The Trump Presidency, Season 2

[Cindy Claveau]

 

[Noodles]

Open book? Most Americans show up day of without studying and just pick the same letter down the line hoping to pass that test.

 

[Essence Lumin]

Only on CNN right now, probably on lots of news sources in a few minutes.

Judge denies California's request to immediately block Trump actions, sets hearing

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Organizationally, you are correct. I'm doing a thought exercise about what would happen if I walked up to a bunch of Marines and said they reminded me of army troopers.

I'd stand back

Whatever the case, the UK learned the hard way in Northern Ireland that deploying troops who are trained for aggressive, high intensity warfare on peacekeeping and crowd control duties (e.g. members of the Parachute Regiment on the "Bloody Sunday" march) is not a good idea, and it's a mistake they attempted to avoid in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Sending the Marines into LA seems a very rash move.

 

[Essence Lumin]

Whatever the case, the UK learned the hard way in Northern Ireland that deploying troops who are trained for aggressive, high intensity warfare on peacekeeping and crowd control duties (e.g. members of the Parachute Regiment on the "Bloody Sunday" march) is not a good idea, and it's a mistake they attempted to avoid in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Sending the Marines into LA seems a very rash move.

It seems to me to be a very calculated move, one intended to give trump, the 2025 group and the rest the power they need to invoke martial law.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

It seems to me to be a very calculated move, one intended to give trump, the 2025 group and the rest the power they need to invoke martial law.

While I am sure Trump wants to be able to declare marital law, how would the Marines over-reacting and shooting (and possibly killing) some demonstrators help create a situation that gives him legal cover to do that?

 

[Essence Lumin]

While I am sure Trumps wants to be able to declare marital law, how would the Marines over-reacting and shooting (and possibly killing) some demonstrators help create a situation that gives him legal cover to do that?

Then it becomes a highly violent situation which justifies him placing the Marines and National Guard there, especially if there are (possibly planted) violent demonstrators there to take care of and make his point.

 

[GoblinCampFollower]

While I am sure Trump wants to be able to declare marital law, how would the Marines over-reacting and shooting (and possibly killing) some demonstrators help create a situation that gives him legal cover to do that?

His supporters are told they are fighting an insurrection. This is of course absurd, but that is what tens of millions believe.

 

[Katheryne Helendale]

I know you're just being silly, but I've seen some soldiers get really pedantic about these terms for real. The terms "army" and "soldier" predate the modern divisions into the different branches. It is kind of funny when Marines insist they are not also "soldiers" lol.

Calling a Marine a soldier is a great way to start a fight.

 

[Katheryne Helendale]

Also, I disagree with your comparisons. In the US (not sure about UK) Marines are mostly separate from the Navy though they do have some cross over things like medals they award.

The United States Marine Corps is considered its own branch for the most part, but they fall under the Department of the Navy, with the Commandant of the Marine Corps reporting to the Secretary of the Navy.

 

[GoblinCampFollower]

Calling a Marine a soldier is a great way to start a fight.

oh, I know! I just think it's funny since the term "soldier" technically includes them, but not every soldier is a Marine obviously.

 

[Beebo Brink]

While I am sure Trump wants to be able to declare marital law, how would the Marines over-reacting and shooting (and possibly killing) some demonstrators help create a situation that gives him legal cover to do that?

That's not the way any such scenario would be described by Trump and his minions. There is no counter-narrative that gains any traction, even when it's fact-based. It's like saying what is the point of Putin throwing people out of windows; how does that create a situation that gives him legal cover to do that?

 

[Noodles]

While I am sure Trump wants to be able to declare marital law, how would the Marines over-reacting and shooting (and possibly killing) some demonstrators help create a situation that gives him legal cover to do that?

Because at some point, the people start shooting back.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

That's not the way any such scenario would be described by Trump and his minions. There is no counter-narrative that gains any traction, even when it's fact-based. It's like saying what is the point of Putin throwing people out of windows; how does that create a situation that gives him legal cover to do that?

That was my point, rather. Essence seemed to be suggesting that a Kent State-like confrontation between protesters and Marines that ended with the Marines killing protesters would provide a pretext for Trump to declare martial law.

To my mind he would consider he needed a pretext only to provide some sort of legal cover when the declaration was challenged in the courts, and I'm unclear how it would help his case. Presumably he'd need to argue that he was dealing with massive civil unrest or an insurrection that rendered the regular civilian state and federal courts unable to function, and I don't see how that would follow unless, as Noodles suggests, the shooting provoced a massive and effective response as opposed to, for example, intimidating protesters into staying at home.

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

What happened here? It sounds... frightening. Elon Musk is backpedaling? Holy shit! Does this mean Trump has some dirt he can use to intimidate Musk? If so, what could it be?

 

[Veritable Quandry]

Musk walked away from DOGE with several large new government contracts and after gutting several agencies investigating his companies. Trump could cut off a lot of money and reopen those cases.

 

[GoblinCampFollower]

What happened here? It sounds... frightening. Elon Musk is backpedaling? Holy shit! Does this mean Trump has some dirt he can use to intimidate Musk? If so, what could it be?

Tesla stock was tumbling, and if it goes down too much, his loans might be in jeopardy. He was in a weaker position than he maybe initially thought. Now that he apologized it's back up a fair bit.

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

I see, so really time for Musk to fly to Mars where nobody will challenge his reign... over the barren wasteland.

 

[Free]

And let's not forget he's an "illegal" immigrant. And those quotes are meant to be scary quotes.

 

[Beebo Brink]

To my mind he would consider he needed a pretext only to provide some sort of legal cover when the declaration was challenged in the courts, and I'm unclear how it would help his case.

Trump has spent the last five months rampaging with only the flimsiest of legal cover. Time and again, the courts have ruled against him. And yet he continues with new outrages every day, again under the flimsiest of legal cover.

Very little of what the Trump Administration is doing is legal. Day by day, it matters less. Project 2025 proceeds as planned.