Tag Archives: GOP

A Nightmare for MAGA and Pres. Trump

Politics, Rants, , ,

Another Thought Experiment

Once more we are diving into the dark and murky waters of the coming Presidential Elections. In this one we will be looking at just what might be facing Donald J. Trump once he has lost the election and is out of office. We will not concern ourselves with just how he is removed and just concern ourselves with just what he might be facing.

Postulates:

  • V.P. Biden wins the election decisively in both the popular vote and the electoral collage
  • The GOP is decisively defeated in both the House of Representatives and the Senate (the Democrats do not loose a single seat in the Senate and gain all possible tossup seats)
  • Donald J Trump does everything he can to confuse the election, including getting contested delegations of Electors from several states.
  • All of the ‘criminal’ investigations being conducted are investigating actual activities and actions that have taken place, and have available sufficient evidence to bring charges against Donald J Trump.
  • Trump knows and understands just exactly what the previous postulate means for both him.

The above is not the results of what some may call a “Blue Tsunami” but is still a crushing victory. While the Democrats do hold control of both houses of Congress they do not hold such a large majority as to be able to do what they want without any votes from the GOP. That is, they hold less that 291 seats in the House and less than 67 seats in the Senate. But their control is such that there is very little the GOP can do to stop any investigations into both the activities of the Trump administration or the actions of the Senate while they had control.

What would be facing the former Trump administration is an set of investigations that would make the investigations into the Harding Administration look like a child’s Tea Party. Just to name a few of the possible investigations:

  1. The ICE “Detention” of minor undocumented imagrents
  2. The Actions of the A.G. Barr in regards to investigations into activities of “Friends of Trump”
  3. Was the Roger Stone Pardon given for unlawful reasons?
  4. The actions both on and off the bench of all of the Judges appointed by Trump and confirmed by the Senate who were rated as “Unqualified” by the ABA

To add a little hate to the game I even tho the Republican defeat was not a “Blue Tsunami” it still would be quite devastating if few non-MAGA members of the party are left. Those GOP office holders would be faced with a very hard Choice in the coming elections. An some of them know enough of their political history to recognize just what may happen. The GOP may go the way of the Federalist Party and the Wig Party. To find this off they will have to take control back from the MAGA GOP and this will not be easy. They will most likely face the same problems the Democrats faced with their Dixiecrats staged their rebellion. An that will mean a very long time in the wildernesses with out any assured victory at the end.

It will also be painful for the Republicans because they are going to have to face a “Paradigm”shift in their thinking. They will have to stop thinking that “Victory isn’t everything, It is the Only Thing” and start thinking “What are our principles?” They are going to have to accept the idea of compromise and stop believing that the only position is “My way or the Highway.” They are going to have to accept the idea (With apologies to Oliver Cromwell:

“Please in the Name of GOD consider the Possibility that you are Mistaken.”

The Time has Come

General, Philosophy, Politics, , , , ,

The time has come,’ the Walrus said,
      To talk of many things:
Of shoes — and ships — and sealing-wax —
      Of cabbages — and kings —
And why the sea is boiling hot —
      And whether pigs have wings.’

Over the past few weeks I have been feeling more and more like I have both “fallen down the rabbit hole” and gone “Thru the Looking Glass” at the same time. It is mostly because of the rampant insanity I’m seeing around me. In the middle of the greatest pandemic in a hundred years we have both people who should know better telling us it is:

  1. All a hoax
  2. It will be over “Real Soon Now”
  3. 100,000+ death are acceptable
  4. Trust me, not the scientists, I know better
  5. It’s all a plot to defeat Donald Trump’s re-election

The above is not an exhaustive list, just what I can remember right now. But beyond the above I’ve started to hear people not on the far left, more like the middle left, thinking the unthinkable. That the GOP, the MAGAs, and Donald Trump will use the pandemic to suppress enough voter turn out. To delay the vote count due to record number of mail-in ballots. To challenge the election results when and if Trump looses both the popular and elector votes.

I am not going to be a miss Pollyanna here. I am going to try to just point out that unlike the little oysters we need to listen to the wise ones and not follow the Walrus and the Carpenter, lest we be eaten.

Coming Next: A dark Thought Experiment or Two

Not Quite True

Politics, , , , ,
Juggernaut
Juggernaut

One of the great lies being propagated by Donald Trump, MAGA, and the GOP is that he/they are a juggernaut. Totally unstoppable and undefeatable in the coming election. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

If the data we are seeing is anywhere correct the GOP is weaker now that it has been sense 1932. If 2018 wasn’t an indication of the American people disaffection with how the GOP is running things just take a look at how many incumbent Republicans are “retiring”. Not only in the House but in there is even a few Senate. Also look at all the Republican Incumbants in the Senate who are now in an actual re-election contests. Many of them are polling, in their own polls, under a 10% lead over possible challengers. This includes Senator McConnell.

As for MAGA, it has never been much more than a very noisy outlier of conservative politics. Yes, you see wonderful shots of their mass’ at the Trump Rallies, but these shots are all carefully staged. We never hear any figures of where these people come from. Are they local or bussed in? We don’t even know if they are paired to attend or not. We don’t even have an accurate definition of just what a MAGA is, other that they are Pro-Trump, do or die.

As for Pres. Trump himself I can only say two things: He Lies and He Cheats. No one should take anything he does at face value. We must always start from the position that it is not true until independent evidence come to light supporting what he has said. As for his cheating, we have to watch very very carefully everything he and his associates do. Like all people who cheat at Golf, Pres. Trump and the people he associates with they will cheat even when they don’t have to. Just look at what the GOP did in the Iowa caucus. We can expect this kind of antics until after November. Some just pranks to make the Democrats look bad, others not nearly so benign. An not just in battle ground states. Look for it in states like California, or New York, or Mississippi or Oklahoma.

So, the great Juggernaut of the Trump/Republican party is really just a big illusion created by the Great Con-artist, ‘The Snake Oil Salesman’. An every time you hear that Trump is unbeatable say “Oh Yeah? Prove it.”

Orange KoolAid V

Politics, , , ,
Orange Koolaid

It’s not over till it is Over.

Or What Now?

So the Impeachment and Trial of Donald John Trump, President of the Unites States of America is over. So what can we expect now?

I am not going to talk about all the bad/dark things we can expect from Pres. Trump, MAGA or the GOP. This is already being discussed by others to ad nauseam. I’m going to talk about what we can do to counter act these actions.

The first thing is to stay positive. While MAGA and Pres. Trump has won this round the game is still on. The second thing is to not only VOTE yourself but to get out the vote of others. Unlike all of the elections I’ve been involved in since 1968 I’m going to say the vote to get out is the anti-Trump, anti-MAGA and anti-GOP. Get out the vote not only in the general election in November but also in your sate primary. Each and Every Vote is critical.

Why I’m saying this is not the usual election rhetoric. This election is the most important I’ve seen since 1968. Democrats need to put forward not only a candidate that represents out ideals but also can lead the way in a great anti-Trump/MAGA/GOP wave. The GOP needs to be shown the error of their ways in not only nominating and then electing this Orange KoolAid but their total lack of ethics and morals in rolling over for him.

What can we need to counter?

There are three thing we, as individual voters need to look out for and can actually be effective apposing.

  1. Alt-Facts: When ever we come upon “Alt-Facts” (aka out right lies”) we need to call them out with actual facts. Don’t forget to cite your sources, this is critical. Yes, I know the MAGA will not be effected but MAGA is not even a majority in the GOP. Who we are doing this for is for the mass of ‘independents’.
  2. Dirty Tricks: This should go without saying but I think it needs to be said. The GOP has been the past masters of Dirty Trick for the last 75 years and they now have a Leader who ‘Openly’ see nothing wrong with them. So it is up to every Voter who truly believes in open and fair elections to call out every instance of a Dirty Trick. It doesn’t mater Right, Left, or center, it is up to us to say we will not stand for Dirty Trick in our elections.
  3. Keep the Faith: America is strong. She has been thru times as tough as this before and come out the other side better for the struggle. MAGA wants you to give up. It wants you to believe that it is too powerful, too Omnipresent, too omnipotent to fail. This is just another lie they tell us to keep us down.

So fear not! All is not lost, not yet. Each and everyone of us who love this country can do our little bit. First and foremost, don’t give into despair for that is exactly what Pres. Trump, MAGA and the GOP want. Next fight back, but fight back smart. As my Dad used to tell me “if you get back up after being knocked down. You have lost the fight.” We lost this round and they think they have us on the ropes. Now is the time to show MAGA and all the Trumpian bullies just what we are made of.

So Can We Do?

As I am a computer ‘geek’ I will start with the problem of the Internet and Social Media. Let’s not wait for the Government nor the big corps to address this problem. I’m calling on all the Techno-Geeks out there to attack the problem our not being able to accurately identify who is actually posting what. Let’s get apps out there that can quickly and clearly identify the ‘true’ point of origin of any posting on Facebook, or Twitter, or eMail.

I am calling on them to create apps that will allow users to identify ‘Deepfakes’ and all the other ways we were manipulated in 2016. We need apps that will prevent the kind of ‘Dirty Trick’ pulled in Iowa this past week. Let’s create apps that will help us counter all the voter suppression tactics so beloved by the GOP this past decade. Need I go on?

Some may say that this is an impossible task. Well, you be surprised on how many “impossible” things I’ve seen done with computers since 1969. So, to all the Techno-Geeks out there I say “Trump and MAGA say it is impossible for anyone to stop their miss information campaign.” I say “Are you going to take that lying down? Are you going to let people who have no idea what is meant by a ‘Sever’ tell you what you can do or not do?”

Well Are you?

Republicans, the party of Golf Cheats?

Philosophy, Politics, , ,
Donald Trump Golfing

I am about to make a lot of conservatives upset but I remind you all that you do not need to be a member of the MAGA GOP. The choice is yours to go or stay.

With the clear statement by Sen. McConnell that he will ensure a quick trial and acquittal of President Trump in January of next year I feel it is safe to draw some conclusions about the Republican Party in the coming years. First it is the party of Golf Cheats. By that I mean they welcome with open arms people who will do what ever is necessary to win no mater what they are doing. That being seen to win is that is important, even when everyone knows and is aware they cheated to win.

Next we can say it is the party of people who see the sole purpose of power is the arbitrary use of power (see 1984 Clip). These are also people who have, in the past complained most vociferously about the left having ‘relativistic morality’ but see nothing wrong with apply one standard to themselves and another standard to everyone else. They can do this because in reality the only moral standard they have is ‘Did I win?’ Given this standard it is easy to see why the Senate GOP will move so quickly and in unison to do what ever Donald Trump needs to stay in power.

We have been seeing this coming for the past 40+ years with the movement of southern conservatives from the Democrat Party to the Republican Party and the movement of liberal Republicans to the Democrat Party. With the introduction of RINO to the GOP lexicon and then their removal from the party. We have seen it in the rise of open voter suppression where ever the GOP has gained complete control of the State House. An we have seen it in the total acceptance by the GOP of gerrymandering of congressional districts.

So if you accept the ideal of “Wining isn’t everything, it is the only thing.” If you see believe in the arbitrary use of power for the sole benefit of the Wielder of the power. If you know you are always the victim and it is always ‘those people’ who are responsible for you sad state. Then the Republican Party is for you. Just be sure to latch yourself to the most powerful Patron you can because you have just become minion.

More signs of GOP Morbidity

Politics, ,

Once more we see signs of the coming demise of the Republican Party in the actions of the North Carolina House of Representatives this week. It is not the vote to override the Governors veto, but rather the way the Republican Speaker went about it. The damage he has done, not only to the GOP of North Carolina but to the entire party can well be devastating. With how the current GOP National leadership, read current Administration, treats keeping it’s word what can the state house GOP say?

From now on when GOP leadership in any chamber of any state house says it will do or refrain from doing something how will they answer the question: “What assurances can go give that you wont ‘renege’? Even in a profession renowned for the lack of truthfulness like politics, especially in such a profession, something must be sacrosanct. Keeping your word about when and when not votes will be held is one such item. You can obfuscate to your hearts content. You can stand silent. But you can not say, as the Speaker did, say there will be no votes this morning/today and then when things are in your favor call a snap vote. There can be only one result to such an action, nothing this speaker says can be taken as true or accurate. Only his actual actions can be trusted and not even then.

With the election of Donald J Trump as President and the rise of Transactional Politics (aka Zero Sum Politics) the GOP is well on it’s way of joining it’s predecessor the “American Party” (aka No-nothings) on the trash heap of history. For a political party who’s leadership, and membership, is more interested in winning than ethics it exposes is doomed to fade away.

Why a Wave Election is Important

Politics, , ,
Blue Wave

Yes, I know the election is over a year way, but the 2020 election is going to be history making in ways most Americans don’t know about. This is going to be the first Presidential election where the electorate has been told, and is mostly aware of, all the election tampering being done by foreign governments (mostly Russia). At the same time one side, the GOP, has been running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off screaming about ‘election fraud’. If the 2020 election is a close one, or worse yet one where the winner of the Electoral College does not get a plurality of the popular vote, then we are in a world of hurt.

So lets run a little thought experiment here. There are basically two conditions we need to think about. An election where one side wins big and one where the winner just squeaks by (like 2016). With the former Americans can have some faith that the elections were fair as it is very very difficult to massively stack the results in 40+ states. So lets look at the latter.

Lets say the Donald Trump and the GOP just barely squeak by just holding on to the Presidency and control of the Senate. Let us further state that Donald Trump wins just like he did in 2016. The Democrats can, and should, cry out that it was a stolen elections. But besides that, how can the GOP erasure the people that it wasn’t stolen. How can we trust the results?

Little to no effort has been taken by either the National nor State GOP to do anything reassure us that the elections are fare. Indeed in the last few years it has been then GOP who have taken actions to skew the elections in their favor with means both lawful and unlawful. Just the latest is the North Carolina congressional district gerrymandering that violated the State constitution. An let us not forget all of the efforts to prevent voter impersonation election fraud and all of the efforts to have proper IDs. While this is not a bad idea, the way it has been gone about leaves much to be desired. Seems like in most cases these laws impact poor voters. Of course, given the position of many in the GOP that most election fraud is done by ‘liberals’ and/or Democrats this is not to unexpected.

But the point is that the GOP has, for many many years been complaining about how fraud ridden our elections are but seem powerless to make any substantial changes. An the changes they do make seem to make maters worse not better. Now let us add in the widely held belief that in 2016 the Russians used the internet and social media to influence our election. Plus we now have reports of the election systems of some states, like Florida, have been hacked. This is leading us to a very big problem.

If the Trump Administration and/or the GOP in 2017 had taken the position that any interference by anyone is totally unacceptable. That it unfairly casts dispersions on the validity of Donald Trumps election. An to demonstrate that neither he nor the GOP will have any truck with this kind of action. We would not be where we are now. We have a President who totally believes that it doesn’t mater how you win as long as you win. We have a political party so afraid of its far right base that it is totally unwilling to do anything that might though any doubts on the legitimacy of it’s power that it will do nothing. So even if they win, they loose.

So what need to be done? Simply put, but hard, very hard to do, is to create a ‘wave’ election. An election, no mater who wins, that will put into Washington people who will say “enough is enough” and creates a bi-partisan national effort to secure both our elections, the internet, and social media. This will be a tall order, their are people who will see these changes as a challenge to both their power and their wealth. They will join with those out side the country who wish to see the USA in political disarray to do everything in their power to keep things as they are. Finally we need to do one thing:

Get Out The Vote

Villains and Minions

Politics, , ,

Those who know me, know I am a great fan of Comics for my whole life. I am well steeped in the culture of Heros and Villains. I was a great fan of both Superman and The Daredevil, mostly because of two Super Villains, Lex Luthor and KingPin. What I liked about them is they could take on super powered hero’s even though they were just normal people. So what does this have to do with today’s politics? Simply their minions.

I would like to lay before you the idea that the GOP has been taken over by a real world equivalent of a comic Super Villain. Are own Lex Luther if you will. One of the problem all comic book villains have is finding good “reliable” minions. Minions usually come in two classes, competent or comic relief (aka incompetent). You can also judge minions by how reliable and unreliable. Think of it this way a two by two matrix

Reliable Unreliable

Competent. A. D

Incompetent B. C

From this array you can see the Villain wants a Competent and Reliable minion, lets call this a type A. What they don’t want is either an incompetent unreliable, type C. Or even worse, from the Villains stand point is the competent Unreliable, type D. Unfortunately getting type A minions is next to impossible because Reliable Competent people tend not to be villainess. Usually villains tend to be generally unreliable, that is dishonest. So what’s wrong with the type D minion? Simply put the Unreliable Competent minion will want to replace the villain with themselves. After all why be a minion when you can be the villain?

Now you are asking just what this has to do the GOP? Simply put the Republican Party is currently in the control of a Super Villain, Donald Trump. An while Donald Trump is no Lex Luthor is is still quite villainess. He also like to be surrounded by lots and lots of minions. I’d say most of Donald’s minions he brought with him were quite quite competent in their original area of operation, that is mostly type B or C in most things D.C. or political. The people in the GOP when Trump won the election who are candidates to be type A or D minions are doing one of several things.

Fist they type A minion material have mostly left the party, like Geo. F Wills, or are going to ground and keeping out of both the public and the Donalds eye. We have also been the steady leaking of the type A people from the Administration. Those brave souls who thought they could actually keep the Super Villain from doing evil things. Just take a look at the list of people who have resigned from this administration. Anywhere from a quarter to a half of them can be called type A minion material. The numbers are even more lopsided when you look at the nonpartisan people who have left government jobs since Trumps election. When we look outside the executive to the congress we see just as large an exodus.

When it comes to the national party leadership, they have shown they are either type B or C minion material. They all saw what Donald Trump is and most wanted to stop him from getting the nomination but they were totally clueless on just how to stop him. Som knew how. But just couldn’t sacrifice for the good of the party or nation. They will have to live with what has happened, and continues to happen to both their party an nation. Not that that is much solas to the rest of us.

So where does that leave us and the GOP? Simply put, by the 2020 election the GOP will be left with a single Villain in control, a few type D minions looking for their chance to take over and everything else type B and C minions doing their best to do as they are told they want to do what their are told to do. All the while trying to get everything they can for themselves, the devil take the hindmost. But all is not lost for both the Republicans or the Conservatives who once made up the GOP. They are still out their in country. They just have to do a few things, some easy, most difficult. The most difficult will be to accept the possibility that they were mistaken. Not easy for any of us.

The GOP & Russian Election Interference

General, Philosophy, Politics, , ,

It would seem my timing for this and my last post could not be better. As you may remember my last post dealt with several hypothesis on why the GOP did not support actions or laws to stop the interference by Russia, or any other foreign government, from influencing our elections. With the hissy fit that Moscow Mitch thru on the Senate floor yesterday I hope that the rank and file GOP will tell their representatives it is time to change.

Reason One: It is the traditional role

Sense the very early 20th century the Republican Party has taken the position that it was the best party to protect the nation from foreign influence. Sense the Russian Revolution they also took on the role of the party that is protecting us from Bolshevik/Communist infiltration. From 9/11 the GOP has told us that they were the party to protect us from terrorist. Yet when we are given hard evidence, by multiple intelligent agencies, they do nothing. This is an issue tailored made for the GOP. They have over a hundred years of experience campaigning with protecting the USA from the evil foreigners, starting with the Republican Parties antecedences the “Know Nothings” of the 1850’s. With how effective the current rhetoric of Pres. Trump about the ‘Hispanic’ menace or the hell holes the ‘the squad’ represent this should be a no brainer. The election is over a year away, it is not too late.

Reason Two: It is Insulting

That the GOP needed Russian help to elect Donald Trump in 2016 is insulting to the Republican Party. This is the party of Lincoln, Reagan, and two Bushes, and they were running against a Clinton and a woman, they didn’t need Russian interference. This would play very very well with the electoral base.

Reason Three: No need to work with the Democrats

The was no need nor reason to work with the enemy, AKA Democrats, to do this. The GOP controlled both houses of Congress in the 115th so no help was needed. As far as Robert Mueller, he work for GOP Presidents. At worst, if what the GOP has let us see, the Trump Campaign was nothing more than ‘Useful Idiots’. At best they saw the danger and walked away from any offers. (This last has very low probability given the Mueller Report.) An while the President doesn’t come out too well it doesn’t really hurt the party. Even now, Sen. McConnell could have a “Republican” law introduced to help keep any foreign influence from our elections. It could actually do something and be more than a legal placebo.

That’s all for now. It is up to you, dear reader, to decide just what the GOP is doing and why. Once you do, be sure and vote next year. Especially if you are upset with the GOP as they always do worse in high turn-out elections.

A Reason Why the GOP Senate is Acting the way it is.

Philosophy, Politics, ,

Once more, today, a Senator who is a member of the GOP Caucus of the Senate has stoped the passing of a Law to have any campaign who is offered help by a foreign government report such offer to FBI. No reason for the objection was given and some people are starting to wonder just what the GOP is up to. In my searches of the internet to see if I could find any reasons why the GOP Caucus is acting this way I have been flooded with theories and conspiracies but no hard statements form reliable or notable sources. I would like to put forward some ideas of my own and would like to see how they play out.

Hypothesis One: Motions were Unanimous Consent

This latest stoppage was to what is known as “Unanimous Consent” motion and it means literally what it says: all of the Senate agrees, votes Yes, to enact the law. It is possible that the Senator who objected to the Unanimous Consent felt that such an important act needed proper debate. Maybe she just objects to the whole idea of Unanimous Consent. This later idea is easy to check, if a bit of work, just see if she has objected to all previous Unanimous Contents while she has been in the Senate. But basically we are saying the the Senator in Question objects to the bill in question being passed by Unanimous Consent for what ever reason.

Hypothesis Two: A poison pill

It could be that there is some clause buried that the GOP strongly objects to. This is known as a ‘poison pill’ and is a very common tactic used by the minority party of one house to get the majority of the other house to kill the bill. To date I’ve n to heard of ‘poison pill’ in the bill, but I will keep my eyes open for it.

Hypothesis Three: “Not in my Senate!”

This is a simple one. It could just be that the GOP caucus does not want to pass any bill from the house it just doesn’t have to. That is this bill was not in the “Must Pass” category. This to is easy to check to see if only “Must Pass” bills from the house have voted on by the Senate.

Hypothesis Four: Force of Habit

This final idea is that Senator McDonnell is just in the habit of not passing any bills put forward by a Democrat. It has been almost then years that he and the GOP Caucus has been objecting to any bill that the Democrats, House or Whitehouse, has put forward. The very idea of agreeing with the Democrats is an anathema to them. Not that they don’t welcome support form Democrats when it is clearly a GOP Bill but whenever it looks like the Democrats can claim to have a win it will be stoped dead. Currently i see no way to test this.

Of all four hypothesis’ I favor the fourth and I hope someone will suggest a way to test it’s validity. In any case we seem to be in for an election in 2020 where who ever win’s will have to defend their election against charges of being elected by the Russians.