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I am very interested in how Donald Trump manages his businesses.

Or how he has done so in the past.

This article is quite informative and it is not biased or snarky in anyway.

Inside the Trump Organization, the Company That Has Run Trump’s Big World

Finally, some respectful press that takes Trump seriously.

I will try to do the same.

I ran a "family" business for a long time. The family was not always blood family but a close network of associates who made our business successful.

I learned a lot about loyalty in those years and was willing to give people responsibility as they earned it. I also learned how to get rid of the people who did not want to--or were unable--to play it that way.

I do not think I was cruel about it. But look. If you are a "partner" then I expect you will act like one.

Read this and see how Trump has done things. I like it. I understand it.

I think it will be tough to take his style of leadership to Washington but I am ready to wait and see.

Oh. What are the things I admire? The slim organization chart. The close scrutiny through "signing the checks"*. The loyalty to old employees who are moved up along with the boss. The swift retaliation for any breach of trust or failure in loyalty. I believe in firing and I believe in rewarding. Reward and punishment equally delivered.

I also like the face to face aspect. And the inclusion of loyal family where some observation is needed. How the wheels are rolling.

I don't have an image for this. Trying something new. More text, less pictures.

*I still sign checks for our condo board and do not relegate it to the professional managers. Same reasons. Power and accountability. Very easy to see how things are working.

Labels: Donald Trump, Trump Administration

I predicted this.

And no, it is not about the election. It is about after. But starting now.

Losing the election is just the start of Trump's inevitable wave of future failures

I spent a few years working with marketing brands and how to promote them. The people who do this are dead serious. The brand is everything.

But the brand has to be protected. Hence so many lawsuits applied to companies that try to use "near names" to sell their similar merchandise.

For example. I do not hesitate to buy something from Lands End. Period. No discussion. If it has that label on that web site then I just order the stuff. Anything else, I am willing to try to get one piece to see.

An example in the same business is The Gap. A fallen brand. I recently bought a few white polos to wear with my lounging pants. El Cheapo. OK for the intended purpose but so thin I would not wear them outside the house. A brand killed by corporate predators who missed the point of the brand they were buying.

So it is with Trump. His family is going to be left with a burned battle field. The brand is already slipping. It will slip even more.

And his supporters, the white trash, the knuckle draggers and the religionists, are not going to go to a Trump casino or hotel. Trump Tower will no longer be a prestige address.

Sad. But he deserves every bit of the bitter aftermath.

There is more in this article about his inevitable losses. His social prestige, his continued legal woes and his family.

Labels: Donald Trump

I am going to quit writing about the election.

Not so much because I am tired of it. I am. But because it is not very interesting.

The differences between Clinton and Trump could not be more stark.

And Trump ends up with all the negatives. Just like the polls are now finding.

I suppose that there is some danger that something could go wrong and he would end up being elected. But I would put that down somewhere next to the next sighting of Big Foot as a probability.

The biggest foot here is Trumps foot in his own mouth. Foot in mouth disease.

How about wrong footed?

There are a lot of "foot" sayings.

Another lady has materialized, this one a porn star. Not that there is anything wrong with that. But it is a bit unseemly for a married man (three times even) who already has a record of lady friends who saw the whole package.

No one has yet report on whether it is true that his endowment is a bit below the average.

What a sordid mess.

Here I am doing gutter talk. See? I am better off treating it as a foregone conclusion and if I am wrong I will move to Canada with my other friends.

Or just tough it out and write nasty shit about the man for four years.

Labels: Donald Trump

Money talks and bullshit walks.

An old saying I grew up with.

I am not quite sure of the meaning actually. It is a bit garbled. I looked it up.

And so it goes for the supposed billionaire Donald Trump.

I say supposed because more and more it seems he may nat really have all that cash everyone thinks he has. But that is another story.

I am talking here about the campaign for President of the United States.

Outside Money Favors Hillary Clinton at a 2-to-1 Rate Over Donald Trump.

Now I suppose I should be bothered by this. But the Supreme Court held in the Citizens United case that "outside money" was OK. That organizations outside the actual campaigns could raise as much money as they could for particular candidates.

At the time this was thought to be a Republican initiative to pad the expenses of costly campaigns. If so, it has backfired.

The Trumps have about half the outside money that Clinton does. And right or wrong that is going to make a big difference in this campaign. I guess the GOoPers that wanted outside money got what they wanted. Be careful what you ask for.

Labels: Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Clinton. Donald Trump

Trying to channel the founder of his Party, Trump made an ass of himself again today on hallowed ground.

Donald Trump Pledges to ‘Heal Divisions’ (and Sue His Accusers)

A master of the mixed message, Trumpf fumbled his way across the quiet fields to make another asshole statement about his beliefs and promises. Pretty fucking shallow that.

I should quit reading. I already voted. It is moot with me. But for a guy who likes to throw the word "disgraceful" around, he sure manages to model the behaviors. A dick.

Did I say that before?

Probably.

Donald Dick.

Quack quack.

Labels: Donald Trump, republican whack jobs, Trumpf

It is a quadrennial event.

Something or someone gets into the gears of a Presidential campaign and screws the machine up.

Such a thing just happened.

Billy Bush Says He’s Ashamed by Lewd Talk With Donald Trump

Now there is nothing wrong with lewd talk. I am a practitioner and proud of it. But there is a time and place.

It is hard to resist the expression "he got his dick caught in the wringer".

Now, precisely, what is wrong with this. All Presidents have had a wild mouth in private although Republican ones seem more vulnerable.

But restraint of tongue is necessary in a guy who is President.

Whether he is a womanizer or not, he has a braggart and a bully which usually hides a fragile ego.

Labels: Donald Trump

There is something really off base about Trump's late night dates with Twitter.

Why Donald Trump tweets late at night (and very early in the morning)

Great photo incidentally in the WaPo article.

Someone has noted that his Tweet rantings all occur in the middle of the night. Evidently he gets up and lets go.

Can't they stop him?

I do not wish him well but, really, he is out of control. The impetuousness of his actions are right there to see. Can't the trophy wife take it out of his hands. Probably not as she is in her own cocoon. I do not know.

It must drive his handlers nuts.

But for the rest of us it amounts to an entertainment. A look into the psyche of the man who would be king. Not that we see anything good about it.

The Tweets (do I capitalize that?) run to resentments and obsessions about the people who have done him wrong.

But not the big stuff. The little stuff.

He can not let go of that beauty contestant or the way Lester Holt was unfair.

It is an illumination that will do him in. We cannot have a President who would do this kind of thing. Actually, we did. That was Richard Nixon. Imagine what Tricky Dick would have wrought had he had an Android or iPhone.

Oh. I should admit that the Tweets shown here are the fake ones which you can read at #Trump Hates God

The thing is that it is almost, almost possible to believe he would do this. And, yes, they have one for Clinton too but you can find your own.

Labels: Donald Trump

I like to read about the "money markets" in election times.

These are the places where people put their money where their mouths are. Betting on the outcome.

I know, it is not the same. But it is a partially legalized version of the old horse betting systems.

Prediction Markets Score the Debate a Rout: Clinton Over Trump

I would bet for Hillary too.

OK. I just broke one of my rules and called her by her first name.

Everyone else is including her own campaign.

In the meantime, while I do not bet real cash, I do have an imaginary stake in the outcome. Her probabilities jumped six points yesterday.

Go Hillary! Go Ms. Clinton! Win, place and show!

Labels: 2016 General Election, Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton

Lop sided.

That is my opinion of last night's debate.

Clinton beat Trump at every turn.

Not that I am biased or anything.

I liked the big headline on Huffington Post.

Orange Crush: Donald Trump Fell For Hillary Clinton’s Trap At Monday’s Presidential Debate

Mean but accurate.

"Very very accurate--so accurate." To put it in Donald language.

The reiterative superlative.

I have read a lot of analysis this morning and have yet to find any opinion that differs from mine except in volume.

At the beginning the new revised version of Trump showed up but it did not last long.

He fell into the old overtalking, bullshit spreading Donald we all know and love to hate.

Clinton was really good at sticking the pins into the bloviator's balloon. Adept at stating her own case. Her attitude was focused and high energy. Laser like.

Donald got lost after awhile and one could see the flop sweat.

I was not really worried that Clinton would be good at this. She has many years of dealing with misogynist jerks, some on the international scale.

And Donald Trump is a misogynist jerk supreme. He couldn't even hide it. Ready for the pounce, Clinton has also perfected the knowing glance into the camera. She knew she was on split screen and knew how to use it well. The faint chuckle as she sticks him yet again.

The jury is not out on this. I may be overly positive about Clinton's performance but very few people are saying that it was even a draw. Clinton had his ass and he knew it.

Labels: Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton

The debate is tonight.

Part of me doesn't want to see it. To be on a different planet.

The election period has not really started and I am over it.

I am happy to be part of the electorate and I know who I am going to vote for.

Do I have to watch this?

Yes.

I have to watch it because I need to know the ins and outs of close up combat between two people who want to "rule the world".

They probably are not going to show any flop sweat in the closeups. The room will be very refrigerated.

But there will be the eye rolls and the jittery hands.

The debate was never a fixture in American politics. At least not the nationally televised one.

Now it is as American as apple pie.

I net out that, like it or not, it is a good thing. We need to see the hand to hand combat now because we will not see it again for four years.

After the election, the curtains will close and the photo-opp and the well rehearsed appearance will be the business of the day.

There might be a difference this time though.

If god forbid, the Trumpfer wins the election it will all be about pulling it out of his ass.

Labels: Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton

Trump is a master of trash talk.

Donald Trump: ‘I’m not OK with Anderson Cooper, who treats me very unfairly’

This is nothing new. It is an old trick of his. It is effective. Similar to players baiting refs before hand, talking up their weaknesses to soften them up to avoid criticism.

He is a trickster and a scoundrel. Whether you want that for your President is up for question. No doubt he wouldn't mind trash talking on an international scene.

Roughing them up.

There is a reason for diplomacy. It puts a dampener on human tempers and cools the jets of anger.

Even our most temperamental Presidents have watched their tongues. Insult and invective are not very good negotiating tools and almost all of politics is a negotiation.

There is a hard core of yahoos and malcontents who enjoy this kind of talk. The practice of sticking one'e chin up. Upping to the other side.

It is a good way to get your chin clipped too.

Remember Ali was great on the trash but he was also fast on his feet and had the hard punch when the other guy leaned in. But that was boxing.

I like straight talk. McCain thought he was dealing his cards with it but he was a softy compared to this guy.

Trump is a bully which means he is also a coward. The idea of hitting first and as low as you can is the tactic of the guy who can't take it himself.

Yah yah yah. I can hear it in the school yard.

Trump doesn't have the stuff so he talks big.

Which makes him small.

Labels: Donald Trump, Trumpf

Labels: Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton

There is no doubt that Alexander Putin has muscles.

He shows them frequently. And not bad, actually.

He loves to ride horses and is a man among men.

He also ran the KGB in Russia and kicked a lot of ass and more along the way. A tough guy. Perhaps you would call him a thug. I would. The macho pose, the butchness. Is that a word?

Of course, he is also a die-hard Red and has a lot of blood on his hands.

Sorry. I am of the old school. "Commie red bastards" and so on. I grew up with my father's dinner conversations.

But my own rant lies low so I don't go on about it.

Putin. The devil.

In any case, Putin is not admired by many people. But someone !

Putin, Admired by Donald Trump, Emphasizes Strength as Virtue

Of course, I am pretty sure that The Donald doesn't have any muscles. Though while he probably hasn't tortured anyone personally he has certainly held some feet to the fire.

Why do I think that he is cruel? The lip? The sneer?

I will stop there.

I have never demonized the Russians. After Stalin who I grew up with the successors all seem like a bunch of pussy cats. But not Putin. Take a look at those beady eyes.

So, if you are so inclined you can get the American version. Vote for Trump. There is no doubt that four years or more of old fluffy hair would be a kind of torture. And we surely do not want to see him with his shirt off. Please.

Labels: Donald Trump, Putin

I used to read Breitbart for his contrary views which, while opposite of my own, were often funny and refreshing.

It was nice to read how the other half lived.

Then Breitbart (what a great name) kicked and a new guy took over.

The tone of the web site changed quite a bit.

Nasty, humorless, often prone to spiteful reports.

Paranoid even.

And the guy responsible for that has gone onto the Trump bandwagon to take the reins.

Donald Trump Is The Candidate From Breitbart News

It is basically a right wing tabloid for the internet. See it here.

I made this an open link so you can look any random day to see the crazy.

Labels: Donald Trump, right wing whack jobs

The national intelligence establishment is usually quiet at election time.

Not this go-around.

Ex-CIA chief backs Clinton, calls Trump national security threat

Morell is not the first. Michael Hayden the former head of CIA weighed in the other day on this.

These are the guys who sit with the President when it is time to shoot Osama Bin Laden or to advise when the Twin Towers fell. They have been where Donald Trump should not be allowed to go.

A threat to national security?

Sure.

He not only has a big mouth but he lies and uses information for his own purposes.

This is not a real estate deal. This is some serious shit we are talking.

And these guys are scared.

Labels: Donald Trump, security

When did the GOP become the "no-nothing" Party?

H.L.Mencken referred to the "booboisie" in scathing terms.

They have never gone away. Today, they are Trump's main constituency.

Whether he is a boob or not is debatable. It is hard to argue against millions of a father's money or its growth in the seamier side of American life. After all, casinos that bilk poor people is far from an honorable business.

Here is something to think about for awhile. If you are not a boob.

How the ‘Stupid Party’ Created Donald Trump

It is written of course for us and does nothing to convert the boob but still.

Labels: Donald Trump

The influence of the christers, or if you prefer "christists", is waning in the GOP.

The Evangelicals who power played their way to the top of the Party are now dismayed to find that they ended up with a guy who has marginal interest in their goals and worse, is going to be their candidate. Want him or not.

The Evangelicals and the Great Trump Hope

There are two problems with Trump. One, he is no evangelical. Divorced and almost a libertine, rich as Croesus, he is hardly a model for the hard core X-ian life. Second, he is for "the gays" and some other issues that the religious right eschew totally.

It will be interesting to see what goes on.

James Dobson, a loudmouth with a crusader bent, has said that he hears second hand that Trump has been saved again. Something like holding a pot holder when lifting a hot pot off the stove.

James fucking Dobson, a hater and a hypocrite of the worst kind. Oops. There I go again, hatin' on the handmaidens of the savior jeeeezuz keeerist. Or something. Boy these bastards get under my skin.

Squirm Donald. The holier than thou crowd is going to give you grief.

Labels: christers, Donald Trump

The NYTimes has a good column on the hypocrisy of the "christian" right and their support of Donald Trump.

The Theology of Donald Trump

It pretty much takes apart the assholes who claim to be Christ's messengers on earth. The Evangelicals. It is hard to say that word without some spittle flying. Try "fucking Evangelicals".

You know, the money grubbers who use their righteousness to line their pockets with the coin of the gullible.

See, I am still pissed off at the church I grew up with and the bastards who let me down when I needed to have support as a gay kid. Or as a kid who had a future outside his small town and never went back.

The rollers, the pious, the holier than thou.

Fortunately my Dad helped me out with this. He went to church to pacify my mother but he never swallowed it whole.

Back to Trump.

I have noted here before the absence of any sign of religiosity on his part. Not that there is anything wrong with that. Until he and the others pretend otherwise.

To him it is all money and power. And that is where the interests intersect. Dobson, Falwell and that gang all go for the power and money. If you can swallow it just watch their acts on YouTube.

That guy in the photo? Falwell Junior? Would you buy a used car from that man? That is a "nope".

Labels: Donald Trump, religionists, right wing bastards

Trump has no staff.

A one man show.

As of yesterday, he doesn't even have a campaign manager.

And now, word is that he has no campaign money.

Donald Trump Starts Summer Push With Crippling Money Deficit

Clinton=41Mil, Trump=1.3 Mi

Unprecedented.

Of course, he has no committed donors because his campaign was self funded. So there is no history. No critical mass of money.

And, I suspect other factors. Other than the fact that Trump is an entitled, flaming asshole.

He has no friends and does nothing to make more. He is not seen as a friendly guy. A wise cracker and bully.

Even the evangelicals, with whom he is meeting secretly today, cannot much stand him.

Too bad about that. Now that they wrecked the GOP they are stuck with the lowest common denominator.

The problem with the "religious" test is that old holier than thou attitude. No one passes but the tester. Never mind that most of his supporters are non-religious knuckle draggers.

As for Trump as a religionist, he would have a hard time passing through that proverbial needle. For a lot of reasons. Money just one, the other is his big head.

The Donald is just short of a cartoon character, bigger than life.

They made him by killing all their good kids and now they have him. It couldn't happen to a nicer bunch.

Labels: Donald Trump

Time for a shake up in the Trump camp.

Help Wanted: Trump’s Apprentice: Donald Trump has said he will reveal his choice for a running mate at next month’s Republican convention. “He needs some stability. He needs some class. He needs somebody that people trust,” said Stu Spencer, a longtime GOP campaign strategist. “Anybody of that caliber who attaches themselves to Trump is insane.” Are they? And who will it be? Take a closer look at the unusual hunt to fill a position that, even under usual circumstances, can be seen as a thankless task.

Maybe Trumpf is finding that there are some things money cannot buy. Integrity?

In any case he is a one man band and continued demonstration can only suggest that his "team" by which he probably means "minions" will be full bore surrogates and errand boys and girls for the presumptive nominee.

I have read the stories about the various prospects for the job of Trump-running mate.

I do not notice a stampede toward his attention. In fact, many have said that they are not available. Sometimes clouded with obvious fake excuses but many with a frank "you must be kidding". Professional politicians do not commit suicide. Trumpf of course, is not a professional politician. A blowhard and egoist he has the job of being his most ardent fan club member.

Labels: Donald Trump