Donald Trump Appreciation Thread

[AlexLaw76]

Just now, benjii said:

They've never done it in recent decades without at least a pretence of legality. 

UN resolutions, congressional approval etc...

This is supposedly the bastion of democracy, collapsing visibly before our eyes to satisfy the greed of a few disgusting people. Trump's approach to politics has big second order effects, not least the terminal decline of the UK if we end up with a Reform government. 

Pretence of legality. Probably what they will do again and no one will say a word,

this is just more of the same from the USA. Why you think this is a sudden shift is a very biased view 

[benjii]

 

 

[benjii]

3 minutes ago, AlexLaw76 said:

Pretence of legality. Probably what they will do again and no one will say a word,

this is just more of the same from the USA. Why you think this is a sudden shift is a very biased view 

Ok, Brett. Yes, the current US government is just like all the others. It's definitely the same.

[AlexLaw76]

Just now, benjii said:

 

 

Exactly. They have been doing this for decades. Why do you think they do not recognise the ICC and they will not allow their people to be tried by it.
 

Just more of the same…

[AlexLaw76]

1 minute ago, benjii said:

Ok, Brett. Yes, the current US government is just like all the others. It's definitely the same.

Your derangement with Trump is very overt.

 

[benjii]

12 minutes ago, AlexLaw76 said:

Your derangement with Trump is very overt.

 

Careful now, you might have an original thought one day.

[AlexLaw76]

6 minutes ago, benjii said:

Careful now, you might have an original thought one day.

Not seen one from you for a long time, which is a shame

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sheaf Saint]

31 minutes ago, AlexLaw76 said:

Pretence of legality. Probably what they will do again and no one will say a word,

this is just more of the same from the USA. Why you think this is a sudden shift is a very biased view 

The shift is that it's now happening in plain sight. At least in the past the US 'interventions' in foreign affairs have been largely covert with at least some semblance of plausible deniability. Can you honestly not see the difference between that and a morally-bankrupt gobshite president sticking two fingers up to the rest of the world and ordering the capture of a foreign leader without any kind of UN resolution?

[AlexLaw76]

Just now, Sheaf Saint said:

The shift is that it's now happening in plain sight. At least in the past the US 'interventions' in foreign affairs have been largely covert with at least some semblance of plausible deniability. Can you honestly not see the difference between that and a morally-bankrupt gobshite president sticking two fingers up to the rest of the world and ordering the capture of a foreign leader without any kind of UN resolution?

The end result is the same. The USA have been “legally” bombing nations to the Stone Age for decades, with plenty of regime changes at the same time. Bush, Clinton, Obama…..all were at it. They did not have security resolutions to destroy Syria, Libya, Iraq and such like…. As said, there is a reason they do not recognise the ICC, and the great leaders before Trump did not change a thing.

the USA is doing USA things, just now in plain sight. 

[Lighthouse]

Well... good luck Greenland, Canada, Iran and basically everyone except Putin.

[whelk]

57 minutes ago, AlexLaw76 said:

Your derangement with Trump is very overt.

 

At least he has some useful idiots in this country

[benjii]

When east-stand-nic likes your post.....

[benjii]

"We are going to run the country...."

 

Jared Kushner tanker port incoming....

[sadoldgit]

Can NATO trust Trump and where does this leave the UN now that the USA have a power crazed idiot at the helm now showing not the slightest pretence of giving a feck about what any body else thinks? 
Still, not to worry, it’s only Trump Derangement Symptom apparently. 🤪

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/03/putin-russia-us-foreign-policy-venezuela

Edited Saturday at 16:51 by sadoldgit

[benjii]

The people behind him at this press conference look so awkward.

He's prattling on about American cities now.

[egg]

23 minutes ago, benjii said:

"We are going to run the country...."

 

Jared Kushner tanker port incoming....

... pending a safe transition...to US people/puppets. 

Fecking shameful. 

[egg]

24 minutes ago, sadoldgit said:

Can NATO trust Trump and where does this leave the UN now that the USA have a power crazed idiot at the helm now showing not the slightest pretence of giving a feck about what any body else thinks? 
Still, not to worry, it’s only Trump Derangement Symptom apparently. 🤪

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/03/putin-russia-us-foreign-policy-venezuela

No re the first bit, and they UN have shown themselves to be a busted flush time and again, not least re Israel. 

 

[badgerx16]

Wasn't Trump hyper-critical of US involvement in Iraq, Afghanistan, etc ?

[badgerx16]

22 minutes ago, egg said:

No re the first bit, and they UN have shown themselves to be a busted flush time and again, not least re Israel. 

 

Until the Security Council is reformed the UN will remain a toothless talking shop.

[benjii]

2 minutes ago, badgerx16 said:

Wasn't Trump hyper-critical of US involvement in Iraq, Afghanistan, etc ?

Yeah, but he didn't make any money out of that.

[badgerx16]

I don't suppose there will be any problems now with ICE deporting Venezuelans.

[Willo of Whiteley]

Donald Trump starting a pointless war.

I suppose if you’re trying to distract the public that you’re quite constant in the Epstein files that’s one way of doing it.

[badgerx16]

8 hours ago, Colinjb said:

 

Could this be Trump trying to one up Putin by any chance? (NOW THATS A SPECIAL MILITARY OPERATION MURHFUCKA!!!)

Three days ? Hell, three hours is enough for enforced regime change.

[Willo of Whiteley]

The word “appreciation” seriously needs to be taken out of the title of this thread.

A convicted criminal, with some horrific allegations in the press now being distracted by his illegal war. Nothing to appreciate there.

[badgerx16]

2 minutes ago, Willo of Whiteley said:

The word “appreciation” seriously needs to be taken out of the title of this thread.

A convicted criminal, with some horrific allegations in the press now being distracted by his illegal war. Nothing to appreciate there.

Unless you are an (un)Guided Missile.

[The Kraken]

Misguided Weapon is the better sobriquet IMO.

[Willo of Whiteley]

You’ve just got to be thick as shit to admire him

[badgerx16]

2 minutes ago, Willo of Whiteley said:

You’ve just got to be thick as shit to admire him

QED

[benjii]

interesting thread. 

 

 

[Dark Munster]

6 hours ago, badgerx16 said:

Wasn't Trump hyper-critical of US involvement in Iraq, Afghanistan, etc ?

Don't you mean hypocritical?

[benjii]

Trump's plan:

 

[JohnnyShearer2.0]

The rhetoric coming out is crazy from the US government. Single handly fucking up life how it is for many years to come.

[badgerx16]

2 hours ago, benjii said:

Trump's plan:

 

How did you get hold of a Top Secret Pentagon breifing document ?

 

That is a very 1984 depiction of the World.

Edited 16 hours ago by badgerx16

[egg]

11 hours ago, benjii said:

interesting thread. 

 

 

Thanks for posting that. So mention was made of Russia taking Ukraine, and the US taking Venezuela, both in the US Congress in 2019 and on Russian state TV in 2020. Also interesting to note that Russia mention that they could interfere in the election, and do something, to help get Trump elected. 

What's been murky as anything since re-election is that all the Russia/US discussions have been clandestine. I dread to think what's been discussed/agreed there. 

The Russian 2020 TV discsussion below, with subtitles. 

https://x.com/davetroy/status/2007575436847616410?s=20

[benjii]

It's also crazy that Maduro was meeting publicly with the Chinese government on the day of the abduction.  Makes you wonder if they were part of the plan somehow.

[egg]

34 minutes ago, JohnnyShearer2.0 said:

The rhetoric coming out is crazy from the US government. Single handly fucking up life how it is for many years to come.

Yep. Cuba next - must be all those cigars causing a security risk so needs addressing. Colombia and Mexico in his sights too. That military build up in the Caribbean isn't going home for a while. 

Decent article in Politico on the issue.

After Venezuela operation, Trump says the whole hemisphere is in play - POLITICO https://share.google/ePsBI6QpVu6qXur6Z

 

[egg]

This is from the wife of the deputy chief of staff. 

 

[benjii]

I would expect them to shift to actively assisting Russia, rather than just being awkward to Ukraine, soon.

[JohnnyShearer2.0]

Spend billions on ICE and stuff like this and yet, let American subsidies expire on their own peeps health insurance. 

Definitely thinning out the population. 

[badgerx16]

7 minutes ago, JohnnyShearer2.0 said:

Spend billions on ICE and stuff like this and yet, let American subsidies expire on their own peeps health insurance. 

Definitely thinning out the population. 

Trump sn't interested in anything thst doesn't make him or his cronies money. Maximising profit is the prime purpose of the US health care system.

Edited 15 hours ago by badgerx16

[egg]

4 minutes ago, benjii said:

I would expect them to shift to actively assisting Russia, rather than just being awkward to Ukraine, soon.

Yep. I said when elected that he'd target the BRICS nations and try to divide. Some will be partners, others isolated, and others targeted whether with sanctions/tariffs or otherwise. 

[egg]

Long winded, but interesting ChatGPT take on the impact of this on China. If nothing else, the summary in the final paragraph is worth noting. Makes me think that doing it hours before Maduro was to meet the Chinese was a warning to China to keep out of the Western Hemisphere. 

The idea of the U.S. “running” Venezuela—whether through regime change, trusteeship-like influence, or simply decisive geopolitical dominance—would be highly consequential for China, and almost entirely negative from Beijing’s perspective. The impact depends on how deep U.S. control goes, but even partial U.S. re-entry into Venezuela would weaken China’s position.

Below is a structured breakdown.

1. Why Venezuela Matters So Much to China

China’s stake in Venezuela is not ideological—it’s strategic and financial.

China’s core interests in Venezuela

~$50–60B in historical loans, many oil-backed

Long-term crude supply contracts

A sanctioned partner outside U.S. financial control

A symbolic foothold in the U.S. hemisphere

Venezuela is one of the few cases where China accepted extreme political risk to secure influence close to the U.S.

2. What “U.S. Running Venezuela” Could Mean (Three Scenarios)

Scenario A: U.S.-Aligned Democratic Government (Most Likely Hypothetical)

Not formal control, but:

Sanctions lifted conditionally

IMF / World Bank reentry

U.S. and EU energy firms return

Impact on China

China becomes a junior creditor, not a privileged one

Oil exports likely reoriented toward U.S./EU markets

Debt renegotiations under Western legal norms

Chinese firms face transparency and competition rules

➡️ China loses leverage but not everything

Scenario B: De Facto U.S. Economic Stewardship

Something like:

IMF-led stabilization

U.S. influence over PdVSA restructuring

Western control over oil sector recovery

Impact on China

Oil-backed loan repayment terms rewritten

Potential write-downs or long delays

Chinese state firms sidelined from key assets

Loss of preferential access

➡️ Major financial loss and strategic retreat

Scenario 😄 Hard U.S. Strategic Control (Least Likely)

Think Cold War–style dominance:

Security alignment

Energy policy aligned with U.S. interests

Explicit rollback of Chinese presence

Impact on China

Near-total loss of influence

Stranded assets

Diplomatic humiliation (symbolically huge)

Precedent that China can be pushed out under pressure

➡️ Worst-case scenario for Beijing

3. Financial Impact on China

Debt exposure

Much of Venezuela’s debt to China is illiquid and opaque

Repayment depends on political alignment

A U.S.-aligned Venezuela would:

Push for multilateral restructuring

Reduce oil-for-debt arrangements

Possibly treat China like any other creditor—or worse

➡️ China likely recovers less than expected, possibly far less.

4. Energy & Global Oil Markets

If Venezuela is reintegrated into Western markets:

Production could rise significantly over time

Supply increases → lower global prices

U.S. energy security improves

For China

Loses preferential access

Faces more market-based pricing

Reduced leverage over supply

Ironically, China would still buy Venezuelan oil, but without political advantage.

5. Geopolitical & Psychological Impact on China

This may be the most important part.

Symbolic consequences

Demonstrates limits of China’s Western Hemisphere reach

Shows debt-based influence is reversible

Reinforces U.S. primacy near its borders

For Beijing, Venezuela is:

A test case for how far Chinese influence can go

A signal to other Global South partners

If China loses Venezuela:

Other debtor states may feel emboldened to rebalance

China becomes more cautious in high-risk lending

6. China’s Likely Responses

If the U.S. begins “running” Venezuela, China would likely:

Write down losses quietly

Avoid confrontation (Venezuela not worth a showdown)

Double down elsewhere:

Middle East

Africa

Southeast Asia

Recalibrate lending toward:

Equity

Joint ventures

Resource-linked projects with tighter control

➡️ Less ideological, more hard-nosed China.

7. Would the U.S. Actually Want to “Run” Venezuela?

This matters because China knows the U.S. is ambivalent.

Constraints on the U.S.:

Political risk

Reconstruction costs

Migration pressures

Domestic opposition to “nation-building”

So Beijing may bet that:

The U.S. stabilizes Venezuela just enough

But does not fully displace Chinese interests

Bottom Line

If the U.S. were to effectively “run” Venezuela:

China would lose one of its most leveraged positions in the Western Hemisphere

Suffer financial losses and strategic embarrassment

Be reminded that proximity still matters in geopolitics

But:

China would not retaliate aggressively

Venezuela is important, not existential

The lesson for Beijing would be caution, not escalation

In short:

Venezuela is one of the few places where U.S. reassertion would be a clear net loss for China—financially, strategically, and symbolically.

[benjii]

1 hour ago, egg said:

This is from the wife of the deputy chief of staff. 

 

Don't worry, they are just the same as the other US governments. 

[sadoldgit]

It’s about the drugs not the oil eh Donnie?

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jan/03/us-oil-trump-venezuela

Apparently Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado doesn’t have the respect of the country and he suggests that she will not be leader. Of course not, Trump will put his puppet in place.

For those who think it is a good idea to vote in Farage as the next PM, maybe think about the consequences a bit harder?
 

[Gloucester Saint]

1 hour ago, JohnnyShearer2.0 said:

Spend billions on ICE and stuff like this and yet, let American subsidies expire on their own peeps health insurance. 

Definitely thinning out the population. 

As with the pandemic, the only hope is that it affects red GOP areas more than blue Dem ones and reduces their support base. The American public really have stuffed themselves, but from a UK perspective, Trump has caused geopolitical which impacts everyone on this board, and that’s why losing the mid-terms would rein him in, if his failing health doesn’t do that first. Question of how much more destruction he can wreak in the next 11 months though. 

[iansums]

54 minutes ago, sadoldgit said:

It’s about the drugs not the oil eh Donnie?

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jan/03/us-oil-trump-venezuela

Apparently Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado doesn’t have the respect of the country and he suggests that she will not be leader. Of course not, Trump will put his puppet in place.

For those who think it is a good idea to vote in Farage as the next PM, maybe think about the consequences a bit harder?
 

Farage, Badenoch, Starmer or even Corbyn as PM are all totally irrelevant to what Trump does as President.

[Weston Super Saint]

1 hour ago, sadoldgit said:

It’s about the drugs not the oil eh Donnie?

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jan/03/us-oil-trump-venezuela

Apparently Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado doesn’t have the respect of the country and he suggests that she will not be leader. Of course not, Trump will put his puppet in place.

For those who think it is a good idea to vote in Farage as the next PM, maybe think about the consequences a bit harder?
 

What's he going to do, take over Iceland?

You really are quite dopey sometimes.

[Gloucester Saint]

14 minutes ago, Weston Super Saint said:

What's he going to do, take over Iceland?

You really are quite dopey sometimes.

Richard Walker would have something to say about it certainly.

RFK as Head of Food Science - hmmm, think I’ll stick with where we already shop!

Edited 12 hours ago by Gloucester Saint

[sadoldgit]

Part of Maduro’s indictment accuses him of possessing machine guns and explosive devices.

1. As Head of State it is unlikely that it is illegal for him to posses such items in his own country.

2. He was kidnapped by American forces using, you guessed it, machine guns and explosive devices.

3. Given the amount of firearms available to buy in the USA, he sounds like he would be right at home there.

[benjii]

Apparently Sam Allardyce has been appointed as interim President until the end of the year.