Bob Woodward on Morning Joe, says Nancy Pelosi should give Trump his wall and a way to save face.

[politicaljunkie41910]

I say bullshit. Joe then gives Woodward a half dozen reasons why she shouldn't. Woodward then says it's not in Pelosi's interest to crush Trump because if she does, he's going to fly off the handle and is capable of doing all kinds of things with that presidential powers which he hasn't exercised yet. HUH!!!!!!!!!

I think it is so chauvinistic on Woodward's part to suggest that it's Nancy's responsibility to appease this bloated baby's ego. If Nancy capitulates to Trump, it would only inflate his ego and make him worse than he already is. He needs a healthy dose of humble pie to teach him that we have a separation of powers in this country, and he just can't just bulldoze over the Constitution's separation of powers.

[BlueJac]

1. Bullshit!

[rainin]

2. I hope one of Scar's reasons NOT to give in is that trump will never stop

using the federal government (and its workers) as his own piggy bank to reward donors and russian business owners (who tithe 50% of their earnings to putin)

[hatrack]

3. Fuck. That. Shit.

Bite me, Bob.

[dalton99a]

4. Yeah, if you appease a bully, he will leave you alone

You don't appease a bully and a terrorist.

[NewJeffCT]

12. or, more accurately

you don't let a spoiled toddler have his way or he'll become even more spoiled and harder to rein in over the long run.

[dalton99a]

17. +1

[mgardener]

48. You are right!

[grantcart]

56. Chamberlain, "peace in our time"

[Turbineguy]

5. Giving him a face saving way out would

validate his weakness.

She can say what happened afterwards. She's dealing with a difficult child. He's the one degrading himself.

[UniteFightBack]

6. Did he say that the Democrats should get something out of it...or just capitulate? nt

[Girard442]

7. If the Wall was a legit policy over which they disagreed, then maybe, but...

...the Wall and the problem it's supposed to address are both utterly bogus. He might as well be demanding a fifty-foot silver wall to repel werewolves.

Added: The only thing that happens when you compromise with stupid and evil is you get way more stupid and evil.

[Ms. Toad]

34. Absolutely correct -

I was about to post something along the lines of, "If Trump were demanding to detonate a series of nuclear bombs along the US-Mexico border, would Woodard suggest appeasing him?

It's nonsense to conceded to spend money on something that is not only pointless, but actually destructive, to appease the toddler in the White House.

[Liberty Belle]

52. And our nation has so many real emergencies not being adequately addressed,

Such as fires in CA, the polar vortex killing people in the north, and the hurricanes that have ravaged Puerto Rico, Texas and Florida.

Climate change is the real emergency and it's responsible in part for all of these things.

[LuckyLib]

85. Yes. Utterly bogus and a smoke screen for

the shit soon to hit the fan with Trump’s criminal activity. Bob, time to retire.

[sarge43]

8. Male bovine fecal material

You don't give in to brats throwing temper tantrums, blackmailers or terrorists.

[atreides1]

9. Bob Woodward

One of the men that took on the Nixon administration and exposed the Watergate break ins, for what they were!

Bob has now become just another old white guy, saying that a woman should know her place, while defending another old white guy!

When did Woodward have the surgery to get his spine removed???

[Anon-C]

16. This!

[Scruffy1]

18. He was always a status quo guy.

He got lucky once with a good source and had some journalistic integrity, but he was always a very staunch conservative.

[PatSeg]

26. Yes

Woodward is a republican and we never saw the Watergate side of him during the eight years of George W. Bush's presidency. He was a major disappointment at a time when we needed as many investigative journalists as we could get.

Having read several of Woodward's books, I've come to realize that his huge ego tends to get in the way of whatever he is investigating. He manages to project an awful lot of himself into his writing.

[Texin]

38. He is a rethug. That was established during the Nixon admin.

His family were lifelong rethugs. After writing about the WH in the book Fear, he should know what tRump is. The people who have written about him or know him (and I'm thinking of Tony Schwartz and David Cay Johnston, among others), know that he is a spoiled, indulged narcissist. Once you allow them to manipulate you into capitulating to their demands, they will just keep rolling over you over and over again. Giving in to a bully will just make them come up and trip you or blacken your eye every day. And they'll gloat about it publicly. The Dems and the people they are trying to protect, along with the taxpayers, will get nothing out of this boondoggle, but he'll get to "save face." GMAFB.

[Croney]

10. When you're facing a beast that's pacing around in a cage,

you don't open the door and pat it, so it will calm down.

[hlthe2b]

11. Uggh.. I so wanted to reach through the screen and throttle him. How did Bernstein put up with him?

[Gothmog]

13. No

[Hortensis]

14. Well, backing a stupid thug with a gun into a corner with

no way out would not be a smart move. Woodward is merely discussing one of the topics in chapter 3 of Introduction to Applied Politics. Of course, they could all write books on what chapter 3 only touches on.

Pelosi and team had to make the point that under Democratic leadership the house will perform its constitutionally mandated legislative and control functions that the Republicans betrayed. Everyone expects they will now give the Narcissist in Chief some means of saving face as part of moving on to achieving their real goals.

Of course, he's a very bad learner, and many repeat and additional lessons will no doubt be needed.

[gratuitous]

15. No. Just no.

This is a "crisis" entirely of Trump's making, that exists only in his fevered brain pan. Sure, the $5 billion Trump wants to set on fire isn't coming out of Woodward's pockets, so what's the diff to him?

Go home, Bob. You're drunk.

[Traildogbob]

28. BRAVO

$5 billion!!! Just spare change right? And the estimated cost is upward of $25 billion. Just to give him a win. Who will actually win with this cash from average working tax payers? The oligarchs that just got sanctions lifted that has ties to the steal industry. Russian steal manufacturers make the length of beams required. Fiscal Conservatism is the most fucked oxymoron ever stated. EVERYTHING Russia, billionaires and kickbacks to trump and paid for treasonous republican's. Winning, so much winning, we are getting tired of winning. Our species deserves complete eradication. And because of the current administration, the chemo treatment and radiation is on the way to beat the cancer that WE are on this planet. Maybe more of GOD'S big plan to save his best creation, eradicate the cancer that is aggressively mastasized on earth.

[lark]

53. ding, ding, ding!

Exactly this. This is all about and really only about the Deripaska steel drumpf was told by PUtin to purchase. That's why he will declare a national emergency, not to actually build the wall but to order the (probably defective) steel. He will have the order placed immediately after he's declared national emergency and it will have a no cancellation, no return provision. His wall won't get started, and he won't care because he can blame the courts and will have kept his word to his co-conspirators in fucking over America. He can always shut down the government again and almost assuredly will do so next year out of hate for this country and it's workers and fear of PUtins kompromat.

[Texin]

42. Well, actually it will come out of his pockets. And mine too, as well as yours.

This is a taxpayer-funded boondoggle. tRump's vanity project so he can proclaim his Ozymandias edifice to self, and call himself "King of Kings". In under twenty years time, it will be nothing more than the shifting sands like the poem. The wall won't exist and tRump will be dead. But the taxpayers will still be paying for the stupid motherfucker's boondoggle.

[spanone]

19. Nope.

let him throw a tantrum...who cares.

[Perseus]

20. Give him the wall then he will think he is a winner and start doing the unthinkable

Woodward...so many books, so little understanding of the orange buffoon. No, he cannot get the f^&*& wall, it is idiocy and idiocy cannot be tolerated.

The orange buffoon will continue to do anything that comes to his little brain, he has no concept of consequences, he would take getting the wall as a win and use it to keep his 30% of idiots happy thinking he is a winner. I can't believe anyone with brains would think that is an option.

We are past the point where the orange buffoon with all his minions should be wearing orange suits, I cannot understand why this is taking so long, so much just in the open...what gives?

[Freethinker65]

21. Trump can save his orange face by signing a passed bill to increase Border Security funding

The funding will pay for maintaining, strengthening, and adding to barriers where indicated, and increased monitoring, manpower, and immigration judges.

Trump can then BS about the increased Border Security funding. He can say it was the biggest increase ever and never would have happened without his all powerful brain or whatever the fuck he wants to say. His base will accept it, the media might half-heartedly try to fact check him for a few days, and the story will fade away as Trump does something even more insane.

[RAB910]

22. The answer to that claim is- WHY?

[rpannier]

23. Push a wall on him

And slap him in the face

Yes

[Dopers_Greed]

24. If Pelosi did this though...

Trump couldn't help himself, and would brag endlessly about it, probably saying stuff like "Pelosi got schlonged" at his rallies.

[Lonestarblue]

25. Trump is a domestic terrorist.

And you don’t negotiate with terrorists because you just encourage future hostage taking if you give in to them. It isn’t Speaker Pelosi’s responsibility to dig Trump out of the hole he dug for himself.

Trump cares nothing for real people or even what works in government, only his own ego and delusional self-perception that he is a dealmaker and, as president, entitled to get anything he wants with no compromises. Typical two year old.

[Autumn]

27. No. Fuck Trumps and fuck saving his stupid face.

[bigtree]

29. Woodward is a bloviating fraud

...it's a wonder he helped break Watergate.

Woodward hasn't a physical or substantive care in the world about the consequences of government. He needs to sit down.

[LuvLoogie]

30. I just called him a fucking idiot on his Twitter feed.

I just can't anymore with these inconvenienced elites.

[peggysue2]

31. Giving into Fat Nixon now would merely . . .

invalidate the entire struggle over the ridiculous, damaging shutdown. You don't give into blackmail or reward an extortionist. This is a stupid idea and Nancy Pelosi has been very clear:

NO WALL, NO MONEY FOR A WALL. Full stop.

[ginnyinWI]

32. whenever he has failed in his life, he just lies about it.

We've already seen him float trial balloons out there about "the wall is already being built". He's looking for a way to dishonestly declare victory and/or blame someone else for any failures.

The other tactic is to just stop talking about it--Hillary's crimes, or Obama's birth certificate, and go on to something else. He's a master at manipulating media and can get them to focus on what he wants.

So no need to help him save face. He can fix it his own way!

[Polly Hennessey]

33. Woodward is a strange duck.

Never quite figured him out. Problem for me is that when Woodward’s name is mentioned, I see Robert Redford. Thing is Woodward popped up at the right time. Just wish we had a similar journalist popping up now.

[watoos]

35. Give him 5.7 billion for the stupid wall,

but in return Speaker Pelosi should ask for a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, a guaranteed path.

That way Democrats are negotiating in good faith. Why should Democrats give up something so that Trump doesn't shut down the government? What do Democrats get? I keep hearing how both sides don't want a shutdown yet it is Republicans who are threatening to shut down the government if Democrats don't give money for a wall that Mexico is supposed to pay for.

[vlyons]

36. We don't want his fucking wall

and for many reasons that have been enumerated here lotsa times. But 1 reason that would actually be of benefit to Trump is to provide him with the opportunity to lose gracefully and to acquiesce in the will of others.

Of course we know not to expect Trump to ever lose gracefully. His anger and and vulgarity are so tiresome.

[watoos]

43. I agree with you 100%,

Republicans will never agree to a pathway to citizenship for dreamers.

[Clash City Rocker]

37. Fly off the handle? When was he ever on the handle?

[bitterross]

39. FUCK Bob Woodward.

The only way to defeat Trump is NOT give him ways to save face. This will bring out more of his poor character to be seen by the independents and swing voters who may not yet be convinced of how horrible he is.

[Docreed2003]

40. Um....nah

[BlancheSplanchnik]

78. 👍🏾

[Pepsidog]

41. So now we give a terrirust what he wants. He will then gloat and prance around like the pig he is.

It is not a legitimate policy. Immoral at the least. Just think what that money could do for schools, college loans, research. No F’en way Dms give in. Keep Pelosi’s foot on Dumb ass’s throat.

[extvbroadcaster]

44. He might have a point

I know you all want to shove it up Trump's rear with a candle on it. Me too. But if you saw Woodward on Morning Joe you might have second thoughts. Woodward was scared. And rightly so. He knows the office of the President is very powerful and there is no telling what Trump will do when cornered and humiliated. There have been some mistakes here. Letting the office of the President become too powerful is first. Second is letting anybody with a billion dollars run for President. Third is the GOP letting itself get hijacked by Trump. But the moron is in office now and we have to minimize the damage. Woodward is on that side, and you have to respect that. Give him some money for a wall and he will go back to mar-a-lago and the next shiny object.

[shanny]

45. rump is perfectly capable (never thought I'd say that!)

of coming up with a face-saving bullshit lie all on his own--in fact, he's already doing it--he doesn't need our help.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

81. Yep. In one of the documentaries on the jagoff, a business acquaintance said trump...

... has an uncanny ability to self-delude. That’s how he spins his 6 bankruptcies as a good thing.

[CTAtheist]

46. Um, No, Bob.

The wall would cost $5.7 billion to create, and could be destroyed within a day with the right tools for under $100.00.

Derp.

[yortsed snacilbuper]

47. No,

wall, period,

[TruckFump]

49. When hell -- with Trump in it -- freezes over!

No F/N way!!!!!!!!!!!

[yaesu]

50. Woodward is wrong, plain and simple

you don't reward bullies and whatever fit tRump throws will be negated by our beautiful House majority, He is an orange lame duck.

[dem4decades]

51. If Trump wants to start jailing journalists should we cave in to that too BOB?

[SCVDem]

54. Neville Chamberlain

And past lessons forgotten.

Sudentenland ring a bell?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neville_Chamberlain

[Johonny]

55. 5 billion here, 5 billion there and soon you're talking about real money!

[JHB]

57. Trump can save his face in a copy of Art of the Deal...

...as if it were a pressed leaf.

Give him an inch and he'll take a light-year.

[Nitram]

58. Fuck Bob Woodward!

[Trumpocalypse]

59. Woodward is a Republican

and always has been.

[FakeNoose]

62. Yep it's time we stop listening to him

Woodward should retire and stop talking on TV.

[Trumpocalypse]

63. I stopped when he started going on FAUX

to trash Obama.

[Yosemito]

60. Then Trump shuts it down next year

And Woodard tells us to give him what he wants so we can be Very Serious Persons like Woodward .
Repeat every year as needed.

[dalton99a]

69. Precisely.

[greymattermom]

61. If Trump wants a human wall now, it's easy.

Nancy should encourage his supporters to help him.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

64. I think Woodward and Bernstein should stop writing all those awful stories about President Nixon and

allow him to save face.

[Paladin]

65. And confirm for trump that government shut-downs are the way to succeed?

BullSHIT.

[BlueMTexpat]

66. Woodward is

ALL about himself.

Together with Bernstein, he helped to expose Nixon. He has not done anything worthwhile since, IMO.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

67. So

He's acknowledging that Trump is holding this country hostage over his Wall and that horrible things will happen if he doesn't get what he wants? How is he still allowed to be President should be the more pertinent question here.

[dlk]

68. What was the "Shakedown" Shutdown For?

Woodward should stick with reporting the facts. Giving in to a hostage taker is a losing proposition. I get he understand how irrational and disturbed Trump is. We all do However, this is the exact wrong course to take

[Proud Liberal Dem]

70. I didn't realize

that helping a President "save face" was part of Congress' responsibility?

[True Blue American]

71. Bob Woodward

Has ben sucking up to Republicans for years. He needs to shut up telling Democrats what to do. He and Lindsey Graham make a good pair.

Carl Bernstein I would listen to.

[citizen blues]

72. I understand why he's saying that, BUT

it's a damned if she does, damned if she doesn't situation. No matter what anyone does, the cuckoo in the White House will come up with something to do that's cruel, criminal, and craven.

[NRaleighLiberal]

73. Wow - how to play a failed hand!

[marble falls]

74. Sooooo treat the monster with caution so he doesn't act like a monster? Nah.

[Heartstrings]

75. No.......nt

[Power 2 the People]

76. +1

Woodward's way off base. Appeasing a madman brings more madness.

[grumpyduck]

77. Sorry, Bob.

I admire your journalism, but I don't agree with you on this.

And BTW, please stick to reporting and leave the commentary and advice to the talking heads.

[Fresh_Start]

79. Give him $50 million to perform a study on the feasiblity and benefit of the wall

and what the total cost to build and maintain the wall will be as well as the impact on crime and cost of living, etc

He gets 'saving face'...we get no wall.

[triron]

80. WTF!? Woodward is insane.

[Bengus81]

82. What a WUSSY Woodward has turned into......

I'm sure there were DOZENS back in 72/73 that told HIM to leave the President of the United States alone and stop the witch hunt crap.

[sagetea]

83. Just makes me sick...

Men always saying a woman should submit to a man to appease his fragile ego...SMDH!

[TrishaJ]

84. I KNEW there was a reason

I immediately changed the channel when I saw Woodward was on.

[Cha]

86. Woodward's a tool