Politics

It’s a Fine Line

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

There’s a fine line between civility and incivility in this U.S. of A.  Have you ever been stuck on a crowded plane for an extended period of time?  If so, you know.

And, the line seems to blur by the day these days.   It was there in the White House Press Room for all to see again on Sunday.

Reporters at the briefing repeatedly asked President Donald Trump why he chose not to wear a medical mask after he and his task force recommended that America start doing so just last Friday.  Nevermind that the reporter was not wearing a mask at the time he asked the question.  At least they don’t mask their disdain of the president that ended daily press briefings well over a year ago.

Trump used the backdrop of the loud whirling blades of his Marine One helicopter to “control” these scribes, especially the ones who are “fake news.”  But, the enemy that we cannot see forced Trump to confront the enemy that he can see all over again.

Another reporter, who also was not wearing a mask, noted that former Vice President Joe Biden said he would start wearing a mask outdoors.  That’s going to be difficult for Biden though.  The mask-wearing won’t be difficult, it’s the verification part.  No one has seen Biden outdoors or indoors in quite some time.  The #WhereIsJoe continues to trend on Twitter.

When we do see old school Joe indoors on his disastrous live feeds, he coughs straight into his hand old school style.  By hiding is he attempting to mask his rapidly declining cognitive/communicative skills?  Here is his latest.  If you can decipher the message, please share it in the BBR comment section today.

Could a Cuomo write-in nomination happen?  The NY mayor is getting plenty of airtime from the non-Fox channels.  His leadership during this existential crisis (far greater than climate change right now) is lauded daily.  He’s asked, begged, and demanded more masks, like the ones that no one in the briefing room wears, for New Yorkers.  Ventilators are in short supply as well.  New York didn’t put many of the above away for a rainy day.

Then he asked all hospitals in NY to share their equipment and supplies.  In other words, late to the social distancing need, NY got federal help and now he wants upstate to bail out the boroughs as well.  Have you ever been stuck on a crowded subway train for an extended period of time?  Too many Yanks were until not too long ago.

CNN doesn’t mask its affection for Cuomo.  They haven’t been this enamored with a possible candidate to take down Trump since Michael Avenatti appeared nearly nightly prior to his multiple run-ins with the law. We forget.  Who (er, how many) exploited Stormy?

And then there’s a not-funny irony to all of this.  In the City That Care Forgot, no one forgot to put on their masks for Mardi Gras.  And the result of putting on a costume and a mask and partying in the streets in NOLA has been a disaster.  Latoya Cantrell who has masqueraded as a mayor there for one year said that she received no federal warning not to “laissez less on temps roulet” (let the good times roll).

Do Cantrell and Cuomo play the federal help card, or bash the intervention of same for their political gain as necessary?

It’s the civil thing to do.

Another reporter asked Dr. Anthony Fauci why he was not wearing a mask.  Trump grinned as Fauci responded that the main reason to wear a mask was to protect sick individuals from spreading the virus.

Nevermind that the CDC Saturday advised us all to wear masks.  It’s the civil thing to do.

Heck, if President Trump was wearing one we would have been spared from seeing the grin.

It’s a fine line.

 

 

The Softest Mask You’ll Ever Own

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

Yesterday, right in the middle of the 5PM EST Coronavirus White House Briefing, CNN cut away.   They decided that they weren’t going to give complementary advertising airtime to the airiest, make that “the softest pillow you’ll ever own.”  You know the jingle, ‘for a great night’s sleep and a whole lot more, it’s MyPillow.com.”

Donald Trump introduced Mike Lindell, Founder of My Pillow, to the assembled and those watching worldwide.  Trump was trumpeting another private enterprise that has redirected its production to help fight the enemy that we can’t see.  Lindell’s company is in the sleep business, but by Friday expects to be producing 50k protective hospital masks a week.

And therein lies the divide.  Make that, therein lies the canyon.

The Democratic Party wants the government to do more in this time of crisis.  And, it should.  And the Democrats want to point out all of the shortcomings of the Trump leadership during this terrible time.  And, it is their right.  The party also has willing media to carry their water.  CNN, MSNBC, and others almost gleefully report the negative and spin it south 24/7.

It wasn’t too long ago that the Republican Party wanted the government to do more in a time of crisis as well.  And, it should.  The Republicans endlessly pointed to the Bengazi Embassy fiasco that resulted in four Americans’ deaths.  And, it is their right.  The party also has willing media to carry their water as well.  FOX led the endless cry of the need to investigate Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s role in the disaster.

But to the right of Republicans, conservatives want the government to do even less.  They believe in capitalism as religiously as a Mike Lindell ever-present cross hanging from his neck.  And to the left of Democrats, socialists want the government to do it all.  They believe in the redistribution of money as crazily as Bernie’s coiffed hair flails in the spring breeze.

So, CNN has staked out a position of left of center to appease its audience.  It’s the Democratic base actually.  Trump is bad.  Private enterprise is bad.  Mike Lindell is bad.  Lindell advertises on Fox.  Fox is competition.  Cuomo ranting for more federal aid and ventilators is good.

And FOX has staked out a position of right of center to appease its audience.  It’s the Republican base actually.  Trump is good.  Private enterprise is good.  Mike Lindell is good.  Lindell advertises a ton with us.  CNN is competition.  Trump ranting about bad media and fake news is good.

So, here comes the 2020 CARES Act.  It’s $2.2 trillion.  Republicans at the trough wanted more for business and less for individuals.  Democrats wanted less for business and more for individuals.   In the end, they both got what they wanted.  They aren’t conservatives nor socialists.  They’re just big spenders.

Oh, and they both approved the $25 million for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. just like they both approved the Solyndra money.  Three days before Obama departed he appointed Susan Rice and Valerie Jarrett to the Kennedy Center’s board of trustees.

Pigs get fat.  Hogs get slaughtered.

And, CNN and FOX will be there to tell you all about it.  And, it’s either news, or fake news, or fair and balanced, or not, depending on who you watch.

America should try a pillow from MyPillow.com right about now.   We could all use a good night’s sleep.

 

 

 

 

 

Pork. It’s Worth the Wait.

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

Isn’t the amount of negativity surrounding us today darn near overwhelming?  You bet it is.

So, today BBR has chosen to stay positive.  We see the glass of warm water that you should be drinking multiple times a day as half full.  We’re positive that if you add a squeeze of lemon in it that you can 1) lose weight, and therefore, 2) preserve your dwindling food supplies.

Feeling better already?  But wait! There’s more!

We’re positive that Madame Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi means well in this time of need.  Nancy came to the rescue with a visionary bailout/entitlement government stimulus plan all of her own.

While crazy Bernie just wants “Medicare for All” paid for by the taxpayer, Pelosi offers way more in her economic stimulus bill.   A six-pack sampling below unveils just a few of its probable positive effects.

  1.  a bailout of all USPS (that’s your post office) debt.
  2.  $35 million for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
  3.  a regulation that greenhouse gas stats are provided going forward on all flights
  4.  $15 minimum wage at all companies receiving assistance
  5.  1/3 board members chosen by workers for assisted companies
  6.  required early voting and required same-day voter registration

One should never let a good pandemic crisis slip by without slipping in a truckload (or $#%@load if you prefer) of barrels of pork and regulation.  Of course, a lot of our grocery stores could use a truckload of pork right about now.  The meat is so juicy it’ll be worth the wait.

We do think that Trump’s decision to not shake her hand before the State of the Union address, as well as her hand recoil, turns out to be a positive as well.   They were practicing social distancing before most of us had ever heard of “social distancing.”  How woke of the two?

And, when the Madame Speaker tore up the printed address she was prescient as well.  The virus tests positive (there’s that word again) on paper for a long while as you know.

Her examples of visionary leadership will have a positive effect on generations to come.  Here is but one example.  Senator Rand Paul was physically assaulted by his neighbor in 2017.  Injuries were significant.  And, four days ago Senator Paul tested positive for the Coronavirus.  “Rand Paul’s neighbor was right,” Pelosi’s daughter Christine tweeted yesterday.  That’s a multigenerational, passed on, bipartisan goodwill gesture if you’ve ever heard one.

Lastly, how about her warp speed ability to deliver the 1400 page proposal in such a short time?  Did she have such a measure ready to take advantage of a desperate time just like this one in her top desk drawer?  Like a lot of things these days, we’re positive about that as well.

The American economy is getting slaughtered by the day.  The pigs are soon to follow.

 

 

 

 

 

It’s a Crazy Time

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

Co-host of The View Meghan McCain said, “It’s a crazy time.”

Co-host Whoopi Goldberg had just pitched former President Barack Obama for the vice president slot on the Democratic Party’s ticket with 2020 presidential hopeful Joe Biden.  Goldberg said, “I’m sorry. I’m just going to do my crazy right now.”  Whoopee for Whoopi.

And so it is.

Meanwhile back at The White House, President Trump misses his orange-tinted mug.   “I haven’t touched my face in weeks,” he said. “In weeks. I miss it.”  Coronavirus task force leader Dr. Deborah Birx seemed encouraged.

And so it goes.

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) took a dig at Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) after a Fox News segment made it sound as if the Massachusetts senator stood as the last female in the Democrat primary race, referring to her as a “fake indigenous woman of color.”  “Is it because you believe a fake indigenous woman of color is ‘real’ and the real indigenous woman of color in this race is fake?” she asked.  Ouch!  Gabbard has garnered exactly one delegate in the count that is over one thousand at this point.

And on.

Meanwhile, Warren contacted Bernie Sanders yesterday and informed him that she would take the proper amount of time to decide whether she would continue to drive in his lane or fold her tent.  Rush Limbaugh fill in Mark Steyn equated that to ” like someone giving me a tumbler of scotch and a pistol in my parlor, and saying ‘take your time, you’ll make the right decision.'”

And, then there was Joe Biden.

Biden, fresh off of a strong Super Tuesday, gained Mayor Mini Mike Bloomberg’s endorsement for the Democratic Party nomination.  Mayor Mike is 600 million lighter in the wallet after his abysmal failure of a run at the nomination.  Heck, Bloomberg even called Biden a good friend.  It’s tough to beat the smell of newly printed money.  Biden seems to have gotten his sea legs under him after on Monday confusing Tuesday with Thursday, and then on Tuesday confusing his wife with his sister.

The MSNBC crew previewed (promoted) an upcoming NBC Today Show interview.  On it Biden responded to “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie’s question, “Do you think the president is rooting for Sanders?” “I don’t think the president wants to face me. I will beat him, period. Period. He’s done everything in his power— he’s even risked his presidency because he doesn’t want to face me.”

And so?

What did Wall Street think of the step back that Wall Street basher Bernie Sanders took on Super Tuesday?  It rallied Wednesday in a big way up 1000 Dow points due to the reduced odds that a self-proclaimed Socialist could make the political circus more than the three rings that it already is.

And then?

And then came Thursday, which in spite of Biden’s efforts to label it “Super,” doesn’t seem to have a bright future.  The Dow futures are down 600 points plus this AM.

And finally?

Hopefully, the Corona Virus is greatly slowed or contained soon for obvious reasons.  It would also allow Trump to touch his face again.  After all, his makeup base and his political base know that orange is the new red, white, and blue.

And in America today, crazy is the new normal.

 

Down to Three Approaching Fourscore

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

It’s Super Tuesday.  It’s a super big day for Bernie Sanders, running for his party’s presidential nomination.  And, it’s a super big day for Joe Biden, too, even though he thought it was Super Thursday.

And it’s a big day for the Democratic National Committee(DNC).  Assuming the vote tally process works better in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and Virginia than it did in Iowa the DNC will have a much better idea of what else they need to throw at Bernie Sanders to halt the assault from the far left.

Crazy Bernie has no chance in the general election of even coming close to Donald Trump.  You know it.  Your dog knows it. And, the DNC knows it.

And, apparently, that is very bad as it sounds like our time here on terra firma is running short.   Ask Beto O’Rourke.  Last evening while endorsing Biden, Beto shrieked, “The man in the White House today poses an existential threat to this country. To our democracy. To free and fair elections. And we need somebody who can beat him. And in Joe Biden, we have that man.”   Biden embraced far-left anti-gun extremist O’Rourke during a rally on Monday night in Texas.  He declared that the failed Senate and presidential candidate was going to lead Biden’s anti-Second Amendment efforts.   At least the unemployment figures will drop by one.

Most nominee hopefuls call climate change the biggest existential threat.  Tom Steyer was a loud one of those, but no more.  He dropped out over the weekend.  If a tree falls in the forest but no one hears it, is it still climate change?  If he endorses Biden and no one hears it, is it still an endorsement?

No word yet on if Steyer will endorse Biden.  But, the others are lining up and doing their party’s work.  Pete Buttigieg dropped out just in time to try to swing his votes to Uncle Joe.  Mayor Pete endorsed Biden last night.  Biden said that he was surprised that he did that.  Maybe he was as it’s 50/50 that he knows who Pete is.  The DNC wasn’t surprised.  Pete is young and dutiful.   Promises made?

Amy Klobuchar dropped out yesterday.  Whew.  Just in time for Super Thursd, er, Tuesday as well.  She also is expected to endorse Biden today.  Amy isn’t as young as Pete but is as dutiful.

After tonight the DNC will have a better feel for how many more ducks they have to get in a row to prevent that pesky Bernie Sanders from quacking too much in mid-July in Milwaukee.

The party (after Elizabeth Warren realizes it’s over today) of inclusion and diversity will be down to 77-year-old white male Joe Biden, 78-year-old white male Bernie Sanders, and 78-year-old white male Michael Bloomberg.  All would be fourscore and more after one term.

Sanders stayed along for the ride all of the way to the convention four years ago.  It drove Hillary harder and further than the then 69-year-old wanted.  As crazy as it seems he’s riding shotgun again.  No Beto, it’s not that kind of shotgun.  The DNC is trying desperately to play traffic cop.

Meanwhile, get some more endorsements, Joe.  There’s a guy named Obama.  He might stand behind you as you did with him especially if the DNC asks with a “pretty please.”

And, get some rest.

 

Politicians and Coaches Make Strange Bedfellows

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

Raise your hand, as the candidates did repeatedly, if you watched the tenth of fourteen Democratic Presidential Debates last evening.   While the candidates have their philosophical differences, they unanimously tell us that this country needs new leadership.  Each of them also believes that they are just the one to bring it to the White House.

Leadership.  What is leadership?  There are many iterations of definitions.  One definition is the ability to clearly communicate a vision, show a path for that vision, and get people to join the journey to help see to its fulfillment.

It’s what coaches have to do to get a group of players, regardless of the sport, to believe in what they are doing and come together as one to achieve their goals.

Good candidates should project as good coaches.  So, this made us wonder.  Who in the sports coaching world past or present reminds us most of the individuals on stage last evening.  In the scouting world it’s called comps.  Our best guesses at the comps follow.

Bernie Sanders sports an unkempt gray hairdo that he “hand combs” frequently.  Strong-willed and unrelenting, Bernie has a vision.  If challenged, he reddens in the face and raises his voice to accentuate a point.  It’s his way or the highway.  We get the feeling that when he dies he wants to be buried face down so that everyone can kiss his buttocks.  He hasn’t thrown a chair yet, but our comp is Bobby Knight.

Michael Bloomberg reminds us most of Hank Stram.  Bloom stands barely above the podium at about five feet and seven inches.  Stram needed 1970’s platform shoes to get to that rarefied air.  Both are/were smug and speak with squeaky voices.  Full disclosure- Stram was known to wear a trench coat on the sidelines, weather permitting, back in the day.  Flashy for fashionable reasons.   Nondisclosure- Bloomberg was known to wear a trench coat in the office, regardless of weather, back in the day.  Flashy for all of the wrong reasons.

Elizabeth Sanders has no direct identifiable comp, though George O’Leary and his falsified resume’ come to mind.  Undeterred, it’s obvious that she still wants skin in the game regardless of the sport.  As a kindred spirit, it’s well known that she covets coaching positions with the Washington Redskins, Cleveland Indians, and Florida State Seminoles.  But. she’s no George Allen nor Bobby Bowden.  Of course, their contracts were never taken from them due to pregnancy either.

Tom Steyer, we hardly know you.  Stoic, simple, and possibly a bit boring, Steyer is a marginal match with former Minnesota Viking Head Coach Bud Grant.  Grant was four times a bridesmaid and never a bride in Super Bowls.  Steyer could run three more times himself and we doubt highly that America would propose to him as well.  Grant won 283 NFL games, good for third all-time but we hardly knew him.

Joe Biden is a dead ringer for Les Miles.  Both have been in the game for a long time.  Yesterday Biden asked for your vote during a presentation.  It’s must-see Gaffe TV, again.  One is bad at debate clock management.  The other is bad at game clock management.  Biden prefers plugs to dye.  Miles prefers dye to plugs.  Both were relevant decades ago.  Both are still in the game, but we wonder why.

Amy Klobuchar projects more as an on-field leader than a sideline coach.  She’s a throwback 10-year plug and play three-down middle linebacker if there ever was a guy named Dick Butkus.  She even referred to her Uncle Dick (no relation to Butkus) in the deer stand last evening when discussing gun control.   Back in the day slick, tight-fitting helmets were made of leather.  Amy’s helmet hair hairdo looks and likely feels much the same, while Butkus sported a crew do.

Pete Buttigieg has an uncanny ability to inflect his voice like, parse his words, and use the same words as Barrak Obama.  It’s so uncanny that many openly wonder if it’s admiration or plagiarism.  Mayor Pete talks a big game but hasn’t coached in one yet.  Houston Texan Head Coach Bill O’Brien learned from Bill Belichick in a similar fashion and borrows attitude, mood, and words from Belichick similar to Pete’s wordsmith feats.  Both aspire to get to the big stage.  Not yet.

Ronald Reagan wanted to win one for the Gipper.  The seven left standing on stage want to win one as well.

 

 

 

 

 

What’s Old is Old

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

Do you remember the Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker Show back in the eighties?  His relentless pursuit of money through the guise of religion was so tiresome.  Claims made by him and his minions of miracles answered for contributors to his church were endless and far fetched at best.  But, it was a narrative that kept his lovely wife Tammy Faye in mascara.  Jim eventually served hard time in jail for his sins.

Undeterred, he’s been at it again.  Contacts have replaced thick glasses.  Thin white coiffed hair has replaced thick brown coiffed hair.  Tammy Faye passed away.  He has a new female Fatale beside him as he continues to spread the good word.  Recently he brought on an “expert” who stated that for a small contribution she could send you some medicine that would destroy the coronavirus in just 12 hours.  It’s a miracle!

Find a narrative, swear to God by it, and collect money.

Which brings us to MSNBC.  Lawrence O’Donnell reminds us of the Rev. Jim Bakker.  Find a narrative, swear to God by it, and collect ad money.

Ole Larry made the Putin and Trump connection again.  O’Donnell said, “The president is a Russian operative. That sounds like the description of a bad Hollywood screenplay, but it is real. It is Vladimir Putin’s greatest achievement, decades after America’s victory in the Cold War and collapse of the Soviet Union, the president of the United States is now helping the president of Russia help the president of the United States to get re-elected. So that the president of Russia will have four more years of the president of the United States who he wants in the Oval Office, this is one of those shocking news days if you retain the capacity to be shocked in the Trump era by the Trump regime, which might be better labeled the Trump-Putin regime.”

You know.  Russia bad.  Trump bad.  We’ll be back after these revenue-generating messages.

So what if Putin prefers Trump over, say, a socialist that Bloomberg called a communist?  What would O’Donnell screech if Putin, as crazy as it sounds, came out in support of Crazy Bernie?

What would Lawrence say then?  Would he blame Trump for contacting Putin to get him to do it?  After all, who would want Putin’s endorsement?  Remember Russia bad.  Trump bad.

The narrative is beyond tired.  The collusion and all of its Mueller investigating (and striking out) is as old and tired as Jim Baker and snake oil.

Trumps’s approval numbers have improved over his time in office to a new high this past month.

How much is due to Putin? Not much.   The real question is how much is due to America growing more tired of a tired narrative.  Much.

 

Winners? Losers?

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

Our society always yearns for clarity.  There are always good guys and bad guys in movies.  In debates, we want to know who won or lost.  One debate does not an election season make.  Regardless, we’ll play along.  To the Nevada Democratic Debate scoreboard we go.

Winner– Donald J. Trump.   There were no “wow” moments from any Democrat that would cause anyone to look at this race for 2020 any differently.  When capitalism v. socialism is being debated you’ve got a problem with the narrative in the bigger picture.

Loser- Michael Bloomberg.  He paid to get on the stage and halfway through he likely wanted to pay to get off of the stage no matter the cost.  Elizabeth Warren stood next to him.  Mini Mike, as Trump calls him, looked small in stature and when Warren traded punches with him on his confidentially settled lawsuits brought by former female employees he looked even smaller.  He was attacked by everyone on stage and had few counter punches of note.  He looked like he could use a standing eight count at one point.

Winner– Mayor Pete.  It is obvious that the moderates (we use that term loosely with this crowd of Mayor Pete, Amy Klobuchar, and Bloomberg) will consolidate down to one at some point.  Mayor Pete has poise and stage presence.  He speaks eloquently but says little.  That actually works in this crowd.  His few but pointed attacks had a plan.  He had Klobuchar rattled more than once.  He has no national record so few attack him.  Others are falling around him.  Is his inexperience his biggest foe?

Loser- Joe Biden.  Joe stood in the middle of the ring and came out of the debate unscathed.  That sounds like a winner, but it’s not.  Why?  Its because no one even bothered to throw a punch at him.  This also makes him a loser as his competition has moved on to fight other fighters.  Long on experience and relationships around the globe, he constantly reminds us, is no longer the winning ticket to get on the nomination train.

Winner– NBC.  The moderators had control for the most part and the questions aimed at most candidates were pointed and debate worthy.  The bar for moderators is very low when CNN is your competition, however.  Bonus points to them for keeping the far-left MSNBC talking heads at home.

Loser– Elizabeth Warren.  Her demeanor was better than her norm.  Her aforementioned exchange with Bloomberg was strong.  Her fingernails on a chalkboard voice was an octave lower than usual.   Sounds like a winner doesn’t it?  The problem is Bernie Sanders is the front runner and he is in her lane taking up all of the oxygen.  It’s too late for her.

Winner– Bernie Sanders.  He admitted that he is a “Democratic Socialist.”  He was called out for a 25 trillion dollar gap in his health care plan costs.  Yet he lost no ground last evening and remains the front runner.  Now he should loudly focus on fixing the Democratic Super Delegate problem that is right in front of him.  Bloomberg has money to burn.  Bernie should burn down the crooked process.

Loser– The Democratic Party.  Having an avowed Socialist leading your process as the capitalistic driven economy rolls along in 2020 is no way to win an election.  For the party that prides itself on inclusiveness, last night was a divisive two hour attack on one another.

See you in South Carolina.

 

Right from Wrong

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

It started innocently enough last evening.  Not too long after the New Hampshire Democratic Primary polls closed Andrew Yang closed shop on his campaign.  He meant well.  But his $1000/month giveaway to every adult idea never gained traction.  He thought it was the right thing to do, but voters never lined up for the “free” handout.

Former Mayor Mike Bloomberg, not in this primary (are the rules convoluted much?), had audio tapes leak yesterday.  On them, defending his stop and frisk initiative he stated “95% of your murders, murderers and murder victims fit one M.O. You can just take the description, Xerox it, pass it out to all the cops, They are male, minorities, 16-25. That’s true in New York, that’s true in virtually every city.”

Avowed Democrat and African American Juan Williams, Fox News contributor, was asked how he felt about the words heard on the tape.  Juan said “on one hand the statistics prove that Bloomberg is right.  But, it would be wrong for my son to have to fear getting stopped by the police each and every time he left the house.”

Bernie Sanders took a victory lap with just over 25% of the New Hampshire vote last evening.  It’s his right to run for President even though he makes no bones about his Socialism platform.  The United States is fast approaching its 250th birthday.  It seems to be doing quite well as a capitalistic society.  It’s poor are far richer than the global average.  That’s not to say that we can’t do better.  He finished his victory speech with “this victory is the beginning of the end for Donald Trump.”  Bernie may be right.  Trump’s presidency and his reelection message are diametrically opposed to Sanders.  Someone (James Carville, Democratic strategist extraordinaire) once said, “it’s the economy stupid!”  There is a lot to like in today’s US economy.  Bernie may be wrong.

The purported front runner just weeks ago, Joe Biden skipped his “victory” party last night in NH and flew straight to South Carolina, the next primary battleground. He made the right move given his single-digit performance and subsequent fifth-place NH finish.  He called the Iowa finish (though it’s not finished) a “gut punch.”  The New Hampshire support lacked support as it was a punch below the belt.  Greeted by South Carolina supporters he attempted to rally the troops.  He told them “It’s important that Iowa and Nevada have spoken.”  Wrong.  Nevada, New Hampshire.  Pre Med.  Pre Law.  Tomato.  Tomatoe.  It’s all the same.  Right?

The DNC tried to put a new saddle on an old horse in Biden.  The RNC tried to do the same four years ago in Jeb Bush.  Wrong and wrong.  Biden’s campaign should be taken behind the barn and put out of its mystery.  It’s the right thing to do.  Biden should be on a beach with crew socks on his sandal feet and zinc oxide on his nose, with his Aviator glasses in place.

“Hello America! I’m Amy Klobuchar and I will beat Donald Trump,” she told a cheering crowd. “My heart is full tonight. We have beaten the odds every step of the way.”  She’s right.  No one thought the Minnesota Senator would still be standing at this point in the long road to the nomination.  She finished a “strong third.”

Since when is a third-place finish a victory?  When a party is searching desperately for a warm body to be the nominee, she isn’t wrong.

Everyone is famous for 15 minutes.  Klobuchar has no organization on the ground in any Super Tuesday primary state.  No candidate has ever gained the nomination without a first or second-place finish in the first two primaries.  Never say never, however.

Speaking of a first or second-place finish, Mayor Pete Buttigieg has one of each.  It’s Pete’s right to accept big donor money from Wall St.  Sanders says it’s wrong.

Based on the above history says it’s right to assume Sanders or Buttigieg will wind up being the nominee.  In today’s political madness basing anything on history might be the wrong thing to do.

And, waiting in the wings is Donald Trump.  Whether you think that he is right or wrong, all he wants to do is “Keep America Great!”

Queue the Billy Joel.

 

Run Forrest Run!

Posted on by thependulumswings staff

If the four years of the Donald Trump presidency can be compared to four laps of a steeplechase race, Trump entered the first turn of the final lap this week.

He wants to run four more laps and has filed the necessary paperwork to do so.  He wants to win the next one. He always wants to win, win, win.  Don’t believe me, just ask him.  Or, don’t even ask, just listen.

So listening was just what America did yesterday.  Trump had a great burst into lap four and was free and clear of the field and its many detractors.  All previous investigations behind him, the biggest hurdles were two impeachment articles.  He jumped them both quite well.  The Democrats fell into the water.  Adam Schiff looks winded.  Nadler’s gassed.  The Iowa Primary went underwater and hasn’t surfaced.  Joe Biden said he took a gut punch.  The State of the Union address was lauded near and far as his best speech to date in office.

Out of the court and free and clear, Trump sprinted into Thursday morning and held his own court.  In the rearview mirror he could see them all getting smaller.  So what did he do?  In what should have been a well-earned victory lap, Trump decided to slow down and put all of his detractors right back into the thick of the chase.

He apparently cannot help himself.  In 49 or so minutes he reminded us that he won in 2016 when people thought that he couldn’t.  That’s so 2016 of him.

He bashed Comey.  Comey might have deserved bashing in 2017 and 2018.  What does Comey have to do with the Ukranian phone call, impeachment, and subsequent acquittal?  That’s so 2018 of him.

And, while thanking a female senator or rep (BBR could not identify her from the tv and Trump mumbled her name) for her help in defeating the uprising, Trump called her “nasty” and “mean” and said, “you did a great job.”  Take that as a compliment we guess.

Maybe, no probably, he only knows one way.  He prefers and excels at mixing it up.  He came from nowhere, he slugged it out with Hillary, and he has been fighting everyone for three-plus laps.

With no one in front of him he ran headlong into the next hurdle.  He brings the field back to him. He lowers the hurdles for the competition. Clearly he prefers tight quarters with elbows thrown over running unabated.

Just when the Democrats tied all of their shoelaces together Trump decided to go Forrest Gump.  Run Forrest Run!