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Originally posted by justjoe:
lastmanstanding and chellim, however, are serious, unfortunately. Trump and Obama are similar in that both have two eyes, a nose, walk upright... things like that. Otherwise, I don't know of two more different people.

I'm not saying he's a hard-core leftist like Obama. Obama tries to hide it, but he's a commie. Trump is not.
The problem is Trump has NO ideological principles at all.

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You're trading one narcissist for another. That alone should give you pause.

Bingo. He seeks adulation and praise. He's very nice, as long as you're on the right side of his ego. Cross him, and he'll bite like a rattlesnake. So, it's not about ideas, it's about him.

Trump supports ethanol subsidies?
Why? Because it helps him win in Iowa. It got him the Governor's endorsement.

Cruz goes right into the heart of the Corn Cartel, and stands for principle.

Cruz: Gov. Branstad’s ‘Family Makes Tons of Money’ off Ethanol

January 31, 2016

Ted Cruz hit back this morning against Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, who has called on Republicans to caucus against Cruz tomorrow. Appearing on Meet the Press, Cruz said Branstad’s ”son is a lobbyist who makes hundreds of thousands of dollars on lobbying ethanol.” “His family makes a ton of money” from federal subsidies on ethanol, Cruz continued. “The lobbyists very much want to keep Iowa focused on the ethanol mandate because it keeps Iowa dependent on Washington — means every year they’ve got to go back to Washington and maintain the mandate, the lobbyists get paid, the politicians get paid.” “I’m going to eliminate all the subsidies, no subsidies for oil and gas, no subsidies for anybody,” Cruz said. ”But the other piece that is very important and that’s resonating is I’m going to also tear down the EPA’s ethanol blend wall, which means make it legal to sell mid-level blends of ethanol and that in turn can expand ethanol share of the marketplace by 60 percent but not based on mandates or subsidies based on the free market. And that message is resonating.”

Cruz, countering host Chuck Todd’s line of questioning that removing the subsidies hurts average Iowans, said his ethanol policy is growth-oriented: Right now ethanol is banging into the RFS [renewable fuel standard]. It’s essentially the blend wall is a cap. As people in Iowa know, as I’ve travel around and do town halls, ethanol’s not expanding its market share because the EPA is preventing it from doing it.

By the way, no other candidate has pledged to remove the blend wall. No other candidate is focusing on the future for ethanol. And you know someone who joined me on my bus tour across the state, fellow named Dave Vander Griend, he built more than half of the ethanol plants in the state of Iowa. He’s the one who estimates that you could see a 60 percent market increase. You know who’s hurt by my plan? The lobbyists in Washington and the people who are helped are Iowa farmers and jobs here in the state of Iowa.

Read more at: http://www.nationalreview.com/corner

One way to judge a persons true character is to look at their kids. From what I've seen of the Trump kids, they seem to have been raised well and admire their dad. But I've only seen them on TV a few time. We got any dirt on the kids?

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The problem is Trump has NO ideological principles at all.

He is for securing the border.

He will renegotiate the lopsided trade deals with China, Mexico, and others.

He is not only non-PC, he is anti-PC.

He will temporarily halt the immigration of Muslims until we can properly vet them.

I could go on, but I think you know all this. And these, and the rest of the list, are not "principles."

When you say "ideological principles" I think you are talking about conservative talking points that someone like George Will would swear by, along with all the other GOPe types that have stood by with their thumbs up their butts the last 7 years. "Committed to smaller government!" "Lower taxes!" "Strong on the Second Amendment!" "Limit presidential power!" Yada yada yada.

Trump does not talk abstractly. He is not a philosophical type. He thinks specifically and concretely. The border must be secured. How will he close the border? He will build a wall, that's how. (And all the GOPe types chortle and mock... "ho ho ho... how simple minded and crude. The problem is so complex!") And Mexico will pay for the wall. ("Haw haw haw, ridiculous!")

So Trump is rude, bombastic, egocentric. Actually, I don't much like him personally-- and check the title of this thread-- but I'm not thinking he's going to invite me to dinner, anyway.

I love him politically. He is exactly what we need right now-- and need desperately.

He is America's last chance. Wake up to that fact.

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The problem is Trump has NO ideological principles at all.

He does seem to be a capitalist.

The ethanol deal really changed Iowa very profoundly.

Now they get paid by the government to grow corn, whereas before, they were paid by the government to not grow corn.

Knowing the federal government as we have come to know it, it would not be surprising to find that some were being paid to do both.

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Originally posted by Jimineer:
One way to judge a persons true character is to look at their kids. From what I've seen of the Trump kids, they seem to have been raised well and admire their dad. But I've only seen them on TV a few time. We got any dirt on the kids?

The ones I've seen look very well scrubbed, hair combed, shirt tails tucked in, neat, etc., really stick out in a crowd.

The guy said he’s never felt the need to ask God for forgiveness. OK, I don’t judge him for that, but if someone doesn’t feel remorseful for breaking the laws of his Creator how does anyone think he will have any for breaking the laws of the Constitution?

The guy hasn’t been told no since the 80s. Throw in his egotistical actions of the past few weeks and send that guy to Washington with a mandate to “get things done” and people don’t think he’s going to do the same things with Executive Orders? It's great when he's with us, but he's not entirely in our boat. He just floated Scott Brown as VP and said it's a shame we are losing good people like him in the Senate.

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Originally posted by a1abdj:

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he did say he could shoot someone on 5th ave.

Nope. He never said that either.

Correct.

Listen to the original video of that speech in which he was reading from an article responding to the National Review criticism of him and how loyal his supporters are. What he said was, “They say I could shoot …,” [emphasis added]. Virtually every source that reported on his comments left off the “They say” part, and thereby completely changed the meaning of the statement. The only place I found the “They say” part included was—mirabile dictu!—in the headline of a Washington Post article.

If you’re not getting your information about Republican candidates directly from the original source, you’re probably getting it wrong. It’s just like the supposed statement by Sarah Palin and being able to see Russia from her house. That was from a Saturday Night Live satirical comedy skit, and yet countless people still believe she said it herself.

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The guy hasn’t been told no since the 80s.

I bet I could find several examples. You see, in order to be the type of negotiator Trump is, you have to be told no constantly. If you're never told no, then there's absolutely nothing to negotiate. You just do things however you want.

I think Trump may have written an entire book about this phenomenon.

a1abdj, you are a smart and very honest guy. You know what I'm saying when I say "he hasn't been told no since the 80s". The guy doesn't deal well it and he's not used to answering to anyone.

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a1abdj, you are a smart and very honest guy. You know what I'm saying when I say "he hasn't been told no since the 80s". The guy doesn't deal well with it.

That's something Trump and I have in common. I don't take no for an answer either. In fact, the more I'm told no, the harder I work to get my way.

Those who get the short end of that stick would say guys like Trump "didn't take it well". Trump calls it winning.

Do you recall the story I told a few years back about the local municipality telling me what I could and could not park in my driveway? I pissed off a lot of government officials in the process of getting my way. My way just so happened to be legal and right. I bet if you asked them, they'd tell you what a dick I was. If you asked my neighbors, they'd tell you I was a champion of freedom.

That’s awesome

The problem is the Founders intentionally created our government so one man couldn’t exalt himself above the Constitution. We all look at the guy in office and say, “stop drilling holes in our boat”. Someone isn’t going to restore our country to greatness by switching from a Black & Decker to a Makita. The end result is going to be a further erosion of our rights.

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We got any dirt on the kids?

I've never heard any. Eric and, IIRC, Ivanka have said you don't because he kept them too busy working. The spoiled ones are the ones that make the tabloids, e.g., Paris Hilton. I commented on this a few dozen pages back.

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Originally posted by Ackks:
That’s awesome

The problem is the Founders intentionally created our government so one man couldn’t exalt himself above the Constitution. We all look at the guy in office and say, “stop drilling holes in our boat”. Someone isn’t going to restore our country to greatness by switching from a Black & Decker to a Makita. The end result is going to be a further erosion of our rights.

Please list instances of Trump "exhalting himself above the constitution". Please be specific.

Otherwise, STFU about it.

My greatest concern is the threat to individual liberty most present represented by obamacare. So I ask, if congress sends Trump a bill repealing the euphemistically titled ACA, will Trump sign it?

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Please list instances of Trump "exhalting himself above the constitution". Please be specific.

Otherwise, STFU about it.

You mean past "I'm going to make America great again"? That sounds just like something Madison or Jefferson would say.

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Originally posted by Ackks:

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Please list instances of Trump "exhalting himself above the constitution". Please be specific.

Otherwise, STFU about it.

You mean past "I'm going to make America great again"? That sounds just like something Madison or Jefferson would say.

So you're just pulling it out of your ass. Got it.

Bigbore, I hope you have a peaceful Sunday

I don't think you're helping, Ackks.

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Originally posted by justjoe:
I don't think you're helping, Ackks.

He can't help. He's got NOTHING.