The Trump Presidency in a nutshell...

I am laughing out loud at the fiasco that is the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

Back in March, Dementia Donny handed a no-bid contract to a company named Atlantic Industrial Coatings to "repair the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool". Trump chose them without looking at proposals or bids from any other contractor. He said that he consulted with three companies that had worked on his swimming pools, but chose one that had performed work at his Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Va.

“I have a guy who’s unbelievable at doing swimming pools. He looked at it. He called me up. He said, ‘Sir, we can do something on it.’”

On May 7, Trump was asked about cost and he said,

"We had estimates to fix it of about $355 million and it was going to take 3.5 years, you can see by the size of it. And so we're going to be able to do it for about ($1.8 million), and it's going to take one week."

He did not say who gave him that $355 million estimate.

On May 21, Trump said,

"I originally thought I'd do it for $2 million or $3 million, just do a base. But now we're fixing up the exterior of it we're doing. So, we'll probably be in it for less than $20 million."

When questioned about handing out a no-bid contract to someone he knew, he said,

"Also, I didn’t give out the contract, ‘Interior’ did, to a contractor I did not know, and have never used before."

So to recap, Trump handed $14,000,000 to a guy that he may, or may not, have known to do a job he said would take 1 week and cost $2,000,000 but ended up taking 6 months. And this is the result...

I can't wait until the "Trump Ballroom" collapses into a pile of rubble...

⧫
With last nights loss, the Red Sox are creeping up (or is it down?) on last place in the American League:

I do not understand how Breslow still has a job...

Anyways, there will be no baseball for me tonight or tomorrow since the Red Sox are in Seattle and the games don't start until 10:00.

I will be sound asleep by then.

⧫
I caught this giant rodent eating the plants my wife has worked hard to grow in her garden.

After I took the picture, I went outside and said, "You kids get off my lawn!" which caused the cheeky bastard to look at me and challenge my authority.

I walked up to him and said, "Git!" and he got. He got as far as the side of the driveway where he stopped and stared at me as if to say, "You wanna go? Cause we can go. We can go right now old man. You don't frighten me."

So I started walking towards him and he sauntered over to my neighbors house where he promptly started eating all their plants.

Giant rodents...

⧫
Here are some links:

• What are they going to do? Bomb them?



• How's that peace agreement going there Donny Boy?



• Looks like European soccer fans like ranch dressing.



• Remember yesterday when I said, "There are a lot of people that think homosexuality is an affront to God and their religion. Forcing those people to participate in some corporate event that is designed so the company can say, "Look at us! We're great!" is wrong"?
  Well, looks like I'm not the only one who thinks that.



• Key line in this story: "When the driver lit his cigarette, the lighter ignited the mixture, causing the explosion."



• Apparently pickleball is not the sedate sport I thought it was.

27 Innings = 4 runs

In the last three days, the Red Sox have played 27 innings of baseball.

In the last three days, the Red Sox have scored 4 runs.

That, my friends, is not good baseball.

⧫
Yesterday, war monger Helmart Hair Hegseth came out and said,

Europe’s borders flew wide open, welfare states expanded, defense budgets cratered.

He's right.

I hear you say, "Steve, WTF?"

I know, right! I'm agreeing with him! What the hell is wrong with me????

After WWII, America made itself the worlds policeman. We stepped up and provided unparalleled defensive facilities for most of the countries in Europe. They didn't have to spend a dime on their own defense because we were there.

Along comes Trump and he says, "Hey Europe! Time for you to pay your own way. You've forgotten how to defend yourselves and your milking us dry. In the meantime, you have all this money that you are spending on things we don't care about like socialism and stuff."

I'm not saying we turn our backs on Europe but the cold war ended back in the 80's and maybe it's time they stopped living like spoiled trust-fund 20-somethings and started looking out for their own welfare.

You know, pay their own damned bills.

⧫
Did I mention that I bought a new push mower?

I bought a new push mower. It's a Toro.

One thing I can tell you about this new mower is that it weighs about half what my 30 year old Snapper weighed. I can also tell you that it's nice to once again use a self-propelled mower. The propelling part of my Snapper died two years ago but I kept on using it because the mower part worked just fine.

So anyways, I am once again mowing around bushes without killing myself.

⧫
Here are some links:

• After 4 years, it appears that Psycho Vlad's "special military operation" still isn't going as well as he planned.



• As near as I can tell after reading through this Iran is going to get rich like the Saudi's over the next several years.



• There are a lot of people that think homosexuality is an affront to God and their religion. Forcing those people to participate in some corporate event that is designed so the company can say, "Look at us! We're great!" is wrong.

Oops

I was busy yesterday and I forgot to post something.

Deal with it.

And yes, the Red Sox lost to the Blue Jays last night.

Tonight's game starts at 6:45.

⧫
Pat and I went golfing yesterday and I'm just gonna say it:

We each got at least one par!

If I could putt and Pat could hit the ball off the tee, we probably would have gotten several pars. The problem is I hit the ball off the tee pretty well but once I was on the green, I hit the ball numerous times in an attempt to get it in the hole.

As for Pat, it took him several strokes to reach the green but once he was on it, he was dead-eye to the hole with his putter.

Oh well, we decided we were going to try again in a week or two. Maybe this time Willie will join us.

Oh, and I also spent some time enjoying adult beverages which is my excuse as to why there was no post yesterday.

⧫
Dementia Donny kept threatening to fire Powell because Powell refused to lower interest rates. Since Trump had "no cards" (the federal government has no control over the Federal Reserve Bank's governing body), he couldn't do it.

Now that Powell's term has ended, Trump was able to put his guy, Warsh, in the chairman's seat and guess what? Warsh also refused to lower interest rates!

Not only did he not lower interest rates, he said that there might be an increase in interest rates in the near future. This caused the stock markets to implode again:

I wonder how long it's going to take before The Very Stable Genius starts threatening to fire Warsh, which, by the way, is still something he can't do.

He has no cards...

⧫
Here are some links:

• Chris Kohler is a genius at explaining things.



• Trump did not release the "Memorandum of Understanding". Instead, they had a minion read it out loud to the press. That means we still don't know what it says. What we do know is that Trump has already figured out who to blame when it doesn't work out.



• Seems to me that every dollar the federal government spends to help out people is suddenly being labled as fraud.



• Apparently California is stressed out.



• More news about the Tartan Army.

One step forward, one step back

It looks to me like Dementia Donny's War on Iraq resulted in nothing. No change in the Strait of Hormuz, no change in their nuclear ambitions, no change in their support of terrorist organizations.

The end result of his war is an agreement to chat about their nuclear program and lifting the US sanctions. And maybe, just maybe, there is a possibility the cost of a gallon of gasoline might drop below $3.00, which is where it was before The Very Stable Genius and Helmet Hair Hegseth started their bombing runs.

Good job there Donny...

On the upside, the DJIA did pretty well today:

⧫
The Red Sox lost last night so no sweep but hey, they won the series.

But more importantly, the Scots invaded Fenway and turned it into a roaring good time for everyone.

Those people know how to party. You could hear them singing throughout the game and at one point, the field reporter went into the stands to interview one very drunk human being.

It was great.

Despite the fact I don't care about soccer or the World Cup, I've got to admit that the Scots are bringing a good vibe to the city of Boston. My youngest loves seeing them around town.

⧫
Here are some links:

• This isn't good.



• Shit... I'm probably screwed. I own 3 Roku TVs and you know as well as I do that FOX will screw this up and probably turn it into a subscription service.



• I hope he does not end up back with the Red Sox.



• Remember last week when I said, "I'll be over here waiting for Dementia Donny to blame the democrates for the algea in his new pool"? Well, I guess I don't have to wait any longer.

And the war with Iran will maybe, possibly be over today!!!

At least that is what Dementia Donny says.

Anyone want to place bets on whether or not an agreement gets signed?

And even after the "agreement" is signed, anyone want to place bets on whether or not either Iran or Trump will uphold that agreement?

Iran will still do what Iran wants to do. They will still attempt to disrupt shipping in the Strait, they will still be the foster parent to several terrorist organization, they will still issue orders to "destroy the US and the zionists!" and they will still try to obtain a nuclear weapon.

It's what they have done since the 1970s. They will continue to do it until someone turns the Tehran into a large glass parking lot. It's who they are.

Trump will continue to do what he has done since he took office. He will continue to look for ways to enrich himself and his kids. It's who he is.

Then again, what the hell do I know...

⧫
The Red Sox will play the third game in their 3-game series against the Rangers tonight and a win will give them a sweep.

Hopes are not high and they are not low. They are right in the middle. That means I think there is a good chance they will complete the sweep.

Early has the start and first pitch is at 7:20.

⧫
Here are some links:

• I find this to be dishonorable and generally pretty shitty. I guess it could be worse, they could have done it at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier...



• Key line in this story: "...no one has fully explained what they were breathing in..."
  Well, Buzz Aldrin is 96 years old so whatever it was, it didn't kill them.



• Medieval Flying Monk would be a great name for a 1960s bubblegum pop band with its own Saturday morning sitcom.