Trump-- Already Making America Less Safe With His Adderall-Fueled Twitter Feuds

Wednesday, Mexico's president, Enrique Peña Nieto, announced he was thinking about canceling his meeting with Señor el Presidente Trumpanzee in Washington next week, as a matter of Mexican national pride. Within hours, Thursday morning, he tweeted that he canceled the meeting with the deranged, Adderall-addicted orange orangoutang. Trumpanzee, a pathological liar unable to control himself even at this high a level, claims the idea to cancel the meeting was his own since Peña Nieto was once again refusing to pay for Trump's foolish and absurd wall.

Today's Wall Street Journal slammed Trumpanzee as a pathetic and dangerous amateur: "The world is not a Republican primary. President Trump’s Twitter broadsides against Mexico have unleashed a political backlash that has now become a diplomatic crisis with a friendly neighbor." The editorial board tried to remind the idiot that "With a population of 128 million, Mexico is America’s second-largest export market for goods. Some six million U.S. jobs depend on trade with Mexico."

Trump, in a freak-show display of his brand of twitter-diplomacy tweeted that "The U.S. has a 60 billion dollar trade deficit with Mexico. It has been a one-sided deal from the beginning of NAFTA with massive numbers of jobs and companies lost." Moments later, Josh Rogin reported that the entire senior management team at the State Department had just resigned en masse, unwilling "to stick around for the Trump era." He was still at it this morning, tweeting that "Mexico has taken advantage of the U.S. for long enough. Massive trade deficits & little help on the very weak border must change, NOW! Maybe it wasn't just because of Trumpanzee's twitter diplomacy; aftern all, T-Rex had just spent Wednesday meeting with them the day before.

Undersecretary for management, Patrick Kennedy, Assistant Secretary of State for Administration Joyce Anne Barr, Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs Michele Bond and Ambassador Gentry O. Smith, director of the Office of Foreign Missions, handed in their resignations. All are career foreign service officers who have served under both Republican and Democratic administrations. A few days earlier Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security Gregory Starr and the director of the Bureau of Overseas Building Operations, Lydia Muniz, quit as well.

“It’s the single biggest simultaneous departure of institutional memory that anyone can remember, and that’s incredibly difficult to replicate,” said David Wade, who served as State Department chief of staff under Secretary of State John Kerry. “Department expertise in security, management, administrative and consular positions in particular are very difficult to replicate and particularly difficult to find in the private sector.”

Several senior foreign service officers in the State Department’s regional bureaus have also left their posts or resigned since the election. But the emptying of leadership in the management bureaus is more disruptive because those offices need to be led by people who know the department and have experience running its complicated bureaucracies. There’s no easy way to replace that via the private sector, said Wade.

“Diplomatic security, consular affairs, there’s just not a corollary that exists outside the department, and you can least afford a learning curve in these areas where issues can quickly become matters of life and death,” he said. “The muscle memory is critical. These retirements are a big loss. They leave a void. These are very difficult people to replace.”

Or maybe they didn't like the idea of advocating for the illegal use of torture. Was this part of the Resistance? Trumpanzee, of course, claims he fired them all... the same way he claims it was his idea it cancel the meeting with the President of Mexico.

And speaking of torture, I was putting my shoes and socks on and switched on the TV. Andrea Mitchell was on with a former Bush Regime torture advocate and she asked him if Trump openly advocating torture-- not even calling it "enhanced interrogation" the way Cheney and Bush and their stooges used to-- was giving "the bad guys" a propaganda tool. Why are Andrea Mitchell and the rest of the media hacks unable to realize that Trump and his team of miscreants ARE the bad guys?

CAVEAT: Silver Lining

One of the State Department officials who resigned is Victoria Nuland, Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs, wife of notorious neocon Robert Kagan and one of the worst of the Cold War neanderthal hold-overs, someone Clinton was said to be considering for a top post.

Ya think the president-elect got where he is today by not knowing how to duck a process server?

"In a statement, the Trump transition team said Giuliani informed Trump of his withdrawal at a Nov. 29 meeting. Giuliani delivered a letter to Trump, who declined to accept it at that meeting. On Friday, Giuliani again asked Trump to withdraw his name, and he accepted, according to a senior transition official."

-- from "Secretary-of-state candidate Rudy Giuliani withdraws
his name from consideration," yesterday on washingtonpost.com

by Ken

Wouldn't you figure that when Rudy tried to deliver that letter -- you know, the one the deliveree "declined to accept" -- at the Nov. 29 meeting, the president-elect figured that that lovable scamp Rudy had taken on side work as a process server? (Ya gotta love him, dontcha, always trying to hustle an extra buck?) Like the crazy SOB was trying to serve him papers for another of those pesky lawsuits that common people are forever filing against him? Not to be confused, naturally, with all the righteous legal actions he feels obliged to initiate to help make people who have wronged him wish they'd never been born.

Of course The Donald didn't get where he is today by not knowing how to duck some fuckwad of a process server!

Fast-forward to Friday's meeting, when Rudy explained the Nov. 29 confusion and the old pals enjoyed a hearty laugh. "You know," the president-elect chortled, "when I saw that envelope you were trying to stick me with, and figured it contained legal papers someone was paying you to serve me with, my first thought was, 'Wait, is this guy Jewish?' "

This produced further gales of laughter.

Once the confusion was cleared up, how they laughed!

#

Trumpy-The-Clown Gals, Ann Coulter And Tulsi Gabbard

Ann Coulter had an anti-Trump impurity breakdown on twitter yesterday, ostensibly over Nikki Haley, although as you can see above, she got a little more general a few minutes later. Remember, Trump took his whole xenophobic shtik directly from Coulter and she made like she was worshipping at his bigoted alter for the duration of the campaign-- primarily because he wanted to round up Hispanics and ship 'em to camps and beyond. She's a Pence-and-Ryan hater and flipped out when Pence told Scott Pelley of CBS News today that he and Ryan are going to work on an immigration bill. That's what inspired the "If Trump sells out" tweet.

But she does hate Nikki Haley. Remember a week or two ago when she wrote that if Trump wants an Indian Secretary of State, he should pick Tonto. Although Trump has no use for Native Americans at all, he is smitten by Hindu nationalists and just loves Narendra Modi-- and crackpot right-wing cultist Tulsi Gabbard, who he interviewed a week or so ago, ostensibly for some second-tier job that the crazy-ambitious Gabbard would never take anyway. Haley got an errand-boy job (UN Ambassador-- no decision-making allowed) so that Secretary of state gig... well, I bet Tulsi would eat all the requisite frogs legs to get that. I'd guess she has as much a chance as Dana Rohrabacher... but Steve Bannon sure likes her, so who knows.

Maxwell Anderson, a Hill contributor and Tulsiphile, thinks he knows: Tulsi Gabbard is the pick for Secretary of State, not Mitt Romney. After all, like Trump, Gabbard is an American nationalist and an Islamophobic maniac. "Whoever," he wrote, "the President-Elect taps to be his secretary of state will play a crucial role in shaping the President-Elect’s vision for the future of American foreign policy. One person reportedly 'under serious consideration' to fill the position is United States Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI), who made headlines in February when she resigned as vice chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee in order to endorse Bernie Sanders for President."

Never mind that she played the Bernie card to help her in her plan to primary progressive Senator Mazie Hirono (an actual progressive), not because she agrees with Bernie on much of anything. His ProgressivePunch score is "A" (as is Mazie's), while Tulsi's is "F." Just keep in mind that an "F" isn't a "C" or a "D." You have to work really hard on a wide array of issues for a long time to earn an "F." He continued that "Gabbard embodies the very essence of the President-Elect’s ideological departure from the interventionist policies that have plagued this nation for the past two decades" pointing out that Gabbard, from a very prominent, very right-wing family ran for the Legislature in 2002 (age 21) and became the leader of her state's small but noisy anti-gay faction.

Tulsi with her fanatically homophobic dad, also part of Chris Butler, aka Jagad Guru Siddhaswarupananda  Paramahamsa's crackpot cult

The legislature was too hot for her and she enlisted in the Hawaii National Guard and volunteered to deploy to Iraq, very loudly singing her own patriotic praises every step of the way, like many aspiring politicians do. Anderson doesn't quite see it that way; he misses Gabbard's entire essence.

Gabbard is not one to play politics. On Monday, the President-Elect invited her to Trump Tower to discuss the United States’ Syria policies and approaches to fighting terrorism. Rep. Gabbard did not let her differences with the President-Elect dictate whether she accepted his invitation.

After their meeting, the Congresswoman put out a statement describing the substance of the meeting, and declared, “Let me be clear, I will never allow partisanship to undermine our national security when the lives of countless people lay in the balance.”

Rep. Gabbard stands on principle, not politics, and that makes her an impeccable choice for Secretary of State.

The other name that has received a lot of attention lately is failed 2012 Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Given Mr. Romney’s gaffe-filled trial run at diplomacy during the 2012 campaign, it is difficult to understand why he is even on the shortlist. Mr. Romney was proven to be nothing more than a choke artist.

But more broadly, Mr. Romney was the establishment figure that went after the President-Elect in the harshest and most vile manner. Mr. Romney even came out of the woodwork, trying to cling onto whatever relevance he thought he had, to deliver an address in which he called then-candidate Trump “a phony, a fraud” and accused him of “playing the American public for suckers.”

While Trump supporters are among the most loving and compassionate people in this country, Mr. Romney is likely to elicit more pity than forgiveness from them. That is not only because of his implication that Trump supporters are stupid (i.e., being played for suckers), but also because he carried the mantle for an old order that is utterly despised by the people of Middle America for turning its back on them.

Even if Mr. Romney altered his positions to fit the President-Elect’s agenda (e.g., not taking a hardline approach to Russia), he would still fare no better in the minds of those in Trump Country. After successfully crushing two political dynasties dismantling two political establishments, a return to Romney would symbolize a return to grazing the same unproliferous political pasture that yielded nothing but failure.

On the other hand, the President-Elect could be playing Mr. Romney for, well, a sucker. There is perhaps no act of revenge more cold than pretending to bury the hatchet with a rival only to stab them in the back with a paring knife. Yet that same vindictiveness-- in the form of slapping companies that outsource American jobs with a tariff on imported goods-- is what drew many to Trump in the first place.

If this is the case, then it puts the President-Elect in another situation where Mr. Romney, perceptually, is “begging” him for something. The first time it was for then-citizen Trump’s endorsement for President in 2012. This time it could be for secretary of state.

The only difference is that this time, Trump might actually say, “Mitt drop to your knees.”

Meanwhile, Trumpists-- like Bill Mitchell-- are sick of Coulter and pushing back.

Frogs Legs, Anyone?

Last night I went to dinner with state Rep. Kaniela Saito Ing (D-Maui). Now state Senator Stanley Chang, once a Blue America congressional candidate, introduced us and told me he's one of the smartest and most progressive political leaders in Hawaii. At age 27, he's also the youngest chairperson in Hawaii's legislative history, heading up the Ocean, Marine Resources, and Hawaiian Affairs committee in the state legislature. His newborn son's middle name is Kekipi, which means "the rebel" in Hawaiian. We ate at chef Josef Centeno's new vegetarian restaurant, PYT. Here's the menu. It's nothing like Jean-Georges in New York, where Trump brought Romney Tuesday night. Their website announces that ties are not required. Here's the menu. I don't know what Romney or Reince ate-- the terminally nasty Mike Huckabee told Fox viewers yesterday that "On Mitt Romney’s plate there was a big, big slice of crow"-- but Trump ate Egg Caviar; Diver Scallops, Caramelized Cauliflower and Caper-Raisin Emulsion; Young Garlic Soup with Thyme and Sautéed Frog Legs; Turbot with Château Chalon Sauce; Lobster Tartine, Lemongrass and Fenugreek Broth, Pea Shoots; Broiled Squab, Onion Compote, Corn Pancake with Foie Gras; along with a Chocolate Dessert Tasting. I don't know if they went Dutch or not but Trump's portion costs $218. Romney looked awkward. God only knows what's going on in his head.

I wonder if making Romney eat frogs legs at the decadent Jean-Georges was part of Trump's public humiliation of the man who did everything he could to defeat him for the better part of the last two years.

NEWT GINGRICH: There's a scene in Pretty Women where Richard Gere goes up to the salesman on Rodeo Drive and says: "We need a little sucking up here."

You have never, ever, in your career seen a wealthy adult who is independent, has been a presidential candidate, suck up at the rate that Mitt Romney is sucking up.

I am confident that he thinks now that he and Donald Trump are the best of friends, they have so many things in common. That they're both such wise, brilliant people. And I'm sure last night at an elegant three-star restaurant, he was happy to share his version of populism, which involve a little fois gras, a certain amount of superb cooking, but put that in a populist happy manner.

LAURA INGRAHAM: I was trying to figure out what the frog legs on the menu meant.

GINGRICH: The frog legs are very elegant. Callista and I both had fathers who ate frog legs. I did notice that Reince Priebus of Kenosha, Wisconsin decided not to have frog legs. I can't wait to talk to Reince and find out exactly how a guy of his background worked his way through the menu.

Luckily for them, Mitt speaks French fluently. So he could help them with the menu. He could say: "Ahh, Mr. President-elect. This would be the perfect meal for you."

Something like maybe escargot, maybe pheasant. God, I'd love to have been there as a fly on the wall...

They know that every day that goes by the opposition to Romney grows...

Every day they let this thing hang out there it becomes harder and more expensive to pick Romney.

Romney isn't the only candidate for Secretary of Trump State being put through his paces. Rudy Giuliani, Gen. David Petraeus (ret.), Marine Corps General John Kelly (ret.), Gen. Keith Kellogg (ret.) and Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee are all still in the running, according to ringmaster Trumpanzee. Kelly had a TV dinner last night with the many-chinned Trump in his Trump Tower aerie. Do they have frog leg TV dinners now? My dad once brought me to the original Nathan's on Coney Island-- Trump will have been there; the housing development where Woody Guthrie lived and wrote the song about Trump, Sr. being a racist slob was nearby-- and I noticed they had frog's legs on the menu. When I told him that's what I wanted he advised me against it but I insisted-- and then puked when I took a bite and imagined I was eating a slimy frog. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher claims Trump is also interested in him being Secretary of State but no one but the slightly crazy-- and more than slightly delusional-- Rohrabacher thinks so. Unless Putin is telling Trump to go with Rohrabacher.

Trump has turned the process into an undignified pageant. I only wish there was a televised swim suit competition as part of the spectacle. But none of that seems nearly as amusing as the ABC News report yesterday that His Trumpiness is seriously considering Sarah Palin as Secretary of Veteran's Affairs. He must really hate the vets. Palin-- ala Rudy Giuliani-- is opening lobbing for the gig. One of the guys who impregnated a Palin daughter and who served in the military is pumping for her. Trump probably wants to have her mud-wrestle Scott Brown for the job, although... Trumpy the Clown is also reported to be looking at Rick Perry and former Congressman Jeff Miller (R-FL). Palin's pitch to the transition team:

"Stop blaming the victim and wake up, Mr. President. While Christians bow our heads to pray for you, radical Islamists want to cut off your head. The only thing standing between us and savages, it’s the red white and blue, it's the United States military! And if you love freedom, thank a vet! Thank them. Honor them."

Palin hasn't been invited to Trump Tower for frogs legs or a TV dinner but she loudly reminded everyone who would take her call that she was an early Trump supporter when no one knew who he was except people who watched his TV show. She says if she doesn't get the Veterans gig, she'll take Energy, reminding everyone that the "drill, baby, drill" slogan was hers.

“NOW is the time to shut off the Saudi oil cartel flow valve and develop our own God-given natural resources. The only excuse not to become energy independent is a political excuse,” she wrote.

That same day, she wrote about her family’s connection to native Alaskans, a relationship covered by the interior secretary position. Palin’s husband Todd is part-native Alaskan.

Steve Bannon, Trump’s campaign CEO and the president-elect's pick for chief strategist, is close with Palin. In 2011, he made a documentary about her titled The Undefeated.

After ABC News reported on Palin being under consideration for the VA secretary position, she posted a message on Facebook, which she then tweeted, writing in part, "We should be grateful we'll soon have a commander-in-chief who will champion our vets and honor the promises our nation made."