Almost Nine Months In Office and Donald Trump Still Governs By Division and Dis-respect For The Presidency

The White House is a building where U.S. Presidents have served with dignity, honor and respect and through the years entertained Americans from all walks of life, is now a place occupied by a trumpet man who respects no one and lacks the basic values of civility.  The sickness that occupy the White House was born by an unstable person named Donald Trump.

The sickness is on-going in a deliberate scheme to destroy the fabric of America's democracy.  The trumpet man is a autocrat who believes in a one man dictatorial rule by trying to destroy people and our institutions by passing blame, personal attacks and division.  The news media has to be destroyed by autocratic rule to suppress the truth and that is what is behind the trumpet man's fake news.  He also likes to stir up a steady flow of accusations to keep the news media from reporting the trouble he is in and his failures as President.

U.S. Senator Bob Corker's recent comments that the White House operates like an adult day care center actually tells the story of a White House that is being transformed from a place of honor to a play thing toy for an autocrat.    The honor of the White House (which is the people's house) has to be destroyed so the autocrat can be given all the attention.

There is no real controversy concerning the NFL and the national anthem.  The controversy is between the trumpet man and freedom of speech and expression and his SOB remark.  It is another autocratic attempt in diverting attention of what the trumpet man is really up too.  We know he does not support veterans, especially those who were POW's like Senator John McCain because he told us he did not like people who get captured.  The trumpet man has no idea what veterans are all about.  But he did have the opportunity to be one since he was of prime age during his generations war.  It is just another scheme by an autocrat's talk like he supports veterans and then do everything to destroy America's institutions that veterans served to protect.

Donald Trump, the autocrat will make a serious attenpt to shut down the news media because the news media represents the first responders for the public to understand Donald Trump's desire for a totalitarian state.

This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Sense-less In America: Automatic Weapons In The Hands Of The Civilian Rank

Let me try and explain why automatic weapons and the means to modify a weapon into an automatic weapon ( called bump stock) should be banned.  In Combat, automatic weapons such as machine guns are the first weapon the infantry on the ground does its best to knock out.  Why?  Because of its fire power, an automatic weapon can pin down a whole company, stop its advances and inflict heavy casualties until it is knocked out.    If caught in the open like the people in Las Vegas, it can kill hundreds in less than a minute.

Banning automatic weapons is really a common sense thing and this writer believes if our forebears who wrote the second amendment were here today would say such a weapon have no place in civilian life.  Yes, innocent people who love guns and who would never use them to inflict harm on another person would have to do without.  But that happens in all walks of life in a civilized world where laws and regulations are what we live by.  Those of us who have any kind of insurance pay a higher rate for other people's accidents.  And higher taxes because taxes are not distributed fair and the list goes on and on.

The assault weapons ban put into place under the Clinton administration worked.  And it should never have been allowed to expire.  Australia passed a National Fire Arms agreement, a law banning automatic and semi automatic weapons after a mass shooting that killed 35 people in 1996.  The law included a buy back of such guns and more than 650,000 were bought back and destroyed by 2001 and there has not been a single mass shooting in the country since then.

America is a christian nation that prays, but prayers alone won't stop sense-less acts of mass murder when killing weapons can be acquired so easily.  The facts confirm that.  The NRA has managed to cancel out much prayer with their campaign contributions to enough members of congress who claim to offer prayers every time there is a mass shooting.

The time has come and in fact is over-due to knock out the automatic weapons that have pinned the country down far to long with its mass killings.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

The U.S. Economy Lost 33,000 Net Jobs In September

The U.S. Labor Department announced that the U.S. economy lost 33,000 jobs in September.  That was the first negative jobs report since 2010 and ended the record of 83 straight months of positive job growth.  Unemployment came in at 4.2%.  The leisure and hospitality industry lost 111,000 jobs, the most since 1945.

One financial institution said the loss of jobs should be a temporary thing and some economist were expecting a job increase for September of 80.000 jobs even with hurricanes Irma and Harvey.  One month of negative job numbers standing alone is not a good measure as to where the economy is going or the ability of the economy to continue to create jobs.

But it is enough to call to mind that republican administrations have a poor record on the economy and job creation.  And Trump has yet to address the economy with any legislation, only his rhetoric and he has been in office over 8 months.   Another problem is Trumps recent executive order to undo parts of the ACA that he and his party failed to do through congressional actions.  It was pointed out by many economist long ago that the ACA created jobs.

The bottom line is the President is late in addressing the most important issue, the U.S. economy and jobs.  Every thing else flows from that and forms the basis of meeting the other challenges that face the country and its people.  President Obama faced a more difficult problem in his first 8 months in office and responded with policies that moved the country out of the great republican recession.

We will soon find out how concerned President Trump is with September's Job numbers.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Sean Payton Scores A Huge Touchdown With His Comment On President Trump

New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton has a coaching problem but understands the fundamentals of being an American and living in a free country.  He also understands that Trump used the NFL and some players for political reasons when the trumpet man called players who take a knee during the playing of the national anthem SOB's.

But unlike Trump, Payton has a healthy respect for politics and knew Trump, being President of the United States took the Presidency to a new low with his SOB comment.  Payton responded by saying the office (Presidency) could use more wisdom and that the President's comments were divisive for the country. Payton's mind obviously is not all about football and understands that America has other challenges that need to be addressed including politics.

The trumpet man deserved those comments because they fit him perfectly.  The man who put his hand on the bible and swore to uphold and defend the constitution (and therefore the people's right that go with it) had to try and act tough by calling some players SOB's.  Payton as a football coach, displayed wisdom lacking in the trumpet man.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Louisiana's Republican Representative in The U.S. House Steve Scalise and The Fox News Network Deserve Each Other

Steve Scalise told the host of Fox that people should be praying for the people in Las Vegas instead of making a political statement about gun control.  But there was Scalise making his own political statement concerning gun control and the second amendment and revealing his hypocrisy.  Scalise, the self proclaimed conservative just don't understand real people can pray and at the same time express their opinion on a subject matter important to the country and its people.

Scalise went on to say he supports the 2nd. amendment and then followed the same theme the NRA preaches that people need guns to protect themselves and its the best answer to a bad guy with a gun.  Well there were more police officers with guns in Las Vegas on Sunday but they did not stop the murder of 59 people and the wounding of 500 more.  The ditto head story about a good guy with a gun is as phony as Scalise's position.

Scalise and the republican party are in the pockets of the NRA and the gun lobby and the contributions they receive from both groups tell the sad story.  It was the republican administration of George W. Bush that allowed the assault weapons ban to expire even though it did the job it was supposed to do.

At the time of the Las Vegas shooting the republican controlled House was taking up a NRA proposal to ease regulations on gun silencers.  A republican House panel handling the proposal backed the bill and lawmakers were expected to move ahead on the bill according to the Associated Press.  After the carnage in Las Vegas republican speaker of the House Paul Ryan announced there's no plan for the House to act on the NRA's sponsored bill soon.

Hillary Clinton spoke out about the bill  and said just think how many more might have been killed in Las Vegas if the shooter had a silencer.  Like automatic weapons silencers have no place in the hands of civilians.  Unless pressure is applied to elected officials, the GOP will surely bring up the NRA backed silencer bill at a later date.

As this writer has expressed in previous commentary, congress has to pass a ban on all automatic and semi automatic weapons.  Its the right thing to do under the circumstances.  Those weapons do not belong in the hands of civilians, not even hunters because hunting is a sport and those weapons take the sport out of the sport.  Steve Scalise and the republican party represents the NRA and the gun lobby and not the safety of the American people.  And that really says it all.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Tough Talk From A Divisive President That Has Not Worked Well.

For the past two weekends, more NFL players took a knee during the playing of the national anthem than they did in the last few NFL seasons.  One player said he would continue to take a knee until the trumpet man apologizes for his SOB remark.  The trumpet mans so called tough talk made matters worse and those who have taken a knee are supported by their team mates and coaches.  The use of free speech has never tarnished America the beautiful and never will.  It was not a problem until the trumpet man made it one in an effort to shore up his poll numbers.

Then out of no where the carnage in Las Vegas that took 59 lives and injured over 500 people was a reminder how the trumpet man's loose tough talk is unbecoming a President.  Trump was quick to criticize and blame President Obama when domestic violence took place in America on Obama's watch and told the people it would not happen on his watch.  Well it did in Las Vegas and it was the worse domestic attack ever in the United States.  This writer looks forward to see if President Trump holds himself responsible for what happened in Las Vegas.

The trumpet man has always been a big supporter of the NRA and the gun lobby and now what happened in Las Vegas will start the debate all over again.  So we will soon find out what form of tough talk will the trumpet man take on the issue.  Some in congress have already said they intend to make it an issue.  The tough talk of Reagan, Bush and now Trump did not keep America safe and for obvious reasons.  It is a show off mentality with no policy and its their way of trying to disguise their own failures.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Louisiana's Republican Representatives In Congress Are A Sad Pitiful Lot.

All of Louisiana's representatives in the U.S. House and Senate supported the three health care bills that were rejected so far this year, including the senate's bill they pulled last week.  They did so knowing if passed it would have hurt Louisiana severely and they did so even though they knew the health care bills were a fraud, a scheme and a lie.

Now comes Louisiana's representative in the U.S. House Garret Graves of Baton Rouge in a Times Picayune article of 10/1 who says Trump should not have suspended the Jones Act which will allow foreign ships to deliver relief to Puerto Rico in regard to the crisis on that island due to Hurricane Marie.  Graves says Trump's action took American jobs and sent them overseas.  Yet Graves knew all along that is what Trump and his business has been doing for years with factories in foreign countries including China and Mexico where he hires cheap labor.

Graves knew it when Trump was a candidate and he knew the trumpet man as President has a conflict of interest but still supports Trump.  Graves is also one of Louisiana's reps who voted for the U.S. House health care scheme.  If Graves is really concerned about U.S. jobs, I would suggest he tell the trumpet man to move his foreign manufacturing plants to the United States.

The hypocrisy that define Louisiana's republicans is breath taking.  They care nothing about Louisiana and its people and are willing to continue their lies and schemes.  They are also willing to be ditto heads for the trumpet man.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Up Next For Congress: Trump and The Republican's Tax Reform Scheme and Ploy..

First it was the trumpet man and republicans health care scheme and ploy that failed and now the push is on to bring back Reagans and George W. Bush's trickle down economic scheme and ploy in the name of tax reform.  And once again the trumpet man and the republicans scheme is to lower the tax rate dramatically for corporate America and the wealthy and throw peanuts to everyone else.  It is SOP for republican Administrations.

The trumpet man is the big fraud on the matter because he refuses to make his tax returns public and there fore shows no transparency.  He has not divested himself from his company business and stands to make millions on any reduction to the tax code for corporate America and the wealthy.  Past Presidents understood the conflict of interest issue and took the proper steps to isolate themselves from their financial matters.  But the trumpet man does not want the people to know what he is hiding on his tax returns.

Corporate America and the wealthy continue to do well financially under the present tax code and the economy continues to create jobs.  It's policy that counts and that is what President Obama had, policy.  In fact the Obama administration let the Bush tax cuts expire for those making over $550,000.00 a year and the economy and jobs did better on Obama's watch than on Bush's watch.  Tax cuts for the wealthy and Corporate America never reduced the federal deficit under Reagan or Bush and took trillions of dollars from the federal government's revenue. Despite the trillions of dollars in tax cuts under Reagan and Bush, neither of them balanced one federal budget in the 16 years they served and both left office with the deficit higher than when they took office.

The democrats in congress should put the trumpet man on notice that they will not talk about any reductions in the tax rates for corporate America or the wealthy  until Trump makes his tax returns public so the people will know how much the trumpet man will make on the deal and that the first business of any tax reform bill should be to cancel all the tax loopholes and special tax exemptions for corporate America and the wealthy with no strings attached.  

The trumpet man has made a life out of being dishonest with people and continues to follow the same corrupt pattern as President.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Louisiana's Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser: The Mouth Roars Again

Billy Nungesser was the subject of a previous PolitiDose commentary during the BP rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico that resulted in the death of 11 rig workers and billions of dollars in damages to Louisiana's environment and property.  Nungesser who was President of Plaquemine parish at the time was the mouth who criticized President Obama's decision on the moratorium in the gulf until answers could be given in what took place.  And he opposed President Obama's every move.

Now we have a Times Picayune article dated 9/27 where the mouth said he will not attend the Saints game in London because some Saint players protested during the national anthem before their game with Carolina. the article also reported Nungesser said he would not be attending any more NFL games because of the protest.  Well, like Trump, Nungesser is about a year late as he and the trumpet man never made an issue out of Frisco's quarterback Colin Kaepernick protest when he took a knee during a game last year.  I wonder why he did not stop watching the NFL at that time?

That same Times Picayune carried another article by the same author who reported Louisiana's republican rep., Kenny Havard said Louisiana should pull Saints funding because of the Saint's players protest.  Nungesser during the interview said it was worth discussing whether Louisiana should offer so much support to the Saints given the recent protests.  Later he said he didn't have an opinion on whether the contracts should be reviewed by the legislators.

There are better reasons why the elected officials of Louisiana should have never given Tom Benson and the Saints the millions of dollars in corporate welfare in the first place.  And those reasons are more legit than a few Saints players taking a knee or sitting out the national anthem.  But leave it to politicians to try and cover their mistakes any way they can even though taking a knee was done on such a small scale prior to the trumpet man's SOB remark.

Nungesser also said this in the article about the protesters.  They are using this great opportunity they have to disgrace America.  They say they are protesting police brutality.  There are only a handful of police that have been convicted of doing something wrong.  Nungesser seems to be saying in this statement, since only a hand full of police have been convicted of doing something wrong, that does not justify players taking a knee.  Well if that is the case, only a hand full of players have taking a knee before the trumpet man's SOB remark so why blow things out of proportion.  Well, because that is what politicians do when they want attention.

Burning the American flag, taking a knee and other forms of protest will always be debated in the public and political arena because people on both sides have strong feelings and free speech defines America.  Hate groups carry Nazi and other symbols and flags that disgrace the American flag and all it stands for and is protected by freedom of speech.  Yet, they get a free pass from the trumpet man and the SOB remark is with held.  Taking a knee and other forms of protest will continue and America with continue to move on in the right direction because the great majority of Americans will always show respect to our institutions and all the good that it represents.  The American flag and our national anthem are one and the same and will also continue to be respected by the great majority of our citizens.

Yes, our country is still America the beautiful and has never lost its greatness.

Note:  PolitiDose carried past commentary long ago about the millions of corporate welfare given Mr. Benson and the Saints by the state politicians and how wrong that was since Mr. Benson was a multi-millionaire from the very beginning.  That give away of tax payers money was and still is a disgrace.  And there is no good excuse.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Trump and The Republican Senate Pull Their Latest Cassidy-Graham Health Care Scheme Bill

The republicans health care scheme died its third death when once again their party failed to obtain enough votes to pass.  But those who have heart should know the senate's leader Mitch McConnell said they will try again at a later date.  The trumpet man and his party are the dishonest ones when it comes to health care and their proposals never matched their rhetoric of how it was going to be much better than the ACA, insure more people, etc., etc., etc.  The CBO's report exposed and destroyed their lies.

Democratic senate leader Chuck Schumer said after the bill was pulled the democrats stand ready to work with the republicans to improve the ACA and make it better when the republicans take repeal and replace off the table.  Otherwise, they will continue to oppose the republicans health care scheme.  It has been the position of the democrats since day one.  The republicans rhetoric on the issue shames the trumpet man and his party's ability to govern.  Their foolish statement that with a republican President and republican controlled congress they could repeal and replace the ACA rather quickly was to appeal to their base even though they knew better.

This writer is waiting for a conservative opinion writer to ask the trumpet man when he was going to introduce his own health care plan.  After all, as President, he said he would do so before the end of March.  That was over 6 months ago.  To my knowledge, they have never asked the question.  I guess they think the question is too tough.  On the other hand, they probably know they will learn nothing from his answer.

After seven months of failure the trumpet man will now turn his attention to tax reform and visit Puerto Rico which he has caught criticism for his failure to visit after Hurricane Maria and its destruction to that island.  He already tried to change the conversation to the NFL.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio