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notnmeyer

i’d vote for seth rogen

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his new show The Studio on Apple TV is phenomenal

You can't have him. He's ours (Canada).

Look man we’re really scraping the bottom of the barrel here… help us out.

To do what? Write funny jokes and star in his own election?

Far too many get their knowledge from comedians, actors and rock stars.

yeah, that sounds good! but really, i meant it in a light-hearted show of support for speaking the truth.

Sure, practically any joker off the streets would have better policies for the United States than Trump's Great Leap Backwards. At least Mao was trying to move his country forwards - at this rate it won't be long until we're backyard smelting pig iron out of necessity.

So you think the US $35 trillion debt is not a problem and Trump's cost cutting is?

As a student of Austrian economics and a proponent of actual fiscal conservatism, correct. The United States is monetarily sovereign and controls the world reserve currency. The biggest threat to our country is a loss of faith in the United States as a world leader, which Trump is doing his damnedest to facilitate.

Well, the first thing is, he actually needs to cut costs. Which he has not.

Who is going to make America pay when it is dominant?

Alternatively, what is America going to do when nobody respects it anymore?

The US is in a much better position with debt and power than it will be net zero and ostracized

If American defaults on its debt it would absolutely destroy the economy. This is a really weird take

Yes, a national default on debt would be a terrible thing. Most American debt is denominated in USD. The US is monetarily sovereign, meaning it can always create more USD at will. This means that the US can only default on its debt voluntarily, which is exactly the type of economic catastrophe that Trump is doing his best to cause.

I'm not saying the US should default on the debt, just that it never, in practice, actually has to pay it back.

Trump has added 7.1 trillion in debt, more debt than any other president in history.

Source: https://www.investopedia.com/democrats-vs-republicans-who-ha...

So who added the additional $28 trillion dollars? (Assuming what you say is true.)

It's in the link above, but in text format for those not willing to click: (source was from the US treasury department bureau of fiscal service)

Deficit under administration of: Republicans: Trump: +7.1T HW Bush: +2.2T W Bush: +2.1T Reagan: +1.7T Ford: +781.2B Hoover: +246.4B Nixon: +7.2B

Democrats: Obama: +5.6T Biden: +2.8T FDR: +1.3T Clinton: +614.4B JFK +194.8B Wilson: +191.9B

The rest of the presidents (D/R) - had net reductions in deficit.

Don’t forget that President Zelenskyy was a comedian…

Counterpoint: Zelensky.

Case in point.

If he just goes President Camacho and listens to some smart people that would be an improvement.

I too would like intelligent and qualified people to be president, but alas.

Getting knowledge from comedians is worse than having leaders who are reality tv hosts and failed casino owners? The leader in question is trashing the world economy, deporting people, without trial or due process, to concentration camps in El Salvador, and ignoring judicial orders.

You conveniently forgot billionaire businessman.

So you have no problem with the US $35 trillion dollar debt but Trump's cost cutting is an issue?

The cost cutting is vaporware. The rising costs on all of us are not.

The “billionaire businessman” who inherited a fortune and who would have done better putting his money in an investment fund?

I’ve seen very little cost cutting that matters in that $35 trillion dollar debt. But I’ve seen plenty of cutting social programs that will result in much misery. And trashing of long standing allies and economic partners.

For fun go and look at the history of the ups and downs of that $35 trillion dollar debt, and which administrations it shrank and grew under.

As for “billionaire businessman”, I’ll go with real estate swindler and gangster. And insurrectionist too.

Because wit is good proxy for intelligence and an ability to take alternate perspectives. (Not all commedians are actually using wit, some lean on other kinds of humor, practised learned jokes and rebuttals, rousing a crowd against scapegoats)

Zelensky actually was a comedian and actor just right before getting elected iirc

Two actors have been Governor of California. One has been president. The current president is a reality TV star. We've already had a professional comedian as a US Senator.

I'm sure I'm missing a bunch, but I think we've established that there's a show-biz-to-politics pipeline. Is that a good thing? Maybe, maybe not, but I don't think you can call it disqualifying.

Electing a comic may sound like a joke, but I'm willing to consider anyone who can demonstrate intellect and empathy. Frankly, I don't think our current crop of politicians tend to come from backgrounds that are somehow more noble.

> Electing a comic may sound like a joke, but I'm willing to consider anyone who can demonstrate intellect and empathy.

yea, Zelenskyy immediately comes to mind.

That's a pretty solid point.

Reagan was an actor but you don't mention he was heavily involved in politics and the labor movement before being elected governor.

Lots of actors are involved in politics or activism. Including Seth Rogen.

> Frankly, I don't think our current crop of politicians tend to come from backgrounds that are somehow more noble.

Cue the reddit meme about how the sword in the stone method of choosing a king might actually be a better way of going about choosing leadership, as current politicians are the results of decades of compromise and ruthless chasing of power.

Certainly there are some who are more in touch with the people than others, but it's not hard to see people like Fetterman take a hard turn and become another political creature.

you talking about current President here? that can get you deported :)

> “Far too many get their knowledge from comedians, actors and rock stars.”

It’s not knowledge. It’s the zingers.

The poets craft ideas into expressions of how we feel.

I think it’s a mistake to put them in government, but as my dad would say, if you think it’s so easy you try.

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