5 ms·

"You can run the best campaign, you can even be the nominee. And you can have the election stolen from you" - Hillary Clinton (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=

"You can run the best campaign, you can even be the nominee. And you can have the election stolen from you" - Hillary Clinton (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77i_pC3lp04 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77i_pC3lp04) "Why is Trump making these controversial staffing changes now? No one knows for sure, but it’s probably not as sinister as some fear. When the resignations and appointments were announced, some worried that a sinister plot was afoot — that Trump loyalists were “burrowing” into the Defense Department so they couldn’t be removed when Biden takes office, or that there was some sort of coverup going on, or even that Trump was setting the stage for a coup. But experts I spoke to doubt those explanations, and suspect what’s really going on is that Trump finally had an opening to clean house at the Pentagon with the election now over, and that he’s putting in people more amenable to his wishes in order to finally accomplish some of the policies the Esper-led Pentagon had pushed back on — such as withdrawing all remaining US troops from Afghanistan before Christmas." https://www.vox.com/21560260/trump-pentagon-defense-secretary-esper-afghanistan https://www.vox.com/21560260/trump-pentagon-defense-secretar... Yes, there are other sides to consider. There always are. Now you decide how reasonable they are--but you cannot skip taking the time to understand the other side.

throwaway23452 6y ago
I'm skeptical about part of that story, seeing as Esper literally earned the nickname "Yesper" for being a floor-mat to the president's wishes. But I also think the likelihood of a coup is way overblown. After Esper was pushed out, the other three people resigned; they weren't fired. People said the same thing about a coup when he was first elected, when characters like Steve Bannon were in the White House whispering in his ear. At peak Trumpism across the country, before his approval rating started going down, that probably would have been a better time to do such a thing if it were going to happen. And yet... it just didn't. Lots of callous and shortsighted and regressive policy-making ensued, to be sure, but nothing like a coup.
- m_mueller 6y ago
  I really hope you’re right. At the end of the day, if he doesn’t concede then only the military can remove him on January 20th, which he can try to get sufficient control over. I think people are not taking his disregard of the election seriously enough.
  - throwaway23452 6y ago
    I think it's serious either way, just in the longer-term. He continues to sow discord and distrust in our institutions which will last beyond this election cycle, and will only continue to weaken the country as a whole. But I don't think it'll amount to a sudden takeover. Fingers crossed.
    - thrwaway2112 6y ago
      Is our him, or the media reporting that sows mistrust and discord? Tldr: it's the media
- throwaway11320 6y ago
  "“I am formally announcing that we will implement President Trump’s orders to continue our repositioning of forces” from Afghanistan and Iraq, Miller told reporters at the Pentagon." https://thehill.com/policy/defense/526362-trump-orders-pentagon-to-pull-2500-troops-from-afghanistan-and-iraq https://thehill.com/policy/defense/526362-trump-orders-penta...

throwaway23452 6y ago

I'm skeptical about part of that story, seeing as Esper literally earned the nickname "Yesper" for being a floor-mat to the president's wishes. But I also think the likelihood of a coup is way overblown. After Esper was pushed out, the other three people resigned; they weren't fired. People said the same thing about a coup when he was first elected, when characters like Steve Bannon were in the White House whispering in his ear. At peak Trumpism across the country, before his approval rating started going down, that probably would have been a better time to do such a thing if it were going to happen. And yet... it just didn't. Lots of callous and shortsighted and regressive policy-making ensued, to be sure, but nothing like a coup.

m_mueller 6y ago
I really hope you’re right. At the end of the day, if he doesn’t concede then only the military can remove him on January 20th, which he can try to get sufficient control over. I think people are not taking his disregard of the election seriously enough.
- throwaway23452 6y ago
  I think it's serious either way, just in the longer-term. He continues to sow discord and distrust in our institutions which will last beyond this election cycle, and will only continue to weaken the country as a whole. But I don't think it'll amount to a sudden takeover. Fingers crossed.
  - thrwaway2112 6y ago
    Is our him, or the media reporting that sows mistrust and discord? Tldr: it's the media
throwaway11320 6y ago
"“I am formally announcing that we will implement President Trump’s orders to continue our repositioning of forces” from Afghanistan and Iraq, Miller told reporters at the Pentagon." https://thehill.com/policy/defense/526362-trump-orders-pentagon-to-pull-2500-troops-from-afghanistan-and-iraq https://thehill.com/policy/defense/526362-trump-orders-penta...