US Politics: all the progressive's fault

[DMC]

7 minutes ago, A Horse Named Stranger said:

Can he use it to start up his social media platform, tho. Genuine question, if he claims it's to promote political campaigns.

Well, he could definitely do something like a social media platform, but if you're imagining he was going to control it as his business, sure, he wouldn't want to do that through a Super PAC.  But I don't think he needs political donations for that.  Sure, his claim that he's raised $1 billion for a social media company is certainly a gross exaggeration, but I have no problem believing he could raise around as much as the cash his PACs have on hand for such a venture.

[A Horse Named Stranger]

4 hours ago, DMC said:

Plus, Trump is also an egomaniac, and underreporting how much money he's raising would be out of character.

Yeah, but he wasn't exactly overreporting to the IRS. How he handled the tax side of his business would be my reference point of how he interacts with the FEC. 

[DMC]

6 minutes ago, A Horse Named Stranger said:

Yeah, but he wasn't exactly overreporting to the IRS. How he handled the tax side of his business would be my reference point of how he interacts with the FEC. 

That doesn't make any sense, but you do you.  Trump has a very vested interest in showing off his fundraising prowess as long as he wants to maintain his political influence.  For the vast majority of his life that wasn't a concern at all when it comes to the IRS.

[A Horse Named Stranger]

I think those political donations are essentially another scam of his. I don't view him as being particularly interested in the political process other than self-promotion, hoping to avoid jail (which he will), and well, scam his supporters out of their money. I agree, he has to report a certain number to look credible as a conservative fundraiser. His rallies are just marketing appearences. Look, I am still here. I am fighting for you. Corrupt Democrats, something, something, witch hunt. Please make a donation to the Trump PAC to fight those pesky Democrats (and feckless Republican establishment).

So him underreporting donations makes sense from that perspective. 

Edit: Ponzi scheme. That was the expression I was looking for. It's basically a political Ponzi scheme, at least that's how I look at it.

[DMC]

15 minutes ago, A Horse Named Stranger said:

So him underreporting donations makes sense from that perspective. 

If all he wanted to do was pocket the money and underreport then he left a whole fuckton of money on the table by saying he has $120 million on hand.  Not to mention it's very (very) unlikely he was able to raise much more than that over the last year.

[Ormond]

And in the latest crazy Trump email, he's telling donors he will put their name on a wall IN HIS OFFICE for a donation as small as $5. In the email after this one he was claiming to have one million donors. There are less than 60 thousand names on the wall at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. If Trump has a wall in his office with a million names, it will have to be both the largest office in history and the names will be in a font too small to read without a microscope.

Quote

When I was in the White House, America had a President who put our Nation FIRST every single day. For the first time in a long time, power was taken from Washington and given BACK to the American People.

Unfortunately, Joe Biden and the rest of the Washington SWAMP are working overtime to undo everything my administration accomplished. Mark my words, America will be put FIRST again, but only with the help of my most loyal supporters.

You’ve always been a trusted ally, Friend, which is why I want to offer you something very exclusive.

This is the year we TAKE AMERICA BACK from the Left, so I’ve decided to dedicate a wall at my office for a select group of donors who choose to step up at this critical time. 

I want to give you PRIORITY ACCESS to get your name permanently engraved on the Official 2022 Trump Donor Wall. Space is extremely limited. This could be your only chance.

Please contribute $5 or more before 11:59 PM TONIGHT to be one of the FIRST donors to have their name permanently engraved on the Official 2022 Trump Donor Wall. >>I want you to be a part of history with me, Friend.

I promise I will never stop fighting to put AMERICA First. I need you to stand with me so that we can SAVE AMERICA. Can I count on you?

Please contribute ANY AMOUNT TODAY to have YOUR NAME permanently engraved on the Official 2022 Trump Donor Wall.

Thank you, and God Bless you,

 

[Ser Scot A Ellison]

5 minutes ago, Ormond said:

And in the latest crazy Trump email, he's telling donors he will put their name on a wall IN HIS OFFICE for a donation as small as $5. In the email after this one he was claiming to have one million donors. There are less than 60 thousand names on the wall at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. If Trump has a wall in his office with a million names, it will have to be both the largest office in history and the names will be in a font too small to read without a microscope.

 

I’d like to donate a nickle in the name of “Turd Ferguson”.

[Rorshach]

Ah, the thing is he offers this to Friend.

Don't need a big slate to have Friend's name on your wall.

[A Horse Named Stranger]

3 hours ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said:

I’d like to donate a nickle in the name of “Turd Ferguson”.

Spare a thought, or rather a buck for Rudy Giuliani there.

[Kalbear]

9 hours ago, DMC said:

I'm definitely not saying Trump wouldn't do anything illegal if he thought it'd benefit him.  My point is the money is already, effectively, in his pocket.  At least for now.  Plus, Trump is also an egomaniac, and underreporting how much money he's raising would be out of character.

Counterpoint - Trump appears to lie for absolutely no fucking good reason at all. He does illegal things like throw reports away because he can. He gets off on doing what he wants to. He flouts rules and dares people to fuck with him and then relishes getting into a fight about it.

Again, psychologically he is a narcissist and part of his view is that nothing bad can happen to him.

[DMC]

2 hours ago, Kalibuster said:

Counterpoint - Trump appears to lie for absolutely no fucking good reason at all. He does illegal things like throw reports away because he can. He gets off on doing what he wants to. He flouts rules and dares people to fuck with him and then relishes getting into a fight about it.

Yeah, but good news is we also know he's really incompetent and blatant about committing crimes, so I guess we'll find out eventually.  I really don't buy he raised much more than what he's reported, but who knows.  Regardless, he's clearly not just raising this money as a grift.  Part of his motivation is, certainly, to show off how much money he raised.

[Zorral]

Maybe to pay lawyer fees up front before they will do anything for him in the multitude of lawsuits and his family are being targeted by?  After all he's lied for years about the value of his 'assets,' while stiffing everybody who works on his behalf. Poor Giuliani comes to mind, among others.

[Week]

3 minutes ago, Zorral said:

Maybe to pay lawyer fees up front before they will do anything for him in the multitude of lawsuits and his family are being targeted by?  After all he's lied for years about the value of his 'assets,' while stiffing everybody who works on his behalf. Poor Giuliani comes to mind, among others.

This Giuliani? Hmmm ... Maybe finally something that moves the needle. Or perhaps a gambit to (finally) get paid.

 

 

[DMC]

14 minutes ago, Zorral said:

Maybe to pay lawyer fees up front before they will do anything for him in the multitude of lawsuits and his family are being targeted by?  After all he's lied for years about the value of his 'assets,' while stiffing everybody who works on his behalf. Poor Giuliani comes to mind, among others.

Well, we know he spent $1.7 million in legal expenses from the money he raised (and reported).  I suppose he could be paying more but that sounds like a pretty good haul for a year.

[A Horse Named Stranger]

16 minutes ago, Zorral said:

Maybe to pay lawyer fees up front before they will do anything for him in the multitude of lawsuits and his family are being targeted by?  After all he's lied for years about the value of his 'assets,' while stiffing everybody who works on his behalf. Poor Giuliani comes to mind, among others.

Nah, we just agreed that Scot will donate 5$ on behalf of Giuliani, so that Rudy's name can be put up on Donnie's wonderwall, which is as good as getting his fees paid, if not better. You know, money is temporary, but having your name on an imaginary wall, that's priceless.

[Zorral]

"Sarah Palin’s libel claim against The Times is rejected by a jury.
The verdict came a day after the judge said that he planned to dismiss the case, ruling that Ms. Palin’s legal team had failed to prove that the newspaper defamed her."

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/02/15/business/stock-market-economy-news#sarah-palin-new-york-times

She will appeal.

[Ser Scot A Ellison]

9 minutes ago, Zorral said:

"Sarah Palin’s libel claim against The Times is rejected by a jury.
The verdict came a day after the judge said that he planned to dismiss the case, ruling that Ms. Palin’s legal team had failed to prove that the newspaper defamed her."

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/02/15/business/stock-market-economy-news#sarah-palin-new-york-times

She will appeal.

She’ll lose.  Jury verdicts are very rarely overturned by appelate courts.

[DMC]

14 minutes ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said:

Jury verdicts are very rarely overturned by appelate courts.

Random question - is there a reason you consistently spell appellate with only one "l"?  I've never seen that before and for whatever reason it's been nagging at me.

[Maithanet]

13 minutes ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said:

She’ll lose.  Jury verdicts are very rarely overturned by appelate courts.

(As you probably know) the bar that you have to clear for that type of case is incredibly high.  This case has always looked like a PR stunt rather than a real attempt to win. 

[Zorral]

Terrifying.  As we know these ilks were massive in the planning of 06/21 too.