Trump/Admin Policies

tempo_n_groove

tbergs said:

tempo_n_groove said:

tbergs said:

I'm not sure it's worth it to explain because what's obvious to some, isn't to others. I don't know. The actions, the machinations of everything are to further enrich the person, and the rest of the wealthy, who is supposed to represent the people. This isn’t a monarchy. I guess you would have been cool with Biden building an ice cream shop, Obama adding a basketball court, Bush adding a stable and Clinton adding a brothel then.

The difference is, no other president has been the conveyor of monuments to themselves like he has and he's doing it while he has power because otherwise it would have never happened or been allowed. Every other president we have had has understood and respected that, but this guy is a narcissistic ego maniac and none of the wealthy want to cross him because it would mean financial losses. Lobbyists used to have to go to congress, but now they just send the CEO to the President who openly accepts whatever money, gifts or resources they'll give him to stay in favor. 

Bowling alley in the white house? Nah?

And what president was that? A true man of the people, right? 🙄

One was gifted to Truman and the other was by Nixon.  Just pointing out that others had built things or were built for them before.

Also didn't Obama improve the basketball court?

Halifax2TheMax

 * The following opinion is mine and mine alone and does not represent the views of my family, friends, government and/or my past, present or future employer. US Department of State: 1-888-407-4747.

Same-same. See? What’s the diff? Good lord. Ask AI, it’ll explain it for you.

tempo_n_groove

Halifax2TheMax said:

 * The following opinion is mine and mine alone and does not represent the views of my family, friends, government and/or my past, present or future employer. US Department of State: 1-888-407-4747.

Same-same. See? What’s the diff? Good lord. Ask AI, it’ll explain it for you.

When one says it's never happened before and you show them that it has does not mean "same same". It means that others have done it before...  I think AI would tell you that too.  Give it a go.

PJ_Soul

tempo_n_groove said:

Halifax2TheMax said:

 * The following opinion is mine and mine alone and does not represent the views of my family, friends, government and/or my past, present or future employer. US Department of State: 1-888-407-4747.

Same-same. See? What’s the diff? Good lord. Ask AI, it’ll explain it for you.

When one says it's never happened before and you show them that it has does not mean "same same". It means that others have done it before...  I think AI would tell you that too.  Give it a go.

Nobody has done this before though. A building never got torn down for a bowling alley or a basketball court. 

josevolution

https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/10/white-house-ballroom-proud-presidential-legacy/

Like PJ said renovations have happened but never have they torn a whole wing of the WH down! 

DE4173

More cocaine found in the rubble

tbergs

DE4173 said:

More cocaine found in the rubble

Are we sure the military didn't mistake the east wing for a boat in the Caribbean?

tbergs

DE4173 said:

Poncier said:

DE4173 said:

👀👀👀The major events timeline starting with 1998... 🤣🤣🤣

https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/the-white-house/

The fact that this is an official gov't website should have every American incensed. Man-baby has to air his grievances everywhere at all times.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Can the WH be sued for defamation and slander?

Halifax2TheMax

tempo_n_groove said:

Halifax2TheMax said:

 * The following opinion is mine and mine alone and does not represent the views of my family, friends, government and/or my past, present or future employer. US Department of State: 1-888-407-4747.

Same-same. See? What’s the diff? Good lord. Ask AI, it’ll explain it for you.

When one says it's never happened before and you show them that it has does not mean "same same". It means that others have done it before...  I think AI would tell you that too.  Give it a go.

 * The following opinion is mine and mine alone and does not represent the views of my family, friends, government and/or my past, present or future employer. US Department of State: 1-888-407-4747.

Yet you follow events in Nepal more closely. Ask AI what process was followed for what is occurring. C’mon, you’re in the construction racket, right? You don’t understand the freak out? Wow. On so many levels. Bowling allies, basketball and tennis courts, tearing down the east wing, same-same, eh?

mickeyrat

tempo_n_groove said:

brianlux said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Why are people losing their minds about the new ballroom?

I'm more that a bit surprised you're asking this question, but since you asked...

No... I started to list several reasons why this is such a huge offense to the American people, but I have to ask, do you really not get that?  It's lot like you to ask a question when the answer is so blatantly obvious.  Please explain!

I've said a few more things about it.  I don't see it as a big deal unless the building was under the National Parks watch.  Then there is a problem.

I also ask because people lose their minds at everything this man does.  They are paying it out of their own pockets so there has to be another reason to get upset about it.

We’ve received a lot of questions about Trump’s demolition of the White House East Wing.

Here’s how the process is supposed to work:
1. Initial Proposal: The White House is managed by the National Park Service (NPS) but used by the Executive Office of the President (EOP). Any proposed change, even by a sitting president,  begins internally through the Office of the Curator and the White House Facilities Management Division.
2. Historic Review: The NPS, as custodian of the White House under the Presidential Residence Act and National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), must review all alterations for compliance with Section 106 of the NHPA. This requires assessing potential impacts on historic and cultural resources in consultation with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) and the D.C. State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO).
3. Planning & Environmental Oversight: The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) evaluates all major federal projects in the National Capital Region, including work on the White House grounds, for design, planning, and environmental impacts under NEPA (the National Environmental Policy Act). Public comment and design reviews are part of that process.
4. Aesthetic Review: The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) reviews and advises on the design and appearance of any exterior modifications to the White House or its grounds.
5. Final Authorization: After approvals from NPS, NCPC, and CFA, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the White House Chief Usher / Facilities Management Office finalize funding, scheduling, and logistics.

Only after completing this full process could any major construction or demolition legally begin.

Yet Trump ignored every step, acting unilaterally through executive order, bypassing oversight, and ordering demolition as if he were a monarch. The result: the people’s house, altered without the people’s consent.

More details: 

Section 107, let’s talk about it.

The above process has always been the process taken, and here’s why.

Section 107 of the National Historic Preservation Act exempts the White House, the U.S. Capitol, and the Supreme Court from being legally required to go through the Act’s formal Section 106 review. In other words, the law doesn’t automatically force those branches to follow the same procedures as other federal buildings. That exemption exists only because each branch of government controls its own seat of power,  it was never intended as a free pass to ignore preservation, planning, or environmental rules altogether.

In practice, every administration since the 1960s has followed the same review structure out of duty, accountability, and executive-branch policy. The White House is still federal property, managed by the National Park Service under the Presidential Residence Act and subject to Executive Order 11593, which requires federal agencies to protect and consult on historic resources. Major exterior or site work still triggers National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) and U.S. Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) design reviews, along with NEPA environmental assessments. Any project involving government resources must also comply with the Anti-Deficiency Act and federal ethics rules on funding and gifts.

So yes, Section 107 means the NHPA can’t force compliance, but presidents are still bound by a network of executive orders, planning statutes, environmental laws, and constitutional duties. That’s why the process described isn’t optional, it’s the framework that has always protected the people’s house from unilateral or politically motivated alteration.

These executive orders: 

- Executive Order 11593 (1971) – Protection and Enhancement of the Cultural Environment - Requires all federal agencies (including the Executive Office of the President) to “locate, inventory, and nominate to the National Register all properties under their control” and to consult with the Secretary of the Interior before altering historically significant structures. (Demolishing part of the White House without such consultation would conflict with this order.)
- Executive Order 12148 (1979), delegates emergency and historic property responsibilities to the Department of the Interior, reaffirming that federal agencies must protect historic resources even when exemptions exist.

mickeyrat

Trump pardons convicted Binance founder 'CZ' Zhao  - https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-pardons-convicted-binance-founder-zhao-white-house-says-2025-10-23/

mickeyrat

Trump's shutdown pay plan prioritizes security personnel over civilian workers - https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/trumps-shutdown-pay-plan-prioritizes-security-personnel-over-civilian-workers-2025-10-23/

DE4173

tbergs said:

DE4173 said:

Poncier said:

DE4173 said:

👀👀👀The major events timeline starting with 1998... 🤣🤣🤣

https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/the-white-house/

The fact that this is an official gov't website should have every American incensed. Man-baby has to air his grievances everywhere at all times.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Can the WH be sued for defamation and slander?

Take a number:

gimmesometruth27

PJ_Soul said:

tempo_n_groove said:

PJ_Soul said:

Vitalogensia said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Vitalogensia said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Why are people losing their minds about the new ballroom?

Personally I think it’s just a stupid idea, but whatever. The larger issue is the cost for something that’s unnecessary, when the people who voted for him supposedly wanted grocery and energy prices to drop. This doesn’t seem to reflect fiscal responsibility.  

He said that he and some donors are fitting the bill.  It is a bad optic when the govt has people not working.  That I see as piss poor.

Footing the bill out of devotion and love for the US of A? That’s very kind of them. 

No, footing the bill to get government contracts. One of the biggest donors, for example, is Lockheed Martin. Oh, and the name of the ballroom is going to be "Donald J. Trump Ballroom". All the donors have already been guaranteed that. 

Don't most bigger donors get their names on buildings?  I wouldn't expect anything else from him.

Is Trump a bigger donor??? I don't think anyone knows just how much Trump himself is paying into this. If it's actually anything above $1, I'd be surprised. And he started the cost of this at $200M. Then it became $250M in the summer. Yesterday he made it $300M, LOL. If it costs less than $600M, I'll again be surprised. And the reason that matters is because it is how much the donors, listed here, are using to pay off the president for favours. And the list will probably grow as the costs do. 

• Altria Group, Inc.
• Amazon
• Apple
• Booz Allen Hamilton
• Caterpillar, Inc.
• Coinbase
• Comcast Corporation
• J. Pepe and Emilia Fanjul
• Hard Rock International
• Google
• HP Inc.
• Lockheed Martin
• Meta Platforms
• Micron Technology
• Microsoft
• NextEra Energy, Inc.
• Palantir Technologies Inc.
• Ripple
• Reynolds American
• T-Mobile
• Tether America
• Union Pacific Railroad
• Adelson Family Foundation
• Stefan E. Brodie
• Betty Wold Johnson Foundation
• Charles and Marissa Cascarilla
• Edward and Shari Glazer
• Harold Hamm
• Benjamin Leon Jr.
• The Lutnick Family
• The Laura & Isaac Perlmutter Foundation
• Stephen A. Schwarzman
• Konstantin Sokolov
• Kelly Loeffler and Jeff Sprecher
• Paolo Tiramani
• Cameron Winklevoss
• Tyler Winklevoss

"let them eat cake."

DE4173

Another guy that never left his ballroom:

Poncier

tbergs said:

DE4173 said:

Poncier said:

DE4173 said:

👀👀👀The major events timeline starting with 1998... 🤣🤣🤣

https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/the-white-house/

The fact that this is an official gov't website should have every American incensed. Man-baby has to air his grievances everywhere at all times.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Can the WH be sued for defamation and slander?

Not anymore thanks to the Supreme Court.

brianlux

Damn it, why are we arguing about the destruction of a huge piece of the White House?  Is anybody of other than orange man actually OK with that?  Doesn't everyone see how symbolic this act is of the tearing down of this nation?

I'm going to stare at a copy machine.  Maybe that will clear my head. 

tempo_n_groove

PJ_Soul said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Halifax2TheMax said:

 * The following opinion is mine and mine alone and does not represent the views of my family, friends, government and/or my past, present or future employer. US Department of State: 1-888-407-4747.

Same-same. See? What’s the diff? Good lord. Ask AI, it’ll explain it for you.

When one says it's never happened before and you show them that it has does not mean "same same". It means that others have done it before...  I think AI would tell you that too.  Give it a go.

Nobody has done this before though. A building never got torn down for a bowling alley or a basketball court. 

Yes I know, that wasn't the original question to my reply...

tempo_n_groove

mickeyrat said:

tempo_n_groove said:

brianlux said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Why are people losing their minds about the new ballroom?

I'm more that a bit surprised you're asking this question, but since you asked...

No... I started to list several reasons why this is such a huge offense to the American people, but I have to ask, do you really not get that?  It's lot like you to ask a question when the answer is so blatantly obvious.  Please explain!

I've said a few more things about it.  I don't see it as a big deal unless the building was under the National Parks watch.  Then there is a problem.

I also ask because people lose their minds at everything this man does.  They are paying it out of their own pockets so there has to be another reason to get upset about it.

We’ve received a lot of questions about Trump’s demolition of the White House East Wing.

Here’s how the process is supposed to work:
1. Initial Proposal: The White House is managed by the National Park Service (NPS) but used by the Executive Office of the President (EOP). Any proposed change, even by a sitting president,  begins internally through the Office of the Curator and the White House Facilities Management Division.
2. Historic Review: The NPS, as custodian of the White House under the Presidential Residence Act and National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), must review all alterations for compliance with Section 106 of the NHPA. This requires assessing potential impacts on historic and cultural resources in consultation with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) and the D.C. State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO).
3. Planning & Environmental Oversight: The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) evaluates all major federal projects in the National Capital Region, including work on the White House grounds, for design, planning, and environmental impacts under NEPA (the National Environmental Policy Act). Public comment and design reviews are part of that process.
4. Aesthetic Review: The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) reviews and advises on the design and appearance of any exterior modifications to the White House or its grounds.
5. Final Authorization: After approvals from NPS, NCPC, and CFA, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the White House Chief Usher / Facilities Management Office finalize funding, scheduling, and logistics.

Only after completing this full process could any major construction or demolition legally begin.

Yet Trump ignored every step, acting unilaterally through executive order, bypassing oversight, and ordering demolition as if he were a monarch. The result: the people’s house, altered without the people’s consent.

More details: 

Section 107, let’s talk about it.

The above process has always been the process taken, and here’s why.

Section 107 of the National Historic Preservation Act exempts the White House, the U.S. Capitol, and the Supreme Court from being legally required to go through the Act’s formal Section 106 review. In other words, the law doesn’t automatically force those branches to follow the same procedures as other federal buildings. That exemption exists only because each branch of government controls its own seat of power,  it was never intended as a free pass to ignore preservation, planning, or environmental rules altogether.

In practice, every administration since the 1960s has followed the same review structure out of duty, accountability, and executive-branch policy. The White House is still federal property, managed by the National Park Service under the Presidential Residence Act and subject to Executive Order 11593, which requires federal agencies to protect and consult on historic resources. Major exterior or site work still triggers National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) and U.S. Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) design reviews, along with NEPA environmental assessments. Any project involving government resources must also comply with the Anti-Deficiency Act and federal ethics rules on funding and gifts.

So yes, Section 107 means the NHPA can’t force compliance, but presidents are still bound by a network of executive orders, planning statutes, environmental laws, and constitutional duties. That’s why the process described isn’t optional, it’s the framework that has always protected the people’s house from unilateral or politically motivated alteration.

These executive orders: 

- Executive Order 11593 (1971) – Protection and Enhancement of the Cultural Environment - Requires all federal agencies (including the Executive Office of the President) to “locate, inventory, and nominate to the National Register all properties under their control” and to consult with the Secretary of the Interior before altering historically significant structures. (Demolishing part of the White House without such consultation would conflict with this order.)
- Executive Order 12148 (1979), delegates emergency and historic property responsibilities to the Department of the Interior, reaffirming that federal agencies must protect historic resources even when exemptions exist.

So, it IS under the National Parks authority.  Did Trump go through the proper channels? Apparently he did...

It is amazing the amount of loopholes there are in laws.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/10/23/trump-white-house-east-wing-demolition-explained/86837471007/