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Trump's First 100 Days: An Inauspicious Start

The era of the Inglorious Donald Trump is upon us. This will be the most dreary Thanksgiving ever. Here's what we learned about Unpresident Donald Trump today:

The security cost for protecting Trump and his family in New York is $1 million a day. As I wrote this morning, the Mayor plans to ask the feds to help out. If he's successful, that's our tax dollars being spent.

The Chicago Tribune tells Trump to suck it up and take his family to live in D.C. I agree.

Even if he personally repays the state and local governments for the massive cost of protecting his wife and 10 year old son after the inauguration in New York so he can indulge his 10 year old's desire to finish the 5th grade with his chums, which I suspect he won't because he's too miserly, he can't repay New Yorkers for the inconvenience and time lost in traffic jams. Tourism will fall quickly. Who would book a holiday trip to New York now, knowing they can't get up or down 5th Avenue and everyone will be in a Grinch mood over the delays (if it doesn't cause an unprecedented rise in violent road rage incidents?) [More...]

New York itself will suffer when businesses start scheduling conferences and meetings in other cities, causing hotels, car services, taxi drivers and restaurants to lose money.

Not to mention the cost of everything will rise as a result of increased transportation costs. If it takes Fedex, UPS drivers or truckers 2 hours longer to deliver to Manhattan, the companies will raise prices to pass on the cost. Almost everything you buy is at some point shipped or trucked -- remember when gas prices went up a few years ago and Fedex and the airlines responded with price increases?

What happens when a Trump wants to go to Palm Beach? Or when Trump, who isn't giving up his business interests, decides to fly to Mumbai or Uruguay to check out the newest resort he sold his name to? We'll have to pay for that too. He can blow through his money but he has no right to blow through taxpayer money for his personal interests.

And on the chance Donald and his wife are separated or about to separate and she has just been hanging in there until the election is over, they should hurry up and get divorced -- before inauguration day if possible, so that we don't have to pay for her secret service protection for life.

In related news: Trump outlined his plans for his first 100 days in a video today. It includes six actions he can take with his pen -- no congressional approval needed.

Trump promised to withdraw from negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, cancel environmental restrictions put in place by President Barack Obama, ask his national security team to buttress against infrastructure attacks, have the Labor Department investigate federal worker visas and impose broad new bans on lobbying by government employees.

The six items Trump detailed Monday are all somewhat easy lifts inside Washington -- because they can be done with a simple signature by Trump and do not require congressional approval.

More interesting, the FEC sent a letter to Trump today saying his latest financial filing had more than 1,000 errors, totaling $1.3 million. Here's the actual letter

Although the Commission may take further legal action concerning the acceptance of excessive contributions, your prompt action to refund or redesignate and/or reattribute the excessive amount will be taken into consideration.

...Although the Commission may take further legal action concerning the acceptance of prohibited contributions, your prompt action to refund the prohibited amount will be taken into consideration.

This has to do with the period after he decided to go digital in his fundraising around July. His son-in-law was instrumental in choosing the company that got more than $8 million to solicit new donors through an online campaign.

Kushner has overseen Trump's digital strategy since November. Parscale, whose firm is in San Antonio, Texas, has worked as a consultant to the campaign since its first day last year. This is his first national political campaign, but he has been a consultant to the Trump Organization since 2011.

The close relationships — and trust — among Parscale, Kushner and Trump have helped convince a once-skeptical Trump that it's wise to spend precious campaign money on data.

Via NBC:

Trump's digital team is — like many of his earliest advisers — from outside the Beltway. The firm orchestrating Trump's digital strategy, Giles-Parscale, is run by a Trump associate, Brad Parscale, who did not respond to NBC News' requests for comment.

Parscale, a Texas-based digital strategist who is new to politics, had been employed by the Trump Organization's businesses since 2011. Faced with staffing a presidential bid at the last minute, he brought in some outside vendors, including The Prosper Group, to help staff Trump's digital presence.

The hiring of Parscale and $8.4 million spending on his digital campaign received some sharp criticism at the time. Follow-up here.

In yet more Trump news today, Trump called a media mogul meeting and did nothing but rant and call them names. Hopefully, that will lead to some intrepid investigative journalist finding the goods we all know are out there to get him impeached, convicted and removed from office before he destroys our country and our children's future.

My first post-election decision: I'm canceling Sirius. I only have it to listen to the news in the car and since I will no longer listen to the news to avoid hearing about Trump, or worse, hearing his voice or that of his enablers, there's no reason to have it.

Hillary's popular vote lead now exceeds 1.5 million votes.

< Trump's Traveling Road Show | Pre-Thanksgiving Open Thread >
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  • Display: Sort:
    Everything Trump (5.00 / 1) (#2)
    by Ga6thDem on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 06:45:15 AM EST
    is doing is like the Trump University scam. It's designed to fleece the rubes while loading his own pockets.

    In Portland (5.00 / 1) (#11)
    by fishcamp on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 03:17:03 PM EST
    I lived on 31'st and Ainsworth.

    So many great old homes on Ainsworth. Love that (5.00 / 1) (#13)
    by Cashmere on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 03:23:14 PM EST
    Street. Thanks and small world.

    Parent
    Trump is playing the media (5.00 / 1) (#12)
    by smott on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 03:21:18 PM EST
    Like a violin.
    Hilarious.

    And these morons STILL think they'll get access?

    Hell we'll be lucky if there's even a daily press briefing.
    ...To the official WH Press pool of Brietbart, the Observer, and the Enquirer.

    The delusions of The NYT and esp their Public Editor ("sorry, we should've been nicer to white Trump voters! Our bad!") are just sad diversions now.

    It's an interesting time for sure. Witnessing the destruction of the 4th estate and all.

    A Nixon veteran (5.00 / 2) (#16)
    by Ga6thDem on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 03:31:22 PM EST
    said Trump should be afraid of the press instead of the press afraid of him. So unless they forget about access and start doing some digging there is going to be nothing to report on.

    However the WaPo seems to be one of the few doing real journalism along with the Atlantic.

    Parent

    This isn't the same country that tolerated Nixon (5.00 / 1) (#22)
    by Militarytracy on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 08:42:42 PM EST
    It isn't the same press. The press dropped the ball in the election for easy click dollars. And Soledad tweeted the profit that CNN booked and said, "Don't expect that to change anytime soon." But now Trump is the only gig in town and Twitter is 100% unforgiving. Add some thin skin and Girl, you haven't seen a rodeo like the one we're going to.

    Parent
    And Loren Michaels and Alec Baldwin (none / 0) (#23)
    by Militarytracy on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 08:44:25 PM EST
    Own the Donald now too

    Parent
    Those street names (5.00 / 1) (#17)
    by fishcamp on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 03:41:55 PM EST
    are like Nathaniel Hawthorne names.  I also knew a girl from Finn Rock, Oregon named Carla Goodpasture.

    I prefer Ken Kesey's Oregon (none / 0) (#46)
    by Mr Natural on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 03:11:51 PM EST
    but, like wow, fishcamp, if this were another blog, your comment would have provided one heckuva setup.

    Parent
    We look like a banana republic (5.00 / 1) (#19)
    by MKS on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 06:34:26 PM EST
    We have elected a strong-man who rejects democratic values.

    And, his comment that the President "can't have a conflict" echoes Nixon's "it is not illegal if the President does it."

    Earlier Trump said that the conflict of interest (none / 0) (#20)
    by Mr Natural on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 08:12:33 PM EST
    was 'priced into" his voters' votes.  'Priced in' is a Wall Street term of art.

    I dunno what Jeralyn's complaining about.  This is a crime blog.  In that respect, Trump's regime is gonna be a gold mine of crime-like stuff to explain and rage about.  [mass quantities of snark deleted]

    Comics like Lewis Black will have a field day - if they don't implode.

    Parent

    Clinton being urged (5.00 / 3) (#35)
    by smott on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 09:39:05 AM EST
    To request recount in certain swing states due to anomalies.

    Basically, the exit polls all showed her winning. There was a massive shift to Trump in the vote "count".

    Bottom line - if this were an election in some banana republic/3rd world nation (which we are about to become ) the US would NOT validate the results due to the discrepancies between exit polls (always the gold standard)  and results totaled by non-audit able opaque privatized voting systems.

    In comparison, a similar shock upset in Brexit, the exit polls were dead on.

    Alternet (none / 0) (#36)
    by smott on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 09:59:05 AM EST
    Had a couple of good stories on this, though NYMag has the latest.

    Basically since the advent of electronic voting in the early 2000s, a term has been coined : "Red Shift", meaning that despite exit polls, votes counted by largely electronic machines nearly always shift to the Republican. Rare that there is any shift to Dems.

    So, exit polls say Clinton won. But there was a 5 pt shift in PA, a 6-pt in NC, and nearly 3-pt in FL, all to Trump.  All at or beyond the MOE. And all for Trump.

    Rigged, indeed.

    Parent

    I would say the (5.00 / 1) (#37)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 11:37:14 AM EST
    election fraud that was committed in NC is lending more credence to this than anything else. It seems there is evidence of the IT person at the NC BOE perpetuating election fraud and it's the reason why McCrory is freaking out.

    Parent
    To understand what cybersecurity experts ... (5.00 / 1) (#50)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 05:43:17 PM EST
    ... have actually been saying to Mrs. Clinton's senior campaign officials, it's best to go directly to the primary source, specifically J. Alex Halderman, Ph.D., professor of computer science at the the University of Michigan and director of the UM Center for Computer Security and Society:

    J. Alex Halderman, Ph.D | November 22, 2016
    Want to Know if the Election was Hacked? Look at the Ballots - "You may have read at [NYMag.com] that I've been in discussions with the Clinton campaign about whether it might wish to seek recounts in critical states. That article, which includes somebody else's description of my views, incorrectly describes the reasons manually checking ballots is an essential security safeguard (and includes some incorrect numbers, to boot). Let me set the record straight about what I and other leading election security experts have actually been saying to the campaign and everyone else who's willing to listen."

    It's a rather lengthy and detailed read, but certainly a worthwhile one.

    Parent

    Betsy DeVos, (5.00 / 1) (#42)
    by KeysDan on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 01:44:57 PM EST
    is Trump's appointee as Secretary of Education. A social, "family values," conservative from Michigan, and former chair of the MI Republican Party. Miss DeVos is a billionaire (Amway and Auto parts) who is an advocate of charter/voucher schools.  She is a sister of Eric Prince of Blackwater fame in Iraq.  Betsy's mother was involved in social issues such as funding the anti-same sex marriage proposition in
    California.  

    The sister of Blackwater (5.00 / 1) (#43)
    by Militarytracy on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 02:11:04 PM EST
    Good Lord

    Parent
    Ditto... (none / 0) (#45)
    by desertswine on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 02:25:57 PM EST
    The new plan, apparently (none / 0) (#47)
    by Mr Natural on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 03:19:51 PM EST
    is to school and educate 'mericans to suck down coca cola and fritos, in other words, to be obedient consumers and watch the wall to wall garbage that infects cable and networks.

    Meanwhile, American Business will continue to rely on the H-1B visa program to import the necessary well educated foreigners to handle brain work.

    Parent

    I do not understand the hate of (5.00 / 2) (#49)
    by Militarytracy on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 04:40:11 PM EST
    Education. When I was a kid, my grandparents in particular promoted public education, they went to every school activity I was involved in. But my grandmother rode a horse to school, my grandfather loved school, these were rural families. School was an escape for my grandfather from his abusive family though.

    I guess you don't know what you've got until it's gone.

    I feel weary though. And you want to shutdown discussion of the Alabama drought and how could it be this bad? Tell everyone the truth. That 12 years ago you sat together with your family along with Pentagon study on climate change and you all decided that what was going to happen to Alabama didn't look that bad. But it's happening, and it's bad, for agriculture. Great for my mold allergy. The mold is dying and no moisture to recuperate it is showing up all winter. My house is at 36% humidity too.

    Parent

    From (5.00 / 1) (#66)
    by FlJoe on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 08:49:41 PM EST
    henceforth nobody shall be better educated than der Trumpf
    First of all, we don't make the windmills in the United States. They're made in Germany and Japan. They're made out of massive amounts of steel, which goes into the atmosphere, whether it's in our country or not, it goes into the atmosphere.
    Into the atmosphere? WTF.

    The stupification of America has begun Trump to scrap Nasa climate research in crackdown on `politicized science'
    Jim and Trevor be sure to say a couple say a couple of extra heil Trumps tonight, celebrate the ascendance of the gods of ignorance.

    Parent

    There is no hate (none / 0) (#51)
    by TrevorBolder on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 06:28:59 PM EST
    Of education.

    It is giving poor families, where the public education system has horribly failed,
    An opportunity to perhaps place their child in a learning environment.
    It is, as they say...For the children

    Parent

    Here's an (5.00 / 4) (#53)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 07:03:09 PM EST
    article about all that by Diane Ravitch who was a proponent of charter schools, one of the original proponets FWIW, talking about what a failure they have been. She started the movement and then turned her back on it.

    Parent
    Bull $hit...your ilk pulls dollars away from (5.00 / 1) (#54)
    by Militarytracy on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 07:23:22 PM EST
    Those kids all the time. Here in Alabama though, the kids in poorer districts have all the best stuff because their tiny portion of property taxation kicked off federal government assistance.

    This whole state is so broke though that a little federal assistance looks like wealth, glad I'm getting my kid out of it.

    I heard the anger though in parents from wealthier districts when they saw the elementary school on Rucker Blvd with its "computers", I heard the jealousy. They vote their whole system into the stone age and then when the Feds kick in for the poor kids they get pissed off and jealous because they were so sure they were better than "these people".

    Parent

    It's the same (none / 0) (#58)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 07:41:56 PM EST
    here. The irony is the people who are most amenable to charter schools are rural areas which the charter schools will never go because there is not enough money.

    Parent
    I am a teacher, and you are (5.00 / 3) (#73)
    by Towanda on Thu Nov 24, 2016 at 04:38:10 PM EST
    full of it to claim that there is not hatred of education.  

    We fund what we like in this country, so the defunding tells us, loud and clear, that education is not liked -- and often hated, as well we teachers know from listening to our legislators, our school boards, our citizens. . . .

    And I am in the city where (thanks, Bill Ayers) experimenting with alternatives to public schools started, decades ago -- so the data are out there to show the impact on children in those schools without accountability . . . and, even worse, the impact of defunding the children in public schools.

    Really, stop showing how uneducated you are about education in this country today.

    Parent

    Charter Schools (none / 0) (#74)
    by MKS on Thu Nov 24, 2016 at 08:51:04 PM EST
     Never seen a supporter of such actually cite data that ever made sense.

    It is always some type of cherry picking.

    Parent

    i have a bridge (none / 0) (#52)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 06:57:06 PM EST
    in Arizona to sell you if you believe that. That is what conservatives SAY but that is not what happens in reality. In reality it is making things worse for POC because it takes control of their own schools away and since conservatives know better than anybody what is good for everybody else they then lecture them on what they need to do. Conservatives do not believe that POC are able to handle things themselves.

    Parent
    Try selling that stuff (none / 0) (#56)
    by TrevorBolder on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 07:32:54 PM EST
    To a woman in the inner city, where the school is a hellhole, and she won a lottery to get her child into a charter school.
    She will shut you down in a heartbeat.
    Talk to the women who are crying out for their kids to have a fighting chance.

    If public education did not fail them so badly, this need would never have been warranted.
    Unfortunately, the public education system has become a aircraft carrier, and is not conducive to change. The public education system protects the teachers and their union, but is not to responsive to the needs of the child.


    Parent

    So Michelle Rhee (none / 0) (#57)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 07:40:11 PM EST
    can stick tape on the child's face? The experiment in DC was nothing short of a disaster and obviously you've NEVER talked to any of the people because first of all charter schools require having your own transportation. Secondly are you aware that many of the charter schools in this country are run by the Saudis? We had a big scandal here in GA with that and they were embezzling tax payer funds and we had to kick the charter schools out. Check how well they worked in California too. They had a major scandal there with the charter schools. All you are spouting is Republican propaganda but then that's all you ever do.

    Parent
    I've met Michelle Rhee on several occasions. (5.00 / 1) (#64)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 08:34:58 PM EST
    It's always my impression that she sincerely means well. Which just goes to show us that we should beware of those who sincerely mean well, especially when they are so focused on meaning well that they don't bother to look up and notice the damage they're causing.

    Parent
    Please don't waste any words (none / 0) (#60)
    by TrevorBolder on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 07:52:29 PM EST
    On me.

    Talk to the parents trying to get their children into one of these kids.

    They will shut you down in a heartbeat.

    The public education system has failed those families, and it CANNOT be fixed in time for these kids,
    So, the lifeline they have is charter schools. Now maybe go about fixing the public schools so no one would need a charter school

    Parent

    I have talked (5.00 / 1) (#61)
    by Ga6thDem on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 08:12:22 PM EST
    to them and they don't exist Trevor. Quit with the GOP propaganda and BS. The fact of the matter is charter schools take over an existing school and the kids go to the same school mostly. You act like they are some sort of tony private school. They are not. You really should read up on what is going on. All that is happening is charter schools are taking the money out of these "inner city" schools and running with the money. It's yet another corporate welfare program taking money from poor people. And quit about the unions. We don't have teacher's unions here in GA you silly boy.

    Many a democrat has had plans for helping the public schools but anytime Republicans have any control over the money they block it. They want to go back to the days where if you had money you could go to school. We see it here in GA all the time. And since the voucher argument blew up on conservatives they now are into charter schools, another welfare program for already entitled who are not interested in educating kids, only feeding them fast food and making them watch commercials.

    Parent

    You can't fix (5.00 / 1) (#62)
    by jondee on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 08:21:58 PM EST
    the public schools in the inner city  without doing things to fix the inner city. And I don't mean making sure everyone has a copy of Atlas Shrugged and a subscription to Reason.

    Otherwise these poor kids are still going home to the constant pressure cooker of crime ridden neighborhoods, and nutrient-poor meals, or no meals (because libertarians think they don't deserve food stamps) and a playing field in which almost everything is still stacked against them.

    The first priority here should be the kids; not the realization of some libertarian privatization jackoff fantasy -- as if that were the magic bullet solution for everything.

     

    Parent

    Exactly (none / 0) (#69)
    by TrevorBolder on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 08:59:00 PM EST
    The first priority here should be the kids;

    And that is just what I said, but don't sentence these children to a inner city public school because they cannot be fixed in time for them, at least give them a fighting chance, some hope.

    And actually try fixing public schools instead of protecting the teachers unions, its for the children, isn't it?

    Parent

    Teachers Unions (5.00 / 3) (#75)
    by MKS on Thu Nov 24, 2016 at 08:52:54 PM EST
    are so hated....irrationally so.

    Favorite pet whipping boy of conservatives.

    You want better teachers?  Pay them more.

    Parent

    With the Education appointment (5.00 / 2) (#77)
    by Militarytracy on Fri Nov 25, 2016 at 01:20:36 PM EST
    I wonder how Alabama feels about all those Trump votes now? Being a public school teacher is one of the few jobs here that can place you in the middle class. I watched the teachers union here whip the hell out of a voucher Republican in a Republican primary. How many Alabama teachers regret their Trump vote today? In my experience here, almost all of them. Did they not hear the words coming out of his mouth?

    Parent
    TrevorBolder: "The public education system has failed those families, and it CANNOT be fixed in time for these kids, So, the lifeline they have is charter schools. Now maybe go about fixing the public schools so no one would need a charter school."

    ... tend to be nothing more than people who prefer to listen to Rush Limbaugh.

    Parent

    Sorry (none / 0) (#68)
    by TrevorBolder on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 08:56:13 PM EST
    I work for a living, typical liberal though, someone who you disagree with you, you sterotype,
    Sorta like saying all muslims are terrorists, oh thats right, liberals only stereotype when it suits them.
    That is why you lose elections. People cannot debate liberals, liberals shut down .

     Jon Stewart Points Out Liberal Hypocrisy in the Wake of Donald Trump's Win

    "There's now this idea that anyone who voted for him has to be defined by the worst of his rhetoric."

    http://tinyurl.com/zfcofng

    Parent

    Inner city schools are hellholes (none / 0) (#59)
    by jondee on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 07:49:57 PM EST
    because inner cities are hellholes; full of folks who can't afford to hire high powered lobbying firms to advocate for them -- not because of (gasp!) unions and other libertarian boogie men..

    As if being in a union automatically made one some sort of vile human being who doesn't give a damn about children.

    Parent

    Yes, and those (none / 0) (#48)
    by KeysDan on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 04:30:08 PM EST
     displaced, poorly educated white men will have to acknowledge that they are not the lone rangers, as uber drivers are replaced with driver-less ubers, radiologists are replaced with A.I., and middle-aged vie for Walmart greeter positions as they are replaced by cheaper, entry level personnel.  The focus by some Democrats on the "forgotten" in MI, WI, PA is a little behind the curve.

    Parent
    ... has ever set foot in an urban public school, without first donning a surgical mask and a pair of latex gloves. This is yet another in what's sure to be a long list of inspired appointments! What's next - Franklin Graham as HUD secretary? ("Shhh, you dummy, don't give them any ideas!") We can look forward to four years of wealthy white people who were born on third base and think they hit a triple, lecturing the poor and downtrodden about what the less fortunate are doing wrong.

    Parent
    ... who is a longtime educator with considerable experience in her field, and lecturing her on yet another subject about which you obviously know very little if anything at all.

    Again, you're bringing nothing of substance to the discussion here. So, rather than continuing to harangue everyone with baseless right-wing talking points which we've almost all heard ad nausuem, you ought to do your homework first, and present us with the data and the info that support your position that charter schools -- not public charter schools which are still under school district authority, but actual charter schools with privatized management -- are likely a better alternative.

    In the interest of personal disclosure, I've worked extensively with Hawaiian language immersion public charter schools as a third-party evaluator and consultant. Speaking for myself only, I see considerable potential in public charter schools as a means to revolutionize public education by breaking its cookie-cutter approach through the concept of magnet schools. Public charter schools further provide for school-community-based management under the authority of the State Board of Education, and Hawaii law -- like Massachusetts -- does not allow for charter schools with privatized corporate management.

    But from my standpoint and in my opinion, so-called traditional charter schools on the U.S. mainland are failing students badly, because they are generally not being run by professional educators, but rather by a corporate bureaucracy with little or no oversight and accountability. In many instances, that bureaucracy is doing little more than siphoning up precious public education funding for private profit. From the Detroit Free Press, "Bringing Failing Charter Schools to Heel," (February 1, 2016):

    "Michigan's lackadaisical oversight has made the state especially attractive to for-profit charter operators, who now run more than three-fourths of the state's charter schools. Their proliferation has spawned an unvirtuous cycle in which unregulated operators use taxpayer dollars to buy political influence that shields them from unwanted scrutiny. If the cycle is not interrupted, for-profit charter operators will remain perpetually a step ahead of would-be regulators, much as tobacco manufacturers did for decades."

    That editorial urged the Michigan State Legislature to pass much needed charter school reform, a move which was eventually stymied thanks in no small part to a multi-million dollar public misinformation campaign conducted in that state by Betsy DeVos, President-elect Trump's nominee for U.S. Secretary of Education.

    Aloha.

    Perhaps (none / 0) (#84)
    by TrevorBolder on Sat Nov 26, 2016 at 04:34:27 AM EST
    You should listen to the mothers living in those school districts, instead of the teachers unions.

    Take your own advice.

    The opposition by the unions is visceral, they do not want to see ANY charter school succeed, under any circumstances, and the Democrats, as beneficiary of the unions political funding, wholeheartedly agree.

    It appears that the new administration will give charter schools a opportunity, and from that we will then be able to determine whether they are successful, or not. With more opportunities one can also find out what ones are working, and why.Instead of outright resistance to the approach, a measured approach would be beneficial , for these downtrodden neighborhoods certainly need it.

    Trust me, in the great school districts across Long Island, there will be no outcry for charter schools. You have to create an environment conducive to learning. The abysmal school districts cry out for drastic change, change that public schools cannot or will not provide. It looks like that opportunity will be given with the new administration. And if it fails, scrap it. But do not deny the mothers of those children some glimmer of hope, all for staunch support of partisan politics as usual. These kids deserve more than politics as usual.


    Parent

    Straw mothers (none / 0) (#86)
    by Militarytracy on Sun Nov 27, 2016 at 12:55:45 PM EST
    And Michigan got Charter schools which (none / 0) (#87)
    by Militarytracy on Sun Nov 27, 2016 at 04:25:15 PM EST
    Then began to fail miserably and now turn in the worst scores.

    Parent
    Edward Snowden talking about Trump (5.00 / 1) (#83)
    by Mr Natural on Sat Nov 26, 2016 at 03:13:02 AM EST
    November 11, 2016: Helmet Cam Network

    We are never farther than a single election away from a change in government, from a change in policy, from a change in the way that the powers that we have constructed into our system are used.  And so what we need to start thinking about now is not, "How do we defend against a President Donald Trump, but how do we defend the rights of everyone, everywhere, without regard to jurisdictions, without regard to the borders..."

    We have this tremendous fabric of technology that we've enveloped the earth with, this internet that creates bonds of fraternity between people who don't even share the same language, but this is fabric of communications, that  was intended to empower citizens and individuals and communities and families, is increasingly being used to disempower them.

    This is not about me. This is about us. When I see these changes in government, where we see these candidates who are extremely authoritarian, and they believe that if we have the power to do something, we should do something.  We stop thinking about wrong or right.  We stop thinking about should or should not.  Instead we focus strictly on can or cannot.  These, I think, are civic dangers to everyone.  These are the things that we have to focus the most on resisting, not individual cases but broad social cases and this is the thing that I think we begin to forget when we focus too much on a single candidate.


    I hear....people are saying... (none / 0) (#1)
    by Militarytracy on Mon Nov 21, 2016 at 11:27:35 PM EST
    That other than the White House and Camp David, we the tax payers of America are purchasing a third residence for our dear leader. High in the sky of America, like an eagle's nest.

    One difference between Trump and the former (none / 0) (#18)
    by Mr Natural on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 06:00:43 PM EST
    owner of Das Kehlsteinhaus:... Donald Trump isn't afraid of heights.

    Parent
    Hey, I switched grade schools (none / 0) (#3)
    by fishcamp on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 11:35:47 AM EST
    in the 4th grade with no problems.  Of course I was getting away from the nun bopping at Ascencion Catholic grade school..  we weren't even named after a saint, and I didn't know what ascencion even meant.  The grade school I did switch to is now a brew pub, and bed and breakfast place, in Portland.  The times they are a changin'.

    I agree, Fishcamp (none / 0) (#4)
    by Mr Natural on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 12:28:03 PM EST
    I moved from Mexico to the US (Pennsylvania!) at just a little younger than that age.  Kidz are resilient.  IMO, Mrs Trump wants a vacation from Mr Trump.

    Parent
    Can't blame Melania Trump if that's the case. (none / 0) (#10)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 01:30:32 PM EST
    By most accounts, she appears to be a nice woman. But clearly, just as he did to his other wives, her husband subordinated her needs and wishes to his own ego and then roundly humiliated her on a national stage.

    I wound up feeling genuinely sorry for her after that Access Hollywood tape surfaced, and his campaign trotted her out to defend him on national TV. She looked genuinely unhappy to even have to be there before the cameras, and called Trump a little boy.

    She ought to dump that chinchilla-haired babooze and move on, and take their son with her. He doesn't deserve them. Then again, she's a big girl and it's her life. But I very seriously doubt that it's going to get any easier for her, now that her husband's in the White House.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    I don't think congenital liars (5.00 / 1) (#27)
    by Towanda on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 09:22:31 PM EST
    are "nice."  But that must be just me about lying about having a college degree, lying about plagiarism (twice, at least), lying about waiting for a work visa when actually working and being paid for it in the U.S. . . . and the media still has not vetted her fully, from what I see.  So, there probably is more.

    If Melania Trump didn't want to face this scrutiny, she could have saved her new country from this mess by talking the large orange lout of this ego trip.

    Parent

    ... in the matter. Anyway, she wasn't on the ballot. He was. I'm fully aware of her own challenges with the truth as you've so noted, but to be perfectly honest, she's otherwise not someone about whom I'm all that concerned. I just don't see her as worth my time.

    Yeah, I felt sorry for Ms. Trump when I heard that tape but truth be told, she willingly chose to be part of this circus. Hell, she played an integral part in the break-up of her husband's second marriage and I've seen her racy photo shoots, so she's hardly some innocent babe in the woods here. She should've known what she was getting with him and if she didn't, then she's really nothing but a dipstick with lipstick. And dipstick or not, as an adult she has to live with both her choices, and any resultant consequences therein.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    Fishcamp -- Is it the Kennedy School in Portland? (none / 0) (#5)
    by Cashmere on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 12:55:44 PM EST
    McMenamins..  We used to live in a house between NE Prescott and Skidmore... and would walk for brewpub delights and beer, and watch movies.. We just sold the house in 2015, for a huge profit.  The Portland market is pretty hot.  http://tinyurl.com/273olqn

    Parent
    My link may not have worked... (none / 0) (#6)
    by Cashmere on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 12:56:55 PM EST
    McMenamin's Kennedy School...http://tinyurl.com/273olqn

    Parent
    Yep, cashmere, (none / 0) (#7)
    by fishcamp on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 01:07:38 PM EST
    Kennedy was my grade school.  I lived about four blocks away.

    So cool! Do you mind telling me where you lived? (5.00 / 1) (#8)
    by Cashmere on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 01:24:04 PM EST
    So cool!  Do you mind telling me where you lived?  Our house was on the corner of NE 35th Ave and Prescott.  Here is a pic of our house that we sold, in case you know it..  from my FB page:  http://tinyurl.com/hlhv28r


    Parent
    Heh, I spent a week in.. (5.00 / 1) (#9)
    by desertswine on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 01:29:23 PM EST
    that place a couple of years ago.  Nice fun place.  The classrooms were converted into rooms, they showed movies in the auditorium, had a heated outdoor pool, nice art in the hallways,and best of all, had about 5 bars.

    Parent
    OMG send me!!! (none / 0) (#21)
    by Militarytracy on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 08:36:20 PM EST
    Where is this place again?

    Parent
    Portland, OR :) (5.00 / 2) (#26)
    by Cashmere on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 09:10:16 PM EST
    NE Portland.

    Parent
    Trump is playing the media (none / 0) (#14)
    by smott on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 03:23:40 PM EST
    Like a violin.
    Hilarious.

    And these morons STILL think they'll get access?

    Hell we'll be lucky if there's even a daily press briefing.
    ...To the official WH Press pool of Brietbart, the Observer, and the Enquirer.

    The delusions of The NYT and esp their Public Editor ("sorry, we should've been nicer to white Trump voters! Our bad!") are just sad diversions now.

    It's an interesting time for sure. Witnessing the destruction of the 4th estate and all.

    No details how this went down (5.00 / 1) (#25)
    by Militarytracy on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 09:09:16 PM EST
    I was going to get a digital NY TIMES subscription thx to the Trump presidency but I'm drawing that back. Maybe Wapo, whoever doesn't fold to this Nazi gets my money and eyes.

    Parent
    Whoops (none / 0) (#15)
    by smott on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 03:24:01 PM EST
    Apologies all

    Inglorious Donald Trump (none / 0) (#24)
    by hilts on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 08:51:54 PM EST
    Donald Trump is an insufferable, unprecedented buffoon. If only some investigative journalist could uncover a new scandal in the next 2 weeks that would cause a stampede of electors to switch their vote from Trump to Hillary!

    If the electoral college can't save this nation from the stupidity of the American electorate, hopefully this planet can survive 4 years of Trump's stupidity.

    not gonna happen (none / 0) (#31)
    by Steve13209 on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 07:12:16 AM EST
    Hillary has conceded and it's President-Elect Trump now, no matter how ridiculous that sounds. Think of it, Reagan, 2 Bushes and now Trump. What a legacy.


    Parent
    Don't know what to make of this. (none / 0) (#29)
    by vml68 on Tue Nov 22, 2016 at 11:19:22 PM EST
    This is Mrs. Clinton's call, not Obama's. (5.00 / 3) (#30)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 02:38:09 AM EST
    After all, it's her name on the ballot and not his.

    Parent
    Regardless of what Obama wants (5.00 / 4) (#34)
    by jbindc on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 08:53:34 AM EST
    If this is a real problem, shouldn't it be investigated?

    Parent
    Agreed. (5.00 / 2) (#39)
    by KeysDan on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 12:09:12 PM EST
    It warrants being looked into.  If nothing else, it would give more definition to the diagnosis of what occurred for Democratic party analysis.  As it is, it seems that the treatment is preceding the diagnosis--get rid of identity politics in favor of those "forgotten, poorly educated" white men.  As if these concerns are mutually exclusive.

    And, while on the topic of investigating misadventures into election matters, how about a good look at Comey the NY FBI buddies of Giuliani, and Russian hacking.

    Parent

    Yes, it should be taken seriously. (5.00 / 3) (#41)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 01:18:00 PM EST
    J. Alex Halderman, director of the University of Michigan Center for Computer Security and Society, who's also one of these individuals who's approached the Clinton campaign on this matter, is an eminently respected expert in his field who's hardly prone to wild accusations and / or political histrionics.

    Contrary to what some in the media are breathlessly reporting, Dr. Halderman is hardly insisting that the election was hacked and the results were fixed. Nevertheless, his concerns are such that we really ought to pay attention to what he's actually saying, and not be so immediately dismissive:

    "Were this year's deviations from pre-election polls the results of a cyberattack? Probably not. I believe the most likely explanation is that the polls were systematically wrong, rather than that the election was hacked. But I don't believe that either one of these seemingly unlikely explanations is overwhelmingly more likely than the other. The only way to know whether a cyberattack changed the result is to closely examine the available physical evidence -- paper ballots and voting equipment in critical states like Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, nobody is ever going to examine that evidence unless candidates in those states act now, in the next several days, to petition for recounts." (Emphasis is mine.)

    while the election results themselves may or may not have been hacked and hijacked, it has been well established beyond any reasonable measure of doubt that Hillary Clinton's campaign was successfully cyberattacked and its confidentiality breached.

    It's therefore not at all a stretch of imagination to suspect that those parties who hacked only one side in a fiercely contested national election in an effort to damage its prospects, might have also further sought to compromise the integrity of our own electoral processes, with a knowing intent to actually affect the outcome.

    And if this was a foreign actor, as appears likely the case in the cybersecurity beaches of the DNC and Clinton campaign databases and resultant public leaks of otherwise private and sensitive information and materials, then it's absolutely imperative from the standpoint of national security that this matter be further investigated and resolved. In fact, we'd be fools to choose to look the other way for the mere sake of political expediency and partisan convenience.

    I would much rather see recounts and audits in Wisconsin and elsewhere definitively establish and reaffirm the legitimacy of Donald Trump's victory, and any lingering doubts thus assuaged, than have growing clouds of suspicion hover darkly over the transition of power. Because as of 1:00 p.m. EST this afternoon, Mrs. Clinton's lead in the nationwide popular vote is now 2,014,621 and it's still growing.

    When we really don't know for certain why there has been a clear and increasing divergence between the nationwide popular vote count and the apparent Electoral College result, the likes of which we haven't seen since the 1888 contest between Benjamin Harrison and Grover Cleveland (arguably considered by many historians to be the most corrupted presidential election in U.S. history), then we ought not to so readily assume anything, one way or the other. And in any event, we should never fear to know, learn and face the truth.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    UPDATE: It looks as though ... (5.00 / 2) (#44)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 02:22:28 PM EST
    ... the formal request for a recount in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania may come from Green Party candidate Jill Stein.

    Parent
    Guess Stein learns from Trump (none / 0) (#79)
    by thomas rogan on Fri Nov 25, 2016 at 09:41:44 PM EST
    There were howls when Trump was saying before the election that he might not "accept the result" and that the election process might be rigged.  

    Parent
    I am in one of the states (5.00 / 4) (#40)
    by Towanda on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 12:48:39 PM EST
    and Obama is not, and we -- trust me, this is huge here on social media and more, and the data that we have seen (although our state is incredibly lacking in transparency, since Walker recently, just before the election, abolished the respected election commission and replaced it with a sham) warrants a closer look -- want to know if our voted counted.  

    And Silver's and Cohn's and others' dismissiveness does not impress me. They do projections -- and not very well this time -- and they do not do cybersecurity.  The highly respected cybersecurity expert Prof. Halderman ought to be heeded, if Dems still care about counting every vote.  

    Parent

    Amen to that Wisconsin comment (5.00 / 1) (#67)
    by Peter G on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 08:50:03 PM EST
    from a Pennsylvanian.

    Parent
    Not going anywhere (none / 0) (#32)
    by Steve13209 on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 07:13:57 AM EST
    Nate Silver has responded that the disparity disappears when you factor in race and education.

    Impeachment is the only way forward if you don't want Trump as President...and then you get Pence.

    Parent

    ... on November 8, you'll have to please excuse me if I don't accept his opinion on this particular matter as necessarily definitive.

    Anyway, neither Silver nor the New York Times' Nate Cohn (who's been beating the the same drum) nor anyone else in the media know for certain what exactly this group of computer scientists and voting rights attorneys told Mrs. Clinton's campaign team. The information in the New York magazine about the contents of that ostensibly private conversation was leaked, and it's hearsay.

    Any decision whether or not to challenge the results in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania by requesting a recount and / or audit is entirely Mrs. Clinton's call, and neither the media's not President Obama's. It's her name that's on the ballot, and none of theirs.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    Well....... (none / 0) (#33)
    by jbindc on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 08:52:33 AM EST
    Even if he personally repays the state and local governments for the massive cost of protecting his wife and 10 year old son after the inauguration in New York so he can indulge his 10 year old's desire to finish the 5th grade with his chums, which I suspect he won't because he's too miserly, he can't repay New Yorkers for the inconvenience and time lost in traffic jams.

    I think this is a bit harsh.  I mean - up until almost the very end, Michelle Obama considered this  option for her daughters too.  Were you as up in arms then about "Malia and Sasha's desire to finish the school year with their friends"?  I mean - come on, the money aside, can't we all be a little sympathetic to a child who had no say in the matter and who is about to have his entire life uprooted?

    What happens when a Trump wants to go to Palm Beach?

    Now you sound like all those conservatives who complained every time Obama went to Martha's Vineyard or Hawaii.

    And on the chance Donald and his wife are separated or about to separate and she has just been hanging in there until the election is over, they should hurry up and get divorced -- before inauguration day if possible, so that we don't have to pay for her secret service protection for life.

    This is rampant speculation and not worthy of this blog. And Barron would still get Secret Service protection regardless of whether his parents were married or not, so Melania would be getting some protection anyways.

    Hopefully, that will lead to some intrepid investigative journalist finding the goods we all know are out there to get him impeached, convicted and removed from office before he destroys our country and our children's future.

    LOL on so many levels.  Like the media is going to start now?  They fear limited or no access.  They'll have an occasional tough piece, but they won't be on him all the time.  And the Republican Congress isn't going to impeach him.  He was right - he could LITERALLY shoot someone on 5th Avenue, and they won't do anything to him, unless and ONLY unless, it looks like he could hurt them come 2020.  But keep your eyes on Ryan and Pence - they are tight and will be the power behind the throne and pretty much running the complicated stuff while Trump is out doing rallies and ranting on Twitter.


    I have to agree with you, jb. (none / 0) (#55)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Wed Nov 23, 2016 at 07:30:14 PM EST
    Barron Trump is all of 10 years old. As far as I'm concerned, the minor children of public figures should be strictly off limits as far as our own politically-related discussions go. Ivanka, Donald Jr. and Eric are all in their 30s now, and given their prominent role in their father's political campaign, they're fair game. But young Barron is not.

    Nearly 24 years ago in the spring of 1992, I was working on a Honolulu mayoral campaign and we were holding a fundraiser at the extraordinarily posh Kahala beachfront mansion of a very prominent local attorney, who had two young sons who looked to be ages 10 and 12 at the time. While we were setting up, I got a chance to see these boys interact with their father, and it literally sent a chill down my spine.

    I mean, this guy had been drinking a lot, and was so abusive and belittling to his young sons that they literally cringed whenever he bellowed at them, as did I. He called then four-letter names, threw stuff at them and smacked them upside the heads. They literally looked beaten down emotionally, and my heart went out to both of them. Looking back on that incident in obvious retrospect, I probably should have informed child protective services of what I had witnessed going on in that household. Alas, I did not and I regret that.

    Now, I'm certainly not implying that Barron is an abused child. I'm simply saying that if anything ever drummed into me the oft-repeated saying that money can't by happiness, it was that particular afternoon and evening 24-1/2 years ago. Kids are still kids, regardless of their particular familial circumstances and economic fortunes, and we really ought to keep that in mind whenever we discuss them. After all, they didn't get to pick their parents.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    If you really wanted to help (none / 0) (#80)
    by Militarytracy on Fri Nov 25, 2016 at 09:57:24 PM EST
    The underprivileged children in that odd district it could easily be done. But you would rather take a baseball bat to the nation's success in order to kill flies. You would burn the house down to kill flies.

    Noam Chomsky on the Incipient Trump Era (none / 0) (#81)
    by Mr Natural on Sat Nov 26, 2016 at 01:53:27 AM EST
    A 25 minute interview courtesy of Al Jazeera.

    "The most predictable aspect of Trump is unpredictability. I think it's dangerous, very dangerous," says Noam Chomsky.


    Chomsky: "In fact, one really dramatic result (5.00 / 1) (#82)
    by Mr Natural on Sat Nov 26, 2016 at 02:01:30 AM EST
    of the election, I mean apart from the fact that Clinton won by maybe two million votes, is that among younger people, Clinton was way ahead and Sanders had an overwhelming majority.  That could be a positive portent for the future.

    Parent
    Please stay on topic (none / 0) (#85)
    by Jeralyn on Sat Nov 26, 2016 at 05:53:23 PM EST
    and it's not a debate on schools. And please stop the insults to each other or you will be put in time out.