3478

Nice

By this point in George W. Bush’s term, Bush had travelled to twenty-three states and a foreign country. Trump has visited just nine states and has never stayed the night. He inhabits a closed world that one adviser recently described to me as “Fortress Trump.” Rarely venturing beyond the White House and Mar-a-Lago, he measures his fortunes through reports from friends, staff, and a feast of television coverage of himself.

3480

That was an interesting quote, but my favorite was:

I asked Jerry Taylor, the president of the Niskanen Center, a libertarian think tank, if he had ever seen so much skepticism so early in a Presidency. “No, nobody has,” he said. “But we’ve never lived in a Third World banana republic. I don’t mean that gratuitously. I mean the reality is he is governing as if he is the President of a Third World country: power is held by family and incompetent loyalists whose main calling card is the fact that Donald Trump can trust them, not whether they have any expertise

3481

Here’s the full spending agreement (house.gov, 14 PDF links).

So, what’s in the agreement? We’ve sifted through the legislation, consulted supporting documents from Democratic and Republican aides, and called out some of the more notable and controversial elements below.

3482

Totally killed it.

3483

Anyone got any links from the Samantha Bee joint (I gather that Will Ferrell showed up doing how squinty GWB impression)?

3484

Not The White House Correspondents’ Dinner - a Full Frontal one hour special with Samantha Bee.

Etc. (Use the first link.)

3485

Awesome, thanks!

3486

I looks like this spending bill is a giant f-you to Trump. Everything he wanted is not included, everything he wanted to cut is funded.

3487

Pretty sure his supporters will say he asked for all this as the top point. He got to increase spending in some areas so… win; those stupid liberals are too dense to see it and the media spin is just more corruption.

3488

Significantly, every year since the tax cuts were implemented, Kansas has surpassed the state record for new business formations. When we consider that startups have decreased nationwide since the Great Recession of 2008, this achievement is particularly remarkable. What’s more, the Kansas unemployment rate stands at 3.7% – the lowest the state has seen since 2001, and well below the national average of 5.5%.

Why the incremental success in Kansas? We certainly can’t attribute these victories to the state’s core industries; due to economic turmoil felt nationwide, Kansas too has seen dips in farm incomes (owing to consistently low crop prices and steep declines in cattle prices), a fall in commodity prices and exports, sluggish movement in oil and natural-gas markets, and declining manufacturing. Without these four industries buoying Kansas’ economy, we must look to other factors: namely, the income tax cut that continues to make a real difference, particularly for small businesses and working families.

3489

where have i heard about Kansas before, let me see.

Now I need to find a another pair of eyes on what’s going on there, hopefully something less media and more academic.

3490

Keep looking for other factors.

3491

Trump’s nominee for Army Secretary has withdrawn his name from the nomination after it became clear he wouldn’t be confirmed.

(If you’re thinking, “Did that already happen a while back?” - yes, it did. This is the second nominee for Army Secretary to withdraw.)

3492

Same guy who earlier this week said, “The theory of relativity is a theory and some people accept it, but that requires somewhat of a degree of faith.”.

3493

Who says immigration is a thing of the past? What those latinos who just want a job really need is a half-million dollars to invest in the Kushner family’s ‘job creating’ real estate project.

3494

Since then, Johnson tells me, he’s given the question more thought. “A year ago,” he says, “it started coming up more and more. There was a real sense of earnestness, which made me go home and think, ‘Let me really rethink my answer and make sure I am giving an answer that is truthful and also respectful.’ I didn’t want to be flippant—‘We’ll have three days off for a weekend! No taxes!’”

So, after all that consideration, Johnson doesn’t hesitate when I ask him whether he honestly might one day give up his life as the highest-paid movie star on earth—which is unquestionably easier, more fun, and more lucrative than being president of the United States—in order to run for office. “I think that it’s a real possibility,” he says solemnly.

3495

I would take President Dwayne Johnson over President Trump with no hesitation.

3496

Agreed.
But then I would take President Rotten Cabbage before Trump so that’s not saying much.

3497

Over Trump? In a heartbeat. Over just about any fucking other person considering running? Aw hell naw. I’m going to need to see some indication that running for office would be anything more than just a chance to stroke what is no doubt a massive goddamned ego. I have had my fill of that, thank you.

3498

Oh, no doubt. Please believe that I don’t think Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson would be a good President over someone that actually had some national political experience.

Still, his response to that GQ interviewer is more measured and statesmanlike than anything I’ve heard come out of Trump’s mouth.