President Obama dismissed Donald Trump’s criticism of conditions in the United States on Friday, saying crime is actually down, the economy is up, and most Americans believe things are going relatively well…. “This idea that America is somehow on the verge of collapse — this vision of violence and chaos everywhere — doesn’t really jibe with the experience of most people,” Obama told reporters the day after Trump painted a dark picture of the United States in formally accepting the Republican presidential nomination. Obama added: “We’re not going to make good decisions based on fears that don’t have a basis in fact.”
Listen to Republicans- particularly their Presidential nominee, Donald Trump- and you might find yourself thinking America is circling the drain, in the toilet, mere moments away from dumpster diving for our next meal. Everyone hates us, other countries are taking advantage of us, and we’re being overrun by sin, licentiousness, and those who reject God. In short, we SUCK.
Yeah, America sounds like a pretty gawdawful place, doesn’t it? And it would be…if any of that was true. The fact is that Republicans have to portray America as some sort of fallen, suppurating Sodom and Gomorrah…because they have nothing positive to offer. In order for Republicans to win elections, they have to convince voters that life sucks and that only they have the medicine capable of curing what’s ailing America.
Frankly, it’s crap, a load of dishonest, self-interested propaganda, a con intended to deceive the American sheeple into voting for Republicans interested only in securing their votes. Not a moment too soon, President Barack Obama is weighing in and calling “bullshit!” on Republicans.
We’re gonna need a bigger shovel….
In his speech accepting the GOP presidential nomination, Trump blamed the Obama administration — and Clinton, the former secretary of State — for problems ranging from crime and attacks on police to “bad” trade deals and Islamic State terrorism.
The nominee told Republican delegates that their convention took place “at a moment of crisis for our nation.”
The country is wracked by high crime rates and an economy in which too many people have given up looking for work, Trump said. He accused the government of selling out citizens through self-dealing and bad trade deals with other countries, including Mexico.
“Nobody knows the system better than me, which is why I alone can fix it,” Trump said.
The arrogance of “I alone can fix it!” aside, Trump is identifying problems which don’t exist without proposing solutions. Truth is, anyone who can form complete sentences can bemoan “problems.” Proposing solutions is part of a little thing I like to call “leadership”…and I wouldn’t follow Donald Trump if he was leading a pack of hungry Cub Scouts in search of a Dairy Queen.
Don’t piss and moan about something without telling me 1) HOW you’d fix the problem you’ve identified, and 2) HOW MUCH it’s going to cost to implement your solution. Leave those things out, and what you have is just so much verbal diarrhea.
In his White House news conference, Obama said Trump mangled crime statistics, and that the nation is much safer than it has been in years past. He said the Republican nominee ignored the benefits of immigration and free trade, and that training programs are in place to help displaced U.S. workers.
Obama also took another shot at Trump in saying that the globalized economy is a fact of life, and the United States must deal with it.
“We’re not going to be able to build a wall around that,” Obama said.
I think we’re fortunate to have a President who has both feet firmly planted in the reality-based world. He’s not trafficking in a lack of integrity, cheap personal insults, propaganda, or specious allegations; he’s dealing with the world as it actually is. In the reality-based world, there are more than enough real problems without inventing specious, emotionally-charged challenges.
President Obama recognizes that the US is but one country, albeit the world’s preeminent economic/military power. He understands that this status doesn’t confer or imply a license to an “America First” attitude. It’s the old “you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar” argument. This means being willing to engage other countries on a basic diplomatic level, treating them with the respect due equal partners- not expecting them to give way and treat America as a superior entity.
You don’t lead effectively through dishonesty, manipulation, bombast, personal insults, xenophobia, and jingoism. Donald Trump’s desire to wall America off runs counter to the reality that we live in an increasingly global economy, and America First doesn’t play well with countries and businesses outside our borders.
Despite what Trump’s trying to sell the American sheeple, America isn’t some sort of dystopian hellscape. It’s not about making America great again…because America never STOPPED being great. His narrative is as disingenuous and dishonest as it is vacuous and immature. That he stands in stark contrast to the maturity and measured competence of the Oval Office’s current occupant is a poor reflection on the Republican Party offering him up as their standard bearer.
The choice being presented to America this November seems clear: the experience, competence, and maturity of Hillary Clinton…or the ignorance, bombast, bullying, and racism of Donald Trump, who’s become addicted to his cult of personality.
I don’t know about you, but this seems like kind of a no-brainer, knowhutimean??
