Author: Ronald

Former Illinois Congressman Joe Walsh As Challenger To Donald Trump

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Suddenly, with time short, Donald Trump is starting to gain opposition to his nomination for a second term as President.

Former Governor William Weld of Massachusetts, who was the Libertarian Vice Presidential nominee in 2016, announced months ago, with little to show for it, as polls indicate 85-90 percent of Republicans are ready to back Trump.

Weld is at least seen as a “legitimate” candidate, but now we have others who are much more right wing than Weld, and lack credibility as national candidates, who are emerging.

Already, former South Carolina Governor and former Congressman Mark Sanford, he of the sex scandal that forced him out of the Governorship a decade ago, saying he might join.

And now, this past weekend, we have a definite challenger, but of no greater reputation, former one term Illinois Congressman Joe Walsh, of Tea Party fame, who was a believer in the “birther” theory used against Barack Obama, and spewed poison and hate in his one two year term, followed by defeat and retirement to a career as a talk show host.

Walsh was reckless and confrontational in his one term, and came across as a mean spirited and nasty Congressman, with a record of driving on a suspended license, and failure to pay child support, and using racist and sexist language, often considered “a loose cannon”. And he supported Donald Trump in 2016, but now has regrets for that and has apologized and expressed regret on his treatment of Barack Obama.

The fact that Walsh is willing to attack Trump, and tell the truth about him as a horrendous man and President is great, but his own record and background, despite his trying to make amends now in 2019, make him suspect as someone to fully trust.

This is not a way to revive Republican fortunes, to consider Mark Sanford or Joe Wash as legitimate alternatives, when the real alternatives, as suggested in an earlier blog entry last week, would be Jon Huntsman or John Kasich.

The only good thing about Walsh is that he might, somewhat, convince a small number of Republican voters to abandon Trump, and weaken him enough that he will not win reelection. Any effort in that regard is certainly welcome.

And Walsh made an important statement, when he said that young people, women, and suburbanites were totally alienated from Trump. Let us hope that as if they are, in mass numbers, against Trump, and one adds African Americans, Latino Americans, Asian Americans, Jewish Americans, college educated people, and those that possess compassion and empathy towards the victims of Donald Trump, then we will be liberated from the cancer of Donald Trump.

Reflecting On The Age Issue Over Next Decade

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America is faced with many crises, but one not much paid attention to is the Age issue.

We are seeing more people in government who are reaching their 70s and 80s, and that is a worrisome trend.

Certainly, people in their 70s and 80s can be active, engaged, constructive, as this author, in his mid 70s is, as an adjunct college professor, lecturer, author, blogger, contributor of articles on history and politics, and participant on radio shows about history and politics.

But this author is NOT making government policy, and is not facing the daunting challenges of dealing with a multitude of challenges in domestic and foreign policy, that affects and will continue to affect hundreds of millions of Americans, and seven billion people worldwide.

We see Donald Trump in his mid 70s, showing signs of craziness and dementia. We see Joe Biden, who this author loves, not quite as swift and alert as he seeks the Presidency. We see Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren both seemingly very alert and energetic, but reaching 79 and 71 by January 20, 2021, both older than Trump when he was elected, and with Biden reaching 78 by Inauguration Day 2021.

We see the top three Democrats in leadership in the House of Representatives all nearing 80 in the next couple of years, including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, and the same with Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. There are about four Senators over 80 already, and Dianne Feinstein was elected at 85 in 2018, to serve another six year term to age 91. And at least two Senators will be added to that list over 80 in the next few years.

We have two Supreme Court Justices, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer, who are 86 and 81, and their refusal to leave years ago has created the possibility of an extreme right wing Court if Donald Trump wins reelection.

There has to be recognition of the need for younger generations to inherit power, and for older generations to accept that their time has passed.

Donald Trump Destroying International Relations

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Donald Trump is now at the G-7 Summit in France, and is totally upending international relations, as he has been doing for two and a half years.

He has promoted a trade war against China, which will destroy the international economy, and cause a worldwide depression.

He has threatened France on trade as well.

He has been belligerent toward Denmark over the issue of Greenland acquisition, totally preposterous.

He has ignored the missile tests of Kim Jong Un of North Korea, undermining the security of South Korea and Japan.

He has embraced the crazy British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is much like him, and is in process of destroying the United Kingdom, which has existed since the Act of Union in 1714.

He has proposed that the G-7 readmit Russia, even though Putin invaded Crimea, taking part of the Ukraine away in 2014, the reason for Russia being expelled.

He accepts the Brazilian government of Jair Bolsonaro ignoring the Amazon fire disaster, which undermines the environment for the entire planet.

He is working to provoke a war against Iran, and yet trusts the Saudi Arabian government of Mohammed bin Salman, which killed the journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Clearly, Donald Trump is a threat to the international order in so many ways, embracing authoritarians and rebuking democratic allies we have had since World War II!

Two Presidents (John Tyler And Richard Nixon)Who Could Have Faced Prosecution, And Then Donald Trump

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Two past Presidents could have faced prosecution, and now, Donald Trump faces the likelihood of prosecution when he leaves the Presidency.

John Tyler, (1841-1845), gave up his US citizenship when he declared his loyalty to the Confederate States of America in 1861 at the beginning of the Civil War. He became a member of the Provisional Confederate Congress in that year, voted for secession at the Virginia Secession Convention, and was elected to the Confederate House of Representatives, but died in February 1862 before the opening session of that legislative body.

Had he lived through the Civil War, Tyler might have faced treason charges, and be forced to face trial and possible conviction and imprisonment. As it was, the US government did not officially recognize his passing, and the flag did not fly at half staff, as it has for every Presidential death and funeral, except for Tyler. He was buried with a Confederate flag, rather than an American flag, over his casket

Richard Nixon (1969-1974) was the second President who could have faced prosecution and possible conviction and imprisonment as someone who had obstructed justice and abused power, and engaged in massive corruption in office. The fact of his resignation in August 1974 did not bar that possibility, but his successor, President Gerald Ford pardoned him from any prosecution in September 1974, a factor in Ford’s failure to be elected to a full term in 1976.

The obstruction of justice and abuse of power of Nixon has been revived due to the tumult surrounding the possible impeachment moves by Democrats in the House of Representatives against Donald Trump. By comparison, many observers see Nixon as not as evil as Trump.

Donald Trump will likely face prosecution when he leaves office in 2021, although if he wins a second term, he would likely prevent such action by the statute of limitations on prosecution. Of course, he could also be pardoned from any prosecution by a future President, so one has to wonder if Trump will be held accountable for Russian collusion, obstruction of justice, and abuse of power, crimes seen by his critics as far worse than anything Nixon or Tyler did in the Presidency.

Journalism Keeps Us Free And Informed: Pulitzer Prizes In Journalism And Abusive Government In Conflict

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In the midst of a massive attack on the free press by Donald Trump and his supporters, it is instructive to look at the role of major newspapers in informing the American people and keeping us free.

This is the record of the history of the Pulitzer Prizes in Journalism, the top eleven recipients over more than a century:

New York Times–127

Washington Post–47

Los Angeles Times–45

Wall Street Journal–37

Chicago Tribune–27

Boston Globe–26

Miami Herald–22

St. Louis Post Dispatch–19

Atlanta Journal Constitution–17

Des Moines Register–17

Baltimore Sun–15

Five of these newspapers are in the Northeast; Two in the Southeast; Three in the Midwest; and One on the Pacific Coast.

399 Pulitzer Prizes for the top eleven Newspapers in America!

“The Truth Shall Set You Free!”

The free press will outlive the threat of Donald Trump, as it has for other government leaders, most notably Richard Nixon, who have criticized the truth telling and revelations of the top news media!

Donald Trump, AntiSemite, Shows Through Statement About Disloyalty Of Jews Who Vote Democratic, As They Always Have

Ronald 8 Comments

Donald Trump revealed his antiSemitic views yesterday, exasperated that 75 to 80 percent of American Jews consistently vote Democratic, accusing them of disloyalty to the nation, a typical antiSemitic trope long used against Jews throughout history.

This man, who said there were “good people on both sides” in Charlottesville, where white supremacist young men chanted that “The Jews will not replace us”, and who David Duke and Richard Spencer rave about, since his white supremacist views have continued to evolve, even after the El Paso and Dayton Massacres, cannot understand why Jews are Democrats.

American Jews are Democrats because they are promoters of Social Justice and progressive causes, and many of them are troubled by Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel’s policies toward Palestinians, as Israel pursues a policy of denying basic human rights to them, undermining good will internationally towards Israel,

The fact that Netanyahu has not denounced Trump over this antiSemitic trope is troubling, and causes a chasm between American Jews and many Israelis.

American Jews voted 79 percent for Democrats in Congress in 2018, and American Jews have always voted in vast majorities of at least 60 percent since the early 20th century, with the exception of 1920. The lowest otherwise was Woodrow Wilson in 1916, John W. Davis in 1924, Jimmy Carter in 1980,and Walter Mondale in 1984, but with Davis and Carter having a progressive challenger on the left who took substantial percentages of the vote.

Here are the stats:

1916–Woodrow Wilson 55 percent

1920–Eugene Debs (Socialist) 38 percent behind Warren G. Harding (R) 43 percent and James Cox (D) 19 percent

1924–John W. Davis 51 percent with Robert La Follette Sr (Progressive) 22 percent and Calvin Coolidge (R) 27 percent.

1928–Alfred E. Smith 72 percent

1932–Franklin D. Roosevelt 82 percent

1936 FDR 85 percent

1940 FDR 90 percent

1944 FDR 90 percent

1948 Harry Truman 75 percent and Henry A. Wallace (Progressive) 15 percent and Thomas E. Dewey (R) 10 percent

1952 Adlai Stevenson 64 percent

1956 Stevenson 60 percent

1960 John F. Kennedy 82 percent

1964 Lyndon B Johnson 90 percent

1968 Hubert Humphrey 81 percent

1972 George McGovern 65 percent

1976 Jimmy Carter 71 percent

1980 Carter 45 percent, Ronald Reagan (R) 39 percent John Anderson (Independent) 15 percent

1984 Walter Mondale 57 percent

1988 Michael Dukakis 64 percent

1992 Bill Clinton 80 percent

1996 Clinton 78 percent

2000 Al Gore 79 percent

2004 John Kerry 76 percent

2008 Barack Obama 78 percent

2012 Obama 69 percent

2016 Hillary Clinton 71 percent

Notice that progressives who were not Democrats—Eugene Debs in 1920, Robert La Follette Sr in 1924, Henry A. Wallace in 1948, and John Anderson in 1980—took substantial number of votes away from the Democratic Presidential nominee.

So with those exceptions, Democrats have won 60 percent or more of the Jewish vote since FDR onward, except for Jimmy Carter in a three way race in 1980 and Walter Mondale and 57 percent against the landslide of Ronald Reagan in 1984.

The Facts: Net Job Creation From George H. W. Bush To Donald Trump, Democrats Dominating!

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If one looks at net job creation in America since 1989, the facts are as follows:

George H. W. Bush—2.64 million (1989-1993)

Bill Clinton—22.91 million (1993-2001)

George W. Bush–1.36 million (2001-2009)

Barack Obama–11.62 million (2009-2017)

Donald Trump—5.74 million (2017-2019)

This is a total of 34.5 million net jobs created over thirty years.

The Republican Presidents controlled the government for 14.5 years, while the Democrats controlled for 16 years.

The two Democratic Presidents presided over net gain of 34.5 million, to the three Republican Presidents presiding over net gain of 9.7 million.

So Democratic Presidents were responsible for nearly three and a half times net job creation as Republicans were, a massive lead

Barack Obama has greater job creation in his last 30 months, more than Donald Trump in his first 30 months.

And now, a recession is coming, after more than ten years, an all time record for economic expansion, and therefore, the Trump total will probably, by the end of his term, be much smaller, maybe less than George W. Bush, who brought us the worst economic times since Herbert Hoover!

Age Distribution Of America’s Presidents

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At a time when we have a more massive difference in ages of Presidential contenders than we have ever had in American history, this would be a good time to look at the history of the age distribution of America’s Presidents.

At this time, Democratic Presidential contenders range from age 37 to 77, with Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders at opposite ends, and with them being 39 years and one day old and 79 years and four months old, respectively, on Inauguration Day in 2021.

Of America’s 44 Presidents, nine ranged from age 42 (Theodore Roosevelt) to age 49 (James K. Polk). Now, we could have a President who would be younger than TR or the youngest elected President, John F. Kennedy, in Pete Buttigieg or Tulsi Gabbard, who would be both 39 when taking the oath, making them the youngest President in American history.

Twenty four Presidents have been in their 50s, ranging from Millard Fillmore at age 50 to James Monroe at age 58, and with other Founding Father Presidents James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, and George Washington all 57, along with John Quincy Adams, all coming close to the average age of 55 historically. Five Presidents have been age 54; four have been 55; and 3 have been 56. while five were 51 years of age.

Eleven Presidents were 60 up to 70 and a half years of age, ranging from Harry Truman at age 60 to Ronald Reagan age 69 (just 19 days short of 70) and Donald Trump, at 70 years and about seven months. This list, however, includes Truman and Gerald Ford, who succeeded to the Presidency, and were not elected at the age they came in, about a month and a half apart in age at ages 60 and 61 respectively.

And five of these eleven were 60-62 years of age, leaving only six being age 64 and higher at inauguration, with Zachary Taylor and William Henry Harrison dying in office; Ronald Reagan believed to have developed Alzheimers in his second term; George H. W. Bush having major health issues in office, although he lived to be 94; and Donald Trump, believed by many to have mental health issues. Only James Buchanan, rated by most historians as the worst President, at least until Donald Trump, seems to have had no major issues other than his general incompetence at age 65 to 69 in office.

Now the likelihood of an older President in his or her 70s comes to the forefront, at the same time that we could have one of the youngest Presidents ever, if not the youngest, with Julian Castro and Beto O’Rourke among those who are in their 40s.

This is food for thought, as to what is the best direction for America in 2020!

Need For A Challenger To Donald Trump In Republican Party–But Jon Huntsman Or John Kasich, NOT Mark Sanford!

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It is past time for some legitimate Republican to challenge Donald Trump, and attempt to save the Republican party brand.

As much as former Governor William Weld of Massachusetts is attempting such a challenge, he is not strong enough, or well known enough, to have any real chance.

The only legitimate challengers would be the two best in the 2012 and 2016 Presidential sweepstakes—Jon Huntsman, former Utah Governor, Ambassador to China under Barack Obama, and now resigning as Ambassador to Russia under Donald Trump; and former Ohio Governor and long term Congressman John Kasich.

The idea that former South Carolina Governor and former Congressman Mark Sanford might run is not a realistic or worthwhile endeavor, as Sanford had a sex scandal a decade ago that forced him out of the Governorship, and he is no model for Presidential leadership skills and ability, which at least William Weld does have.

Huntsman or Kasich would be a realistic alternative for conservatives who are appalled by Donald Trump in every way possible!

Kentucky, The State With The Two Worst Senators, But Appealing To Racism Of White Working Class And Poor, And Remaining In Office

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Kentucky is one of the bottom ten states in economic statistics, and its two United States Senators are probably the worst combination of Senators of any state.

Kentucky is a state of many poor whites in Appalachia, with very meager education, if any beyond high school, and resentful of minorities advancing, although they are a smaller percentage than most states. Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul have exploited the fears of their ignorant, poorly educated white population to stay in power, and do absolutely nothing for their citizenry.

Only Louisville, the home of the late Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, and Lexington, with the University of Kentucky, have any signs of interest in progress beyond the exploitation of fear of the federal government. And yet, if left up to them, McConnell and Paul would cut and destroy Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, as well as mining laws that protect workers.

And Matt Bevin, an extreme right wing conservative, and wealthy businessman in the tradition of Donald Trump, managed to be elected in 2015, and faces reelection this November. Kentucky has only had three Republican governors since World War II, but one can be sure Trump will campaign among gullible poor whites, and stoke fear of minorities and of “socialism”, the programs of the New Deal and Great Society that keep these people above water, although barely.

Kentucky will have its gubernatorial election in November, with Andy Beshear, the son of the previous Governor, Steve Beshear, and presently Attorney General of the state, trying to defeat a governor considered close to the worst in the nation. Let us hope that he succeeds, as his father was considered an outstanding governor.