Shithole! Shithole! Shithole!

17 Comments

by: Colorado Pols

“Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?”

Trump supporters are going to fall in line with the Twitterer-in-Chief in labeling this some sort of fake news attack, but for those of you with the ability to form your own opinions, CNN’s Chris Cillizza makes a very strong argument for why you should believe the shithole:

Almost immediately after The Washington Post broke the news on Thursday night, White House spokesman Raj Shah was out with a statement that not only seemed to confirm that Trump had said what he said but also worked to defend it…

…Then, soon after Shah’s comment, came this from an anonymous White House official to CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, “The President’s ‘shithole’ remark is being received much differently inside of the White House than it is outside of it. Though this might enrage Washington, staffers predict the comment will resonate with his base, much like his attacks on NFL players who kneel during the National Anthem did not alienate it.”

According to Collins, Trump spent Thursday evening making calls to friends and associated to gauge how they believed the “shithole countries” story was playing. One White House official told Collins that Trump’s calls amounted to a “victory lap.” [Pols emphasis]

If Trump had really not used the word “shithole” (or something very like it), then why would the White House not come out and issue a blanket denial and a condemnation of the reporting? Why, rather than doing that, would they issue a statement that sought to own his “shithole countries” comment and make political hay out of it?

The answer, of course, is because he said it.

Let’s pause and reflect for a moment on the fact that we are actually having a discussion about whether or not THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES used the word “shithole” to describe other countries in a meeting with Congressional leaders. That this is even a subject of debate speaks volumes about the White House.

17 thoughts on “Shithole! Shithole! Shithole!”

unnamed says:

January 12, 2018 at 12:09 pm

And nutlid will get mad at us if we so much as imply Trump and the Republicans are fascists. If Trimp wants to quit acting like a fascist, he's off to a terrible start.

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davebarnes says:

January 12, 2018 at 12:14 pm

Not "allegedly".

Lindsay Graham and Dick Durbin both confirmed he said it.

Senator Richard Durbin contradicted Trump, saying the comments were "hate-filled, vile and racist" and that he repeatedly referred to African countries as "shitholes" during the private immigration meeting. Durbin said, "The most disheartening thing to me is my belief that that was the first time words that hateful had been spoken in the Oval Office of the White House."

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Zappatero says:

January 12, 2018 at 12:36 pm

All right already! 😩

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JohnInDenver says:

January 12, 2018 at 1:18 pm

There's the whole "people who live in glass houses" response.

We have an entire territory with extraordinarily limited electrical service. We have broad reaches of our country living in poverty. We have growing rates of mother and child mortality during childbirth, higher than nearly any industrialized nation. Our calculated average lifespan is going down.

By many standards of "civilization," some parts of our country fall short. In fact, there may be a good argument that the country as a whole is falling short.

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1. Diogenesdemar says:
  
  January 12, 2018 at 1:39 pm
  
  You’re missing the most obvious point — “shithole” is not at all about glass houses, nor dependent on geography nor historical context, but it is dependent on the color of the leader’s skin . . .
  
  . . . those “shithole” problems you allude to?: all Obama’s fault! Now that we have Vanilla TwoScoops, America is “great again.”
  
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  1. Duke Cox says:
    
    January 12, 2018 at 3:02 pm
    
    Yep…it is about skin color and white privilege…anyone who acts surprised about this is full of shit.
    
    And anyone who doesn't see the Trumpublican Party becoming a full blown fascist movement, aiming straight at Russian style kleptocracy, is blind. A government of the uber-rich and for the uber-rich is the ultimate expression of Milton Friedmans' Free Market. The pay raises and bonuses promised by Walmart amount to a cash flow blip, paid for by the savings of closing several Sams' Clubs. Competition with Costco and online retailers is the driver behind Walmarts' moves, but hey… Why not support a Republican talking point of such importance? You can always blame the racism and sexism on the Trumpublicans.
    
    I notice the stock market rose again. This time on escalating oil prices. Everything is being done to allow corporations to deliver value for their shareholders. Pollution be damned. When the crash ( adjustment) comes, it will not be Mom and Pop that are protected by hedge funds.
    
    As long as the white, lower middle class, of which I am a member, continues to let Republicans play on their emotions while the rich bastards pick their pockets, we will have a tough time ridding ourselves of these racists as a political movement.
    
    There may be a few corporations that will pass their tax windfall on to their workers…there being some variation in leadership, but…I will wager the vast majority of corporations will keep the lions'
    share and the rank and file will get a few bones. It was ever thus…then came the "New "Deal".
    
    And we are heading back to a new gilded age. One where we don't let in the unworthy…something the President can tell by the color of their skin. He should be ashamed…but he doesn't know how
    
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    1. MADCO says:
      
      January 13, 2018 at 5:05 pm
      
      free beer. well said.
      
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ParkHill says:

January 12, 2018 at 3:35 pm

As Josh Marshall points out (in defense of shithole), the problem is the context, not the word "shithole". Take out shithole, and replace it with "countries with lots of African ancestry". Take out "Norway" and insert "a country with lots of white-people".

The Republican Party base is built out of three "WWWs": White wealthy donors, White racists, and White Evangelicals. This pretty much explains everything.

It is no wonder that no Republican Senators are confronting the racist problem.

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1. ParkHill says:
  
  January 12, 2018 at 3:40 pm
  
  Demographics and Geographical distribution is one other leg on the Republican's stool.
  
  The Supreme Court would be doing the Republicans a big favor if they struck down gerrymandering. If they don't, then there will be no incentive for the Republicans to deal with the Party's racist makeup, and the collapse will be more prolonged but deeper.
  
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Davie says:

January 12, 2018 at 9:18 pm

Being in the same room listening to Trump is enough to drive anyone insane. Excerpts from the WSJ interview via Slate:

Donald Trump gave an interview to the Wall Street Journal Thursday. The four journalists asked normal enough questions. President Trump’s answers, however, are far from normal. Here’s a selection of things that the president of the United States actually said out loud, which look way way worse written down.

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1. Phoenix Rising says:
  
  January 12, 2018 at 10:40 pm
  
  As if I wasn't depressed enough…
  
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2. Diogenesdemar says:
  
  January 13, 2018 at 8:13 am
  
  “Sarah, will you make that clear please?”
  
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Gray in Mountains says:

January 12, 2018 at 9:26 pm

I've never before considered a foreign passport. I believe Irish and Canadian are both available

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1. notaskinnycook says:
  
  January 13, 2018 at 2:07 pm
  
  Gray, if your grandparent was an Irish immigrant, you can get an Irish passport. I learned this from my brother-in-law who traveled on one while in service. Tom was Special Forces and served in some of those places the Screaming Yam disapproves of. Because of his kind, that is extremely hazardous duty. Sometimes all it takes is an American passport to get you killed.
  
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  1. Gray in Mountains says:
    
    January 13, 2018 at 4:20 pm
    
    your last sentence is exactly why Trump's mouth is so dangerous. Americans around the world, whether on vacation, business or representing our country are endangered by this idiot
    
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    1. notaskinnycook says:
      
      January 13, 2018 at 9:06 pm
      
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itlduso says:

January 14, 2018 at 2:33 pm

Some in the GOP are defending this as merely "salty language". I'd have to agree. For example, when I call my Mom I start with, "How are you shit hole, Mom? And, how is shit hole Daddy?"

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