Bizarre, Environment, International, Politics

Macron’s Tree of Friendship To White House Dies In Quarantine
Voice of America

The visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to Washington culminated in the planting of a French oak tree as a symbol of the long-standing friendship of the two nations. Unbeknownst to most watching, the tree was promptly dug back up after the ceremony and sent to quarantine. Regrettably, the tree (like relations with France) has died in quarantine.

 At the time, I was highly critical of the speech by Macron before the Congress where he was enthusiastically received despite alluding to European speech controls. Like the tree, I warned about the dangers of invasive species like speech regulations.

While Macron remains quite popular here, he has actually had lower poll numbers than Trump. Right now, the tree is the least of his concerns with the ongoing “yellow vest” protests. However, his polls have finally crawled back to 40 percent.

I still want the French oak but I would leave Macron’s anti-free speech policies in Europe.

117 thoughts on “Macron’s Tree of Friendship To White House Dies In Quarantine”

  1. Diane writes “Cheese Puff have in fact been deleted from this blawg more times I can keep track of, anymore.”

    Take note, someone is off their rocker. Aside from my response cheese puff has been written 13 times.

  2. I love oaks. Louisiana and Mississippi are well-provided with them, and ours on the Gulf Coast can be majestic.

    It’s tragic a fine oak has died while the USDA has decided whether or not it, like the Japanese tree which brought the woolly adelgid to destroy forests of primeval eastern hemlock in North America, harbors a disease or parasite which could damage our nation’s ecology.

    But the oak didn’t die in vain. It serves as a metaphor – governmental contempt for freedom of speech won’t take in the soil of the United States of America, whether President Macron likes it or not.

  3. Darren Smith is a Cheese Puff.

    George Washington Law School Professor Jonathan “Tartuffe” Turley is a damnable Cheese Puff.

    1. Diane / Late 4 Dinner

      Due to your continual violations of the Civility Policy we decided that your posting privilege on this website is revoked. You may not post any further comments.

  4. It’s only a matter of time before the dear leader blames HRC for killing the tree. Better have Barr look into it.

  5. Trump is a racist, mysogonist, liar, cyber-bully, traitor, and now we learn ……a baby tree killer!

  6. FAKE NEWS AND OUR GASLIGHTER IN CHIEF

    Gaslighters/narcissists create an enemy and crisis, then “solve” that same crisis. They then demand accolades after that crisis (that they created) has been resolved. Why do they do this? It creates support within their base. And with 2020 elections right around the corner, Trump knows the importance of manufacturing an enemy and then portraying himself as the only person who could “conquer” this manufactured enemy.

    The most recent case in point is Trump’s tariffs on Mexico. Trump is touting himself as the key factor in getting a border agreement with Mexico. However, the New York Times reported that the U.S. and Mexico had reached an agreement on border policies months before Trump’s tariff threat.

    Trump then went after the New York Times, which accurately reported that a border agreement was in place two months ago. And as he has done several times before, Trump called the press the “Enemy of the People.” He tweeted, “The Failing @nytimes, & ratings challenged [sic] @CNN will do anything possible to see our Country fail! They are truly The Enemy of the People!”

    Trump is more frequently adding “Corrupt” to “Fake” when describing the news media. So in addition to claiming that the media have made stories up, Trump is now accusing them of receiving money or power in exchange for false stories. This is a common tactic of gaslighters/narcissists in power — they will accuse any accurate media outlets as traitors to the country and its leader. Gaslighters/narcissists particularly accuse those in the media of being corrupt or making up stories, and they will go after the media at a fever pitch.

    And Trump is still focused on Obama. Trump has been president since January 2017, and he has yet to let this go. Gaslighters/narcissists will fabricate enemies in their minds — usually, anyone that they feel has criticized them, no matter how small the criticism. The gaslighter/narcissist demands loyalty at all times, and anyone who dares critique the gaslighter/narcissist has hell to pay. The gaslighter/narcissist will obsessively look for ways to take a perceived critic down.

    Trump has manufactured crises time and time again and then tried to make himself look like the savior of that crisis. Look closer at Trump’s manufactured border crisis. In reality, illegal border crossings have actually decreased in the U.S for 46 years. He also created the crisis of the “criminal immigrant.” In reality, immigrants, illegal and legal, actually have a lower rate of criminal activity than citizens born in the U.S.

    Narcissists/gaslighters in power will rile up their base by declaring a behavior they don’t like to be “unpatriotic.” Interestingly, it has only been since 2009 that NFL players came out for the anthem, contrary to a common belief of that this was a long-standing tradition. But Trump proclaimed victory when the NFL issued a statement in May 2018 that required all players to “stand and show respect for the flag.” The NFL Players Association filed a grievance, and the NFL and NFL Players Association agreed to stop implementing this new policy until discussions were held.

    Why do gaslighters/narcissists manufacture crises and then proclaim that they have solved them? Because it gives their supporters the false belief that the narcissist/gaslighter is accomplishing great things. It also takes the focus off real crises in which the gaslighter/narcissist has failed to take action. Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, for example. And if the gaslighter/narcissist finally provides help or aid to an area, he still plays the savior and tells the people they should show gratitude towards him.

    How do you counteract this gaslighting/narcissist tactic? Call it out for what it is — a blatant attempt to cater to supporters. Present facts that contradict the gaslighter/narcissist’s assertions that first, there is a crisis, and second, they are the solver of that crisis. If you work with this type of “crisis manufacturer,” keep documentation of the statements and actions taken by the gaslighter/narcissist. In addition, a constant stream of truthful information is the best way to counteract this type of behavior.

    Edited from: “Trump And Other Gaslighters/Narcissists Create Crisises And Then Act Like They Solves Them”

    Forbes, 6/9/19

    1. ” New York Times reported that the U.S. and Mexico had reached an agreement on border policies months before Trump’s tariff threat.”

      Peeter, did the prior agreement do anything? Does the NYTimes report the whole truth? No to both but if it suits your ideology you jump right to it. Do you not have a mind of your own?

      Trumps achievements have been substantial, but you wouldn’t recognize them because you are too busy looking for failures you can’t prove or failures that might presently exist but represent more success than any other president.

      You only produce foolish generalities that you can’t back up.

      1. List some of Trump’s “achievements”, please. I don’t know of anything positive that the fat slob has done for this country because I don’t count rolling back consumer protection and environmental regulations or enacting tax cuts that mostly benefit the ultra-wealthy as “achievements”. In all intellectual honesty, he cannot take credit for the economy that Barak Obama put on a positive trajectory after Bush caused the greatest economic recession since the Great Depression.

        On the other side of the equation, he has caged young children, several of whom have died in custody, tried to start trouble with N. Korea, China and Mexico, only to be made a fool of, and made an absolute buffoon of himself, his cheap wife and useless children by parading them around in England like they are royalty. His appearance in the ill-fitting tuxedo is the stuff of comedy, and this in a town that has the best tailors in the world, like Saville Row. Then, there’s the endless, constant lying, name-calling, vindictiveness and threatening of tariffs to assert what he perceives to be his almighty power, and which would never happen because they would violate existing NAFTA and the so-called “replacement” that hasn’t been approved by Congress. Then, there’s the disrespect for women, minorities and his xenophobic abuse of migrants and broken promises about Mexico building a wall and about the ICE deportation squads.

        One thing he has done is shine light on mental illness. More people are now aware of the personality disorder known as narcissism and its symptoms. He has also made lots of work for lawyers.

        1. “List some of Trump’s “achievements”,”

          The economy for one. Look at the GDP.

          Then a partial list:

          Jobs and the economy

          Passage of the tax reform bill providing $5.5 billion in cuts and repealing the Obamacare mandate.
          Increase of the GDP above 3 percent.
          Creation of 1.7 million new jobs, cutting unemployment to 4.1 percent.
          Saw the Dow Jones reach record highs.
          A rebound in economic confidence to a 17-year high.
          A new executive order to boost apprenticeships.
          A move to boost computer sciences in Education Department programs.
          Prioritizing women-owned businesses for some $500 million in SBA loans.
          Killing job-stifling regulations

          Signed an Executive Order demanding that two regulations be killed for every new one creates. He beat that big and cut 16 rules and regulations for every one created, saving $8.1 billion.
          Signed 15 congressional regulatory cuts.
          Withdrew from the Obama-era Paris Climate Agreement, ending the threat of environmental regulations.
          Signed an Executive Order cutting the time for infrastructure permit approvals.
          Eliminated an Obama rule on streams that Trump felt unfairly targeted the coal industry.
          Fair trade

          Made good on his campaign promise to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
          Opened up the North American Free Trade Agreement for talks to better the deal for the U.S.
          Worked to bring companies back to the U.S., and companies like Toyota, Mazda, Broadcom Limited, and Foxconn announced plans to open U.S. plants.
          Worked to promote the sale of U.S products abroad.
          Made enforcement of U.S. trade laws, especially those that involve national security, a priority.
          Ended Obama’s deal with Cuba.
          Boosting U.S. energy dominance

          The Department of Interior, which has led the way in cutting regulations, opened plans to lease 77 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico for oil and gas drilling.
          Trump traveled the world to promote the sale and use of U.S. energy.
          Expanded energy infrastructure projects like the Keystone XL Pipeline snubbed by Obama.
          Ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to kill Obama’s Clean Power Plan.
          EPA is reconsidering Obama rules on methane emissions.
          Protecting the U.S. homeland

          Laid out new principles for reforming immigration and announced plan to end “chain migration,” which lets one legal immigrant to bring in dozens of family members.
          Made progress to build the border wall with Mexico.
          Ended the Obama-era “catch and release” of illegal immigrants.
          Boosted the arrests of illegals inside the U.S.
          Doubled the number of counties participating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement charged with deporting illegals.
          Removed 36 percent more criminal gang members than in fiscal 2016.
          Started the end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival program.
          Ditto for other amnesty programs like Deferred Action for Parents of Americans.
          Cracking down on some 300 sanctuary cities that defy ICE but still get federal dollars.
          Added some 100 new immigration judges.
          Protecting communities

          Justice announced grants of $98 million to fund 802 new cops.
          Justice worked with Central American nations to arrest and charge 4,000 MS-13 members.
          Homeland rounded up nearly 800 MS-13 members, an 83 percent one-year increase.
          Signed three executive orders aimed at cracking down on international criminal organizations.
          Attorney General Jeff Sessions created new National Public Safety Partnership, a cooperative initiative with cities to reduce violent crimes.
          Accountability

          Trump has nominated 73 federal judges and won his nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.
          Ordered ethical standards including a lobbying ban.
          Called for a comprehensive plan to reorganize the executive branch.
          Ordered an overhaul to modernize the digital government.
          Called for a full audit of the Pentagon and its spending.
          Combatting opioids

          First, the president declared a Nationwide Public Health Emergency on opioids.
          His Council of Economic Advisors played a role in determining that overdoses are underreported by as much as 24 percent.
          The Department of Health and Human Services laid out a new five-point strategy to fight the crisis.
          Justice announced it was scheduling fentanyl substances as a drug class under the Controlled Substances Act.
          Justice started a fraud crackdown, arresting more than 400.
          The administration added $500 million to fight the crisis.
          On National Drug Take Back Day, the Drug Enforcement Agency collected 456 tons.
          Protecting life

          In his first week, Trump reinstated and expanded the Mexico City Policy that blocks some $9 billion in foreign aid being used for abortions.
          Worked with Congress on a bill overturning an Obama regulation that blocked states from defunding abortion providers.
          Published guidance to block Obamacare money from supporting abortion.
          Helping veterans

          Signed the Veterans Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act to allow senior officials in the Department of Veterans Affairs to fire failing employees and establish safeguards to protect whistleblowers.
          Signed the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act.
          Signed the Harry W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act, to provide support.
          Signed the VA Choice and Quality Employment Act of 2017 to authorize $2.1 billion in additional funds for the Veterans Choice Program.
          Created a VA hotline.
          Had the VA launch an online “Access and Quality Tool,” providing veterans with a way to access wait time and quality of care data.
          With VA Secretary Dr. David Shulkin, announced three initiatives to expand access to healthcare for veterans using telehealth technology.
          Promoting peace through strength

          Directed the rebuilding of the military and ordered a new national strategy and nuclear posture review.
          Worked to increase defense spending.
          Empowered military leaders to “seize the initiative and win,” reducing the need for a White House sign off on every mission.
          Directed the revival of the National Space Council to develop space war strategies.
          Elevated U.S. Cyber Command into a major warfighting command.
          Withdrew from the U.N. Global Compact on Migration, which Trump saw as a threat to borders.
          Imposed a travel ban on nations that lack border and anti-terrorism security.
          Saw ISIS lose virtually all of its territory.
          Pushed for strong action against global outlaw North Korea and its development of nuclear weapons.
          Announced a new Afghanistan strategy that strengthens support for U.S. forces at war with terrorism.
          NATO increased support for the war in Afghanistan.
          Approved a new Iran strategy plan focused on neutralizing the country’s influence in the region.
          Ordered missile strikes against a Syrian airbase used in a chemical weapons attack.
          Prevented subsequent chemical attacks by announcing a plan to detect them better and warned of future strikes if they were used.
          Ordered new sanctions on the dictatorship in Venezuela.
          Restoring confidence in and respect for America

          Trump won the release of Americans held abroad, often using his personal relationships with world leaders.
          Made good on a campaign promise to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
          Conducted a historic 12-day trip through Asia, winning new cooperative deals. On the trip, he attended three regional summits to promote American interests.
          He traveled to the Middle East and Europe to build new relationships with leaders.
          Traveled to Poland and on to Germany for the G-20 meeting where he pushed again for funding of women entrepreneurs.

          1. Alan, Trump’s only legislative achievement was that tax cut that surged the deficit. Republican pollsters discovered that public opinion on said tax cut was such that it wasn’t worth campaigning on in the 2018 midterms. That was, in fact, the reason Trump pivoted back to immigration during the midterm season; pollsters told him the tax cuts were a dud with voters.

            1. Peter, there is no end to your foolishness. I posted a number of things to Natacha and have posted loads of things over and over again. You refuse to deal with any facts because you don’t have the ability. OK, we know what you are. A partisan know nothing.

              1. Alan, Trump’s tax cuts were in the news today:
                ………………………………………………………………..

                Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Tex.), a lead architect of the GOP tax bill, suggested Tuesday the tax cuts may not fully pay for themselves, contradicting a promise Republicans made repeatedly while pushing the law in late 2017.

                Pressed about what portion of the tax cuts were fully paid for, Brady said it was “hard to know.”

                “We will know in year 8, 9 or 10 what revenues it brought in to the government over time. So it’s way too early to tell,” said Brady at the Peterson Foundation’s annual Fiscal Summit in Washington D.C.

                The federal government’s deficit typically shrinks during strong economic times, but the deficit is up nearly 40 percent so far this fiscal year, according to the latest Congressional Budget Office report released Friday.

                Spending is up $255 billion for the first eight months of the fiscal year, the CBO said, while revenues are up only $49 billion. Corporate tax receipts are down after Republicans enacted the largest reduction in business taxes in U.S. history. Individual income taxes are basically flat this year (they are growing less than the rate of inflation). Most of the revenue increase is coming from President Trump’s tariffs and more payroll taxes, which were not cut in the tax bill.

                “Revenue fell, it didn’t rise, after the tax cuts,” said Marc Goldwein, senior policy director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

                Brady’s comments are a marked departure from the claim many Republicans made during the tax bill debate that the tax cuts would be fully paid for by additional economic growth that would, in turn, spur additional tax revenues for government coffers.

                Numerous independent analyses concluded that the tax bill would add substantially to the U.S. debt, which currently stands at $22 trillion. CBO estimated the total cost of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is $1.9 trillion — after taking into account additional growth and interest payments.

                Edited from: “GOP Leader Concedes Tax Cuts May Not Pay For Themselves As 2019 Deficit Grows”

                Today’s Washington Post

                1. Define what ‘pays for itself’ means.

                  I assume you know the difference between “may not fully pay” and will not pay. He isn’t certain. There are certain mechanics in making these calculations that are used that completely distort the numbers. I am not going to waste my time explaining them to you especially since we discussed months ago on numerous occasions and I even posted some economic articles explaining the problem.

                  The most important thing was to move the economy forward and reduce or stop the bleeding where jobs left the country. That was a success. The lower earners that need the most got good tax breaks, bonus’s and salary increases.

                  You can remain ignorant. When the garbage in LA reaches your block don’t complain.

          2. Trump cannot take credit for the economy or anything related to the economy. You can thank Barak Obama for that, so it eliminates most of your list. As to rolling back environmental protections and pandering to the polluters, again, this was not done by working with Congress, and is contrary to the will of the American people. Unilaterally signing “executive orders” is NO accomplishment. It requires NO skill. He has NO strategy and no agenda except to garner attention for himself which requires pandering to Republicans. None of the things you cite in this regard constitutes an achievement because a chimpanzee could do the same if you handed it a sharpie. Always a Sharpie, because it makes a bigger signature, commensurate with the big-shot signing the “executive order”.

            Moving the embassy to Jerusalem, which Palestinians also claim as their religious center is no achievement. It pisses off Muslims because it appears that the US is siding with Israel and against Palestine, which also has a right to be there. Israel is constantly creeping into Palestinian territory and trying to assert itself over the Palestinian people Who wanted this, anyway and how does moving the embassy advance US interests? In fact, it does not. Constructing a building constitutes no achievement because it is an unilateral action.

            Except in his own mind, he has no personal charisma or ability to interact positively with world leaders. as proven by Kim Jong Un proceeding with nuclear missile testing after Trump supposedly got them to capitulate to him They tolerate him and mock him like everyone else. He is NO master deal-maker. He is an arrogant bully who thinks he can push around other world leaders. For instance: the promise that Mexico would pay to construct the wall. The lie about some “new” deal with Mexico. Mexico denies there is any such new deal.

            As to nominating judges, he doesn’t know any of them personally, and didn’t “win” anything. You can thank your bitch Mitch McConnell for that. Fatty just went along for the ride.

            Signing Acts passed by Congress is likewise no “achievement”. These were not his ideas, and he has no respect for the military, as shown by his conduct at Normandy. He is a coward and draft-dodger, and is only signing laws created by Congress to use for campaigning purposes. BTW: how many Acts passed by Congress has he ignored, anyway?

            As to abortions, did you know that the NDA with Stormy Daniels contained an abortion clause? This is just pandering to the Evangelicals to get them to the polls. The overwhelming majority of Americans support a woman’s right to choose. This is no accomplishment.

            How does “ordering” missile strikes constitute an “achievement”? Another unilateral action that requires no negotiating or strategy skill. Al of the so-called “new relationships” and “cooperative deals” are also delusional. Where are such “deals” published, anyway? Just like the alleged “new deal” with Mexico, they don’t exist. Attending summits is likewise meaningless. He has no strategy, other than getting his fat ass in front of a camera and pretending to be an important person.

            You are just as delusional as he is if you think that fat slob “restored confidence in and respect for America”. Everyone knows he is a malignant narcissist. He made a fool of himself and his cheap wife and dumb adult children in England.

            This so-called list of accomplishments is a nothing burger, but is a preview of the campaign lying to come.

            1. You can thank Barak Obama for that,

              You’re gonna have to show your work, sweetheart.

              2. I don’t know, you could start by reading economic reports, there Tabby. It is undisputed that Barak Obama turned around the economy trashed by Bush, but the positive trajectory he created is flattening. And what, exactly, did Fatty do specifically that he personally can take credit for vis a vis the economy? Just because he is stinking up the White House when the economy is doing well does not mean he gets credit.

                1. It is undisputed that Barak Obama turned around the economy trashed by Bush,

                  No, it is undisputed by people who are economic illiterates. That’s you Natacha.

            2. “Trump cannot take credit for the economy ”

              Sure he can. Obama admitted one would need a magic wand to get the economy running like Trump. I guess that means Trump has the magic wand.

              The rest of your stuff isn’t worth reading much less responding to since it doesn’t matter what the proof is. You hate Trump so nothing he does can be good according to you. One can’t deal with your type of person so unless you wish to stay on one topic and explain the magic wand I’ll skip the rest.

              1. Alan, let’s see that quote where Obama admitted he’d ‘need a magic wand to get the economy running like Trump’.

                1. You can look for it yourself along with all of Obama’s comments about the new order of things where Americans would have to learn to live with less and maybe the pacemaker can be replaced with drugs along with the administrations dependence on the stupidity of the American voter in order to pass the ACA.

                  In the past I was will to discuss these things but you run away each time so it is ridiculous to spend anytime searching for what you don’t know.

                2. Here ya go:
                  “The president declined to invoke the real estate mogul’s full name, saying that he would let Trump “do his advertising for him.”

                  But Obama criticized Trump’s claims that he could use his business acumen to spur economic growth and tackle other complex issues.

                  “He just says, ‘I’m gonna negotiate a better deal.’ Well how? How exactly are you going to negotiate that?” Obama said during the town hall portion of the event. “What magic wand do you have? And usually the answer is, he doesn’t have an answer.””

                  https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-live-president-obamas-town-hall-in-elkhart-indiana

                  1. Thanks Prarie. I decided not to waste any more time providing things the jokers don’t know about. I will let them remain ignorant. I’m glad you provided the quote so Peter can see that what I said existed.

                  2. Prairie, that quot doesn’t say what Allan pretends it does. Obama is accurately describing Trump’s claimed ability to make great deals. So far he’s only ended difficult and beneficial deals negotiated by Obama and made none of any major importance. Except for the sugar rush from tax cuts that we’ll pay for later, the economy is a continuation of what is now the longest running expansion since WWII, and which began under Obama.

                    1. Obama is essentially saying that Trump can do no better than Obama and he has stated similar statements over and over again with and without the magic wand reference.

                      Jobs and the economy are tightly related. Obama failed at both. Trump succeeded at both. Government statistics have proven both time and time again. The fools wish to prove otherwise so they pick at the margins while the economy drastically improves.

                      We have to learn to live with the ignorance and arrogance Anon provides.

                    2. “We looked at Bureau of Labor Statistics data for monthly increases in employment for a pair of two-year periods: Jan. 20, 2015, to Jan. 20, 2017, (Obama’s final two years) and Jan. 20, 2017, to Jan. 20, 2019 (Trump’s first two years).

                      Dowd is correct that Obama’s average monthly increase was higher, though not by very much — an increase of 210,291 jobs per month for Obama over that period, compared to an increase of 205,720 per month for Trump. That’s an edge of about 2 percent for Obama.”

                      https://www.politifact.com/punditfact/statements/2019/mar/13/matthew-dowd/did-obamas-final-years-beat-trump-jobs-stock-value/

                      Since then Trump’s job numbers have declined.

                      “New government data show that Trump, too, has failed to reach the 3 percent promised land, according to one major metric.
                      The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis measured 2018 growth at 2.9 percent, matching the peak Obama enjoyed in 2015.
                      For the rest of the president’s term, economic forecasters agree, that number will decline.”

                      https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/28/trumps-economic-policies-failed-to-deliver-promised-3percent-growth-in-2018.html

                    3. Anon, one has to compare apples to apples and oranges to oranges. The information you provided stinks. You don’t have the slightest idea of what meaningful numbers are.

                      Here is the U6 comparing Obama’s last year excluding the election to Trump’s first year. These numbers that are not conflated demonstrate exactly what has happened.

                      2016 Obama 9.9 9.7 9.8 9.7 9.7 9.6 9.7 9.7 9.7 9.5
                      2017 Trump 9.4 9.2 8.9 8.6 8.4 8.6 8.6 8.6 8.3 7.9

                      Obama U 6 fell .4 compared to Trump’s 1.5

                      Based on logic and history if Obama was doing a good job his numbers under normal circumstances had to be better but they worse Trump more tripled the decline.

                      Obama’s increase in employment should have occurred years earlier. It didn’t because he didn’t have the magic wand.

                    4. I gave jobs added. The U-6 rate follows the U-3 rate and both have been declining since the beginning of our recovery.

                      Allan is cherry picking one year, when trump has been in office for 2, so an accurate comparison would include both years.

                      Obama Jan 2015-Dec 2016 11.3 – 9.2 Change = 2.1 points
                      Trump Jan 2017- Dec 2018 9.3 – 7.6 Change = 1.7 points

                      https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS13327709

                    5. Stupidity reigns in the world of Anon. When there is a tremendous loss of jobs the recovery demonstrates a tremendous gain in jobs. That didn’t happen very quickly with Obama. Once what is considered zero unemployment is reached the numbers can’t drop anymore. That is one reason one has to look at the last year of Obama and the first year of Trump. But you don’t know that so you make stupid comments instead.

            3. “Trump cannot take credit for the economy or anything related to the economy.” Citation. Reasoning.

              One of the things I love about the internet is its permanence. We can go back in time and read how in 2016 the media was pitying whoever took over the White House with such low growth.

              https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/obama-trump-booming-economy/

              For eight years, President Obama presided over the worst economic recovery in modern times. For six years, he blamed Republicans in Congress for thwarting his spending agenda and hampering growth. In his last two years in office, he claimed that 2% growth was the best we could hope for. And in his last year in office, while the economy was again stalling out, Obama claimed that Trump’s tax cuts and deregulation would only make things worse.

              But now that we’re in the midst of a booming economy — which kicked in after Trump reversed almost all Obama’s economic policies — we’re supposed to believe that it’s Obama who deserves all the credit.

              Yep. That’s precisely what Obama and his Amen Chorus in the press want us to believe.

              Hassett explained that small business optimism had been on the decline before the November 2016 election. The percentage of businesses saying it’s a good time to expand was, too. Business investment was stagnant. All those turned upward starting in 2017. Applications for new businesses are now well above the trend over Obama’s entire second term, Hassett noted. And blue-collar jobs are growing faster than any time since the Reagan administration.

              Turnaround on GDP Growth

              There’s more. The rate of GDP growth was decelerating in Obama’s last year. It went from 2.3% in Q2, to 1.9% in Q3 to 1.8% in Q4 of 2016. Under Trump, GDP growth has averaged 2.9%. It was 4.2% last quarter and might be higher in the current one.

              The stock market also was stuck in neutral the year before the November 2016 elections. The Dow is up by some 45% since then.

              Real median family income didn’t budge from August 2015 to November 2016, according to Sentier Research. It’s up more than 4% since Trump came into office. Wages are on the upswing.

              In Obama’s last year, unemployment rate remained basically unchanged — it was 4.9% in Jan 2016, and 4.8% when Trump took office in Jan. 2017. Now it’s down to 3.9%

              We could go on.

              Meanwhile, the same reporters now patting Obama on the back for today’s strong economy were reporting in late 2016 about how — as The New York Times put it — “the underlying reality of low growth will haunt whoever wins the White House.”

              1. “Still not convinced Trump deserves credit for the current booming economy? Consider that a survey of 68 business, financial and academic economists by The Wall Street Journal at the start of this year found that most believed Trump’s policies would boost the economy, while the same group had said Obama’s policies were a drag on long-term growth. Ninety percent said Trump’s tax cuts would accelerate growth.

                It is what the left would, in another context, call a “scientific consensus.””

                1. Uh, Karen, no one disagrees that writing a hot check for $1 trillion will “stimulate” the economy. Trouble is, it’s effect is dying off and our grand kids will be stuck with the bill.

              2. Uh, no one outside of your right wing circles were worrying about whoever took over the – at that point – 2nd longest period of growth since WWII, not the period in which we outpaced the recoveries of all but Germany – which was neck and neck with us – in what was a worldwide recession and in America the worst since 1929. As I demonstrated above Trump has not kept up with Obama on jobs and is about even on GDP growth even after writing one of the biggest hot checks in our history to his kids and rich buddies. Your grandkids will be paying that off.

                1. Anon is the type of fellow that believes only what he wants to believe and pretends that everything shown to him was never shown. He’s a liar.

            4. funny thing, we all exist today because our moms didnt have abortions

          3. Allan,
            I haven’t paid much attention to what the Democrat candidates have been saying. Do you know if any of them have identified even a general plan for anything other than improving the security and well-being of illegal immigrants and the opposite for the unborn?

            1. The Democrats are stuck and if they could say it they would say ‘Trump stole all the good ideas’.

              1. This is a list of top issues for voters identified in a Gallup poll just before the midterms. At the very least, certainly Democrats would be all over issues consuming the attention of 2/3’s of respondents. We’d see bills proposed, debate, town halls and so on, proving to the American people that they care about the same things as their constituents. So what have the Democrats focused on, but of course, the least important item on the list. Why is that?:

                Extremely/Very important %
                Healthcare 80
                The economy 78
                Immigration 78
                Way women are treated in U.S. society 74
                Gun policy 72
                Taxes 70
                Foreign affairs 68
                Way income and wealth are distributed in the U.S. 68
                The recent confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court 64
                U.S. trade and tariff policies 61
                Climate change 53
                Investigation into Russian involvement in the 2016 U.S. election 45

                1. Olly, what we are dealing with is an ignorant group of people. I understand that they might have different beliefs and prefer different things but the one’s we are dealing with here have little or no aptitude in dealing with social interaction and virtually no understanding of the basic form of our government or what socialism is.

                  Ignorance predominates and one cannot even have a debate because they are so sure of their faith based ideology that they don’t even need facts or proof.

            2. Olly:

              Sure. There are reparations, The Green New Deal, Socialism, Free college for all, forgiveness of student loans, and impeach Trump.

              You know, everything required to impoverish the entire country.

              1. Thanks Karen. Your list and the two I mentioned are some very extreme positions to be running on. So extreme in fact that they might not be intended to be the winning strategy. Democrats are very good at operating as a collective. I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if they aren’t purposely planting this crazy flag so far left that any candidate of theirs not out there will appear palatable. Tulsi Gabbard comes to mind.

    2. “Gaslighters/narcissists create an enemy and crisis, then “solve” that same crisis.”

      You are describing an unfortunate percentage of our duly elected representatives/presidents for the past 50 years at least, particularly the last 20 or so years.

  7. “the tree ( like relations with France) has died in quarantine”).
    There is a segment in this short video clip that shows why U.S.- Franco relations have been icy fir generations.
    https://youtu.be/_KgHy3Pi5Yw

  8. Charles Martel rolls in his grave at bumbling fools like Macron

    Trump has a thousand times more the Frankish spirit than Macron

  9. Oh, come on, they killed the tree?!

    First, allowing it to be planted in the first place negates the entire point of quarantine. Any pests it might have carried, like the beetles that cause oak wilt, would have had the chance to spread already.

    We should have learned to be more careful after human movement managed to spread Bd around almost the entire world, which is what’s been killing all the frogs.

    Do quarantine, or do not, but do not try.

    1. There are root pathogens, such as fungus, that are decimating some European trees.

      There is another fungus that may eventually destroy every single plane tree in France, including those lining the Canal du Midi. American WWII munitions boxes made out of plane wood have been blamed, which means the fungus has been slowly spreading for a good, long, time.

      I remember in my microbio class, we learned how sometimes the most deadly organisms on Earth aren’t the cool species, like Smilodon. They are the ones too tiny to see and hard to fight. The Bd bacteria is the culprit killing most of the world’s frogs. The media isn’t really talking about it, but many amphibians in the entire world might die. The cause was this fungus that hitched a ride along with humans – on their shoes, tires, soil, plants, etc. As we traveled around the world, we accidentally spread this fungus that wipes out amphibians across species, at a rate described as apocalyptical. It reminds me of how we accidentally spread rats to the New World, and Small pox, and how Syphillus traveled to Europe.

      You know how they always say that medical ethics need to catch up with the times and modern discoveries? How we also need to figure out if social media is the public square or a private club? All that is nothing compared to an existential problem we might be too late to prevent – what are the unintended consequences of the world travel that we now cannot do without? After all, there is no way to remove the Bd fungus once it’s in the ground. You could burn an entire forest to the ground, and the fungus would survive in the soil. So, what can we do about it? We’ve been traveling the globe, albeit somewhat slower, for centuries. We’ve already introduced rabbits to Australia, boar in the US, rats to the US, etc.

      We are speeding up processes that were a part of evolution on a much slower, adaptable scale. Birds used to distribute seeds in their droppings to far away places, spreading plants that began as alien invasives, adapted, and eventually we considered them natives. Finches used to be an invasive species in the Galapagos. This spread is part of evolution. Endemic species either adapt or perish. But it’s happening faster now, and at a tremendous scale.

      https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-15305048

      https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/03/bd-frogs-apocalypse-disease/585862/

      1. Lo and behold. Deep State killed the French oak tree. So says you know who. Apparently it’s obvious. Who else would kill the French oak tree, if not the Dread Deep State?????

  10. Free Speech Still Exists In U S..

    Only Because Trump Lacks Power To Quash It

    With regards to free speech, Trump’s endless references to ‘fake news’ makes us all wonder how free our speech would be if Trump had any say. One suspects that Trump would close the entire mainstream media if he had that authority. Thank God he doesn’t!

    1. Free Speech Still Exists In U S.. Only Because Trump Lacks Power To Quash It

      As always, Peter, no one can figure out if you know nothing or you figure the rest of us know nothing.

      1. Tabby, with a razor sharp retort like that you create legitimate doubt about which camp Trumpers inhabit. The random reader might forgive P H for making the assumptions you allude to.

    2. One suspects that Trump would close the entire mainstream media if he had that authority.

      That’s called projection. Let me know if he informs the world We can’t wait for Congress to do its job, so where they won’t act, I will. Then we’ll keep an eye on his pen and phone.

    3. “Free Speech Still Exists In U S.. Only Because Trump Lacks Power To Quash It”

      What a stupid comment. Trump has been one of the most Transparent Presidents ever along with permitting freedom of speech from the newsmedia without spying on them like Obama whose Administration permitted spying on American citizens including members of the newsmedia.

      You would like to remove freedom of speech. Trump has a right to voice his opinion. What news media has he closed down? Provide the most important example.

      1. Alan, you border on self-parody here.

        ‘The Most Transparent President Ever’ who absolutely refuses to show his tax returns. It’s ‘none of our business’, of course. We shouldn’t expect the president to show us where his conflicts are.

        1. Peter, it is foolish for you to believe that any Presidential candidate or President has released everything people want to know. Yet you seem to believe that Trump should be the only one to do so.

          Take note how many times you have brought up his tax returns. It is the number one feature of your arguments yet he has no obligation to release his taxes. But, some forms were illegally released and had no effect. He’s been investigated everytime he wanted to build a building or a casino along with other adventures. Why do you think these investigations are worth looking into and only his taxes are.

          Tell us what you think you will find in his IRS forms that have not already been released and are of significance? Tell us where on the IRS form that would belong. You can’t because you are just asking for his tax forms because you have nothing else to complain about. I doubt there is anything on his tax forms of significance that hasn’t been released in his books and in all the other investigations.

          Why don’t you ask for Obama’s education records. They will show things of much greater importance and perhaps pertinance. The voter knew all about Trump’s harsh edges long before he ever became a candidate, but not so with Obama.

          1. Alan, Trump tax returns might show us ‘who’ he partners with. That could very enlightening. Their names might end with sky’s and ov’s.

            1. “Alan, Trump tax returns might show us ‘who’ he partners with. That could very enlightening. Their names might end with sky’s and ov’s.”

              A lot of Jews live in the US and have names that end with certain letters indicating Russian and eastern European origins. Are you anti-Semitic?

              Where on the form does it state all his partnerships? It might state some but partnerships and corporations are legal entities that are already registered in government agencies and fill out their own tax forms. They are already disclosed. Tax returns aren’t needed for that information. Next?

              Additionally, all you find out is a corporate name already known. What you are really asking for is an investigation several layers deep into every company Trump ever had dealings with. You want names looking for Jews or perhaps other Russians and when you find names that sound suspicious in your mind you want all their records released and the records of everyone associated with them. In that process you will find a lot of Jewish names and Russian names, but you will also find Lopez’s, Garcia’s and Sanchez’s. You are the one that yells at anyone who trys to keep out an illegal whose last name might be Lopez. You sound like the worst form of racist and dictator one can think of. I don’t think that is true and believe it is your own foolishness that paints such a picture.

        2. We shouldn’t expect the president to show us where his conflicts are.

          So you’re interested in conflicts. With this president? Did you have the same concern with previous presidents? What about congress? Judiciary? Why not with everyone working within the government? What should we be looking for that reflects a conflict?

          Trump’s a businessman with international interests. And he’s not the only person inside government with international interests. If congress passes a law or regulations are changed that is good for business and good for our country, does that mean Trump’s interests, members of congress, and/or any other individual working within government must not benefit? And if they do, how would you determine a conflict if no laws were violated?

          1. Olly, cabinet appointees must submit their tax returns and pass FBI background checks. Background checks are routine for any White House employee. So it’s not unreasonable to expect a presidential nominee to show his tax returns. It’s unreasonable to think that’s unreasonable.

          1. This type of censorship seems to work with people like Peter because over and over again he demonstrates that he doesn’t know what is going on.

      2. Allan: the “most Transparent President” won’t allow current or former members of his campaign, staff or administration respond to a Congressional subpoena for either testimony or documents.

        Everything Trump touches, dies: a French oak tree, dignity for the office of POTUS, integrity of a President, respect for the United States of America, respect for women, minorities and the Constitution, respect for the rule of law, respect for the truth, even respect for the honored dead at the Normandy cemetery.

        BTW: for you Trumpsters out there: did you see the House Judiciary Committee meeting yesterday? Probably not, and because Hannity won’t report this, I will: The Mueller investigation was triggered by George Papadopoulos bragging to an Australian diplomat that Wikileaks had hacked HRC’s e-mail account and was going to release sensitive e-mails. The so-called “Steele Dossier” was not the triggering event, so Karen, you can stop harping about this because it’s not the truth. In fact, the Mueller report even says so.

        1. Natacha, there was a multi year investigation and it found nothing. You like to make a nuisance of yourself so you think that is one of Congress’s jobs. It isn’t and Congress has no right to supoena people over and over again. Just because Trump didn’t claim executive priviledge with Mueller doesn’t mean he can’t claim it now to protect the nation from the crazyness of Democrats who still haven’t recognized the loss of an election.

          John Dean seems to be the left’s major witness, a CNN paid operator and one who has been convicted and to this day continues to blame every Republican administration. The Democrats aren’t going to change until they lose in 2020. In the meantime criminal prosecution seems to be in the horizon for some of the people that worked under the Obama administration.

          1. The “multi-year” investigation found plenty, which you would know if you read the Mueller report and didn’t depend on Hannity, Faux News and Rush Limbaugh for your information. There were 10 discrete instances of obstruction of justice, all laid out in the report, and which Joyce Vance described yesterday, including telling Don McGhan to fire Mueller, then telling him to create a false document to cover up this order, and lastly, telling him to lie about it. Not only does Congress have the right to follow up on what Mueller found, he expected it to do so because his hands were tied by DOJ policy.

            I know you are a Faux News disciple because you keep repeating their mantra: the Democrats are going to lose, Obama, Hillary, Loretta Lynch, et al are all going to prison. It’s sad, really, but you can’t say Fatty didn’t go down fighting.

            1. “The “multi-year” investigation found plenty”

              Plenty? Then you can list a few with proof.

              1. READ THE MUELLER REPORT. I can’t add anything to it, and wouldn’t try to anyway. It speaks for itself.

                1. You are right. The Mueller Report speaks for itself. Trump was not involved in conspiracy or obstruction. However, the rest of the investigation is being completed following all the other trails of the Russia investigation and they are finding a lot of pro Hillary fingers in the pot.

                  I suggest you go back to pulling the horse carts around Central Park. You already have your blinders on.

                  1. The person pretending she’s read the report is also the person who pretends to be a lawyer.

        2. If you believe that Mueller is not a full blooded swamp creature, I have a very nice bridge in Brooklyn you might be interested in buying. I don’t blame anyone, including the Trumps, for telling Nadler the Nazi that his tax returns are none of anyone’s f***ing business. Why don’t you post YOURS on here?

    4. “one suspects” does not validate your false accusation against Trump that he would do any such thing

      keep in mind he’s a man that made his brand using the mass media.

      maybe he’s got a more sophisticated understanding of it than you suspect

      1. Aw but Kurtz, I get confused. When the president routinely refers to accurate news stories as ‘fake news’, one can only assume the worst. Am I being cynical? You see there’s a learning curve with Trump. Half of what he says is false or misleading. So trying to gauge his sincerity, on any given day, is a challenge like no other.

        1. refers to accurate news stories

          There’s a difference between ‘accurate’ and ’emotionally satisfying to Peter’.

        2. Peter – I have posted numerous examples of the press selectively editing video to give a different meaning to the result. Then there was the Russian hoax. That’s fraud, not accuracy.

          1. Karen, I have never seen you post anything from a recognizable source.

            1. Well, let’s see, I’ve posted from Pew, Gallup, NPR, HuffPo, CNN, Politifact, various .edu and .gov sites…I usually provide a range of sources from both Left, middle, and Right.

              Which you’ve been told before.

              Which means you are not being accurate, now.

          2. Karen, the complete transcripts of your supposed examples of press distortion are available from numerous MSM sources. Beyond the fact that you selectively edit them to make them palatable to you, the press, by doing that, is providing accurate and complete information., just as they did all the negative news about Hillary’s email and stolen DNC emails.

            You like to cal the truth fake news because you can’t handle the truth.

            What is the “Russian hoax” you reference?

            2. Anon the MSM does not report a lot of the information obtained by Judicial Watch.

              For example how much of the information in this article did the MSM reveal to the public and where.

              FBI Helped Hillary Clinton Just Before 2016 Election!
              https://www.judicialwatch.org/press-room/weekly-updates/deep-state-cash-for-bruce-ohr/

              Or this:
              Tom Fitton: Deep State Covered-Up Illicit Clinton Emails Found in Obama WH & Targeted Trump
              https://www.judicialwatch.org/press-room/in-the-news/tom-fitton-deep-state-covered-up-illicit-clinton-emails-found-in-obama-wh-to-target-trump/

            3. Anon – I actually did post links to the entire transcripts, as well as entire videos, before. Numerous times.

              Which you know.

              Which means you are not being accurate.

        3. Peter, you keep saying the same thing but you are unwilling to point out the most significant lies along with the proof. When you have tried you failed and couldn’t respond.

          This is the typical leftist attitude on the blog. “Trump lies” “How does he lie?” “I don’t know but he lies” “Show me” and at that the discussion ends.

            1. Good grief! You quote the Washington Compost as a reference for anything more than the stench of rotting flounder? How about the tooth fairy while you’re at it?

              1. Matt, I’m sure you’re fine with InfoWars. Stick to what you know.

        4. trying to gauge any public official’s level of sincerity is a waste of effort. and when it comes to sincerity he has gobs more of it than the average pol. that should be very clear.

          sincerity and accuracy and verbal rigor are all three different things.

          1. Kurtz, turn in your human card. If you can’t tell this guy is a lying grifter who is incapable of “sincerity” there is no hope for you in social interactions.

            1. my aim was never just to be a card carrying human.

              “”I teach you the overman. Man is something that shall be overcome. What have you done to overcome him?
              All beings so far have created something beyond themselves; and do you want to be the ebb of this great flood and even go back to the beasts rather than overcome man? What is the ape to man? A laughingstock or a painful embarrassment. And man shall be just that for the overman: a laughingstock or a painful embarrassment…
              Behold, I teach you the overman. The overman is the meaning of the earth.Let your will say: the overman shall be the meaning of the earth! I beseech you, my brothers, remain faithful to the earth, and do not believe those who speak to you of otherworldly hopes! Poison-mixers are they, whether they know it or not. Despisers of life are they, decaying and poisoned themselves, of whom the earth is weary: so let them go.
              Once the sin against God was the greatest sin; but God died, and these sinners died with him. To sin against the earth is now the most dreadful thing, and to esteem the entrails of the unknowable higher than the meaning of the earth…
              What is the greatest experience you can have? It is the hour of the great contempt. The hour when your happiness, too, arouses your disgust, and even your reason and your virtue.
              The hour when you say, ‘What matters my happiness? It is poverty and filth and wretched contentment. But my happiness ought to justify existence itself.’
              The hour when you say, ‘What matters my reason? Does it crave knowledge as the lion his food? It is poverty and filth and wretched contentment.’
              The hour when you say, ‘What matters my virtue? As yet it has not made me rage. How weary I am of my good and my evil! All that is poverty and filth and wretched contentment.’
              “Man is a rope, tied between beast and overman–a rope over an abyss…
              What is great in man is that he is a bridge and not an end: what can be loved in man is that he is an overture and a going under…

              “I say unto you: one must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star. I say unto you: you still have chaos in yourselves.”

        5. The reason we elected President Trump is because the country NEEDS an ass kicking, no BS, NYC builder who gets things done instead of a bunch of posturing political whores like those in past administrations

    5. Peter – is it Republicans or Democrats who harass students on campus and their invited guest speakers because they disagree with their speech? Who declares that opposing opinion is unsafe? Who presses charges and tries to destroy someone’s business because they don’t personally choose to participate in a wedding? Who declares that if you don’t use the appropriate pronoun from a possible list of 75 choices, based on what a person suffering from the mental illness gender dysphoria, then it’s hate speech? Who is known to try to drown out speech with shouting? Who surrounds unpopular professors like Jordan Peterson and try to shout him down so he can’t be heard? Who chased Candice Owens from a restaurant, threw bottles of water at her head, screamed in her face, blew whistles in her face, because they don’t like her speech? Who physically assaults or verbally assaults people just for walking down the street wearing clothing in support of a political party and President? Who is known for defacing lawn signs in support of same? Which party is proven to statistically be more likely to unfriend family and friends who have different political views? Which party has assaulted the First, Second, and Fourth Amendment, and passed laws that destroy the Constitutional Electoral College?

      It’s not the Republican Party. The Democrat Party is a threat to the First Amendment.

      Trump has bitterly criticized the media, you know, the ones who selectively edit his statements to reverse their true meaning. He’s talked about extending libel laws to public figures.

      What he has not done is scream in anyone’s face to prevent them from talking, threatened any Constituional amendment, or prevented anyone from saying anything they want. If he did, then we wouldn’t be up to our eyeballs in anti-Trump propaganda in the news and online.

      Trump sends rude Tweets. He’s not the anti-Christ.

      You know what we’re seeing? When Democrats lost the election, they turned to other means to force their will upon voters. They have tried on one scandal after another to see if anything will work in an attempt to get him out of office. Anti-Semite! No? Fine, racist! No? Fine, Russia Manchurian candidate! No? Fine, then he obstructed the investigation into the crime he didn’t commit!

      We have an election every 4 years. Stop trying these coups and just vote like everyone else.

  11. (If in fact the words “cheese puffs” have been deleted from comments, I wanted to provide an alternative)

  13. If France fulfilled its financial obligations to NATO that might be better recieved than a tree. Such an act would demonstrate true friendship and alliance because instead of the US picking up Frances arrearages France would be doing it on its own.

  14. O.T but important: Don’t think your govt. can conspire across all branches and w/private people to deny justice (to Assange and many others), think again. “although Moro was legally required to judge the case as a neutral arbiter. Other documents include private admissions among the prosecutors that the evidence proving Lula’s guilt was lacking. Overall, the documents depict a task force of prosecutors seemingly intent on exploiting its legal powers for blatantly political ends, led by its goal of preventing a return to power of the Workers’ Party generally, and Lula specifically.” see Glenn Greenwald’s twitter for this full story based on secret documents, tapes etc. which prove the conspiracy.

    The US, France, UK, Sweden and Ecuador all show their hand as well. Those two Macronies don’t need some poor tree to die so they can show their “friendship” (mutual use of each other). It shows in both men’s crushing of dissent against injustice.

  15. This has been standard agricultural procedure for a long time. Check out the history of Japanese cherry trees given to the US, just one example of many. Plant pests & diseases are a big $$ deal and Macron should have known better. That tree should have been seized as soon as it came off the plane. Search for books: Plant Hunters.

    1. Macron is, comment dit-on? Un petit bonhomme.

      Doesn’t mean a good man except literally; colloquially means a good fellow, sort of a goof.

  17. Get another tree and plant it in a spot nearby the one this tree had been planted in for a day or so. Put the name France on it. Vive le free speech.

  18. How does one say “petty” in French?

    Si vous aimiez la vie autant que la liberté d’expression, vous seriez une voix efficace dans un forum public par ailleurs cacophonique.

    C’est dommage

    2. Crystal Meth cut with talc, sand and aspirin?

      Popular method of payment for trolls

      1. Inside the rightwing bubble, references to crystal meth, in relation to liberals, is about the funniest joke one can offer. Among Trumpers this joke is the guaranteed knee-slapper that ‘never’ gets old. What’s more, the idea that crystal meth users can sit still long enough to comment on Turley blog is an absolute laugh riot!

        But outside the rightwing bubble, this joke sounds like the humor of nerdy losers. Which bolsters that old saying that, ‘Comedy Doesn’t Travel’.

  20. The protocol officers of the French government made a formal offering of a diseased tree which they didn’t bother to place in quarantine before it was given. How long before one of our regulars here blames the President?

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