Trump MAGAthread X - Follow the Money

[Tevehas]

Does Trump’s new travel ban conviently leave out our Muslim pals in the area?

"The action means the ban will apply to people from Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia and Chad "
Yeah, at least with like Lebanon which as far as I know is the only US-friendly country as of now with some sort of internal strife in the Middle East and maybe like Algeria. The rest of those countries either hate America or are a a warzone; but it still is a bit spotty in its selection.

My problem with this order is that it doesn't go far enough. Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia aren't on there.

[Alliance of Free Planets]

From a purely geopolitical standpoint, leaving out Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and the Afghanis makes sense as we have the most military involvement in those countries. I don’t see why the ban doesn’t include Pakistan, anyone have any theories on that?

[Farnhamia]

Does Trump’s new travel ban conviently leave out our Muslim pals in the area?

"The action means the ban will apply to people from Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia and Chad "
Yeah, at least with like Lebanon which as far as I know is the only US-friendly country as of now with some sort of internal strife in the Middle East and maybe like Algeria. The rest of those countries either hate America or are a a warzone; but it still is a bit spotty in its selection.

My problem with this order is that it doesn't go far enough. Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia aren't on there.

Jordan is fairly friendly to us.

[Ifreann]

In the eyes of many in Alabama, supporting what they call "baby killing" is not much better than being a pedophile though.

Better to rape a child than kill one!!

I really don't know why they didnt run with this ad.

Saving the money for a legal defence fund, just in case.

[Post War America]

"The action means the ban will apply to people from Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia and Chad "
Yeah, at least with like Lebanon which as far as I know is the only US-friendly country as of now with some sort of internal strife in the Middle East and maybe like Algeria. The rest of those countries either hate America or are a a warzone; but it still is a bit spotty in its selection.

My problem with this order is that it doesn't go far enough. Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia aren't on there.

Jordan is fairly friendly to us.

Jordan is also fairly stable tbf.

[Tevehas]

From a purely geopolitical standpoint, leaving out Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and the Afghanis makes sense as we have the most military involvement in those countries. I don’t see why the ban doesn’t include Pakistan, anyone have any theories on that?

I don't really know. We've been lax on cracking down on Pakistan for some time now and I think this is just a continuation where, just as with most of Washington, Trump & Co. just don't see the real threats posed by Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. You can easily make a factual statement that one of if not the largest export of those two countries is terrorism, with Pakistan being a hotbed of weapons sales as well as a haven for the financing of terror; and Saudi Arabia being a juggernaut of finance for Wahabism.

[Sanctissima]

From a purely geopolitical standpoint, leaving out Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and the Afghanis makes sense as we have the most military involvement in those countries. I don’t see why the ban doesn’t include Pakistan, anyone have any theories on that?

I don't really know. We've been lax on cracking down on Pakistan for some time now and I think this is just a continuation where, just as with most of Washington, Trump & Co. just don't see the real threats posed by Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. You can easily make a factual statement that one of if not the largest export of those two countries is terrorism, with Pakistan being a hotbed of weapons sales as well as a haven for the financing of terror; and Saudi Arabia being a juggernaut of finance for Wahabism.

Eh, at least as far as Saudi Arabia is concerned, the only reasons why they're kept around as an ally in the post-Cold War period is because:

a) They have a shit-ton of oil and sell it dirt cheap.
b) They buy a lot of military armaments from the US.

Congress isn't ignorant, so much as turning a blind eye to the Wahhabi problem due to the very substantial benefits of playing nice with the House of Saud.

In terms of Pakistan, I can't really say. My best guess is that old habits die hard, and the alliance is a relic from the Cold War. It also doesn't help matters that if the US completely dropped Pakistan, China would pick them up (and they already have substantial interests in the region).

[Tevehas]

Eh, at least as far as Saudi Arabia is concerned, the only reasons why they're kept around as an ally in the post-Cold War period is because:

a) They have a shit-ton of oil and sell it dirt cheap.
b) They buy a lot of military armaments from the US.

Congress isn't ignorant, so much as turning a blind eye to the Wahhabi problem due to the very substantial benefits of playing nice with the House of Saud.

In terms of Pakistan, I can't really say. My best guess is that old habits die hard, and the alliance is a relic from the Cold War. It also doesn't help matters that if the US completely dropped Pakistan, China would pick them up (and they already have substantial interests in the region).

To me, falling for Abscam-tier payments at the cost of aiding a country who's active goal is to destabilize the Western world is ignorant. They're just straight up ignoring it and taking the money. But yeah, you're right; this is just a product of the crust that's been building up in Washington and a byproduct of the "Fuck you, I got mine and I'll let the other sucker handle it" attitude that has wrapped its tendrils around every facet of this country in the absence of civic virtue.

[Kramania]

From a purely geopolitical standpoint, leaving out Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and the Afghanis makes sense as we have the most military involvement in those countries. I don’t see why the ban doesn’t include Pakistan, anyone have any theories on that?

Because we want to keep the Pakistanis on our side.

[Tevehas]

Because we want to keep the Pakistanis on our side.

What Pakastanis? The Government too busy on preparing for nuclear war with India to see it getting the blood sucked out of it by a million leeches? Pakistan is pretty much terror central at this point.

[Alliance of Free Planets]

Because we want to keep the Pakistanis on our side.

What Pakastanis? The Government too busy on preparing for nuclear war with India to see it getting the blood sucked out of it by a million leeches? Pakistan is pretty much terror central at this point.

Why support Pakistan if it’s on the losing side of the Kashmir conflict and more aligned with China than us? Might as well go all in with India instead. Pakistan’s exclusion makes no sense

[Tevehas]

Why support Pakistan if it’s on the losing side of the Kashmir conflict and more aligned with China than us? Might as well go all in with India instead. Pakistan’s exclusion makes no sense

That's the point here. We don't really know why it's not on there, and as said before it's more than likely just due to lethargy on the part of Washington

[Sanctissima]

Eh, at least as far as Saudi Arabia is concerned, the only reasons why they're kept around as an ally in the post-Cold War period is because:

a) They have a shit-ton of oil and sell it dirt cheap.
b) They buy a lot of military armaments from the US.

Congress isn't ignorant, so much as turning a blind eye to the Wahhabi problem due to the very substantial benefits of playing nice with the House of Saud.

In terms of Pakistan, I can't really say. My best guess is that old habits die hard, and the alliance is a relic from the Cold War. It also doesn't help matters that if the US completely dropped Pakistan, China would pick them up (and they already have substantial interests in the region).

To me, falling for Abscam-tier payments at the cost of aiding a country who's active goal is to destabilize the Western world is ignorant. They're just straight up ignoring it and taking the money. But yeah, you're right; this is just a product of the crust that's been building up in Washington and a byproduct of the "Fuck you, I got mine and I'll let the other sucker handle it" attitude that has wrapped its tendrils around every facet of this country in the absence of civic virtue.

To be honest, it's a bit more complicated than that.

Saudi Arabia's pretty much a clusterfuck of different tribes, extremely radical variants of Islam, political factions and dynasties that are all more or less united under the rulership of the House of Saud. In the midst of all that are varying groups with differing objectives, some wanting to destroy the West, some wanting to fuck with Iran, several wanting to create a global caliphate and others just giving zero fucks and snorting lines of cocaine while raking in obscene amounts of oil money. All of these crazy fucks are more or less kept in line by the dynastic head of the House of Saud and king of Saudi Arabia, in conjunction with the Al-Wahhab dynasty, which more or less runs the religious scene. That same king also just so happens to be sitting on one of the largest natural oil reserve in the world, and is in constant need of military contracts, which, as far as the US is concerned, means there's a relatively unstable regime that's more than willing to sell oil by the freight-load dirt cheap and buy up military stock like it's candy, thus benefiting America's massive military-industrial complex (which employs a very substantial amount of people and a very important part of the US economy).

So, suffice to say, until they either really fuck up royally, or run out of oil/money, Saudi Arabia will be kept around as an ally for quite some time.

[Tevehas]

So, suffice to say, until they either really fuck up royally, or run out of oil/money, Saudi Arabia will be kept around as an ally for quite some time.

That reminds me. I can't wait for the Saudi Civil war when, not if, it comes. All that latest western tech in the world's biggest sandbox.

[Sanctissima]

So, suffice to say, until they either really fuck up royally, or run out of oil/money, Saudi Arabia will be kept around as an ally for quite some time.

That reminds me. I can't wait for the Saudi Civil war when, not if, it comes. All that latest western tech in the world's biggest sandbox.

It'll be an absolute bloodbath.

Hopefully neither the US nor the West at large gets involved, because it's bound to be an even worse version of Afghanistan.

The Hejaz in particular will be a complete mess, given how many groups will tear each other apart over ownership of Mecca and Medina.

[Alliance of Free Planets]

With the recent Saudi purge, I don’t see a civil war happening for a long time.

[Farnhamia]

Saudi Arabia's internal politics is only peripherally relevant here, Don't go into it too deeply, start a new thread if you want.

[Sanctissima]

With the recent Saudi purge, I don’t see a civil war happening for a long time.

It really depends on their economy. It's almost entirely based on the production of one resource. Namely, oil.

They've already had a pretty substantial scare, too. Given enough of a push, if oil prices suddenly dropped for a few years or so, they'd probably face a civil war, considering how they more or less placate their population with a massive welfare state and literal government hand-outs. Can't really afford to do that anymore if your have no more money because you were too stupid to diversify your economy and put all your eggs in one basket.

There's also the looming reality that demand for oil will inevitably drop with the rise of cheaper renewable alternatives, so there's also that to consider. Either way, Saudi Arabia was completely screwed itself over with its economic model.

[Saiwania]

Donald Trump's typical dinner outing allegedly consists of 2 Big Macs, 2 Fillet-O-Fish sandwiches, and a chocolate malted milkshake from McDonalds. This might appeal to some Trump supporters. He's a billionaire but he "likes the same fast food that they do" when he can afford to go to the fanciest restaurants in existence.

[The Greater Ohio Valley]

Donald Trump's typical dinner outing allegedly consists of 2 Big Macs, 2 Fillet-O-Fish sandwiches, and a chocolate malted milkshake from McDonalds. This might appeal to some Trump supporters. He's a billionaire but he "likes the same fast food that they do" when he can afford to go to the fanciest restaurants in existence.

His cholesterol must be higher than the deficit.

[Zanera]

Donald Trump's typical dinner outing allegedly consists of 2 Big Macs, 2 Fillet-O-Fish sandwiches, and a chocolate malted milkshake from McDonalds. This might appeal to some Trump supporters. He's a billionaire but he "likes the same fast food that they do" when he can afford to go to the fanciest restaurants in existence.

His cholesterol must be higher than the deficit.

I'd go to Hardee's. They're Pioneers of the Great 'Murican Burger.

[Cannot think of a name]

Donald Trump's typical dinner outing allegedly consists of 2 Big Macs, 2 Fillet-O-Fish sandwiches, and a chocolate malted milkshake from McDonalds. This might appeal to some Trump supporters. He's a billionaire but he "likes the same fast food that they do" when he can afford to go to the fanciest restaurants in existence.

I believe Bill Clinton’s fondness for the double arches was supposed to make him relatable as well. Of course only one of them is trying to pull off the “Everyman” schtick while also gold plating his name on any building he can.

[Cannot think of a name]

His cholesterol must be higher than the deficit.

I'd go to Hardee's. They're Pioneers of the Great 'Murican Burger.

He’s not even getting the best burgers at the place he’s going, trade up menu items before graduating to a better fast food joint.

[The Greater Ohio Valley]

I'd go to Hardee's. They're Pioneers of the Great 'Murican Burger.

I prefer this place here called Thurman’s Cafe, best damn burgers I’ve ever had. Their Thurmanator is a force to be reckoned with.

[36 Camera Perspective]

Donald Trump's typical dinner outing allegedly consists of 2 Big Macs, 2 Fillet-O-Fish sandwiches, and a chocolate malted milkshake from McDonalds. This might appeal to some Trump supporters. He's a billionaire but he "likes the same fast food that they do" when he can afford to go to the fanciest restaurants in existence.

He still eats KFC with a fork.