Trump blasts Sessions over GOP congressmen indictments (Sept 3rd)

[politicallefty]

Sasse and Collins have already warned that a Sessions replacement wouldn't get confirmed.

The same pro-choice Susan Collins that's going to vote to confirm the end of abortion rights in at least half the country?

non sequitur

Not really. When is the last time a presidential nomination was outright defeated in the Senate when the President's party holds the Senate? Trump would nominate someone that could easily appease the committee and would be confirmed on a bare majority vote She wouldn't be the deciding factor in any nominee's potential defeat.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Sasse and Collins have already warned that a Sessions replacement wouldn't get confirmed.

The same pro-choice Susan Collins that's going to vote to confirm the end of abortion rights in at least half the country?

non sequitur

Not really. When is the last time a presidential nomination was outright defeated in the Senate when the President's party holds the Senate? Trump would nominate someone that could easily appease the committee and would be confirmed on a bare majority vote She wouldn't be the deciding factor in any nominee's potential defeat.

i don't see what that has to do with the discussion though.

[Xing]

"It's all talk!"
"What do you want them to do?"
"Say this other thing"
"They've already said it"
"It's all talk!"

More like *do* this other thing. If they start doing something more than talking, we'll give them credit.

[politicallefty]

Sasse and Collins have already warned that a Sessions replacement wouldn't get confirmed.

The same pro-choice Susan Collins that's going to vote to confirm the end of abortion rights in at least half the country?

non sequitur

Not really. When is the last time a presidential nomination was outright defeated in the Senate when the President's party holds the Senate? Trump would nominate someone that could easily appease the committee and would be confirmed on a bare majority vote She wouldn't be the deciding factor in any nominee's potential defeat.

i don't see what that has to do with the discussion though.

The fact that what she said is not true. If Trump fired Sessions, a new nominee would be confirmed and she would end up voting for said nominee (provided this is not 2019 with a Democratic Senate).

[KingSweden]

I really find this statement hard to swallow.

This isn't some politically incorrect Tweet, or some insensitively worded statement.  It's not even an incomprehensible attack.  It's an attack on the Rule of Law.

If I were a GOP Senator, I'd be actively discussing ways to convince Trump to resign.  This is a level of "not getting it" that I can't fathom the normal citizen not understanding, even a fairly apolitical one.

This is what a lot of us have been on about for the last 18 months

This does take everything to a new level.

Trump's never made a statement like this.  And there's no enobling defense for it.

I agree.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Sasse and Collins have already warned that a Sessions replacement wouldn't get confirmed.

The same pro-choice Susan Collins that's going to vote to confirm the end of abortion rights in at least half the country?

non sequitur

Not really. When is the last time a presidential nomination was outright defeated in the Senate when the President's party holds the Senate? Trump would nominate someone that could easily appease the committee and would be confirmed on a bare majority vote She wouldn't be the deciding factor in any nominee's potential defeat.

i don't see what that has to do with the discussion though.

The fact that what she said is not true. If Trump fired Sessions, a new nominee would be confirmed and she would end up voting for said nominee (provided this is not 2019 with a Democratic Senate).

There's a difference between voting against a nominee because he might not rule the way you want and voting against a nominee because you think he's replacing someone that shouldn't have been removed.  It's not comparable.

But the fact that all Trump has done in terms of firing Sessions is tweet about it for a year is evidence in favor of us not getting to find out who votes for an AG replacing a fired Sessions & that Trump understands it wouldn't turn out well for him if he did.

[Beet]

Q says Sessions is pro-Trump on the downlow so....

[ProudModerate2]

Here is a 4 minute video on some CNN commentary on the matter.
I think this is a serious violation of presidential power.

Click here to watch: https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2018/09/03/trump-sessions-gop-indictments-baldwin-zeleny-preston-nr-vpx.cnn

[Landslide Lyndon]

Sasse and Collins have already warned that a Sessions replacement wouldn't get confirmed.

The same pro-choice Susan Collins that's going to vote to confirm the end of abortion rights in at least half the country?

non sequitur

Not really. When is the last time a presidential nomination was outright defeated in the Senate when the President's party holds the Senate? Trump would nominate someone that could easily appease the committee and would be confirmed on a bare majority vote She wouldn't be the deciding factor in any nominee's potential defeat.

i don't see what that has to do with the discussion though.

Of course you don't honey. Hence you are playing dumb.
Thanks for playing.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Sasse and Collins have already warned that a Sessions replacement wouldn't get confirmed.

The same pro-choice Susan Collins that's going to vote to confirm the end of abortion rights in at least half the country?

non sequitur

Not really. When is the last time a presidential nomination was outright defeated in the Senate when the President's party holds the Senate? Trump would nominate someone that could easily appease the committee and would be confirmed on a bare majority vote She wouldn't be the deciding factor in any nominee's potential defeat.

i don't see what that has to do with the discussion though.

Of course you don't honey. Hence you are playing dumb.
Thanks for playing.

Lay off the ouzo a bit.

[Landslide Lyndon]

Sasse and Collins have already warned that a Sessions replacement wouldn't get confirmed.

The same pro-choice Susan Collins that's going to vote to confirm the end of abortion rights in at least half the country?

non sequitur

Not really. When is the last time a presidential nomination was outright defeated in the Senate when the President's party holds the Senate? Trump would nominate someone that could easily appease the committee and would be confirmed on a bare majority vote She wouldn't be the deciding factor in any nominee's potential defeat.

i don't see what that has to do with the discussion though.

Of course you don't honey. Hence you are playing dumb.
Thanks for playing.

Lay off the ouzo a bit.

Maybe you should lay off the kool-aid.

[Angel of Death]

Given all the Trump fatigue the whole world is currently suffering from, it bears repeating that this tweet alone belongs to a different category altogether.

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

Given all the Trump fatigue the whole world is currently suffering from, it bears repeating that this tweet alone belongs to a different category altogether.

We're seeing Trump's superpower in action here. He is such a baseline horrible human being, and such a terrible president, that when he does something exceptionally awful, that would get any other office-holder forced out within the week, it is camouflaged, blending in with the heaping background of garbage that is everything Trump touches and allowing him to escape relatively unscathed.

[Fuzzy Bear Loves Christian Missionaries]

Can anyone find any instance in history when a President attacks his own Cabinet member? I don't even know what to say about this.

Andrew Johnson took on his own Cabinet.  He was impeached, in part, because he fired Secretary of War Edwin Stanton after Congress passed an outrageous law stating that he couldn't fire a Cabinet Secretary without Congressional approval.

Woodrow Wilson got into a row with his Secratary of State, Robert Lansing, who suggested that VP Thomas Marshall should assume the duties of President when Wilson was incapacitated with a stroke.  Edith Wilson, who was the real President at that time, then pushed for Lansing's resignation.  Lansing was replaced by Bainbridge Colby, who had been a Progressive Republican who had become a Democrat as recently as 1916.  There was a cartoon of Wilson pushing Lansing overboard that was  titled "Dropping The First Mate". 

Johnson, in his defense, was saddled with Lincoln's Cabinet, most of whom were disloyal to him.  Lansing was a purely political spat.  There were other Cabinet members who feuded with their bosses mainly because they were rival politicians whose appointment was based on appeasing a political faction and not on loyalty to a President.

All of this makes Trump's treatment of Sessions, and Sessions' willingness to take it, all the more baffling.  Sessions was an early Trump supporter who stuck with him through the worst.  He treats him like a pet he doesn't like and wishes he could find a new home for.  Why Sessions hasn't told Trump to take his AG post and stick it is a mystery for this age, if not the ages.

[Mr. Morden]

Can anyone find any instance in history when a President attacks his own Cabinet member? I don't even know what to say about this.

Andrew Johnson took on his own Cabinet.  He was impeached, in part, because he fired Secretary of War Edwin Stanton after Congress passed an outrageous law stating that he couldn't fire a Cabinet Secretary without Congressional approval.

There are plenty of cases where presidents fired Cabinet officials because they were displeased about their performance.  What's unusual about this case is that, rather than firing Sessions, Trump publicly attacks him but doesn't fire him.