Kristi Noem

Nikki Haley Goes Low, And It Clinches Her Doom In Presidential Race!

Former Republican Governor of South Carolina and United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley once had great promise and a future in American politics.

But now, that is totally gone, as she has revealed herself to be rude, nasty, and lacking sensitivity on the issue of age and race!

To claim that electing Joe Biden in 2024 insures that Kamala Harris will be President is clearly a disgusting attack on both the age and race fronts!

Why would anyone who was decent claim that Joe Biden almost certainly will not be alive to finish a second term at age 86, when no one can possibly know the age longevity of anyone?

Just because Joe Biden “flubs” every once in awhile is not proof of lack of mental agility, and his half century experience in government is invaluable, and the lack of respect for him is atrocious!

Donald Trump is only three and a half years younger, so who can say, with him being in poor physical shape, and his clear mental and emotional disorders, would live for five years. And he is, of course a threat and danger to American democracy, as he has already proved that to be so in his incitement of the January 6 US Capitol Insurrection, and his assertion that he wants revenge and retribution, which motivates him to run in 2024!

The elderly population over 65 is not going to take kindly to such ageism on Haley’s part!

And it is clear that Haley, herself of South Asian heritage, is using the race card, that the world will collapse if a black mixed race woman, who has superb credentials, possibly might succeed to the White House if Biden were to pass away!

This is the same hysteria that was visited upon Barack Obama, as racism continues to be promoted and encouraged by Republicans!

Kamala Harris is better qualified to be President than any Republican woman who might be in the mix as a Vice Presidential running mate for the Republicans, with or without Donald Trump as the Presidential nominee!

Would Marjorie Taylor Greene, Kari Lake, Kristi Noem, or even Nikki Haley herself come with better credentials than Kamala Harris?

The answer is clearly “NO”, as Harris has proved herself in many years of experience in California state government, as a US Senator, and now Vice President, and is certainly better in “performance” than past Vice Presidents for the Republican Party, including Mike Pence, Dan Quayle, Spiro Agnew, or failed Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin!

The South Dominates In Potential Republican Presidential Contenders!

The American South was the area that revolted against the federal government, and seceded from the Union in 1860-1861, culminating in the American Civil War (1861-1865), with the Republican Party representing the Union cause, and the Democratic Party being dominant in the South.

The South remained strongly Democratic until the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed under Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson.

Since then, most of the South has become strongly Republican, and promoters of white supremacy and Christian Nationalism, to the point that most of the potential Republican Presidential contenders in 2024 derive from the South!

These include the following:

Donald Trump, Ron DeSantis, Marco Rubio, and Rick Scott of Florida
Ted Cruz and Greg Abbott of Texas
Asa Hutchinson and Tom Cotton of Arkansas
Nikki Haley and Tim Scott of South Carolina
Glenn Youngkin of Virginia

These eleven Republicans are not all sure bets to run, but all have been rumored, although some seem to be backing away from doing so.

Other potential contenders come from the Northeast area of the US, including

Chris Sununu of New Hampshire
Chris Christie of New Jersey
Larry Hogan of Maryland

And finally, from the Midwest area of the US, we have such potential contenders as

Mike Pence of Indiana
Mike Pompeo of Kansas
Josh Hawley of Missouri
Kristi Noem of South Dakota
Adam Kinzinger of Illinois

And finally, we have Liz Cheney of Wyoming

The Presidential Election Campaign Of 2024 Has Begun!

With the new year 2023 upon us, the Presidential Election campaign of 2024 has begun!

It actually began when former President Donald Trump declared his candidacy on November 15, 2022, but with the last seven weeks having been a total disaster for any Presidential plans.

This is not just what the January 6 House Committee investigating the US Capitol Insurrection has recommended, criminal charge against Donald Trump.

It is much more than that, including even that his own daughter, Ivanka Trump, has made clear that she has no interest in being engaged in his campaign, as she was in 2016 and 2020!

The public support for Donald Trump has been deteriorating dramatically, and the odds are good that a multitude of Republican potential Presidential candidates will start announcing their campaigns soon.

Among them are likely the following:

Former Vice President Mike Pence
Former Secretary of State and CIA head Mike Pompeo
Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis
Texas Governor Greg Abbott
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem
South Carolina Senator Tim Scott
Texas Senator Ted Cruz
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin
New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu
Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie
Former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan

And the two Republicans on the January 6 House Committee might also announce their candidacies:

Former Wyoming Congresswoman Liz Cheney
Former Illinois Congressman Adam Kinzinger

In the mind of this author and blogger, while he would not vote for any of these in November 2024, the following would be seen at this point as “tolerable”, including if they actually won the White House, no special order:

South Carolina Senator Tim Scott
New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu
Former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan
Former Wyoming Congresswoman Liz Cheney
Former Illinois Congressman Adam Kinzinger

The most intriguing of this list of five would be, in the mind of this author and blogger, if either Larry Hogan or Adam Kinzinger ended up as the nominee!

The Republican “Donnybrook” Begins At Republican Jewish Coalition Gathering!

The Republican Presidential race has begun, with Donald Trump declaring his candidacy last week in a very uninspiring manner, and a whole slew of potential candidates showing up to display their “virtues” at the Republican Jewish Coalition gathering this past weekend in Las Vegas.

At least 21 potential Republican candidates are in the mix for 2024 at this point!

The potential candidates include those who worked for Trump, and those who looked the other way with his reckless, lawless behavior in office. It also included some who were neither category, but seem unlikely to make much traction!

Among those who worked for Donald Trump are former Vice President Mike Pence; former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo; and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley.

Among those who looked the other way are Texas Senator Ted Cruz; Missouri Senator Josh Hawley; Florida Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott; Kentucky Senator Rand Paul; and a number of Governors, including Ron DeSantis of Florida; Greg Abbott of Texas; Glenn Youngkin of Virginia; and Kristi Noem of South Dakota.

A third category are those who avoided embracing Trump, including former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie; outgoing Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson; and New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu.

Also, former Republican 2012 Presidential nominee and Utah Senator Mitt Romney; and Wyoming Congresswoman Liz Cheney and Illinois Congressman Adam Kinzinger are truly anti Trump, and the latter two, of course, have served on the January 6 House Committee investigating the US Capitol Insurrection.

And an intriguing possility is African American Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina!

Republican Party, 168 Years Old Today, Undermined By Competing Factions, Some Of Them Extremist In Nature

The Republican Party was born on this day in Ripon, Wisconsin, in 1854, 168 years ago.

The future of the party is in danger, due to these massive splits.

Among the members of these six groups below are the following:

Trumpism—including House members Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, Madison Cawthorn, Jim Jordan, Paul Gosar, Matt Gaetz; Senators Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz; and Governors Ron DeSantis, Greg Abbott, and Kristi Noem.

Anti Trumpism—including House members Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, Anthony Gonzalez; Senators Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, Mitt Romney, Ben Sasse; and Governors Larry Hogan, Charlie Baker, and Phil Scott.

Christian Right—Mike Pence, Rick Santorum, Mike Huckabee

Libertarian conservatives—Senators Mike Lee and Rand Paul; Congressman Thomas Massie

Neoconservatives—George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, John Bolton

Moderates—Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, Charlie Baker, Larry Hogan, Phil Scott, Chris Sununu

The hope for the long range is that the Anti Trumpists and Moderates will prevail, as otherwise, the Republican Party is an authoritarian, Fascist oriented party, abandoning the principles of the party at its founding!

A Wave Of Horrendous State Governors: A National Crisis!

America is in the midst of a national crisis of horrendous state governors who are abusing power and pursuing corrupt, illegal ends!

The ones that stand out the most are:

Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis
Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott
Georgia Republican Governor Brian Kemp
New York Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo

However, the list of abusive state governors is much longer, including:

Arizona Republican Governor Doug Ducey
Iowa Republican Governor Kim Reynolds
Mississippi Republican Governor Tate Reeves
Missouri Republican Governor Mike Parson
Montana Republican Governor Greg Gianforte
Nebraska Republican Governor Pete Ricketts
Oklahoma Republican Governor Kevin Stitt
South Carolina Republican Governor Henry McMaster
South Dakota Republican Governor Kristi Noem
Tennessee Republican Governor Bill Lee

So we have 13 Republican Governors From the South and the West, who are, in different degrees, outrageously terrible as state governors, while only Andrew Cuomo is a Democrat who needs to be held accountable for his abuses of power!

Fox News Channel, One America News Network, Newsmax All Undermining Fight Against COVID 19

The three right wing cable news channels—Fox News Channel, One America News Network (OANN), and Newsmax—are involved in a competition to undermine the fight against COVID 19.

In effect, they are in the process of killing off many of their own crazy, clueless, ignorant loyalists!

The anti science, anti medicine channels are undermining public health and safety, and are being promoted by a vast majority of Republican members of Congress and many reckless, irresponsible state governors and legislators, including Ron DeSantis of Florida; Greg Abbott of Texas; and Kristi Noem of South Dakota, among others.

Social media, and in particular, Facebook, are also engaging in this disgraceful spreading of lies, myths, and conspiracy theories!

This is undermining the ability of the United States to move forward on the long list of problems the nation faces, with no sense of patriotism or loyalty to the nation, on the part of these treasonous, seditionist forces!

The Long List Of Tragically Flawed, Unpatriotic Republicans Who Might Run For President In 2024!

Already, just six months since the January 6 US Capitol Insurrection and early successes of President Joe Biden, we are witnessing early hints of the large group of potential Republican candidates for President in 2024, who have demonstrated they are tragically flawed and unpatriotic, and would seem to be unable to be seen as legitimate alternatives for the White House. These Republicans continue to back Donald Trump, and promote the “Big Lie”!

The list is so long, but here is a list of such disgraces who think they are entitled to be President, despite their sedition and treason six months ago. Also, there are many others who through their continued support of the authoritarian Fascist Donald Trump, complicates any of these characters deciding to run whether or not Trump decides to try again for President, and in so doing, is promoting white supremacy, violence and bloodshed!

How does one list a group of 16 individuals who are the absolute worst Republicans in any sense of order? But here goes:

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis
Texas Senator Ted Cruz
Missouri Senator Josh Hawley
Florida Senator Rick Scott
Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie
Texas Governor Greg Abbott
Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton
Florida Senator Marco Rubio
Utah Senator Mike Lee
Kentucky Senator Rand Paul
South Carolina Senator Tim Scott
Former Vice President Mike Pence
Fox News Channel Host Tucker Carlson

And here is a list of 6 less objectionable and more reasonable potential candidates in no special order:

Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan
Utah Senator Mitt Romney
Former Ohio Governor John Kasich
Wyoming Congresswoman Liz Cheney
Illinois Congressman Adam Kinzinger

The Refusal Of So Many Americans To Accept Science, And The Role Of Government

It is extremely frustrating to witness, both personally, and in coverage of the news, that so many people refuse to accept science, and also the role of government.

The first purpose of government is to PROTECT and DEFEND the American people, and that includes sacrifice and concern about others, NOT just about one’s own pleasures and desires.

And the promotion of science is essential, and needs to be respected over religious beliefs and whims, and this includes recognition of updates in science over the decades since one learned science when in school!

To see so many people claiming their rights over responsibility to society as a whole is infuriating, and it has made the struggle against COVID 19 ever more difficult, leading to one of every thousand Americans dying as the year 2020 comes to an end!

Any government leader who refuses to put restrictions on the population in a time of a once in a lifetime pandemic is someone who should be summarily removed from office, but instead, we have many Americans condemning such state governors as Andrew Cuomo of New York, Larry Hogan of Maryland, Mike DeWine of Ohio, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, and Gavin Newsom of California, among others. These are both Democratic and Republican governors, so this is not a political statement!

Instead, these selfish, self centered individuals applaud such reckless and irresponsible governors as Ron DeSantis of Florida and Kristi Noem of South Dakota, who have presided over disastrous conditions, and lied and manipulated the truth, following the lead of Donald Trump, who is responsible for his refusal to accept reality, and promoted masks and social distancing as a model for America!

So the so called “greatest nation in the world” has the biggest loss of life, cases, and hospitalizations of any nation in the world, and it could have been otherwise, but politics and egomaniacal behavior mattered more to Trump than the lives and safety of Americans.

Donald Trump will never live down the massive loss of life in less than one year on his watch, and those who refuse even now to accept science and the role of government will carry the burden of guilt, and many of these same individuals will refuse to accept vaccination, and the hope is that fate will punish them for this stupidity and lack of concern for others!

The Republican Party Potential Field (25) Seeking Presidential Nomination In 2024!

When one looks ahead to the next round of Presidential contenders in the Republican Party for 2024, one sees clearly that it is a “Group Of Horrors” that awaits the nation, if the party does not reform itself and reject the extreme right wing extremists who are planning to seek the Presidency in 2024.

There is a long list of potential contenders, and it will be a question of how one separates responsible conservatives from the monsters that wish to make even Donald Trump look less extreme by comparison! Imagine that!

The most extreme Right potential nominees as now perceived include the eight following in no special order:

Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas
Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri
Senator Ted Cruz of Texas
Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky
Senator Rick Scott of Florida
Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee
Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida
Governor Kristi Noem of South Dakota

Those less far Right but still unacceptable to any rational person include the five following in no special order:

Senator Marco Rubio of Florida
Senator Mike Lee Of Utah
Vice President Mike Pence of Indiana
Former UN Ambassador and South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

And then there are those who are conservatives in the more traditional mold, including the nine following in no special order:

Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska
Senator Mitt Romney of Utah
Former Ohio Governor John Kasich
Senator Rob Portman of Ohio
Former Utah Governor and Ambassador to China and Russia Jon Huntsman
Governor Larry Hogan of Maryland
Governor Charlie Baker of Massachusetts
Former Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey
Congressman Adam Kinzinger of Illinois

And finally, there are the true long shot whackos, including:

Donald Trump, Jr.
Tucker Carlson of Fox News Channel

And of course, Donald Trump could end up running, and putting the Republican Party in total disarray!