21 votes

Officials increasingly alarmed about US President Donald Trump’s power grab

12 comments

  1. [11]
    skybrian
    Link
    Here's a scenario for you: what if Trump visits Mar-a-Lago on the day before the inauguration and just... stays there? And after the inauguration, he keeps pretending he is president. He makes...

    Here's a scenario for you: what if Trump visits Mar-a-Lago on the day before the inauguration and just... stays there? And after the inauguration, he keeps pretending he is president. He makes speeches and holds rallies. He signs "executive orders." And his fans keep pretending with him.

    It would be like Emperor Norton.

    This is fanciful, but I still think it's more realistic than staying until the Secret Service kicks him out.

    10 votes
    1. Nivlak
      Link Parent
      That may be difficult for trump. Citing the NYT: Neighbors of Mar-a-Lago sent a letter to the Town of Palm Beach and the U.S. Secret Service on Tuesday complaining that Mr. Trump has violated the...

      That may be difficult for trump.

      Citing the NYT:

      Neighbors of Mar-a-Lago sent a letter to the Town of Palm Beach and the U.S. Secret Service on Tuesday complaining that Mr. Trump has violated the 1993 agreement he made with the town that allowed him to convert the property to a moneymaking club.

      “Per the use agreement of 1993, Mar-a-Lago is a social club, and no one may reside on the property,” wrote Reginald Stambaugh, a lawyer representing the DeMoss family, which has a property next to Mar-a-Lago.

      10 votes
    2. cmccabe
      Link Parent
      You may like this article article from early November where the author predicts something very similar:

      You may like this article article from early November where the author predicts something very similar:

      What Trump is trying to form is something akin to an autocracy-in-exile, an alternative America in which he is the rightful leader, and he — and the public he claims to represent — has been robbed of power by corrupt elites.

      7 votes
    3. [6]
      Good_Apollo
      Link Parent
      He’s going to go peacefully in the end, the truth is that he just doesn’t have a choice. The people have spoken and as politically cynical as I am I believe we have a very complex and unusual...

      He’s going to go peacefully in the end, the truth is that he just doesn’t have a choice. The people have spoken and as politically cynical as I am I believe we have a very complex and unusual government that is just pretty inaccessible for one person to try and just take over with no effective pushback.

      He’s going to leave and either seek asylum somewhere (if he can get away with it), or he’s just going to go back to being pre-president Trump: a loud mouth grifter involved in various business endeavors successful or otherwise thanks to his not-so-mysterious benefactors. You better believe he’s already asking for Russian money to start up TrumpTV and further polarize American politics with more destabilizing rhetoric.

      6 votes
      1. [5]
        vord
        Link Parent
        That's been eroding pretty fast though. Particularly since 2001 the executive branch has been granted more and more power. The president basically has complete authority to initiate wars,...

        pretty inaccessible for one person to try and just take over with no effective pushback.

        That's been eroding pretty fast though. Particularly since 2001 the executive branch has been granted more and more power. The president basically has complete authority to initiate wars, assassinate civilians, sign executive orders (with increasing scope) to work around congress at will.

        Even then, Trump did not rise to power in a vacuum, he is hardly alone. Every bit of harm Trump did also falls on everyone who enabled him, especially congress. The fact that Trump was not impeached frequently for every individual offense worse than Bill Clinton's is a sign that Democrats are just as complacent in Trump's reign.

        When Democrats took the House, they should have been creating and voting on articles of impeachment every single day. For every single offence. And the majority of the burden of proof could just have been "he bragged about doing so publicly."

        1 vote
        1. [2]
          stu2b50
          Link Parent
          That's just bad politics. When Trump was impeached his favorability went up. Famously, Clinton's favorability also went up as his impeachment dragged on. When the impeachment is even vaguely...

          When Democrats took the House, they should have been creating and voting on articles of impeachment every single day. For every single offence

          That's just bad politics. When Trump was impeached his favorability went up. Famously, Clinton's favorability also went up as his impeachment dragged on. When the impeachment is even vaguely considered partisan, it ends up helping the sitting president. And if the Ukraine incident was still considered partisan, practically everything would be so. Especially if you kept spamming it.

          Even if he deserved it, even if it's the right thing under the constitution to do, I'm sorry, but I would 100% prefer this world where Biden is president elect than a world where Trump has been impeached 50 times and has a second term. And it's not close.

          15 votes
          1. vord
            Link Parent
            I suppose. I do live in a fantasy world sometimes where politicians would be held accountable for war crimes and disbarred for denial of reality.

            I suppose. I do live in a fantasy world sometimes where politicians would be held accountable for war crimes and disbarred for denial of reality.

            6 votes
        2. [2]
          Good_Apollo
          Link Parent
          I’m not going to dispute the fact that the executive branch is becoming bloated with power. What I dispute is the notion that Trump could seriously just announce he’s now president for life and...

          I’m not going to dispute the fact that the executive branch is becoming bloated with power. What I dispute is the notion that Trump could seriously just announce he’s now president for life and get away with it. I just don’t see that working out here, not yet anyway.

          6 votes
          1. vord
            Link Parent
            Oh yeah, that wouldn't happen necessarily. But tensions are high so even if he tries, it could trigger several riots and/or shootings.

            Oh yeah, that wouldn't happen necessarily.

            But tensions are high so even if he tries, it could trigger several riots and/or shootings.

            2 votes
    4. skybrian
      Link Parent
      Another sign: The new center of Trump's political world: Palm Beach

      Another sign:

      The new center of Trump's political world: Palm Beach

      Meanwhile, the president and First Lady Melania Trump are renovating their private quarters at Mar-a-Lago to prepare for a permanent return. And, with an eye toward their political future, Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump have reportedly bought a multi-million dollar property in an exclusive part of Miami. The Trump kids plan to spend more time in Palm Beach, unless Eric’s wife Lara Trump ends up running for Senate in North Carolina, according to a person close to the family.

      Taken together, the moves will inevitably make the Palm Beach area and Florida ground zero for the MAGA movement, giving Trump convenient access to potential donors and some of his most devoted allies as he plots a potential 2024 comeback bid. Unlike previous presidents, like Barack Obama and George W. Bush, who quietly entered their post-presidency and spent time working on their books or picking up oil painting, Trump is expected to cannonball into his next chapter by keeping a hold on his political base with the help of his family, antagonizing the Biden administration on Twitter, and holding MAGA events. Supporters will continue to flock to Palm Beach, even as it grates on many long-time residents, who see their locale as a quiet enclave above politics and are fighting the president over a permanent move to Mar-a-Lago.

      6 votes
  2. streblo
    Link
    Accompanying tweet from the author:

    Accompanying tweet from the author:

    I’ve been covering Donald Trump for a while. I can’t recall hearing more intense concern from senior officials who are actually Trump people. The Sidney Powell / Michael Flynn ideas are finding an enthusiastic audience at the top.

    6 votes