Or not: Vice President Pence, speaking today at the Munich Security Conference, told our allies that he brought greetings “from the 45th president of the United States of America, President Donald Trump.”
He paused.
He waited a little longer.
And then one beat more.
Crickets.
Four seconds in, Pence gave up, and picked up his speech.
American power can be measured in all sorts of ways — including the degree to which we are valued, trusted and respected by our allies.
The US under Republican misrule has squandered an enormous amount of that informal power. We are not an irrelevant nation — any more than the United Kingdom was after the half a century in which its empire dissolved. And we haven’t gone all the way to the position Britain found itself in by, say the late 1950s, an unmistakably second rank power.
But any delusions about an American 21st century are pretty well exploded now, as indicated by the utter disdain for the President of the United States felt by everyone sentient observer — and for the political party and movement that still, against all reason, stands by him.
We won’t see an America that can persuade as well as bully the world until the Republican Party rubs shoulders with the Whigs.
Image: Umberto Boccioni, Laughter, not later than 1916.
jacy
I am soundly disappointed that no rotten produce was tossed at Mr. Pence in the silence.
What Have The Romans Ever Done for Us?
I spent a year working as a projectionist in my youth and I still haven’t projected a tenth as much as the Republican party did during 2016.
ThresherK
I thought “picked up his speech” meant “Pence gathered his paper copy and left the stage in a huff”.
Still damn entertaining, though.
Bill Arnold
Copied from below because it’s topical and making the rounds on e.g. facebook. I work and have worked with many rather bright foreign nationals and hear similar sentiments from nearly all of them.
Definition of Trump from a Brit (13 Feb 2019 Nate White)
Ben Cisco
From your lips to his noodly appendages, and may it be sooner than later.
rikyrah
Just went to vote. Took me 10 minutes, from check-in to finish.
They had at least 50 machines available.
Long lines are nothing more than VOTER SUPPRESSION ??
Jim, Foolish Literalist
always drove me nuts when Republicans, Jeb Bush especially, would say that America was ‘no longer respected’ or similar drivel, and it never got any media pushback. Pretty much every poll showed our international reputation crashed under Bush and rebounded under Obama, the exceptions were Israel and…. Russia.
also, speaking of our status as international laughingstock, why is Princess Ivanka even fucking there?
rikyrah
Amee Vanderpool (@girlsreallyrule) Tweeted:
Merkel calls out Trump in a speech, saying it “comes as a bit of a shock” to her that German cars may be named as a threat to American national security and points out South Carolina is the world’s largest BMW factory, “not Bavaria!”
Watch the cut-away of Ivanka’s face.
https://t.co/6WRVb6UfIo https://twitter.com/girlsreallyrule/status/1096842827370299392?s=17
B.B.A.
Would they have clapped for Jeb!?
chris
@rikyrah:
Early for Chicago mayor? Or…
Ben Cisco
@rikyrah: Thank you for what you bring to the blog. I always appreciate your input, and I don’t say it enough.
rikyrah
Stacey Abrams (@staceyabrams) Tweeted:
All: Please read this thread if you want to understand how pernicious voter suppression is and how it is a feature – not a bug – for some political leaders. #VoterSuppressionIsReal
https://t.co/syQCR4mixs https://twitter.com/staceyabrams/status/1096799946697830404?s=17
rikyrah
@chris:
Primary for Mayor, other city offices and Alderman
rikyrah
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
They are determined to attempt to legitimize her.??
jacy
@rikyrah:
Gosh, but I hate her. They are just the most awful people.
chris
@rikyrah: Thought so, thanks. There are so many elections it’s hard to keep track.
Litlebritdifrnt
Did any of you see the photo that was tweeted out today of Trump standing at the Omelette Bar at his Palm Beach Golf Club. (Sorry I don’t know how to link to tweets). Not only was the place a dump but the Omelette Bar would give clean freaks like John G Cole the hives. The Omelette pans were absolutely filthy. Nice touch was the Heinz Ketchup bottles at the front. Who on earth thinks that paying 200K a year for membership of that place? (Other than for access to TOTUS of course)
The Midnight Lurker
@Litlebritdifrnt:
Yes, we did. It’s a meme already.
I know. It happens to me all the time now.
Parfigliano
@rikyrah: Cant wait to see the look on her face when the pee tape gets released and it shows Trump calling the Russian hooker Ivanka
The Midnight Lurker
When Obama was in office: “They’re laughing at us!”
Now that Trump is in office: “STOP LAUGHING AT US!!!”
Jim, Foolish Literalist
Two! Two bottles of ketchup on that sad omelette bar!
The Midnight Lurker
And I can’t wait for the day when Mike Pence takes the stage and says; “Hi, I’m Mike Pence… remember me?”
Millard Filmore
@The Midnight Lurker:
https://mobile.twitter.com/WardQNormal/status/1096836867285082117
Steve in the ATL
Must not make obvious joke about Huckleberry Closetcase….
Chyron HR
@rikyrah:
This humiliation will not stand. The bombing begins in five minutes.
Uncle Cosmo
@Bill Arnold: My insistent question to the christianically inclined is:
(A particularly clumsy, gauche & stupid Antichrist, to be sure, but even so …)
Mike in NC
Wife is watching “Project Runway”, and I’ve heard that VP Pence is a huge fan, too. Make sure nobody informs Mother.
Waldo
There are actually sound reasons for the GOPers to stand by him, chief among them the realization that opposing Trump would blow up the base and hasten the party’s slide into irrelevance.
The morality of their stance is, of course, a different matter.
Mike in NC
@Bill Arnold: Trump is the Frankenstein’s monster created by white supremacists Ann Coulter and Sean Hannity.
opiejeanne
@Litlebritdifrnt: I don’t see that the place is a dump or filthy, but maybe you’ve seen a different photo than what I have. Can’t see the countertop except from the edge, so maybe it’s really bad.
What I do see is very tired decor from the 80s maybe. If you can call that decor. It’s frumpy and outdated and I stayed in classier joints in the 80s when we had less money than now. These days my idea of a nice place to stay is a Hampton Inn. We stayed at one in November that was so new I don’t think anyone had slept in our room before us. This was at the end of a grueling car trip and it was the best part of that trip.
columbusqueen
Anyone & everyone who voted for Orange Shitgibbon should be exiled to a desert island for life, the stupid dickweeds.
Just saying.
MattF
NYT article says Trump’s latest weird claim is that Obama was on the verge of war with NK in 2016. The article has a lot of ‘Uh, wtf?’ quotes from Obama officials.
jacy
Notice in that omelette bar picture, there’s a big poster behind the server with a picture of Trump and the words. “Can you walk the walk?” Yes, because that shambling mound of garbage can’t even make it across the street without a golf cart.
jimmiraybob
But, in many ways, and many people say this, good people, the best people, you’ve probably heard this right?, silence is much the same as wild applause and cheering. But more reverential. Is it any wonder then that world leaders should wildly, but reverentially, cheer on our Great God-anointed Leader to the glory of his works?
(trying out for White House spokes position when Sarah and the blonde Goebbels are breakin’ rocks upstate)
(((CassandraLeo)))
@B.B.A.: Same thought I had – please clap.
Alternately, womp womp.
IDK. There are too many memes that would fit this too well.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@MattF: that was part of his ranting yesterday, I swear you could see him making it up as he babbled along
Jim, Foolish Literalist
Oh, that clip needs to be memed with a womp womp sound effect
debbie
@jacy:
A shoe at the very least.
JPL
@MattF: Why bring attention to the latest lie.
debbie
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
Screw the ketchup. What’s with that poster behind the bar? “Can you walk the walk?” WTF? ?
guachi
@opiejeanne: Yeah, maybe “outdated and tacky” is better than “dump”. But I’d still call it a dump in the context of a golf resort.
The “filthy” part specifically refers to the burnt omelette pan the cook is holding. I’d expect a classier place to have cleaner looking pans. It’d take no more than a minute or two once a week to keep the pans ultra shiny with a little Barkeep’s Friend.
MagdaInBlack
@jacy:
Yes, I noticed it, and had similar thoughts.
MattF
@JPL: It’s not so much the lie per se as the vexed relationship to reality. I think that has to be kept in mind.
Duane
As the debacle of this stupid and evil administration stumbles on, this presidency could collapse under the weight of its own mistakes. It would be a sight to see, Trumpov with no one to blame but himself.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
more of Dense Mike’s quiet road trip
cwmoss
@B.B.A.: Only if he said please.
??? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ??
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
These people truly live in their own little bubble. It could be that Pence is just that stupid, but I think it’s just because he and people like him are cocooned in the right-wing bubble so much.
Serious question: what was going through Pence’s mind when he got such a cold reaction? Did it give him pause that he’s wrong? Or did he go down the martyr route: Fortress America vs the World?
Bill Arnold
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
That made me smile. Definitely not one of his adoring evangelical crowds that responds warmly to his talking point recitations.
Bill Arnold
@??? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ??:
This was my impression. Only watched it twice though.
Not even B-Team.
Uncle Cosmo
@columbusqueen: Exiled to the Kuiper Belt. Building the rockets for transporrt will jumpstart the economy!
Amir Khalid
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
It shows the extent of the Trump Administration’s self-delusion that they thought people would applaud abandoning a multilteral agreement that came out of many years hard work on all sides.
Jay C
@Bill Arnold:
We all realize Our Veep is scarcely less of a moron than his boss; but this reaction comes as a bit of a surprise: I thought that formalized Iran-bashing was the whole purpose of this little confab in Warsaw. Of course, this IS the Trump gang in charge of it, so isn’t that much of a shock that they would get a somewhat different reaction than what they expected (Dunno what – Fox News-level softball adulation?). Anybody tell Mike Dense that “our European partners” have been the ones diligently keeping the JCPOA deal alive – for reasons of their own, like keeping Iran nuclear-free in the interests of regional/world peace?
Brachiator
As with the irrational Hillary Hate, it is an article of faith among right wing dopes that Obama was the weakest president ever and that God’s Chosen, Orange Julius Caesar has restored America’s lost honor. Fox News will dutifully broadcast Pence’s remarks, but will never comment at all about the weak response to his bullshit.
The Trump administration is very adept at creating propaganda bites that can be used by friendly media.
Also, having Pence repeat Trump’s anti-Nato and anti-Europe blather makes it harder for Pence ever to run for president independent of Trump’s foreign policy.
Brachiator
Self-delusion is one thing, but do Pence and other Republican leaders attend content free briefings where foreign policy staffers lie or keep quiet about Europe’s view of Trump?
Ruckus
@Litlebritdifrnt:
People who lack a significant level of refinement and grace. IOW republicans who want to impress people with even less refinement and grace – drumpf supporters. More commonly known as x-small jock supporters.
Ruckus
@guachi:
But I’d still call it a dump in the context of a $200,000/ year golf resort.
FIXIT for you and agree with you, I’m paying 200K a year for that dump? Yeah right.
BroD
Crickets fell silent and pins arrested in descent.
Doug
Or as this administration is increasingly known, The Project for a Post-American Century!