You didn't and I did not either...... but a lot of people did. The narrative was that Donald Trump was a complete moron incapable of understanding even basic science or facts. I never believed that to be the case. Trump is shrewd at times, he is a narcissist and he certainly can be impulsive at times..... but he really isn't stupid, and he mostly just wants to manipulate people. He has locked into certain personality traits that some people find very appealing, and it isn't shocking because he has spent his entire life studying controlling and manipulative people. I will even go so far as to say that he is brighter than Joe Biden. Trump has above average intelligence....... he just doesn't really have the best interest of anyone but himself. Still, his skill and bravado is impressive.
I agree and have never felt he is an idiot. He has a very narrow range of knowledge and capability but he is a genius in terms of branding.
I think that's right. He's not a genius, but I don't think he's stupid -- his brain has different problems. It satisfies some itch to be able to just dismiss him as stupid when he does something irrational, but I think people oversimplify the problem that way. In this case, I'm sure he did know this thing would be deadly, but he also knew that if we did everything we could to save lives, there would be enormous fallout for the economy, the debt, and his presidential hopes. He just wants to be president. He wanted Americans to think some lives were expendable. He wanted Americans to keep going to work and accept the risks so he wouldn't show rising unemployment or falling GDP that could get in the way of reelection. Maybe if there was some stupidity at play it was that he did not see this approach was doomed to fail from the start, that regardless of what he says there would be a lot of people who would avoid work, avoid school, avoid stores, and the whole thing would crumble anyway. But such is his personality disorder. He wants this thing so bad. And when people won't cooperate, his paranoia says they're out to get him. Smarter than Joe Biden? Maybe. But again, intelligence isn't the only dimension of brain function worth thinking about. Biden's brain works better than Trump's because he doesn't have a personality disorder. Intelligence is overrated. I'd rather have wisdom, humility, and patriotism than intelligence.
The corruption of trump and his personal attorney (barr)... Nora Dannehy, Connecticut prosecutor who was top aide to John Durham’s Trump-Russia investigation, resigns amid concern about pressure from Attorney General William Barr https://www.courant.com/news/connec...0200911-xcsapnq7g5e63kvtw5aqi7cv34-story.html
I don't know. Sitting for 18 interviews with Woodward and letting him record them was pretty ****ing stupid.
Another DOJ lawyer, who must be wrestling with questions about integrity and what happens after trump leaves the white house...
Is it? Is it going to make any difference in the polls or election? We all think these things will sink him and so far they haven’t.
Oh I don't think it's go to sink Trump. 2016 and the years since have left me with few illusions about the character of roughly 40% of the electorate. But it's not going to help him.
I'm expecting Barr to release something and then we're going to see here and other Social Media lighting up like a Christmas Tree with stuff like "PROOF THE DEEP STATE IS OUT TO DESTROY TRUMP!" "Q IS RIGHT THEY ARE TRYING TO STEAL THE ELECTION FROM YOU!"
My own view is that Trump was aware that COVID-19 was a no win situation. You do what it takes to fight it and the economy hurts. You let it run its course and a lot of people die. Most likely both happens which is what is happening. He felt it was better just to cover it with happy talk and hope that it blows over. In the meantime use it to blame political opponents.
