This Is How Donald Trump Thinks the U.S. Government Works

[babylonsister]

This Is How Donald Trump Thinks the U.S. Government Works
And why his supporters should care about it.
By MATT LATIMER
October 08, 2017


Shortly after the White House released the outlines of its tax proposal, President Donald Trump railed on Twitter against Democrats who opposed it, noting that his “Tax Cut and Reform Bill” was winning “great reviews.” Except that there wasn’t an actual tax cut and reform bill pending in Congress yet for Democrats to support or oppose. The legislation hadn’t been introduced. What the White House put forward was just a framework to be filled in during the normal bargaining process on Capitol Hill.

That was after the president tweeted that the “approval process” for his tax reform package would soon begin, which, again, is not how Congress works. The House of Representatives will introduce its own bill, incorporating some of the president’s priorities, to be sure, but there will be no formal process of approval for what he’s proposed. Some of his preferred policies might not make it into the final bill at all.

It’s possible the president knew all this, that his tweets were merely inelegant phrasing, and in any event we all can get the gist of what he meant. Then again, it’s also possible, and indeed there is ample evidence, that the president of the United States really doesn’t understand the constitutional process, or even American history, much at all. This is a man, after all, who at the age of 70 seemed surprised to learn that Abraham Lincoln was a Republican.

So here’s a weird question—weird since in our current political culture the answer is unknown: Does it matter whether or not the president of the United States understands how the Constitution that elected him works? Many Americans simply don’t seem to care about that question—which I suppose says a great deal about how much we expect from presidents these days. Or, conversely, how much faith our country has lost in any of our leaders that the bar has fallen so low.

Actually it really should matter to Trump’s supporters that their champion does not seem to understand how the constitutional process works—if, that is, they actually want to accomplish any of their stated goals. For anyone who still cares about such petty matters as separation of powers and representative democracy, it might be instructive to see just how far our country’s chief executive is from understanding them.

more...

http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/10/08/donald-trump-government-215691?lo=ap_d1

[highplainsdem]

1. Considering how many deplorables tweet memes showing Trump as a generalissimo/monarch/superhero

I don't think they really care about the Constitution, or democracy.

[MyOwnPeace]

2. Just read the 1st paragraph!

That alone will show why this doofus should NEVER have been elected to the position of Hall Monitor, let alone Chief Executive of the United States!

I truly believe he does not even know how dumb he is!

[malaise]

3. My dear sister

He's a fucking moron

[babylonsister]

4. Hahaha!

I concur.

[malaise]

5. LOL