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Day to Day Politics: The Trump report No12. A madman indeed.

Wednesday 5 April 2017

1 Arguably the worst decision ever undertaken by a politician in the history of the Western body politic is the one taken by the President of the United States called ”Energy Independence” executive order. It reverses the one President Obama put in place to combat climate change and help America meet the commitments it made in Paris.

It is a decision that could only, given the copious mountain of scientific evidence, be made by a madman. One so devoted to the greed of capitalism that he is blinded by his own ignorant, narcissistic insanity.

We look upon the sky and planes fly with the force of science. We look upon our cities and great cathedrals of science rise. We attend our doctor who scientifically diagnoses our ills and we fight, for better or worse, our wars with the aid of science. The credentials of science seem inexhaustible.

Science unequivocally tells us that there is a problem with our emissions and we must do something about it to avoid catastrophic outcomes.

The President’s evidence in support of doing nothing to combat the effects of climate change is as follows:

“The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.”

On Dec. 30, 2015, Trump told the crowd at a rally in Hilton Head, S.C., “Obama’s talking about all of this with the global warming and … a lot of it’s a hoax. It’s a hoax. I mean, it’s a money-making industry, okay? It’s a hoax, a lot of it.”

On Jan. 25, 2014, Trump tweeted, “NBC News just called it the great freeze — coldest weather in years. Is our country still spending money on the GLOBAL WARMING HOAX?”

On Jan. 29, 2014, Trump tweeted: “Snowing in Texas and Louisiana, record-setting freezing temperatures throughout the country and beyond. Global warming is an expensive hoax!”

That same day, he tweeted, “Give me clean, beautiful and healthy air – not the same old climate change (global warming) bullshit! I am tired of hearing this nonsense.”

Trump also called climate change a “hoax” on the Jan. 6, 2014, edition of Fox & Friends.

In addition, he said on the Sept. 24, 2015, edition of CNN’s New Day, “I don’t believe in climate change.”

And on Jan. 18, 2016, Trump said that climate change “is done for the benefit of China, because China does not do anything to help climate change.”

”We didn’t find Trump using the word “hoax” in the months since our previous fact-check, but he hasn’t backed off his aggressive skepticism of climate change and policies designed to alleviate it. In fact, he’s enshrined opposition to climate change efforts as a key part of his platform.”

Donald went to his doctor complaining recently complaining about chest pains. All the relevant tests were done and the doctor reported that there was indeed a problem that needed urgent attention. Probably surgery. Trump looked at him, without the slightest concern and said. Well thanks, Doc, but it seems OK at the moment.

Melania is probably right. My hiccups are getting worse.

These are measures Mr Obama put in place to combat climate change and help America meet the commitments it made in Paris:

  • Limit global warming to “well below” 2 degrees Celsius and aim for 1.5C
  • Make greenhouse gas emissions peak “as soon as possible”, followed by a rapid reduction
  • Eliminate use of coal, oil and gas for energy
  • Replace fossil fuels with solar, wind power

“My administration is putting an end to the war on coal,” Mr Trump said as he signed his executive order, flanked on by more than a dozen coal miners.

Some observations.

“In terms of the environment. I wonder what price the people of tomorrow will pay for the stupidity of today.”

If we do not take action on the environment and there is no disaster the outcome will be due to luck alone, like someone winning tattslotto.”

If we’re not raising new generations to be better stewards of the environment, what’s the point?”

How can one man hold the future of the planet in his hand while the remaining leaders kowtow to him?”

“We all incur a cost for the upkeep of our health. Why then should we not be liable for the cost of a healthy planet.”

The ‘historic and ambitious’ climate agreement has shown global leadership from the US and China.”

2 The recent London terrorist attack on 23 March on Westminster Bridge near the Houses of Parliament killed at least four with forty injured.

A few days later earlier air strike killed more than 200 civilians in Mosul. An investigation has found it was conducted by the US-led coalition at the request of Iraqi security forces, the Pentagon said on Saturday.

Witnesses said the airstrike killed hundreds of residents on Baghdad Street in west Mosul’s Aghawat Jadidah neighbourhood on March 17, including many women and young children.

Donald Trump had nothing to say.

3 Being the world’s champion egotist and self-loving narcissistic, it must have come as a shock to the President to find out just how incompetent he and his Republican representatives really are. During the election campaign he described the Health Care plan he would deliver as a health care one that would be “unbelievable”, “beautiful”, “terrific”, “less expensive and much better”, “insurance for everybody”.

What a dud it was and no amount of sweet talk by the Donald would wipe the embarrassment from his face.

Writing for Fairfax Nicholas Kristof described it thus:

“It’s sometimes said that politicians campaign in poetry and govern in prose. Trump campaigns in braggadocio and governs in bombast.”

After all they only had 8 years to design a better scheme than Obamacare. All they could come up with was a tax cut for the wealthy financed by dropping health coverage for the needy.

4 Last but not least the Presidents former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, openly confesses that he offered to testify before the FBI and congressional committees about potential links between the Trump campaign and Russia in exchange for immunity.

Now I wonder why he would want immunity.

My thought for the day.

“We can sometimes become so engrossed in our own problems that we can easily overlook the enormity of the suffering of others.”

19 comments

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  1. Barry

    “How can one man hold the future of the planet in his hand etc.”
    He doesn’t, his hands are too small for that job.

  2. Freethinker

    Barry, the problem is that there are far to many small hands spread all over the world.
    In Australia there are quite few.

  3. wam

    Trump saves his words for things that matter to him. The IPA papers-say man on the ABC this morning has more relevance than a twit in america. Even when both men’s opinions ring true to many, the IPA is dangerous.
    ps he rang putin yesterday. The same putin who agrees with him on climate change not being due to humans.

  4. Jennifer Meyer-Smith

    Trump is also guilty of reinforced support for the Dakota Access Pipeline being forced through First People’s land (reported to have shares in the infrastructure himself); withdrawing funding to abortion support programs for women in third world countries; and various other community destroying executive decisions.

  5. stephentardrew

    I find the critical silence of Australian politicians absolutely appalling. This is about lying and blatant cruelty and brutality to the biosphere and billions of the worlds inhabitants. Fawning to insanity now that is going to work out well I don’t think. The level of timidity, and by default complicity, is astounding. World leaders should be attacking Trump or maybe they are scared of getting caught out for their neoliberal lies and endless austerity to increase inequality, lower wages, work conditions and destroy the welfare state. The corporate oligopolistic goal is common to all so they shut up and play ignorant to maintain the status-quo and maintain the delusion we live in democracies.

  6. archiearchive FCD

    Global Climate Change is caused by the litter of industry. If I throw a lolly wrapper on the ground I am excoriated for littering. If Big Business throws its rubbish around, into ‘settling ponds’, into the atmosphere, into our water table, into our rivers and oceans, then all is good. After all there is a profit to be made from littering in large quantities. We are past the time of big business and have entered the time of Big Litter! That is what needs to be cleaned up.

  7. Michael Taylor

    So true, Archie.

    By the way, sorry about Sunday. The Power was switched on.

  8. Kyran

    In another example of odd coincidence.
    The Donald hosted El-Sisi yesterday. Egypt hadn’t been particularly popular with the Obama administration, particularly since the military coup in 2013. This had endangered the $1.3 billion ‘military assistance package’ (annually) and was exacerbated when El-Sisi’s dictatorship failed to account for much of the spending. Whilst the Donald has embraced the dictator, he is yet to comment on whether the ‘assistance package’ will be continued at the same level.
    Not to be outdone, the Fizza is hosting Waqa today. He’s the Nauruan ‘elected’ president. Nauru conducts elections like Russia. Arrest the opposition, then have a one horse race. You still get to claim you were elected. Whilst the ‘aid’ we give to Nauru is eye watering, just like the US/Egypt agreement, it is not subject to oversight.

    http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-04-05/billion-dollar-offshore-contracts-should-made-public-amnesty/8415096

    http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-07-14/cost-of-offshore-processing-united-nations-fact-check/6609764

    Discussing the flagrant human rights abuses of the Egyptian and Nauruan governments seems of little interest to many. Questioning the morality of the US and Australian benefactors, supporters, financiers, is a question that will not be tolerated, let alone answered.
    In a neo-conservative world, our morality is hardly worthy of comment. The finances, however, are fair game.
    Go figure!
    Thank you Mr Lord and commenters. Take care

  9. helvityni

    Yes, Kyran, Trump wasn’t very civil towards Merkel, yet he was extremely happy to have a visit from his pal El-Sisi…

    Turnbull and Ghani were full of smiles yesterday, but Ms Sales put on her unfriendly face when interviewing this visiting Afghan leader; first I thought she was talking to someone from the Labor side…

    And today is the meeting of Fizza and Waqa, will we see Putin soon, keeping in touch…

  10. Freethinker

    This is maddness and will backfire when the USA tourist industry collapse.
    ‘Extreme vetting’ would require visitors to US to share contacts and passwords.
    Tourists from Britain and other countries visiting the US could be forced to reveal mobile phone contacts, social media passwords and financial data under “extreme vetting” practices being considered by the Trump administration,
    The changes might include visitors from the 38 countries – the UK, France, Australia and Japan among them.

  11. Kaye Lee

    Apparently the Trump team think they have identified security adviser Susan Rice as the person who “unmasked” Trump associates who may have been involved in election interference, though she denies leaking anything.

    The thing that flabbergasts me is they seem more intent on exposing who exposed them rather than the original indiscretions.

  12. helvityni

    I wonder what Fizza and Waqa are going to do about the Asylum seekers left on Nauru and Manus after Trump has taken his diminutive selection, who is going run the camps now that Ferrovial is leaving, of have they already left… Amnesty International is warning companies not to take over the running of these camps and be part of human right abuses….

  13. Roswell

    Trump’s been blaming Obama for the bombing in Syria today, because he did nothing). So this is interesting (I couldn’t copy the link, so I copied some text):

    In 2013, Trump tweeted—repeatedly—that Obama should do nothing in Syria.

  14. Kaye Lee

    “Can you believe that, with all of the problems and difficulties facing the US, President Obama spent the day playing golf,” Trump tweeted in October 2014. “Worse than Carter.”

  15. Roswell

    Kaye, that made me chuckle.

    It could have made me weep.

  16. Alan Baird

    It would be “interesting” if just once a major (not splinter) Australian political party would express opposition to ONE aspect of what is going on in Trumpland. Fat chance. The party I’m thinking of would be making every effort to be what Kim Beasley says is a “safe pair of hands”. Read: to not be “courageous”. Would Australians REALLY automatically vote against a party that for once gave a reasoned repudiation of what a US government proposed. But loudly. New Zealand (well David Lange) was a mouse that successfully roared and survived. Never in MY wildest dreams could Bill do that let alone in HIS. And repeatedly follow it up. No. All much too “safe”. TINA. Again. We MUST keep on with the same old same old. Ad nauseam.

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