Iowa Caucuses

Time Has Arrived For Americans To Show They Will NOT Tolerate Donald Trump, Even If They Like Being At Rallies Of A Reality Star!

Ronald 3 Comments

Finally, the beginning of voting for President has arrived, with the Iowa Caucuses tomorrow, and the New Hampshire Primary a week from Tuesday the first indications of what the American people, or at least those who vote, are thinking.

Who would have thought that, seven and a half months since Reality Start Donald Trump announced for President, that he would be leading in Republican polls for the Presidency?

This reality is against the record of Donald Trump, which shows he has no principles at all, except his own aggrandizement!

He thinks the Presidency is a Reality TV show, and it is time for the American people, and particularly the Republicans, to show that they have not totally self destructed, and given in to the appeal of a racist, nativist, misogynist, and an immoral, unethical, ignorant person who would be a total disaster for the party and the nation, were he to win the nomination and occupy the Oval Office next January 20!

If Trump were to win the White House, we would have a full fledged Fascist in office, endangering the Constitution and American democratic values, so he must be prevented from making us wish for George W. Bush or Richard Nixon as an alternative!

Being at a campaign rally for a Reality TV star is one thing, but electing such a despicable human being as Donald Trump to the Presidency is something totally different!

Major Mystery: The Lack Of Traction Of Former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley’s Presidential Candidacy

Ronald 9 Comments

As we await the beginning of actual voting next week and after that, a major mystery remains.

Why did former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley turn out to be a total dud as a candidate?

O’Malley was one of the best Governors in America during his eight years in that position, and he had the charisma, good looks, and youth, that one would have thought that he would be a serious challenger to Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, and others of the “older generation.”

After the experience of the “younger generation” backing John F. Kennedy in 1960; Jimmy Carter in 1976; Bill Clinton in 1992; and Barack Obama in 2008, one would have thought that O’Malley would have similar appeal, and without being the first Catholic nominee; the first Southerner since 1848; a flawed candidate with a sex scandal from a small Southern state; and a mixed race African American with little national experience to deal with!

And yet, it was a candidate even older than Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden–Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont—with his declaration that he was a Democratic Socialist; was an Independent who only became a party member when he announced for President; and with a New York Jewish background (not necessarily a plus across the nation), who became the favorite of newer voters, younger voters (under 45), and those who would be thought to prefer someone closer to their age and from a larger and more significant state (Maryland) than Vermont represents.

The lack of traction of O’Malley remains a deep mystery, and one wonders if his run this year will give him an upper hand, despite it being a total flop, if the Democrats lose the Presidency in 2016.

Could it be the beginning of the rise on top of the disaster, if it occurs, of a Democratic defeat this year?

Certainly, no one in their right mind who is a progressive, wishes for failure this year to lead to success later!

But sometimes, repudiation now leads to success later!

Donald Trump Is An Ignoramus On Public Issues, And Refusal To Debate Should Eliminate Him From Presidential Race!

Ronald 1 Comment

Donald Trump is a demagogue, buffoon, jerk, and a coward!

He is also an ignoramus, promising to make everything better, but giving absolutely no details!  He has no clue as to how diplomacy works, or how to deal with Congress and the news media!

He has no knowledge, no background, no depth, no diplomatic skills, and is only focused on his own narcissism.  He is a bully and a braggart who needs comeuppance!

Donald Trump is a danger to American democracy and the Constitution, as he struts like Benito Mussolini; promotes racism and nativism and scapegoating of whole populations of particular ethnic and religious groups; and is backed by the most extreme right wing fanatics and hate groups that exist in this nation!

Trump also praises the leadership skills of dictators, including Kim Jong Un of North Korea and Vladimir Putin of Russia as “models” to admire, making Trump dangerous as a sociopath!

Only those in public life who are “lowlifes” back him, as no decent person would consider putting a person with his lack of any experience in governing, in charge of the military and nuclear weapons!

This man has led an immoral, unethical life, with four bankruptcies and scandal all around him, and he and his wife would damage the image of the President and the First Lady and proper public behavior!

His refusal to debate in tonight’s seventh Republican Presidential debate in Iowa, due to his distaste for Fox News Channel’s Megyn Kelly, should disqualify him from the Presidency, as it is a hint that he might decide to forego Presidential debates in the fall, and that is something that is totally unacceptable!

Donald Trump should resign from the race if he does not show up tonight at the GOP debate, clear and simple!

If not, the voters, starting next week, should visit their repudiation of this narcissistic moron on him, and send him back to his real estate business pronto!

If Common Sense Reigned, John Kasich Would Be Republican Presidential Nominee! But Will He? Unlikely!

Ronald 12 Comments

We are in the midst of Republican candidates engaged in mud throwing and character assassination.

Donald Trump and Ted Cruz are bitterly engaged in this, but so are Marco Rubio with Jeb Bush, Chris Christie with Marco Rubio, and Carly Fiorina showing an ugly personality of arrogance and inability to tell the truth on anything.

Only one candidate, and a very qualified one, is avoiding the bloodbath going on, but will that mean that common sense will reign, and that Ohio Governor John Kasich will be the Republican Presidential nominee?

Kasich has moved up in New Hampshire, and has a chance to do very well there, while having just about zero chance in evangelical Republican Iowa.

No one matches John Kasich in his total government experience, his knowledge of national and state government, and his rational nature.

This is not saying that John Kasich is an ideal candidate, and most certainly, this blogger would not vote for him, but IF the nation should end up with a Republican President following Barack Obama, there is no better choice than John Kasich, of the candidates who are announced for President on the Republican side of the equation!

This blogger predicted on December 31 the likelihood that Marco Rubio would be the Presidential nominee, and that Kasich would be the Vice Presidential nominee.  That still seems to make sense, and Kasich being on the ticket at either end would be a plus for the GOP, as every Republican President who has ever been elected from Lincoln to George W. Bush has won Ohio, and note that Gerald Ford lost the full term for the Presidency in 1976, greatly due to the failure to defeat Jimmy Carter in Ohio.

So if common sense reigned, Kasich would be the nominee with the best chance to win, but will he?  Highly unlikely!

The Democratic Presidential Debate Did The Nation Proud!

Ronald 9 Comments

When compared to the Republican Presidential debates, last night’s Democratic Presidential debate was superb, and did the nation proud!

All three candidates—Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, and Martin O’Malley—were exceptional in their performance.

All three were civil, intelligent, comprehensive, and compassionate in their domestic and social agenda.

All three were balanced, reasonable, knowledgeable and measured in their statements on foreign policy issues.

Any of the three would be an outstanding President in the Oval Office.

Having said that, it seems to me that Bernie Sanders, already ahead in many public opinion polls in Iowa and New Hampshire, probably gained the most by his performance last night.

Hillary Clinton, however, held her own, and Martin O’Malley, who in any other year would be a likely front runner, looked good, but still, it is clear that his quest for the Presidency is a lost cause for 2016.

Bernie Sanders, By Poll Numbers, Has A Real Chance To Defeat Hillary Clinton In Both Iowa And New Hampshire!

Ronald 8 Comments

Hard to believe, but it looks increasingly possible that Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont COULD defeat Hillary Clinton in the Iowa Caucuses 20 days from now, and in the New Hampshire primary 28 days from today!

Latest polls show Bernie winning New Hampshire and in the margin of error in Iowa, an astounding situation.

Hillary is starting to sharpen her attacks on Bernie, and even Bernie, who has prided himself on running cordial campaigns against opponents, is starting to be more harsh and critical than he has ever been in past campaigns for the House of Representatives and US Senate!

Polls also show that in a theoretical matchup of Bernie and Donald Trump, that he would win in a landslide, while a matchup of Hillary and Trump, Hillary is only a few points ahead!

Who would think that a declared democratic Socialist would actually have more support than the former First Lady and even Donald Trump?

It is clear that the American electorate is very unhappy with the status quo, and that explains the growing support for Sanders, over one million people, and over 2.5 million individual donations, with the average contribution being about $27, and total contributions of $73 million, only a few million less than Hillary has been able to gain!

No one can say that American politics is boring, as it is ALWAYS interesting!

“Establishment” Republicans Are Handing The Presidential Nomination To Donald Trump Or Ted Cruz: Destruction Of The GOP In Process!

Ronald 8 Comments

The so called “Establishment” Republicans are rapidly destroying each other, and in effect, handing the nomination for President in 2016 to either Donald Trump or Ted Cruz, which insures the destruction of the GOP is in process, as neither has any chance of winning the Presidency.

Trump is a total charlatan and Cruz is a right wing ideologue who makes Barry Goldwater, the disastrous 1964 GOP nominee, look like a moderate by comparison!

But instead of uniting around one candidate, and giving up their own egos and lust for power, the four “Establishment” candidates—Jeb Bush, John Kasich, Marco Rubio, and Chris Christie—are attacking each other with a vengeance, which means it is likely that none of them will do better than third in Iowa and New Hampshire, and will destroy any chance of a more centrist candidate being selected!

Whatever one thinks of Scott Walker, Rick Perry, Bobby Jindal, Lindsey Graham, and George Pataki, they all saw reality, and decided to thin the field in an attempt to avoid the nomination of Trump or Cruz.

But it has not convinced anyone else to drop out, so it looks like gloom and doom for the GOP, with no chance to win the Presidency in 2016, and a good chance that they will lose the US Senate, and see their margin in the House of Representatives cut down dramatically in 2016!

Six Of Twelve Remaining Republican Presidential Candidates Should “Throw In The Towel” And Withdraw From Race!

Ronald Leave a comment

So we are now in 2016, and in four weeks, we have the Iowa Caucuses on February 1, and then on February 9, we have the New Hampshire Primary.

With four weeks to go until the first votes, we have 12 remaining candidates for the White House on the Republican side, but really, it is time for six of them to withdraw before the first vote, as there is zero chance of any of these six ending up as the GOP nominee for President:

Former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore

Former Senator Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania

Former Governor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas

Dr. Benjamin Carson

Carly Fiorina

Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky

The race comes down to Donald Trump; Senator Ted Cruz of Texas; Senator Marco Rubio of Florida; Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey; Governor John Kasich of Ohio; and former Governor Jeb Bush of Florida.

After Iowa and New Hampshire, it is likely that two of these six will have ended their quest for President, with Christie and Bush the likely dropouts at this point.

This will leave Trump with his demagoguery; Cruz with his extremely far right conservatism; Rubio with the best chance to end up as the nominee ultimately; and Kasich as the “dark horse”, who could end up as the nominee or as the Vice Presidential choice.

Long Term Political Projections For 2016 And Beyond!

Ronald 1 Comment

As 2016 arrives tomorrow, some long term projections for the upcoming year politically.

Next December, we can see how accurate these projections are:

Donald Trump will NOT be the Republican Presidential nominee, and he will lose both the Iowa Caucuses and the New Hampshire Primary.  He will be a sore loser there, and will announce a third party movement, but will win NO states in November, but take away votes from the Republican nominee, similar to Ross Perot in 1992.

The Republican nominee for President will be Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, who will select Ohio Governor John Kasich as his Vice Presidential running mate.

Hillary Clinton will win the Democratic Presidential nomination, and will select Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown as her running mate for Vice President to blunt the effect of Ohio Governor John Kasich as the Republican Vice Presidential nominee.  And remember Ohio is the crucial state historically in the Electoral College, as NO Republican has won the White House without Ohio!

Hillary Clinton will become the 45th President of the United States , and Sherrod Brown will become the 48th Vice President of the United States, winning by a substantial margin in the Electoral College, keeping the 242 electoral votes of 18 states (Maine, Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Washington, Oregon, California, Hawaii) and the District of Columbia, PLUS the following “swing states”—Ohio (18); Virginia (13)–thus insuring an Electoral College majority of 273 when 270 are required;  but also, in addition, the following:  Colorado (9); Iowa (6); Nevada (6); New Mexico (5); New Hampshire (4)–a total of 25 states and 303 electoral votes.

The only loss for the Democrats will be Florida, which will go to Rubio, a home state favorite, and taking away 29 electoral votes, from the 332 of Barack Obama in 2012 to the 303 of Hillary Clinton.  So Hillary Clinton will win 25 states, instead of the 26 that Obama won in 2012. The final electoral vote will be 303-235.

Hillary Clinton will name Vice President Joe Biden her Secretary of State.

Hillary Clinton will gain the opportunity to select FOUR Supreme Court nominees in her four year term, as follows:  Ruth Bader Ginsburg,  Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, Stephen Breyer–but of course, this cannot be proved to be correct until that next four year term is completed!

The US Senate will go back to the Democrats, gaining the seats up in Florida, Ohio, New Hampshire, Illinois, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Missouri, going from 44 seats plus two Independents (Maine, Angus King; and Vermont, Bernie Sanders) to 51 plus 2, effectively 53 seats to 47 for the Republicans, from the present 54 seats for the GOP.  Senator Chuck Schumer of New York will be the Senate Majority Leader as a result.  The President Pro Tempore position will go back to Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy, the longest serving Senator with 42 years and another elected term beginning in 2017.

The US House of Representatives will go from 247 Republicans to 188 Democrats, to a gain of 17 seats, and a new total of 205 Democrats and 230 Republicans.  Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin will remain Speaker of the House of Representatives.

So the line of succession will be President Hillary Clinton; Vice President Sherrod Brown; Speaker of the House Paul Ryan; Senate President Pro Tempore Patrick Leahy, followed by the cabinet officers, beginning with Joe Biden.

We shall see in a year how accurate my prognostications are!  Happy New Year 2016!

The Need For A One Day National Presidential Primary In June Of Election Year, Ending The System That Presently Exists!

Ronald Leave a comment

The present Primary and Caucus system is a terrible method that encourages an inordinate amount of attention paid to “small” states with fewer people and an unusual mix of factors that distort and manipulate the process used to choose Presidential nominees.

Why should Iowa in a caucus and New Hampshire in a primary, and South Carolina and Nevada, all totally unrepresentative of the nation and of the political parties at large, have such a dramatic effect on the whole process of nominating Presidential candidates?

If anything, it should be “large” states that represent a diversity of America which, if we are to keep the present system, should go first, such as Ohio, Florida, Virginia, Colorado, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Washington, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Missouri!

But a better alternative, if it could be arranged, which admittedly would be difficult, would be to have a National Primary Day in early June of the election year, similar to Election Day being in early November.

If this was arranged, there could be two to three weeks of early voting in May, as there is for the election in October.

If this idea was adopted, all campaigning would come to a peak over just a few weeks from early voting to the actual Primary Day, and it would better represent the parties as they get ready for the election, and would undermine extreme right and left from having the impact they often do because of the attention given to them by their being first to vote!