Is it just me or do conservatives even exist anymore? This isn't conservatism, this isn't fiscal responsibility.

I gotta tell you, it's just too ironic that about 3 weeks after my personal favorite candidate, Andrew Yang, got laughed out of the room for having the idea of a universal basic income. It's ironic that those same people who scoffed and treated it like an impossibility, "That will never work!!! It's socialism!!! It'll cost too much!!! Obviously he's a joke and not a good or real candidate. How insane he must be, handing out money to everyone, tisk tisk. IT'S SOCIALISM LIKE NAZIS FROTHfrothFROTHfrothFROTH THEY WANT TO MAKE US NAZIS BY GIVING US MONEY!!! THINK OF THE CHILDREN!"

===3 weeks later===

" We're sending everyone in America a check or direct deposit for $1,200 for individuals or $4,000 for a family of four. We think this plan is really a fantastic plan a great plan. This is the best thing we could do."

Bullshit you liar.
Trump blocked relevant witnesses, not the house. He had no credible witnesses on his behalf because none exist. The witnesses he wasn't allowed were the Bidens, because even if every baseless accusation he made against them was true (spoiler, not one is) it's 100% irrelevant. What HE did is the issue.

Bob, you and Trump's position on anyone not kowtowing sufficiently and loudly exclaiming how amazing his (non existent) clothes are is "fuck them". Always has been. Hardly possible to represent America when you say 2/3 are America haters that should be hanged for treason.

The democrats wanted more evidence from day one, and the Whitehouse used every possible excuse to deny them ANY. I can't wait for 2021 when republican control is lost, barring more massive Republican voter fraud (which has been perpetrated by a republican in every intentional case found this century- including all actual examples Trump's investigation found from 2016; Terri Lynn Rote, Phillip Cook, Audrey Cook, Gladys Coego, and worst ever-Leslie McCrae Dowless who collected hundreds of absentee ballots and filled them out for Republican candidates, forging the signatures of hundreds of voters in her position as paid political operative for the Trump supported Republican candidate Mark Harris). When the house, Senate, and executive are all democratic and republicans are silenced with their sycophantic and cowardly abdication of duty, civility, and sanity to someone who doesn't comprehend one of those concepts a whit, I'm sure you'll finally understand how bad that is.

The Senate didn't listen to shit. Republicans, save one, were prepared to acquit without any evidence or testimony. Liar.

The theatrics are from Republicans....all non cult members see that clearly, that's why 2/3 of Americans supported his removal, and the other 1/3 wouldn't convict him of murder if he shot Romney in cold blood during the state of the union. The president being an unimpeachable king is what the constitution was designed to prevent, and the precedent the Republicans set here will end our country if it's the new norm. Start learning Mandarin....oh sorry, forgot that the "L" word is a swear word to your ilk.

It's the entire US that lost, something you'll understand when the next president breaks the law and Republicans are ignored when they complain. The state of the union is "crumbling into dust". The divider in chief has seen to that. "Winning!". *facepalm

BTW, you're also wrong about the dumbasses (again, one word not two). Trumpsters are the uneducated by and large, and a vast majority of them (59%bad/33%good) believe higher education is a bad thing.
https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/essay/the-growing-partisan-divide-in-views-of-higher-education/ It's likely that statistic is due to the fact that most of today's Republicans couldn't get into college because most of you are too dumb to meet the requirements, and those who aren't, like my family, have left the party in disgust.

Republicans are the moronic anti American anti education anti fact anti science anti fiscal responsibility anti choice bigots too stupid and gleefully ignorant to know they're stupid ignorant morons. There's absolutely no question or doubt among those who aren't willfully ignorant, who believe in fact, or who believe in education.
Sad.

What about me? I do all those things and more. I didn't just change my own brakes, I swapped my own motor. I don't just plow my field, I sow, weed, and harvest that field. I've not only repaired a roof, I've built a few. I know hard work, I was a one man desert racing crew. Now that's hard work, being mechanic, transporter, driver, and pit crew....all at 112 degrees.

So, why don't I love Trump? Because I'm a real conservative....ecologically conservative, fiscally conservative, fact based, socially liberal (the government has no place in my bedroom or my body), and insistent on honesty.

Republicans abandoned conservatism before I could vote.

THEY fear us now like one fears the 100lb ranting sore ridden meth head at the bus stop, not for our strength and resolve, but our dangerous unpredictability and diseases.

What is this new lie you're repeating over and over??
What evidence is there on Clinton that was missed in the never ending litany of investigations of her?
What evidence do you have Obama "pulled strings" for either? None that you could produce when I asked before....I seriously doubt you ever will address the question, because you prefer to spout nasty lies and hide when challenged.

I'll go out on a limb and say Obama didn't intervene. Prove me wrong with evidence and fact.....try with innuendo and more baseless Trumpism, be prepared for a serious lambasting.

On the other hand, Trump's "friend like Obama" did unethically if not illegally intervene repeatedly and continuously in every way possible including some extremely unethical ways ....that friend being Trump himself.

Since this is word for word what you wrote to me in private including the silly capitalization, I'm guessing it's cut and paste from a right wing blogger and has zero basis in fact. You are serious about these accusations in private, not sure why you hit sarcasm here except out of embarrassment.

As you know, we MADE money (>$12 million?) proving his cabinet was a criminal organization filled with dozens of felons....a GREAT deal by any measure. Gotta spend money to make money, and we MADE major money on the Trump investigation.

We spent well over $30 million to actually prove Clinton's innocence in just one of many instances Republicans created ridiculous politically motivated investigations, and you support spending tens-hundreds of millions more to get her for....well, you don't even know what. Republicans spent $1.5 trillion per year permanently giving Trump a tax break, you have no fiscal conservatives left in your party and only whine about spending when it's politically expedient.

Only a total proud moron could get "proven innocent" from "this report does not exonerate Mr Trump"....are you a proud moron?

@newtboy
@Drachen_Jager
@simonm
@bobknight33

You guys are letting him get away with too many ill defined terms.

@bobknight33 needs to define
Republican-
RHINO (dependant on Republican definition) -
Corrupt-
"Lose" in the political sense (as in "Trump does not back down or lose much")
"Back down" same comment
Swamp

--------------
From my point of view, the definitions would be as follows, but I doubt he would agree, so the definition s actually need to come from him if there's ever to be any REAL communication here.

Republican- Fiscal conservative, functional but minimal government, patriotic and supports the democratic process over communism, law and order, often (but not necessarily) religious

RHINO (dependent on Republican definition) - Ron Paul and Ron Paul Jr. - Libertarians in the thinking of Ayn Rand who actually consider themselves the "true republicans" but are outside the mainstream

Corrupt- Promoting self interest over that of the people you are meant to govern - in Trump's case, I'd say it means "anyone who doesn't agree with me"

"Lose" in the political sense (as in "Trump does not back down or lose much") - Not passing legislation with any staying power, being defeated in the Legislative Branch after something is passed (See the Affordable Care Act for the opposite example)

not "Back[ing] down" same comment - I'm going to break the law or established political norms


UNTIL WE CAN AGREE ON TERMS, THERE WON'T BE ANY ARGUMENT OF SUBSTANCE BECAUSE YOU SIMPLY WON'T BE TALKING ABOUT THE SAME THINGS

I voted.
Like I said elsewhere...
Whatever gains we make (fiscally, job growth, unemployment, trade), it isn't worth having these anti-free speech, misogynistic, fear mongering, racist assholes represent our country and our values.
I'm all for being tough, but you can be firm and yet kind. Right now we are just being bullies.

New low? This is now the status quo. There is a constant attempt to silence the press and whitewash the news to promote a positive image of this shit show.
I'm fairly conservative , especially fiscally. I want immigration reform to happen. I do believe that international trade needs/needed to be renegotiated. But what this administration has caused me to realize is that the misogynistic, racist, fear mongering, anti-science, anti-free speech administration that we have in place isn't worth having; despite whatever gains we may make from it.
But the rush of democrats to make themselves the polar opposites of the republicans isn't doing them any favors either.

You replied to yourself here....likely because this wasn't meant for me, as your terrible English, impossibly bad for an American, would tip us off that you're not an American and are nothing but another Russian troll stumping for Trump, willing to spout any nonsense no matter how it contradicts reality. Really, Bobski, if you want to be taken seriously, you need to learn English better than the Nigerian princes who need your help with international banking.
*facepalm

You must be completely insane if you think protecting a targeted group of American citizens from clear attacks against their constitutional rights is the racist move, but trying to remove their constitutional rights, that's not.

You are apparently willfully ignorant, so you have zero idea what poor people, who are mostly minorities, face. I have been one, living in East Palo Alto in the late 80's. When you work 16 hour days +3 hours on the bus getting there just to scrape by with zero savings, asking them to spend a full day at the dmv and a voting tax of $50+ (the cost of a license), you make the right to vote conditional on having a day off, the required documentation for a license/ID, and $50 to spare. Make getting a license/ID free and under 5 min online, you might have a point. As it stands, you're just being intentionally dense and trying to hide from the obvious, clear, unambiguous racist nature of ALL voter tests. There's a reason the states implementing these laws were precluded from making voter laws before 2011.....they had been found to be unconstitutionally and blatantly racist by the supreme court.

Republicans want id laws to disenfranchise minorities because they don't represent minorities and don't expect their votes, they're clear and open about it behind closed doors, have been since the Southern Strategy, and it's 100% obvious when you look at their implementation, they ALL effect minorities at a rate 4+ times over whites in areas where whites are 3/4 the population....that's by design, they have been repeatedly caught testing to ensure those results when crafting the laws.

Illegals don't vote, that's nonsense you got from the liar in Chief with not a shred of evidence that a single one successfully voted after his 2 year red herring investigation that wasted (tens of?) millions of dollars over something he made up to excuse his losing the election by 3000000+- votes. It's pure bullshit, you and we know it, that's why you never heard the results of his investigation.

Today, Trump declared publicly he's a proud nationalist.....another word for neo Nazi. There goes Republican's humanity.
He's also added more to the deficit than anyone ever, during a period of growth! Obama did better, consistently reducing the deficit, during a recession! So much for fiscal responsibility.
Now Republicans have organized and paid central Americans to march towards America to rile up their base and blame democrats without evidence, knowing under 100 will even be allowed to apply for asylum and none allowed entry. Any semblance of honesty gone, fear and hatred of anyone "different", that's all the right has left.
I'm guessing you're still on board, because nothing but tribe matters to you, not truth, not rationality, not even supporting a proud Nazi.

WHAT?!?

Conservative principles like honesty, loyalty, honor, fidelity, respect, intellectual curiosity, fiscal responsibility, and being pro environment, pro education, anti war, supportive of law and order, adult......

What conservative principal has Trump not thrown in the toilet and pissed on? I can't think of a single one, can you?
He is where you hang your hat.

Lol!
I'm not the one trying to use Faux news as a source of information.

I've said my whole life, I would vote Republican if only they (the Republican representatives) would. I've never had the option.
Anti war intelligent thoughtful fiscal responsibility became pro war greedy and short sighted fiscal and social insanity before I could vote.

You know that's nearly 1/4 of what we've paid for Trump's golf outtings so far....largely paid directly to him since he charges the secret service to stay at his properties that he won't divest himself from, and even to use his golf carts on the greens ($150000 so far for carts alone).
You would do yourself a service to not complain about wasting money on investigating treasonous criminal activities as long as you're on team Trump, he spends like a drunken sailor on leave that just won the lottery. Just look at deficit numbers before and after his tax plan, then try to pretend he's somehow fiscally sane.

For a comparison, the GAO said the Clinton investigations cost $70-$80 million in the 90's (translating to over $135 million in 2018 dollars) and Republicans called them under funded.
History....ain't it a thing.

Cults of personality are rarely about religion.
Are you saying evangelicals aren't real Americans, or that they're just all hypocritical liars disingenuously hiding behind religion?

If it was the economy. stupid, the Republican party would have disbanded in 2008 after they utterly destroyed it, and you would be a Democrat.

It's tribalism. It's all about 'my team's right, yours is wrong,' that's why fiscally responsible anti war moralists so easily turned into deficit and debt exploding pro war immoral liars...as long as they wear the right color tie, absolutely nothing else matters to you.

You admit Trump's a consummate liar, but you naively continue to believe his cheerleading fluff that comes with far less actual info than Clinton offered and changes daily as he is forced to face reality and indisputable facts. Why?

You mean pretending they'll be fiscally responsible when they're out of power, then immediately giving all the money they can to the rich while reassuring the rest of us it's fine because it will trickle down like a glorious golden shower?

I hate to agree with him, and I didn't watch his hour long speech, but adding hundreds of billions a year in new spending after cutting $1.5 trillion in taxes is about as far from fiscal responsibility as you can get.
No more calling democrats 'tax and spend' @bobknight33 without noting republicans are now just 'spend', and they spend far more than Democrats....on stuff we don't need.

from link:
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/year-one-list-81-major-trump-achievements-11-obama-legacy-items-repealed/article/2644159

Below are the 12 categories and 81 wins cited by the White House.

Jobs and the economy

Passage of the tax reform bill providing $5.5 billion in cuts and repealing the Obamacare mandate.
Increase of the GDP above 3 percent.
Creation of 1.7 million new jobs, cutting unemployment to 4.1 percent.
Saw the Dow Jones reach record highs.
A rebound in economic confidence to a 17-year high.
A new executive order to boost apprenticeships.
A move to boost computer sciences in Education Department programs.
Prioritizing women-owned businesses for some $500 million in SBA loans.
Killing job-stifling regulations

Signed an Executive Order demanding that two regulations be killed for every new one creates. He beat that big and cut 16 rules and regulations for every one created, saving $8.1 billion.
Signed 15 congressional regulatory cuts.
Withdrew from the Obama-era Paris Climate Agreement, ending the threat of environmental regulations.
Signed an Executive Order cutting the time for infrastructure permit approvals.
Eliminated an Obama rule on streams that Trump felt unfairly targeted the coal industry.
Fair trade

Made good on his campaign promise to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Opened up the North American Free Trade Agreement for talks to better the deal for the U.S.
Worked to bring companies back to the U.S., and companies like Toyota, Mazda, Broadcom Limited, and Foxconn announced plans to open U.S. plants.
Worked to promote the sale of U.S products abroad.
Made enforcement of U.S. trade laws, especially those that involve national security, a priority.
Ended Obama’s deal with Cuba.
Boosting U.S. energy dominance

The Department of Interior, which has led the way in cutting regulations, opened plans to lease 77 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico for oil and gas drilling.
Trump traveled the world to promote the sale and use of U.S. energy.
Expanded energy infrastructure projects like the Keystone XL Pipeline snubbed by Obama.
Ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to kill Obama’s Clean Power Plan.
EPA is reconsidering Obama rules on methane emissions.
Protecting the U.S. homeland

Laid out new principles for reforming immigration and announced plan to end "chain migration," which lets one legal immigrant to bring in dozens of family members.
Made progress to build the border wall with Mexico.
Ended the Obama-era “catch and release” of illegal immigrants.
Boosted the arrests of illegals inside the U.S.
Doubled the number of counties participating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement charged with deporting illegals.
Removed 36 percent more criminal gang members than in fiscal 2016.
Started the end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival program.
Ditto for other amnesty programs like Deferred Action for Parents of Americans.
Cracking down on some 300 sanctuary cities that defy ICE but still get federal dollars.
Added some 100 new immigration judges.
Protecting communities

Justice announced grants of $98 million to fund 802 new cops.
Justice worked with Central American nations to arrest and charge 4,000 MS-13 members.
Homeland rounded up nearly 800 MS-13 members, an 83 percent one-year increase.
Signed three executive orders aimed at cracking down on international criminal organizations.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions created new National Public Safety Partnership, a cooperative initiative with cities to reduce violent crimes.
Accountability

Trump has nominated 73 federal judges and won his nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.
Ordered ethical standards including a lobbying ban.
Called for a comprehensive plan to reorganize the executive branch.
Ordered an overhaul to modernize the digital government.
Called for a full audit of the Pentagon and its spending.
Combatting opioids

First, the president declared a Nationwide Public Health Emergency on opioids.
His Council of Economic Advisors played a role in determining that overdoses are underreported by as much as 24 percent.
The Department of Health and Human Services laid out a new five-point strategy to fight the crisis.
Justice announced it was scheduling fentanyl substances as a drug class under the Controlled Substances Act.
Justice started a fraud crackdown, arresting more than 400.
The administration added $500 million to fight the crisis.
On National Drug Take Back Day, the Drug Enforcement Agency collected 456 tons.

Helping veterans

Signed the Veterans Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act to allow senior officials in the Department of Veterans Affairs to fire failing employees and establish safeguards to protect whistleblowers.
Signed the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act.
Signed the Harry W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act, to provide support.
Signed the VA Choice and Quality Employment Act of 2017 to authorize $2.1 billion in additional funds for the Veterans Choice Program.
Created a VA hotline.
Had the VA launch an online “Access and Quality Tool,” providing veterans with a way to access wait time and quality of care data.
With VA Secretary Dr. David Shulkin, announced three initiatives to expand access to healthcare for veterans using telehealth technology.
Promoting peace through strength

Directed the rebuilding of the military and ordered a new national strategy and nuclear posture review.
Worked to increase defense spending.
Empowered military leaders to “seize the initiative and win,” reducing the need for a White House sign off on every mission.
Directed the revival of the National Space Council to develop space war strategies.
Elevated U.S. Cyber Command into a major warfighting command.
Withdrew from the U.N. Global Compact on Migration, which Trump saw as a threat to borders.
Imposed a travel ban on nations that lack border and anti-terrorism security.
Saw ISIS lose virtually all of its territory.
Pushed for strong action against global outlaw North Korea and its development of nuclear weapons.
Announced a new Afghanistan strategy that strengthens support for U.S. forces at war with terrorism.
NATO increased support for the war in Afghanistan.
Approved a new Iran strategy plan focused on neutralizing the country’s influence in the region.
Ordered missile strikes against a Syrian airbase used in a chemical weapons attack.
Prevented subsequent chemical attacks by announcing a plan to detect them better and warned of future strikes if they were used.
Ordered new sanctions on the dictatorship in Venezuela.
Restoring confidence in and respect for America

Trump won the release of Americans held abroad, often using his personal relationships with world leaders.
Made good on a campaign promise to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
Conducted a historic 12-day trip through Asia, winning new cooperative deals. On the trip, he attended three regional summits to promote American interests.
He traveled to the Middle East and Europe to build new relationships with leaders.
Traveled to Poland and on to Germany for the G-20 meeting where he pushed again for funding of women entrepreneurs.


see link above for more complete