Author: Ronald

American History Since The Civil War: President’s Party Loses 32 House Seats And 2 Senate Seats In First Midterm Election

Ronald 5 Comments

American history tells us that the party of the President regularly loses seats in the first, and all but once in the second (when it occurs) Presidential term of office.

The one major exception was 1934, when in the midst of the Great Depression, and FDR’s New Deal programs, the Democratic party gained 9 seats in the Senate and 9 seats in the House of Representatives.

Also, in 2002, after September 11, George W. Bush and the Republican Party gained 2 seats in the Senate and 8 in the House of Representatives.

And Bill Clinton and the Democratic Party, in the second term midterm election in 1998, gained 5 House seats, with no change in the US Senate.

That is the total historical record since the Civil War, more than 150 years, so it is clear that the Democrats will gain seats in the midterm elections of 2018.

The average since the Civil War is 32 House seats and 2 Senate seats, and if that happens precisely, the Democrats will have gained the House, needing only 24 seats, and the average historically being 23 seats, when one includes both first and second term midterm elections of a President.

But also, if the Senate were to see just the 2 seat gain as the average, then the Democrats would have the majority with 51 seats, which can be brought about by gaining the contested seats of Arizona, where Jeff Flake is retiring, and Nevada, where Dean Heller is seen as the most endangered Republican in 2018.

But to accomplish that, the Democrats must produce, miraculously. the retention of Senate seats in 10 Trump states in 2016–Missouri, North Dakota, Indiana, Montana, West Virginia, Florida, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio, and also retain the Minnesota seat recently vacated by Al Franken, and the New Jersey Senate seat of Bob Menendez, who faces another criminal trial after a hung jury. That will be a tall order for sure!

The Fifty States And Educational Levels

Ronald 2 Comments

A new 2018 survey of education in the 50 states reveals the following:

The top ten states are found in New England and the Middle Atlantic states primarily–with Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont and New Hampshire in New England; Maryland, New Jersey and Virginia in the Middle Atlantic area, with Virginia greatly influenced by the educational level of its Northern Virginia suburbs outside of Washington, DC; and also the states of Minnesota in the Midwest, Colorado in the Rocky Mountain West, and Washington State on the Pacific Coast. All of these top ten states were Democratic states in 2016.

States, including California, Florida and Texas rank lower on educational attainment because of large numbers of immigrants with lower accomplishments due to language barriers, but are rated higher in quality of education ranking. New York, Illinois, Delaware, Oregon and Hawaii are among the states which are ranked in the second ten best states, all Democratic states in 2016.

Meanwhile, the ten lowest states in educational levels are all Southern States, except for Nevada, Oklahoma and New Mexico—Mississippi, West Virginia, Louisiana, Arkansas, Alabama, Kentucky, and Tennessee, not at all surprising. All of these ten were Republican states in 2016, except for Nevada and New Mexico.

Notice that the higher educated states are “Blue”, while the lower educated states are “Red”, and this is the basic split within the nation–the educated vs the poorly educated.

Women, President Trump, And The Republican Party

Ronald Leave a comment

President Trump and the Republican Party have stirred women of all ages and backgrounds to “Fire and Fury”, the title of the Michael Wolff book on the first year of the Trump Presidency.

By declaring war on abortion, and by his sexual behavior revealed in the Access Hollywood tape of 2006, and the Stormy Daniels revelations on Trump having an affair with her right after his wife Melania gave birth to Barron 11 years ago, Trump has gained the scorn of intelligent, educated women.

By working to undermine labor rights; ignoring sexual harassment and assault as an issue; and his war against immigration and civil rights, Trump and much of his party have undermined the future of the party of Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Eisenhower, and Reagan.

Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, and other leaders in the Republican Party have totally turned off women, who see the GOP as the “good old boys” network, and it is women who will lead the charge in the upcoming midterm Congressional elections.

Women who have any brains in their heads are fearful of Trump’s mental instability; of his control over nuclear weapons; and of the damage he and his party are planning against the Social Safety Net of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid; as well as the actions taken against the environment, consumers, health care, and education.

The second Women’s March in Washington DC and across the nation is galvanizing women to work to put the Democratic party in control in both houses of Congress and in the state legislatures, and more women are running for public office across the nation than at any time in American history.

The wrath and scorn of women will, hopefully, have a dramatic effect on American politics. 57 percent of women are supportive of Democrats, to 31 percent for Republicans, in a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll. And a Wall Street Journal Poll showed a majority of 20 percent of women favored Democrats, and 32 points among college educated women.

Millennials Surpass Baby Boomers In Numbers, And Are Solidly Anti Trump In Various Polls

Ronald Leave a comment

Millennials (those born from around 1978 to the early 2000s) have become the largest number of people in the population, surpassing Baby Boomers (those born from 1946 to 1964) in numbers, and indications are clear that they are solidly anti Trump in various polls.

The Baby Boomers were considered liberals and anti Vietnam War in the 1960s and 1970s, and yet now, many of them are among the most conservative in the nation, particularly in rural areas, where they tend to be heavily non college educated and alienated from racial and ethnic minorities.

But even the college educated Baby Boomers tend to be, as a group, much more oriented toward preservation of their Social Security and Medicare benefits, and less concerned about what happens to the younger generations, other their own families and friends.

This is a disconcerting situation, but adds to the general statement that when young, one tends to be more liberal and progressive, and when older, one becomes more conservative and right wing, and “territorial” in their views.

In the urban areas, Baby Boomers, much more diverse in religion, race, and ethnicity, are more likely to remain liberal and progressive.

It is time for the Millennials to speak up and get involved in the political system, as they will inherit the tragic circumstances of Donald Trump, and it will be up to them to return America to the social commitments and values of the younger Baby Boomers of the 1960s and 1970s.

Growing Evidence Of Many More Trump Staff And Advisers Facing Prosecution In Most Corrupt Administration In American History

Ronald 12 Comments

So far, only four people surrounding Donald Trump have been implicated in the scandals of the most corrupt President in American history, bar none.

But Robert Mueller is, after eight months, clearly investigating many others for various violations of the law in many different areas

So far, Paul Manafort, Rick Gates, George Papadopoulos, and Michael Flynn have been brought to legal action by the Special Counsel.

But there is growing evidence that many more Trump staff and advisers are facing prosecution, and soon.

Expect criminal prosecution of Attorney General Jeff Sessions; Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke; Environmental Protection Agency Head Scott Pruitt; former aide Stephen Bannon; Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin; Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross; White House Counselor Kelly Anne Conway; White House economist Gary Cohn; former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer; former White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus; among others. Some clearly will cooperate with Mueller to avoid prosecution or, at least, to have minimum liability legally.

But also expect Donald Trump, Jr; Ivanka Trump: Jared Kushner–Trump family children—to face legal problems, and possible indictment.

And racist, white supremacist, nativist aide Stephen Miller, will probably be shown to be engaged in illegal activities as well, a gut feeling on the part of the author, as Miller comes across as more of a sleaze ball than many.

And Donald Trump will not escape charges, and will be forced out of office for his various crimes–including potential charges of obstruction of justice, abuse of power, violation of the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, money laundering, treason, as well as the corruption involving payoffs to Stormy Daniels and other women he has engaged with in sex scandals.

And do not be surprised if his wife, Melania, the First Lady, becomes the first case of seeking a divorce from a sitting President, or even a former President.

Stephen Miller Needs To Be Kicked Out Of Trump Administration And Face Investigation, As He Is Most Dangerous Person Around Trump!

Ronald 13 Comments

Who would think a 32 year old bully, racist, white supremacist, and nativist, with the credentials of having been on the staff of former Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, and former Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions, would end up becoming in many ways the most dangerous person around Donald Trump?

This blogger and author is referring to Stephen Miller, a disgrace to the Jewish people and religion, who has somehow become the center of the debate over immigration, and is helping to push the President toward extremism on many issues, including immigration and civil rights.

Miller was brought up in a liberal leaning Jewish family in Santa Monica, California, with his mother’s family having escaped from Belarus in the early 20th century, coming to America as non English speaking immigrants who achieved the “American Dream”, that now Miller wishes to deny immigrants from Latin America and from the Middle Eastern nations, including Muslims, and Africa.

In high school, Miller showed intolerance, as he promoted right wing conservatism, including the extremism of National Rifle Association spokesman Wayne La Pierre, and spoke on right wing talk radio as young as 16 years of age. He stirred controversy as he promoted white supremacist views in high school and at Duke University. He had a constant confrontational attitude, and befriended white supremacist Richard Spencer and right wing propagandist David Horowitz, another Jewish public figure who had once been on the left, and then became connected to the Far Right, and has promoted attacks on academic freedom of left leaning college professors.

Miller helped future Virginia Congressman David Brat defeat House Majority Leader Eric Cantor in 2014, and went to work for the Trump campaign early in 2016, and became the warmup speaker for many Trump campaign rallies, and helped to write Trump’s speech accepting the Republican National Convention nomination for President. He became a senior adviser to the White House, connecting himself closely to Stephen Bannon, but has lately separated himself from Bannon, since Bannon left the White House staff and was shown to have given ammunition against Trump in the recently published Michael Wolff blockbuster book, FIRE AND FURY, which has become a best seller. Miller remains closely allied with Trump son in law Jared Kushner, who also looks more outrageous and objectionable on a daily basis, and may be involved in Trump Administration corruption.

Miller helped to write the controversial Inauguration speech of Donald Trump, and has made controversial and confrontational statements on various Sunday news shows, including that the President had absolute authority and “will not be questioned”. He confronted Jim Acosta of CNN about immigration, at a White House appearance in which Miller defended travel bans against Muslims and the promotion of limiting immigration from various parts of the world, against many nations. Most recently, he became combative against Jake Tapper of CNN, and was cut off by the host, and then refused to leave, and was escorted out by security guards.

Stephen Miller is a racist, nativist, white supremacist, all despite the fact of his Jewish heritage, and he is a disgrace, and needs to be kicked out of the Trump Administration and face investigation in the Trump scandals, as Robert Mueller is in the process of doing.

He is clearly the most dangerous person around Trump now, influencing Trump to the point of the present government shutdown, preventing any protection of “Dreamers”, the immigrant children who were protected under the DACA program, but now face deportation to nations they know nothing about, but where they were born before being brought to America as children.

Miller is a peddler of hate, who needs his comeuppance, and should never again be allowed to be interviewed on any news program, unless and until he apologizes for his misbehavior, which most assuredly will never happen.

The thought that comes to mind is that Stephen Miller is the equivalent of Roy Cohn to Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin, infamous for the Red Scare of the 1950s, or Rasputin, the adviser to Czar Nicholas II of Russia, before the Russian Revolution of 1917. In other words, Miller is an evil and dangerous force, who needs to have his rapid gaining of power taken away from him now!

Alan Dershowitz Supports Donald Trump, While Laurence Tribe Warns Of Danger He Presents: Why The Split Over Trump?

Ronald Leave a comment

Alan Dershowitz is a renowned law professor, and so is Laurence Tribe.

But Dershowitz sees Donald Trump as not having done anything that is impeachable, while Tribe has said that Trump could be impeached or indicted while in office, and is a danger to the Republic.

How can two renowned Harvard Law School professors have diametrically opposite views of Constitutional Law?

One could say that any two experts can disagree on constitutional matters, since there can be honest differences of viewpoint.

But when one looks closer at the two men’s careers, one can start to understand that Dershowitz has long been a gadfly, who often seems to revel in publicity and attention, even if it is based on notoriety. He has often been involved in major controversies, and in many ways, he is the Donald Trump of the legal profession, a real character who has elements of egotism and narcissism in his basic DNA.

On the other hand, Laurence Tribe has had a distinguished respectable career speaking up for progressive values, but avoiding the constant limelight that Alan Dershowitz revels in on a regular basis.

When the history of the Trump Presidency is written in the future, Alan Dershowitz will not look credible and respectable, but Laurence Tribe will have dignity and principle as the basis of his entire life.

January 20 Presidential Inauguration Days

Ronald 3 Comments

Since 1937, as a result of the 20th Amendment to the Constitution, we have had the President of the United States inaugurated every fourth year, so there have been 21 such inaugurations from 1937 to 2017.

Every President since Franklin D. Roosevelt, with the exception of Gerald Ford, has been inaugurated on January 20 since 1937. So 13 Presidents have had the excitement of inauguration at the US Capitol before crowds of varying sizes.

The greatest inauguration crowd was in 2009, when Barack Obama took the oath of office for the first time, and this author and blogger was fortunate enough to have been at his inauguration with his older son, and a video of that experience is on the right side of this blog.

The electricity in the crowd in 2009 was special, as it was in 1961, when the youngest elected President, John F. Kennedy, was inaugurated, and gave one of the top three inaugural addresses in American history, after Abraham Lincoln in 1865 and Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933, both on the original Inauguration Day of March 4.

In 1941, FDR was sworn in to an unprecedented third term in the Presidency, and in 1949, Harry Truman was sworn in after shocking America with his surprise victory over Thomas E. Dewey, something no one other than Truman himself, expected to occur.

In 1965, Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in after the greatest popular vote percentage victory in all of American history.

In 1973, Richard Nixon was sworn in for his second term, with no former President present, as Lyndon B. Johnson was not feeling well enough to attend, and then his passing two days later, at age 64.

And in 1977, Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale were sworn in as President and Vice President, with no one able to know that 41 years later, today, that they were both alive and in their 90s, and flourishing.

And in 1981, former movie actor and California Governor Ronald Reagan was sworn in, and at the same time, 52 Americans who had been held hostage in Iran were freed.

So January 20 has had its historic moments, including Donald Trump taking the oath exactly a year ago, after a much smaller crowd to witness, and followed by a Woman’s March the next day.

On First Anniversary Of Inauguration, Donald Trump Causes Shutdown Of Government, Which Will Destroy His Presidency In American History!

Ronald 4 Comments

Here we are on the first anniversary of the Trump Presidency, and the government is shut down, due to Donald Trump’s destroying any chance of a deal on immigration, after having had a televised meeting at the White House on Tuesday, January 9, and claiming he would sign any bill that came to his desk.

Two days later, Trump had changed his mind, and used the term “Shit Hole”, to describe people from the continent of Africa and from Haiti and El Salvador.

So this shutdown is clearly on the desk of Donald Trump, who has claimed “The Art of the Deal”, but in effect, has done for the government what he did in his businesses six times, going bankrupt.

This disaster, occurring when the Republican Party controls both houses of Congress and the White House, is unprecedented, and it will cause the GOP to lose control of both houses of Congress in November at the midterm elections.

The right thing for Donald Trump to do is to resign, and today would be an appropriate time to do so.

Instead, Donald Trump is tweeting this morning, complaining about his inability to go to his estate in Palm Beach, and celebrate the anniversary of his inauguration, therefore breaking yet another promise to people who were told that they would get the opportunity to meet the President and have a picture with him this evening.

But what is new, as Trump always promises and then fails to follow through, as he is a massive liar.

Here is a man who seemed to understand the torment “Dreamers”, the children brought to America illegally by their parents but knowing no other nation, were facing, but really, he could not give a damn, and neither could his hard hearted, cold followers, many of whom have done nothing for the nation, and live off government welfare in the heartland of the nation, and are simply racists and nativists. They contribute nothing to the nation except hatred and prejudice, and one wishes there was a way to deport them, and make citizens of the “Dreamers”, who have not personally broken the law and have contributed to the nation in so many ways, including being in the military.

So the quandary of these “Dreamers” continues, and the CHIP (Children’s Health Insurance Program) is suspended for this moment, as the flu rages throughout the nation.

And the Opioid Crisis worsens without action, and the need for infrastructure continues, and the government is put into further chaos, as government workers and services in many areas comes to a halt.

This anniversary will be always remembered, and will further stain the Presidency of Donald Trump, and one can only hope and pray that Donald Trump will be forced out of office in 2018, as how much more can this nation tolerate?

The Trump Presidency will go down in history as the worst of all time, as his Presidency’s reputation has been destroyed yet further by this government shutdown, which may last a long time.

A Year Of Donald Trump: A Horror And A Nightmare!

Ronald 3 Comments

I published on Sunday a summary article on the first year of Donald Trump at History News Network–historynewsnetwork.org. I have published regularly on Donald Trump on History News Network, and some of those articles have been picked up also by Time Magazine and Newsweek Magazine, and all of those articles are on the right side of my blog.

A day before the anniversary of the inauguration, I will summarize here the points that I made in that article:

Donald Trump has been a nightmare, and his unpredictability, and the refusal of the Republican Party to come to grips with it, has created a constitutional crisis greater than the Watergate Scandal under Richard Nixon 45 years ago.

Donald Trump has demonstrated clear authoritarian leanings that endanger all Americans and their basic freedoms and national security.

Donald Trump has undermined the judicial branch of government. with his attacks on an independent judiciary, and his appointments of unqualified people to lifetime positions on the federal district courts and federal circuit courts.

Donald Trump has assaulted the Bill of Rights, and is a threat to the civil rights and civil liberties of African Americans, Latino Americans, Native Americans, women, gay and transgender Americans, and members of the news media who dare to investigate and question his white supremacist, nativist, racist, and misogynistic utterances and policies.

He has connected himself to dictators and authoritarians in nations like Russia, China, Turkey, Egypt, and the Philippines, and in the tradition of such past regimes as Nazi Germany , Fascist Italy, and the Soviet Union.

Donald Trump has pursued policies that threaten and undermine the domestic reforms of Presidents from both political parties from the time of Theodore Roosevelt onward, endangering the Social Safety Network of Social Security. Medicare, and Medicaid, and government regulation of industry and big business, and oversight of key problems involving the environment, consumer safety, labor protections, health care, and science and education.

Donald Trump has given us the most corrupt and incompetent cabinet and advisers , making the shortcomings of Ulysses S. Grant, Warren G. Harding, and Richard Nixon pale in comparison. There is no sense of ethics, commitment, scruples, or compassion on the part of Trump and his team, but only with the advancement of the top one percent, over the needs of millions of ordinary people.

Trump’s family has become in one year more controversial, and lacking in ethics and morals, than any Presidential family in history, with the aim seeming to be a family dynasty with no limit on their lust for money and power.

Donald Trump has undermined foreign policy and international relations, alienating our allies, and consorting with dictators all over the world. He has declared war on the diplomatic community, the national security apparatus, and the intelligence agencies that are out to protect American national security. He has been reckless in his dealings with North Korea, Iran, Pakistan, Cuba, Venezuela, Mexico, and with the Middle East cauldron. He has alienated our allies, including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada, Australia, Japan, and South Korea with his weird, unpredictable behavior.

Donald Trump’s narcissism, ignorance of history and science, obnoxious behavior and incessant lying make him a terrible model for the future generation of Americans, who used to be able to look up the President of the United States as someone they could respect.

These reasons are justification for action to remove Donald Trump from the Presidency, whether by impeachment, use of the 25th Amendment, or forced resignation after indictments of family members and top advisers by Robert Mueller’s investigation.