of American politics. That's the 'Trump coalition' in actual fact. Transnational as political coalitions get. I don't think the GOP mind feeling interconnected to authoritarians and oligarchs around the world. Not so lonely taking wealth and security away from millions when you have friends who have your backs. And who you can laugh at others with. They are looking like the cats who swallowed canarys. There was a time when as Americans they felt interconnectedness with other Americans.

other American values on other countries leave room for graft? And businesses like Trump's getting all manner of the best deals internationally because they have the money to pay to play? Not fighting graft means that fruit sellers will not be able to make a proper income. Remember the Tunesian fruit seller who set himself on fire he was so frustrated with being shook down and that started the arab spring? And now will those with money be able keep their positions in a hierarchy, including people like Trump, when graft is not fought against? And they then complain about economic refugees.

By Brooke Gladstone at Slate

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2017/05/why_trump_lies_it_s_not_to_hide_the_truth_it_s_to_alter_reality.html

"SNIP................

Consensus is the bedrock of democracy. For differences to get resolved in a properly democratic fashion, there needs to be agreement over the terms of the debate. Interlocutors must be aware of their shared rights and responsibilities, and they need to be capable of proceeding from a common set of facts and premises.

When political actors can’t agree on basic facts and procedures, compromise and rule-bound argumentation are basically impossible; politics reverts back to its natural state as a raw power struggle in which the weak are dominated by the strong.


Even if each of our realities is unique, our common cultures and environments ensure that we share some fundamental principles. That is what enables consensus, and that is what is under attack.

By degrading the very notion of shared reality, Trump has disabled the engine of democracy. As Resnikoff wrote: “When the truth is little more than an arbitrary personal decision, there is no common ground to be reached and no incentive to look for it.”


................SNIP"

Go to the Discussionist now to see it. That is why they won't go on camera criticizing Trump. Then want to pen back in those free ranging Trump voters who rejected establishment republicans and chose populist Trump instead last year. That has been the plan all along. They want no footage of congressional Republicans being against Trump. They desperately want the 36% back into the GOP fold. They are hanging the stock market dump today around Democratic necks too. Maybe that is to attract centrists. We don't seem to have much footage of republicans favoring Trump either. I guess that is for the centrists. I guess they will let these two separate realities play out on separate networks and webpages. No reaction from Paul Ryan or Mitch McConnell will be forthcoming on anything. At least McConnell has a shell to retreat into. What is Ryan going to do? Cleave the country like they have, and do not get caught reacting to anything in Washington, and there is your big tent. Two separate narratives. Party first GOP. Party before country it is for you.