Just when I thought I'd run out of reasons not to take the USA seriously.
Senators accuse Smithsonian of 'illegal lobbying' over Discovery squabbles
The saga of the Great Space Shuttle Relocation has taken another turn after US lawmakers asked the Department of Justice to look into alleged lobbying by the Smithsonian museum to prevent a possible transfer of Discovery to Houston, Texas. This is a silly attempt to silence the Smithsonian from publicly defending their full …
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 13:10 GMT Eclectic Man
Other issues? Ballroom
US citizens will no doubt be delighted their representatives have found the time to squabble over a long-retired spacecraft rather than deal with other issues.
Oh, but they are talking about other important issues. See, for example:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/oct/23/trump-white-house-ballroom-reaction
"Trump moved ahead with construction despite a lack of sign-off from the National Capital Planning Commission, the executive branch agency that has jurisdiction over construction and major renovations to government buildings in the region."
Judging by the image of the proposed interior, my guess is that Trump is envious of the interior of Putin's Kremlin and all the pomp of his long walks with soldiers opening enormous doors for him as he attends gatherings of the faithful to tell them how wonderful Russia is. Trump is on a deadline, he has to get it finished in 3 years so that he can do the walk from the Oval Office to the Ballroom to address his acolytes on camera before his (legal) term or his ability to walk, expires. Imagine how he would feel if the first actual president to use his big beautiful ballroom was a Democrat?
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 13:26 GMT codejunky
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
@Eclectic Man
"Imagine how he would feel if the first actual president to use his big beautiful ballroom was a Democrat?"
Probably pretty good. While it has made children's heads explode he is pretty much showing them how to get things done. This addition is privately funded instead of fleecing taxpayers and as hard as bureaucracy try to tie him up he is still getting on with the job. Whoever uses it in future will have Trump to thank for putting it there. If a president tries to mess with it they will look petty and people will look at who is paying.
I have noticed this ballroom thing has drawn comparisons with Obama's 'Vogon' inspired presidential library.
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Friday 24th October 2025 05:13 GMT Anonymous Coward
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
Shame Cockburn can't oblige the world with an encore preferably with the whole insane boiling inside. Ditto for houses of the legislature and supreme court — just to be sure.
If a single human being had lost the plot to the same extent that the whole US clearly has it wouldn't be compatible with life. "Brain dead" doesn't even begin to cover the lunacy.
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 14:56 GMT ChodeMonkey
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
"While it has made children's heads explode he is pretty much showing them how to get things done. "
Madame, ixnay on the mention of children and President Trump. The Epstein situation is still looming and his most ardent supporters are not best pleased with the current state of affairs. Do not provoke them.
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 15:35 GMT Anonymous Coward
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
Who says anyone will use it after the next Democrat becomes President? I can imagine pulling it down will be one of their priorities. There is no reason why replanting the Rose Garden and rebuilding the East Wing shouldn't be paid for by the same big businesss that are supposedly paying for the ballroom.
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 18:20 GMT Jellied Eel
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
Who says anyone will use it after the next Democrat becomes President? I can imagine pulling it down will be one of their priorities.
Ah, politics. Or why comments like this might help ensure there won't be another Democrat President for a while.
I realise tearing down monuments is trendy in a certain section of politics.. But why would the Democrats want to tear down an oppressive, brutalist monument of oppression that dominates Chicago? Oh, you mean the 'ballroom', not Obomber's 'library'. The 'ballroom' that's more of a function room large enough to host events like state banquets, or even deep-state banquets like the White House Correspondents' dinner. The Hilton and other DC hospitality businesses might lose a few bookings, but they can afford to and save taxpayers some money.
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 18:41 GMT MachDiamond
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
"The 'ballroom' that's more of a function room large enough to host events like state banquets, or even deep-state banquets like the White House Correspondents' dinner."
The White House has undergone many changes over the years to keep up with the needs of a head of State. Anybody in the UK that's had to go through the endless requirements of doing any work on a listed property can empathize with Mr. Trump over not wanting to deal with any sort of preservation mob if they are legally required to do so.
The addition of a large space for functions sounds like a reasonable modification/addition. That it's being funded privately is even better if that doesn't wind up being more costly due to politics and favors. It will certainly be less expensive to host gatherings there than at some other event space in the area. The surroundings are also easier to secure so no sniper can find a perch to act from. Adjacent streets can be shut down without impacting local businesses, etc. Getting all of the work done quickly rather than spending years and millions of dollars trying to appease some self-important preservation team is better in my view. The renderings that have been shown make the addition look like it will be sympathetic to the rest of the building. The White House is symbolic anyway and getting to attached to each piece of lumber and yard of concrete isn't useful. There will be a point when, once again, a very major rebuild will be needed to make over the building to better serve its function. If there's a ban on that, it will wind up as a museum with the President's residence and office needing to be moved elsewhere.
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Friday 24th October 2025 09:44 GMT Anonymous Coward
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
Ignoring process again.
National Capital Planning Commission
General Services Administration overseeing federal build g works.
National Trust for Historic Preservation … for the “legally required public review process.”
The Presidential Emergency Operations Center/bunker is underneath it don’t forget:
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 21:17 GMT DS999
That ballroom won't be a "momentum"
It will be a tacky and gross embodiment of the orange pedo's massive ego.
At 90,000 square feet is just under the size of TWO US football fields, or 20% larger than Manchester United's soccer field at Old Trafford for those across the pond. There is ZERO justification for building such a monstrosity that will dwarf the White House other than the serve a convicted felon's wish to be on par with dictators like Putin.
It SHOULD be torn down. It shouldn't be built since he doesn't own the White House the people do, but the corrupt Supreme Court has basically told him he's immune from any prosecution so he's ignoring all laws this time around. But if he's allowed to build it, a future president is allowed to tear it down.
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 22:28 GMT HereIAmJH
Re: That ballroom won't be a "momentum"
It SHOULD be torn down. It shouldn't be built since he doesn't own the White House the people do,
It shouldn't be built without approved plans and public discussion. It should not be built with the current massive plans that over shadow the Whitehouse. And TBF, the shock of seeing the East Wing destroyed falls on the media that COMPLETELY dropped the ball on this one. Apparently there were drawings that showed the ballroom was going to sit where the East Wing existed. This should have been top news on every media outlet. Then we could have fought over it, sued to keep it from being destroyed, and come up with a reasonable plan. Too late now, I'd be surprised if anyone could stop the construction at this point.
When it gets built though, I'm not sure it should be torn down. Nothing will restore the East Wing. It's gone. So the concerns are it's size and gaudiness. It's going to be too tall. Historically all the buildings around the Whitehouse have been shorter so that they don't detract from it. This will be tough to change. The footprint is HUGE. Another $50m we can make it smaller. The décor, just need to rent a dumpster.
I don't see how simply razing the building fixes anything, other than removing what he hopes will be a monument to him. For that, I'd put a large plaque at the public entrance and a small museum of the acts of a traitorous wannabe dictator who was convicted of sexual assault and fraud. And likely a pedophile as well. History isn't going to be kind.
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Friday 24th October 2025 07:15 GMT DS999
Re: That ballroom won't be a "momentum"
falls on the media that COMPLETELY dropped the ball on this one
Trump is doing so many destructive things "the media" can't possibly follow up on every one. I'm sure it isn't an accident he decided to start this during the government shutdown. He or at least the people around him would have known the optics are terrible to be spending millions on this (regardless of who is supposedly footing the bill) when government workers are going without a paycheck and food stamp benefits are about to run out. But they also knew the media would be distracted by that much bigger story, and the usual tail chasing him gets them to do with any of number of crazy things he'll say or do on a given day.
His press secretary said today that "the ballroom is his number one priority". That's obviously going to piss off a lot of people on both sides who would view the shutdown as being a bigger priority, or full completing even one of the 200 trade deals he claimed he'd have in 90 days about 180 days ago, or preventing the laughably incomplete Israel "peace deal" from falling apart. But I guess that's why he had HER say it rather than saying it himself, so he can put the blame on her. She would undoubtedly have known it when he told her to say that. Dunno why people are so willing to sell their soul to briefly work for him when he so clearly views them all (other than the "special" ones like Heinrich Himmler oops I mean Steven Miller...sorry easy to get them confused) as disposable cogs he'll discard when they've been forced to take the blame for him one too many times and need to be traded in for someone with a less damaged reputation.
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Friday 24th October 2025 10:02 GMT Anonymous Coward
Re: That ballroom won't be a "momentum"
"t shouldn't be built without approved plans and public discussion"
However US Federal law states that none of those things are needed when it comes to the WH, Capitol building or SCOTUS building.
You can blame LBJ for this. And if memory serves, he was a Democrat.
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Friday 24th October 2025 19:47 GMT John Brown (no body)
Re: That ballroom won't be a "momentum"
"For that, I'd put a large plaque at the public entrance and a small museum of the acts of a traitorous wannabe dictator who was convicted of sexual assault and fraud. And likely a pedophile as well. History isn't going to be kind."
I've heard him be compared to Maggie Thatcher. On steroids. And without her "nice and diplomatic" side :-) And all these many years later, in some parts of the UK, just the mention of Thatcher brings out the everlasting hate. Generations later. I predict Trump will suffer a similar historical remembrance in many parts of the USA.
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Friday 24th October 2025 09:32 GMT Jellied Eel
Re: That ballroom won't be a "momentum"
It will be a tacky and gross embodiment of the orange pedo's massive ego.
I think you need to seek proffessional help for your TDS..
There is ZERO justification for building such a monstrosity that will dwarf the White House other than the serve a convicted felon's wish to be on par with dictators like Putin.
There's plenty of justification. I pointed out the example of hosting the Correspondents Dinner at the Hilton. No idea what that costs to host, but moving a President isn't cheap. I guess the Hilton has an advantage of being the regular location, but that's also a risk because it's an offsite location and known time. But Trump was also recently in the UK and attended a state banquet. UK has the space to hold these securely...
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/cx2xv40qz28o
The state banquet saw 160 guests attending the event, with the meal taking place around a nearly 50 metre long table.
... thanks to our history & heritage. We do pomp and ceremony well. When Obomber held a state banquet, it was held in a tent on the Rose Lawn. Rather less impressive, expensive and allowed mockery because Gaddaffi used to travel with his own state tents.
It SHOULD be torn down. It shouldn't be built since he doesn't own the White House the people do
Nope, the state owns it, and Trump is paying for an upgrade to state property. It's also been amusing watching the left-stream media's outrage over this, especially as it was announced long ago. Plus the claims that it's a 'historic building'. Being a young nation, it doesn't have the history or function rooms like the UK does with places like Windsor Castle. The East Wing was a fairly grotty building from the 1940s, and the images from the demolition showed it wasn't really built very well. The mistake was calling it a 'ballroom' rather than a function room, but it'll probably save the US money having a secure venue that can host state banquets, meetings and other events. Future Presidents might want to redecorate it though because Trump's style and taste is usually pretty tacky.
but the corrupt Supreme Court has basically told him he's immune from any prosecution so he's ignoring all laws this time around.
No they did not, only that Presidents have qualified immunity. He's also not ignoring the laws because Presidents have the power to make upgrades to the White House, and many previous Presidents have done so. But the White House gets a useful and mostly free upgrade that long term will probably save money.. But the far left seem to hate this idea, mainly because they seem to have a Pavlovian response to hate any & everything Trump does.
Which is also back to the story. Quotes of around $120-150m to move an object. This seems excessive, but perhaps a symptom of US NGO waste. Smithsonian says Discovery is a delicate little butterfly that's too fragile to move. Not something that got yeeted into orbit 39 times and somehow managed to survive those launch stresses and re-entry. It's a pretty tough bird. But I still think the real story is whether tax payer's money should be wasted on what's essentially a vanity project. If people really want to see a shuttle, it's easy enough for them to do where the surviving shuttles are currently housed.
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Friday 24th October 2025 19:52 GMT John Brown (no body)
Re: That ballroom won't be a "momentum"
" It will be a tacky and gross embodiment of the orange pedo's massive ego.
I think you need to seek proffessional help for your TDS..
You've seen the Oval Office. You don't think that looks tacky? When I see it on the news reports, it brings back memories of Saddam Hussein’s palaces.
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Friday 24th October 2025 20:15 GMT MachDiamond
Re: That ballroom won't be a "momentum"
"At 90,000 square feet is just under the size of TWO US football fields, or 20% larger than Manchester United's soccer field at Old Trafford for those across the pond. There is ZERO justification for building such a monstrosity"
There's the space proper, eeries for security people, kitchens, waiting rooms/vestibules, storage rooms for tables/chairs/linen/etc. The under croft of a sports stadium is miles of corridors, rooms and utilities. If staff can get from one side to the other without entering the event space with bus carts, tray racks or just themselves, there isn't the chaos inside the space as things are staged. For something like this, there's also a need for places to have security staff that can pop out if needed beyond the few obvious ones inside.
I worked with a team setting up a new concert venue and while I was consulting for the audio system, I got to see all of the other pieces being designed and discussed. There's more going on than somebody on the outside can appreciate.
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Saturday 25th October 2025 09:45 GMT Jellied Eel
Re: That ballroom won't be a "momentum"
I worked with a team setting up a new concert venue and while I was consulting for the audio system, I got to see all of the other pieces being designed and discussed. There's more going on than somebody on the outside can appreciate.
Yep. I don't think a lot of people appreciate the logistics behind events. There's a great behind the scenes video of Rammstein's last tour. Involved something like 40 trucks carrying stage, sets, A/V, the band's gear and being Rammstein, lots of pyros. Plus 2 generator trucks and fuel because stadiums don't have enough power for their shows. And then another 40 trucks so they can advance and set up ready for the next venue on the tour. Also like a YT channel called 'Tank the Tech' who's a tour manager for Electric Callboy.
But it's much the same for moving a President around. Most of the time the focus is on the motorcade, but there's a lot of advance work securing routes, venue, kit, staff etc. So I'm pretty sure having a secure venue in DC will end up saving money. I've been looking to see how much the Correspondent's Dinner costs, and if those costs are split between taxpayer and WHCA. But detaiils around President's movements is obviously rather sensitive.
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Friday 24th October 2025 13:00 GMT Jellied Eel
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
That is one seriously ugly building. Even The Barbican in London looks better!
Yup. Some brutalist architecture can look ok, but this one is very much on the monumental scale. It doesn't really scream 'library', unless it was intended to evoke a STASI records office.
And how much has it cost so far?? Someone needs to take a look into the financing and where the money is going.
I think that's one of the reasons why the opening is delayed. But apparently originally expected to cost $300m or so, now approaching $850m with Chicago on the hook for a chunk of that money, plus having gifted land. But Chicago's 2nd most famous son after Richard Daley(s) has left his mark on the cityscape. But the Obamas don't live there, so won't have to look at their folly. People have also been pointing at Newsom's palace in Sacramento, which also caused controversy, and is overdue & over budget. The Obama monument is probably more fun because it sounds like the Obamas are running out of other people's money to pay for it, so the Chicago tax payers might have to bail that out.. And like a lot of Democrat-run cities, their tax base has been steadily shrinking.
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Friday 24th October 2025 20:24 GMT MachDiamond
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
"It doesn't really scream 'library', unless it was intended to evoke a STASI records office."
They say "library", but what they really mean is "shrine".
I've been to a few Presidential Libraries and they can be facinating as they'll often focus on the things that happened during the President's term(s). The slant towards how well the President guided the country at the time can be bagged up and used to fertilize the garden, but much of the history will be OK.
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 19:19 GMT HereIAmJH
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
If there is another Democrat president, it won't be torn down. That would just be compounding the the stupidity. Besides, the Democrats would be too busy fixing the Rose Garden and removing all the tacky gilding from the Whitehouse. While repairing international relationships. Reassuring trade partners that we aren't a bunch of dishonest MAGAt who can't be bothered to honor our commitments. Rebuilding our rapidly failing economy. And hopefully prosecuting all the government sponsored kidnappers, abusers, and murderers.
In the meantime, buy the orange man another cheeseburger.
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Friday 24th October 2025 20:01 GMT John Brown (no body)
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
"Reassuring trade partners that we aren't a bunch of dishonest MAGAt who can't be bothered to honor our commitments."
I think that would take at least two Democrat terms in a row. Nothing is going to easily restore trust in the USA after Trump. Less so if a "Trump Lite" follows him. If the Dems get in after Trump, the only way to begin restoring any level of trust is to write future trade agreements into law which can't be overridden by Executive Order so will force Congress and Senate to agree future changes. And very careful scrutiny of any conditions allowing change, like a future President declaring a trade partner an "enemy of the state" for spurious reasons to void a trade deal or even a treaty.
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Saturday 25th October 2025 02:30 GMT HereIAmJH
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
My guess is 1 to 2 generations to recover from the damage that has been done. I'm not likely to be here to see it. I think there is going to need to be constitutional changes to counteract Citizen's United, require non-partisan committees for redistricting to minimize gerrymandering, the ability to recall congressmen with a special election, and clipping the wings of the Executive to restore the independence of the Legislature and Judiciary.
Note that currently trade agreements are written into law. The executive can make an agreement, but the Congress must approve it. Import tariffs are also the domain of the legislature, they are taxes, except for small exceptions that are being abused. But if the legislature refuses to impeach, they have no check on the executive and there is no balance.
Multiple amendments to the Constitution are needed. The last one was 33 years ago and it was initially proposed in 1789. There have been 12,000 proposed amendments and only 27 have been ratified. That doesn't inspire confidence in the future of the nation unless 'No Kings' gets a whole lot bigger. 10s of millions of protestors bigger.
And BTW, even if all that gets done we are bleeding researchers with the current anti-education/anti-science mentality so the US is going to cease to be a leader in anything. This must be how the British felt at the fall of their empire.
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Monday 27th October 2025 09:20 GMT codejunky
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
@HereIAmJH
"My guess is 1 to 2 generations to recover from the damage that has been done"
Surely that speaks to the impressive achievements then under Trump. In his first term he paused the Russian invasion, all but knocked out ISIS as a global threat, calmed the tensions in Korea and even took Obama's 'new normal' low growth economy and boosted it so well Obama tried to take credit. And after the Biden Presidency Trump has already made huge leaps in repairing the vast amount of damage and its still his first year.
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Friday 24th October 2025 19:38 GMT John Brown (no body)
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
Interestingly, there never seems to be huge outcry and instant, public, reversal of Republican stuff when a Dem Pres gets in. For that matter, we didn't see all that much when a Rep followed a Dem. Until Trumo. He seem to relish in publicly destroying anything Dem related, for good or ill.
Although on the Ballroom thing, press reports are saying the Whitehouse, Capitol and something else are not covered by the "rules" and El Presidente can pretty much do whatever he/she wants with it assuming funding from wherever.
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 14:29 GMT Eclectic Man
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
They won't use Trump's hobnails:
https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2024/04/how-did-you-get-that-frog-to-float/
They'll just use all of the electricity east of the Rocky Mountains for electromagnetic levitation using the diamagnetic* effect. After all it doesn't actually cost $250 million just to build a ballroom - most of that is for the underfloor superconducting electromagnets.
*Like most animals, Trump is mostly water, and is therefore repulsed by a magnetic field. As is his favourite metal, gold.
(https://magnetstore.co.uk/magnetic-materials/is-gold-magnetic/?srsltid=AfmBOoo4hyXNtbKy9iUuvkYDhG0dwurHEYmYyTIpqJHos2hXqzA12kAj)
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 18:46 GMT MachDiamond
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
"After all it doesn't actually cost $250 million just to build a ballroom"
You don't think that's reasonable? Have you ever worked on something around a head of State? Every single worker will need to be cleared to be on the property. There will be lineups everyday when they go in and out that will take time. The work will stop and start frequently due to other things going on at the White House. Every pallet of material and yard of concrete will need to pass security. Heavy machine operators will all have at least one Secret Service person watching them like a hawk and all movements will need to be briefed and approved.
$250mn might be a very good price.
Yes, I've worked Presidential speeches and it's a PIA.
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 19:00 GMT HereIAmJH
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
After all it doesn't actually cost $250 million just to build a ballroom
You haven't been keeping up. The estimate is now $300 million. It has gone from $200m, to $250, to $300m in just a couple weeks. At this rate we'll be at $500m before the construction starts. They probably haven't taken into account the cost of tariffs for all the stuff they'll be importing. America First!
But that's ok, they're going to get DOJ to take $230m out of the pocket of tax payers. That might cover the gilding.
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Friday 24th October 2025 15:32 GMT Anonymous Coward
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
> electromagnetic levitation using the diamagnetic* effect
Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV: Bring in that floating fat man, the Baron!
Hmm, Trump, Harkonnen; Harkonnen, Trump, how to choose, how to choose? At least the baron was consistent, but Trump is funnier.
Anyone got a coin?
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Friday 24th October 2025 20:06 GMT John Brown (no body)
Re: Other issues? Ballroom
"They'll just use all of the electricity east of the Rocky Mountains for electromagnetic levitation using the diamagnetic* effect. After all it doesn't actually cost $250 million just to build a ballroom - most of that is for the underfloor superconducting electromagnets.
Now I'm picturing Baron Harkonnan from the David Lynch Dune film :-)
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 13:12 GMT ParlezVousFranglais
Both sides need to put up or shut up - it's public money, so publish your respective quotes for all to see, and let's see who's the biggest bullshitter - we all know the real cost will be somewhere between the two, and whether the move even proceeds or not will come down to ownership arguments and whether the US Government has any legal right to force the Smithsonian to give Discovery up - that will ultimately be decided in court anyway. Popcorn at the ready...
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 13:49 GMT that one in the corner
> so publish your respective quotes for all to see
To do that, they'll probably end up paying the private contractors and consultants more than the $85m just to produce a complete and accurate quote:
>> "Any of these costs might change as the details of the move are clarified."
"We can get through here without removing the wings from the body; but we are going to cut off the nose and thrusters, then slice the body in half horizontally. That allows it to move along this three mile section. Then it gets tricky.."
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 13:34 GMT Jon Bar
Houston already has three, count 'em, three, space vehicles that have carried people to orbit and back. They're all on loan from the Smithsonian, since NASA signs title over to SI when they're surplussed. There are Mercury 9, which carried Gordon Cooper; Gemini V, Gordon Cooper and Pete Conrad, and Apollo 17, crewed by Gene Cernan, Ronald Evans and Jack Schmitt.
Since Discovery is 122 ft. long, 58 ft. high and 78 ft. wide, and there are no rivers wide and deep enough to get a barge (which could carry it) to the Udvar-Hazy Center, the real problem is how to get it to somewhere it could be barged (through open ocean, at that) to Houston without demolishing several bridges on major highways. Either that, or creating a new Shuttle Carrier Aircraft to fly it out.
The solution is simple - let the Texas Senators build the proposed new building without blowing away their budget, and reveal how they're going to magically bypass all the bridges between IAD and Space Center Houston and still preserve Discovery's integrity.
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 18:07 GMT Jellied Eel
Since Discovery is 122 ft. long, 58 ft. high and 78 ft. wide, and there are no rivers wide and deep enough to get a barge (which could carry it) to the Udvar-Hazy Center, the real problem is how to get it to somewhere it could be barged (through open ocean, at that) to Houston without demolishing several bridges on major highways.
Nope. The real problem is people don't seem to be able to use maps, charts or google. So-
https://www.usharbors.com/harbor/texas/clear-lake-galveston-bay-tx/
At the entrance to Clear Creek, an overhead power cable crosses the creek with a clearance of 99 feet. About 0.3 mile inside the entrance, a fixed bridge has a clearance of 73 feet.
So there's nothing really stopping* it being taken down the coast on an ocean going barge into Galveston Bay, transferring to a shallower draft barge (if needed) and then under the bridge into Clear Lake. Gigatonnes of expensive, bulky, fragile stuff is shipped this way every year. It's not exactly rocket science, just the kind of thing specialist haulage & freight companies do for a living.
Washington end looks a bit more complicated given the distance & route between IAD and the Potomac River, but then Discovery could be barged through Washington as an event with 'Your taxes, hard at work' banners drapped over the barge, past the George Bush Center for Intelligence** and out to sea.
*Ok, maybe weather. Avoid Hurricane season. Where do I send my invoice?
**And asking 'Have you found it yet?' as you sail past.
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 21:22 GMT DS999
The grift is the point
They want to give the contract to a "private company" who has given them that supposed $5-$8 million dollar quote, no doubt getting MASSIVE kickbacks from them as the cost plus contract eventually balloons in price 100x. It'll be like when Trump admitted during his first term "nobody knew how complicated health care is". They'll say "nobody knew how difficult it would be to move it".
With Trump's DOJ openly ignoring crimes committed by Trump cronies, and Trump pardoning anyone who pays him, they no longer have to worry about petty stuff like laws against bribery.
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Friday 24th October 2025 07:54 GMT Xalran
Re: The grift is the point
With Trump's DOJ openly ignoring crimes committed by Trump cronies, and Trump pardoning anyone who pays him, they no longer have to worry about petty stuff like laws against bribery.
The supreme court ruled that He is Above The Law.
Since He is Above The Law, He can do as He See Fit.
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Friday 24th October 2025 09:56 GMT Anonymous Coward
Re: The grift is the point
"The supreme court ruled that He is Above The Law."
False, the law STATES he is 'above the law' while carrying out his presidential duties. This applies to all presidents.
Sorta funny how people clapped when president Autopen ignored SCOTUS rulings and actual law but then get all bent out of shape when the Orange God Emperor does something legal but they just don't like it.
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Tuesday 4th November 2025 01:58 GMT Anonymous Coward
Re: The grift is the point
"law STATES he is 'above the law' "
That is bullshit and you know it. Supreme court *decided to read law* that way and that's totally different thing. Law specifially does not say that.
You don't seem to know that not a single president before has declared themselves being above law. Only Trump and the Supreme Court GOP owns.
Funny that.
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Friday 24th October 2025 07:47 GMT Xalran
Since the already have a large stable of capsules, what they deserve is yet another one...
Since the Bill mention a space vehicle that flew in space with astronauts...
I'd send them the Calamity Capsule.
Yes, the one that left 2 Astronauts stranded on the ISS because it wasn't deemed safe enough to bring them back, it meets all the criteria of the bill and doesn't need to be disassembled to be transported from where it's stored at Boeing to Texas, it can fit on a trailer, on a barge, hell even in a Dreamlifter of a Beluga (xl or not) for that matter.
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Thursday 23rd October 2025 21:25 GMT DS999
Trump has a stooge running the DOJ who openly ignores referrals for crimes committed by Trump's cronies, while prosecuting cases against his enemies that no career prosecutor will touch because they know it'll be laughed out of court.
But Bondi doesn't care, she probably made getting an undated pardon from Trump one of her requirements for taking the job.
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Biting the hand that feeds IT
