Three things happening here, none of them good. First, Donald Trump is flipping out. Bigly. He’s made that evident for some time. Second, he’s dying to get control of the foreign policy narrative. That’s a near impossibility because he never knew squat about foreign policy in the first place, let alone how to cope with two bloody European conflagrations, both at the same time. Third, in his desperation for money, power, and control, he’s utterly forgotten the travesty that Trump University was and the settlement checks he had to write.
His latest harebrained scheme, which trumps even Trump University, if you can believe that, is called American Academy. It’s a universal education system for everybody. Soon, you, me, all God’s chillen in this country can have degrees from American Academy. I have a feeling a degree from there isn’t going to be worth the toilet paper it’s written on, but what do I know?
In recent weeks, Americans have been horrified to see students and faculty at Harvard and other once-respected universities expressing support for the savages and jihadists who attacked Israel. We spend more money on higher education than any other country—and yet, they’re… pic.twitter.com/kSC23Y8Osk
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) November 1, 2023
Here’s the rest of the tweet, “turning our students into Communists and terrorist sympathizers. It’s time to offer something dramatically different… “THE AMERICAN ACADEMY'”
Righto. American Academy is going to turn everything around and jimmy pronto, too. Raw Story:
The free, online university would be funded by the “billions and billions of dollars” Trump says he’ll win suing, fining and taxing private school endowments.
Because we know how successful he is at winning lawsuits. Uh, huh.
American Academy’s curriculum would cover ancient civilizations, skilled job training and everything in between — with one exception.
“It will be strictly non-political,” Trump said. “There will be no wokeness or jihadism allowed.”
Educational resources would include study groups, mentors, industry partnerships and “the latest breakthroughs in computing,” Trump said.
“Enjoy it,” Trump said. “Learn from it.”
Trump boasted American Academy would be “dramatically different” but, as a Trump-led online institution offering mentorships and job trainings, it recollects another failed Trump endeavor.
Americans who followed the downfall of Trump University probably learned how the online for-profit university promised free courses where instructors upsold apprenticeships that came with hefty price tags.
A “mentorship” cost $10,000 and the “Gold Elite Package” cost $35,000. Staff were asked to entertain a “sales mindset” and come prepared to “Sell! Sell! Sell!”
The school, founded in 2005, was hit with three lawsuits between 2010 and 2013 that concluded with Trump agreeing to pay a $25 million settlement to those who attended in the three years before it closed in 2011.
Evidently, he’s forgotten that $25 million check. I guess when you’re a kazillionaire like Trump, that’s chump change.
The bottom line here seems to be that the only thought processes that will be tolerated and/or encouraged, will be MAGA ideals. Anybody who disagrees with Trump is labeled as a communist or jihadist. So the purpose of a universal educational system which only allows Trumpian/MAGA values is so he can take over more easily.
You remember the Thought Police in Orwell’s “1984” and the Junior Spies? Kids turning in parents, all that? Well, here it is. Trump couldn’t get it done in 1984 but he believes that he can in 2024.
I predict that John Oliver, Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel will have a field day with this.
We needed yet another example of just how f*cking stupid former guy is? Man, I get it, there is no bottom to that well of stupidity that is trump. That said, do we really need further examples? The really sad part is there will be rubes, perhaps even wealthy ones, who would actually fund this rampant stupidity.
Is he paying for ads like these? Or is he getting a FREE RIDE again?
Umm, isn’t a free university a socialist handout? Did I miss a meeting?
“The free, online university would be funded by the “billions and billions of dollars” Trump says he’ll win suing, fining and taxing private school endowments.”
So, he’s admitting he’ll be raising taxes on his fellow millionaires and billionaires who largely fund those “private school endowments” (mainly to help them from paying their full share of taxes by lowering their “taxable income”). And there are a number of right-wing schools (such as Hillsdale College, not to mention all the religiously affiliated schools) that also receive “endowments.” Of course, with all things Trump-related, he hasn’t really thought everything through; he just gets outraged about something and immediately spews his first reaction.
“‘It will be strictly non-political,’ Trump said. ‘There will be no wokeness or jihadism allowed.'”
As I noted above, Trump just spews a reaction without thinking it through first. By not allowing “wokeness” or “jihadism,” he’s made his intent STRICTLY POLITICAL.
Hillsdale College receives no federal funding and chooses not to. In order to fund the scholarships, donors (like Harvard and any other private schools) establish endowments to subsidize education or offer scholarships. Help me understand how this is an issue? Liberal colleges, Like Beloit College, do it funded by primarily earthly liberal donors – do you have an issue with that? Is there parity or is it just the donors of a political perspective you don’t like?