The following is an edited version of my original post at Nukingpolitics.com
I know the general attitude around here is “I am not excited about a presidential candidate and I want a sweet meteor of death to just kill us all”.
Ho hum.
Frank J is sooo pessimistic like that. And he and I are enemies. I think. I’m not actually sure. I think he responded to an email I sent him once and he challenged me to a fight, saying something about his father and how many fingers I have. I dunno.
Well, all I have to say to that is…meh.
I never thought in a million years I would be this excited about Donald Trump.
I mean…it’s Donald Trump, right? Kind of a goofball, entertainer type, business mogul. Calls into Fox & Friends every once in a while, has a reality show.
What does he know about America and being president?
Apparently a lot.
Time after time after time, he nailed it in his acceptance speech and his rallies. Speaking to The People, not the political class. Not to the media. Not to the corporatists. Not to the pundits. But to the people.
Even if he had no idea what the real problems in this country were (and video evidence suggests he did know), he literally spent time listening to what the people…callers to radio talk shows and the like…were saying for the last few years. One can only assume he talked to his “bottom level” employees as well. And I am sure he talked to plenty of other business owners, who he knew personally. All to find out (or to verify) what the real problems in America are.
And you can criticize his way of speaking if you like. You can criticize his hair. You can criticize all kinds of superficial things about him. But when it comes to substance. When it comes to ACTUAL…he is beyond criticism.
Because he has allowed himself to become a voice for the people. He is saying what we have all been thinking.
The political elite call this “populism”, and they say that with derision. They say populism means “catering to the masses”.
I’m wondering where the masses fits in with “Government of, by and for the people”.
No, we are not a straight democracy of mob rule. But the majority does still rule. Because the majority feels, personally, the effects of every single policy established by their “betters”. The “betters” who are conveniently never effected by those policies.
Populism, better defined, is running on a platform that the majority of people (lower and middle class) can recognize as things that will make their situation better.
The upside of that, in a capitalist society, is that what makes lower and middle class lives better actually helps Main Street business. Wall street will lose, at first, but it’s not going to bankrupt them. And, let’s be honest…when has the Dow or the S&P indices ever helped the average American personally?
Jobs, manufacturing, making things…created right here in this country. Manufacturers not looking for a quick exit to a cheaper base of operations, will help Americans get back to work. Then they will have money to spend. And the government will not be shelling out money it doesn’t have to people not employed. And they will be collecting taxes from those who are.
And when there are jobs, jobs, jobs, everywhere, then crime falls. A small percentage of criminals are just evil people. The majority are less than stellar at making life choices, but when there is obvious, legal, opportunity…they take it. Less crime, less angst, when there is opportunity.
Trump said “We cannot have prosperity without Law and Order.” This is true. But we cannot have Law and Order without Prosperity. Look at every crappy nation in the world. What do they have in common? The majority of the people are either dirt poor or struggling.
If it is populism to reestablish basic economics 101 and basic national security, then we need a heavy dose of populism.
This may be a Correction. This may be a Revolution. But whatever it is, it is a SOLUTION.
I know I usually deal in snark. I know that is the order of the day around here right now. And I know I could lose my honored place as a contributor to this great website I have loved for a long time. But we are at a crossroads. I am feeling it as a government contractor now. I would be in prison for what she did. What Hillary got away with is an absolute travesty. Her as president is not an option.
We have to be a nation of laws. We have to be a nation where those laws are enforced. And a sweet meteor of death is not going to do that. Staying at home because “your guy” wasn’t nominated is not going to accomplish that.
Preventing Hillary Clinton from gaining the presidency is the equivalent of fighting the greatest battle ever. Each and everyone of us must commit to that.
I personally have endorsed Donald Trump. It was a long road to come to that for me (I originally backed Cruz), and I know a lot of you will not accept him. But we have to be honest…the alternative is simply unacceptable. Hillary cannot be allowed anywhere near that kind of power.
This is an important vote, and a chance to actually Make America Great Again.
First, we would have to assume that the electoral system has a measurable effect on the course this nation follows. Unfortunately, I believe that many voters do not feel that there vote counts for much except to validate a broken system where travesties of justice like the Clinton verdict happen on a fairly regular basis, yet no one goes to jail. The Credit Crisis cost millions of jobs, homes, and left broken dreams of a generation who participated in the political process only to be throw to the solved while those who perpetrated the debacle were protected like newborns. I believe that people know the truth when they hear it, and neither Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton are speaking the truth. Don’t we know this to be true?
I realize that Hillary will do a lot destroy the republic. However, continued big-government conservatism will also destroy the republic.
If we vote for Trump, we’ll get 4 years of government growth, followed by a presidential election. In this election, conservative commentators will tell us that, no matter how bad the Republican nominee is, the Democrat is so bad we must vote for him!
And thus, people who support limited government will have their votes taken for granted, and will never be represented.
If you want to convince me otherwise, identify some prominent Democrats about whom you would be willing to say “I wouldn’t vote for them, but I would accept it if you’d abstain from voting for a big-government Republican just to keep them from being president”. Your choices include
I realize, of course, that most Americans don’t want limited government, and so we’ll never get enough of a coalition to obtain representation anyway. That’s why I wasn’t joking when I said I favored Sweet Meteor of Death.
People who claim they’d rather die than see either Clinton or Trump elected are like people who swear they’ll move to Canada if the wrong person gets elected. Nobody is stopping them.
Nah, I’ve been suicidal for a few years now for reasons having to do more with Clinton & Trump supporters than Clinton & Trump themselves.
My family keeps insisting that it would destroy them if I did anything about it, so somebody is stopping me, even if nobody is stopping them.
So you’re OK with dying as long as everyone else dies too? How thoughtful of you.
I am so disappointed in the direction of IMAO, having been a reader since 2007. I consider myself as “quit.” But if articles like Keln’s continue to appear here, I shall continue reading IMAO and commenting occasionally. They don’t have to be “funny” in the IMAO tradition. In fact, it’s hard to BE funny right now.
So, thanks for writing, Keln. I was hoping there would be something of substance – and relevance – here when I logged-in!
Just the fact that Harvey and FrankJ allow any pro-Trump posts, when they think he is such a terrible person and candidate, is admirable.
Agreed.
I’m #NeverTrump, but I think everyone deserves their voice.
I don’t plan to make any more. I’m not going to use IMAO as my personal pro-Trump soap box, as this is Frank’s site and that would be disrespectful.
I have, for the most part, kept silent on IMAO for that reason.
This was a one-time deal laying out an argument for Trump for my fellow moon-nukers to accept or reject. I don’t see any purpose in repeating the same points here in the future.
Points well taken…… and as a #neverhillary type, I will take everything into consideration when I pull that lever (metaphorically speaking)
“Take out their families.”
“Blood coming out her… whatever.”
“Ted Cruz’s dad was part of the JFK assassination.”
“If Ivanka weren’t my daughter, perhaps I’d be dating her.”
“The beauty of me is that I’m very rich.”
“They’re rapists.”
“Will I start a war with China? Who knows.”
“Japan and South Korea might need nuclear weapons.”
“Free trade is terrible.”
“The problem is we have the Geneva Conventions”
“Planned Parenthood has done very good work for many millions of women”
Yea. What we’ve all been thinking. Uh huh.
It’s really not. Because electing Donald to prevent Hillary is nothing but a pyrrhic victory. Yea, we “won” – but we had to murder conservatism and constitutionalism to do it.
That’s not a win in any sane person’s book.
The problem with Donald Trump is the same problem with Hillary Clinton (and Barack Obama). They run on a platform of promising benevolent dictatorship, depending on your own personal definition of “benevolent.” Just grant them absolute power and “they promise” to give you everything you want. It’s a lie.
Both of these candidates serve to protect one thing and one thing only: the elitist aristocracy of the rich and politically connected. If you can vote for Donald Trump, then ideologically there should be no reason why you couldn’t or wouldn’t vote for Hillary Clinton. The difference are cosmetic.
Big government New York values liberal Democrat authoritarian in pantsuits, or in a hairpiece? You pick. It’s a “choice” between arsenic and cyanide.
I’m not going to stay home, Keln, you don’t have to worry about that. But never will I have to answer to anyone why I voluntarily consented to bringing either of these maniacs, Hillary or Donald, to power. I’ll never ever have to own that horrible decision. If you can live with that, great. I can’t, and I won’t.
Yep.
Mr. Trump’s “populism” died the moment he broke his promise and started taking big-money donations from the rich and elite. He himself has bragged about how his donations buy the favor of public officials and how he expects quid pro quo.
“Yea, we “won” – but we had to murder conservatism and constitutionalism to do it.”
Unfortunately, the current crop of “conservatives” in congress killed both of those concepts a long time ago….. as soon as they decided that it was OK to let Obummer run roughshod over us with executive orders w/o the slightest push back.
As for the ignorant things that come out of his mouth, he just fits in with all the rest of the political class. There are some juicy quotes out there.
#neverhillary, I lost friends from her actions…… I’d vote for Bozo before I would see her in office. Just my .02
If Hillary wins she picks the next Supreme Court member. If that happens you can kiss the 2nd Amendment and a goodly portion of the 1st Amendment good-by because her pick will absolutely, positively be another left wing activist judge. For that reason alone I refuse to sit this one out hoping for better in 2020. I will vote for Trump.
My take on Trump’s positions, in the words of a poster more eloquent than I. (Further discussion and elaboration of these points are at the source.)
He has always leaned towards a nationalist-populist stance that places the safety and economic security of Americans first. Some people may not see that as “conservative,” but it is fundamentally about conserving the nation.
Build the wall.
Enforce the law.
End sanctuary cities.
End anchor babies.
Slap a moratorium on muslim immigration.
(“It is a scandal when America cannot control its own borders…It comes down to this: we must take care of our own people first. Our policy to people born elsewhere should be clear: Enter by the law, or leave.”) — 2000 book, The America We Deserve
The world has a “Muslim problem,” because of all the Islamic terrorist attacks. — YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWzDAvemJG8)
“Look, if a nation can’t protect its own borders, it ceases to be a country.” … (“This wholesale abdication of a president’s constitutional duties is as shocking as it is foolish…Sacrificing American laws on the altar of political expediency is immoral.” –2011 book, Time to Get Tough
Cut the taxes.
Cut the spending.
Cut the regulations.
Cut the government.
Cut the debt.
Cut the EPA.
In The America We Deserve (2000), he attacked bureaucrats as “morons” and coined the term “buron” (a portmanteau of bureaucrat and moron).
Repeal ObamaCare.
Get the feds out and allow health insurance to be sold over state lines.
Trump entitled one of his chapters in Time to Get Tough (2011), “Repeal Obamacare.”
Send education back to states.
Get a handle on trade.
Make trade deals in our own best interests.
Bring back capital.
Bring back manufacturing.
Bring back jobs.
Strengthen the economy.
Rebuild the Reagan Coalition and attract blue collar workers by making America first again on manufacturing, trade, secure borders, economy and jobs.
He later went into this issue in much more depth in Time to Get Tough (2011) in his chapter on China, which especially criticized China for monetary devaluation that made their goods dirt cheap and our goods uncompetitive, costing us many manufacturing jobs. He wants to use leverage to renegotiate trade deals, with tariffs used as a last resort if certain foreign nations insist on taking advantage of us and refuse to negotiate fairer deals (“Open markets are the ideal, but if one guy is cheating the whole time, how is that free trade?”).
Defend the second amendment.
Lavished praise on mayors like Giuliani who cracked down on crime. This attitude was evidenced earlier in a 1988 full-page newspaper ad which called for hard anti-crime measures and a reinstatement of the death penalty in NY.
Defend religious freedom.
Appoint constitutional conservative judges.
Rebuild our military.
Bomb ISIS.
By 2000, he was for cracking down hard on terrorism, which he saw as a big growing threat. The threat of terrorism was a large focus of The America We Deserve. This was, of course, the book where he mentioned Osama Bin Ladin before 9/11.
In Time to Get Tough (2011), he wrote: “American interests come first. Always. No apologies.”
End political correctness.
Take the GOP head-on.
Take the media head-on.
Take the liberals head-on.
And win.
Redo the horrid Iran deal.
Take a serious look at NATO.
Require our allies to pay more for their defense.
In his 1987 newspaper ad he wrote: “Make Japan, Saudi Arabia, and others pay for the protection we extend our allies… ‘Tax’ these wealthy nations, not America. End our huge deficits, reduce our taxes, and let America’s economy grow unencumbered by the cost of defending those who can easily afford to pay us for the defense of their freedom”—a statement entirely consistent with his current stance on NATO and foreign affairs in general.
— http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3421864/posts#comment
I don’t see anywhere that he comes across as espousing a dictatorship or authoritarian rule. His personality may imply it, though.
A Trump presidency is survivable, A Clinton one, probably not. Unless you really want to see a Republic based upon law and the Constitution, individual liberty and freedom of thought set in a open economy disappear. The choice is clear. It ain’t a pleasant choice but sometimes you have to take your medicine even if it tastes bad.
Nevertrump equals AlwaysHillary. Only a drooling fool fails to understand that.
NeverTrump warned everyone months in advance of that. People supported him in the primaries and nominated him anyway. We weren’t going to change our minds, and the Trump supporters knew it. They spit in our face and called us the vilest of names. They insulted and degraded and spread brazen lies about our various candidates. They boasted they could do it without us.
Well, now they have to. They made their bed, they can sleep in it. Time to make good on the boasting. Donald Trump is now the new face of the GOP. NeverTrump will vote their conscience, however futile, and is prepared to deal with the fallout of a Clinton presidency.
Are the Trump supporters? Because, what they may not realize is: they pretty much guaranteed it.
Voting for Trump equals AlwaysGovernmentGrowth. Only a person of average-or-below intelligence fails to understand that.
If you need it explained to you, see above.
I’m pretty sure there’s only 2 possible outcomes so if you’re against the person Hillary, I’m a democrat and have the welfare/criminal/deadbeat/illegal invader “votes”, is running against, I guess you’d like to see the end of this country in 2 or 3 years.
Obama already flushed the 1.6 gallon government toilet and all it will take is that lying corrupt POS flushing it a 2nd time (it’s a government toilet so of course it doesn’t work the first time)…and she can’t wait. They may be incompetent but even a democrat knows how to flush a toilet.
Not to mention, have you seen Trump’s wife and daughter?
Who would you rather look at?
Ivanka 2016!!11!!
Trump wants free markets and to punish big business while creating high paying union manufacturing jobs and sticking it to Wall St and corporations.
It’ll be interesting to see which of those ends up under the bus because they can’t all happen.
Anyway, I think Trump is a horrible human being, but as a President, I figure he’ll actually be mediocre – somewhere between Nixon and Bush 41. And aside from wage and price controls, I liked most of what Nixon did.
Upside… he’s comedy gold. He’s like a real-life version of Frank’s Bush 43. We may have to bring back In My World.
And Keln – you can post whatever you want about Trump, as long as you don’t claim you speak for the other authors. Which you didn’t, so I’m happy.
Oh, also, I get to accuse you of being in the pocket of Big Hair…
lol
Republicans need to remember they are the party of open markets not big business.
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