Trump says it's OK if he skips intelligence briefings because he's a smart person

[babylonsister]

iirc, bush didn't put much stock in PDBs either, most notably in August 2001...


Aaron Rupar
Journalist, ThinkProgress.
1 hr ago
Trump says it’s OK if he skips intelligence briefings because he’s ‘a smart person’
What could possibly go wrong?


During a Fox News Sunday interview, President-elect Donald Trump acknowledged he’s not receiving daily intelligence briefings, but argued he doesn’t need them because he’s “a smart person.”

Trump said he gets briefings “when I need it” because “I don’t have to be told — you know, I’m, like, a smart person. I don’t have to be told the same thing in the same words every single day for the next eight years. Could be eight years — but eight years. I don’t need that.”

Trump’s comments came two days after the Washington Post reported the CIA informed informed U.S. senators last week it is “quite clear” from a “growing body of intelligence from multiple sources” that Russia used cyberattacks to meddle in the presidential election, specifically to help Trump defeat Hillary Clinton. In a statement released in the wake of that news, Trump slammed the intelligence community, describing them as “the same people that said Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.”

Right around the same time the Fox News interview was airing on Sunday morning, a bipartisan group of senators released a statement saying Americans should be alarmed by the CIA’s findings.

more...

https://thinkprogress.org/trump-intelligence-briefings-smart-person-82553641164c#.nnnz5tph4

[Jean-Jacques Roussea]

1. Can he prove he's a "smart person"?

He should release his college transcripts like he asked of Obama.

[CountAllVotes]

4. Where are his tax returns?

Never saw those either.

Amazing to think a country OR Russia could elect such a draft dodger of a man without this critical information!

They've been too busy looking for Obama's birth certificate.

Who cares about tRump's FIVE BANKRUPTCIES and numerous lawsuits, charges for rape, etc?

The dumbing up America is complete!

Sad state of affairs at best!

[LittleGirl]

51. +1 eom

[Baitball Blogger]

13. White privilege. He doesn't have to release college transcripts if he don't wanna.

[whathehell]

57. Oh please...Every aspect of human behavior is not attributable to race

Last edited Sun Dec 11, 2016, 04:54 PM - Edit history (1)

On the tax question alone, every presidential candidate except Barack Obama has been white, and Trump is the only one to refuse to show his tax returns. He's a narcissist and the offspring of a very wealthy family -- His color is the very least of it.

[Baitball Blogger]

59. He uses every privilege at his disposal. He epitomizes affluenza.

And, yes, narcissism is a big part of that. Sorry, but those are qualities that he is able to get away with because he is a pompous white ass that his supporters identify with. He is their ideal. He is the poster buffoon for white privilege...

... and the next president of the United States of America.

[whathehell]

60. Yeah, but to say that he doesn't reveal.his tax returns

because of "white privilege" sounds incredibly simplistic.

Being a 'pompous ass' frequently comes with being a celebrity, and those with sufficient exposure to them know that being white is not a requirement.

[Baitball Blogger]

61. There is no need to dilute a term that welds great meaning to minorities.

Trump isn't just a celebrity. He is a president-elect who tapped into strong racist sentiments in the populace that voted for him. They see him as an ideal. White privilege is an apt description, from where I stand.

[whathehell]

62. There is when it confuses a portion of the truth with the whole truth

because that view is distorted.

Let me give you an example from my own situation. I am white, but I'm also female and a feminist and make privilege and it's abused are something I' live with every day. That being said, I do not view every bad thing various men may do, as a direct consequence of " male privilege". It may play a PART in it, but that part may be large or small depending on the action and the circumstances surrounding that action, so, even though Trump is a male, and undoubtedly a recipient of male privilege, I can't ignore every OTHER element of his situation (being rich, being mentally ill)
when evaluating his actions. One could, for instance, say his refusal to show his tax returns is because of his male privilege, but that seems unrelated and unlikely. His treatment of women, on the other hand, would be a different story. A similar thing would apply to his "white privilege", his "wealth privilege", etc.

[Baitball Blogger]

63. Look at it from my point of view.

I am a PoC and a woman. I definitely see that he benefits from white privilege. I'm sure as a progressive you understand that as a white woman, you have access and opportunities that are not guarantees to PoC. I'm not saying that you aren't also victimized by male privilege. I am saying that it's easier for you to dismiss the presence of white privilege because sometimes you are the beneficiary.

[whathehell]

66. I am, but when one looks at a matter ONlY from one's own

point of view, one is likely to get a skewered, unbalanced picture something I think I illustrated with my own example of being a feminist female, white or not and I think you are both incorrect and unfair in claiming that I "dismiss" white privilege. I do not and did not. I'm simply saying that ALL of his attributes -- his privileges as well as his Narcissistic Personslity Disorder, have to be considered and seeing an individual or a situation as mult-faceted, as I have, does NOT mean your are "dismissing" one of those facets, it means you are not dismissing all of the others.

Insisting hat the every negative act of a white person, especially one as non-representative as Trump, be seen SOLEY through a racial lens strikes me as incredibly narrow and simplistic.

Do I think SOME people and situations can be viewed primarily in racial terms? Yes, I do, but not Trump ior his refusal to reveal tax returns.
.

[Baitball Blogger]

67. I think the fact that he's getting away with not revealing his tax forms is an example of a man

who has grown comfortable with his white privilege. He'll take it as far as he can, because he's never been held accountable.

As a member of a minority group, how I see this is that he's a con-man who will use whatever advantage he has at his disposal to keep people from looking too closely at matters that would expose his con. And one of those advantages is his ability to pull of the white male privilege card. Afterall, we are dealing with groups within the Republican party who believe the world belongs to white autocratic males, and he is their ideal.

[whathehell]

68. How about his billionaire 'privilege'?

I,'m dorry, but I think money speaks at LE#AST as loud as race, if not louder, and, speaking to this situation particularly, every other white, non-billionaire presidential candidate revealed their tax returms.

[Baitball Blogger]

69. He is a man that uses all of his advantages.

I would not exclude one over the other.

[whathehell]

71. Yes,

but you DID exclude his other privileges, as well as his mental illnesses, in your first post -- that is what I'm objecting to.

[Baitball Blogger]

72. What I did was make a case for white privilege.

Took that approach because it appeared that you were dismissing it completely.

[whathehell]

73. Yes, but my point was that it was a weak one

and no, you didn't write that first post in response to me, and your perception of my dismissing anything...The post I referred to was a response to an entirely different poster -- one who asked why Trump was refusing to show his tax returns. Your answer was "white privilege". Period.

That was the first time I responded to you.

[Baitball Blogger]

74. This was your first response:

57. Oh please...Every aspect of human behavior is not attributable to race
On the tax question alone, every presidential candidate except Barack Obama has been white, and Trump is the only one to refuse to show his tax returns. He's a narcissist and the offspring son of a very wealthy family -- His color is the very least of it.

- - - -

In your first sentence, you strongly state that you are dismissing white privilege as a reason. You said, "Oh please...Every aspect of human behavior is not attributable to race" And then, you went straight into textbook traits that are associated with white privilege. "He's a narcissist and the offspring son of a very wealthy family" To a member of a minority group, that spells out affluenza and affluenza is the benchmark for white privilege behavior.

BTW, this discussion has been between you and me. If you had an "ear" for tone, you would have recognized that my original comment was written in a flippant manner. The key words were, "if he don't wanna." Apparently, you have a strong opinion about "white privilege" because you responded defensively.

[whathehell]

75. and this was yours:

"White privilege. He doesn't have to release college transcripts if he don't wanna".

I'm sorry if I didn't pick up a "flippant" manner but the fact is, Internet posts are notoriously weak on "tone" even for those
whose "ear" is sharp in other contexts. It 'sounded' flat to me, and no, using the phrase "if he doesn't wanna" doesn't convey much to me, one way or the other.

"Apparently, you have a strong opinion about "white privilege" because you responded defensively"

No, as with some other terms, I only feel "strongly" about it when I think it's being misused or falsely attributed and the idea that "white privilege" could, in any way, be the sole reason for Trumps actions struck me as absurd, and if it was, as you've said, merely a "flippant" remark, I can't help but wonder why YOU have responded so defensively about it.

[Baitball Blogger]

76. I know it's not being misused in this case.

And I suspect that the reason for our disagreement lies in the sum of our experiences. We agree that he is narcissistic, he does come from a wealthy family. And I believe I have made my case that these terms are strongly related to affluenza which is another word for white privilege.

It may not be the only benefit or advantage he's relying on, but it is a strong one, and he will continue to get away with it when people are willing to give it a pass.

[whathehell]

78. Sorry, but I disagree..

The term may not have been being "misused" but it was definitely "overused" in the sense that your "flippant"? remark

blamed it, again, all on ONE particular aspect.

"Affluenza is another word for white privilege"

Huh? Are you kidding?...What fabulous nonsense. "Aflluenza" is a term for WEALTH, and no, it is not restricted to Whites, lol.

as the fact of some VERY wealthy black people, here and abroad, would attest. .

[Baitball Blogger]

79. We are talking about Trump, who happens to be white.

But, I think you know that. And you are intelligent enough to string together all the factors: wealthy, white, narcissistic = affluenza = white privilege.

Don't worry, you aren't the first person to try to dismiss the opinions and views of a member of a minority group. Because, that's the source of our differing opinion.

[whathehell]

80. Again, I' just don''t agree..

Last edited Mon Dec 12, 2016, 04:24 PM - Edit history (1)

that, as you've indicated in your first paragraph, every negative aspect of the human condition stems from being white..

As to "worrying", no I'll save that for those who are able to evaluate situations objectively,, and not ONLY through their own experience.

[Baitball Blogger]

81. If that's what you're getting out of my first paragraph, I would say that your perceptions are

skewed.

[whathehell]

82. If you are saying something else

I'd say the same about your writing ability.

[Baitball Blogger]

83. It is never my intent to lower my standards, and I will continue to write from a pov

of a minority member. You would do the same if a white male were to come across one of your opinions and told you that you couldn't be taken seriously because you were not objective enough. You wouldn't hesitate to comprehend that to mean that he wasn't taking your female point of view seriously. That is what we have here. A difference of opinion based on our experiences.

Though I doubt few would read the one sentence remark I made that started this exchange and mistake it for a full analysis of Trump's personal failings, as you did.

[whathehell]

84. Of course, lol

If you were concerned with anything like "standards" you'd learn how to construct a coherent argument instead of bouncing from the lengthy defense of a silly statement to the claim that it was just a "flippant" remark that didn't mean anything anyway. Sorry, but you don't get to have it both ways.

[Baitball Blogger]

85. It is truly amazing how you took this down such a tangent.

My mistake was in taking you seriously.

[whathehell]

87. Oh, I couldn't have done it without you!

but trust me, I will be more than happy to end it now... Goodbye and good luck.

[Baitball Blogger]

88. This has been the strangest exchange that I have had on DU.

[whathehell]

89. Really?

I've had all kinds of exchanges here, some of them stranger than this one.

[Baitball Blogger]

90. Somehow, that doesn't surprise me.

[whathehell]

91. Lol!

I'll take that as a compliment, even though you probably didn't intend it as such.

[MurrayDelph]

36. He doesn't even claim to be a smart person

He claims to be LIKE a smart person.

You know, smart people have two arms, two legs, a spleen.

He's got all this things, too.

[lastlib]

56. SHOW US THE MENSA CARD!!

PROVE to us that you're such a genius!!

[Joe941]

92. Its better to remain silent and let doubt remain than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.

[randr]

2. Aug 2001 another President ignored briefing

That did not turn out well.

[etherealtruth]

3. I think the larger question is ... would tRump's attendance

... at these meetings actually matter? Is he actually capable of understanding what is going on? ... This man's "intelligence" lies in grifting/ "the con" which does not prepare him or indicate he is a person that is capable of understanding the intricacies of world affairs.

So, does it really matter that he doesn't attend?

My belief is that it is OK that he not attend because he is NOT smart enough

[Jean-Jacques Roussea]

6. I'm glad he's not attending

Less intel for Putin.

[3catwoman3]

64. I think he is not attending them because...

...he gets confronted with a whole lot of information that is way above his comprehension abilities. Rather than ackowledge the little tiny voice that must be somewhere deep inside whispering, "You are in deep shit, Donny Boy," he is playing ostrich and sticking his head in the sand.

[greymattermom]

5. Maybe he knows something is coming

via his Russian contacts, but want to play ignorant when it happens by skipping the briefings. They are probably already planning the response. So, where will the attack happen this time? New York again, Washington? What American iconic location is about to be taken out?

[Jean-Jacques Roussea]

7. Trump Tower

[PJMcK]

35. If only... (n/t)

[TrekLuver]

12. Him using the excuse as Ooops I didn't know because hey we all knew I was skipping the briefings

will not fly. Let that happen -- this muthafucka needs to go. As bad as Pence is...I want him in. At least with him in there I won't be waking up every day saying - What now - we all have our own issues and problems to deal with...and now on top of that we have to worry daily about the country. He is way too disruptive and he needs to get to getting. Sorry I digressed LOL.

[Abu Pepe]

39. Pence would be a horrible president. But he wouldn't present an existential threat to our republic.

Probably.

[MANative]

21. Hey, I work in mid-town Manhattan and was there on 9/11. Had enough, TYVM.

That being said, one of my co-workers who's very street savvy and surprisingly well-connected, is convinced that NYC is likely to be hit, and soon. Target? Times Square. Guess where I work.

[Docreed2003]

52. Reichstag Fire...

Maybe I'm an alarmist, but I truly believe an awful moment is coming which would allow Trump to solidify his autocratic control.

[cilla4progress]

8. We all need to fend

For ourselves now.

Do even semi-responsible righty journalists
like Chris Wallace accept this from orange Hitler.

[cilla4progress]

9. So confused...

Should I learn Mandarin or Russian?

[TrekLuver]

10. Why would he need to get bogged down in briefings...that's why he "hired" Mike Pence.

[malaise]

11. I just heard that

He's a fucking lunatic - knows more than everyone on the planet

[C_U_L8R]

14. Trump successful removes all doubt

that he's a world-class idiot.

That has got to be the dumbest thing
I've ever heard anyone ever say.
Surely one that will define Trump for all time.

[shraby]

15. This is not the first time he referred to an 8 year term.

Does he know something we don't know?

He just thinks he's smart, but he was smart enough to let Russia grab the puppet strings.

[Thor_MN]

46. I will be totally amazed if he finishes 4 years.

No way does Dumbass do 8.

[Mr. Ected]

16. And yet tens of millions of Americans don't flinch because THEY WON

And they will deflect blame for anything that goes wrong under Trump's watch. The world is an easy place to navigate when you're stupid, self-centered and unaccountable for any of your transgressions or mistakes.

The same people who supported Bush's illegal war in Iraq, then later confided that they had "never supported the war" are in full play again.

When this debacle reaches its ultimate conclusion, there will only be a handful of die-hard Trump supporters left.

I love my country, but not so much my fellow countrymen and women.

[Solly Mack]

17. Well, if there was ever just one statement to prove how stupid Trump is

We now have it.

That goes beyond ignorance.

Oh, he has said (well, mostly tweeted) some truly stupid shit but this one is ...wow.

[MANative]

19. Agree X1,000,000

[world wide wally]

44. If he's so smart, why can't he speak English fluently?

[MANative]

18. Sounds like he's setting up plausible deniability for his lack of attention and/or response to

the next international crisis which will come under his watch. "Well, I'm extremely super-smart, but I can't see the future, and those CIA guys can't either."

[JDC]

20. I'm Smart. I'm not stupid like everyone says...

And I deserve respect.

-President Elect Fredo

[AnotherMother4Peace]

22. You beat me to it. I was just typing the Fredo quote from The Godfather, Putin's favorite movie:

"It ain't the way I wanted it! I can handle things! I'm smart! Not like everybody says... like dumb... I'm smart and I want respect!"

So now Putin has his useful idiot or co-leader, and that co-leader, Trump, is keeping his friends close and enemies closer by meeting and flattering Ryan and Romney. Truly scary stuff.

[JDC]

23. Lol

Your mistake was doing a good job with an accurate quote. Seems almost ironic given the state of facts these days. Good weekend.

[AnotherMother4Peace]

30. Thank you and welcome to DU - I know I'm not the only one scared about this election when I'm here.

[JDC]

32. Thanks. I've been around a while

ie since G W, but I forgot my user and password and just started over.

[alarimer]

24. Dunning-Kruger in action

From Wikipedia:

The Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which low-ability individuals suffer from illusory superiority, mistakenly assessing their ability as much higher than it really is. Dunning and Kruger attributed this bias to a metacognitive incapacity, on the part of those with low ability, to recognize their ineptitude and evaluate their competence accurately.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect

[subterranean]

26. Trump is a classic example of that, isn't he?

Ignorant about most subjects, but certain that he knows everything.

[muriel_volestrangler]

50. Prof Dunning said that himself about Trump

Again, the key to the Dunning-Kruger Effect is not that unknowledgeable voters are uninformed; it is that they are often misinformed—their heads filled with false data, facts and theories that can lead to misguided conclusions held with tenacious confidence and extreme partisanship, perhaps some that make them nod in agreement with Trump at his rallies.

Trump himself also exemplifies this exact pattern, showing how the Dunning-Kruger Effect can lead to what seems an indomitable sense of certainty. All it takes is not knowing the point at which the proper application of a sensible idea turns into malpractice.

http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/05/donald-trump-supporters-dunning-kruger-effect-213904

[Initech]

25. George W Bush missed an intelligence briefing on 8/17/01.

We all know what happened a month later.

[Afromania]

27. OH MY

EVER-LOVING GOD. The stupid hurts so bad I want to take a flying leap down a flight of stairs to unlearn what I just read.

[MFM008]

34. Lol

I'll join you.

[ananda]

28. Oh, he thinks "intelligence" briefings are about IQ.

So they would only be given to dumb people.

[kentuck]

29. Trump said he had his own generals and intelligence..

Insinuating that he did not need the intelligence agencies.

[bettyellen]

31. THAT is exactly what reporters should be asking loudly now! Who is the source of the counter intel

He has claimed access to?

[MFM008]

33. There is another terrorist event

Coming.
Like a bad sequel.
The same hubris as the Bushies.
Same ignoring of data.
This time I predict it will involve something chemical
And may not involve anyone of the Islamic religion.
Think "Die Hard dirty bomb".

[0rganism]

38. Putin/Trump needs one to "unify" the population

until that happens, there will be resistance to Trump's agenda
after the inevitable attack, we will gladly fall in line and trash whatever liberty and privacy remains to us
the only question is, which city to sacrifice?

[Abu Pepe]

41. Bush was the tragedy to Trump' farce. Trump will try to use the coming attack to crack down on

domestic opponents instead of start a war on lies. So maybe the farce came first this time. IDK

[0rganism]

37. of course, why would he need to attend, when he gets his intelligence straight from Vlad?

our new best buddy Putin gives Trump all the intelligence he needs to make it through the day as a happy puppet prince
getting slightly different versions from multiple sources would only confuse our new Orange Overlord

[gordianot]

40. Can anyone imagine Trumps reaction to even the slightest military provocation?

Spying, lying, denying, loading the deck, personal threats are how Trump does business. Handling actual physical threats are the great Trump unknowns.

[LuckyLib]

42. Hahahaha Hahahaha ha!

OMG, the irony! Donald, you stupid buffoon.

[world wide wally]

43. Does any "patriotic Republican" think for a moment that Trump would turn down a meeting

with Russian Intelligence?

[SHRED]

45. What could go wrong?

[spanone]

47. hey don, no you're not.

[SteelSmasher]

48. At first

I found it hard to believe that this was true. So I watched the video at the link. I am still shocked by his stupidity. Then he of course has to say that picking Pence was "one of my great decisions". Who talks like that? what is wrong with this person?
He is already setting new low standards for corruption, incompetence and laziness. I didn't think we would get another slacker President. He said he wanted the job, then he got it, but now he doesn't want to do the work.

[colorado_ufo]

49. He is protecting himself.

If Russia does anything prosecutable in an international court (Hague), he can plead that he was unaware. He always has an exit plan.

[jalan48]

53. By answering in this fashion Trump is really saying he doesn't have the smarts.

Why even make it about being smart? It's about sitting in a room with very serious people, listening, asking questions and making statements about the intel being presented. Trump's statement says he's really not comfortable in a situation where others know more than him.

[boston bean]

54. He does realize they are speaking about national security.. not his own intelligence..

[SamKnause]

55. You are all missing the point.

Trump did not run for president, he ran for position of Dictator.

I thought he made it perfectly clear.

He will now control the narrative.

Let's not forget that Erik Prince's sister now has a position in the dictatorship.

Erik Prince the founder of Blackwater. (It is now known as Academi.)

A large portion of the military back Trump.

The KKK, many White Supremacy groups, and an array of 'Patriot' groups

also back Trump.

He is following in Hitler's footsteps.

The Republicans have no intention of stopping him.

The Democratic party can not stop him.

[Generator]

58. Hey we get it

We have to hold on to a minute of hope here. But it looks like everything you say is true. He can be stopped. He's not president yet.

[Bucky]

65. Him slipping briefings also hides secret Intel from a known Russian agent

Secret Agent Orange

[spanone]

70. i don't think so, donald....i don't think so.

[ZoomBubba]

77. At least with W. ...

... I didn't feel like I was going to wake up the next morning with us being potentially being at war with China.

[resistance2016]

86. I've never been a survivalist, but I might start building a bunker....

The deeper the better...

[trof]

93. Actual quote: "I'm like a smart person."

"Like"