Trump's Over-Praised State of the Union: The New Fifth Column
Why Paul Ryan was clapping at policies he's long opposed, how POTUS could be a strong de-regulator, and why the media cares 100x more about presidential theatrics than the war in Yemen
After an unseemly hiatus, The Fifth Column, your usually-weekly podcast threesome of Kmele Foster, Michael C. Moynihan, and moi, has come back with a nearly two-hour episode that begins with a lengthy reaction to President Donald Trump's speech to Congress Tuesday night. Sub-themes include:
* His Obama-like, laughably unrealistic grandiosity.
* His economic illiteracy and budget-busting.
* His excellent approach toward the Food and Drug Administration, and potentially other aspects of regulatory reform.
* His insanely bad idea that a border wall will end illegal drug use.
* His cynical and fact-challenged ideas about illegal-immigrant criminality.
* His military re-bloating.
* His Berniesque trade populism.
* And his ballyhooed yet still factually dubious section on Yemen.
Along the way there are analyses of Sweden's refugee/immigration issues, Trump's stupidly controversial photo-up with representatives of historically black colleges, and, of course, Moynihan's Jesse Jackcent. Whole episode here:
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