Did Bragg Just Get Trump Reelected?

Alvin Bragg hates Donald Trump. Oh, I’m sure it’s something that maybe years of psychotherapy could help him with, but he’s a Trump-hater. And he campaigned on a promise that he was going to “get Trump” somehow in New York State. He was going to do it in the worst way.

And he did.

It was the worst possible way to get someone…through entirely political means. We now know that according to the unsealed indictment of the former president, that there were 34 different charges that he defrauded the people of New York by paying off a porn star to keep her quiet while he ran for president. There’s only one problem.

He did it using personal money.

According to Trump’s lawyers, and to Trump himself, he paid Stormy Daniels off with his own money. It wasn’t from the Trump Corporation, and it wasn’t campaign funds. So, Alvin Bragg is going to have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Donald Trump DID pay Daniels off through one of those two means. See, there’s no crime in paying someone hush money, even in the middle of a campaign. Just like there is nothing illegal in paying off someone from another country to write a totally false dossier against your opponent, and then decrying that they are a Russian spy.

And what Alvin Bragg did by indicting Donald Trump, whether or not he wanted to, was he pretty much guaranteed that Trump would be the GOP nominee come next summer if not actually got him elected president. I know that’s a stretch, so let me outline it for you.

Everyone in the Republican party, from Mike Pence to Jeb Bush has come out in support of Donald Trump on this. Not because they have an undying love for Trump. But it’s because it’s all politically motivated and that’s not a reason to have someone indicted on a criminal charge. If that were the case, Mitch McConnell, AOC, Nancy Pelosi, Ted Cruz, and about 500 others in Washington DC would be wearing orange jumpsuits right about now.

The reason they rushed to Trump’s defense was because this was a miscarriage of justice. It was plain wrong to do, and Bragg stepped over the line. Now, you’ve got people like Ron DeSantis or Mike Pence, or Mike Pompeo, who may have entered the race, and still may up the road, rethinking their decision to run. Trump is going to become much too popular to beat. Why? Simple. The party, and a majority of those independent voters that will come to his aid want to try and right the wrong that’s been foisted on him by an out of touch with reality District Attorney.

So, the odds of Trump getting the nominee just went through the roof. And when this thing plays out, and it has the same outcome as the Russia Collusion hoax, and the two impeachments, a lot of independent voters, whether they originally liked Trump or not, are going to want to throw their vote to him to stave off this injustice in our supposedly “blind” judicial system.

Do you know why it is that Joe Biden, John Kriby, and Karine Jean-Pierre are all silent on the matter? They know the travesty of justice that this is. Anything they say will kill them and become fodder for the right. If they come out in support of Trump, that this was nothing more than a weak over-reach, they damage their own chances. If they come out against Trump, they are going to be vilified like Bragg is already being vilified. So, they sit quietly and don’t say a word. That’s actually the smartest thing they can do right now.

If Donald Trump gets elected president, it will certainly have played a part in his election. He will have one of his biggest nemesis to thank for it. And it’s all because of an asinine campaign promise that Bragg made to become Manhattan District Attorney. He wants to decriminalize rape, murder, theft, and car jackings in the Big Apple, but he does want to chase down political opponents for less crimes than jaywalking.

I will say this. I was in a way hoping that there would have been something more substantial than paying off a porn star for their silence in those sealed indictments. The media all said that there should be something more. There wasn’t. In the end, Bragg proved to the world that he doesn’t have the chops to be the District Attorney in Manhattan, or Moose Jaw. He’s a political hack. And that’s all he’ll ever be.

Carry on world…you’re dismissed!

Haley’s In

Nikki Haley became the first woman, and second politician to enter the 2024 presidential race on Tuesday. She posted a video that made the announcement. It was widely speculated that Haley would be jumping into the fray against her old boss, Donald Trump.

In Haley’s video, she echoed the mantra she’s been using for quite some time…that it’s time for NEW leadership not only in the GOP, but in Washington. She could not be more correct on that one. “Republicans have lost the popular vote in seven out of the last eight presidential elections. That has to change. Joe Biden’s record is abysmal, but that shouldn’t come as a surprise. The Washington establishment has failed us over and over and over again. It’s time for a new generation of leadership.”

I’ve personally always thought Haley was a good politician, and has done a great job, be it as South Carolina’s governor, or as the ambassador to the United Nations under Trump. She speaks her mind, she’s intelligent, she’s conservative, and she knows how to play the game. That said, I wonder how long she’ll be able to stay in the race.

Look, there are a lot of people today that are contemplating jumping into the race along with Haley and Trump. Most of them don’t have a chance in hell of winning the nomination, and personally, I don’t think Haley does either. She is at this point, my second choice behind Ron DeSantis, who has the experience, the political savvy, and the wherewithal to make the run successful. While I like Haley, I really liken her to Scott Walker, the former governor of Wisconsin. I liked his policies, I liked his background, but he didn’t have the “oomph” behind him when he ran. I doubt that Haley will either.

Still, you have to give her credit. Nikki Haley loves to mention that she’s won every race that she’s ever run and doesn’t intend to start losing now. Of course, what else would you expect someone entering the toughest race in their life to say? Would you expect her to say, “Well, I don’t have much to do right now, and I’m tired of living on the pensions I got from South Carolina and the US Treasury for serving both of those jobs. So, I might as well increase my name recognition.”? I think not.

Still, I don’t think she’s going to be the one to cross the finish line. All of the polls currently show her in single digits with most of the folks out there either going for Donald Trump or DeSantis, and that should be a close race either way. In the end, my hunch is, there are going to be enough folks liking what DeSantis has to say, enjoying the fact that he is almost half Trump’s age (Trump is 76, DeSantis is 44), and his personality is a “take no prisoners” type of Republican. I think that plays well against the Trump base as well as what he’s done in Florida. Beating Charlie Crist overwhelmingly in Florida for the governorship this past November made him the GOP’s golden boy. I don’t see much that could tarnish that mantle.

There are going to be quite a few challengers to Donald Trump’s nomination for 2024 however. Currently pondering the race are Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who all ran in previous contests, as well as former Vice President, Mike Pence, former Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, DeSantis, Texas Governor, Glenn Abbott, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, and a couple of longshots. Those would be former Wyoming Congresswoman, Liz Cheyney, and Fox News host, Tucker Carlson (has he even talked about a run???). That’s a pretty well loaded field.

So, Haley is going to have her work cut out for her. Everyone except DeSantis and Trump are in single digits so far. It’s going to be difficult for anyone to chip away at the two frontrunners and get enough of the support away from them to make a difference. But it is early, and at this point in 2016, no one in their right mind, except maybe Ann Coulter thought that Donald Trump had a chance in hell. We’ll have to wait and see.

Carry on world…you’re dismissed!

Kickin’ ‘Em When You’re Down

I don’t think there are too many people out there that would bet a dollar on a “blue wave” coming on November 8th. The odds of Democrats pulling off enough surprises in races around the country, legitimate or not, to reverse what seems to be a trend that is being cast in cement is pretty clear. Republicans are getting ready to take over Congress. Not just the House, but the Senate as well. And it will appear that of the four “toss up states”, Georgia, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Nevada, all of them could be heading into the GOP’s column!

And what are those folks that are running for office on the Democrat side doing?

They are screaming that it’s all their party’s leadership fault. That’s right, Nancy Pelosi, Chuckles Schumer, and Joe Biden are getting the blame for the crappy showing in the polls. Now, to be fair, Pelosi and Schumer have done a terrible job at running Congress for the past two years. They haven’t really tackled any issue that could change the big reason Republicans are poised to take over Congress. Issues that matter most are inflation (which admittedly, the Congress can do little about other than stop spending money!), a slow economy with a ton of supply-chain issues, a porous southern border that is allowing not only illegals to get through, but also terrorists, murderers, and a lot of sketchy characters you wouldn’t invite into your house.

Tim Ryan (D-OH) was probably the first, along with the Wackjob Five to call for Pelosi and Schumer to be taken down as leaders and replaced. They are all saying that it’s time that a new generation of leadership take over. And to be honest, they’re right. Pelosi is 82 years old. Biden is 79 years old, and Schumer is the kid of the bunch at 71. That’s not boding very well for picking up the 18-30 year old vote!

Democrats big problem is that the younger people that are getting elected are a little bit too far left to lead the country into anything except a socialist revolution. Very few people that are running and are younger are what you would call a “moderate Democrat”. Most in the middle say those folks don’t exist anymore.

For the foreseeable future anyway, Biden, Schumer, and Pelosi will most likely live to see the end of the year. After that, I’m betting that Biden will cling to his post but not run for reelection; Schumer will become Minority Leader in the Senate just to be able to stay in front of the TV cameras; and Pelosi, when she sees how bad the red wave is going to be, will retire to spend more time with hubby Paul and help him rehab from his skull surgery.

Generational change is needed, not just for the Dems, but for the Republicans as well. Donald Trump is 76 years old. Mitch McConnell is 80, and Kevin McCarthy is the spring chicken at 57. What’s that saying when the youngest leader in the Republican party is only eight years away from Medicare? One shining star for the GOP is Ron DeSantis. The Florida Governor clocks in at 44 years old, and is a rising star in national politics. If you look at other “leaders” in the party, you’d have to talk about Ted Cruz (he’s 51), Marco Rubio (also 51), and as an aside, five of the six oldest members of the Senate are all Republicans! The youngest member of the upper body is Arkansas’ Tom Cotton at 37.

I think Tim Ryan may be right that it’s time for the older Democrats to step aside and usher in some younger blood. The problem with that is, they need to get people that can win state-wide elections in their states and not go too far left. Just being another AOC or Bernie Sanders, or Elizabeth Warren isn’t going to help Democrats’ matters much if at all!

Carry on world…you’re dismissed!

Is It A Clinton/Bush Thing All Over Again?

Remember back in the primaries of the 2016 presidential race? People on both sides of the aisle were sick and tired of having either a Bush or a Clinton running the country. George HW Bush won election in 1988 after having served as vice president for eight years. He lost to Bill Clinton in 1992, and Clinton served eight years. Then in 2000, George W. Bush took over and served eight years. That was 20 years of two families running the country. And in 2016, voters basically said no to Clinton and no to Bush. But it was Hillary Clinton this time, and Jeb Bush. Clinton got the nomination, Bush didn’t.

It looks like we could be facing the same type of sentiment again in 2024, but with only two combatants. That would be Joe Biden and Donald Trump. When asked if their respective candidate should run again in 2024, only 27% of Democrats said Biden should run. Only 37% of Republicans said that Trump should run according to a Fox News poll. And yet it appears that at this early stage, at the very least, Trump is going to be announcing in early 2023. Biden has stayed mum, in fact, has changed from “definitely going to run again in 2024” to “if my health allows me to run”. That’s the out given by the White House. Remember K-baby’s retraction of a couple of weeks back? She went from “Joe Biden will run and I will be his running mate. Full stop!” to “IF Joe Biden decides to run again, I will be his running mate.” Big difference.

My question in this, and I know a lot of you a huge Trump fans, is if either of them run, does that temper that party’s enthusiasm? Could we have another “No more Clintons, No More Bushes” type of scenario?

The Democrats have a much shorter bench of potential candidates than the Republicans have. Dems’ will be pretty much counting on the same cast of characters that lost out to Biden in 2020, with a couple of exceptions. Gavin Newsome, California’s Governor, has hinted he’d be seeking the White House next time around, even if Biden chooses to run. Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has also been called a possible contender. So has Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, as devisive as she has been in Congress! Niether Newsome, who survived a recall election, or Whitmer who stands a better than even chance of winning reelection in the Wolverine State have much gravitas on the national stage. And AOC can’t even get a majority in her own party to support her ideas.

Republicans have a deeper bench with fresher faces should Trump decide not to run. Florida Governor, Ron DeSantis leads the parade. Former UN Ambassador and South Carolina Governor, Nikki Haley is also in the mix. Ted Cruz would most assuredly make another attempt, having carried himself almost to the convention in 2020. Then there would be Ivanka Trump and Donald Jr. who could enter the fray if daddy decided to skip it. Mike Pence would probably split the party, but would be considered a solid choice having served as vice presdient, as would former Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo who has made rumblings he’d be interested, and has national name recognition. Senators Tim Scott of South Carolina, and Tom Cotton of Arkansas have also been touted as possibilities.

Should it not fall to a Biden/Trump rematch, the Republicans would be well served with fresh, younger faces, while the Dems would be forced to stick to the tired bunch that ran (and failed) in 2020. Either way, if Biden stays in office through his first term, and the economy doesn’t improve, the chances of a Democrat in the White House on January 20, 2025 would be slim and none!

Carry on world…you’re dismissed!

The Pot Calling The Kettle Black

What in the world is up with Liz Cheney? The RINO Republican, who has basically decided that she knows how to run the country better than anyone in Congress, anyone in the Republican National Committee, and certainly better than the 45th President, is fighting for her life for a reelection bid as her state’s only representative to Congress.

First, Cheney is all up in arms over the possibility of Donald Trump running for the presidency in 2024. She’s so filled with vile hatred toward the man that she and Adam Kinzinger joined a bunch of know-nothing Democrats to form this January 6th Committee in hopes of finding that it was Donald Trump that was behind the Capitol protest in 2021. To this day, there hasn’t been one credible witness that’s testified that Trump did anything illegal. Of course, Democrats like to redefine words and the law to make it fit their narrative. And that’s what Cheney has bought into.

By the way, Cheney has come out and said the if Trump is the nominee in 2024 for the Republicans, it’s going to be the end of the party. She’s also considering running for the White House herself “to insure that Donald Trump never returns to the White House”. I found that remark to show exactly what’s wrong with Liz Cheney. She doesn’t like Trump. We all get that. But she is ready to throw her entire political party under the bus to see Trump not run for office again. And she doesn’t care what the outcome is.

Cheney has been censured by her own state party in Wyoming. In 2020, Cheney defeated her opponent by 40 points for reelection. Today, she’s facing an August 16th primary battle with Harriet Hageman, an attorney in private practice with an emphasis on water and natural resources litigation. Hageman is up according to the latest polls by some 30 points in that primary battle. She’s basically doubled Cheney’ fundraising efforts pulling in over half a million dollars compared to Cheney’s $255,000. It would seem that Cheney’s visceral hatred of Trump has turned against the voters in Wyoming.

What’s interesting is that Hageman has garnered the endorsement of Trump. Now it’s not surprising since Trump has about as much hatred for Cheney as she has for him. What’s interesting however, is that Hageman supported Ted Cruz in 2020, and was an anti-Trumper until it became clear she would be challenging Cheney for her seat.

What gets me is the fact that Cheney wants to run for President in 2024. How can you put together a successful national campaign when you can’t even come within 30 points of your own party’s nominee in a primary? Forget about winning the seat overall! It seems to me that Trump may just be right about Cheney, and she either has illusions of grandeur, or she is just putting on a show for a show’s sake.

Carry on world…you’re dismissed!

Impeach Biden? Please, NO!

Ted Cruz (R-TX) has come out already and said that if the GOP takes over the House of Representatives as is thought this November, one of the first actions that they should do is impeach Joe Biden.

I’m not a fan of that strategy just yet.

Oh, don’t get me wrong. I believe that Biden’s lack of enforcing the law on the southern border and allowing all sorts of illegals into our country is certainly an impeachable offense. That’s not the point. The point is that unless there is something very strong going on with the Republican efforts in the Senate that I can’t see, it’s an absolute waste of time.

Think back. Andrew Johnson was impeached way back in 1868. We went from 1868 to 1998, some 130 years later. And since that time, in a span of just 22 years, we’ve seen two more impeachments, none of them have resulted in the removal of a president. And impeaching Joe Biden won’t either.

First of all, all impeaching someone does is get the country thinking that the impeaching party is wasting time and not doing the country’s business. It hurt the Republicans when they impeached Clinton. It hurt the Democrats when they tried to impeach Trump the first time, and it will hurt them again this time (along with the uber-socialist ideas they’ve been trying to get passed). If the GOP were to win the House and try to impeach Biden without a safe number of votes in the Senate (67), then the same thing is going to happen to them.

Joe Biden is actually more valuable to the GOP in the short run sitting in the Oval Office than he is getting impeached and ending his political career in disgrace. He’s going to end his career in disgrace regardless what happens. The whole point is, do you really want K-baby Harris waiting in the wings to take over? She’s going to be worse than Biden because at least she’s lucid and realizes the socialistic antics she’d be making. And unless you can get someone out of office, as would have been the case with Richard Nixon because of Watergate, then you’re wasting time and money. That just doesn’t make sense.

Ted Cruz is wrong on this one. There is no reason to impeach Biden. I go back to the old Mark Twain quote, “When someone is making a fool of themselves, get out of the way and let them finish the job.” The same thing holds true in politics today. Let the Dems’ destroy themselves. So far, they’re doing a good job of it!

Carry on world…you’re dismissed!

Boehner’s Post-Retirement Rant

So, what’s up with John Boehner? The former Speaker of the House from Ohio has been relatively quiet for years. Oh, he was never a fan of Donald Trump and wasn’t shy about telling the world about it. But there were lots of Republicans that were Never Trumpers. Typically, they were the “old-time” politicians that had spent their entire careers either in the House or the Senate, or running failed candidacies for the White House. So, you can understand why all of a sudden a political neophyte like Trump would get under their skin if he came into their “club” and did what none of them could ever do. I get that.

But Boehner has now unleashed this steady stream of vitriol on current Senate Republican and presidential hopeful, Ted Cruz.

Being fair to both sides, Cruz is a rock-ribbed conservative. Boehner was a RINO by any definition. They came from two entirely different generations. Cruz is of the newer generation of Republicans, much more conservative, and able to stir up others’ emotions. Boehner came from the old school, where deals were made after the second bottle of expensive Johnny Walker Blue, and a lot of back slapping with the folks on the other side of the aisle. Yes, you can see where the divergence came in.

But Cruz and Boehner have been at each others’ throats since back in February. Back then, Cruz referred to Boehner’s well know love for the glass of expensive alcohol. But he got Boehner’s goat when he took the former Speaker’s book, “On The House: A Washington Memoir”, and burned it in his office fireplace, then took a picture of it and posted it online. Yeah…that may have gone a little far.

Boehner criticized Cruz as being the guy that was “always stirring up trouble with some of the knuckleheads in my caucus.” So…that’s the reason for the acid tongued speech?

Look, I get it these two never were best buddies. But here’s the deal. Former Speakers of the House are usually forgotten about 10 seconds after they leave office. The reason is simple. They don’t matter anymore. I mean, how many former speakers can you actually name? If you get more than three, you’re doing well, and no fair naming Tip O’Neill! There’s a bonus point if you can name how many of them are in jail right now as well.

Boehner’s time in the spotlight came and went. He’s history. He had the chance to make whatever mark he was going to make in DC, and he left and went back to rural West Chester Township, Ohio. It’s time for him to follow in the footsteps of the other Speaker’s and let the current crop of politicians do their best at running the country. There is nothing so sad as watching an old, washed up politician try to be relevant. That’s because no matter how hard they try, they aren’t.

Carry on world…you’re dismissed!

Haley Ready To Run?

By all indications, I would guess that Nikki Haley is ready to run for president in 2024. She has come out this past week and said that “We were wrong to follow Donald Trump”. Wow! When you think that a UN Ambassador under Trump would say that, it’s rather stunning. But she had to distance herself from him in the event that he actually would decide to run in 2024, and I’m doubting that’s going to happen at this point. And it doesn’t have anything to do with impeachment.

I can see the field for the GOP nomination forming already. At the front of the field will be Haley, a former UN Ambassador and Governor of South Carolina. She’s smart, she’s young, she’s a woman (which will negate a Kamala Harris run right there), and she’s a rock-ribbed conservative. She won’t be alone though. Look for former VP, Mike Pence to throw his hat into the ring as well. Pence is also very conservative, a Washington pro, a former Governor of Indiana, and someone that distanced himself from Trump over the Capitol building takeover, so that wouldn’t be a problem up the road.

I think a third possibility is a throwback to 2016. Ted Cruz, the Senator from Texas has been more vocal than usual lately. Though I don’t think the beard does much for him, he is a conservative, and took Trump to the finish line five years ago in Trump’s victory for the nomination. He could very well be the nominee.

And then you’ve got the outliers. These are folks you hear from but somehow I don’t think will actually pull the trigger and run. They include: Ivanka Trump. I doubt she’ll want the job after seeing the crap that she saw her father go through. Another long shot will be Ron DeSantis, the Governor of Florida. He is used to running in tight races, has great experience, is conservative, and could go for it. Finally, I think they are kidding when they mention Tucker Carlson, but the 51 year old certainly could make a decent showing. He’s already got a built in audience for his prime time TV show. I think he’s probably the second longest shot on this list. I didn’t realize that until this past year he was a registered Democrat, but seeing his resume, it doesn’t surprise me. He has joined the Republican party in 2020.

The least likely candidate in 2024? Donald Trump. He’ll be 78 years old then, and frankly having watched his career over the past 20 years or so, he gets bored with things and wants something new all the time. I can’t see him wanting to go back into that seething caldron again. Certainly not facing impeachment at least two more times…but then again, his ego may want him to be able to nominate three more Supreme Court Justices, who knows?

Carry on world…you’re dismissed!

The Idea Of Witnesses

I have a problem with Democrats calling for witnesses to appear at the impeachment trial coming up this next week. It’s primarily because it seemed it was good enough for them during the Clinton impeachment, and some of the very same people clamoring for witnesses now, were against it back then. It was then, as it is now, partisan politics. That’s all it was and all it is. And it smells like rotten fish.

So, I would agree with in principle with what Senator Ted Cruz (R-Tx) said. If the Democrats want to talk to John Bolton (and it’s allowed by the President), then the President’s defense team gets to call one witness of their choice. It could be Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, anybody they want. If the Democrats want to call a second witness, fine. So do the Republicans. And, if Bolton doesn’t appear, Biden doesn’t appear. If Bolton shows up and Biden doesn’t, the Democrats lose all further witnesses, but the GOP can call all they want. But I’m not at all in favor of witnesses in the first place.

This whole impeachment thing has degraded into a bunch of three year olds fighting in the sandbox. Frankly, I think America is getting tired of it. And frankly I can’t see the true need for witnesses at all. If the Democrats were so interested in John Bolton before, when the House was actually doing the inquiry, why didn’t they subpoena him? I know the story that it was because they didn’t want to drag it through the courts because it was “of major importance to the nation” that this be adjudicated quickly. But if that was the case, why did Nancy Pelosi not turn over the actual articles of impeachment for a friggin’ month? Seems to me Democrats shot themselves in the foot on that one.

No, the more I think about it, the more I think that the Democrats had their shot at making their case. For them to want to come back now, as the trial is starting and say that want to include more witnesses, and they want to include more information is bogus. They feel they don’t have a good argument and now they’re just trying to puff up their side. The whole fact of the matter is, Democrats obviously did a very poor job making the case for impeachment in the first place. Adam Schiff and Jerry Nadler failed once again at showing the American public there was anything there. Now, they want a do-over.

America is yawning. America has already lost interest. And Democrats realize that they’ve shot their wad and once again, come up empty. They need to finish up this charade and get back to doing the work we the people elected them to do…which wasn’t to impeach a president!

Carry on world…you’re dismissed!