ad ahead of midterms

The Trump administration launched a new television advertisement featuring President Donald Trump calling out socialism, communism and marxism, appearing to use government resources to go on air in the weeks before the midterm election.

The ad began airing Wednesday night, according to the ad tracking service AdImpact, and has aired on programs on Fox News and Newsmax along with connected TV platforms. It isn’t clear where exactly the money is coming from, but says it is “paid for by the U.S. government” in a disclaimer text on the ad.

The 30-second ad features photos and videos of Trump, the American flag and military aircraft over the song “Love Me” by JMSN. It comes as Trump has struggled to win over voters ahead of the midterms, as Republicans have been battered at the polls by gas prices and the war with Iran.

“Together we will defeat communism, socialism and marxism in America,” Trump said in the ad. “America will never be a communist country.”

So it's an ad made for broadcast in the 1950's. And it's a political ad for Trump, who is not running for anything. Paid for with my tax dollars.

No, I'm not angry.

 

[detrius]

I should not have started reading political news so late tonight...

Trump administration launches pro-Trump TV ad ahead of midterms



So it's an ad made for broadcast in the 1950's. And it's a political ad for Trump, who is not running for anything. Paid for with my tax dollars.

No, I'm not angry.

It's a reminder that the upcoming election is about voting for or against enablers.

 

[GoblinCampFollower]

I should not have started reading political news so late tonight...

Trump administration launches pro-Trump TV ad ahead of midterms



So it's an ad made for broadcast in the 1950's. And it's a political ad for Trump, who is not running for anything. Paid for with my tax dollars.

No, I'm not angry.

I heard the Hatch Act was just liberal propaganda.

(On a quick search there are a few other laws that may be relevant here as well)

 

[Innula Zenovka]

I Fucking Love Australia - EVERY SINGLE FUCKER IN THAT ROOM KNEW WHO HE MEANT via Meco App

Norway's

www.meco.app

The quote is from Antonio Gramsci. Mussolini’s regime locked him up in 1926 and he spent the rest of his short life filling notebooks in a cell, which is where the line comes from. What he actually wrote was that the old world is dying and the new cannot be born, and in between you get morbid symptoms. “Monsters” is the popular translation, and for a room with this many in it, the popular translation is the honest one.

“The old world is dying and the new world struggles to be born. Now is the time of monsters.”

Eide told the assembly that Gramsci’s monsters were the dark political and ideological phenomena of the 1930s, and that Gramsci’s worries were not unwarranted, because his era ended with the Second World War. Gramsci’s monsters had a real Mussolini. Ours has the wax-museum Mussolini, and he’d stood at the same rostrum on Tuesday, big-noting himself to the same room, four days before a Norwegian walked up and quietly described what the wax was covering.

 

[Free]

Just a little infographic...

 

[Free]

Hegseth Made the Fitness Test Harder for Women in Combat Roles. Most Female Marines Are Passing

Data shows almost all Marine females serving in combat roles have met or exceeded Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's new physical fitness standard.

thewarhorse.org

When Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth summoned hundreds of generals and admirals from around the world to Quantico, Virginia, last September, he delivered a blunt message: Things were changing fast in the newly renamed Department of War.

“No more division, distraction, or gender delusions,” he said. “We are done with that shit.”

What mattered going forward, Hegseth said, were standards.

The Marine Corps spring physical fitness test data obtained by The War Horse shows that more than 90% of female Marines who have taken the test have met or exceeded the standard.

Kris Fuhr, co-founder of the Women in the Service Coalition, which advocates for equal opportunities for military women, said she was not surprised.

“The women prepare and they train and they’re ready,” she said.

A meme on this making the rounds comments: ""Now let's put menstrual cramp simulators on the men and see how well they do."

 

[Free]

Thanks, Trump's Tariffs!

Large Wendy's franchisee files for bankruptcy, cites record beef prices

One of Wendy’s largest franchisees has filed for bankruptcy due to profitability issues and record beef prices, according to court documents filed this month.

Meritage Hospitality Group, which owns 314 Wendy’s locations in 15 states, filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Michigan on Sept. 17.

The franchisee said in court documents that it owes Wendy’s International nearly $25 million.

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

Trump is urging European countries to release their Diesel reserves, because... midterms don't look good.

https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/white-house-urges-eu-draw-down-diesel-inventories-sources-say-2026-09-29/