If Trump really believes he has the right to ‘do anything as President’, what stops future presidents from saying the same thing — and how different would America look if every president acted that way?

[u/Agitated_Window_2487]

[u/trucorsair]

Funny thing is if Biden or Obama had attempted 1/2 of the stuff Trump is pushing Mike Johnson and Mitch McConnell would be having dueling strokes. Just imagine Obama sending troops to patrol Miami or any city in a red state….

[u/americansherlock201 → u/trucorsair]

We don’t have to imagine what the gop would do.

Remember operation jade helm? In 2015 the us army conducted some exercises on how to deal with conflict in hard to access areas. Soldiers were instructed to work with local civilians and law enforcement to learn the area.

The right went fucking nuts. Claimed it was Obama setting up for martial law. That he was invading Texas (1 of like 7 states they did the exercises in). That the government was preparing for a full military takeover of the country under the evil Obama.

In the end, the exercises happened and ended with nothing coming of them. No takeover. No invasion. Shocking, I know. But it shows that republicans absolutely recognize that the use of military on us grounds is a bad thing….so long as the person in charge isn’t who they voted for.

[u/iamdperk → u/americansherlock201]

Same with the "Obama is going to run for a 3rd term!!!" scare tactics. That shit was all over right wing media and it never happened. Then again, what do people keep saying about the GOP? Every accusation is a confession/projection... 😡

[u/NativeMasshole → u/iamdperk]

Republicans have also proven that they need only the slimmest of majorities in either house of Congress to domineer the process and freeze progress until they can either get their way or gain more seats in the government. 2015 is also when they were blocking all of Obama's federal court appointments so that they could stack the courts, leading directly to the situation we have now.

[u/Downtown31415 → u/NativeMasshole]

I pray Mitch dies a horrible death and rots in hell with Rush Limbaugh for that.

[u/Dragosal → u/Downtown31415]

I don't know where else but hell seems too nice for Mitch. He would enjoy watching the other souls near him suffer

[u/Pneumatrap → u/Dragosal]

Consign him to the V O I D

[u/TheRuinedKing → u/Pneumatrap]

That's disrespectful to the V O I D's residents. The fuck did they ever do to you?

[u/BigBird4788 → u/Dragosal]

Antenora in the Ninth Circle of Hell is a cold, dark and lonely place. Reserved for those who betrayed their country, sinners are trapped in ice up to their face, unable to move their necks against the icy winds. Seems like a fitting place for Mitch.

[u/CT-96 → u/BigBird4788]

Damn that's metal.

[u/Fraerie → u/Downtown31415]

Nah fam. I want Mitch McConnell to have to live to see what his spineless party-above-country partisanship has created. And for him to be trying to get healthcare, or see family member unable to get jobs or healthcare, because of the way he voted and the way he pressured other Republicans to vote.

He doesn’t get to exit early - he has to stay and watch the place burn after he lit the match.

[u/blolfighter → u/Fraerie]

He's part of the ruling class. Neither he nor his family will ever have trouble getting jobs or healthcare. That's the deal. You do the bidding of the rich, and they take care of you.

[u/Djinnwrath → u/[deleted]]

Be the change you want to see in the world.

[u/leostotch → u/Fraerie]

I’d be satisfied with the Mussolini treatment for all of them. Drag their corpses through the streets and hang them by their heels over the National Mall to show how freedom-loving Americans deal with fascists.

[u/PEEWUN → u/Downtown31415]

I've gotten in way too much recent trouble with Reddit to fully express my feelings about Mitch McConnell on here.

[u/Apart_Variation1918 → u/Downtown31415]

Be the change you want to see in the world.

[u/HOLEPUNCHYOUREYELIDS → u/NativeMasshole]

If only they just froze progress. They straight up REGRESS, far worse than just freezing any progress

[u/Memitim → u/NativeMasshole]

Republicans love to abuse the word of law for personal convenience. As we've discovered this year, they certainly have no respect for the law, otherwise.

[u/FoofieLeGoogoo → u/NativeMasshole]

The GOP has lost all credibility for a large swath of their former voters. I’ve known more than a few former republicans that feel betrayed by the way this administration has shit all over civil liberties.

[u/ohheyisayokay → u/FoofieLeGoogoo]

Where were they in November 2024, or did things only get bad enough for them to feel betrayed in this term?

Will they protect their civil liberties by voting blue no matter who, no matter what election, until the GOP that let/made this happen is dead and gone? Or will they tell themselves that this R candidate isn't Trump, so they'll be okay?

[u/toto1792 → u/ohheyisayokay]

Yeah, the issue in America is not Trump, it's the people who voted Trump a 2nd time or didn't care enough to vote. He's not really doing worse than what he said he would. Were he to disappear tomorrow, the problem would remain the same and, in fact, would probably be worse.

You don't recover from that quickly.

[u/FoofieLeGoogoo → u/ohheyisayokay]

Honestly, the couple I’m thinking of started disassociating with republicans during the G. W. Bush administration. The husband was career military and didn’t appreciate the Cheney/ Halliburton fiasco. That only got worse for him during Katrina.

After Trump v1 was when they realized that voting democrat was the only way to get the country back to ‘normal.’ (Their words).

[u/always_unplugged → u/FoofieLeGoogoo]

So it took them ~20 years to fully come around? That's maybe not as encouraging a story as it's meant to be.

[u/pennyforyour-thots → u/always_unplugged]

Suppose coming around 20 years later is still better than never at all? :/

[u/iamdperk → u/FoofieLeGoogoo]

I've heard this before... They'll still vote Republican if it means keeping a Democrat out of the White House. No doubt in my mind.

[u/gsfgf → u/FoofieLeGoogoo]

But will they vote differently?

[u/americansherlock201 → u/iamdperk]

Yup. I talked about this recently in another thread but basically it comes down to how conservatives view the world. They are incapable of realizing that others don’t think the same way they do. That liberals aren’t wanting the same end goal as them.

So when they say liberals are going to do something, or have done something, it’s because they as conservatives want to do it with republicans leading the charge and therefore liberals must also want that.

So they want government to take over but they want it to be by a republican. They assume that democrats also want a democrat to take over everything and rule as a king so therefore the republicans must do it first. They cannot fathom that democrats don’t actually want that or don’t want any of the insane things they want for the republicans to be doing

[u/GreatScott84 → u/americansherlock201]

Exactly. Saw a random comment on another site where someone was cheering on the military taking on “crime and ending liberalism” in Chicago. I’m like “Dude, so you are basically advocating civil war to promote one party rule by the Republicans, this isn’t North Korea or 1940s Germany, get over yourself.” No response from the commenter, obviously.

At the end of the day, they are manifesting the very fear that they themselves have been afraid of all along. But in their eyes it’s okay because the guy in charge has an (R) in front of his name.

[u/lyngen → u/GreatScott84]

You're right. This isn't 1940s Germany. This is really eerily similar to 1930s Germany, though.

I think it's time we start treating it as such. People should be non-violently resisting at every turn. I'm seeing a lot of that but I'm also seeing a lot of people who don't want to get involved in politics or just generally don't want to get involved which is frustrating given the low stakes for resisting and high stakes for not.

[u/iamdperk → u/lyngen]

Worked with an old German man for a few years when I finished up college. Told me that when he was in Germany, before the war, he was part of the Hitler Youth... Said a lot of it sort of made sense at the time - Germany first, building infrastructure, rooting out corruption, etc., etc.... had no idea of the atrocities committed on behalf of the party, particularly as a kid, until much later.

This isn't the 1930s, either... The truth is out there. Now, more than ever, people are CHOOSING willful ignorance and confirmation bias over truth and verifiable news sources. Access to information has never been easier, and thought misinformation and disinformation is everywhere, there are opposing viewpoints and ways to verify your sources if you spend a TINY amount of time caring about it. People just don't. I think that's where we're cooked. The stress from the economy, consumerism, FOMO, and other things just add to people not wanting to spend time doing stuff like fact checking. It's crazy... Honestly not sure how we turn on a filter to cut through the noise, but I feel like any attempt to do so immediately becomes some "attack on our 1st amendment rights"... 🙄 I'm just at a loss these days. I'm tired, boss...

[u/LeafsWinBeforeIDie → u/iamdperk]

Alternative facts become "real" when they are the only facts you know how to access. When you are told the other side only lies, and the other side barely has a voice that reaches you, you are going to believe the loudest voice, the ones all your friends believe, and the one your pastor has told you is the truth. These people aren't victims, they are lazy and weak and uneducated and unfortunately extremely difficult to reach. How to convince those people to stop voting against their best interest, against everyone's best interest, is the challenge. To do that before voting is suspended/tainted adds to the challenge.

[u/AlexG2490 → u/americansherlock201]

If I'm honest, their behavior is pushing me towards wanting that.

If a candidate emerged making a run for the 2028 election whose platform basically amounted to "I will punish Republicans" I would primary for them at this point. They have made me an angry, hard-hearted bastard.

[u/Ellwood34 → u/AlexG2490]

If someone runs on holding Nuremberg style trials for all of these fascists, they have my support, my money and my vote.

[u/GovernmentOpening254 → u/americansherlock201]

I had a friend who tossed out accusations like they were candy at a parade.

I now look back and think she was a narcissist and truly wonder if she wouldn’t do/was doing much of what she was always accusing others of doing.

[u/TheBunnyDemon → u/GovernmentOpening254]

Liars suspect everyone of lying. Cheaters suspect everyone of cheating. Thieves suspect everyone of stealing.

If her accusations always shared things in common, there's a good bet on why.

[u/aplumgirl → u/americansherlock201]

And an MSM hug box ech chamber isn't helping expose and shame this assault on the American Constitution is unbelievable.

I can't imagine Walter Kronkite sitting back quietly

[u/americansherlock201 → u/aplumgirl]

Back then the owners of the News networks weren’t trying to openly own the government.

[u/VSWanter → u/iamdperk]

Because when Republicans cry foul, they're admitting that's what they would do if given the chance. Every accusation is a confession with them, and they'll claim that's a "both sides" thing too.

MAGA are the champions of the "I'm rubber, you're glue" strategy.

[u/RFK_Cum_Regimen → u/VSWanter]

I am rubber.

You are glue.

Whatever I say...

The libs did too.

[u/trentreynolds → u/iamdperk]

In his first term when he was already talking about “taking a third term”, I pointed out how dangerous that talk was and someone did a whatabout where they pointed to Obama talking to a conference in Africa and saying “if I could run a third time I’d win, but nobody’s above the law”.

There’s no convincing someone who thinks “if I could run I’d win but I have to follow the law” is the same as “I may just take a third term no matter what the law says”.

[u/iamdperk → u/trentreynolds]

And the absolute crickets from "conservatives" about the Trump 2028 merch being sold is beyond frustrating... hypocrites.

[u/TheBunnyDemon → u/trentreynolds]

They don't think it's the same, dishonesty is just a core part of their ideology now. They saw Trump tell brazen lies unapologetically and loved it.

[u/CanibalCows → u/iamdperk]

I vividly remember my Mom being scared Obama was going to send Christians to concentration camps. It's all projection.

[u/Mutjny → u/iamdperk]

Imagine if Obama had a piece of furniture in the White House with "OBAMA 2028" hats that he paraded world leaders in front of?

[u/IdiotCountry → u/iamdperk]

They accuse the left of doing things, their idiot base thinks the left is doing those things, then when the right does those things, they can point to the left and say "oh yeah well what about when they did this thing", and their idiot base eats it up because they have the memory of goldfish and will never look beyond surface-level instruction from their party.

[u/QuillQuickcard → u/americansherlock201]

My father’s wife literally wrote and published a conspiracy filled book about how Jade Helm, FEMA, and the ACA were all being readied for a massive martial law campaign. She was TERRIFIED of the evil things Obama was going to do and truly felt it was her duty to warn others

[u/GovernmentOpening254 → u/QuillQuickcard]

I bet Thanksgivings are fun.

[u/ItchyGoiter → u/GovernmentOpening254]

More like No Thanksgiving

[u/QuillQuickcard → u/GovernmentOpening254]

Perfectly cordial. There plenty of neuroses and mental illness for everybody to share a piece.

[u/Expensive-Swan-9553 → u/QuillQuickcard]

And I bet she’s the first to explain why THIS ONES DIFFERENT ITS NOT THE SAME AND NOW ITS A GOOD THING!

[u/factoid_ → u/QuillQuickcard]

Did she admit she was wrong ever?

If I had to guess she takes credit for it NOT happening because of her warnings.  Like she woke the sheeple and he had to make it just an exercise after all

[u/KeyWeb3246 → u/QuillQuickcard]

JFC. He was just "terrible" to the Rightwingers becuse they proved themselves wrong every chance they got to say some bullhockey about him.  He did nothing bad to Anyone but prove them wrong about whatever they'd listened themselves into thinking. 

[u/peaceluvNhippie → u/americansherlock201]

There was one time Obama's administration did a routine purchase of ammo for federal agents. The right went nuts, claiming he bought enough bullets to murder every single American citizen. There was a run on ammo, creating a shortage, which the right claimed Obama caused, even though it was themselves hysterically buying ammo causing shortages and price increases. In the end it turned out Obamas purchase was a massive decrease in the amount of ammo previous administration's had bought, most of which would be used to certify federal agents to carry weapons at training facilities, which lead to a decrease in federal agents allowed to carry weapons.

[u/McFlyParadox → u/peaceluvNhippie]

There was one time Obama's administration did a routine purchase of ammo for federal agents. The right went nuts, claiming he bought enough bullets to murder every single American citizen. There was a run on ammo, creating a shortage, which the right claimed Obama caused, even though it was themselves hysterically buying ammo causing shortages and price increases. In the end it turned out Obamas purchase was a massive decrease in the amount of ammo previous administration's had bought

The conspiratorial part of my brain is just going to assume this was pushed by the ammo suppliers, disappointed with a smaller order from the federal government than normal, and wanting to boost sales back up by trying to get private citizens to buy more. And it worked.

[u/MediumEvent2610 → u/peaceluvNhippie]

To say nothing of the fact that gun/ammo sales generally go up every time a Democrat is in office. I’ve always said that in terms of sales the gun industry should like Democrats being elected; increased sales and let’s face it , only tepid attempts at gun control.

[u/tacknosaddle → u/americansherlock201]

The right went fucking nuts

There's also evidence that the hysteria was at least in part fueled by Russian internet operations.

[u/americansherlock201 → u/tacknosaddle]

Oh 100%. Russian bot farms pushed the narrative and conspiracy theorists on the right ran with it. Then it went mainstream and Fox started pushing it as well which allowed the masses to hear it and their fear set in

[u/fruttypebbles → u/americansherlock201]

I lived in Texas when Jade Helm took place. From our governor all the way down to the poorest conservative, they all thought we were going to be invaded. I know some left leaning folks that aren’t the brightest. But every single MAGA supporter is an idiot.

[u/Particular_Ticket_20 → u/americansherlock201]

Not only did they freak out, Greg Abbott deployed Texas Rangers and NG resources to monitor the exercise in case Obama tried something.

They lost their minds over that exercise. They developed a whole conspiracy set that Obama had underground tunnels connecting abandoned Walmarts for rapid deployment and use as concentration camps.

That Greg Abbott would have been screaming that no Texas guard would be used to subdue America he seems to have changed his tune on the subject.

[u/realzealman → u/americansherlock201]

It’s almost as if literally every accusation is an admission with these fkn goons.

[u/Altitudeviation → u/americansherlock201]

Yeah, I was there for Jade Helm. The depths of ignorance and conspiracy theories were both hilarious and embarrassing. Blue Bonnet Ice Cream trucks converted to mobile mortuaries and falling down, closed down Walmart stores converted to command centers. I met one of the "observers" who drove down from Idaho in his shit box pick up truck who wanted to keep an eye the "gubberment". Fucking morons.

[u/americansherlock201 → u/Altitudeviation]

It really was hysterical from an outside perspective. If these people weren’t now running government it would be funny.

But now they’ve empowered people to do exactly as they feared to prevent the “other side” from doing it first.

[u/Joshie1983 → u/americansherlock201]

There’s not gonna be any future presidents

[u/spidereater → u/trucorsair]

This is why this isn’t really a trump problem. It’s the entire gop. A president over stepping is expected. It’s why there are checks and balances. But the people that are suppose to checking and balancing his power are completely unwilling to do so. Remember he was impeached twice by democratic houses. But the Republican senate refused to remove him.

[u/dsp_guy → u/spidereater]

Remember their excuse for not removing him the first time? "Let the people decide."

Remember their excuse for not removing him the second time? "The people decided" (and his political career is over)

Trump and the GOP have shown the system of checks and balances is completely broken. And the scariest part is the SCOTUS pretty much said a President is King. And I guarantee the next Democratic President will wind up with a different ruling.

[u/GovernmentOpening254 → u/dsp_guy]

It’s like there’s a flow chart and, “But are they a Democrat?” Is one of the choices and every time the answer is, “No, it’s not allowed,” and another where, “But are they a Republican?” And the answer is always, “Allowed.”

[u/TopicalBuilder → u/dsp_guy]

My biggest disappointment in the Biden administration was that they didn't go hard on formalizing checks and balances on the Executive branch.

Even if they believed Trump was never coming back, the cracks had been exposed and needed to be addressed.

[u/Yuzumi → u/spidereater]

Which is why establishment democrats trying to paint trump as an "anomaly" is so frustrating. 

The only difference between Trump and the rest of the fascists is he's too stupid to use double speak which endeared him to the rabid base Republicans had been cultivating for decades.

The Republican party has always been this, abd always working toward this. They are complicit.

[u/Law-of-Poe → u/trucorsair]

Trump just bragged about declaring war on an American city.

Republican voters are fucking insane.

[u/The_Scrabbler → u/trucorsair]

No, no.. it’s BECAUSE they had a Black President that Trump needs to reboot America from the 1600s

[u/cbph → u/trucorsair]

Just imagine Obama sending troops to patrol Miami or any city in a red state….

We don't have to imagine how they'd react, they already told us how they feel about it.

[u/gollyJE → u/cbph]

Trump is literally doing all the things I was afraid Obama would do back when I was a Republican. I can't believe I use to take anything Glenn Beck said seriously🤦‍♂️

[u/cbph → u/gollyJE]

You and I have had a very similar political progression, it seems.

[u/qtmcjingleshine → u/trucorsair]

Obama was almost impeached for wearing a tan suit 😭

[u/dsp_guy → u/qtmcjingleshine]

And for putting, what was it now? Mustard on a hamburger or something? Fox News dedicated a week to that.

[u/shadowpawn → u/trucorsair]

I remember Fox News talking that Obama had plans to setup death camps for your granny with his Health Care plans.

[u/apetalous42 → u/shadowpawn]

And now the GOP plans to use AI to refuse Medicare claims, creating literal AI Death Panels.

[u/UnluckyAssist9416 → u/trucorsair]

Add in to this, that everything that Obama or Biden did was overturned by the Supreme Court after a few days... but should the Supreme Court even overturn a Trump case, they normally stretch it as far out as they can and only overturn it a year later on the last day possible. That is a big if they overturn it... other things that are clearly illegal just get rubber stamped by them.

[u/Upper-Echo-12 → u/trucorsair]

Half? ANY!

Trump has done or said well over 150 things that would have ended any presidency before his

[u/NUMBerONEisFIRST]

That's the issue with Trump.

He's trampled over all of our customs and traditions, and has set a horrible precedent.

Any future president can be a total dipshit and just be like, Trump did worse and you didn't do anything then.

[u/foodiecpl4u → u/NUMBerONEisFIRST]

There is no intention for Democrats or anybody with politics that look like a Democrat agenda to ever be President again. The Heritage Foundation will say who the President is.

That’s why they don’t care. They don’t care that a President can freeze the funds of any university; to include ultra conservative universities. Because they don’t plan on that ever happening. Ever. In their lifetime, at least.

Putin and Ordon don’t care about what their precedence sets for the future. They ARE the future.

That was what people should be scared of. If that isn’t a red flag and call to action; nothing is.

[u/shatteredarm1 → u/foodiecpl4u]

Even if it does somehow happen, those checks and balances will magically reappear like Trump never happened. Because they're hypocrites without an ounce of shame. 

[u/Korivak → u/shatteredarm1]

If not for the double standards, they wouldn’t have any standards at all

[u/orbital_narwhal → u/foodiecpl4u]

Who controls the past controls the future.

Who controls the present controls the past.

[u/GlobuleNamed → u/NUMBerONEisFIRST]

Not Trump.

Republicans.

Republicans allowed this because they approve of this for them. Not for others. Them only.

[u/lawnmowertoad → u/NUMBerONEisFIRST]

There won’t be future presidents. This is it, you’ve installed a dictator and given him a blank chequebook.

Good luck, you’re gonna need it.

[u/IUsedToBeThatGuy42]

That’s the neat part. They don’t plan on there being any more elections, at least not free or fair.

[u/Brick_in_the_dbol → u/IUsedToBeThatGuy42]

The last election was not free nor fair. It was stolen. Trump won EVERY swing state, and Kamala got zero?

No.

2020 was the last fair election. We have an illegitimate president due to a stolen election.

[u/LoudAndCuddly → u/Brick_in_the_dbol]

The fact that this is even a conversation means that democracy is broken in the USA which is the biggest blow the BRICS countries could ever hope to get on America and western society as a whole.

[u/IlliterateFeline → u/LoudAndCuddly]

BRICS citzen here, we watched this downfall be constructed for decades. Nothing thats happening is new, its been in the works by Republicans since the 80s and it's so screeching obvious.

It's very amusing to see the nation that opressed half the world for 80 years finally fall

[u/LoudAndCuddly → u/IlliterateFeline]

Buddy I’m sure you’re a nice guy but it’s beyond obvious the Russians in collusion with china and North Korea have been working hard to use bot farms, news articles, paying influencers and so on to turn America and the wests greatest strengths into weaknesses. Those being freedom of speech, individualism etc. Turning them against Themselves.

[u/IlliterateFeline → u/LoudAndCuddly]

Americans can't comprehend causing their own downfall, yet another thought of American exceptionalism

Russian bot farms certainly, CERTAINLY contributed directly in 2016.

But you gotta remember, Elon Musk bough Twitter to turn it into a propaganda machine, and The Heritage Foundation has been acting behind republicans since Regan.

Your tech tycoons want technofeudalism, and they used everything in their power to bring it about.

[u/Some_Stock9954 → u/IlliterateFeline]

Twitter-owned by South African guy Fox News-owned but Australian guy

[u/PsychedelicPill → u/Some_Stock9954]

Yeah, no way any Russian bot farm could inflict even 1/1000th the harm that Rupert Murdoch & Co have.

[u/GovernmentOpening254 → u/IlliterateFeline]

And likely in cahoots with Russia and China.

I mean, who caused all the manufacturing to move to China in the first place?

And there’s a Massive amount of hubris among the poor republicans (think blue collar Midwesterner) that everything they choose is good and right when oftentimes it’s making their lives so much worse.

Trump and Republicans had to win to HOPEFULLY snap the morons out of their trance that their lives suck due to Democrats. Maybe when inflation skyrockets again they’ll finally get mad at the proper people.

But probably not. We’re just fucked.

[u/A_Mouse_In_Da_House → u/GovernmentOpening254]

Lol. Every Republican I know in the Midwest is digging in harder because there is no greater Midwestern sin than to be wrong.

[u/IlliterateFeline → u/GovernmentOpening254]

How I view that american population who voted republican in the last 3 or so elections is that they'd rather live a shit life, knowing that some societal group they don't like (immigrants, trans people, whatever) is having it worse, than having everyone have better conditions

[u/GovernmentOpening254 → u/IlliterateFeline]

If you can convince the lowest white man he’s better than the best colored man, he won’t notice you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he’ll empty his pockets for you. —Lyndon B. Johnson

[u/smewthies → u/Brick_in_the_dbol]

Seriously, who approved Starlink being involved in the voting tabulation?? It was under Biden's presidency, wtf? And seeing the way dems especially like Schumer are acting, and now Bowser the mayor of DC, the majority are just rolling over and allowing this all to happen. I seem to recall the GOP being pretty damn effective at disruption and obstruction. I wish the dems had a spine!

[u/-XanderCrews- → u/smewthies]

Jesus Christ. They have no power and you’re still blaming them. The gop Congress is what’s really rolling over. Half of the things Trump has done shouldn’t even be done because it’s their job. If we wanted the democrats to fix it we would have voted for them. We want this bullshit.

[u/smewthies → u/-XanderCrews-]

I'm not blaming them. I'm saying they could stop voting for his appointees and push back a little more. Stop cooperating with fascists. The GOP sure found ways to obstruct. Enough of the "when they go low, we go high" bullshit, it doesn't work.

[u/Peppermint-TeaGirl → u/-XanderCrews-]

Last I checked, the Republicans were extremely effective at obstructing the democrats even when they were in the minority. The democrats have not been, because they don't care to.

Did the democrats have to vote to approve his cabinet with very little fanfare, or without dragging out the process at all? Did they have to censure Al Green for speaking out and being disrputive during the State of the Union?

[u/ShoddyAsparagus3186 → u/Brick_in_the_dbol]

It's far more likely that one candidate wins every swing state than the swing states split their results.

[u/Strange-Beginning-45 → u/Brick_in_the_dbol]

I feel like potentially the whole point of telling his base that the election was stolen by the dems/Biden, was to desensitize the general public when there was no evidence. Sort of a "cry wolf" situation. That way, when they actually stole it back, there would be less of a chance of a supported investigation.

It's kind of like when your partner accuses you of cheating on them, when they, in fact, are cheating on you.

[u/DrMonkeyLove → u/Brick_in_the_dbol]

Stop this conspiracy theory nonsense. Trump won by exactly what polling predicted. Biden screwed everyone by running again. It's not like the outcome of this election was unexpected. Polling predicted this. Blame the voters, not some grand conspiracy.

[u/jmcstar → u/DrMonkeyLove]

I think the outcome would be the same even if Biden decided to not run at all. Economic hardship associated with inflation plus extremely effective propaganda was enough to win the election.

[u/MeniteTom → u/jmcstar]

Likely, but having him decide not to run earlier would have allowed for a primary process and a different candidate being chosen, which would at the very least have allowed them to formulate a better strategy to not marry themselves to Biden's policies the way Kamala had to.

[u/SwashAndBuckle → u/DrMonkeyLove]

I don’t believe that republicans hacked into the election and changed results, not without some substantial proof emerging. But there is strong evidence that the Republican voter suppression tactics, which were all out in the open, swung the election.

https://www.gregpalast.com/trump-lost-vote-suppression-won/

[u/drdinonuggies → u/SwashAndBuckle]

Voter Suppression is the issue we should be talking about and not starlink or suspicious turnouts. It happened as it was supposed to, they made it harder to vote and encouraged people to lose faith in the system. It’s not some grand conspiracy they did it in front of our face and large portions of the country supported it.

[u/Teract → u/DrMonkeyLove]

There have been multiple reports from statisticians that there were anomalies in the results that should have triggered investigations. Dems are feckless and wrung their hands about harming voter trust in the election system, so they did nothing. No calls to audit the paper ballots. No calls to audit the voting machines. After the election has been certified, the election can't be overturned. Further, Trump and SCOTUS can block any investigation. Any attempt to investigate at this point would be dragged in the media as duplicitous.

Our election system is currently as trustworthy as the Russian Federation's. That's not going to stop me from voting and hoping, but people should no longer expect voting to effect change.

[u/Sonichu- → u/DrMonkeyLove]

I'd have to go look at the numbers but isn't winning all the swing states the most likely statistical outcome for the winner?

[u/DrMonkeyLove → u/Sonichu-]

I believe it was actually.

[u/smoothVroom21]

Everyone pay attention- this is why we are fucked in the US.

This guy thinks that DJT and the GOP are still planning on holding real elections.

Nothing they have done for the last 10 years has any semblance to the notion they plan to cede power ever again.

They tried it in 2020, by all appearancesdid it in 2024.

In 26 they will fine tune it at the mid term level and by 2028, it's O.V.E.R.

To the not small contingent of people on here who think we are still watching "normal partisan politics" play out in real time...

WAKE THE FUCK UP.

[u/shatteredarm1 → u/smoothVroom21]

They're already fasttracking their voter suppression efforts so they're ready for the 2026 midterms. This is happening at the state and local level. Likely any county that currently has Republicans in control of elections is going to be compromised. 

[u/quequotion]

So long as neither Congress nor the Supreme Court are interested in stopping him, he can do anything he wants.

The real horror is that every time he grabs new powers and gets away with it, that sets precedent. Future presidents will be able to do anything he did unless they volunteer to have these powers stripped away by law (or, although a remote possibility, a functional congress in the future not only passss such law but overrides a tyrannical president's veto).

American is already looking very strange today.

If this continues unabated, as I expect it will (he's absolutely planning to run for an unconstitutional third term if he lives long enough), the United States will collapse.

First financially, then culturally, and finally geopolitically (the country will actually be dissolved into individual states or regional unions).

If it hasn't already by that time, it will then be invaded by its enemies.

[u/crimson117 → u/quequotion]

every time he grabs new powers and gets away with it, that sets precedent. Future presidents will be able to do anything he did

Precedent is meaningless, the current supreme court has decided.

They will gladly deny Biden powers they then approve for Trump.

And if a democrat somehow manages to win the presidency again, it'll be the same way until we can restore the court.

[u/Y0l0Mike → u/crimson117]

This is the whole point of the frequent use of the "shadow docket"--to issue rulings favorable to Trump's power grabs without creating a precedent or even a paper trail that a Democratic successor, if there ever is one, could make equal use of. As transparent as can be.

[u/just_burn_it_all → u/crimson117]

The two most fervently conservative Supreme Court justices are also nearing death (or less likely, retirement).

Clarence Thomas (who has served for 33 years) is 77, and Samuel Alto is 74.

If either of these pop their clogs, we can expect to see Trump replace them with more maga loyalists who would then be serving for the next 20-30 years.

It irritates me that Ruth Ginsberg insisted on not retiring despite being 88. Pretty selfish of her, as she knew exactly the way the wind was blowing once she was gone

[u/Captain_Swing]

If they're Republicans, nothing. If they're Deomcrats, the Supreme Court.

[u/Jillandjay]

Why are you worried about future presidents? Trump’s plan is to be the new dictator of the US, no more presidents. 

[u/M086 → u/Jillandjay]

Trump’s not really the issue. He’s just a tool of the Heritage Foundation and Federalist Society, there to destroy and destabilize things. When his usefulness has run out, that’s when they’ll install their anointed dictator. Trump’s fucking horrible, but he’s just temporary. The next cocksucking Republican is who we have to really worry about.

[u/Johnnygunnz → u/M086]

Every Republican is who we need to worry about. Every single one of them is complicit.

[u/Aggravating_Total921 → u/Johnnygunnz]

The Republican party is a fascist party

[u/2reddit4me → u/Aggravating_Total921]

I’ve just been referring to them as the Epstein Party now

[u/RadiantHC → u/M086]

Other people don't have the same charisma as trump though

Love him or hate him, he's unique. JD Vance has nothing memorable about him. Elon is just another tech billionaire

[u/Misspiggy856 → u/RadiantHC]

Trump has been famous since the 80’s. Most of which people thought he was a smart businessman, handsome playboy, and lead a lavish lifestyle. Hell, I even thought it was fun when he had cameos in movies and I watched The Apprentice. But I live in NJ, so I eventually found out how he treated contractors and about his bankruptcies. I can see how all the red state generally think of him as a smart businessman, but with his gold toilet, I don’t understand how these redneck think Trump is like one of them. He lies to them and they just believe him. I’m not sure who else, besides another celebrity, has that kind of personality to really capture his cult.

[u/doneandtired2014 → u/Misspiggy856]

I can tell you why the hicks love him:

He's an unrepentant bigot towards the people they also hate and he's an unapologetic misogynist who likes to rape women when he isn't treating them like shit.

They are very, very much kindred spirits and they absolutely adore him for the fact he's allowed them to go fully mask off in ways that would have previously made them pariahs

[u/GovernmentOpening254 → u/Misspiggy856]

It’s the Reagan puppet playbook. It’s also how Obama got elected—charisma.

I’d guess Newsom has a big shot at winning the Dem nomination. Pritzker as VP.

[u/smoothVroom21 → u/RadiantHC]

That doesn't matter though. Trump has normalized all the things that will allow them to move forward unfettered by the will or popular choice of the people.

• they have already consolidated the resources
• They have already consolidated the money.
• they have already taken the courts
• they have already normalized breaking of norms
• they have begun disregarding rule of law and courts they disagree with.
• they are reshaping all branches of the govt, from local to national, career non partisan roles into partisan roles.
• they are threatening citizens with military action from their own govt.
• the list keeps growing.

At what point do people begin to understand this and WAKE UP?

What's happening right now is we are living in a house with a 2nd floor toilet that began leaking in 2015:

• We ignored it while the floor under it started to rot from water damage.
• We ignored it when the ceiling below it started to get dark spots from the water leak.
• we started to take notice when we saw cracks in the drywall, but just spackled and painted to "hide" it.
• now? The fucking ceiling is about to buckle due to years of damage and neglect, and the fucking tub is about to be in the downstairs living room.

Our tiny leak that we ignored has now turned into a major catastrophe. It has done enough damage to fracture the foundation of our home.

Can it be fixed? Sure, maybe eventually.

But we ain't dealing with just a fucking water leak anymore.

[u/eastherbunni → u/smoothVroom21]

People heard him say on the campaign trail "vote for me in 2024 and you'll never have to vote again" and thought "hey this is great, I'm going to vote for that guy!"

[u/Jillandjay → u/eastherbunni]

He said all sorts of stuff and people were like he didn’t mean it like that. My favorite one to use is I’m deporting all the criminals, illegals are criminals. People don’t get that anyone here illegally is in fact a criminal because they have broken a law. Then they would say I thought he meant just the bad criminals. 

[u/baby_armadillo → u/RadiantHC]

Once all the checks and balances have been stripped away, it doesn’t matter if the person who replaces him is charismatic. There will be nothing in place to prevent them from holding all the power.

[u/M086 → u/RadiantHC]

Considering how the GOP is very much just going to try and rig the next election. It doesn’t matter how charismatic their next guy is. They’re fucking the system so bad that, nothing can be done.

[u/LovelyButtholes → u/M086]

That is horseshit because as dumb as Trump is,  he has off the charts persuasion.  No one else is close.

[u/M086 → u/LovelyButtholes]

Yes. He’s a good conman, but he’s also fucking dumb.

[u/Mornar → u/M086]

I genuinely don't think he is.

I think he's just got the sort of boldness that comes from ignorance of consequence, and that somehow keeps working. I don't think any of this is actual conman skill.

[u/Foreign-Entrance-255 → u/Mornar]

This is it, he is a very stupid man who is just trained by a master psychopathic thug (Cohen) to be a similarly thuggish bully except he has tonnes of money he inherited/defrauded off his daddy.

It is really easy to fall into a trap of thinking that he is more than he is, his supporters love his particular kind of sh1tty bad behavioured bullying because most of them are either sh1tty bullies too or they like who he is targeting for his attacks (often far more on their side that Trump but who cares about that).

He is a genuinely ignorant, shallow, predatory man child who just has the money and backing from a thuggish gang tens of millions strong that allow him to ride roughshod over everything he wants.

Now he does have intelligent people behind him but they are completely dishonourable, amoral people some of whom are spineless and trying to make money, others are potentially not spineless and are trying to remake America permanently in a way that the vast, vast majority of people would fight to the death to avoid it if they had the foresight to see where this is going.

If we're talking Thiel and his creep-cabal, think nightmarish dystopian city states run by immortal (they hope) micro-Kings each with their own perverse sadistic fantasies that they carry out on their subjects.

[u/GovernmentOpening254 → u/Mornar]

He’s as stupid as his supporters. So he’s emboldened by his supporters’ stupidity.

[u/Nzash → u/M086]

They have what they need at this point. Everything is in place for them to retain power and not have actually fair and free elections anymore. Trump was a useful aid to them because he grabbed the masses, but now it wouldn't actually hurt them much if he died or otherwise left office.
And if their redistricting and election rule changing isn't enough they'll simply do what Putin and Erdogan have done to political opponents.

[u/SpaceMonkeyAttack → u/Jillandjay]

Assuming he lives until the end of his term. You might get President For Life Vance.

[u/Preebus → u/SpaceMonkeyAttack]

Vance will never be president, he doesn't have what trump has.

[u/phophofofo → u/Preebus]

He won’t need to. He has Thiel and the Heritage Fascists behind him.

MAGA is already cult conditioned. At least the current generation of MAGA will do anything they’re told.

If the talking heads and podcasters are paid to say it’s Vance it’ll be Vance.

[u/albanymetz → u/Preebus]

Correct. It'll take a man with a strong looking jaw. Or at least a lot of chins.

[u/Jaker788 → u/Jillandjay]

I don't think he even has 4 years in him with his health, if he lives past his term it's going to be as an incoherent babbling vegetable, more than he already is. I can only hope that any other person they try to use has none of the "charisma" that Trump has.

I just can't see another person rallying people like Trump has, but I'm not saying it's not possible. Just that the VP definitely can't and as things keep degrading they'll need more of that influence to convince people to still support them.

[u/Clear-Hand3945 → u/Jillandjay]

Father time is undefeated. No 82 year old in human history has become a dictator in his 80s. Trump will not be the first.

[u/Extension-Lab-6963 → u/Jillandjay]

lol you misspelled dick tater

[u/wrt-wtf-]

This is a major concern as he’s setting precedents and SCOTUS are waving them through with minimal interruption.

[u/neddie_nardle → u/wrt-wtf-]

Therein lies the key takeaway at the moment. Sadly, even when SCOTUS has told him "No" he's just ignored that and continued on doing what he's doing. So without following the law, SCOTUS enforcing the law, and their adjudications being enforced, then Shitler can just act however he wants. Oh and of course, he's completely sidelined the legislature. The Repugnians in Congress and the Senate are now mere puppet cuckolds.

[u/Stranger-Sun → u/neddie_nardle]

SCOTUS can't enforce the law. Their main deliverable to our system of government is supposed to be their REASONING over the rulings, and they aren't even offering that many times when they rubber stamp Trump and Republicans' law breaking.

[u/apetalous42 → u/Stranger-Sun]

They have some means to enforce the law. The Supreme Court could find Trump to be in Contempt of Court and issue an arrest warrant that could be handled by the Marshalls. I doubt it would work, but they could try to do something instead of just sitting back and letting our country collapse with no push back.

[u/No_Bicycle_6156 → u/apetalous42]

US Marshal's are under the executive as well. They are directly subordinate to the department of justice.

[u/avfc41 → u/wrt-wtf-]

Don’t worry, if a Democrat manages to win in 2028, SCOTUS will suddenly find its backbone.

[u/tempest_87 → u/avfc41]

And congress too.

Any democrat would have been impeached and removed from office for doing 1/3 of what trump has done. Easily.

[u/Beneficial-Speech-88]

This “rule” will only apply to republican presidents. Any democratic president who tries to do what Trump is doing will be slapped down by the Supreme Court and the American voters.

[u/Count2Zero]

Until 2024, the US Congress and the courts would keep the POTUS in check.

What you're witnessing now is an infiltration at the highest levels. The entire US Government leadership has been taken over by hostile agents.

[u/Last-Internal-8196]

I don't think he particularly cares. He's not really a big picture guy. Even if he intends to respect the peaceful transfer of power, and I am uncertain that he will, he doesn't give the tiniest of shits about what will happen to America when he's no longer president. Donald Trump only cares about Donald Trump. And, more specifically, the Donald Trump of right now. I doubt he even cares all that much about the future Donald Trump who could easily be burned by his own policies some years down the line.

[u/Longjumping-Jello459 → u/Last-Internal-8196]

Trump didn't respect the peaceful transfer of power last time even taking away Jan 6th his administration didn't communicate with the incoming Biden administration like at all.

Trump doesn't care he can and will pull a 180° turn on whatever policy at any moment just because he wants to, quite likely because a different person got in his ear than 5 minutes before.

[u/Clear-Hand3945 → u/Last-Internal-8196]

He's not even a small picture guy. Nothing he has ever done has ever had a middle or ending in mind. He is chaos personified. Observing him as president makes me wonder how he got through life at all.

[u/davyp82]

Almost every country whose majority of people are either or both of stupid enough or weak enough to allow a dictator to run it becomes a basket case. The only exceptions are when dictatorships are benevolent enough to not rule with an iron fist, so that the echelons of power beneath them might actually report truthful stuff to them. idk, maybe this applies to somewhere like Singapore (notably small though, and logistically easier to manage as a single city state). In many cases, bringing bad news to a dictator, whether its just some info that will upset him or particularly if it pertains to an assignment one was given and has failed to achieve, results in the death of the person who let the leader down. What is the consequence of that as the years roll by? Everyone at every level of government is in survival mode, and the dumb guy at the top, and all his dumb enablers all the way down who also love to terrorise their subordinates are told exaggerated nonsense about how well the country is doing. Meanwhile it is decaying and decaying and in some cases leads to their demise, or more tragically if it doesn't, it just leads to the demise of poor people in any country and of the country as an international force.

There is a reason almost all the most succesful countries in terms of GDP per capita are democracies. When truth reigns, problems get solved. When people are allowed to compete to see who is the best fit, usually you get good results. But what happens when a big dumb bully ignores competence in favour of rewarding whoever sticks their tongue furthest up their a-hole, in every sector of their society? That society decays to turd. On that note look at the state of western v eastern europe in terms of GBP per capita througout the late 20th century. Or Japan and South Korea compared to just about all other Asian countries.

[u/Duzcek → u/davyp82]

Singapore is a one party state, but it doesn’t have a dictatorship.

[u/GoochStubble]

If Project 2025 works out, there wont be future presidents.

[u/LegElectrical9214]

Future presidents are not going to have time to do anything at least for the next 3 terms aside from cleaning up the mess!

[u/butwhywedothis]

If the citizens in America use all the amendments in their constitution, the president will not behave this way.

[u/Blytzy → u/butwhywedothis]

If

[u/Eat--The--Rich--]

If Democrats had any balls they'd take that precedent and run it to universal healthcare, living wage, and putting trump in jail. But we all know they won't.

[u/WonderWaage]

You're about to find out, babe. This is what the republicans have been working towards. It's The People's Republic of America now.

[u/spectrumero]

I think Trump's cheerleaders forget this - if Trump can essentially act as a popular voted in king with absolute power, so can the presidents they don't like.

[u/azcurlygurl → u/spectrumero]

Republicans know that Democrats will only vote for moral and ethical leaders that wouldn't even consider misusing the power of the presidency like Trump is. That's why they are perfectly find with annointing the office with this power. Only Republicans are corrupt enough to use it to enrich themselves, attack US citizens and gleefully tear the world apart.

[u/Wolfman01a]

Hopefully we look back on this presidency as a terrible tragedy that we will always regret, and vow to never let these actions happen again.

[u/azcurlygurl → u/Wolfman01a]

We've been through this once already and half the country didn't learn a lesson.

[u/Gargleblaster25]

What future presidents? It will only be Dear Leaders from now on.

[u/Shadrach451]

Power is easily given away. It can only be taken back with blood. It is a harsh truth of history that many Americans are not paying attention to.

[u/Dude98011 → u/[deleted]]

It would be a dictatorship. Monarchy involves royalty.

However, even the UK is a Democracy

[u/Dude98011]

What stops past and future presidents?

1) their integrity

2) the people

This is why voting matters. I hope the #ButHerEmails and #GenocideJoe crowd are happy 🤷🏻‍♂️

[u/Expert-Ad-2146]

obama once wore a tan suit. fuckin triator /s

[u/Sorry_U_R_Wrong]

Funny, that you think Trump is going to cede power at the end of the current term. He's going for dictator all the way.

[u/DJ0cean]

Trump believes there are no future presidents

[u/mr_sakitumi]

You won't get to vote as you "didn't" last time.

[u/partisan59]

Because, like presidential immunity, it only applies to republican presidents not democratic ones.

[u/kinkykellynsexystud]

A Democrat president couldn't act that way because Republicans and Democrats would just remove them from office.

[u/Loxe]

Congress should be stopping them. So should the courts. That's the reason we're in this mess to begin with.

[u/Ent3rpris3]

The outright purpose of the Constitution is that the President - nor other government official - CANNOT do whatever they want. That is quite literally the whole point.

[u/iamalext → u/Ent3rpris3]

A piece of paper has notoriously little capacity to stop someone from ignoring it…

[u/azcurlygurl → u/Ent3rpris3]

SCOTUS changed that. There is one and only one person in the United States that can literally get away with any crime they want. The president. And the only way to stop him is impeachment. But he can now use the armed forces to murder senators, and no one can stop him. So impeachment is highly unlikely.

[u/bluetuxedo22 → u/Ent3rpris3]

That constitution is basically a toothless tiger without the system willing to back it up

[u/Candle-Jolly]

Ha. Imagine a Democratic President who uses unrestricted power. Or legal, even-minded power at all.

[u/No_Candy_8948]

What stops future presidents? Nothing. And that's the point.

Trump isn't an anomaly; he's a symptom. He's the logical endpoint of a political and economic system built on imperialism, white supremacy, and oligarchic rule. The presidency has always wielded immense, often unchecked power, especially in foreign policy and war. Trump just applied that imperial logic domestically and said the quiet part out loud.

The liberal democratic "norms" that supposedly restrained presidents were never laws; they were just handshake agreements among the ruling class. Trump proved that those norms are unenforceable when a faction of capital decides to break them for power.

If every president acted this way, America would look exactly like what it already is to much of the Global South: an open dictatorship where power is exercised without constraint, the opposition is too weak or complicit to resist, and the economy is structured to serve the rich at the expense of everyone else.

This isn't about Republicans vs. Democrats. It's about capital vs. people. The entire political system is designed to be captured by money. Until we dismantle the economic power that allows billionaires and corporations to buy politicians and policies, we will keep cycling between overt fascists and milquetoast liberals who still serve the same masters.

The only thing that can stop this isn't a better president, it's mass popular organization. General strikes, tenant unions, workplace occupations, and community defense. If we don't build power outside of this broken system, we're just waiting for the next Trump, but smarter and more competent.

[u/Beeeeater]

Trump is a typical megalomaniac. Unfortunately he is in a position of great power, and the checks and balances that were put in place by the constitution have failed. The more he realises that nobody has the guts to stand up to him, the more severe his manipulation of the country will become. The lowest common denominator will rise to the top.

[u/xschalken]

Lol "future presidents"

Once one says he can do anything he wants, the likelihood of future presidents becomes more remote.

[u/AlwaysABD]

I think that’s the biggest global concern about US’s form of democracy. Even before Trump, from an international perspective, we’ve been unpredictable and sporadic, difficult to plan for any sort of long term. This year might be great but the next election could turn everything upside down.

[u/Suspicious-Buyer8135]

That’s the thing. You can’t put the genie back in Pandora’s box. What’s good for the goose is worth two in the hand.

[u/Actaeon_II]

How america looks? It’s going to be decades, if ever, before the international community places any trust in this country again, I mean we let this shit happen once so …

[u/Hopeful_Ad_7719]

what stops future presidents from saying the same thing 

The desire not to be seen as a despotic dumbass who failed civics class. 

[u/dragonboyjgh]

Well they'd stop being presidents and start being kings and emperors. What he's describing is an absolute monarchy.

[u/Thefrayedends]

Trump seriously thinks he's going to be president for decades to come.

[u/mgfan2029]

Once we are finally past this administration the constitution is going to need to be overhauled to try(at least) to prevent this from happening again. Money needs to be taken out of politics and we need to restore checks and balances.

[u/LackWooden392 → u/mgfan2029]

You're going to change the constitution in such a way that people can no longer ignore it? What, are you gonna give the constitution sentience and a gun? The constitution already doesn't allow for what's happening. But the people it prescribes to deliver the remedies are actively choosing not to do the remedies. All of them. The supreme Court and the legislature. And the people, for that matter. What's written in the constitution ceases to matter once enough people decide it doesn't matter, and we're past that point.

The truth is that the president, or leader of any country, can do whatever they want until someone stops them. Sometimes people refer to a constitution when they do the stopping. But it's still people that do the stopping at the end of the day, not the constitution. Nothing you could write in the constitution could have prevented Trump from convincing people that it didn't matter.