ROOKIE MISTAKES

Let's lead with something funny today, eh?

http://www.newyorker.com/humor/borowitz-report/trump-warns-that-companies-shipping-jobs-overseas-will-be-slapped-with-enormous-bribes
Trump Warns That Companies Shipping Jobs Overseas Will Be Slapped with Enormous Bribes

Now the serious business. Trump doesn't have a full foreign policy team together yet, and he's not talking with Obama's people -- so he's making and taking these phone calls with international leaders with NO IDEA what he is getting into

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/12/02/world/100000004801945.mobile.html

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/12/02/1606425/-Trump-s-invite-to-British-PM-Hey-lemee-know-when-you-re-here-and-others-tales-of-diplomatic-woe

More: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/12/03/donald-trump-keeps-confirming-fears-about-his-diplomatic-skills/?utm_term=.4bfd5670a0eb
Donald Trump keeps confirming fears about his diplomatic skills

http://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/donald-trumps-first-alarming-week-as-president-elect
Donald Trump’s First, Alarming Week as President-Elect

The Taiwan call. Not an accident, not a good idea

http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2016/12/trumps-taiwan-call-was-no-accident
A phone call between Donald Trump and Taiwan's leader that risks damaging relations between the U.S. and China was pre-arranged . . .

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/12/why-trumps-taiwan-call-risks-a-diplomatic-disaster.html
China has lodged an official diplomatic protest with the U.S. following an alarming and unprecedented phone call between President-elect Donald Trump and Taiwan’s president Tsai Ing-wen . . .

The Cesspool: http://crooksandliars.com/2016/12/donald-trump-isnt-draining-swamp-he-swamp
The mayor of Taoyuan confirmed rumors on Wednesday that US president-elect Donald Trump was considering constructing a series of luxury hotels and resorts in the northwest Taiwanese city. . . .

Is Jared Kushner, Trump's son in law, trying to turn his "NY Observer" into a Breitbart clone?

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/12/02/1606426/-Jared-Kushner-s-newspaper-tries-its-hand-at-the-Breitbart-thing

Kellyanne Conway gets on the fake news bandwagon: the mainstream media produces fake news too

http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/01/politics/kellyanne-conway-robby-mook-fake-news-harvard/

The Republicans are saying now they don't want to "cut" Medicare, they just want to "change" it. How stupid do they think we are?

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/key-house-chairman-gop-will-change-medicare-to-save-it

More: http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/12/3/13802680/senate-democrats-medicare-fight

And on Obamacare?

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/they-still-have-no-plan
They Still Have No Plan

Jill Stein raised more than the amount she said she needed to fund recounts in three states, but now she's dropping her request for a recount in Pennsylvania

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/12/04/1606994/-Green-Party-candidate-Jill-Stein-drops-request-for-recount-in-Pennsylvania
With the withdrawal from Pennsylvania, there are not enough EVs in play to put the election in doubt, even if both the narrow Trump victories in Michigan and Wisconsin were erased. Stein has promised that any unused funds collected will go toward “voting reform.” . . .

In other news . . .

This is really interesting: with growing automation, there won't be the same pressures to offshore manufacturing, because there isn't any big difference in labor costs. That's the good news. The bad news is, where do all those workers go?

http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2016/12/donald-trump-cant-fix-offshoring-hes-got-bigger-problems-anyway

The worst Republican gerrymanders

http://www.dailykos.com/news/worstGOPgerrymanders

Bonus item: SNL spoofs Trump's tweeting -- and then he tweets about it

http://www.vox.com/culture/2016/12/4/13831900/donald-trump-snl-tweet

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sharing its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com) with others via email or social media.

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4500

PBD has posted almost every day since 2004, and there's work still to be done!

SCAM ARTIST
 

A few thoughts about Trump and the Carrier deal. This is a putative multi-billionaire who comes out with a line of name-branded STEAKS (and wine, etc). He markets a line of typical get-rich-quick seminars (of which there are hundreds) with the grandiose name "Trump University." The products promote the name -- the name promotes the products (even when they are perfectly ordinary). This is the core methodology of the huckster or con man, who overpromises the virtues of a product, linked to their own credibility. 

From all accounts, the heavy lifting on the Carrier deal came from Mike Pence (who is, recall, the governor of the state and the only one who can commit to tax breaks or regulatory relief). But it's Trump who wants the credit. It isn't just the obvious need to boast that HE saved the jobs -- it's that he's trying to add to his own brand as The Dealmaker. It reveals his view of the presidency as a heroic solo act, and not as someone concerned about policy, leading collective problem-solving, or building lasting institutional change. 

He meant it when he said during the campaign, "I alone can fix it" and "only I can protect you"

http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/donald-trumps-con-game-gets-deeper-after-carrier-his-supporters-expect-miracles/

More: http://prospect.org/article/what-really-prompted-carrier-keep-800-jobs-indiana 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/12/02/why-trumps-carrier-deal-is-bad-for-america/?utm_term=.c0185f8c0464

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/12/02/1606512/-Trump-was-profiting-from-Carrier-s-parent-company-even-as-he-yelled-and-screamed-about-them
Trump was profiting from Carrier's parent company even as he yelled and screamed about them

I guess she found out she wasn't going to be offered a Cabinet position

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/12/sarah-palin-calls-trumps-carrier-deal-crony-capitalism.html
Sarah Palin Slams Trump’s Carrier Deal As ‘Crony Capitalism’
 

Uniter or divider?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2016/12/02/trumps-latest-conduct-shows-hell-make-our-divisions-a-lot-worse/?utm_source=rss_plum-line&utm_term=.ab99e463ab7d
Well now we’re going to see what it’s really like to have a president who wants to divide the country.  . . . On Thursday, President-elect Trump went to Ohio for a rally, as part of what is being billed as a “thank you tour” of states that he won in the election. Consider what Republicans would be saying if Hillary Clinton had won the electoral college, then proceeded to visit only the states that had supported her. They would say it showed what a hateful, out-of-touch divider she was, caring only about the Americans that were already in her camp and doing nothing to reach out to the other side . . .

I’ve seen barely any appeals for him to reach across the aisle, not enact too ambitious an agenda, or try to understand the experiences and feelings of the 72 million (and counting) voters who didn’t want him to be their president. He certainly didn’t do that Thursday. As we’ve seen before, Trump had a somewhat conciliatory text written for him on the teleprompter, which had some words about the whole country coming together. And then, as he often does, he went on his own extemporaneous assault, lashing out at the news media, Republican Party leaders, his primary opponents, anti-Trump protesters and, of course, Hillary Clinton — to which the crowd responded with that oldie but goodie, chants of “Lock her up!”

David Gergen is just about the most mild mannered voice in the media pundit class. But Trump is making us all a little bit crazy

http://crooksandliars.com/2016/12/david-gergen-trumps-victory-lap-i-knew-i
David Gergen On Trump's Victory Lap: I Knew I Didn't Like The Son Of A Bitch

[NB: Gergen is quoting hypothetical others, not necessarily speaking for himself. But the overall impact of his criticism is pretty devastating.] 

Trump talks with the president of Taiwan, breaking four decades of precedent (intentionally? unknowingly?) and pissing off the Chinese 

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/02/us/politics/trump-speaks-with-taiwans-leader-a-possible-affront-to-china.html

More: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/matches-and-gas

http://www.vox.com/world/2016/12/2/13824092/trump-phone-call-president-taiwan-china

Trump liked to say "I know more than the generals." Now he realizes that's not true

http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/5-things-to-know-about-james-mattis-trumps-defense-secretary-pick/
Trump met with Mattis on Tuesday. The president-elect told the New York Times on Tuesday that after the meeting he changed his mind about waterboarding.  “He said, ‘I’ve never found it to be useful,'” Trump told the Times, “‘Give me a pack of cigarettes and a couple of beers, and I’ll do better.'” In February, Donald Trump said that he would “absolutely” authorize waterboarding, “and something beyond waterboarding” when interrogating terrorists.  

Betsy DeVos is eager to do to the nation's education system what she did to Michigan's

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/11/30/1605605/-Betsy-DeVos-has-a-disastrous-education-legacy-in-Michigan

More: http://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/betsy-devos-would-be-a-disaster-for-public-education/

The Trump team refuses to release tax returns for any Cabinet nominees

http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/trump-transition-balks-at-call-for-nominees-tax-returns/

An historic moment: when free market economics disappeared from the Republican charter

http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/mike-pence-abandons-reaganomics-the-free-market-has-been-sorting-it-out-and-americas-been-losing/ 

The Dems are ready and eager for a fight over Medicare

http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/key-house-chairman-gop-will-change-medicare-to-save-it-2/

More: http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/repeal-and-delay-or-voucherize-medicare-gop-healthcare-proposals-get-even-worse/

Chapter 263 in the Republican war against science

http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/bernie-sanders-slams-house-republicans-for-tweeting-breitbart-article-denying-climate-change-from-official-government-account/

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/12/02/1606470/-War-on-science-is-heating-up-Republicans-can-use-an-obscure-law-to-destroy-science-based-regulations

Team Trump and the Michigan GOP are trying to stop the recount

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/12/02/1606389/-Michigan-attorney-general-is-suing-to-stop-recount

Worried, Donald? http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/donald-trumps-objection-to-the-michigan-recount-could-be-a-sign-of-a-concern-from-the-president-elect/

The theocrats' confused and ill-informed conception of Jesus

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/12/evangelicals-looking-to-trump-to-make-america-manly-again.html
Evangelicals Looking to Trump to Make America Manly Again

More: http://washingtonmonthly.com/2016/12/02/quick-takes-white-evangelicals-think-our-culture-has-become-too-feminine/

I really wonder how much longer Kellyanne Conway can keep doing this

http://crooksandliars.com/2016/12/kellyanne-conway-gets-flustered-refusing
Kellyanne Conway Gets Flustered Refusing To Answer Whether Trump's Voter Fraud Tweet Was True

More: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/kellyanne-conway-dodges-claim-millions-voted-illegally

The Harvard debate

http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/i-would-rather-lose-than-win-the-way-you-guys-did-former-hillary-clinton-staffer-erupts-during-harvard-roundtable/
Clinton communications director Jennifer Palmieri interjected, “If providing a platform for white supremacists makes me a brilliant tactician, I am proud to have lost. . . . I am more proud of Hillary Clinton’s alt-right speech than any other moment on the campaign because she had the courage to stand up — and I would rather lose than win the way you guys did,” Palmieri said.  

“Go for it, Jen. How did we win?” Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway responded. “I’d like to know because I sacrificed the last four months of my life to do it. . . .Do you think I ran a campaign where white supremacists had a platform?” Conway asked. 

“You did, Kellyanne,” Palmieri responded. “You did.”

CNN gets what it deserves

http://crooksandliars.com/2016/12/cnns-jeff-zucker-gets-grilled-over-insane
CNN's Jeff Zucker Gets Grilled Over Insane Trump Coverage: ''You Showed Empty Podiums!'

Facebook's second thoughts about fake news

http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/12/2/13812818/facebook-fake-news-think-before-you-share 

In other news . . .

Chris Christie is still looking for his next job after leaving the NJ governorship in disgrace

http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/chris-christie-wants-to-be-in-charge-of-republicans-as-rnc-chair/

What looks like a pretty good jobs report may reveal deeper problems

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/12/02/u-s-economy-added-178000-jobs-in-november-unemployment-rate-drops-to-4-6-percent/?utm_term=.2ef5c9ae6ae0
U.S. economy added 178,000 jobs in November; unemployment rate dropped to 4.6 percent

But: http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2016/12/disappointing-jobs-october
A Disappointing Jobs Report

The ongoing debate over "identity politics"

http://www.vox.com/identities/2016/12/2/13718770/identity-politics
The battle over identity politics

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/12/02/1606462/-The-future-of-the-party-and-the-nation-is-people-of-color-Democrats-can-t-forget-that
People of color are the future of the party—and the nation. Democrats can't forget that

Bonus item: Can we talk about Trump's neckties?

http://www.kansascity.com/news/nation-world/national/article62696787.html
Donald Trump’s crimes against cravats: His ties hang way too low

http://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trump-ties-2016-8
Donald Trump needs to fix his ties

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/zorn/ct-trump-neckties-pronunciation-perspec-zorn-1127-md-20161125-column.html
What it says about Trump that his neckties are too long

More: http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/half-windsor-all-fiasco-trumps-necktie-gate-may-undermine-his-statesmanlike-gravitas/
Donald Trump was recently photographed emerging from his airplane as a gust of wind caught his necktie and revealed a dirty secret. The president-elect, who is a man of substantial means, holds his necktie together with Scotch tape — a discombobulating mishmash of Armani aesthetics and hobo fashion sense. . . .

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sharing its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com) with others via email or social media.

Thanks for helping to spread the word!

I don’t get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don’t run ads, etc.). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a “mission,” it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

EGO TRIP

Ain't I great?

http://www.vox.com/2016/12/1/13814270/donald-trump-victory-rally
But throughout the speech in Cincinnati, Trump often appeared far more interested in looking back at the presidential campaign than looking forward to his presidency. Trump repeatedly replayed the highs and lows of the campaign, relishing in bashing those who had doubted him.  Trump couldn’t resist bringing his speech back to the campaign, even when it was apparent he was supposed to talk about his presidency. At one point, he began talking about his plan to reduce regulations in states like North Carolina — which then led him to talk about how some had doubted he could win the state, which then led him to a familiar rant about the press . . . [read on!]

More: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/12/01/trump-can-t-stop-complaining-about-hillary-clinton.html
Despite having won the presidency, Donald Trump is still airing grievances.
 
Inside the Carrier deal

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/12/01/1605971/-Carrier-deal-was-a-model-of-how-Trump-operates-In-secret-with-good-headlines-as-the-ultimate-goal
The details are fuzzy on Donald Trump’s deal to save 1,000 (or is it 800?) Carrier air conditioner manufacturing jobs from outsourcing, but the picture that’s emerging is not a confidence-inspiring one. The state of Indiana is paying for the jobs with a big tax incentive package, which isn’t unusual at all. In fact, such incentives are so common that one Donald Trump took the time to rail against them on the campaign trail repeatedly. . . .

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/12/01/why-lots-of-people-think-trumps-deal-to-save-1000-jobs-was-a-bad-idea/?utm_term=.a9e65c3c61c6
Why lots of people think Trump’s deal to save 1,000 Indiana jobs was a bad idea

http://www.vox.com/new-money/2016/12/1/13810480/carrier-deal-donald-trump
The Carrier deal shows a big problem with Trump's approach to the presidency

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/12/01/donald-trump-s-carrier-victory-speech-shows-we-re-stuck-with-the-crazy-candidate.html
But in the end, Trump settled on a gentler strategy: allowing Carrier to outsource 1,300 jobs to Mexico in return for 800 jobs remaining in Indiana for economic incentives worth a total of $7 million, negotiated by the vice president-elect, Mike Pence, who for the time being is still the state’s governor . . .

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/01/opinion/carrier-jobs-saved-by-government.html
The most significant benefits could well come in the form of corporate tax cuts (and, inevitably, tax loopholes for specific industries) along with regulatory rollbacks, which Mr. Trump has promised, without supplying details. . . . Mr. Trump campaigned against crony capitalism, but one-on-one deals like this are at best inefficient and at worst riddled with just that kind of corruption. . . .The Carrier deal stands as an interesting argument against longstanding Republican economic orthodoxy. In making the deal, Mr. Trump and Mr. Pence have embraced the idea that the government does indeed have a role to play in the free market.

More: http://crooksandliars.com/2016/12/carrier-denies-local-reporter-access
Indy reporter Rafael Sánchez has been covering the Carrier layoffs since February of this year when they were first announced. He traveled to Mexico to illustrate how no American could afford to live on the $3 per day paycheck Carrier would pay plant workers there, and he has aggressively covered their decision to ship jobs out.  Sánchez was denied a press credential to cover the event, but not by Trump's team. No, it was Carrier who made the decision to exclude him. . . .  

The Cesspool: what Trump needs to do (but won't)

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/how-trump-can-address-conflicts-of-interest-with-children-at-helm-of-his-businesses
 
Trump repeatedly promised not to mess with Medicare. Where's the Etch-a-Sketch?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2016/12/01/will-republicans-gut-medicare-trump-promised-over-and-over-he-wouldnt-heres-the-video/?utm_source=rss_plum-line&utm_term=.9f808d077a87

http://crooksandliars.com/2016/12/caught-video-trump-promised-keep-medicare
 
Now that the election is over, suddenly people aren't so angry at Obamacare any more

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-obamacare-repeal-poll

A Secretary of Defense nicknamed "Mad Dog." No, I'm not kidding

http://www.vox.com/world/2016/12/1/13718282/pentagon-jim-mad-dog-mattis-trump-iran-hawk-russia-secretary-of-defense-general

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/12/trumps-pick-for-defense-secretary-is-technically-ineligible.html

The Cabinet lineup so far: http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2016/12/swamp-watch-1-december-2016 

Trump's "reckless and bizarre" conversation with the prime minister of Pakistan

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/trump-has-bizarre-conversation-pakistani-leader

Is there more evidence of Russian interference in the election?

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2016/12/what-do-they-know-and-when-did-they.html

This is funny: http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2016/12/russia-complains-ukraine-interfered-its-interference-american-election
Russia Complains That Ukraine Interfered With Its Interference in the American Election

80,000 votes in three states decided this election

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/12/01/donald-trump-will-be-president-thanks-to-80000-people-in-three-states/?utm_term=.958c40e25212

The Stein factor: http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/12/1/13811344/jill-stein-clinton-trump-nader-spoiler

Meanwhile

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/two-point-five-million
Hillary Clinton's popular vote lead has now reached 2.52 million votes. In percentage terms that's a 1.9 percentage point margin. It will rise at least a bit more. We can likely be confident that her final margin will be at least 2 percentage points. . . . 

Here's the proof: there WAS voter fraud!

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/12/01/0-000002-percent-of-all-the-ballots-cast-in-the-2016-election-were-fraudulent/?utm_term=.be9a170d3d6a
4 documented cases

A scary glimpse into the mindset of fact-free Trump supporters (watch it!)

http://crooksandliars.com/2016/12/cnn-hosts-mind-blown-over-pro-trumpers

In other news . . .

Jason Chaffetz says he has A DUTY AND AN OBLIGATION to keep investigating Clinton

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/12/01/1606017/-Chaffetz-Investigate-Trump-s-conflicts-of-interest-Ha-ha-ha-no-I-have-a-witch-to-hunt

More: http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/12/chaffetz-trump-has-yet-to-do-anything-worth-investigating.html
Jason Chaffetz Planned for ‘Years’ of Clinton Probes, Thinks Trump Has Yet to Do Anything Worth Investigating
 
Trouble for Keith Ellison as possible head of the DNC

http://www.salon.com/2016/12/02/leading-dnc-candidate-keith-ellison-blasted-for-disqualifying-remarks-about-israel/
 

Bonus item: Head banging against desk

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/12/trump-team-explains-they-were-campaigning-against-facts.html

“This is the problem with the media. You guys took everything that Donald Trump said so literally,” Lewandowski said. “The American people didn’t. They understood it. They understood that sometimes — when you have a conversation with people, whether it’s around the dinner table or at a bar — you’re going to say things, and sometimes you don’t have all the facts to back it up.” . . .

Trump supporter and CNN political commentator Scottie Nell Hughes laid out the campaign’s worldview in another election analysis on NPR’s “The Diane Rehm Show”: “One thing that has been interesting this entire campaign season to watch is that people that say facts are facts, they’re not really facts. Everybody has a way, it’s kind of like looking at ratings or looking at a glass of half-full water. Everybody has a way of interpreting them to be the truth or not true. . . . . And so Mr. Trump’s tweet amongst a certain crowd, a large — a large part of the population, are truth. When he says that millions of people illegally voted, he has some — in his — amongst him and his supporters, and people believe they have facts to back that up. Those that do not like Mr. Trump, they say that those are lies, and there’s no facts to back it up…There’s no such thing, unfortunately, anymore of facts,” she concluded.

***If you enjoy PBD and support what we are doing, you can help by forwarding a copy of this issue to your friends (using the envelope link below) or by sharing its URL (http://pbd.blogspot.com) with others via email or social media.

Thanks for helping to spread the word!

I don’t get anything personally out of this project, except the satisfaction of doing it (I don’t run ads, etc.). The credit really all goes to the people whose material I copy and redistribute. But if I do have a “mission,” it is to get this information into the hands of as many people as I can.***

BLIND TRUST

Trump tries to pretend that turning over his business to his kids resolves his conflict of interest problems. Here's a clear, simple explanation of why that's total nonsense

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2016/09/14/donald_trump_s_promised_blind_trust_is_impossible.html
“Run the company, kids. Have a good time,” he said during a GOP primary debate back in January when pressed by moderators. “I would put it in a blind trust. Well, I don't know if it's a blind trust if Ivanka, Don and Eric run it. But—is that a blind trust? I don't know.”
 
More: http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/11/trump-says-he-will-leave-his-business-that-means-nothing.html
Trump Says He Will ‘Leave His Business.’ That Probably Means Nothing.

http://www.newsweek.com/2016/09/30/donald-trump-blind-trust-foreign-business-deals-500398.html
Donald Trump's 'Blind Trust' Plan Makes No Sense

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/trumps-blind-trust-is-neither-blind-nor-trustworthy/2016/11/15/6eeca1fc-aaa5-11e6-a31b-4b6397e625d0_story.html?utm_term=.62dbf94d0bf7
Trump’s ‘blind trust’ is neither blind nor trustworthy

The Cesspool

https://www.buzzfeed.com/aramroston/trumps-post-election-tax-subsidy?utm_term=.eqo2GaEZG#.yvX8G2MYG
Trump’s Post-Election Tax Subsidy

The man has no idea what it means to be President

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/trump-ohio-state-attack-suspect-immigration
President-elect Donald Trump tweeted early Wednesday morning that the suspect in Monday's attack at Ohio State University, a legal permanent resident of the United States, "should not have been in our country." . . .

More: http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/really-bigger-job-i-thought
‘This is really a bigger job than I thought’

Why is Trump doing a "Victory Tour"?

https://newrepublic.com/minutes/139052/trump-campaign-will-never-end
Donald Trump, a man who has a very short attention span and requires instant gratification more or less constantly, loves campaigning because he has a very short attention span and requires instant gratification more or less constantly. His strategy of doing lots of big rallies and not much else, though criticized throughout the campaign, was seemingly vindicated by his Electoral College win. And just as Trump has no intention of giving up control of his businesses, he has no intention of giving up his rallies either, maybe because he believes they are the key to his success and maybe because he is a petulant narcissist and maybe both. . . . [read on]

[NB: So today Trump is holding a big rally in Ohio, without key administration posts filled. Though I do wonder if he surprises everyone by bringing onstage "my good friend, and the next Secretary of State, Rudy Giuliani!" The crowd would go wild -- and it's just the kind of show business nonsense he loves.]

Trump's Carrier deal: a closer look

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/dont-miss-the-fine-print-trumps-carrier-news
Details of the agreement are scarce, and the Indianapolis Star reported overnight that many workers will very likely “still be laid off.” . . .  In this case, Trump didn’t use his self-professed expertise in negotiations to reach a compromise with Carrier. Rather, he and the state of Indiana gave Carrier lots of money through state “incentives” and tax breaks in order to convince the company to stay.  That, in and of itself, isn’t especially controversial. Cities, counties, and states do this all the time to keep companies happy before they pick up and go somewhere else. But it’s not the basis for a sustainable, national manufacturing strategy: the Trump administration can’t run around throwing grants and tax breaks at every CEO who’s thinking about moving production jobs out of the country.  Indeed, there’s an Economics 101 problem: if companies are led to believe the government will give them money to stay in the United States, every employer, whether they have outsourcing plans or not, will have a strong incentive to call up the Trump White House and say, “Give us a sweet, taxpayer-financed deal or we’re out of here.”

More: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/trump-carrier-deal-government-contracts

Lessons from the past: look at Mitt's dad's stormy experience in Richard Nixon's cabinet (eventually he had to quit). Could this be a preview of Mitt Romney and Trump?

http://archive.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/romney/articles/part4_side/ 

Thanks Newt: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/newt-gingrich-mitt-romney-suck-up_us_583f935ee4b09e21702cb86e
“You have never, ever in your career seen a serious adult who’s wealthy, independent, has been a presidential nominee, suck up at the rate that Mitt Romney is sucking up.”
 
No surprise: Trump's Cabinet choices are a lot like him

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/picking-cabinet-trump-values-wealth-inexperience
In picking cabinet, Trump values wealth, inexperience 

Trump's Commerce Sect'y: the "king of bankruptcy"

http://www.salon.com/2016/11/30/trump-tapping-washington-wall-street-veterans-for-top-jobs/

Another promise by the wayside

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/steve-mnuchin-trump-tax-policy
Trump's Treasury Pick: There Will Be ‘No Absolute Tax Cut For The Upper Class’

More: http://www.salon.com/2016/11/30/sen-elizabeth-warren-donald-trumps-treasury-secretary-pick-steve-mnuchin-is-the-forrest-gump-of-americas-financial-woes/
Sen. Elizabeth Warren: Donald Trump’s Treasury secretary pick Steve Mnuchin is the “Forrest Gump” of America’s financial woes 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/11/30/trump-said-hedge-funders-were-getting-away-with-murder-now-he-wants-one-to-help-run-the-economy/?utm_term=.5bba4c3db108
Trump said hedge funders were ‘getting away with murder.’ Now he wants one to help run the economy. 

The Republicans understand that current demographic trends are highly unfavorable to them in the long run. The ONLY way to retain power is to prevent these growing populations from voting. Expect a full-scale assault on voting rights under Trump (and Sessions)

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/11/trump-could-make-gop-a-party-of-permanent-voter-suppression.html

More: http://washingtonmonthly.com/2016/11/30/voter-id-laws-and-disenfranchisement/

The Republicans have a plan: eliminate Obamacare and then try to blackmail Dems into backing whatever they put up as a replacement or then blame them for having nothing in its place

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/daily-202/2016/11/30/daily-202-how-democrats-might-be-forced-to-get-onboard-with-replacing-obamacare/583e033ae9b69b7e58e45f22/?utm_term=.3aff8f757c79

A close look at the 2016 vote totals: the lessons we should, and shouldn't draw

http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/11/30/13631532/everything-mattered-2016-presidential-election

Don't get your hopes up about the recount: http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/11/30/13764566/jill-stein-presidential-recount-explained

Mandate?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/11/30/trump-will-be-the-first-modern-president-to-get-less-than-half-of-the-vote-in-both-the-primary-and-general/?utm_term=.fde5640176f6
Trump will be the first modern president to get less than half of the vote in both the primary and general

Every time Trump tweets he drives the news cycle. Should the news start ignoring him?

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/11/30/1605565/-Trump-lies-on-Twitter-and-the-New-York-Times-question-is-whether-it-s-news-Because-Twitter
Trump lies on Twitter—and the New York Times' question is whether it's news. Because Twitter.

http://www.salon.com/2016/11/30/bipartisan-agreement-were-tired-of-reading-trumps-tweets/
Bipartisan agreement: We’re tired of reading Trump’s tweets 

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2016/11/we_can_t_afford_to_ignore_donald_trump_s_tweets.html
We Can’t Afford to Ignore Donald Trump’s Tweets 

In other news . . . 

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/nancy-pelosi-re-elected
House Democrats Re-Elect Nancy Pelosi As Minority Leader

More: http://www.vox.com/2016/11/30/13347410/nancy-pelosi-house-democrats

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/11/30/1605387/-Court-orders-North-Carolina-to-redraw-its-legislative-districts-and-hold-2017-special-elections
Court orders North Carolina to redraw its legislative districts and hold 2017 special elections 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/11/30/house-overwhelmingly-passes-cures-legislation-to-streamline-drug-approval/?utm_term=.a78fc69d85a7
House overwhelmingly passes ‘Cures’ legislation

More: http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/12/house-passes-sweeping-controversial-health-innovation-bill.html 

http://prospect.org/article/cures-act-bad-medicine-nih-fda

Bonus item: Trevor Noah

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/11/30/the-daily-show-on-how-we-should-start-treating-trump-like-a-toddler.html
‘The Daily Show’: We Should Start Treating Trump ‘Like the Toddler He Is’
 

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