Trump is exactly who his critics have always said he was: a venal, narcissistic, corrupt, self-dealing wannabe autocrat. He has proven that over and over again, and the Ukraine scandal is just the latest demonstration of a plain fact. It’s impeachable on its own, but it’s also falls at the end of a series of condemnable conduct. His ideological compatriots should start taking the president’s critics seriously, instead of desperately trying to sweep Trump’s mountain of wrongdoing under the rug.
via The Ukraine Scandal Proves Trump Is Exactly Who We Warned You He Was | The Smirking Chimp
Netanyahu did not criticise Trump or his decision to pull US troops out of Syria in his statement about the Turkish operation, but gradually stopped “name dropping” the US president in his public speeches. He even failed to show up at the UN meeting in New York, where he was expected to meet Trump for a one-on-one meeting and photo opportunity.
Trump is unlikely to abandon Israel anytime soon, but by “betraying” the Kurds he clearly created the perception in Tel Aviv that he could. This will cause new turmoil in an already volatile region, and add to the mounting troubles of the Israeli prime minister.
via What is behind the Israeli outrage over Turkey’s Syria operation? | USA | Al Jazeera
Another UNPRECEDENTED move by Trump ODT)
Top Democrats reacted with anger to Donald Trump’s decision to go ahead with the Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi raid without giving them advance notice, on grounds that they were not to be trusted with such highly sensitive information.
In a break with precedent, Trump excluded senior Democrats on the so-called Gang of Eight – the group of congressional leaders who by law are to be informed of covert actions ordered by the US president – from all operational intelligence.
Those cut out of the loop included Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the House, Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer, and Adam Schiff, who chairs the House intelligence committee.
via Pelosi slams Trump for cutting Democrats out of loop on Baghdadi raid | World news | The Guardian
The Kurds have a saying that their only friend is the mountains, and in the past few weeks, US President Donald Trump and his deputy, Mike Pence, have seemed determined to prove them right.
Kurdish forces fought alongside Americans to defeat Islamic State at the cost of 11,000 of their young fighting men and women’s lives. Despite this, almost two weeks ago the United States withdrew the 1000 troops who were keeping the peace along the border with the Kurds’ long-time enemy, Turkey.
Ankara responded almost immediately by invading territory the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces have effectively ruled over for several years.
On top of that, as is his habit, Trump insulted them. Their existential battle with Turkey “has nothing to do with us”, the President said, and Kurds were, by the way, “no angels”.
via Turkey-Syrian conflict: If you were American I would have told you this was all your fault
(“The United States and Italy are bound together by a shared cultural and political heritage dating back thousands of years to Ancient Rome.”)
The face of the interpreter of the white house that must translate to mattarella the words of trump while claiming that the United States and Italy share a cultural legacy that dates back to thousands of years ago, to say, since ancient Rome.
(“The United States and Italy are bound together by a shared cultural and political heritage dating back thousands of years to Ancient Rome.”)
the Turkish military doesn’t function without the U.S. weapons industry—and the approval of the U.S. government. Absent all the hardware bearing Made in America stickers sitting in Turkish military bases, we would probably not be fretting about what Turkey’s government was doing to the Syrian Democratic Forces.
placing American military personnel in harm’s way apparently carries less political risk than endangering the profits of munitions manufacturers, or the careers of foreign policy experts.
via Turkey, the Kurds, and Lots and Lots of US Weapons | The Smirking Chimp
the President of the United States brazenly “colluded” with two foreign powers (to coin a term), publicly encouraging them to attack one of his domestic political opponents—the very thing the Founders most feared, and which they created the mechanism of impeachment to address. Yet the silence from the President’s party thus far has been deafening. Are we going to be a representative democracy ruled by law, or an autocracy led by a despot? Is the modern GOP really willing to burn the entire foundation of our republic to the ground in order to maintain its hold on power? (Rhetorical question. We know by now that they are.)
The modern Republican Party is about to decide just how savagely history will remember it. And if we as a nation allow them to get away with it, we deserve what we get.
Photo: Mr Trump is accused of offering $US391 million in military aid in exchange for dirt on a political rival. (Reuters: Carlo Allegri)
I’d understood the dilemma of normalising Trump’s ideas and policies – the racism, misogyny and demonisation of the free press. But watching just one press conference from Otay Mesa helped me understand how the process of reporting about this president can mask and normalise his full and alarming incoherence.
and
No president has ever been sent packing. Nixon resigned because he saw it coming. Trump would sooner start a civil war
Neil Cavuto becomes the latest network host to reject Trump’s criticism, saying: ‘My job is to cover you, not fawn over you’
Trouble in paradise: Trump attacks Fox News – and Fox News hits back | US news | The Guardian
![File: US President Donald Trump gestures as he and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu deliver statements at the White House in Washington, US, March 25, 2019 [Carlos Barria/Reuters]](https://www.aljazeera.com/mritems/imagecache/mbdxxlarge/mritems/Images/2019/10/25/82c3cb4d276e41e09d95e7d19ad7c360_18.jpg "What is behind the Israeli outrage over Turkey's Syria operation?")
olddogthoughts 
Trump is a walking, talking national security liability