Thursday, November 10, 2016

It Is Finished

The election is over. Trump won, Hillary lost. And the Main Stream Media (MSM) was wounded.

Trump did the Obama - brilliant. Now he has gained the White House. Perhaps Republicans nationwide will take notice of how to run a campaign nowadays.

The MSM are writhing like vampires in sunlight trying to explain why they were so completely wrong. The day after saw them blame it on ignorance, racism and misogyny. The point is that they've blamed everyone else - anyone who voted for Trump.

But Trump won the election, so nobody cares what  the MSM says right now as they creep away into the darkness to lick their wounds. Republicans gained the Oval Office, retained Congress and now have 80% of the Governor offices. Clearly both Democrat party and the MSM are out of touch.

The MSM and Democrat Oligarchy jointly because they dismissed the anger of the average American:

  • uncontrolled illegal immigration.
  • the abuse of the H1B system
  • the steep premium increases with the ACA
  • a very weak foreign policy
  • unelected plutocrats seemingly controlling DC
Both the Left and Right were angry for differing reasons, but Republicans stuck with Trump while Democrats ditched Bernie.

The Democrat party because they ran a status quo candidate when voters wanted change. They seemed to be emboldened by a completely wrong MSM and convinced that this country mainly needed a woman President - even one with significant baggage.

But like I said, the election is over. Trump won. The Clinton oligarchy has been defeated. The Republican old guard has been severely wounded. Madonna gave up, celebrities are back-peddling on their promise to leave, and Canada put up signs saying "GO AWAY (please)".



Tuesday, March 22, 2016

Doing the Obama

30 years ago nobody would've imagined a Junior Senator, lacking both private  and State governance experience, making it into the White House. But he did. And he did it because his campaign emphasized emotion over substance. Remember "Hope and Change", "Yes We Can"? Oh and by the way, lest we forget: he did it twice. And the last time he whipped a vastly more qualified opponent. I call this "doing the Obama".

I know that Trump is "doing the Obama" to get into office. Trump's a fast learner and he's leveraging what works. The other Republicans either co-opt Trump's approach or they are gone. Trump's approach to campaigning is brilliant.

So what is "doing the Obama" really? It is leveraging the angst of low-information voters. Frankly, today's voters are probably the most ignorant in a couple of generations. Lots of reasons for it: 3rd-world Public Education system, entitlement mentality, Media ignoring their fiduciary responsibility, and the glaring fact that the gyrations in the Oval Office have little impact on everyday life.

So is "doing the Obama" bad?  Not really. After all, as demonstrated by Obama, you can make all sorts of promises and then renege on them once in office. And if the public continues to hold the Office of the President in low esteem, nobody will be shocked.

Trump is a smart businessman with a big ego. He has a good shot at the Presidency, assuming he doesn't self-implode. Whether or not he can be a good President is anyone's guess. But I'm impressed at his campaign, and disappointed in his Republican opposition.

Trump's Wall

The various talking heads of the entertainment side of the media have had a lot of fun with Trump. He's arguably good for their business. He gives them lots of buzz to sell, and in so doing he gets his populist notions aired. Doubt it? Well think of Marco Rubio's approach to uncontrolled Mexican immigration - can you remember anything? Nope? That's because Rubio couldn't get the time of day from the media, and now he is gone.

Trump's wall is a polarizing idea. Why? Because it will work. And that defines the ideological split in America on the subject of immigration. I know there are entertainment talking heads who deride the idea as fundamentally unworkable, but these are not very bright people - they just work for laughs. The Wall most certainly will work.

There are those in America who believe borders are meaningless - we are all "citizens of the world" - to misquote Barack Obama. Conversely there are those who believe America is a sovereign nation, American citizenship should convey special privileges, American citizens should be economically protected, and America should be selective on who we allow in. In my view, this defines the tension in the immigration debate in general.

Much of the wave of popularity Trump is riding is generated by the rising anger of Americans who feel betrayed by the Beltway. President Obama has long since lost his sizzle to thinking people, he no longer commands the bully pulpit. Can you think of Obama's solution to uncontrolled Mexican immigration? Did positive thoughts come to mind?

America has absorbed 12 million unskilled, uneducated, from Latin America - probably the largest foreign aid program ever run under a different name. Made sense to prop up failing Latin American States back in the Reagan years when the Soviet Union was creating proxy states. Doesn't make sense now.

The entry-level job market has been hammered by a gross over-supply of labor. Wages have stagnated for years, causing some jurisdictions to pursue a silly course of mandating "living" minimum wages.

So if you are in ideological agreement with President Obama, the Wall scares you. If you disagree with the President, the Wall is one real solution that doesn't require an act of Congress.