ooky wrote:
Hi Carlus. I'll have to think about this, it could take some time to get enough free time together to write an 5-10 point well spoken argument against Trump and Trumpism. I certainly wrote many such posts before the election, and I have a lot more to say now. But this first message is just letting you guys know I'm still here, based on what I read yesterday I don't think like you all, a LOT of us don't think like you all, and what it's like on my side.
Regarding the tax returns, we know he's beholden to and in debt with and tied to powerful actors in all sorts of countries important to our foreign diplomacy. But we know almost nothing about the particulars. I agree with the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington that he is ripe for unprecedented conflicts of interest and unconstitutional acceptance of payment for personal gain from foreign leaders, even if he had the best of intentions, which based on his and his family's own comments I don't believe he does. If he had fully divested from his business, which yes, would have cost him a TON of money, then the returns would not be as important. That would have also illuminated some character-based traits about understanding how this job is a public service job that is vastly more important than optimization of his own personal finances. But he set it up this way, and he wants to have his cake and eat it too, all while telling all of us to just trust him. He's given us absolutely no reason to trust him, and a lot of reason to see him as a chronically ethically compromised liar.
Well, let's make our first point of discussion Tax Returns and Foreign Influence in regards to what we know Trump has done and what standard practice for politicians. Here's the quick points I would make on that.
1. Everyone has a right to privacy on Tax Returns, even the POTUS.
a. I'm OK with changing that Right to Privacy for Presidents. We can have a public vetting process, lay out the entire Federal Secuirty background check. Probably need a Constitutional Amendment.
2. Trump has laid down some pretty tough Lobbying prohibitions
a. No lobbying their own agency for five years after leaving, and would not lobby any government appointee for two years.
b. Trump's order also requires his officials to agree to a lifetime ban on working on behalf of foreign governments or foreign political parties.
3. Currently we have candidates getting all kinds of foreign money or setting up shell organizations to launder the money. See Clinton Foundation. There is very strong circumstantial evidence at minimum that if you contributed to the Clinton Foundation you got an Arms Deal. McCain has one of these Bullshit Foundations too.
