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EnergizedLib

(3,093 posts)
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 12:42 PM Apr 1

I've never in my life witnessed failure so celebrated

From the just the first four years alone - botching the COVID response, Jan. 6, the 2020 election and the stacking of a sham court that gave us Dobbs.

Now, we have a police state that’s killed citizens, that has falsified charges, one of its members has been found to sexually abuse a Nicaraguan woman, no body cams, face masks, trillions added onto the debt, job losses, people losing their healthcare, 13 American troops and more than 100 Iranian schoolgirls are dead. Remember when President Biden was blamed for the Afghanistan debacle and his numbers never recovered? The felon’s numbers are below 40%, job losses, market losses, gas prices and grocery prices higher, all while trying to steal the midterms and suppress the vote.

And what do we get? The trump-Kennedy Center, trump’s own airport in Florida, a street named for the felon, the felon’s signature appearing on paper currency and on coins for the 250th Anniversary while being allowed to loot the treasury and threatening more wars with Cuba after a very unpopular Iran war that even has the cult divided.

If the felon were an NFL head coach with this kind of epic failure, he wouldn’t even last a single season. Presidential historians already rated him either the absolute worst or not far behind before 2024, and all these things are being renamed in his honor and the cultists want that ugly face on Mount Rushmore.

It’s unbelievable, it really is. Failure doesn’t always get punished, but I’ve never seen it so widely celebrated in my lifetime.

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I've never in my life witnessed failure so celebrated (Original Post) EnergizedLib Apr 1 OP
Failure and the brazen arrogance malaise Apr 1 #1
Trump graycampervan Apr 1 #47
Not just Donvict malaise Apr 1 #49
Don't overthink it. That's how money laundering and fifth-column sabotage work. usonian Apr 1 #2
Look back at the Ronald Reagan years synni Apr 1 #3
I was a kid back then but I learned how corrupt and ridiculous the Repukes are. Dave Bowman Apr 1 #29
At the time it was shocking how much corruption and incompetence Reagan got away with FakeNoose Apr 1 #44
Totally agree. Hell, he makes Nixon look like a saint too. Dave Bowman Apr 1 #46
He sure did. calimary Apr 2 #51
Ketchup being classified as a vegetable did it for me The Blue Flower Apr 2 #54
HWBush's CABAL was truly running things popsdenver Apr 1 #37
Trump's supporters keep hanging on in the hopes that one day, they will be able to fail upward the way he does. Aristus Apr 1 #4
It's time for Dump to start failing DOWNWARDS Blue Owl Apr 1 #5
I've heard that shit rolls downhill JoseBalow Apr 1 #8
Vlad Putin is celebrating Martin Eden Apr 1 #6
Excellent! Buddyzbuddy Apr 1 #7
you mention if the felon was an NFL coach Skittles Apr 1 #9
his head on Rushmore would be the statue of limitations cynical_idealist Apr 1 #10
Let me go full Godwin. There was lots of stuff named... NNadir Apr 1 #11
PRECISELY. B.See Apr 1 #16
Problem is, it took three military superpowers to run roughshod over his country Wednesdays Apr 1 #22
On the other hand, Hitler wasn't 79 years old and senile. NNadir Apr 1 #24
"President Biden was blamed for the Afghanistan debacle"... GiqueCee Apr 1 #12
Yeah, I often thought he sabotaged the exit plan. . . Stargleamer Apr 1 #23
And nobody... GiqueCee Apr 1 #25
I hate how they carry water for the felon EnergizedLib Apr 1 #33
Agreed. Good assessment. yellow dahlia Apr 1 #40
who's celebrating? NJCher Apr 1 #13
He destroys everything he touches Grim Chieftain Apr 1 #14
Trump is no innovator. He's just an asshole who happened to fail upward., Initech Apr 1 #15
What all of you missed is that if keep saying over and over again.... diverdownjt Apr 1 #17
Most of these things being VANDALIZED B.See Apr 1 #18
I long for the day he only forces his way into a coffin EnergizedLib Apr 1 #34
Fox news is the most watched news channel in the country. hadEnuf Apr 1 #19
What will that matter EnergizedLib Apr 1 #35
I think it's a lot more than just conformation bias. hadEnuf Apr 1 #41
Fox NEws may be the most watched news network, but their audience is still extremely small Wiz Imp Apr 1 #50
Sure you have. Reagan was lionized while also destroying and fucking up everything in sight. RockRaven Apr 1 #20
Uncle Ronnie was lionized more while fucking things up slightly less... malthaussen Apr 1 #45
"I've never in my life witnessed failure so celebrated" -- none of us have. nt orleans Apr 1 #21
"If the felon were an NFL head coach with this kind of epic failure . . . " AverageOldGuy Apr 1 #26
Excellent Summary happy feet Apr 1 #27
It's not failure that's being celebrated. bucolic_frolic Apr 1 #28
It the celebration by the 20% of mediocre child-adults... haele Apr 1 #30
I'm not sure he's a failure for his base, even if they are harmed by his policies. Ilikepurple Apr 1 #31
Recommended. H2O Man Apr 1 #32
Those communities will live to regret those stupid naming decisions. History will not judge Trump or his supporters Martin68 Apr 1 #36
OT, Prairie_Seagull Apr 1 #38
That is a prime example of the power of a personality cult. It has existed all throughout history. Fil1957 Apr 1 #39
Epic failure. And lots of people have died...and will continue to do so. yellow dahlia Apr 1 #42
Lest we forget Mysterian Apr 1 #43
trump is our most famous example of failing up... Wounded Bear Apr 1 #48
It's White Supremacy JI7 Apr 2 #52
Not just failure, evil too. CaptainTruth Apr 2 #53
I'm most stunned by some of the people I grew up with, CrispyQ Apr 2 #55
Don't sell Shrub short here... Moostache Apr 2 #56
As much as I HATED Dubya EnergizedLib Apr 2 #58
Not to pick nits... Moostache Apr 2 #60
Fucking Paklids Ponietz Apr 2 #57
The only ones celebrating are the villainous perpetrators. All others vilify him. pat_k Apr 2 #59

graycampervan

(64 posts)
47. Trump
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 08:38 PM
Apr 1

Trump is the RW punishing the country for electing Obama twice. 8 years, not one scandal. What republican administration can say that?

malaise

(297,128 posts)
49. Not just Donvict
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 08:59 PM
Apr 1

The Heritage Foundation, the Christian Nationalists, the KKK etc- it is all a response to Obama winning and twice

usonian

(26,065 posts)
2. Don't overthink it. That's how money laundering and fifth-column sabotage work.
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 12:46 PM
Apr 1


And by the way:

synni

(784 posts)
3. Look back at the Ronald Reagan years
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 01:16 PM
Apr 1

That was the blueprint for today's mess.

If you can find it, there is a book called Ronald Reagan's Reign Of Error. It details how the media was complicit in letting a man with dementia destroy the country.

FakeNoose

(42,030 posts)
44. At the time it was shocking how much corruption and incompetence Reagan got away with
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 05:13 PM
Apr 1

... but in retrospect, Chump makes Reagan look like a genius by comparison.

popsdenver

(2,433 posts)
37. HWBush's CABAL was truly running things
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 03:58 PM
Apr 1

from the Shadows, same as Cheney's CABAL was running things during WBush's occupation of the White House......Same as Stephen Miller's 2025 Manifesto crowd is running things now......

The amount of damage done to our country, the citizens, the middle class, our beloved Democracy, and even the Constitution during the 1980-1992 HW CABAL was un-fathomable..............and it was just a trial run for what the Republicans put in place during the 2000-2008 years.
It started a full roll out of the steam rolling done in 2016-2020, and has gone to warp speed starting in 2024 and gaining speed these past 17 months since election day 2024....

(AND....Don't forget the damage the "Citizens United" has done to our elections by the Uber Wealthy and Corporations.....)

An increasing number of things were not only un-constitutional, but Treasonous, starting with HWBush corrupting the election in 1980. Then followed by the corruption of the 2000, 2004, and 2016 elections..... Every day since, when the Republicans have been in power, the Treasonous acts have multiplied exponentially, and now are commonplace.....

WASF

Aristus

(72,372 posts)
4. Trump's supporters keep hanging on in the hopes that one day, they will be able to fail upward the way he does.
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 01:20 PM
Apr 1

They aren't smart enough to realize that he inherited a fortune. And before he squandered it all away, managed to form connections with very wealthy, powerful people who happened to be looking for a useful fool.

Skittles

(172,282 posts)
9. you mention if the felon was an NFL coach
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 01:38 PM
Apr 1

actually that nepo manbaby would not last in ANY OTHER JOB - seriously - and how would a 34-time felon sex offender with multiple bankruptcies even GET hired

it really says nothing good about America that ANYONE admires him or kisses his ass

Wednesdays

(22,886 posts)
22. Problem is, it took three military superpowers to run roughshod over his country
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 02:52 PM
Apr 1

...before Hitler was eliminated. We don't have that now.

NNadir

(38,323 posts)
24. On the other hand, Hitler wasn't 79 years old and senile.
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 02:57 PM
Apr 1

The comparison is not absolute of course and wasn't intended to be so.

GiqueCee

(4,513 posts)
12. "President Biden was blamed for the Afghanistan debacle"...
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 01:51 PM
Apr 1

... and the shitstain M$M reporters never bothered to note that Biden was legally bound to carry out a poorly planned departure that TRUMP INITIATED! Biden did manage to delay the botched plan long enough to make it a lot less disastrous than it would have been otherwise. Knowing Trump's vindictiveness, it's no great stretch to imagine that he sabotaged his own exit plan to make Biden look bad. But Biden's team dropped the ball when they failed to bellow from the rooftops exactly what really happened. More "consultant" input, I'll wager. Those consultants should have been shown the door and told never to return. Better yet, dispense with the consultant class altogether; they've caused more problems than they've ever solved.

Stargleamer

(2,752 posts)
23. Yeah, I often thought he sabotaged the exit plan. . .
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 02:54 PM
Apr 1

especially given he released 5000 Taliban. But Biden got blamed for it all. Sigh.

EnergizedLib

(3,093 posts)
33. I hate how they carry water for the felon
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 03:31 PM
Apr 1

We’re not at state media a la North Korea, Russia, China, Ceausecu’s Romania, etc., at least not yet, but it’s pretty bad.

NJCher

(43,345 posts)
13. who's celebrating?
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 01:54 PM
Apr 1

Not the right word.

The only person celebrating is trump himself, and he's not getting away with it because there are court cases on almost all of the ones you mention. I wrote a post about it yesterday:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=21133576

This is more of a case of a person who doesn't understand the law, doesn't care, and forges ahead, daring others to stop him. Which they do. Check his record for yesterday: he lost a lot of cases.

Grim Chieftain

(1,909 posts)
14. He destroys everything he touches
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 01:56 PM
Apr 1

Our democracy, our civil rights, our rule of law, our White House - the list goes on and on. It boggles the mind that he gets away with almost all of it.

My heart breaks for those who fought and died to protect this country, only for it to be destroyed by an egomaniacal, draft-dodging felon.

Initech

(108,994 posts)
15. Trump is no innovator. He's just an asshole who happened to fail upward.,
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 02:00 PM
Apr 1

Then he got lucky by catering to idiots who watch News Corporation propaganda ad nauseum.

diverdownjt

(745 posts)
17. What all of you missed is that if keep saying over and over again....
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 02:21 PM
Apr 1

Then it's winning baby...win win win. just keep telling yourself that and even you will believe it...someday.
ahhh yes the new reality.................

B.See

(8,644 posts)
18. Most of these things being VANDALIZED
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 02:31 PM
Apr 1

with his name aren't being named in his 'honour' (as if such a word could ever actually apply to him).

But because he and his craven suck-ups and DEVOTEES have FORCED his name and graven image upon us.

Proof of how much of an authoritarian state we've already become.

hadEnuf

(3,642 posts)
19. Fox news is the most watched news channel in the country.
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 02:39 PM
Apr 1

And most of the other news outlets are trying to stay out of Trump's wrath.

So the American people have been and are being lied to every single day and every single night. For years and years.

It's not a stretch to figure out why Biden was blamed for Trump's botched Afghanistan pull out, yet Trump gets a free pass from right-wing media like Fox for starting a war with Iran.

This is not going to stop until a massive new news network is built that speaks the truth and overshadows the right-wing propaganda machine or the current trash media is somehow reigned in or destroyed.

hadEnuf

(3,642 posts)
41. I think it's a lot more than just conformation bias.
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 04:43 PM
Apr 1

It's downright brainwashing in a lot of cases. Do you think that 30+ years of right-wing propaganda has had no effect on people? Generations have been raised on this garbage and they believe what they hear, sorry to say. And what kind of messaging are we getting out when a known piece of garbage like Trump can get in? Twice?

Trump and his oligarchs run the media with their influence and now hands-on acquisitions. How can we combat that without having a strong media arm fighting the lies?

Wiz Imp

(10,212 posts)
50. Fox NEws may be the most watched news network, but their audience is still extremely small
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 11:55 PM
Apr 1

Fox averages just 1.4 million to 1.7 million viewers at any given time each day. Their max viewership is 3 to 4 million. So even at their max, they have barely 1 percent of the US population watching. Their average at any given time is less than half of one percent of the population.

malthaussen

(18,598 posts)
45. Uncle Ronnie was lionized more while fucking things up slightly less...
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 07:27 PM
Apr 1

... in some ways, his beatification is more hard to understand than the intense love DJT's cult has for him no matter what he does. Ron was an utter failure and fool who hurt Americans in myriad ways, but almost nobody has a bad thing to say about him except a few grumpy libruls. DJT has been worse by every measure, and so more people criticize him -- but his faithful remain obsessed to a truly unhealthy degree.

-- Mal

AverageOldGuy

(4,034 posts)
26. "If the felon were an NFL head coach with this kind of epic failure . . . "
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 03:06 PM
Apr 1

Back in the days of the failed United States Football League, Trump owned the New Jersey Generals from 1983 to 1985. I think Herschel Walker played for the Generals. Trump constantly attacked the NFL. He also used the Generals as collateral for some loans, all of which went into default.

I don't recall the details and am too lazy to Google, but, as I recall he forced the USFL to play the same schedule as the NFL, hoping to attract audience and force his way into the NFL. Challenging the NFL schedule was a major contributing factor to the USFL failure.

After the USFL failed, Trump tried to buy the Buffalos Bills in 201??? ( Right ??) The NFL owners basically told him he would never, ever own an NFL team.

happy feet

(1,287 posts)
27. Excellent Summary
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 03:09 PM
Apr 1

Wish the media pundits would hammer this home---day after day after day...till it gets through MAGAs/Trumpsters thick skulls

bucolic_frolic

(55,508 posts)
28. It's not failure that's being celebrated.
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 03:09 PM
Apr 1

It's power, money, and privilege. America's obsessed propertied classes.

haele

(15,497 posts)
30. It the celebration by the 20% of mediocre child-adults...
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 03:15 PM
Apr 1

Who think they should have a chance to be in charge.
Who believe the audacity of willful ignorance is the same as pluck or hard work and should be rewarded.
The US has always had a Horatio Alger problem. The Average person doing their best is not to be valued, but a lucky person, either from luck of birth or luck of opportunity (legal, legitimate, or not), is what is to be admired and emulated.

Ilikepurple

(756 posts)
31. I'm not sure he's a failure for his base, even if they are harmed by his policies.
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 03:17 PM
Apr 1

He has succeeded in making bigotry something you don’t have to hide and can even celebrate. Punching down can now be openly argued as the way of Nature or God without immediate dismissal. Stand up comics can have round tables where they can discuss the return of the R word. People who support civil rights can be termed subhuman left wing terrorists with very little media push back. Executive orders are now entertained as law even while being blocked by federal courts. Bothsidesism now includes MAGA against anyone else. I think there are around 30% that only see wins everywhere and many of the voters that see the losses still think he’s better than the alternative (e.g., high taxes, abandoning of meritocracy (or white privilege), Black Lives Matter, Portland, Pronouns, weak on crime, people speaking foreign languages, people not culturally normal).

Martin68

(27,945 posts)
36. Those communities will live to regret those stupid naming decisions. History will not judge Trump or his supporters
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 03:48 PM
Apr 1

kindly.

Fil1957

(776 posts)
39. That is a prime example of the power of a personality cult. It has existed all throughout history.
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 04:15 PM
Apr 1

Mysterian

(6,580 posts)
43. Lest we forget
Wed Apr 1, 2026, 04:49 PM
Apr 1

- Put idiot in charge of national security
- Ignore security warnings
- Allow worst terror attack in US history
- Launch war on wrong country based on lies
- Get re-elected

The USA is contolled by propaganda masters and the peole are gullible idiots.

CrispyQ

(41,034 posts)
55. I'm most stunned by some of the people I grew up with,
Thu Apr 2, 2026, 11:22 AM
Apr 2

who seemed reasonable, smart, & at least somewhat compassionate, but still support this cruelty & chaos. There's a branch of zealots on my family tree, so I wrote them off long ago, but I'm really shocked about a few of the others, college-educated business professionals. They are boastful & think, or at least say they think, that Trump is doing a great job.

Moostache

(11,241 posts)
56. Don't sell Shrub short here...
Thu Apr 2, 2026, 11:42 AM
Apr 2

Yes, Trump is undeniably the worst human being in history, but W. and Cheney and crew were damn near as bad too...

Katrina?
"Mission Accomplished"?
Colin Powell's dutiful "WMD" speech?
Tax cuts that wiped out the surplus and budget?

This is worse for sure, but the start of the decline goes back much further than 2017...

EnergizedLib

(3,093 posts)
58. As much as I HATED Dubya
Thu Apr 2, 2026, 11:54 AM
Apr 2

When did he act like a malignant narcissist? When did he name everything after himself? When did Republicans give him trophies and awards? What kind of cult did he have? When did he have tirades and meltdowns and attack the press or others for not kissing up to him 24/7?

Moostache

(11,241 posts)
60. Not to pick nits...
Thu Apr 2, 2026, 01:27 PM
Apr 2

Shrub's cult became the original MAGA - "The TEA party"... they were in the Bush Administration and GOP circles, asshats like the Brooks Brothers Rioters all came through from the Florida recount in 2000 to the Bush Admin to the TEA Party to the MAGA crowd...

And Cheney was the real power in that admin with Bush serving as figurehead and poser. There was just as much hate and vitriol from them minus the autocratic tendencies of Two Scoops.

pat_k

(13,546 posts)
59. The only ones celebrating are the villainous perpetrators. All others vilify him.
Thu Apr 2, 2026, 12:18 PM
Apr 2

And the members of congress doing his bidding cower in fear of the consequences of continuing to stand on the side of the villains -- but they lack the courage to stand against him. Instead they scramble for some "out" that won't put them in his sights. Retirement. Minor disobedience, or ??

A couple great No Kings signs:

I WISH CONGRESS
WAS ALIVE TO SEE THIS!



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