Authored by an unknown person:

Early November is finally here. I have seen a lot of hate spewed in recent days about a man who is a constant winner and overachiever, and that’s what the people who support him like about him. Yes, he’s been caught in some lies and maybe twisted the truth a little but he’s still out there proving his haters wrong time after time. Some people are just jealous of someone who is successful and has money. Throw in a hot foreign underwear model at his side and they hate him even more. You may not have wanted him in his role, but he’s there now and there’s nothing you can do about it. I know it’s possibly just going to get worse over the next several days, but like him or not, Tom Brady is turning things around in Tampa.

Thank heavens the election is finally here. Like many Americans, I’m not sure I can stand to hear another speech by either of the candidates. And the TV ads are trash, chock full of distortions and outright lies. Nevertheless, I must admit that Trump’s rallies are very entertaining of late, not that making speeches is any indication of a person’s ability to be president of the greatest country in the world.

The sad part about the election is that it really is not a contest between two outstanding candidates. Gone are the days that at least one candidate is worthy of being on the ballot. In 2020, both aspirants are subpar to say the least.

If Biden wins, it will be because Trump is a despicable character that turns many off with his abrasive personality and narcissism. If Trump wins, it will be a minor miracle. Hopefully it will not lead to rioting and looting by radical groups.

Frankly, Trump’s accomplishments during the past four years, as compared to Biden’s non-performance for nearly half a century, entitles him to another term. If Trump were a nice guy, or less of a jerk, he would easily defeat Joe. Why is America picking its leaders based upon personality, as opposed to their qualifications and accomplishments?

It doesn’t matter if Biden has been an empty suit for decades or that he supported a number of laws unpopular to his own base. It doesn’t matter that he clearly will be unable to deal with the rigors of being president. It doesn’t matter that he can’t put two sentences together without saying something dumb. It doesn’t matter that he is clearly wrapped up in an epic scandal with his son.

The only thing that motivates liberal voters is the demise of Trump. A booming economy, better conditions for people of color, a more stable foreign relations agenda, beneficial trade deals, a new and terrific Supreme Court Justice, a more sensible immigration policy, etc. don’t count for anything. The Donald is not someone you would want to have a beer with so why the hell would anyone vote for him.

Joe Biden is a socialist in wolf’s clothing. He promised to do all the things his socialist colleagues want him to do. He swore to his base he would re-regulate the country, rid the country of its dependence on fossil fuel, put into motion a crazy green plan, mercilessly tax the most successful people and businesses in the country, endorse violent protest (no matter what he says to the contrary) and so much more.

All the liberal naysayers are going to get what they deserve if Biden wins, a government run by a left-wing ideologist that is tolerant of violent behavior and not representative all Americans. We will be on the road to becoming zombies that blindly do what our government says we should do. Good luck with that.

Joe Biden hasn’t won the election yet, but radical left wingers are already demanding that they receive choice positions in the new administration. There are a few jobs that will enable socialists to make a lasting impression on the current status of our country. One of them involves the financial strength of the economy.

Of note, Elizabeth Warren has said she wants to be Secretary of the Treasury. Wow. Talk about the worst person to have in this post in a capitalistic nation. Although that may be the point, to change our way of life from an emphasis on exceptionalism, wealth generation and a rewarding life to having government make all of our decisions.

Warren is against every kind of activity that has made our country great. For instance, she wants to dismantle our banking system. Forget that banks are, and have been, the primary providers of capital to businesses since the birth of America. Small and large companies depend upon the banking system for financial support to increase sales and build factories. This, in turn, results in more jobs and greater compensation for workers. Additionally, banks expedite the movement of trillions of dollars around the world each day, be it a credit card charge of $125 or billions of dollars for a major corporate expenditure.

Warren intends to tear apart banks that effectively afford access to equity investors, bondholders and short-term lenders. She would drag us back in time to the days when banks we’re primarily places to keep one’s money safe. In the end, Warren would re-regulate our banking system to the days before enactment of Glass Steagall. All the creative financial innovation developed over the years would be declared illegal, as would future creative alternatives for heavy users of capital. This would be implemented in part because Warren thinks bankers make too much money.

I’ve wondered why Warren was so averse to entrepreneurs earning great compensation when they are responsible for great innovation. Nobody believes that innovators should not be regulated to some extent, especially when they have great power over the money supply, data, the news, high tech, etc. But regulation should not be foisted on entrepreneurs because they are successful financially. Regulation should protect Americans from abuse and unfair treatment. Politicians are not capable of doing this effectively without input from the industry under review.

Socialists want to force equality on Americans, even as Americans remain competitive and enthusiastic about inventing better widgets. Americans want to earn more money than their peers if they are more productive, a fair trade off. Exceptionalism makes America great and encourages commercial success.

Let’s hope Biden, if he does win, selects a person more friendly to business than Elizabeth Warren to manage the Treasury.

The debates are over. There will not be any assistance for Americans out of work. All we need to do is deal with the 10s of millions of dollars of attack ads on TV, most of which are shameful distortions of the candidates from both parties.

Regarding the latter item, the opponent of Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina has purportedly spent over 100 million dollars during his campaign. What has the political world come to? Wasting money and mudslinging is what it’s all about. Just think about the productive things this amount of money could have been used for. Unfortunately, current law allows unlimited donations, in certain circumstances. Giving money to political candidates has been deemed to be a form of free speech, and constitutional.

Millions of people already have voted, and it appears that more than half of all voters will cast their ballots before Election Day. If this results in greater participation by eligible voters, I’m supportive. It remains to be seen whether Trump’s worst nightmare, illegitimate ballots, will be an issue. And, the ability of the US Postal System to handle the increase in activity resulting from mailed in ballots also remains to be determined. I voted early and am relieved I will not have to stand on a line for hours to cast my ballot.

There are several contentious issues that may have an impact on the election results even though many people have already voted. For sure, the inevitable confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett is one of them. The judge’s qualifications have been minimized by accusations of political foul play. Democrats don’t believe that a sitting Republican president and a Republican Senate should be able to confirm a new SCOTUS justice because the president’s term is nearly ended. The Constitution clearly states that the current president, not a future president, has the duty to nominate a new justice, and the Senate must advise and consent in its own time. Both parties are doing their jobs as required by law.

Democrats are saying that ACA is under attack, and Trump wants to take away the right of Americans to obtain insurance if they have existing medical conditions. The Supreme Court, with Amy Barrett on the Court, will decide whether ACA is a viable law without the mandate that has been deemed unconstitutional. Trump is not adjudicating the case. The president has said numerous times that pre-existing medical conditions will not prevent Americans from getting insurance, and that this will be part of any new medical insurance reform.

One other issue that could, and should, impact voters is whether Joe Biden is lying about his relationship with his son regarding corruption accusations. Actually, it has been proven, it’s on tape, that Biden lied during the debate. The question is whether his family has inappropriately accepted money from foreign sources. It looks bleak for the candidate.

I can safely say the past year has not been a golden moment for American politics. Trump has gotten things done, but his style is the worst of any president in history. Democrats had a great opportunity to walk away with the presidency if they had just nominated a dynamic person. This is the second time in four years they did not. Time will tell whether they will lose for a second time because of another horrible political blunder.

The death of JFK, the resignation of Richard Nixon and the 9/11 attacks were challenging events on a par with the medical, socioeconomic and political drama playing out today. But with a growing electoral confrontation, a contentious SCOTUS confirmation and a stubborn pandemic, 2020 events may soon pass the other dark moments in America.

The announcement that the president and the First Lady tested positive for COVID-19 was a fitting end to recent craziness in Washington. Besides fretting about bogus election ballots and more corona virus cases (and deaths), we must now consider what will happen if the president dies or is too sick to govern. The complexity is disconcerting because there are so many different things that may take place if these contingencies occur before (and after) the election.

The New York Times outlined the possibilities and brought up a unique concern. Granted, it is highly unlikely, but if Trump and Pence die or are incapacitated (they could both afflicted with serious Covid sickness), would the reins of government pass to the Speaker of the House? That is the procedure that most average Americans believe is true (president, vice president, speaker then president of the Senate). Some constitutionalists are suggesting that an official from the executive branch should supersede the two leaders of Congress, like a cabinet member (the first would likely be the Secretary of State).

Given that Trump is a male, over 70 and overweight, he is in the vulnerable group relating to the pandemic. However, the odds are higher than 90% that he will recover, in great part because of the extraordinary medical care he is receiving.

Another brewing item is whether the Senate Republicans have enough votes to confirm Judge Amy Coney Barrett, since Senators Lee and Tillis have contracted the virus. Both are members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. In response to this, Republicans suggested that senators should be protected and proceedings be done virtually. Guess what? Democrats objected to this proposed change in voting. Nobody is cooperating with anybody. The rule is senators must appear in person to vote on any issue.

Neither politicians nor average Americans are amenable to negotiation and are acting in the most uncooperative manner. Disease, a presidential illness and an election are not enough to bring the political pit bulls together. Everybody has been asked to pray for the president and his wife, but what are they praying for? I’ll allow you consider this question.

In the meantime, our president is hold up at Walter Reed Hospital fighting the virus. Let’s all hope the situation does not become even worse giving opportunists more avenues to create political chaos.

I assume very few knowledgeable people were surprised about what happened during the presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden. I listened to several talking heads afterwards and continue to feel the confrontation was shameful. One of these guys is going to be the next president of the United States. Heaven help us.

If any of my children behaved the way Trump did, it would result in a timeout. I wonder if the guy is like this all the time. Does he interrupt and belittle his aides? Does he scream at his wife and family? As a CEO of a big company, did he act rudely to customers, bankers and fellow workers? Does he verbally browbeat leaders of other countries if they don’t comply with his wishes?

Perhaps he was raised to be a bully by his father. What does a dad say to his son that makes him act like an uncouth ape? It’s no surprise that Trump can never behave like a normal person. As far back as the 2016 debates, he acted like a jerk. Seemingly, he’s never been embarrassed by his actions.

The only time he’s in his element is when he’s speaking to his constituencies at big rallies when he is on display. Trump is really dynamic, frequently going off script. Yet, anything goes. It’s anybody’s guess what might come out of his mouth.

Trump’s objective was to addle Biden. He wanted to confuse Joe by keeping unrelenting pressure on his opponent. Breaking Joe’s concentration was his objective, which he did numerous times during the debate. Biden, at one point, told the president to shut up. I was thinking the same thing, as was Chris Wallace. Trump was interested in proving Biden is feeble and not strong enough intellectually and otherwise to be president.

Joe Biden speaks in platitudes. He offered nothing specific to allay concerns about his mental proclivity. Maybe in the old days, Joe had a quick wit, I really don’t remember, one way or the other. But, during Tuesday night he said nothing other than Trump is an embarrassment and that he has done a lousy job as our president.

The problem with Biden’s approach is that he was playing Monday morning quarterback on the handling of Covid and other problems. The pandemic was new to everybody, including the real estate developer who was our president. And furthermore, if the US did what Joe suggested, the number of deaths would have been greater according to some experts.

The fact checkers were busy parsing every word Trump said, but they forgot to listen to Biden. His comments about the economy, health care and foreign relations were not particularly accurate.

But most of all Joe is whining too much for my taste. He is not strong, like his adversary. He also keeps telling the world about his life tragedies. We all must face demons and difficult times during our lives.

Joe Biden has started to set himself apart from the more radical elements of his party. He started out by saying he “is” the Democratic Party, a strange pronouncement. He said violent protest should be prosecuted. He is not in favor of de-funding the police. I’m wondering what AOC and Comrade Sanders are saying to their confidantes.

I don’t think many minds changed during the debate. Trump was loud and domineering. Biden seemed fragile and unprepared. He apparently had a list of statistics he wanted to mention and not forget.

The affair did not disappoint me because my expectations were so low to begin with.

The New York Times indicated that the information they’ve obtained about Donald Trump’s taxes was received from a source that legally possessed the information. It’s unclear how professionals, an accountant, lawyer, financial planner or employee of Trump, could possess such personal data and legitimately (and legally and morally) share it with a newspaper.

Frankly, all of these unnamed source scandals are beginning to rub Americans the wrong way. For all we know, the British spy, who concocted the infamous dossier on Trump, invented this whole pre-election tax brouhaha over the past two weekends (I’m being facetious). There’s a lesson to be learned. In politics, if you want something to remain confidential, don’t share it with anyone other than your lawyer or clergyman.

The Times is milking the information for all its worth. Actual legal transgressions have not been revealed (yet). And the timing of the disclosures is convenient (just before the debate). Did Trump or his financial advisors commit crimes? Did they not report income, fail to pay taxes on reported or unreported income, overstate deductions, improperly use deductions to decrease reported income? I don’t believe there is anything in the disclosures so far that accuses the president of criminal misbehavior.

Accounting is an expertise that is not familiar to most Americans. Tax accounting is the most complex aspect of accounting in general. Millions of Americans go to H&R Block and similar companies seeking help with their personal taxes each year. Their tax returns are a few pages, not voluminous like Trump’s. It’s likely that most of those following the story are not sure what Trump has done wrong, other than being an aggressive investor and advocate of himself.

Most people don’t realize that public companies and many large private companies report their financials two ways. One set up books is prepared on a cash basis for the IRS, and another is prepared for public consumption. The difference between these statements could be gigantic, especially profits and losses.

One issue is depreciation. For the IRS, depreciation is subtracted from revenues on an accelerated basis (more in early years and less in later years); it’s perfectly legal. This results in higher expenses and lower profits early on and is used for tax purposes (lower earnings, lower taxes). The other form of depreciation is calculated on a straight-line basis for the public (equal amounts each year). The method will result in higher profits early on.

And then there are loss carryforwards, which are historical losses that can’t be used currently, but can be offset against profits in the future. If Trump owned a casino that went bankrupt and reported a huge loss, it may not be used in the year of the bankruptcy; he could, and does, shelter profits in the future with these losses.

To summarize the accounting issues, one only has to note that Trump has been under IRS audit at least since he took office in 2016. It would be virtually impossible for him to conduct a massive tax defalcation under the noses of the tax authorities.

What do we learn from the Times’ attack piece so far? Nothing we already didn’t know, for the most part. Trump was/is a snake oil salesman who is able to talk people into paying him to use his brand on buildings, hotels, consumer products, etc.

We also learned that Trump is a major player in many bad investments; he lost millions on some of them.

And finally, we know Trump uses other people’s money whenever possible, mostly banks, to make investments, milk companies of cash and abandon them, such as Trump’s casino investments and subsequent bankruptcies.

Trump is not a nice man. He’s a narcissist and a salesman extraordinaire. He’s a pathological liar and exaggerator of facts. But no one has yet proven that he broke the law. However, I will admit that I would prefer to have a president whose moral compass is greater than just borderline.

I seriously doubt Trump’s base will be materially impacted by the Times efforts to expose the man.

Note: Just finished viewing the first debate. It was awful. I’m saddened that we don’t have a better choice for president. I doubt many voters changed their minds based upon the debate.