Trump was sitting down in front of a monitor reading from a prepared statement, at least stand up & don't look like you're reading, I thought. Nevertheless, it was thanksgiving so I figured I'd give him a chance since usually, whenever Trump is making a televised statement, I just change the channel.
Big mistake, Trump immediately made it political by including partisan talking points in his thanksgiving address like: "we're really winning" & "they weren't letting you win before":
http://www.newsweek.com/trumps-thanksgiving-call-troops-was-insulting-retired-lieutenant-general-says-721210
'In a Thursday morning call from his Mar-a-Lago resort, Trump told Marines serving in Iraq that their “delivering defeat after defeat to ISIS” was being talked about in Washington, D.C.
“We’re really winning. We know how to win, but we have to let you win. They weren’t letting you win before, they were letting you play even,” Trump said. “We’re letting you win.”
Retired Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, took issue with Trump’s comments and aired his discontent shortly after on CNN, where he serves as a military analyst.
“We have been winning,” Hertling said. “You’re talking to soldiers and military personnel around the world who have been in this fight for 17 years, and to suddenly be told they’re winning now when they weren’t winning before is somewhat insulting.”'
In addition, Trump said the stock market hit a record high & there were lots of great jobs waiting for the troops whenever they came back home:
http://www.businessinsider.com/ap-the-latest-trump-salutes-military-progress-2017-11
"We're doing well at home. The economy is doing really great," he said. "When you come back, you are going to see with the jobs and companies coming back into our country and the stock market just hit a record high. Unemployment is the lowest it's been in 17 years. So you're fighting for something real, you're fighting for something good."
I can only imagine what would've happened if Obama had told the troops during a televised thanksgiving address that he, Obama alone, had fixed the mess W. Bush left & now the economy was doing great. Right-wingers & republicans would've lost their minds.
In other news, today's #TrumpRussia media speculation was all about former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn:
"Flynn lawyers make a break with Trump team, AP source says"
"WASHINGTON
A lawyer for former national security adviser Michael Flynn has told President Donald Trump’s legal team that they are no longer communicating with them about special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian election interference.
The decision could be a sign that Flynn is moving to cooperate with Mueller’s investigation or negotiate a deal for himself."
There has been much discussion among political pundits about the break.
However, a couple of days ago Rachel Maddow had a report on her show about Trump not willing to pay Flynn's legal fees. Therefore, I'm sure it was mainly money troubles that precipitated the split between Trump & Flynn's legal teams.
Nevertheless, this NYTimes article (link below) finds some evidence in the break to indicate Flynn might actually be moving to cooperate with Mueller:
"A Split From Trump Indicates That Flynn Is Moving to Cooperate With Mueller"
"The notification alone does not prove that Mr. Flynn is cooperating with Mr. Mueller. Some lawyers withdraw from information-sharing arrangements as soon as they begin negotiating with prosecutors. And such negotiations sometimes fall apart.
Still, the notification led Mr. Trump’s lawyers to believe that Mr. Flynn — who, along with his son, is seen as having significant criminal exposure — has, at the least, begun discussions with Mr. Mueller about cooperating."
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