Democrats are kidding themselves if they believe the misfeasance, malfeasance and non-feasance (I can give you examples of each) of the Trump administration will enable them to win enough seats in 2018 to take over Congress. The gullible voters who swallowed Trump’s pitch don’t even recognize that they were lied to and will stick by him. And there are millions of them out there.
The polls
may show the President’s national support plummeting but not in the
well-gerrymanded congressional districts in which the battles of 2018 will be
fought. This is hard to discern from
the Northeast and from the West Coast, but that’s the way it is across these
United States. Believe me!
However progressive and in the interests of the people Democratic programs might be, they
will not by themselves suffice to win these Congressional seats.
Americans are not really aware of the intricacies of government involvement in health care, the economy, in tax reform, in rebuilding our infrastructure and in dealing with foreign nations. They only become concerned when they are out of a job, have bills (particularly from doctors) that they can't pay or worry about their sons getting sent to fight a war somewhere in Asia. Then, they look for someone to blame. Carefully detailed Democratic proposals, much more specific than Republican lies, do not sway them.
Americans are not really aware of the intricacies of government involvement in health care, the economy, in tax reform, in rebuilding our infrastructure and in dealing with foreign nations. They only become concerned when they are out of a job, have bills (particularly from doctors) that they can't pay or worry about their sons getting sent to fight a war somewhere in Asia. Then, they look for someone to blame. Carefully detailed Democratic proposals, much more specific than Republican lies, do not sway them.
But all
is not lost. Here is how the Democrats
can win in 2018 and in 2020!
Right
now, it is clear that however gullible the typical Trump supporter is,
Republicans in both Houses of Congress are much wiser. They all, including the President’s most
loyal supporters there, know what he really is and grasp the depth of his
incompetence. Some quietly admit it.
Others deny it. But they all
know.
Some,
such as John McCain and Lindsay Graham, among others, do not hesitate to speak
up. Every day, more and more Republican
Senators and Representatives are becoming aware that they cannot be a supporter
of Donald Trump at the same time that they remain a member of the party of
Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan, none of whom would
tolerate the behavior of Donald Trump for more than a minute.
So, from this moment onward, through 2018 and 2020, there will be two kinds of Republican candidates. The first group will be those who are
unwilling to sacrifice the votes of the gullible Trump supporters and will proudly
show their support for the President. They
probably will increase the size of the American flag pin on their lapels, too. The second group will be those who will follow
their hearts and consciences and go out of their way to disassociate themselves
from our disgraceful President and run purely as Republicans.
This will
confuse voters. The Trump loyalists will
not vote for candidates who conspicuously disassociate themselves from their President. They will look for another
choice on the ballot. There might even have
been primary challenges from the right for such candidates to overcome.
On the other side of the coin, Republicans who recognize the President’s great shortcomings will no longer vote for a candidate who stands fully behind the President!
Regardless of which of these two positions a Republican candidate has taken, they will have a big problem. Depending upon which one of the two kinds of Republican candidates they are running against, Democrats must repeatly emphasize their opponent's position on Donald Trump, whichever it might be. This may not increase Democratic votes, but it will result in a decrease in the number of Republican votes, because there will be many who disagree with the position, regardless of what it is, about the President which Democrats will have forced the Republican candidate to take. No Democrat candidate should sidestep this tactic.
On the other side of the coin, Republicans who recognize the President’s great shortcomings will no longer vote for a candidate who stands fully behind the President!
Regardless of which of these two positions a Republican candidate has taken, they will have a big problem. Depending upon which one of the two kinds of Republican candidates they are running against, Democrats must repeatly emphasize their opponent's position on Donald Trump, whichever it might be. This may not increase Democratic votes, but it will result in a decrease in the number of Republican votes, because there will be many who disagree with the position, regardless of what it is, about the President which Democrats will have forced the Republican candidate to take. No Democrat candidate should sidestep this tactic.
It is up
to the Democrats to make use of this dichotomy in the make-up of Republican
voters. Democrats in both Houses of
Congress, their supporters throughout the country and of course in the media,
must maximize their efforts to force Republican candidates to make a
choice. They are either with the
President or not with the President.
They cannot be allowed to equivocate and straddle both positions. Repeatedly, they must be asked to make this choice! They cannot be allowed to have it both ways. If Republicans are permitted to succeed in doing so,
Democratic hopes for 2018 and 2020 are no more than an illusion. That is why Democrats must, starting right
now, do everything possible to cultivate and take advantage of this rift in the
G.O.P. Then, and only then, can Democrats win in both 2018 and 2018!
By extension, this also applies to ALL Republican candidates running for office throughout the country at all levels, for governorships, state legislatures, mayoralities, county office, etc., starting right now. Democrats cannot and must not forget this. Tip O'Neil's oft-quoted dictum that "all politics are local" must be kept in mind when Democrats exploit this split in the G.O.P.
By extension, this also applies to ALL Republican candidates running for office throughout the country at all levels, for governorships, state legislatures, mayoralities, county office, etc., starting right now. Democrats cannot and must not forget this. Tip O'Neil's oft-quoted dictum that "all politics are local" must be kept in mind when Democrats exploit this split in the G.O.P.
As
important as detailed positions on the issues may be, getting Republicans to
fish or cut bait, to take a stand on the man in the White House, is much more
critical. I hope the Democratic Party
understands this. I do.
Jack Lippman
A friend sent me a very comical internet piece about the President. And here is the response I emailed back to him.
“Saw this a few months ago. Very funny. But the time for laughing is growing short. We have a man-child in the White House. The Cabinet, including the grossly underperforming Secretary of State, is worthless. Everything is falling apart, in line with Bannon's anarchistic policy of 'deconstructing' government. The only thing preventing the nation from going down the tube are the three Generals, Mattis, Kelly and McMaster, who know what to do in a crisis ... but there is no one to give them orders. They will be left to take on the normal civilian role of making policy. Hence, like it or not, we are being ruled by a Military Junta! This is what goes on in Latin American banana republics when civilian rule fails. Venezuela just jailed the losers in their national election. Nut-job Republicans aspire to do the same with Hillary. The time for humor has passed. The Republicans know what is going on but are scared shitless that if they opened their mouths, right wing ignorati will go after them, with the man-child's support, in primary elections.
Whenever I watch Sean Hannity on Fox News, my blood pressure goes up at least 30 points I think. His inaccuracies, his rabble rousing, his obfuscation of the facts, his obsession with the criminality of Hillary Clinton and other Democrats, topped with his unlimited praise for Donald Trump have to be heard to be believed.
And the tragedy of this is that millions upon millions of gullible Americans believe every word of this bullshit. To them, the Russia investigation is no more than a witch hunt and Special Prosecutor Mueller is practically a criminal himself! Hannity often rants about a "deep state," some sort of hidden conspiracy of which most of the media is a part, and which he really believes controls our government. I apologize for this strong language, but just watch Hannity for an hour some evening and you will see what I mean. Please. You owe it to yourself, your family and America to do so.
It should motivate you to do something. I am not quite sure what, however.
A
Clue as to Who Watches Fox News
A friend sent me a very comical internet piece about the President. And here is the response I emailed back to him.
“Saw this a few months ago. Very funny. But the time for laughing is growing short. We have a man-child in the White House. The Cabinet, including the grossly underperforming Secretary of State, is worthless. Everything is falling apart, in line with Bannon's anarchistic policy of 'deconstructing' government. The only thing preventing the nation from going down the tube are the three Generals, Mattis, Kelly and McMaster, who know what to do in a crisis ... but there is no one to give them orders. They will be left to take on the normal civilian role of making policy. Hence, like it or not, we are being ruled by a Military Junta! This is what goes on in Latin American banana republics when civilian rule fails. Venezuela just jailed the losers in their national election. Nut-job Republicans aspire to do the same with Hillary. The time for humor has passed. The Republicans know what is going on but are scared shitless that if they opened their mouths, right wing ignorati will go after them, with the man-child's support, in primary elections.
If this bothers you, just watch Fox News for a few days and you're see that everything is wonderful in Trump's U.S. of A. .... and would be even better if the Democrats, still annoyed by their election loss, would only go away. And more people get their news from Fox than from the NY Times, the Washington Post or watch MSNBC or CNN. Try Hannity for one night ... at 10 p.m. and remember, millions of Americans are glued to their sets for him five nights a week! - Jack"
Whenever I watch Sean Hannity on Fox News, my blood pressure goes up at least 30 points I think. His inaccuracies, his rabble rousing, his obfuscation of the facts, his obsession with the criminality of Hillary Clinton and other Democrats, topped with his unlimited praise for Donald Trump have to be heard to be believed.
And the tragedy of this is that millions upon millions of gullible Americans believe every word of this bullshit. To them, the Russia investigation is no more than a witch hunt and Special Prosecutor Mueller is practically a criminal himself! Hannity often rants about a "deep state," some sort of hidden conspiracy of which most of the media is a part, and which he really believes controls our government. I apologize for this strong language, but just watch Hannity for an hour some evening and you will see what I mean. Please. You owe it to yourself, your family and America to do so.
It should motivate you to do something. I am not quite sure what, however.
Whenever I watch Sean Hannity on Fox News, my blood pressure goes up at least 30 points I think. His inaccuracies, his rabble rousing, his obfuscation of the facts, his obsession with the criminality of Hillary Clinton and other Democrats, topped with his unlimited praise for Donald Trump have to be heard to be believed.
And the tragedy of this is that millions upon millions of gullible Americans believe every word of this bullshit. To them, the Russia investigation is no more than a witch hunt and Special Prosecutor Mueller is practically a criminal himself! Hannity often rants about a "deep state," some sort of hidden conspiracy of which most of the media is a part, and which he really believes controls our government. I apologize for this strong language, but just watch Hannity for an hour some evening and you will see what I mean. Please. You owe it to yourself, your family and America to do so.
JL
Watching
Fox News one afternoon last week (all liberals should do that as often as
possible in order to learn what they're up against), the news was interrupted by three commercials during the time I was
watching. Forgetting the news for a
moment, let’s look at the audiences to which these advertisements were
aimed. True, they also appear on other
networks, but they clearly were aimed at a particular type of viewer, which I
identify as the Fox News viewer. You
draw your own conclusions.
The
first was from an online company selling educational materials for use in
schools and by those who choose to educate their children at home. Well, most school districts I know of have
purchasing departments and don’t respond to mid-afternoon TV ads in buying
their supplies. So, I get the idea that
the ad is primarily aimed at those who are home schooling their children.
And the reason that some people usually do
this is that they are dissatisfied with the education provided by tax-supported
public schools.
They choose to take
government out of the
educational equation for their children.
The next commercial was for a company selling gold and silver as an investment. On the deck of a retired battleship, an older man wearing the kind of sun glasses General MacArthur wore explains that he believes in two things, supporting our armed forces and investing in precious metals, as opposed to keeping his wealth in investments based on the country’s currency.
Like the home-schooler, this fellow recommends taking the government out of the investment equation.
Such Libertarians (and that's what these folks are) believe in minimal government involvement in people’s lives (and in business as
well). Sometimes their positions
approach anarchy, the absence of government. The Koch brothers are good examples. (One even ran as the Libertarian Party V.P. candidate some years ago.) But their support of the armed forces, needed to preserve their
“liberty,” does at least indicate a minimal faith in government.
It is to folks who think this way, people who dislike any intrusion of government into their lives, even if it is for their own good (health care reform, food and drug standards, environmental protection), that these commercials are directed, people who voted for Donald Trump. Such home schoolers and gold buyers are very likely to also want to "drain the swamp" and the drainage ditch appears to be Fox News. Too many of the commercials on Fox News follow this pattern, more so than on other networks. These companies know where to find potential customers!
It is to folks who think this way, people who dislike any intrusion of government into their lives, even if it is for their own good (health care reform, food and drug standards, environmental protection), that these commercials are directed, people who voted for Donald Trump. Such home schoolers and gold buyers are very likely to also want to "drain the swamp" and the drainage ditch appears to be Fox News. Too many of the commercials on Fox News follow this pattern, more so than on other networks. These companies know where to find potential customers!
The
third commercial was for a company selling mortgage refinancing to veterans,
pointing out that a VA refinancing deal would be better than one from a
bank. They assumed that many veterans
watch Fox News. Of course, this same ad
appears on other channels as well, but coming right after the guy selling gold
and silver from the deck of a retired battleship, it had its military-oriented audience sitting waiting for it. The right wing knows where to find its marketplace: Fox News.
JL
Socks and Shoes or ...
JL
We
got into a discussion last week of how people put on their socks and
shoes. Apparently, some folks put on both
of their socks first and then both of their shoes while others first put on both their sock and shoe on one foot before proceeding to do the same on the other foot. How you carry out this task may give some
insight into your personality. It also
may be of some significance to those recuperating from various kinds of orthopedic
surgery.
In any event, we commend to you
an interesting video in which Archie Bunker (you may remember him) raises this important
question with his son-in-law, whom he affectionally refers to as “Meathead.” CLICK RIGHT HERE TO VIEW IT. LOTS OF LAUGHS!
JL
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