I would be recommending to my colleagues on the Democratic National Committee that they award Donald Trump honorary life membership of the DNC in return for services rendered to the Party. After-all, he was a registered Democrat up until a decade ago.
If Trump had exhibited a modicum of leadership over COVID then he would have won over Biden at a canter while his quite simply bizarre behaviour post the election in challenging the result probably cost the Republicans control of the Senate with the loss of the two Georgia Senate seats won by the Democrats with larger margins than Biden when he carried the State back in November.
And then to cap it all off we have the storming of the Capitol by Trump supporters egged on by the President. This is politics banana republic style.
Politicians write their own legacy. I suspect history will judge Trump to be an aberration in US politics sorta a Jeremy Corbyn in reverse … and it could have been so different had he not given the word ‘arsehole’ a whole new meaning.
Gonna be really interesting to see how the Republican Party reacts to this. Trump created his own constituency and in doing so he burned-off many moderate Republicans … you might cogently argue Trump is/was the ultimate RHINO.
No Minister 
The Color Revolution tactics used by the USA to put their guy in charge are now being used against the citizens of the USA.
There is a Day of Judgement when all will be revealed but in the meantime American Oligarchs can go back to using the US military as muscle and American Politicians can become multi millionaires on a Congressmans or Senators salary
I’ll leave Andrei to indulge in his Putin inspired fantasies meanwhile I commend to you all the statement by President Bush ….
“Laura and I are watching the scenes of mayhem unfolding at the seat of our Nation’s government in disbelief and dismay. It is a sickening and heartbreaking sight. This is how election results are disputed in a banana republic — not our democratic republic.
I am appalled by the reckless behavior of some political leaders since the election and by the lack of respect shown today for our institutions, our traditions, and our law enforcement. The violent assault on the Capitol — and disruption of a Constitutionally-mandated meeting of Congress — was undertaken by people whose passions have been inflamed by falsehoods and false hopes.
Insurrection could do grave damage to our Nation and reputation. In the United States of America, it is the fundamental responsibility of every patriotic citizen to support the rule of law. To those who are disappointed in the results of the election: Our country is more important than the politics of the moment. Let the officials elected by the people fulfill their duties and represent our voices in peace and safety.
May God continue to bless the United States of America.”
My God Veteran your naivite never ceases to astonish me – bui it goes a long way in explaining why the National Party of New Zealand was so easily outplayed in last years General Election – you and people like Wayne Mapp are like lambs to the slaughter and really easily manipulated by people with pseudo authority
Questions:
(1) Do you really believe the Capitol Building and its debating chambers cannot easily be defended against a rabble?
(2) At a time when the elected representatives of the people are debating questions regarding the irregularities that occurred during the last election whose interests are served in disrupting that debate, those who want the questions raised in a public forum or those who don’t?
Having watched with dismay the two colour revolutions in Ukraine 2004 and 2014 and the Rose Revolution in Georgia 2003 I know exactly how these things go down.
There is a small corps of professional agitators who have been creating havoc in American cities all summer under the banners of BLM and Antifa – most of the rioters are dumb sheep easily led with this cadre providing the leadership – and I’ll almost guarantee you some of them were given easy access to the Capitol Building in order to lead the invasion of the debating chamber under the MAGA Banner
This is a colour revolution set up to install Kamala Harris, a candidate that fell at the first hurdle in her run for the Presidency, as Potus
Have heard from the UK that as a result of the Left wing Democratic Biden Election in the USA that Israel is mobilising quietly.
I’d be interested to know in what way President Trump ‘egged’ these people on or, indeed, who these people are. David Farrar describes them as ‘Trumps troops.’
Funny, that. I don’t remember any time during the months of Democrat inspired Burning Looting and Murder seing him desribe those well organized thugs as ‘Biden’s troops.’
C’mon Adolf … December 7 1941 was a day of infamy. January 6 2021 saw a repeat of that. The Capitol was stormed by ‘ever Trumpers’ encouraged by a President out of control and believing his own rhetoric. His
pathetic after the event call to the rioters to go home peacefully can be likened to the arsonist having poured petrol on the fire now arguing he thought the bucket contained water.
Trump will now play the ‘not my fault’ card. Won’t matter, he’s trashed his legacy and my dislike of him has morphed into contempt for him and all he stands for. Those that continue to defend him run the risk of damaging their own reputations.
Hear hear. Could not agree more. He has done some good things IMO but he will be remembered for this.
It’s not carrying a torch for Biden to attribute the riot in The Capitol to Trump. He gave the speech and his followers responded. I think Biden is hopeless but he’s starting to look like the better choice. Trump is truly an awful person. But with just a modicum of thought and self control he could have been a two term president. He really has blown it. Totally idiotic.
I read what I think is a transcript of the speech and I didn’t see anything nearly as incendiary as the exhortations to violence by numerous leading Demcrats and their hangers on during recent months.
To which part do you refer?
The invasion of the capitol followed Trump’s speech. He did not say “Attack the Capitol” but the invasion, surely, is a direct consequence of his exhortation to resist. Do you not associate one with the other? That’d be a very lonely position.
Andrei … bit early on the vodka old son. You’re rambling and it’s sad. Can I suggest in all seriousness that your ‘handler’ at 57 Messines Road needs to sharpen up on his talking points.
Turmp is Trump and Harris, Harris. Should she become POTUS at some time in the future then it will be in accordance with the constitution … a document that Trump clearly doesn’t hold in any great regard.
Lol – you cannot answer my very simple questions so resort to insults.
When something unusual happens the first question should always be Cui Bono?
I don’t particularly like Donald Trump either but it doesn’t extend to visceral loathing and it doesn’t close my mind to the realities on the ground
100s of thousands of ordinary American citizens, decent God fearing folk, in an old fashion parlance came to Washinton, unhappy that their concerns over the 2020 election are not being addressed and the issues they wanted to highlight, issues that should be subject to sunlight and scrutiny, have been eclipsed by the invasion of the Capitol building and I don’t believe that is an accident
I personally have a friend in Phoenix who turned up to vote on election day only to be told he had cast an absentee ballot – he was allowed to cast a provisional ballot, a process that took nearly two hours but the chances that that ballot was counted is precisely zero – so in effect he was disenfranchised. And I can tell you he is pissed that his vote was stolen.
And I can also tell you that this case is far from unique
People who are willing to close their eyes to Election Fraud because it delivers a result they like are fools – tf you surrender democracy to get what you want today you will live to regret it tomorrow
But I speak as an outsider, and a Cassandra
Andrei … your writings define you … not me. I well remember your continued assertion that COVID was a fraud and in that you set a standard you are repeating now with your conspiracy theories rejected by every State legislature who certified their vote according to the laws of that State and by numerous appellant courts all the way up to SCOTUS.
For the record I’m sure there were instances of electoral fraud in the US (as there were in NZL with cases of double voting) but none so serious as to call into question the will of the people … apart from Trump who continues to assert he won in a “landslide”. Do you honestly believe that?
Your idea of democracy defined by your continued assertion that Russia is a democracy demonstrates your idea of democracy and mine is quite different. For me it’s ‘the people are right even when they’re wrong’ and I don’t riot and storm the parliament and neither do I do away with politicians I dislike by way of Novichok.
No Veteran
(1) Covid-19 is a varient of the corona virus which is ubiquitous in the environment has been forever.
In fact the varient of Covid-19 as originally identified probably no longer exists having mutated multiple times C’est la nature. It is not dangerous to people in the prime of life, never has been and most likely never will be. It serves political purposes and has been and continues to be ruthlessly used to advance political agendas, not the least being to enable large scale electoral fraud in the USA and to squash small independant businesses, in favour of big tech.
Here’s a curiousity, I don’t know what it means, but the value Bitcoin has gone stratospheric, over $37,000. It rise started at the end of March (which coincides with the Covid Panic beginning and then took off like a rocket in November).
(2) You are highly misinformed with this statement
One of the major frustrations of those interested in discovering the truth has been the refusal of the Governors of the effected States to call the Legislatures into session so they can formally examine these “claims” as you put it.
They have however held enquiries on their own and the testimonies are eye opening and are not “conspiracy theories” but legitimate issues that warrent futher attention – “conspiracy theories” being a phrase that you being highly suggestable have adopted to gaslight anyone who brings forth any evidence that might warrent scrutiny.
For example the Senate Judicial Commitee of Arizona has formally subpoenaed the Voting machines used in Maricopa County for forensic examination as they are legally entitled to do. The Electoral Board of Maricopa County has been stonewalling this subpoena, running out the clock until the inaugeration. Eventually the subpoena will have to be acceeded to but by the time it is it will be academic. If there is nothing to hide why not hand over the machines? It would be in everyone’s interest to show everything was above board – true? Tell me why that is illogical?
(3) There is very little difference between the way deputies (MPs) are elected to the Duma (Lower chamber) and the way we elect MPS to our Unicameral Parliament – Good old MMP, almost identical in terms of thresholds etc. The Russian Federation has a bicameral system as does the UK. Is a bicameral system more democratic or less democratic? A question for another time
You need to start thinking for yourself Veteran and exploring issues more deeply instead of being lead by the nose which is what you are
Andrei … you and Billy Te Kahika are clearly soul mates … conspiracy theorists extraordinaire and citing conjecture as fact. Your 3.02 post concerning your ‘friend’ who cast a provisional ballot and the assertion that his vote was not counted. Crap, you don’t know that. I could just as easily say my vote in Northland was not counted but I can’t because I have faith in our electoral process. The same applies in the United States and you saying that it doesn’t places you fair and square in the Trump camp where wishful thinking ‘trumps’ reality. As for the Russian Duma and if that’s your benchmark for democracy in action then clearly you don’t understand the meaning of the word.
The forces that Trump unleashed today were an attack on the democratic process pure and simple. If you want to align yourself with them that’s your choice but I can say unreservedly that there’s no place for you and yours in the NZL body politik. The Goldwater dictum that ‘extremism in the pursuit of liberty (however defined) is no vice’ wasn’t valid in 1964 and it’s still not valid today but I don’t expect you to understand that.
After four years of the evil MSM publishing articles on Trumps state of mind, his business incompetence, his narcissism and is fitness to be leader of the free world some commenters here are now just seeing the light.
Well, shucks, how was we to know the man is as mad as a cut snake. Pathetic. You talk of legacy try this.
The Republican party under Donald Trump lost control of the House of Representatives in 2018, the White House in 2020 and the Senate in 2021 – a trifecta of defeat that may finally convince you that from day one you have been misguided.
As for the riots we know what the response would be if they had been black. Think about it for second.
Opinions are free but facts are sacred.