OV9

mik wrote: Mon Mar 31, 2025 10:18 pm Someone on the Lotus forum was highlighting - hang on I'll just paste his thought:

When he was in his slagging off Zelenskyy phase a couple of weeks back he was claiming Zelenskyy wasn't legitimate because he hadn't held elections when they were due a year or so into the war with Putin. The rest of the world backed Zelenskyy as legitimate for continuing during war time without the disruption of holding elections. All Trump has to do is manufacture a conflict somewhere (Greenland?) and he can claim legitimate continuity for a third term on the same basis.

The President of Russia is limited to no more than two six-year terms. Prior to constitutional amendments in 2020, the limit applied only to consecutive terms, allowing a term-limited president to be elected again after one term out of office.

The only presidents to be term-limited are Boris Yeltsin in 2000 and Vladimir Putin in 2008 and again in 2024. Since becoming president, Putin has taken several measures to circumvent his term limits. After leaving office in 2008, he retained control over the executive as prime minister, holding power over his chosen successor President Dmitry Medvedev.

The 2020 amendments then exempted him from being term-limited in 2024 by excluding his previous terms, allowing him two more terms before reaching the constitutional limit. Presidents have refrained from abolishing term limits entirely because of the broad support for limits among the Russian people and the potential for political backlash.

Sundayjumper wrote: Tue Apr 01, 2025 8:51 am

mik wrote: Mon Mar 31, 2025 10:18 pm Someone on the Lotus forum was highlighting - hang on I'll just paste his thought:

When he was in his slagging off Zelenskyy phase a couple of weeks back he was claiming Zelenskyy wasn't legitimate because he hadn't held elections when they were due a year or so into the war with Putin. The rest of the world backed Zelenskyy as legitimate for continuing during war time without the disruption of holding elections. All Trump has to do is manufacture a conflict somewhere (Greenland?) and he can claim legitimate continuity for a third term on the same basis.

That doesn’t quite work. Ukraine can’t have an election because a chunk of it is under Russian control, and millions of its citizens have fled the country to safety elsewhere. Ukraine also can’t end the war by simply going home.

America won’t have those problems as the agressor invading Canada. Using the Russian invasion as a precedent for not having an election would require the message to be “Putin doesn’t have elections so we shouldn’t either” and that’s not true, he does, they’re just transparently rigged. And even with the current lunacy the idea of moving to Russian-style voting would be a stretch.

However, I have previously said a manufactured crisis will be used to “temporarily delay” elections. That could easily be an internal crisis - as Beany says.

The almost legitimate route is far simpler - he runs as VP with a patsy like Junior as president who resigns immediately and the VP takes over. Because the constitution says you can’t be elected more than twice this is OK because in that scenario he’s not been elected. Another bit of the constitution however says if you’re not eligible to be president you can’t be VP. That should prevent this but SCOTUS will do some hand waving about eligibility and declare it totally fine.

He’ll cling onto power until his last breath. The alternative is prison and that’s one of the things he’s genuinely terrified of.

Sundayjumper wrote: Wed Apr 02, 2025 8:19 am Now threatening a 500% (that’s not a typo) tariff on imports from countries that buy Russian oil, petroleum products, natural gas or uranium.

Europe still buys quite a bit of Russian gas.

integrale_evo wrote: Wed Apr 02, 2025 10:01 am

Sundayjumper wrote: Wed Apr 02, 2025 8:19 am Now threatening a 500% (that’s not a typo) tariff on imports from countries that buy Russian oil, petroleum products, natural gas or uranium.

Europe still buys quite a bit of Russian gas.

Have he and Vlad had a fall out, or is this some sort of false posturing to make it look like he’s not being controlled by Russia?

Beany wrote: Wed Apr 02, 2025 11:36 am Boy, imagine a populist authoritarian leader with no respect for democratic rule lying to someone.

dinny_g wrote: Wed Apr 02, 2025 1:05 pm So what do we think this "Liberation Day" announcement tonight (21:00 UK time) will contain ?

Mito Man wrote: Wed Apr 02, 2025 1:18 pm What’s he liberating America from?