Posts Made By: Rod Kaufman

"The disagreements and lack of specifics — or written agreements of any kind — on the trade deals the White House has rolled out in recent weeks are raising doubts about how much Trump has really succeeded in lowering foreign barriers or drawing in foreign investment for U.S. businesses, even as he dramatically expands the protectionist policies that decades of American leaders had sought to knock down."

"Of the six agreements Trump has reached with leading trade partners ahead of a self-imposed Aug. 1 deadline, only one is signed."

"The one signed agreement, inked with the U.K. in May, was also light on details, with the implication that the two governments would negotiate further to implement the high-level commitments they made."

"The remaining agreements — with the EU and several Asian countries — have yet to be committed to paper. Instead, Trump disclosed the deals on social media following a phone call or face-to-face meeting with his foreign counterpart. The terms Trump has outlined aren’t always echoed by the other parties."

"Vietnam, meanwhile, has still not confirmed the U.S. tariff rate that Trump claimed the country agreed to in an announcement he made on social media earlier this month."

"The Indonesian government, meanwhile, is disputing the claim, included in a White House statement released last week, that it agreed to “remove restrictions on exports to the United States of industrial commodities, including critical minerals.”

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/28/trump-tariffs-trade-unclear-eu-japan-00480793

"Conservative Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh defended the Supreme Court’s handling of emergency appeals brought by President Trump’s administration, rebuffing criticisms from those who argued the court is not offering enough explanations in its decisions."

“There can be a risk, in writing the opinion, of a lock-in effect, of making a snap judgment and putting it in writing, in a written opinion that’s not going to reflect the final view,” Kavanaugh, a Trump appointee,"


"Trump’s lawyers have flooded the Supreme Court’s emergency docket, filing 21 emergency applications, tallying up more appeals to the nation’s highest court than former President Biden did during his four years in the Oval Office."

"In the vast majority of those cases, Trump has come out with a win. Cases on the Supreme Court’s emergency docket are decided quickly, without oral arguments and often contain no explanations."

https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/5431257-kavanaugh-defends-supreme-court-emergency-appeals-trump-admin/

Originally Posted by Jim Moscheck

I thought Trump was going to end the war on Day 1?

That's what he said. Rich Davis believed that, too...

In related news, secretary of defense and ex-Faux news game show host "Pete" Hegseth, " reposts video of pastors saying women shouldn't vote".

"Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has reposted and praised a video interview of a self-described Christian nationalist pastor whose church doesn't believe women should be allowed to vote."

"Doug Wilson, senior pastor of Christ Church in Idaho, said during the interview with CNN that, "Women are the kind of people that people come out of."

" Wilson also defended previous comments where he had said there was mutual affection between slaves and their masters."

"Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told NPR in an emailed statement on Saturday that Hegseth is a "proud member of a church affiliated with the Congregation of Reformed Evangelical Churches," which was founded by Wilson."

"The Secretary very much appreciates many of Mr. Wilson's writings and teachings," Parnell also wrote."
"It really does matter if the Secretary of Defense is retweeting a video with very particular views about whether women should be able to vote or serve in combat roles or if slavery really isn't all that bad," Whitehead said. "That's not just a person's view. It's a person in a pretty broad position of power."

https://www.npr.org/2025/08/09/nx-s1-5497226/women-pastor-pete-hegseth-vote

As we know, Rich Davis supports Pete Hegseth, too...

Originally Posted by Jim Moscheck

I thought Trump was going to end the war on Day 1?

He also said he was going to lower grocery store prices on day 1. (Rich Davis believed that, too)

" Campaigning for office a year ago, standing in front of a table loaded up with bags of flour, cartons of eggs and gallons of milk, President Donald Trump told voters, “When I win, I will immediately bring prices down, starting on Day One.”

"Unfortunately for him – and money-strapped Americans – it hasn’t worked out that way."

"The overall cost of food at home has ticked up between 0.2% and 0.4% almost every month since January, according to BLS tracking. One exception was in April 2025, when prices went down 0.1% from the month before. All those tiny increases have added up to a 3% increase in food prices year-over-year."

"Citing a report from the Tax Foundation, Nexstar’s The Hill reported late last month that about 75% of the nation’s food imports are expected to be impacted by Trump’s latest round of tariffs, which took effect at the start of August. Days prior, an analysis by the Yale Budget Lab estimated food prices would rise more than 3% over the short term."

"Some foods that could see price hikes, according to The Hill, include seafood, coffee, rice, alcohol, and chocolate."

https://thehill.com/homenews/nexstar_media_wire/5441550-trump-promised-lower-grocery-prices-on-day-one-heres-what-happened/

Seen the prices for coffee lately? I mean not only on the shelves but yesterday, Saturday morning, we had a power failure in our residential area so I went to a local McDonald's drive up window and bought a not so large "large" coffee for $4.09.00. WTF!? I mean a gallon of gas in the same area costs $4.19 per gallon!  Sheesh!...

"Location matters, former real estate mogul US President Donald Trump said. Moments later he announced Alaska, a place sold by Russia to the United States 158 years ago for $7.2 million, would be where Russian President Vladimir Putin tries to sell his land deal of the century, getting Kyiv to hand over chunks of land he’s not yet been able to occupy."

"The conditions around Friday’s summit so wildly favor Moscow, it is obvious why Putin leapt at the chance, after months of fake negotiation, and it is hard to see how a deal emerges from the bilateral that does not eviscerate Ukraine. Kyiv and its European allies have reacted with understandable horror at the early ideas of Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, that Ukraine cede the remainders of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in exchange for a ceasefire."


"Europe is also wary of mirroring the failure of former UK Foreign Secretary Neville Chamberlain to stand up to Nazi Germany in 1938 – of the worthlessness of a “piece of paper” signed by a Kremlin that has repeatedly agreed to deals in Ukraine and then simply used the pause to regroup before invading again."

"Much could go right. But the stage is set for something more sinister. Consider Putin’s mindset for a moment. The third Trump threat of sanctions has evaporated, and his forces are moving into a period of strategic gain on the frontlines. He’s got his first invitation to the US in a decade to talk peace about Ukraine without Ukraine, discussing a deal where he doesn’t even have to fight to get some of the rest of the land he wants. And this is before the former KGB spy gets to work his apparent magic on Trump."

https://www.cnn.com/2025/08/09/europe/trump-putin-summit-analysis-intl

One has to wonder, given Trump's ignorance of history, if he's ever heard of the risks inherent with the concept of, "appeasement"...

Originally Posted by Rod Kaufman

No, it's not a Faux news game show host this time. But it's just as bad, if not worse:

"President Donald Trump said Monday that he has nominated E.J. Antoni, chief economist at the conservative Heritage Foundation, to head the agency that compiles and publishes the nation’s employment and inflation figures."

“Our Economy is booming, and E.J. will ensure that the Numbers released are HONEST and ACCURATE,” Trump said on social media late Monday."


"Antoni, however, has been an unabashed partisan in his economic analyses posted on the Heritage website. For example, two months ago, in an analysis of the May jobs report, he wrote, “A deep dive into the report shows any weakness started long before the Trump administration, which is making undeniable progress reprivatizing the economy.”

"Jason Furman, a top economist in the Obama administration, wrote on X: “I don’t think I have ever publicly criticized any Presidential nominee before. But E.J. Antoni is completely unqualified to be BLS Commissioner. He is an extreme partisan and does not have any relevant expertise.”


"Kyle Pomeleau, a tax expert for the right-leaning Tax Foundation and the conservative American Enterprise Institute, wrote on X: “There are a lot of competent conservative economists that could do this job. E.J. is not one of them.”


https://apnews.com/article/trump-jobs-inflation-labor-statistics-antoni-ee8ed2b08369d9e292a70f326db0f423

Rich Davis believes this guy, too...

Originally Posted by Rod Kaufman

Rich Davis believes this guy, too...

On second thought, he won't have to, "EJ" is now proposing suspending the monthly jobs reports!

https://thehill.com/business/5448400-donald-trump-ej-antoni-bls-monthly-jobs-reports/

No data, no problem!

No, it's not a Faux news game show host this time. But it's just as bad, if not worse:

"President Donald Trump said Monday that he has nominated E.J. Antoni, chief economist at the conservative Heritage Foundation, to head the agency that compiles and publishes the nation’s employment and inflation figures."

“Our Economy is booming, and E.J. will ensure that the Numbers released are HONEST and ACCURATE,” Trump said on social media late Monday."


"Antoni, however, has been an unabashed partisan in his economic analyses posted on the Heritage website. For example, two months ago, in an analysis of the May jobs report, he wrote, “A deep dive into the report shows any weakness started long before the Trump administration, which is making undeniable progress reprivatizing the economy.”

"Jason Furman, a top economist in the Obama administration, wrote on X: “I don’t think I have ever publicly criticized any Presidential nominee before. But E.J. Antoni is completely unqualified to be BLS Commissioner. He is an extreme partisan and does not have any relevant expertise.”


"Kyle Pomeleau, a tax expert for the right-leaning Tax Foundation and the conservative American Enterprise Institute, wrote on X: “There are a lot of competent conservative economists that could do this job. E.J. is not one of them.”


https://apnews.com/article/trump-jobs-inflation-labor-statistics-antoni-ee8ed2b08369d9e292a70f326db0f423

"Trump is not going to Russia, but rather to Alaska to meet with Putin."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2_HV3HDAxE

"According to Trump, Alaska is in Russia. His dementia and cognitive decline are on full display," wrote a social media user on X."

"Another X user wrote, "With his DEMENTIA on full display, Trump announces HE'S GOING TO Russia! Pam Bondi and Pete Hegseth are so accustomed to him LYING, THEY DON'T EVEN BLINK! THAT'S how he gets away with LYING TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE."

https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/going-to-russia-trump-roasted-by-internet-for-viral-alaska-gaffe-9068581

So Trump's going to Russia on Friday. Rich Davis believes that, too.

Originally Posted by Jim Moscheck

I like how he has to include that last line. DONALD J. TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. As if we didn't know. It's coming from his f'ing "truth" social account. The man is a disgrace.     

Looks like there will be long lines on election day. Mail in voting in Michigan is safe and secure and has been for years, but I still always drop mine off at city hall and give it to the city clerk. If you aren't registered you can't get a ballot, and once you get one and it's turned in you can't somehow submit another one.

In related news:

"Newsmax, the conservative cable news channel loyal to President Trump, has agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems $67 million to settle a lawsuit it brought against the network over its coverage of the 2020 election."

"Dominion sued Newsmax in 2021 over a series of false claims alleging the company’s machines were manipulated to swing votes in former President Biden’s favor and against Trump in the 2020 election."

"A judge in Delaware ruled in April the statements made on Newsmax’s air were defamatory..."

"The channel said Monday the settlement amount will be paid out in installments over three fiscal years, which it “expects to fund through revenues.”

"Dominion was paid a separate, $787 million settlement in 2023 by Fox News, which it also sued over coverage of the 2020 election and Trump’s claims of voter fraud."

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5457718-newsmax-dominion-settlement-trump-biden-2020-voter-fraud-claims/