The Trump Presidency 2.0

[Ooh-Rah]

I'm not trying to be controversial but I'm curious why you think he is not a good choice? Lloyd was extremely "qualified" and look what a shit job he did...

I'm sick of the establishment. Hence my support for Trump. The reasons "they" don't like them are the reasons I do.

**Quoting myself from a few pages back**

Preface this by saying I voted for Trump…not because I believe that he’s the answer, but because I felt left with no better option.

In regards to Hegseth, I’m having a difficult time believing that he was the best option. His personal challenges are a non-factor to me, and his military background will resonate with the Services; as will his history of Veteran advocacy. But I just don’t see anything in his background that makes me believe that he has the top level experience to efficiently navigate the Pentagon bureaucracy as it exists; I’m concerned that he will be easily influenced because he does not know better, or worse, dig in his heels on something because he does not understand the consequences.

I use myself as an example. I’ve been with the same company for many years, I am a successful and well thought of middle manager, and have a pretty good feel for what makes the wheels spin. That said, if I got an email tomorrow that I was being promoted to CEO, I’d be in way over my head and miserably fail. That is my concern with Hegseth.

In my scenario I’d do my best to surround myself with smart people who could guide me, but I don’t know that he will do that; especially if he is taking order from Trump, who tends to bring into his circle sycophants versus people who will challenge and oppose him. ( I accept in advance that that statement may be challenged and pushed back against, but that’s how I feel)

 

[Topkick]

But I just don’t see anything in his background that makes me believe that he has the top level experience to efficiently navigate the Pentagon bureaucracy as it exists; I’m concerned that he will be easily influenced

Fair enough, but I see it the opposite way. I do not think he and the CinC will be easily influenced by establishment insiders and that's exactly what I voted for.

 

[Topkick]

Fair enough, but I see it the opposite way. I do not think he and the CinC will be easily influenced by establishment insiders and that's exactly what I voted for.

I'll add that I thought Lloyd Austin was a decent choice and would be the one solid in the Biden administration. "Qualified" didn't get it done.

 

[ThunderHorse]

**Quoting myself from a few pages back**

Preface this by saying I voted for Trump…not because I believe that he’s the answer, but because I felt left with no better option.

In regards to Hegseth, I’m having a difficult time believing that he was the best option. His personal challenges are a non-factor to me, and his military background will resonate with the Services; as will his history of Veteran advocacy. But I just don’t see anything in his background that makes me believe that he has the top level experience to efficiently navigate the Pentagon bureaucracy as it exists; I’m concerned that he will be easily influenced because he does not know better, or worse, dig in his heels on something because he does not understand the consequences.

I use myself as an example. I’ve been with the same company for many years, I am a successful and well thought of middle manager, and have a pretty good feel for what makes the wheels spin. That said, if I got an email tomorrow that I was being promoted to CEO, I’d be in way over my head and miserably fail. That is my concern with Hegseth.

In my scenario I’d do my best to surround myself with smart people who could guide me, but I don’t know that he will do that; especially if he is taking order from Trump, who tends to bring into his circle sycophants versus people who will challenge and oppose him. ( I accept in advance that that statement may be challenged and pushed back against, but that’s how I feel)

I think people are incredibly disingenuous about what he's actually done. I get that he doesn't have the mid-tier executive experience that you or I have. But he went to Princeton and was a Wallstreet Analyst for Bear Stearns and JP Morgan. He will likely do something a SecDef hasn't done since McNamara and go line by line through the DOD level budget and trim fat, then he will go through the Service Budgets line by line and redirect funding or trim fat. Re-orienting money towards training. Our Navy right now is woefully under trained hence all these relief for causes and shipboard accidents.

We'll see how it goes, but it literally cannot get any worse than it already is where we have an O-3 and 0-4 manning crisis due to the culture that was created in the Obama years. So many dudes just decided they were done. At least that's how it is in the Army.

I'll add that I thought Lloyd Austin was a decent choice and would be the one solid in the Biden administration. "Qualified" didn't get it done.

I would say he was a poor choice, there was quite a bit of criticism on this board for his actual character as a commander. But if you just looked at a resume that could resonate, his did. But we knew better. We're also seeing a lot of military establishment is just politicians, not commanders and they lean democratic which leads to...hellscapes.

 

[Devildoc]

No doubt he's qualified. Is he the most qualified? Of course not. But if he, or anyone, meets the qualifications, .

People project who is/isn't qualified based on their own values and judgment.

I hate to try to equate qualified based on education/military experience, etc. We've had plenty of secdefs who looked pretty on paper but were walking clusterfucks. So in absence of correlation between resume and outcome, how can we conclude he's not qualified?

 

[RackMaster]

The FAFO Presidency.

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[AWP]

Surfer dude
Surfer dude
Good point
Good point
Good point
Good point
Surfer dude
Good point
Good point
Surfer dude
Good point
Good point
Good point
Good point
Good point
Good point
Good point
Surfer dude

That's gonna' be this thread for the next 4 years. Some variation of the above, actual cadence may vary, some restrictions apply.

Republicans have about 2 years to make shit happen, because if history is any indication the House and Senate will flop over and then the Trump agenda comes to a screeching halt. In fact, I'd be willing to bet a lot of folks are going to fight delaying actions until that flop occurs....because they know that's how long they have to hold out.

 

[RackMaster]

That was fast.

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[ThunderHorse]

I think we did this before: Big stick ideology - Wikipedia

 

[Salt USMC]

Pete Hegseth is a DEI hire #changemymind

 

[GOTWA]

Pete Hegseth is a DEI hire #changemymind

I'll give you 1/3.

 

[Marauder06]

 

[Salt USMC]

I'll give you 1/3.

Sorry man. I’m out of practice

 

[Marauder06]

Pete Hegseth is a DEI hire #changemymind

I don't understand the statement. Is this satire?

 

[Muppet]

 

[ThunderHorse]

Pete Hegseth is a DEI hire #changemymind

 

[Marauder06]

I mean, I read that Daily Kos article too and I hope there's more to "Hegseth is a DEI hire" than that tripe.

 

[Ooh-Rah]

Rubio writes with the same speech pattern as Trump!

 

[ThunderHorse]

I mean, I read that Daily Kos article too and I hope there's more to "Hegseth is a DEI hire" than that tripe.

I learned from this article that he also attended the Kennedy School of Government and received a Masters in Public Policy. Are we not told that the Kennedy School of Government is a prestigious college within Harvard?

The article also didn't talk about his time on Wall Street which was the entire time he was the CEO of the two veterans advocacy groups. But point is I learned something from the article haha.

 

[Marauder06]

I learned from this article that he also attended the Kennedy School of Government and received a Masters in Public Policy. Are we not told that the Kennedy School of Government is a prestigious college within Harvard?

The article also didn't talk about his time on Wall Street which was the entire time he was the CEO of the two veterans advocacy groups. But point is I learned something from the article haha.

I mean I guess Harvard is OK if that's all you can get into ;)

Yeah, a Princeton-Harvard academic convo is pretty solid. Both of those programs are prestigious and competitive. This goes back to a point I've made several times that most of the people who make the major decisions for our country go to a handful of schools--mainly (but not exclusively) the Ivies and the Academies (or both) and it's in our interests to invest time and effort into the young people at those schools to make sure that the military isn't just an abstraction for them.