Stop the Hogs!

The Dubious Legitimacy of Trump’s Presidency

[ https://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2017/01/06/T ... ign=060117 ]

It only gets worse as inauguration nears. Can American democracy recover?

By Crawford Kilian , | TheTyee.ca January 6, 2016
Crawford Kilian is a contributing editor of The Tyee.

EXCERPT:

We can look forward to years of Trumpist stupidity, aided by Republican flunkies, while the Democrats fuss and fume and tweet about how awful it all is — just as they blogged about George W. Bush as he prepared to invade Iraq. Neither side will win, or lose. And whoever emerges to oppose Trump in 2020 will have to fight through a thicket of “post-truth” lies far worse than 2016.

With Republicans and Democrats now so discredited, we could see the emergence of whole new parties by 2020. The Republicans shut out by Trump could form a new centre-right party; the Democrats who want to get back to their working-class roots could step left to become Social Democrats.

Such parties would have to fight to be seen as legitimate, but they would have one advantage: Both old parties will have thoroughly de-legitimized themselves.

Conservative dinner in Calgary with Trump advisor Kellyanne Conway cancelled

[ http://www.calgarysun.com/2017/01/07/co ... -cancelled ]

The Canadian Press Updated: Saturday, January 07, 2017 02:22 PM MST

EXCERPT:

Tours of the oilsands were expected to take place Jan. 11, followed by a private dinner the next day at the Fairmont Palliser in Calgary with Conway as the keynote speaker. The conservative political action committee had announced the dinner and tour in late November, just weeks after Trump won the U.S. election.

But the group's president, Barry McNamar, said in a news release that "a visit is just not possible at this time" despite efforts by both sides. The group commented that Conway's cancellation had to do with her busyness around Trump's inauguration, which will take place in Washington on Jan. 20.

“I can tell you that Ms. Conway's office and our own have tried every option at our disposal to make this work and, unfortunately, a visit is just not possible at this time,” McNamar said in the press release.

According to the Alberta Prosperity Fund, around 350 tickets for the event had been sold. The news release said Conway's visit has not been rescheduled, and tickets for the sold-out dinner will be refunded.