Follow TV Tropes

Following

The General US Politics Thread

Go To

Nov 2023 Mod notice:


There may be other, more specific, threads about some aspects of US politics, but this one tends to act as a hub for all sorts of related news and information, so it's usually one of the busiest OTC threads.

If you're new to OTC, it's worth reading the Introduction to On-Topic Conversations and the On-Topic Conversations debate guidelines before posting here.

Rumor-based, fear-mongering and/or inflammatory statements that damage the quality of the thread will be thumped. Off-topic posts will also be thumped. Repeat offenders may be suspended.

If time spent moderating this thread remains a distraction from moderation of the wiki itself, the thread will need to be locked. We want to avoid that, so please follow the forum rules when posting here.


In line with the general forum rules, 'gravedancing' is prohibited here. If you're celebrating someone's death or hoping that they die, your post will get thumped. This rule applies regardless of what the person you're discussing has said or done.

Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM

Aleistar Since: Feb, 2018 Relationship Status: Hugging my pillow
#327301: Sep 16th 2020 at 7:32:40 AM

I think there was a report that indicated that most of the money went to ads in Washington and on Fox to give Trump the appearance that they're doing well.

EDIT: On Trump's campaign apparently being cash-strapped

Edited by Aleistar on Sep 16th 2020 at 7:33:16 AM

Aszur A nice butterfly from Pagliacci's Since: Apr, 2014 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
A nice butterfly
#327303: Sep 16th 2020 at 7:36:30 AM

Dumb question.

Let us asume best case scenario where Donald J Trump is both voted out and prosecuted for - well. Prety much everything. I know even in the worst of cases he would still have a lawyer assigned but would the federal state be obligated in nay way whatsoever to spend money to defend him, for some sort of ill conceived notion of protecting the state of ex presidents, or owuld he have to cost all of his defense on his own?

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#327304: Sep 16th 2020 at 7:39:17 AM

I don't see why Trump would be entitled to a state defense attorney unless he could not afford his own.

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#327305: Sep 16th 2020 at 7:44:44 AM

That seems to be a more general question about whether former presidents are entitled to a state defence attorney.

Former presidents probably do get some privileges. I'm pretty sure they get secret service protection for life, for example.

Optimism is a duty.
Parable Since: Aug, 2009
#327306: Sep 16th 2020 at 7:49:43 AM

The top communication official at Health and Human Services decided to go full conspiracist and accuse scientists at the CDC of "sedition" against Trump.

The health researchers “deep in the bowels of the CDC have given up science and become political animals.”

He's also admitted to trying to force the CDC to edit their reports or have them delayed to make Trump look better.

Aszur A nice butterfly from Pagliacci's Since: Apr, 2014 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
A nice butterfly
#327307: Sep 16th 2020 at 7:50:58 AM

I figured there are some privileges they get but I jus dont know them hence why I am asking.

The figure of the president in the U.S is somewhat fetishized - even past their office. It is kinda weird.

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#327308: Sep 16th 2020 at 7:52:23 AM

It's pretty normal for former government officials to get certain privileges, especially around security.

Optimism is a duty.
Aszur A nice butterfly from Pagliacci's Since: Apr, 2014 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
A nice butterfly
#327309: Sep 16th 2020 at 7:55:15 AM

Not in particular around my country, so it is kinda weird for me.

Maybe we just cannot afford extra security? Maybe we are the anomaly?

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#327310: Sep 16th 2020 at 7:58:24 AM

Let's see, Google directs me to the Former Presidents Act.

Current status

By law, former presidents are entitled to a pension, staff and office expenses, medical care or health insurance, and Secret Service protection. Pension

The Secretary of the Treasury pays a taxable pension to the president. Former presidents receive a pension equal to the pay that the head of an executive department (Executive Level I) would be paid; as of 2020, it is $219,200 per year.[4] The pension begins immediately after a president's departure from office.[5] A former president's spouse may also be paid a lifetime annual pension of $20,000 if they relinquish any other statutory pension.[1] Transition

Transition funding for the expenses of leaving office is available for seven months. It covers office space, staff compensation, communications services, and printing and postage associated with the transition.[1] Staff and office

Private office staff and related funding is provided by the Administrator of the General Services Administration. People employed under this subsection are selected by and responsible only to the former president for the performance of their duties. Each former president fixes basic rates of compensation for persons employed for him or her, not exceeding an annualized total of $150,000 for the first 30 months and $96,000 thereafter.[1] Medical insurance

Former presidents are entitled to medical treatment in military hospitals; they pay for this at interagency rates set by the Office of Management and Budget. Two-term presidents may buy health insurance under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program; a GSA legal opinion ruled Jimmy Carter ineligible.[1][6] Secret Service protection

From 1965 to 1996, former presidents were entitled to lifetime Secret Service protection, for themselves, spouses, and children under 16. A 1994 statute, (Pub.L. 103–329), limited post-presidential protection to ten years for presidents inaugurated after January 1, 1997.[7] Under this statute, Bill Clinton would still be entitled to lifetime protection, and all subsequent presidents would have been entitled to ten years of protection.[8] On January 10, 2013, President Barack Obama signed the Former Presidents Protection Act of 2012, reinstating lifetime Secret Service protection for his predecessor George W. Bush, himself, and all subsequent presidents.[9]

Richard Nixon relinquished his Secret Service protection in 1985, the only president to do so.[10]

So that's a comfortable pension, transition funding, a personal staff (it's not entirely clear to me what their function would be), medical treatment in military hospitals, and secret service protection.

Notably though, secret service protection has been limited to just 10 years for presidents after 1997. This means all presidents after Clinton only get 10 years of protection, and that protection for Bush has already expired.

Optimism is a duty.
Ramidel Since: Jan, 2001
#327311: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:20:12 AM

What I'm wondering is how much of the campaign's money has actually been disbursed and how much the Trump campaign will owe when (not if) it declares bankruptcy.

For some reason, people are still willing to extend credit to Trump, even when bankruptcy is literally his business strategy.

Do you think Donald Trump feels guilt when he repeatedly files for bankruptcy? Hint: No, he does not. Donald Trump feels nothing. Ever. About anything. It's just another business strategy.

From Cracked, in 2009.

Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#327312: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:31:42 AM

I'm not sure a campaign can go bankrupt. It's not like they are a business that can borrow money, right? They just run out of money, and that's it.

Optimism is a duty.
megarockman from Sixth Borough Since: Apr, 2010
nova92 Since: Apr, 2020
#327314: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:38:10 AM

I'm pretty sure I've seen campaigns in the red before. Don't know what happens next, though.

Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#327315: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:38:33 AM

A campaign can certainly go bankrupt. It may be limited in how it declares bankruptcy, but there must be a legal process for it, since it would have to discharge its debts.

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#327316: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:39:12 AM

I looked it up, and from this article, it seems that campaigns can borrow money, but any outstanding debts would be for the candidate themselves.

To pay back those loans, a candidate is forced to do exactly the thing she wasn’t able to accomplish during the course of the campaign—raise more money. As long as someone hasn’t already given the maximum legal contribution for a given campaign, he or she can—subject to the same campaign finance rules—donate to the effort to pay off debts even after Election Day has come and gone. The long-dead presidential campaigns of Chris Dodd, Bill Richardson, and Rudy Giuliani all have active Web sites inviting contributions to the former candidates’ debt-retirement efforts—as long as you haven’t donated $2,300 already. For candidates who run for office again, campaign debts can roll over to the next campaign cycle—depending, of course, on the terms of their loans. In perhaps the most famous case of outstanding campaign debt, former Ohio Sen. John Glenn remained nearly $3 million in the hole for more than 20 years after a failed bid for the presidency in 1984. (The Federal Election Commission granted him a reprieve two years ago.)

You read that right. Some former campaigners are still raising money to pay off campaign debts, sometimes for decades after they lost.

So if anything, it would be Trump who would be in financial trouble (once again).

Especially considering this part, if he used his own money:

Debt retirement gets a little more complicated when candidates lend their own money to their campaign. After an election is over, any campaign contributions that go toward repaying the candidate’s own loans serve, in practice, as money directly into a politician’s pocket. As a result, campaign law (PDF) now limits to $250,000 the amount a campaign committee can repay the candidate after the election. In the case of the Democratic primary, the election will end when a nominee is selected in Denver. So unless Clinton is able to raise enough money to pay herself back by then, she’ll have to write off millions of dollars she lent to her campaign.

However, I don't think Trump will have much trouble raising more money from his base if he loses.

What happens when a candidate has no hope of raising enough money after the election to pay off his or her outstanding debts? Technically, political committees can declare bankruptcy, but the practice is almost unheard of since defunct campaigns don’t have much in the way of assets. Instead, losing candidates who aren’t running again for political office—and consequently don’t have an easy way to raise much money—may go through a process with the FEC called “debt settlement” (PDF). To do so, a former candidate must agree with creditors on how much he or she will pay back, and the FEC must verify that each creditor extended the debt in the “ordinary course of business” and tried its best to collect. (Unlike outstanding payments to vendors or staff, bank loans typically can’t be forgiven.) If debt settlement fails, the FEC can eventually engage in an “administrative termination” that shuts down the campaign committee and cancels its obligations.

Edited by Redmess on Sep 16th 2020 at 5:42:32 PM

Optimism is a duty.
Aszur A nice butterfly from Pagliacci's Since: Apr, 2014 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
A nice butterfly
#327317: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:43:33 AM

Recettear but it is tiny winged Rudy Giulani egging you to pay for his campaign debts by forcing you to make a presidential campaign of your own

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#327318: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:45:29 AM

It seems running a campaign isn't exactly risk free when you are willing to go into debt for it. No wonder many candidates prefer to step down before it gets to that point.

Optimism is a duty.
Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#327319: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:50:16 AM

[up] Right. Running out of money is the death of a campaign for a very practical reason.

Edited by Fighteer on Sep 16th 2020 at 11:50:24 AM

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#327320: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:50:56 AM

Meanwhile, there are so many hurricanes headed for the US that they are starting to run out of letters, moving on to the Greek alphabet.

Optimism is a duty.
Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#327321: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:51:29 AM

I'm waiting for Trumpists to declare that non-English letters are anti-American.

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
Steven (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: YOU'RE TEARING ME APART LISA
#327322: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:52:46 AM

I'm surprised Trump hasn't suggested using nukes on hurricanes at second time.

Remember, these idiots drive, fuck, and vote. Not always in that order.
Aszur A nice butterfly from Pagliacci's Since: Apr, 2014 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
A nice butterfly
#327323: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:53:15 AM

La Niña is anti american and destructive because it is HISPANIC. Need harsher IMMIGRATION LAW AND ORDER

Edited by Aszur on Sep 16th 2020 at 9:53:24 PM

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#327324: Sep 16th 2020 at 8:56:12 AM

Trevor Noah did make a joke that Americans would be a lot more eager to fight climate change if they gave hurricanes non-English names.

Optimism is a duty.
Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#327325: Sep 16th 2020 at 9:04:32 AM

In funnier news, Fox and Friends pretty much brushed Trump off in a recent interview when one host suggested Trump call in every week (and Trump agreeing, of course), Steve Doocy pretty much told him "don't call us, we'll call you", and that they would invite Biden as well. You should see the look on the other guy's face.

Talk about being snubbed on your favourite TV show.

Optimism is a duty.

Total posts: 417,856
Top