Political Discussion Thread (With Rules)

[Pattern Ghost]

He'll flee the country, or attempt to, before taking his own life. He's a coward.

 

 

 

[TrickstaPriest]

Just now, Pattern Ghost said:

He'll flee the country, or attempt to, before taking his own life. He's a coward.

 

 

Yeah, agreed.

 

As much as I can say my bias colors my thinking, just about every negative thing I ever thought or said about Trump has come true.  Though all of it was pretty vague... mostly.

 

Pretty sad state of affairs, there.

[Lord Liaden]

10 minutes ago, Pattern Ghost said:

He'll flee the country, or attempt to, before taking his own life. He's a coward.

 

 

If he has the opportunity, I agree. I'm certain in that scenario, his passport would be seized. He's practically the definition of flight risk.

[Cancer]

I don't think he'll ever see the inside of a cell, for other reasons.  He's got a legal team and they will use every delaying tactic possible.  If DeSantis wins the presidency in 2024, he'll give him a pardon and that will end it.  If there's one thing all the GOP stands for, it's that spoiled rich conservative white men never serve time for anything.

[unclevlad]

Where would he try to flee to?  There are numerous countries with which the US does not have an extradition treaty, but most are not places he'd flee to.  

 

The number isn't zero, tho.  Among the Arab states:  Saudi Arabia and Qatar.  It's possible the wouldn't want the political hassles.  And the irony of ironies would, of course, be Russia, but if his wealth is blocked...they may not want *him*.  I'm assuming that the bank freeze and most of the sanctions from the Ukraine attack, have been lifted, because if they're in place, I don't see Trump going there.  Too much risk that any remaining assets become locked up.

 

Dunno.  Not sure I buy he'd suicide before going to prison because I am not sure he'll believe it could possibly happen until he's actually at the prison and being processed.  

 

There also seems NO!!!! chance he'd be in among anything like a normal prison population...even a white-collar prison.  

 

I also agree that there's not much chance he'll ever see jail time.  

 

 

[Cancer]

He seemed to get on fine with Kim, so North Korea would be my bet.

[unclevlad]

AP calls Georgia...Warnock.

 

YAY!!!!!  

 

EDIT:  this calls for a splash of cognac later on, to celebrate.

[Cancer]

It'll be Irish for me, but yeah.

[Old Man]

2 hours ago, unclevlad said:

Where would he try to flee to?  There are numerous countries with which the US does not have an extradition treaty, but most are not places he'd flee to. 

 

Seems like Russia is the obvious choice.  Although I reckon U.S. intelligence might have an opinion about a man who once had security clearance for everything defecting to one of America's archenemies.

[dmjalund]

2 hours ago, Cancer said:

He's got a legal team and they will use every delaying tactic possible.

His legal teams tend towards the incompetent

[Lord Liaden]

Indeed. All the competent lawyers want to get paid, and don't want to be made to look like fools when their client lies to them.

[BNakagawa]

I think 45 has a solid business model moving forward. All he has to do is demand that any GOP candidate send him money or he will endorse them.

[unclevlad]

2 hours ago, Old Man said:

 

Seems like Russia is the obvious choice.  Although I reckon U.S. intelligence might have an opinion about a man who once had security clearance for everything defecting to one of America's archenemies.

 

Duuuuuuuuude.....................if he does this, it's NOT like he's gonna...you know...warn anyone!  Nor would sequestering his passport make a bloody SHRED of difference.  He'll hop a company plane...refuel somewhere, that might be a logistical problem if he's fleeing...and land in Russia.  

 

The only reason why I don't worry about it that much is, I don't think it's in his personality.  First, it'd admit guilt and wrongdoing.  He'll never admit *to himself* he's ever done anything wrong, and everything he's done was legal, Because He Was The President.  Second, as I said before, this'd only happen if he really, truly thought he could get thrown in jail.  His self-delusion won't allow that.

 

Last reason:  if there *are* logistical problems?  Do you think he *can* work them out?  Do you think his self-delusion will let him?

[unclevlad]

1 hour ago, Lord Liaden said:

Indeed. All the competent lawyers want to get paid, and don't want to be made to look like fools when their client lies to them.

 

No argument they're incompetent, but that doesn't necessarily matter.  IIRC, every election challenge was pretty much laughed out of court, and the Trump lawyers were rebuked rather firmly on more than one occasion.  It still held things off.  And look at the special master thing, with the records from Mar-a-Lago.  A nice, what, month's delay there.  Helps there was an idiot judge whose continued presence on the bench is dubious, considering, but the court and trial systems have so many ways to impede the orderly flow of business that competence isn't required.

 

EDIT:  look how long Alex Jones has dragged things out by doing, literally, NOTHING.  And now he's got his business entity and personal money tied up in bankruptcy hearings.  You know, I know, the judge will know, it's nothing but a stall tactic...but it doesn't matter.    

[Lord Liaden]

1 hour ago, unclevlad said:

 

Duuuuuuuuude.....................if he does this, it's NOT like he's gonna...you know...warn anyone!  Nor would sequestering his passport make a bloody SHRED of difference.  He'll hop a company plane...refuel somewhere, that might be a logistical problem if he's fleeing...and land in Russia.  

 

 

 

Um... don't aircraft with international range have to file a flight plan? Get clearance to take off, and to land at a foreign destination? Have documentation to get through airport security? This sounds like Donald Trump is a hundred kilos of cocaine being flown in a little prop job under the radar at the Mexican border.

[Grailknight]

Doesn't he still have an active Secret Service detail? It would seem to me that would be his biggest obstacle.

[Cygnia]

5 minutes ago, Grailknight said:

Doesn't he still have an active Secret Service detail? It would seem to me that would be his biggest obstacle.

Depends if he still has his yes-men with him or if they gave him actual honest people who'll do their job.

[unclevlad]

6 hours ago, Lord Liaden said:

 

Um... don't aircraft with international range have to file a flight plan? Get clearance to take off, and to land at a foreign destination? Have documentation to get through airport security? This sounds like Donald Trump is a hundred kilos of cocaine being flown in a little prop job under the radar at the Mexican border.

 

Sure, if one is operating in an open and above-board manner...but if you sank $1M into things, don't you think you could find ways around any issues?  Flight plan...depart from it in mid-air, over international waters.  Landing..arrange with friendly state.  Airport security...bribe.  Or something.  

 

The Secret Service detail would be an issue, but the bigger one to me is that this'd take some time and planning.  It's not spur of the moment.  Trump won't concede the need to do it, before it's too late.

[Hermit]

14 hours ago, unclevlad said:

Where would he try to flee to?  There are numerous countries with which the US does not have an extradition treaty, but most are not places he'd flee to.  

 

The number isn't zero, tho.  Among the Arab states:  Saudi Arabia and Qatar.  It's possible the wouldn't want the political hassles.  And the irony of ironies would, of course, be Russia, but if his wealth is blocked...they may not want *him*.  I'm assuming that the bank freeze and most of the sanctions from the Ukraine attack, have been lifted, because if they're in place, I don't see Trump going there.  Too much risk that any remaining assets become locked up.

 

Dunno.  Not sure I buy he'd suicide before going to prison because I am not sure he'll believe it could possibly happen until he's actually at the prison and being processed.  

 

There also seems NO!!!! chance he'd be in among anything like a normal prison population...even a white-collar prison.  

 

I also agree that there's not much chance he'll ever see jail time.  

 

 

IMO Russia would LOVE to provide Trump haven. They'd have a field day calling him the "TRUE President of America in Exile". He'd be worth it just to keep fueling sedition among Trump's faithful here in the US of A.

 

 

13 hours ago, unclevlad said:

AP calls Georgia...Warnock.

 

YAY!!!!!  

 

EDIT:  this calls for a splash of cognac later on, to celebrate.

 

Never thought I'd say this twice in a five year period but "God Bless Georgia"

[TrickstaPriest]

3 minutes ago, Hermit said:

IMO Russia would LOVE to provide Trump haven. They'd have a field day calling him the "TRUE President of America in Exile". He'd be worth it just to keep fueling sedition among Trump's faithful here in the US of A.

 

 

This is quite a common pattern for fallen or fled kings in the past.  It's often been used as an excuse for war and invasion, "in support of the true king".  So to speak.

 

And heirs, even if we don't include Trump himself.

 

Heck, this is often how succession wars actually take place - the victor kills their siblings, but those that live flee to another country, effectively 'getting an army' in exchange for ruling their homeland as a puppet king.

[unclevlad]

His Orangeness' people said, we've turned over all the classified docs.

 

Federal judge is skeptical, and says "look harder."

 

Guess what???

 

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-lawyers-tower-bedminister-search-b2240675.html

[dmjalund]

 

1 hour ago, unclevlad said:

His Orangeness' people said, we've turned over all the classified docs.

 

Federal judge is skeptical, and says "look harder."

 

Guess what???

 

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-lawyers-tower-bedminister-search-b2240675.html

try https://12ft.io/www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-lawyers-tower-bedminister-search-b2240675.html

[Lord Liaden]

This poison has spread beyond America: Germany Arrests 25 Suspected of Planning to Overthrow Government.

 

"Among those detained were a German prince, a former far-right member of Parliament, an active soldier and former members of the police and elite special forces."

 

"The plan was to storm the German Capitol, arrest lawmakers and execute the chancellor. A prince descended from German nobility would take over as the new head of state, and a former far-right member of Parliament would be put in charge of a national purge."

 

"It is not clear how capable the plotters would have been at executing such an attack, nor how close they were to attempting to implement their plan: According to some intelligence officials, the group had twice missed dates when they had aimed to trigger their attack. But many of those arrested were known to be heavily armed, prosecutors said, describing the plot as possibly the most brazen in Germany’s postwar history — one aimed directly at the heart of the state."

 

"Prosecutors said the group was formed in the past year, influenced by the ideologies of the conspiracy group QAnon and a right-wing German conspiracy group called the Reichsbürger, or Citizens of the Reich, which believes that Germany’s post-World War II Republic is not a sovereign country but a corporation set up by the victorious Allies."

[Cygnia]

I'm morbidly curious now wondering if Russia was bankrolling it in some way...

[Lord Liaden]

4 minutes ago, Cygnia said:

I'm morbidly curious now wondering if Russia was bankrolling it in some way...

 

"Prince Heinrich XIII had tried to make contact with representatives of the Russian government through the Russian Embassy in Berlin. A Russian citizen, whom the prosecutors identified as “Vitalia B.,” is believed to have helped him in trying to establish contact with Moscow. But prosecutors said there were no indications that they had received a positive response from the Russian sources they had contacted.

A Russian government spokesman on Wednesday called the plot “a German internal problem.”

“There can be no question of any Russian interference,” the spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, told reporters."