The Trump Presidency | Biden Inaugurated

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arnie_ni

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@Carolina Red, @Raoul, @Revan, @Organic Potatoes, @Florida Man Just to get some context, who do Americans rank as their 'worst ever' president? I'm just looking at what's going on across the US and thinking you couldn't have picked anybody worse during one of the US' most darkest times in recent history.

Or is this just a 'been there before' kind of situation? I just can't imagine what kind of America would be left if there was another 4 years with this guy in charge.
Whats mad is, from what I read at the time, if the dems put forward anyone but Hillary they would have won.

History might just repeat itself with Biden.
 

Revan

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F. D. Roosevelt
H. S. Truman
D. D. Eisenhower
J. F. Kennedy
L. B. Johnson
R. Nixon
G. Ford
J. Carter
R. Reagan
G. H. Bush
B. Clinton
G. W. Bush
B. H. Obama
D. J. Trump

It's not really that large of a list but as an outsider I'd have to go with Reagan or G. W. Bush.
Reagan became 'bad' only recently when the division between right-wing and left-wing is in all-time high. He won 48 states on his first election (against an incumbent) and then 49 for his second election. His VP also won quite comfortably. GOP also won the senate during his reign after a quite long time. Just that with this division, he has become the metaphoric symbol, the hate figure for the left (especially the radical left)

I guess Trump has a shot of being remembered as the worst ever a few decades from now. W Bush was quite bad too, I guess the others were ok to decent (with FDR remembered as one of the best ever).

Republicans would probably say Carter or Obama.
 

MrMarcello

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@Revan really depends on what you make of Reagan's policies and rhetoric in hindsight. He's not the saintly figure the right-wing thinks of. He's practically responsible for the divide we see today, and one policy literally gave birth and rise to hate talk radio and Fox News.

 

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Reagan became 'bad' only recently when the division between right-wing and left-wing is in all-time high
At the same time, historical scholarship is now far enough past the Reagan years to really take a look at him and is now emphasizing the Iran-Contra Scandal and the effects of his mental health policy, tax policy, and Reagonomics scam on future events.

He wasn’t a very good president, he just played one on TV.
 

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@Revan really depends on what you make of Reagan's policies and rhetoric in hindsight. He's not the saintly figure the right-wing thinks of. He's practically responsible for the divide we see today, and one policy literally gave birth and rise to hate talk radio and Fox News.

I ain't saying that he was a saintly figure, or even a particularly good president. He was an okay president like most of the US presidents.

What I am saying that only in the recent years, he has become a target for 'the worst president ever', a symbol for 'GOP killing the planet', 'comparable to Trump' etc etc, when in fact, he was actually a very popular (and to quite a degree bi-partisan president).

He was a Minnesota away from winning all 50 states, for example. A divisive president doesn't really do that, right?
 

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Reagan became 'bad' only recently when the division between right-wing and left-wing is in all-time high. He won 48 states on his first election (against an incumbent) and then 49 for his second election. His VP also won quite comfortably. GOP also won the senate during his reign after a quite long time. Just that with this division, he has become the metaphoric symbol, the hate figure for the left (especially the radical left)

I guess Trump has a shot of being remembered as the worst ever a few decades from now. W Bush was quite bad too, I guess the others were ok to decent (with FDR remembered as one of the best ever).

Republicans would probably say Carter or Obama.
I went Reagan and Bush soley on how their policies have impacted the world today.
 

MrMarcello

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I ain't saying that he was a saintly figure, or even a particularly good president. He was an okay president like most of the US presidents.

What I am saying that only in the recent years, he has become a target for 'the worst president ever', a symbol for 'GOP killing the planet', 'comparable to Trump' etc etc, when in fact, he was actually a very popular (and to quite a degree bi-partisan president).

He was a Minnesota away from winning all 50 states, for example. A divisive president doesn't really do that, right?
He's become that target because his policies fecked the country and some still are. He fecked unions and began the erosion of the middle class. His economic polices were shit. His administration had 138 persons investigated with 21 convictions. He's also responsible for evangelicals having such a massive presence/voice to the White House now days. He helped enact policies that resulted in mass incarcerations that produced a prison for profit system. And he was a master of dog whistles.

He wasn't divisive in his eloquence and good-guy image he deftly crafted, he was divisive in his polices and scandals.

He had plenty fooled and this was an era that was nowhere near as divided as today, though he helped begin the push to the further right. He also ran against arguably the worst (prior to Hilary & Trump) opposition candidate in history in '84.
 

calodo2003

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At the same time, historical scholarship is now far enough past the Reagan years to really take a look at him and is now emphasizing the Iran-Contra Scandal and the effects of his mental health policy, tax policy, and Reagonomics scam on future events.

He wasn’t a very good president, he just played one on TV.
His declining mental health is also getting noticed more recently. It’s a shame that the current president’s mental decline won’t be fully appreciated for a few years even though it’s plain to see.
 

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I ain't saying that he was a saintly figure, or even a particularly good president. He was an okay president like most of the US presidents.

What I am saying that only in the recent years, he has become a target for 'the worst president ever', a symbol for 'GOP killing the planet', 'comparable to Trump' etc etc, when in fact, he was actually a very popular (and to quite a degree bi-partisan president).

He was a Minnesota away from winning all 50 states, for example. A divisive president doesn't really do that, right?
He planted the seeds of the polarized America you see today. It all stems from his time in office. The abandonment of the Fairness doctrine, the polarization of political discourse. Oh and he was a massive fecking racist to boot.
 

calodo2003

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He planted the seeds of the polarized America you see today. It all stems from his time in office. The abandonment of the Fairness doctrine, the polarization of political discourse. Oh and he was a massive fecking racist to boot.
Former Democrat just like Trump, realized he could ride a groundswell from CA to DC.

Amazing that it was only a couple of decades ago, but we did it to ourselves again.
 

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This. I actually liked Reagan as a kid in the 80s.
Iran-Contra? Perhaps the worst scandal ever in American history. Leagues worse than Watergate although covered up much better
 

Carolina Red

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@RedPed

Chet Arthur and Calvin Coolidge have to be in the mix for worst
His wasn’t too bad and he’s of the few people to ever leave office more well liked than when he entered it.

Per Alexander K. McClure: “No man ever entered the Presidency so profoundly and widely distrusted, and no one ever retired … more generally respected.”

He also broke with the Stalwarts in 1883 and ushered in the Civil Service Commission,
 

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Trump justice department forces out top FBI lawyer in Flynn case
Fox News host Lou Dobbs slammed lawyer in April

'A top FBI lawyer who was criticised on Fox News for his role in the investigation of Michael Flynn has resigned after being asked to do so by senior figures at the Department of Justice, NBC News reported on Saturday.

The FBI confirmed to NBC that Dana Boente, its general counsel and a former acting attorney general, announced his resignation on Friday after a near-40-year career. NBC cited two sources anonymous sources as saying the decision came from “Attorney General William Barr’s justice department”.'


(NBC News)
I almost missed this. The Trump/Barr/Pompeo purge of the adults in the room capable of any oversight continues.
 

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Easy on him... He said was a kid :lol:

Hell, I was a kid during the Lewinsky scandal and had no clue what was going on.
Yep. My earliest memories of him were around 84 when I was 6 years old. I thought he was a quintessential American, he reminded me of Clint Eastwood and he was mates with our PM. It was only after I started gcse politics at 14 did did I understand why our PM and Your President got on like a house on fire.
 

RedPed

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@RedPed

Chet Arthur and Calvin Coolidge have to be in the mix for worst
I almost missed this. The Trump/Barr/Pompeo purge of the adults in the room capable of any oversight continues.
I'm just amazed that when you look at Trump's presidency and all the batshit crazy stuff he's doing including the above that you guys are still throwing out other names as the worst president.

What would it take to put it beyond any doubt?

Yep. My earliest memories of him were around 84 when I was 6 years old. I thought he was a quintessential American, he reminded me of Clint Eastwood and he was mates with our PM. It was only after I started gcse politics at 14 did did I understand why our PM and Your President got on like a house on fire.
Yeah the Reagan-Thatcher years were pretty grim. It was great when the Tories eventually turned on her in the end.
 

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I'm just amazed that when you look at Trump's presidency and all the batshit crazy stuff he's doing including the above that you guys are still throwing out other names as the worst president.

What would it take to put it beyond any doubt?



Yeah the Reagan-Thatcher years were pretty grim. It was great when the Tories eventually turned on her in the end.
I think it’s almost rhetorical that most of us are certain that Trump is the worst modern president & in the top five worst all time.
 

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I'm just amazed that when you look at Trump's presidency and all the batshit crazy stuff he's doing including the above that you guys are still throwing out other names as the worst president.

What would it take to put it beyond any doubt?
Finish one term...It’s basically just a technicality.

But you should still read up on my non-Trump choice in Andrew Johnson: Long Mother Jones article
 

oneniltothearsenal

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I'm just amazed that when you look at Trump's presidency and all the batshit crazy stuff he's doing including the above that you guys are still throwing out other names as the worst president.

What would it take to put it beyond any doubt?



Yeah the Reagan-Thatcher years were pretty grim. It was great when the Tories eventually turned on her in the end.
Oh I misunderstood, I was thinking of names besides Trump.

I think Trump is definitely the worst now and will be seen that way by historians in the future.
 

Balljy

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Merkel tells him to feck off and suddenly the G7 leaders become outdated. Assassins, America needs you.

Trump delays 'outdated' G7 leaders' summit

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-52865201
To be fair G7 doesn't really make sense in a governing the world type way. Even the BBC article can't really explain what it is "The group is made up of the seven of the world's largest economies. "

It's like the writer wanted to put the 7 largest economies then realised it isn't half way though.
 

SteveJ

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He's expanding the G7 summit in the way that Blatter & co expanded the World Cup. I really don't need to add to my statement, if you know what I'm sayin'.
 

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Reagan became 'bad' only recently when the division between right-wing and left-wing is in all-time high. He won 48 states on his first election (against an incumbent) and then 49 for his second election. His VP also won quite comfortably. GOP also won the senate during his reign after a quite long time. Just that with this division, he has become the metaphoric symbol, the hate figure for the left (especially the radical left)
There's also the small matter of the racist tapes about African delegates in the UN among other things.
 

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And his wilful ignorance of the AIDS crisis.
 

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To be fair G7 doesn't really make sense in a governing the world type way. Even the BBC article can't really explain what it is "The group is made up of the seven of the world's largest economies. "

It's like the writer wanted to put the 7 largest economies then realised it isn't half way though.
I mean, fundamentally its the 6 largest Western economies and Japan, which is Asian but comes under the US world security umbrella.

Not too sure what it adds over the G20 tbh, other than being a cosy get together for the world's most powerful 'western' leaders.
 

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@Carolina Red, @Raoul, @Revan, @Organic Potatoes, @Florida Man Just to get some context, who do Americans rank as their 'worst ever' president? I'm just looking at what's going on across the US and thinking you couldn't have picked anybody worse during one of the US' most darkest times in recent history.

Or is this just a 'been there before' kind of situation? I just can't imagine what kind of America would be left if there was another 4 years with this guy in charge.

Right wingers usually say Jimmy Carter. But that's because they are mostly stupid.
 

calodo2003

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To be fair G7 doesn't really make sense in a governing the world type way. Even the BBC article can't really explain what it is "The group is made up of the seven of the world's largest economies. "

It's like the writer wanted to put the 7 largest economies then realised it isn't half way though.
7 largest economies per capita?
 

SteveJ

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Trump: We’ll soon be landing on Mars and we’ll soon have the greatest weapons ever imagined in history, I’ve already seen the designs and even I can’t believe it
Oh, f*cking hell...
 

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He's expanding the G7 summit in the way that Blatter & co expanded the World Cup. I really don't need to add to my statement, if you know what I'm sayin'.
He’s labouring under the delusion that he can just unilaterally decide things. Stupid cnut could be a lame duck president in just 5 more months.
 

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Yay, big bad weapons that won't only destroy the earth but half the galaxy. And WE have them, nobody else. Woohoo.
 

SteveJ

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He’s labouring under the delusion that he can just unilaterally decide things
Yeah, that's a common theme of his. He's bought into the idea that a president is somehow King of the world.
 

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Yeah, that's a common theme of his. He's bought into the idea that a president is somehow King of the world.
Given his conduct, without reproach, he could be forgiven for that belief.

He's living out most of his wildest fantasies, and up until Covid-19 (if we're to believe he hasn't pocketed from the 2 trillion), was making a fortune whilst doing so.
 

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"Light 'em up" indeed. Do these idiots think they're soldiers in a movie?
 
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