Welcome to Litsy!

Donald Trump not only had a hard time understanding international politics, but also had a hard time understanding war and sacrifice. At a certain point, there was just no teaching him. #thedivider #peterbaker #susanglasser #donaldtrump #war #politics #uspolitics #internationalpolitics #military #sacrifice #history #worldhistory #ushistory #politicalscience

So there was no invasion. 🤷🏻‍♀️There was no mass caravan, but I think the lesson of the debacle is that unethical practices were never off the table for Trump. But what if there was an invasion? And what if it would have been successful? If the caravan had succeeded, what would the country look like today? And just because I‘m curious what measures could Trump have taken to prevent the migrants from crossing the border?

I was going to wait until the end of the chapter, but I decided to go ahead and post a thought. Clearly, the house was burning down in 2018, and when we say the house, we mean the White House and entire executive branch. Trump had grandiose ideas. Members of Trump‘s cabinet had grandiose ideas. Those who actually had knowledge of any type of legal procedures were shut down in a matter of minutes. Here‘s hoping 2025 will be better.

I love a good Shakespeare reference. After Trump‘s meeting with Putin and disastrous news conference, John Bolton told Republican Senator Roy Blunt that Putin will always be Putin and took the opportunity to make this reference to Hamlet. #thedivider #vladimirputin #donaldtrump #peterbaker #susanglasser #ushistory #internationalpolitics #worldhistory #politicalscience #russia #unitedstates #johnbolton #hamlet

Sometimes, I just laugh at some of the things Trump says because there‘s nothing else I can do. This is one of those times. #thedivider #peterbaker #susanglasser #kimjongun #internationalpolitics #donaldtrump #internationalpolitics #politicalscience #history #worldhistory #negotiations #summit #northkorea #unitedstates

I like this quote. I don‘t want to lean one way or another with the quotes I choose, but I think this quote by Brendan Buck explains the state of Congress during the Trump presidency. #government #trump #thedivider #peterbaker #susanglasser #brendanbuck #houseofrepresentatives #politicalscience #uspolitics #congress #paulryan #donaldtrump #history #ushistory

We got a lot of hirings and firings in chapter 8. I don‘t know about you, but I definitely got a headache reading these. Knowing that Trump is going to be president again in a few short months, I want to know if you could give him advice on what to look for as he chooses his cabinet members, what would you tell him? What makes a good cabinet member? #donaldtrump #thedivider #peterbaker #susanglasser #presidency#presidentialcabinet #ushistory

And now the discussion… When I think of tax reform, I think of something for the greater good. This typically involves lowering taxes. However, as Trump has said, tax reform could raise taxes. I want to know what does tax reform mean to you?

Quote and discussion time starting with the quote…

“If there‘s a fire you‘re trying to douse, you can‘t put it wout from inside of the house. I‘m in the cabinet. I am complicit.” #thedivider #susanglasser #peterbaker #hamilton #trump #presidenttrump #ushistory#uspolitics #politicalscience #history #thomasjefferson

I think one of the issues with Trump is he was very “America first” which is okay, but he focused too much on domestic issues instead of international and domestic. He failed to study up on international issues and policies which led to the disastrous decisions and conflicts he had with his secretaries and generals. #donaldtrump #thedivider #peterbaker #susanglasser

Everyone on Trump‘s staff agreed with everything he said to the point of where cabinet meetings looked like something out of North Korea. Other than the obvious of getting fired, what could have happened if someone would have just said “no?” #thedivider #donaldtrump #peterbaker #susanglasser #no #politics #politicalscience #history #americanpolitics #ushistory #alternatehistory #whatif #cabinetmeetings

I found what I read about Roy Cohn to be interesting, I also did my own research as well. I really want to know what happened to his wife. I tried to see if he had gotten divorced at one point but couldn‘t find any information anywhere. I‘m more interested as to when he contracted HIV and if he could have passed it to his wife. I would assume he did not, but it is interesting. #thedivider #roycohn #lgbtqhistory #history #donaldtrump #law

I should have posted this question first, but I want to know as we talk about Trump‘s success, how do you define success?

So knowing what we know, was Trump as successful as we always said he was? He engaged in questionable practices with questionable people, so can we really say he was successful?

Regardless of what you may think, Trump engaged in shady practices as well as had some shady connections…

#thedivider #peterbaker #susanglasser #donaldtrump #presidency #elections #ushistory #history #uspolitics #politicalscience

I wish more books started this way. #susanglasser #peterbaker #thedivider #donaldtrump #presidency #unitedstates #trump #ushistory #history

When you think about it, there were signs that there was going to be an insurrection. #insurrection #thedivider #donaldtrump #january6 #peterbaker #susanglasser #ushistory #history

A 700-page indictment of everything the Trump administration and everything it stood for. Incredibly well researched and written.

Reading The Divider is like rereading a familiar horror novel: even knowing what will happen next, you are still frightened. And even knowing the broad strokes of what happens, you are enraged by the details and nuance you initially missed. A political thriller as much as an historical narrative.