"Trump ready for US shutdown to last 'for years'"

[SimplyMe]

I don't think so, I think the checks and balances are there for the Congress as well. The Supreme Court has already reigned him him somewhat on his immigration policy, grudgingly he edited the laws he made by executive authority to where it complied with normative Constitutional reach for a President. Trump can't keep the government shut down, only the Congress. They have been pretty anemic the last two years but let's hope the new blood in Congress has a bipartisan spirit, polarization is what got us here.

I think Trump and the Republicans have killed "bipartisan spirit." Last year Congressional leaders came to a compromise that would allow Trump to build his wall (likely give him as much as $30 billion) and, at the same time, include provisions to make DACA permanent. This was killed by Trump after he agreed, because Fox and others were calling him "Amnesty Don" as well as the Tea Party Congressmen.

Then in December, the Republicans and Democrats negotiate and come to an agreement that would fund the government until February, with the White House indicating Trump would sign the deal. Again, Fox and others criticized Trump that this spending bill, which would fund the government for a bit over two months, had no provisions for Trump's wall, and he announces that he will not honor the agreement the two sides made.

At this point, why should Congress negotiate when Trump continually "blows up" any compromises they make? This is doubly true when Trump seems unwilling to negotiate in good faith on the $5 billion for his "wall," particularly refusing to give the Democrats things that he previously promised he would (such as DACA). Instead, his "Trump" card, what he is "negotiating," is to give him what he wants and he'll allow the government to reopen -- that isn't negotiation.

 

[Goonie]

It was the biggest point he took to the election, and he won. He's definitely got a mandate to build "the wall" (whatever that actually means).

“And Mexico will pay for it.” You forgot the rest of the mandate. Congress does not owe him one cent to build the wall.

 

[actionsub]

....meanwhile, I'm not exactly thrilled at the prospect of flying in the coming weeks. The TSA union reported yesterday that "hundreds" of TSA workers are not reporting to work...but Trump has a solution:

For workers who will not be able to pay their rent, Trump suggested that landlords would “work with” them and that he would encourage them to “be nice and easy” on their tenants.

Yeah, I don't see the landlords being "nice and easy" part happening.

 

[Aldebaran]

I love the phrase "a gorilla who lost his bananas". I'm going to attempt to remember that. Thanks!

If someone had used that phrase during the previous administration, feelings would have been hurt.

 

[Abraxos]

President Trump knows he has the emergency powers to get the wall built. He’s just giving the Democrats another opportunity to look like fools.

 

[bekkilyn]

I just have a very difficult time understanding how so many people actually believed that Mexico would pay for the stupid wall in the first place. It seems that anyone who would have thought it through for 5 or 10 minutes would have figured out that it would fall on the backs of U.S. taxpayers once Mexico refused (which is more than obvious that they would).

 

[GlabrousDory4]

If someone had used that phrase during the previous administration, feelings would have been hurt.

Context.

 

[USincognito]

It was the biggest point he took to the election, and he won. He's definitely got a mandate to build "the wall" (whatever that actually means).

Being outvoted by 10,000,000 votes and being outvoted by his main opponent by 3,000,000 votes is hardly a "mandate".

 

[USincognito]

don't allow yourself to be trolled

 

[Aldebaran]

Oh look. Another racist joke from the white guy who thinks "police" = "white people" and who was triggered by a fake President Obama quote.

When I said:

If someone had used that phrase during the previous administration, feelings would have been hurt.

I didn't realize feelings would be hurt again so soon.

 

[EpiscipalMe]

President Trump knows he has the emergency powers to get the wall built. He’s just giving the Democrats another opportunity to look like fools.

Since the majority of Americans oppose the wall and there is no good evidence the wall will be beneficial, it may not be Democrats that look like fools.

 

[Aldebaran]

Since the majority of Americans oppose the wall and there is no good evidence the wall will be beneficial, it may not be Democrats that look like fools.

Israel has a wall along their West Bank. Maybe they're onto something.
Google Image Result for https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/Israeli_West_Bank_Barrier.jpg

 

[Abraxos]

Since the majority of Americans oppose the wall and there is no good evidence the wall will be beneficial, it may not be Democrats that look like fools.

If the majority of Americans opposed the wall, Hillary Clinton would've been President.

 

[EpiscipalMe]

Israel has a wall along their West Bank. Maybe they're onto something.
Google Image Result for https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/Israeli_West_Bank_Barrier.jpg

Yeah, things are going great over there.

In the West Bank, a violent storm is brewing

 

[EpiscipalMe]

If the majority of Americans opposed the wall, Hillary Clinton would've been President.

The majority did vote for Hillary. But Trump won the electoral votes so he was duly elected president.

As for more recent polls:
“The survey found that 56 percent of respondents do not support the president's proposal to construct a wall along the southern border, compared to 44 percent who do.”
Poll: Majorities oppose Trump's wall funding demand, call for compromise

 

[Allandavid]

If the majority of Americans opposed the wall, Hillary Clinton would've been President.

Ummmm....you do realise that Hillary did, in fact, receive the majority of votes...?

 

[Aldebaran]

Yeah, things are going great over there.

In the West Bank, a violent storm is brewing

The Israeli government says that the barrier has been effective, as the number of suicide bombings carried out from the West Bank fell from 73 (between 2000 and July 2003 – the completion of the "first continuous segment"), to 12 (from August 2003 to the end of 2006).

 

[EpiscipalMe]

The Israeli government says that the barrier has been effective, as the number of suicide bombings carried out from the West Bank fell from 73 (between 2000 and July 2003 – the completion of the "first continuous segment"), to 12 (from August 2003 to the end of 2006).

I was not aware that we are in armed conflict with Mexico and trying to stop suicide bombers.

 

[USincognito]

Note to self - stop responding to the trolling

 

[Aldebaran]

I was not aware that we are in armed conflict with Mexico and trying to stop suicide bombers.

That's good, since I never claimed we were. I guess I could go into a long explanation about how a wall that stops people from walking over the border with explosives and other weapons would be just as effective at keeping people from walking over the border with drugs, along with people who have gang affiliations, but I won't. Instead, I'll leave you with a CNN story about a police officer who was a LEGAL immigrant and was recently killed by an ILLEGAL one. Perhaps it will put things into perspective. Suspect who shot and killed California officer was in the country illegally, authorities say - CNN