Discussion: Spox: Federal Ethics Chief 'Silly' To Criticize Trump's Confict-of-Interest Plan

TPM Article Topics
21

Sean (Shorty) Spicer will soon surpass Kellyanne Con-way on my number-of-shoes-thrown-at-the-TV-screen scorecard.

4 Likes
22

We all agree that he has conflicts that violate norms and the Constitution. But if nobody is going to hold him accountable that doesn’t matter. We’d need the Republican Congress to stand up and challenge him, and they won’t. Does anyone else have the authority to do so?

2 Likes
23

Hairline cracks in Trump’s invisible shield: Trouble could follow the President-elect’s Wednesday press conference

2 Likes
24

trumpf and his minions can tell us daily if they choose that he’s not accountable, doesn’t make it so. There’s the ACLU, there’s CREW and too many citizen journalists to name including David Corn who’ll hold his short feet to the fire.

4 Likes
25

He was saying “silly” when he was looking in the mirror.

26

“Ethics? We don’t need no stinkin’ ethics”.

Sean Spicer

3 Likes
27

Trump’s approval rating is like 37% which is the lowest approval rating for an incoming President in forever, lowest by about 30 points. You would think that Trump’s spokesman would be interested in reassuring skeptical Americans that their incoming President is not going to use the Presidency to advance his personal fortune.

1 Like
28

But don’t we already have that acceptable set of standards, cast in stone so I thought?

Methinks the bigger issue for this non-lawyer is whether Congress (Republican as it is) has the political will to not only call out his transgressions, which will soon become obvious on Day 1, but punish him for non-compliance. To wit, impeach him if he refuses to follow the law and remove him from office.

As others have stated, the Republican Congress might only do so say 1 year later AFTER they get Trump to enact the bulk of their agenda. They will stall any early efforts to depose him, just watch, as the Ethics Department to my understanding is a toothless dog without any power to enforce the law.

1 Like
29

My local paper SF Chronicle has an editorial up today denouncing “empty answers” and there couldn’t be a reputable media outlet not in agreement. It ends with

Unbelievably, he thanked Russian President Vladimir Putin for denying reports and said his admiration for the leader would be “an asset” in future dealings.

Trump’s unsteady answers and evasions underline his lack of preparedness and understanding of the job coming his way on Jan. 20.

@irasdad What’s your guess as to what his “unimaginable power” might be? Maybe we’ve just read some over the top hyperbole or maybe it will be farewell using the red button .

3 Likes
30

From the Daily News article:

“Of course, it may take some time for the magic shield to crack apart in its entirety. But when the spell breaks, beware. A wounded Trump will be even more unpredictable than he has been up to date, and in possession of unimaginable power.”

4 Likes
31

The tsunami of unethical, illegal and unconstitutional sewage that will pour from this administration will be too much to deal with for us and the press. This next 4 years will test the limits of our laws, our Constitution and our will. Trump will simply ignore all of the above, do as he pleases and dare anyone to stop him. The sad truth is, with a GOP Congress, there’s very little chance of anyone doing anything about it. As Ben Franklin said about the newly formed US, it’s a Republic if we can keep it.

4 Likes
32

It was ‘silly’??? Honest to Christ. This clown show is going to bankrupt us all and it will just be too bad because WE LET IT HAPPEN.

1 Like
33

Major Garrett on CBS this morning disingenuously said, “Trump covered a wide range of issues.”

(This pre911 head in sand stuff coupled with the sadly usual fantasy-informed militaristic GOP hubris is really going to bite us in the ass.)

2 Likes
34

What’s very clear to people is that Trump has a ton of conflicts, and cannot avoid serving his business interests over the interests of the country.

That’s why most Americans hate him. He’s a liar and a thief, and this SPOX is defending a lawbreaker.

Conspiracy.

5 Likes
35

This is how things are going to be.

It should take just a few days before the first scandal appears. Then it will be waved away with a simple, “That’s fake news. The event didn’t happen.”

And that will be that…until the press turns on him. The real question of importance is this one: How long will that take?

3 Likes
36

The Constitutional and ethical issues raised by the Trump Presidency are going to change and shape the nature of the office and politics for decades to come. It took us a few hundred years to get here but will only take a few short years to destroy it. The 2016 election will be seen as the turning point when America lost its way.

3 Likes
37

Same with Deficit Spending…only matters as a cudgel against Dems

3 Likes
38

OGE head is appointed to I think a 5 year term. Current head’s term is up in 2018.

39

“Wide range of issues” has been used everywhere to describe yesterday’s “press conference.” What, did he even allow more than five reporters to pose questions?

4 Likes
40

That’s a view from the real world and doesn’t apply to the Trump regime. It doesn’t matter how many organizations or individuals can present prima facie evidence of corruption or criminality. For them to have any effect, Trump has to be capable of feeling shame and acting accordingly. We have seen over the course of a long and brutal campaign that this is not the case. Ultimately, Trump is only accountable to one body: the Congress of the United States. Only Congress can remove him from office. Others can say what they want about Trump and he will just deny the accusations, denigrate the accusers, and continue as before. Trump could, as he claimed, shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and not only would he not lose any votes, but he would denounce any attempt to prosecute him as a political witch hunt.

It doesn’t matter how many of the American people want Trump impeached, Congress is not going to act. I’ll bet you think that if 70% of Americans wanted stricter gun laws that Congress would pass stricter gun laws too. Or I’ll bet you think if only 25% of Americans want to repeal the ACA that Congress won’t repeal the ACA.

While I’m in complete sympathy with your feelings that “somebody ought to be able to do something”, there is no one apart from Congress that has any authority other than moral, and morality is not a Trump concern.

2 Likes