Rand Paul Of Kentucky

Early Prognosis Of Potential Republican Presidential Contenders In 2028

Ronald 1 Comment

Already, just short of six months into the second term of Donald Trump, speculation is rampant as to potential Republican Presidential contenders in 2028.

From this author and blogger’s perspective, it is a literal “horror’s list” of potential Presidential nominees.

It includes:

Vice President JD Vance, assuming he does not succeed to the Presidency during this term

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is also, presently, National Security Advisor

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, primarily responsible for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which now will have more funds to promote arrest and deportation than many government militaries worldwide have.

US Senators Ted Cruz of Texas; Rand Paul of Kentucky; and Tim Scott of South Carolina, with the first two having contended against Donald Trump in 2016.

Governors Brian Kemp of Georgia; Glenn Youngkin of Virginia (both who will be out of their Governorships at the end of 2026 and 2025 respectively): and Sarah Huckabee Sanders of Arkansas, former Press Secretary to Trump in his first term.

There may be other contenders as well, but looking at this list, it is a horrible group, with this author and blogger’s personal opinion being that Noem, Cruz, and Huckabee Sanders are the worst of the worst.

But Vance, Paul, and Scott are not much “better”, and Kemp and Youngkin, while comparatively less controversial, are still far from adequate.

Out of this list, Marco Rubio is the “best”, but simply not being as horrendous as the others!

Hopefully, none of these or any other Republican contenders gain the White House in the Presidential Election of 2028!

Are There Enough GOP Votes To Kill “Big And Beautiful Bill” Attack On Medicaid?

Ronald 19 Comments

It is still possible that a few Republican Senators and or Republican House members could kill the “Big and Beautiful Bill” of Donald Trump, and in the process, save Medicaid!

ALready, North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul have made it clear that they will not support the legislation, Tillis because of the Medicaid cuts that would affect so many North Carolinians, and Paul, because he does not want to add trillions to the National Debt, already 36 Trillion!

But what about Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski and Maine Senator Susan Collins, who have both expressed dismay at the Medicaid cuts, that would hurt so many of their constituents?

And also, similar thoughts have been expressed by Missouri Senator Josh Hawley, and also, to some extent, Kansas Senator Jerry Moran.

In the House of Representatives, with Nebraska Congressman Don Bacon deciding not to run again for his Omaha seat, and already seen as the most moderate, centrist Republican who might refuse to support such legislation, since his seat was won by Joe Biden in 2020 and Kamala Harris in 2024, there could be another vote.

California Congressman David Valadao has also spoken out against Medicaid cuts, and is one of two Republican Congressmen to have voted to impeach Donald Trump in the second impeachment effort following the January 6, 2021 US Capitol Insurrection.

Kentucky Congressman Thomas Massie and Ohio Congressman Warren Davidson haver voted against the House bill already, and New York Congressman Nick LaLota, Maryland Congressman Andy Harris, and Texas Congressman Chip Roy all have different reservations.

Also, the members of the Republican House Freedom Caucus are not guaranteed in any sense to support the complicated legislation.

This horror of a bill will do such heavy damage to the American people at large, while the corporations and Billionaires will gain major tax cuts that will add many trillions to the national debt.

It is a repudiation of much of the mid 20th century “Great Society” of President Lyndon B. Johnson, a totally horrendous attack on common decency and compassion for those among us less fortunate!

Elizabeth MacDonough, Senate Parliamentarian, A Light In The Darkness!

Ronald 7 Comments

Elizabeth MacDonough has been the nonpartisan Senate Parliamentarian for the past 13 years since 2012.

She has a high level of respect and regard by most members of the Senate, and has been seen as the “guardian” of Senate rules, who does what is best for the Senate and its reputation. This is true even when some disgraceful Senators, like presently Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville, have called for her to be fired for refusing to back all of the demands of Donald Trump.

She has presided over periods of Democratic and of Republican party majorities, and been part of the institutional history of the upper chamber in a very distinguished manner.

MacDonough has enforced the so called “Byrd Rule”, named after the late Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia, which allows elimination of “extraneous” proposals that interfere with reconciliation of provisions of legislation, with 60 votes needed to overrule the Senate Parliamentarian, a high barrier.

It seems likely that Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota will not listen to a few Senators who want her fired, as she is well respected, and Thune is reluctant to interfere with her nonpartisan approach to Senate rules.

Already, with North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, opposed to aspects of the House bill, it is possible that the Trump “Big And Beautiful” bill might fail to get past the Senate, if on final passage, other Senators, such as Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine, and Josh Hawley of Missouri, vote to reject the legislation as it is constituted right now, particularly regarding Medicaid cuts.

The Ten Best And Ten Worst US Senators In The 118th Congress

admin 2 Comments

Creating a list of the ten best and ten worst US Senators in the 118th Congress is based on their viewpoints and utterances over their careers.

Of course, it is subjective in nature, but based on careful consideration and analysis.

The rankings below are not in numbered order, but simply the Senators considered by the author to be the best and the worst in the upper chamber of Congress.

TEN BEST US SENATORS

Lisa Murkowski (Alaska)
Chris Murphy (Connecticut)
Jon Ossoff (Georgia)
Elizabeth Warren (Massachusetts)
Amy Klobuchar (Minnesota)
Cory Booker (New Jersey)
Sherrod Brown (Ohio)
Jeff Merkley (Oregon)
Ron Wyden (Oregon)
Sheldon Whitehouse (Rhode Island)

TEN WORST US SENATORS

Tommy Tuberville (Alabama)
Tom Cotton (Arkansas)
Rick Scott (Florida)
Rand Paul (Kentucky)
Josh Hawley (Missouri)
JD Vance (Ohio)
Lindsey Graham (South Carolina)
Ted Cruz (Texas)
Mike Lee (Utah)
Ron Johnson (Wisconsin)

If one was asked which five Senators were the “best” and the “worst”, this author and blogger would say the following:

BEST—Chris Murphy, Jon Osoff, Elizabeth Warren, Amy Klobuchar, Sheldon Whitehouse

WORST—Tommy Tuberville, Rand Paul, Josh Hawley, Ted Cruz, Ron Johnson

The Anti Science And Anti Medicine Conservative And Republican Attacks!

Ronald 3 Comments

The Conservative and Republican attack is not only on the truth and facts of American history, but even more dangerous is their attack on Science and Medicine, including the COVID 19 Pandemic!

Fox News Channel hosts Laura Ingraham, Sean Hannity, and Tucker Carlson peddled false information regarding the COVID 19 Pandemic and a general attack on Science and Medicine.

Also promoting false information were Republican Senators Rand Paul of Kentucky and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, as well as Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan.

And Florida Governor Ron DeSantis also refused to take the pandemic seriously, costing more loss of life in Florida than anywhere else.

And DeSantis also attacked former White House Presidential Medical Adviser Anthony Fauci, who was the head of the National Institute of Of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for 38 years, and trusted by Presidents of both parties from Ronald Reagan to Joe Biden.

DeSantis rhetoric included calling Fauci “a little elf”, who should be grabbed and chucked across the Potomac, despicable insult and horrid language toward a medical doctor who devoted his life to dealing with the AIDS crisis and other epidemics for four decades!

Also, another critic has been Robert F. Kennedy, Jr, who Fauci called appropriately, “a very disturbed individual!”

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Being A Vaccination Denier Will Doom His Presidential Candidacy!

Ronald Leave a comment

Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis has been riding high since his overwhelming victory in the 2022 gubernatorial election, but his cockiness and arrogance has gone to his head, and he is on the way to self destruction as a Presidential candidate!

DeSantis has been reckless when it comes to science and public health, and has stirred a tempest in fighting against masks, vaccinations, and government promotion of science and public health guidelines regarding COVID 19!

Promoting an anti intellectual attitude and ignoring science and attacking the retiring and highly respected and honored Dr. Anthony Fauci may stir up the “KNOW NOTHINGS” in the radical right wing Republican camp, but it will NOT lead to his being elected President, even if he wins the nomination!

He is a supposedly “smarter” person than Donald Trump, since he has Ivy League credentials, from Yale University and Harvard Law School, but that does not mean anything other than that he has an enlarged ego without common sense!

One can be assured he will crash and burn, as many other so called “front runners” in past Republican Presidential contests have experienced, as for instance, Rudy Giuliani, Chris Christie, Scott Walker, Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, and many others of their ilk!

Potential For Four New African American Senators

Ronald Leave a comment

There have been 11 African American Senators in the 234 years of US Senate history.

Presently, there are three—Republican Tim Scott of South Carolina; and Democrats Cory Booker of New Jersey and Raphael Warnock of Georgia.

Prominent earlier African American Senators included Democrats Carol Moseley Braun and Barack Obama of Illinois; Democrat Kamala Harris of California; and Republican Edward Brooke of Massachusetts.

Now, there is the possibility of four additional African American Senators, if fortune works out.

They include: Mandela Barnes in Wisconsin; Cheri Beasley in North Carolina; Charles Booker in Kentucky; and Val Demings of Florida.

Barnes is competing against Ron Johnson in Wisconsin; Beasley againast Ted Budd in North Carolina; Booker against Rand Paul in Kentucky; and Demings against Marco Rubio in Florida.

All of these races are tight in polls, except Booker against Paul in Kentucky, where Booker is at a major disadvantage.

Also, Warnock is in a tight race against Republican Herschel Walker in Georgia, with both being African Americans.

Republican Attacks On Social Security And Medicare Arise Again: They Never Give Up!

Ronald Leave a comment

Social Security has been under attack by Republicans and conservatives ever since its passage in 1935 as part of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal.

Medicare has been under attack by Republicans and conservatives ever since its passage in 1965 as part of Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society.

The Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) has been under attack by Republicans and conservatives since its passage under Barack Obama in 2010!

Most recently, George W. Bush promoted privatization of Social Security, which failed to occur in 2004-2005, luckily so, as the Great Recession of 2008 would have destroyed those who invested in the stock market, rather than having the guarantee of Social Security.

Also, Mitt Romney proposed privatization of Medicare during his Presidential campaign in 2012.

Now, Senator Rick Scott of Florida, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin are the biggest backers of phasing out Social Security over five years! Also, Arizona Senatorial candidate Blake Masters has backed this idea!

If the Republicans were to win both houses of Congress and the Presidency by 2024, a great tragedy would occur!

As it is, Rand Paul and Ron Johnson face reelection this November, and every effort possible should be mounted to defeat these two horrendous US Senators! And Blake Masters needs to be defeated in his quest to be elected to the Senate!

Dr. Anthony Fauci: A True Hero Scientist Attacked By MAGA Republicans, Including Despot Ron DeSantis!

Ronald Leave a comment

Dr. Anthony Fauci, Chief Medical Advisor to President Biden, and Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has served seven Presidents from Ronald Reagan to Joe Biden.

He is a national treasure, having dealt over four decades with the various Immunodeficiency diseases from AIDS onward to Swine Flu to Ebola to COVID 19.

He has had high respect and honors visited upon him, but now, as he plans to retire at age 82 at the end of 2022 after dedicated service to the nation, this hero scientist is being attacked by “MAGA” Republicans, including, most outrageously, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul.

DeSantis has acted like a despot as governor, and has called Fauci an “elf”, due to his short stature, and proposed tossing him across the Potomac, a total lack of respect for his intellectual brilliance and knowledge. This outrage is by a governor who presided over more COVID 19 deaths than other states, due to his refusal to enforce masking and vaccinations against a disease which still kills 400 people per day, and over one million in two and a half years!

Both DeSantis and Rand Paul are clearly anti science and health concerns, and they should both be defeated in their races for Governor in Florida and US Senate in Kentucky this November!

Potential For More African American Senators In 118th Congress (2023-2024)

Ronald Leave a comment

The potential exists for the US Senate in the 118th Congress to have more African American members than ever before.

Altogether, there have been eleven African American Senators in American history, with three serving for the first time in 2017 when Kamala Harris joined the Senate, adding to Tim Scott and Cory Booker.

Raphael Warnock became the third serving at the same time, replacing Harris, who became Vice President in 2021!

Now, with Scott and Booker in the Senate, and Warnock running for reelection against another African American, former football player Herschel Walker, at least three African Americans will serve in the next Congress.

But there are others who are running for election to the Senate, including:

Congresswoman Val Demings of Florida against Senator Marco Rubio

Charles Booker of Kentucky against Senator Rand Paul

Cheri Beasley of North Carolina against Congressman Ted Budd

Mandela Barnes of Wisconsin against Senator Ron Johnson

So there could, in theory, be SEVEN African American Senators in the 118th Congress, if fortune worked out!