Trump declines to attend White House Correspondents' Dinner!

originally posted by: Indrasweb
Umm.. Ok, to all the people slagging Trump off for declining to attend this...

So, just imagine, me and my buddies have been going around the town you live in and telling everyone we meet "hey, spiritual zombie (sorry to pick on you, you just happen to be the most recent poster) is a disgusting racist piece of #hit", "hey did you know spiritual zombie is a rapist?!" "Did you hear spiritual zombie is a paedo, a bigot and a scumbag", "did you know spiritual zombie is as bad as Hitler?", "spiritual zombie is a disgusting homophobic #itstain", "it wouldn't be a bad thing if someone just killed him, it'd be doing us all a favour". Not only this but we said this to everyone we met, spread it as far and wide as we could, in fact, we did it day in and day out, practically 24 hours a day.. And people believe us! Every time you try to talk about what's happening you're shouted down, told you're just being a snowflake, you're told in fact that by denying it and calling it out you're just proving that what a piece of crap you really are... and so we double down on the rumours and the accusations, we go after your kids, your wife.. Everything and everyone you care about, spreading rumours accusing you of being all the worst possible things a person can be accused of...

Then after months of this happening, every day, one day you receive a letter from me and my buddies asking(with a totally straight face) if you'd like to come round for a bite to eat and a nice glass of champers, but you have to be nice and you have to sit there and take a whole lot more of the same, in front of everyone, all done under the guise of good humour and jocularity, or you're a spineless piece of #hit

What would you say to me and my buddies? What would your response to that be?

Bear in mind if you come and try to speak out about what we've been doing, you'll just attract even more abuse and if you don't come you're a spineless piece of #hit whose scared of "the truth" (as we've been telling it)

So, what's it to be? Genuine question...

I'd say 'mate, you're the president of the United States of America. If you're really that bothered by the extremists who are making the most noise, I suggest you toughen your resolve a little and stop feeding their suspicions with defensiveness and a perpetually dismissive attitude.'

Trump had no qualms about the birther thing (religiously, for years) or for stating as a fact that the election system is rigged, the electoral college is a bad thing, etc etc - until he won. The man is guilty of the highest levels of hypocrisy.

Ultimately he needs to suck it up and do his job. Leaders will always be criticised. Burying your head in the sand does not make you strong. And if Obama had done even half of these things you would all be calling him out on it too - and rightfully so.

a reply to: fencesitter85

It's not about toughening up though is it? It's about refuting lies and disinformation. If he doesn't call it out then people will assume, from his silence, that it's true and if he does then he's just accused of a whole lot more. Damned if you do and damned if you don't.

Look, i'm no Trump supporter at all (i live in the UK so, not my problem really) but if you can't see that there's a coordinated attempt to undermine and discredit Trump then i think you're being wilfully blind. Is he always right? Of course not!! But the sheer overwhelming volume of spin, half-truths twisted words and outright lies should be a major concern for you guys.
They're even saying he's mentally ill now; it's actually something that people are openly saying and agreeing with...

There are 4 major things that can almost universally ruin anyone's life or career if they are accused of it (yes, often being accused is sufficient, no evidence required):

1) rapist (check)
2) paedophile (check)
3) mentally ill (check)
4) terrorist (I've certainly heard treason but not sure about terrorist so maybe half-check?)

The big guns are out and they're firing a never ending, round the clock salvo... That should raise some serious questions and doubts in anyone's mind. Throw enough poop and something will stick eventually..

Oh and lastly, i asked what YOU would do or say if it was YOU in the scenario i described?
Would you still come round for tea and make nice?

Honest question so please give an honest answer...


ETA: The majority of this stuff isn't honest criticism either it's hit piece after hit piece. It's aimed at making him look like a despicable human being, inept, stupid, unfit, mentally ill, criminal... It's not a reasonable discourse on his policies and ideas. Even the articles that do discuss his policies and ideas are highly emotionally charged, scream-fests; comparing him (actually, seriously as well) to Adolf Hitler for Christ's sake...

Anyone is entitled to criticise their elected officials, this isn't that..


Oh and i concur that he is guilty of hypocrisy in the examples you cited and to criticise that is perfectly reasonable.
However, i find it amusing that theres a kind of "double hypocrisy". The hypocrites that call out trump for being a hypocrite whilst being hypocrites themselves; kind of like a hypocrite-ception if you will.

Trump's aide speaking to Russia before the election is TREASONOUS! Obama doing the same is just.. You know.. Politics and stuff...

a reply to: Indrasweb

You don't seem to understand that most Americans who voted did not vote for Mr. Trump.

What you're seeing, and what you're interpreting as unfair bias in the news media against the President, is just the reflecton of that fact written large.

Most people are not in favor of his agenda, not in favor of his extremism, not in favor of his unconstitutional acts and comments.

It's not un-American or unfair to criticize the President fairly or unfairly based on what has happened the last few decades.

originally posted by: ElGoobero
good for him. nothing but leftists hurling hateful ridicule at the Republican of the Day.

he'll be called thin skinned / humorless etc, but this says more about the media people than it says about POTUS. these things have been nothing but hatefests for years.

Your current POTUS lacks confidence, that's all there is to it. Because it takes confidence to stand before the media and mock the world - and yourself. It also takes wits, and if there's one thing your current president does not have..

a reply to: Gryphon66

Fair enough, as i said, i don't live in the states so i don't know what it's like on the ground for you guys. That being said, he did win the election so, i guess there were enough people who do agree with him for that to happen. Seems to me that you guys should be campaigning for electoral reforms instead of against some non-specified "what he might-dos" that seems to be the current trend..

I'm not sure how slandering someone equates to fair criticism though, whichever way you slice it.
And honestly, if it was me that was being repeatedly accused of being a rapist, a pedo and compared to hitler; if it were my kids being subjected to vile abuse and intimidating rhetoric then id probably decline the invite to dinner also...

Still waiting for someone to answer my original question btw..
To be honest, in the long run, it'll probably do him more good than ill.. Everyone loves an underdog...

originally posted by: Indrasweb
a reply to: Gryphon66

Fair enough, as i said, i don't live in the states so i don't know what it's like on the ground for you guys. That being said, he did win the election so, i guess there were enough people who do agree with him for that to happen. Seems to me that you guys should be campaigning for electoral reforms instead of against some non-specified "what he might-dos" that seems to be the current trend..

I'm not sure how slandering someone equates to fair criticism though, whichever way you slice it.
And honestly, if it was me that was being repeatedly accused of being a rapist, a pedo and compared to hitler; if it were my kids being subjected to vile abuse and intimidating rhetoric then id probably decline the invite to dinner also...

Still waiting for someone to answer my original question btw..
To be honest, in the long run, it'll probably do him more good than ill.. Everyone loves an underdog...

He won the election but that isn't based on plurality. Many on both sides have been advocating changes to the Electoral College for decades.

Of the people who voted, 45% voted for Trump, 55% voted for another candidate. (I can provide the exact numbers here if you like.)

Slander? No, that is not valid criticism. What statements do you consider to be slanderous?

The same things were done to President Obama ... yet, he went to the dinner as far as I know all eight years.

a reply to: Gryphon66

Yeah, most elections end up that way, whatever system you use. We had the same problem here last election. The scummy Tory party got elected here with only 36.9% of the vote... And I've been stuck watching them destroy our country since 2010. Additionally, i didn't vote for brexit (which did gain a majority of course) and i'm stuck with that also. So, i do feel your pain to some extent. I just don't think screaming and throwing faeces is the right response, and there's been A LOT of that thrown at Trump... I accept the outcome, much to my chagrin, because that is the democratic process. It's far from perfect but it's better than any alternative i can think of.

I'd say that baseless accusations of being a paedophile probably are pretty slanderous, same with the rape stuff and the accusations of criminal dealings with Russia etc (of which we've seen no evidence yet). I dunno, i'm not a solicitor so perhaps none of this is technically slander, just horrible defamation of character?

And if the same thing was said about Obama (or anyone else), without providing hard evidence, I'd say the same.

The thing with Obama was that he was/is the media's darling. Any major hit pieces were probably not anywhere near at the same level/frequency/blanket coverage as the war on Trump. Take the "Michelle Obama is a man" thing for example. It's a pretty offensive and low brow personal attack. Was it repeated and spread around by some, Sure..
Was it on every news channel, every night, on NBC, CNN (and whoever else you have over there?) On the six o clock news, the eight o clock news and the ten i clock news, was it on the front page of every newspaper, commented upon on every blog, was it the lead story on BBC news at 6?
Same with the birther thing. Yes that got more coverage but was it worldwide and round the clock? It was not.

I can't say for certain how it went over there of course because i don't live in the states regarding Obama.
However, almost NO bad press regarding Obama reached the shores here in Blighty(despite some absolute shockers by him) however we have "Trump is a #hitstain" on practically 24 hour rolling news so, yeah, i'm hearing that loud and clear, the Obama (and Clinton stuff i might add), not so much.

Also, did anyone answer my question yet?

a reply to: Indrasweb

LOL ... I do love the British spelling of faeces. (Because it's true to Latin.)

I hear you. Living in a Republican Democracy has its benefits and its frustrations, surely.

I agree with you that unfair, emotion-based, shallow criticism of the President (all the memes, etc.) really isn't helpful, but, as I pointed out, in the last few decades, it's what we do in America. I don't think it's going to go away.

Someone has called Trump a pedophile? I have seen him accused of urolagnia (jury is still out) and incest (which was totally inappropriate in my estimation.). There was an alleged accusation from someone ... but that was dropped before it went to court. That was indeed reported on.

I don't see the blatant split in the American press that some do, but it is certainly a fact that some news outlets exhibit bias. It's not hard though, through basic critical thought and fact-checking, to realize what's going on in most of these cases though.

originally posted by: Gryphon66
a reply to: Indrasweb

LOL ... I do love the British spelling of faeces.

I hear you. Living in a Republican Democracy has it's benefits and it's frustrations, surely.

I agree with you that unfair, emotion-based, shallow criticism of the President (all the memes, etc.) really isn't helpful, but, as I pointed out, in the last few decades, it's what we do in America.

Someone has called Trump a pedophile? I have seen him accused of urolagnia (jury is still out) and incest (which was totally inappropriate in my estimation.)

I don't see the blatant split in the American press that some do, but it is certainly a fact that some news outlets exhibit bias.

That's my point really, there are fair criticisms and reasonable discussions to be had but they're being drowned out by all the mudslinging. That's why i understand Trump's attitude to the press, I actually agree with him on that. If he's not going to stand up to them then who is?

The problem becomes apparent when you take pretty much any issue that people are emotionally invested it; it becomes about who can scream the loudest and longest, and not about addressing the central issues. Take the Trans thing recently; there is absolutely a conversation to be had about protecting trans people and their rights to live the way they are (or fundamentally perceive themselves if you prefer). Equally this presents some real challenges in terms of how do we also ensure that any system minimises the potential for exploitation or abuse (not by trans people i might add). However, the discussion, as can be seen here on ATS, quickly devolves into an argument where people feel compelled to defend their ideology and not discuss the issues. Same with immigration, same with Islamic terrorism, same with gay marriage rights and so on.


Eta: in regards paedophile accusations:

www.google.co.uk...

www.google.co.uk.../amp/s/www.thesun.co.uk/news/2137021/woman-who-made-pedophile-rape-claim-against-donald-trump-s aying-he-took-her-virginity-when-she-was-13-exposed-as-a-liar-after-she-drops-lawsuit/amp/&ved=0ahUKEwi28PTG7a3SAhUGC8AKHdPfAYoQFggqMAE&usg=AFQjCNEVI0 yUjqIGTOFSxMzMmC1Z3oZYQA&sig2=7sqKqPIl7WEEOIg-3mjI5g

www.huffingtonpost.com...

a reply to: [post=21944392]SBMcG[/post



Awww, poor Donald. He would have been the best roast EVER....Would love to see him taken out of the White House in cuffs. Impeachment is just as matter of time. This guy thinks he is above the FBI too. What a joke he is.

a reply to: Indrasweb

I mentioned the young lady that has said that Trump abused her.

Reporting on her statement is not calling Trump a pedo.

originally posted by: Gryphon66
a reply to: Indrasweb

LOL ... I do love the British spelling of faeces. (Because it's true to Latin.)

I hear you. Living in a Republican Democracy has its benefits and its frustrations, surely.

I agree with you that unfair, emotion-based, shallow criticism of the President (all the memes, etc.) really isn't helpful, but, as I pointed out, in the last few decades, it's what we do in America. I don't think it's going to go away.

Have been watching press through 7 presidents.......and what we are seeing with Trump is 10 fold worse than anything I have ever witnessed. Trump represents a total failure of the press......to control the masses to the will of our overlords....and so for that and several other related reasons he is getting an unreal fulaside to include the classical kitchen sink.

originally posted by: Gryphon66
a reply to: Indrasweb

I mentioned the young lady that has said that Trump abused her.

Reporting on her statement is not calling Trump a pedo.

Yeah, fair enough, you are correct there. There is a difference and of course newspapers report the news (or they're supposed to) so i would be pretty dismayed if they weren't so, a fair point.

I guess it's the widespread reporting with little in the way of actual evidence that gets me, the seemingly blanket coverage.
It's very easy for someone to accuse someone of something and once it's out there, even if it's proven false or the person who originally made the claim admits to it being false, it tends to hang around. Some people never even hear the retraction or the facts and just go right on parroting the same rubbish. Julian Assange is a good example of that. If a man is accused of rape and/or child abuse, it tends to ruin their life, even if there's irrefutable proof exonerating them or proving it's a fabrication. Two different friends of mind had that exact experience, both were accused of rape, and both times the ladies involved admitted they made it up; one because she had a boyfriend at the time and one for 'attention' (i kid you not, she actually said that to the police, and this was about three weeks before it went to court!).
One of my friends basically went through hell for nearly 12 months and his mental health suffered horribly, he was depressed and wouldn't dare leave the house, and the other was beaten with baseball bats by a gang of vigilantes, and this was after he'd been proven innocent (nothing happened to either lady involved btw). So, yeah, they're dangerous accusations to be throwing around i feel.

a reply to: Logarock

I've been watching through 10 Presidents.

What we're seeing isn't even in the vicinity of what happened to Obama from Fox News and the rest of the Echo Chamber. If Trump represents any kind of failure (and of note, I don't think he does ... yet)

Oh BS. If you are controlled by the press your problem is greater than you know.

Take some personal responsibility.

a reply to: matafuchs

Tough talk is cheap. A person who has a backbone faces his naysayers head on.

Who says telling the constitutional right of the "free" press to shut it and to not attend a correspondent's dinner are both OK? The U.S. system of government is supposed to represent all the people and respect the rights of a free press. Just because people at a Town Hall meeting, or in this case members of the press, don't agree with Trump's "authoritarian rule" or suppressing the press which is a direct violation of their first amendment right, is certainly not upholding an American democratic system of governing. Democratically elected presidents and government representatives are expected to serve all the people, not just a select minority who agree with their personal beliefs. As elected officials, they don't hide or run away from speaking engagements, town hall meetings, or suppress news organizations that don't agree with them. These people wanted to get into politics and represent their fellow citizens, than they should do their job and meet with their constituents no matter how mad or how much they disagree with them!

This BS crap of professional protestors is nothing but a plan to illegitimatize groups of organized protestors and try justifying politicians from meeting or facing angry citizens that don't agree with them. The right to organized protests is a basic American right! Like minded individuals have always organized to give themselves a louder voice. It's happened on both sides of the political spectrum throughout our history. We've had a history of organized protests from Abortion Rights, Repeal Obama Care, The Tea Party, Civil Rights, Vietnam War, workers rights, and the list can go on and on!

a reply to: SBMcG

Who said I was defending Hillary Clinton? Why did she ignore addressing her quarter of a million dollar speaking fees?

Really, you Trump supporters keep harping back to Obama and Clinton to justify and make excuses for Trump. A wrong is a wrong. I've always said, there's nothing wrong with supporting Trump. Heck, I can even agree with some of his stance on issues. However, I'm not going to ignore blatant lies, or him trying to circumvent government procedures that are more in line with authoritarian rule. In the United States, we have a system of checks and balances and our president represents ALL THE PEOPLE, not just a minority. Politicians have a responsibility to make themselves available, negotiate and try to meet on common ground, and above all protect the constitutional rights of American citizens.

If you can't call Trump and his administration out on their wrongs, you're only allowing him to slowly chip away at American democracy.

originally posted by: ugmold
a reply to: SBMcG

King Coward

You know Obama was the daring of the press, never could do wrong with every spin in his favor for 8 years. With FOX the one outlet that didn't play that game he wanted to ban them from his news activities, just one...lol

Trump has been under attack from an army of news outlets about 30 seconds after he hit 270 votes. They been unrelenting in attacks that no matter what the story is they spin extremely negative.

So the bottom line is I don't blame him for fighting back, or taking the stance that he has.

originally posted by: khnum
a reply to: ugmold

Have you attended 3 rallies a day for months on end knowing that at any time some nutcase might try and kill you,love him or hate him you cant call him a coward.

No, BUT OBAMA DID. How many NUtCASES HATED HIM. He is black, he is Muslim, he was not born here, Oh yeah he went through a LOT OF HATERS.....So yeah tRUMP is a coward. Amongst MANY other things.

Other than being black he is none of the above...He was a decent President, who got a lot done....Like it or not.




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edit on 26-2-2017 by kurthall because: add

a reply to: kurthall

Can you slow down and explain what your ranting about?

originally posted by: Xtrozero

You know Obama was the daring of the press, never could do wrong with every spin in his favor for 8 years. With FOX the one outlet that didn't play that game he wanted to ban them from his news activities, just one...lol

Trump has been under attack from an army of news outlets about 30 seconds after he hit 270 votes. They been unrelenting in attacks that no matter what the story is they spin extremely negative.

So the bottom line is I don't blame him for fighting back, or taking the stance that he has.

When Obama was first elected I actually found humorous the fawning adoration he received from the leftist press in this country. When the notoriously thin-skinned self-described Kenyan didn't get that level of flattery from FNC, his fragile ego and inner crybaby threw a hissy-fit and he spent years whining about it. Similarly, there are dozens of examples of perennial whiner Obama complaining about conservative talk radio.

The difference between a true mediocrity like Barack Hussein Obama and a proven mover and shaker like President Trump is accomplishment.

Obama had a JOKE of a resume in 2008. He was never really successful at anything other than pimping the grievance crowd as a "community organizer". He never built anything, created jobs in any meaningful way, and as the rest of us witnessed over his 8 years in the White House -- was incredibly lazy.

Trump built an empire. He's created tens of thousands of jobs and generated BILLIONS in tax revenue. He has been a titan of industry and is a true dynamo of energy. No one can question Trump's work ethic. No one could ever call him lazy.

He is an intellectual giant compared to the stuttering and stammering Barry Soetoro. Trump was an A-student, Choom Gang Barry was a self-admitted poor student. You can't compare these two: one is a remora feeding off the parasites attached to the shark, one is the shark.

I have never understood the enthusiasm the American Left had for Obama. there was simply nothing there to be enthused about. He isn't even black... He was born and raised in a White family. He never lived (even as an infant) with his purported black father. He spent much of his childhood in almost completely Asian Indonesia, again with his White mother.

Comparing Trump standing up to the hostile leftist MSM to Obama being protected by them is the height of hypocrisy.