The DeSantis Dud

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When Governor Ron DeSantis announced that he was running for the Republican Party nomination, it seemed like the predictions where true. He was going to be the antidote to Trump, if not Trumpism. For a few weeks everyone was talking about this guy as if he was a viral video. Then all of a sudden, he disappeared. The media stopped covering him, other than when he insulted their sacred cows. His social media influencers are desperate for attention but are mostly ignored.

There were two schools of thought on DeSantis. One school said he would run as Trump without Trumpism, meaning without the antics. He would make the case for the same issues but do so in a more conventional manner. The other school of thought said he would be the Ted Cruz of the race. He would stake out a position just inside Trump so he would not scare the sissies, but he would still get some respect from the more hardcore members of the party voting base.

Both options rested on an assumption that Trump eventually would be removed from the nomination process. Maybe the regime would put him jail. Maybe the weight of the many indictments would force him to quit. Perhaps the Republican Party would combine the two and change the rules to exclude Trump. Regardless of how, the underlying logic of the DeSantis campaign rested on Trump being eliminated. DeSantis was running as the guy who comes after that event.

Instead, DeSantis has staked out a third path, the boring path. Rather than being Trump-lite or being a kinder, gentler Trump, he is Ned Flanders. A look at his YouTube page explains why no one talks about DeSantis. His lead video is titled “America is Worth the Fight” which is what you expect from a white box consulting firm that creates generic videos for local politicians on a budget. It is the sort of ad Republicans in safe suburban districts run when a Democrat is in the White House.

After getting some heat from the usual suspects for the ad tying Trump to the pride campaigns, they deleted that ad and rolled out the “Mammas for DeSantis” ad campaign that some idiot consultants thinks are clever. They think it is clever because they think the people who vote in Republican primaries are morons. They also repeatedly use the bot-phrase “game changer” in their media campaign around these new videos, which is what you get from consultants.

What the campaign is telling us so far is they have no idea why DeSantis is running, and they have no idea who will be voting in the election. The campaign is being run by people who exist in the Potemkin village that serves as the imperial capital and all of them think if they wish hard enough, it will be 2012 again. That was the peak of the political class, where their manufactured man, Barak Obama, had won reelection over the least authentic human on earth, Mitt Romney.

The results are what you expect from such a dreary campaign. A state poll released yesterday is a good indication of what is happening. Trump now leads DeSantis in Florida by twenty points. Sure, Trump has a big presence in the state, but DeSantis is the sitting governor and he just won reelection in a landslide. The voters there like him and want to like him. What this suggests is they like him as their governor, but they do not like the idea of him being president.

This is the pattern everywhere. In state after state, DeSantis has seen his polling settle into the low-20% range. After people got to see him, they were not impressed, and his initial support has started to drain away. The main reason, of course, is he is not answering the only question that matters in this primary, “why should you vote for anyone other than Donald Trump?” If you cannot provide an answer, the answer is provided for you, and it is not a good answer.

What voters are seeing thus far is that DeSantis is not a risk taker. He is instinctively a cautious guy. Instead of roaring out of the gate with an affirmative campaign based on a set of key issues he thinks are important, he is rolling out a message that has been market-tested by the same people who get hired by fast food chains to market test their latest ad campaign. Inevitably, they lean toward avoiding controversy as no consultant ever gets fired for being too cautious.

The first debate is six weeks away, so the DeSantis people have time to retool the campaign in order to reintroduce their guy to the country. As it stands, the people on the stage will be Trump, DeSantis, Tim Scott, Nikki Haley, Vivek Ramaswamy, Mike Pence and maybe Chris Christie. North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum is trying to buy his way on stage through some sort of gift card scheme. Trump has hinted that he could skip this debate, or he might be in jail by then.

Assuming no changes, this is a one-shot deal for DeSantis. Ramaswamy will steal the show with his Kwiki Mart act. He will avoid attacking Trump and instead spend his time telling older white people that they are the best. Christie will be a fat loudmouth who will spend his time insulting Trump. The midgets will be boring extras. In other words, DeSantis is going to have to find a way to get attention, without sounding like a kook while also providing an affirmative case for himself.

What this will require is risk taking. Over the next six months his campaign should be rolling out ads that send the regime media into orbit, while his campaign refuses to talk to them about anything. Instead, DeSantis spends the time shaking hands, talking shop, and building relationships with the locals in Iowa and New Hampshire. This creates anticipation for the debate and will bait the moderators into focusing on him and his provocative ads, while he calmly answers their questions.

There are no signs that this will happen or could happen. Chance favors the bold and so far, his campaign has been everything but bold. Their campaign is based on something removing Trump from the ballot before people start voting. That is why DeSantis may not make it past New Hampshire. If your success depends on others acting in your interests, you are unlikely to succeed. Winners take risks because they are not afraid to lose. The DeSantis campaign is too afraid to win.

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Comments (Historical)

The comments below were originally posted to thezman.com.

140 Comments

MB #361327 July 16, 2023 9:05 pm 0
Desantis’ “problem” is that he 100% devoid of the carney gene.
Zee Commenter #360849 July 12, 2023 1:50 pm 0
DeSantis played baseball at Yale, was Navy Intel, and comes out of Florida. Check, check and check re: Bush family connections. The fight with Disney and the sending of migrants to Martha’s Vineyard were satisfying I admit, but that’s circus stuff. President DeSantis will absolutely not push to reduce legal immigration, de-escalate a WW3 scenario in Ukraine or avoid war in Iran at the behest of everyone-knows-who. Very much the opposite! A President Trump would be under heavy pressure from Javanka and Conservative Inc to act like a typical Republican but he may retain enough independent thought and political instict re: his white working class supporters to keep a stiff spine and do the right thing. No guarantee but at least a 60/40 chance. With DeSantis it is a100% guaranteed a reboot of the Jeb! platform plus some meaningless anti-PC decoration.
Milestone D #360750 July 12, 2023 7:26 am 0
Every not-Trump GOP candidate is trying to walk a tight-rope, or at least has to walk a tight-rope – some I’m convinced are too egotistical or too stupid to appreciate this reality, and are running simply on vanity, or assuming 2012 conditions are right around the corner. The trouble facing all the not-Trump candidates is that any criticism of Trump would appear to validate the Regime, which perversely, validates Trump’s primary appeal. There is perhaps a narrow opportunity to criticize Trump for his failure to control the administrative state, since as has been mentioned here frequently, if in the very unlikely event that Trump is elected, the federal establishment will simply refuse to obey. But, this line of argument begs the question … if they will obey a DeSantis, or a Scott, then they’re Regime toadies and … we’re right back to validating Trump’s primary argument. I suspect that this line of thinking was readily obvious to the political consultant class, but who makes any money from recommending NOT to run?
ChrisZ #360749 July 12, 2023 3:17 am 0
“[2012] was the peak of the political class, where their manufactured man, Barak Obama, had won reelection over the least authentic human on earth, Mitt Romney.” This is an excellent insight into the patterns of our moment in history.
Mike #360751 July 12, 2023 8:26 am 0
Jay Leno is an ass but back when I had cable, I’d watch his car show. He had Mitt on it once with some kind of an AMC car from the muscle car era that his sone had bought and had restored for him. The poor bastard knew nothing about the car and had no interest in it. He was so wooden it was like watching two species trying to communicate. I loathe Leno but I felt sorry for him trying to carry on a conversation with someone who is definately not authentic in any way.
Vinnyvette #361082 July 13, 2023 3:39 pm 0
Mitt in his AMC AMX? drag racing Biden in his Corvette would be fun to watch! I’d take the Vette for the win, but by the time Biden reacted to the flag drop, I’m sure Mittens would be at the stripe.
My Comment #360744 July 11, 2023 7:59 pm 0
A big part of DeSantis’ problem is the same one Trump faced once elected: the near impossibility of hiring experienced people who are willing to push an agenda that is against the wishes of the rulers.If you work in advertising, you probably hate Trump voters. Even if you don’t hate them, you understand you will be black balled (person of color balled?) from all major advertising jobs by helping DeSantis push an agenda that is counter to the wishes of our religious police, the ADL. The same likely applies to nearly all campaign consultants.Trump was a master showman so was able to work around that in the campaign but was undermined every step of the way by every member of his staff including his own family. Yes, Trump could have done a much better job but what plagued Trump would have made accomplishing important campaign pledges nearly impossible no matter how effective he was as an administrator.The one candidate I can imagine who has a chance of going against the wishes of the ruling class is Kennedy mainly because of his name. I doubt all that many of our replacements are under the sway of the Kennedy aura but there are likely to be some white liberals who would like to bring Camelot back. Of course he won’t be elected and even if he was he would be blocked from waging war on the Empire but he can at least make effective ads as his first indicate.
Luber #360734 July 11, 2023 7:20 pm 0
As a lifelong Floridian let me correct you: here, many people either don’t like him or don’t care. Even during his recent win, you didn’t see a lot of signs for him. Some but few and not as many as the voting numbers should suggest. Take from that what you will but it wouldn’t surprise me if all voting was fake.He’s starting to get the reputation all Republicans get in Florida: they are lying scumbags who say one thing for the camera then do another behind closed doors. This is why it was smart for them to run Crist against him at the state level; every Floridian universally hates former Republican politicians like Crist. This gave the “landslide” the appearance of legitimacy.Remember though, I’m predicting Deep State DeSantis and Trump will combine forces soon enough.
Jeffrey Zoar #360742 July 11, 2023 7:45 pm 0
If winning the election is the #1 goal then the Trump/DeSantis ticket is a no brainer We’ve pondered here, somewhat fruitlessly, why the deep state has been unwilling to co-opt Trump. It is perhaps even more perplexing why the GOP is unwilling to do so. It’s not as if he won’t give them the judges and cabinet officials that they want. Among other things.
Luber #360743 July 11, 2023 7:53 pm 0
Trump was a honeypot as is most of the alt-right. His actions and comments on and after J6 all but prove it. 2024 will be to be given to grillers to bring them back into the fold as we slide further into abject tyranny. They’ll beg for it too, to own the libs. Trump endorses DeSantis from jail.
Vxxc #360732 July 11, 2023 7:16 pm 0
DeSantis was At GITMO, as JAG lawyer. He may or may not have Deep State buddies. Or frankly given last week’s performance in Israel, signing a bill to protect Jewish school kids from Woke , who knows maybe he’s lining up Ambassador to Israel? I am thinking that could be a great gig, I’ll bet its like being posted to Gulf Arab states 💰💰💰💰💰Just less scrutiny.
NateG #360726 July 11, 2023 6:09 pm 0
I want so bad to see Christie in these debates and watch Trump destroy him like he did Jeb Bush.
370H55V Imemine #360720 July 11, 2023 4:02 pm 0
I don’t have a dog in this fight–yet, but it might be useful to remember the parallel situation in 2016, when Trump won all but one county (Miami-Dade) in the Florida primary over favorite son Sen. Marco Rubio.
Vinnyvette #360718 July 11, 2023 3:47 pm 0
DeSantis is a classic, milquetoast, country club Republican only with a touch of “awe gee shucks” regular Joe appeal. He’s done a fantastic job for Florida. He’s been fearless going up against the woke mob, and their equivalent of the Vatican… Disney. So, he’s shown some balls, however, he has a very supportive state legislature backing him up. He has not had the Trump experience of jumping head first into the swamp, and the various alphabet agencies, Congress, and the senate to a lesser extent literally trying to destroy him / jail him. I think DeSantis under the same heat as Trump would collapse like a house of cards.DeSantis is the new Paul Ryan, a policy wonk, but at the end of the day beholden to his campaign contributors. At the state level, he can puff out his chest, and push bold policy initiatives, because he has the support of his base, and the legislature. He has succeed in the cocoon that is Florida politics.As president, I think he would go into RINO mode for self preservation.He also has zero charisma, and since Bill Clinton and Obama hit the scene, charisma Trumps policy. Trump has all that, and is never afraid to be “Trump.”Trump is a battle scared, and tested warrior, love him or hate him. He will not cave in or give up the fight. He thrives on it.DeSantis has accomplished a lot in Florida, he’s delivered the goods. He has no idea what it’s like to take on the swamp. He’s be out of his league.
Dutch Boy #361103 July 13, 2023 6:04 pm 0
The Swamp ate Trump for lunch.
Oswald Spengler #360702 July 11, 2023 2:04 pm 0
Most viewers would take this video clip as a parody of a generic, bland, content free presidential campaign ad. The DeSantis campaign views this clip as a campaign ad template. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rouDIzhgVcY
Guest #360701 July 11, 2023 1:59 pm 0
Any Republican candidate other than Trump is going to lose in a landslide, as millions of Trump voters will stay home. The Republican National Committee is fully aware of this from their polling. Of what utility is a political party that sets out from the beginning to lose a presidential election?
Ostei Kozelskii #360703 July 11, 2023 2:07 pm 0
It has utility as a sham party that gulls close to half the electorate into thinking it has representation at the federal level, and that political pluralism actually exists in AINO.
Oswald Spengler #360704 July 11, 2023 2:09 pm 0
“Of what utility is a political party that sets out from the beginning to lose a presidential election?” Zero….save possibly as controlled opposition or a false choice for voters. Right wing voters have a choice. You can vote for the party who despises you and wishes you were dead or you can vote for the party who is mortified about your existence and wishes you would just shut up and go away after every election day.
Vxxc #360727 July 11, 2023 6:11 pm 0
It makes money 💰This is its utilityIt protects the system by destroying any alternative from within.Considering Trillions of dollars to dispense annually, tens of trillions if bailouts needed, the GOP provides an excellent value to the political system. Please Recall asking “of what use is a political party?” Key word; Political.Answered.
mderpelding #360692 July 11, 2023 1:07 pm 0
Things are getting interesting, aren’t they.A few thoughts:Free speech is part of the problem. Not the solution. Why do you think that public discourse is led by pooh slingers who believe in magic Unicorns?Because free speech idiots gave them the soapbox. It’s time to take it away.On DeSantis and Israel: Jews are the ultimate right wing people.Don’t agree? Consider this definition of the difference between “left” and “right”.Leftism is inclusive, indiscriminate.Rightism is exclusive, discriminating.So which term defines Jews?So DeSantis goes to Israel to get the support of the mother country of the most powerful right wing people in the west. Seems like a good idea to me.Fun thought for the day:Track the establishment of Holocaustianity in the west, and especially the U.S., with the west’s support of anti-apartheid movements in South Africa. This is where white people screwed over their own genetic kin over abstract morality.South Africa was Israel’s most loyal friend. You know, fellow embattled intelligent people surrounded by a relentlessly hostile majority of pooh slinging magic Unicorn people.Best regards,Mike
fertcarden #360689 July 11, 2023 12:58 pm 0
“If your success depends on others acting in your interests, you are unlikely to succeed.” Obama’s whole political career was based entirely on others acting in his interests every step of the way.
Jeffrey Zoar #360691 July 11, 2023 1:03 pm 0
Nobody ever made magic with a teleprompter like that guy did. You can’t make that happen with just anybody, or with very many people. The same people could do all the same things for DeSantis that they did for Obama, but when you put him up there on stage he just falls flat. With or without the prompter.
OldCurmudgeon #360684 July 11, 2023 12:40 pm 0
>There were two schools of thought on DeSantis. The third school is to be the ‘Biden’ of this cycle i.e., don’t do anything stupid that knocks you out + try to be everyone’s “second choice” + hope that party insiders execute some crooked scheme to knock out the leader. Rinse and repeat in the general, this time with the deep state executing the crooked scheme for some tbd reason??
Jeffrey Zoar #360687 July 11, 2023 12:53 pm 0
In the “rig it for a Republican so as to maintain the appearance of legitimacy” scenario, DeSantis is obviously the guy. But you can’t have somebody else out in front by 50 points in the primaries. It’s hard/impossible to fortify against that.
OldCurmudgeon #360694 July 11, 2023 1:14 pm 0
IDK. Insiders say stuff like “…totally unprecedented to run under multiple indictments…” yada, yada, then remove him from the primary ballots. Bonus, cite the handful of write-in votes that he’ll still get as evidence that he wasn’t that popular anymore.
miforest #360683 July 11, 2023 12:39 pm 0
Sadly , Desantis is a Bush family project . you cannot underestimate the absolute revulsion the real long time GOP grass roots has for that bunch. I mean the people who work campaigns on the local level. folks who volenteer to knock on doors, put up signs, get out the vote calls and work the polls . the Bush family has done more dammage to the country than the clintons ever thought of. there was no victory they couldn’t squander, they are the bunch that gave us karl Rove, who wrecked the fox new election desk by hiring a lifelong democtatic activivist as their numbers guy to make calls in 2020. just his association with them means that the most active 10% of their base would vote biden before they would supprt the bush family machine.
Tars Tarkas #360686 July 11, 2023 12:52 pm 0
Traitors. The whole damn family. Of course, it was the Bush family who let China into the WTO so the business class could sell out their country for coin. Prison is too good for the whole lot of them and their cronies. They should be treated as traitors. “Even President Gore” would have been better.
Davidcito #360746 July 11, 2023 10:58 pm 0
This was bill Clinton’s decision. It just didn’t initiate until W was in office
Steveaz #360901 July 12, 2023 8:06 pm 0
We might need to knit the Bush family into our plans. It’d be good if we could recruit them, mainly monied and ‘connected’ Germans, into the MAGA ranks. Don’t shoot yourselves in the foot by lashing out at your native American allies.
Sumguy #360674 July 11, 2023 12:16 pm 0
I’m not a cheerleader for NatSoc or any figure from the 1930s-40s. I used to play along with the memes, but today I realize it’s a mistake to attempt to resuscitate the image of an ideology from another era.HOWEVER, and I want to boldly highlight HOWEVER, I’ll be the first to say that democracy died on April 30th, 1945 in a bunker in Berlin.This is when the powers that be decided that real democracy is too dangerous to ever be allowed again. The Germans rightly elected a majority party, and their leader was rightly appointed chancellor, and they were wildly popular in the most fundamentally democratic way imaginable. But they were a threat to the order that was established at Versailles a few decades before. There has never been a more absolute rejection of democracy than what occurred during this time.I’m not against democracy. But I am against the idea of any westerner believing that they live in one, or that any war that has been fought since 1945 was actually fought for democracy.The quicker our people wake up to this absolutely certain truth, the better off we will all be.
Jeffrey Zoar #360693 July 11, 2023 1:08 pm 0
Perhaps the assassination of Huey Long helped accomplish the same thing domestically
wendy forward #360722 July 11, 2023 5:38 pm 0
Big time. All the right people were terrified of Huey. And he inspired a great Randy Newman album.
pecosbill #360715 July 11, 2023 3:12 pm 0
Democracy died because of the defeat at Gettysburg 1863 and again at the battle of Stalingrad 1943.
Gespenst #360725 July 11, 2023 5:47 pm 0
“HOWEVER, and I want to boldly highlight HOWEVER, I’ll be the first to say that democracy died on April 30th, 1945 in a bunker in Berlin.” Congratulations to the highest candlepower glowie I’ve ever seen.
Sumguy #360728 July 11, 2023 6:19 pm 0
I’m sorry?Do go on I’m a “glowie” because I recognize that WW2 was a turning point, or that I correctly state that mustache man was appointed chancellor because his party was democratically elected? You’re paranoid
Gespenst #360747 July 11, 2023 11:02 pm 0
“Glow Little Glow Worm”
Bilejones #360730 July 11, 2023 6:31 pm 0
“I’m not a cheerleader for NatSoc or any figure from the 1930s-40s. ” How’s that working for the yiddistani in Kiev?
Parisian nights. #360673 July 11, 2023 12:07 pm 0
People insult Romney but I still think he’s got a shot at the big one. I sit with Mitt.
miforest #360680 July 11, 2023 12:32 pm 0
there is no way you can insult romney enough.
TomA #360705 July 11, 2023 2:12 pm 0
Romney is the Rock Hudson of political buttboys.
wendy forward #360723 July 11, 2023 5:40 pm 0
And Karl Rove is a good Henry Wilson.
Neon_Bluebeard #360717 July 11, 2023 3:27 pm 0
Sorry Z… I Shit on Mitt
Some Guy #360721 July 11, 2023 4:30 pm 0
Suppose that Romney surprises everyone and wins. What do you hope that he will accomplish? Most commenters on this blog have given up on the GOP, so your enthusiasm is unusual. Do you believe that Romney and the GOP have the intent and the ability to improve the lives of the people who vote for them?
Ostei Kozelskii #360731 July 11, 2023 7:14 pm 0
Perhaps I’m wrong, but I detect a bit of chain-yanking in Parisian nights’ post.
Vxxc #360733 July 11, 2023 7:20 pm 0
This is high humor, well doneMitt 24 it’s his turn
Jeffrey Zoar #360672 July 11, 2023 11:57 am 0
Ever since the idiot box became ubiquitous, (honest) national elections have been all about charisma. Which DeSantis just doesn’t have. Has never had. It was painfully apparent the first time he ran for governor (I was a Floridian then). He’s been an effective governor, and able to win re-election on his record, but this problem hasn’t been solved, evidently can’t be solved.That was one of your (many) tells about the steal of 2020, that the less charismatic candidate won. First time that had happened in the idiot box age.I like to say how the Jeb endorsement tells you everything you need to know about Ron, because it’s true. It does. Even so, a sufficiently charismatic candidate could make that not matter, could make voters forget or overlook things like that. But Ron just isn’t that guy.
Paintersforms #360669 July 11, 2023 11:42 am 0
If Trump is allowed to run, he walks away with the Republican nomination. If he’s jailed or DQ’d, that’ll just broaden his support. I’d even be motivated to write him in. DeSantis gets emasculated by Trump in the primary, or he exposes himself , or (justly or not) he becomes the face of the establishment. He should’ve sat this one out and preserved his reputation.Still can’t see Trump being allowed to win the general. The establishment is terminally illegitimate, and there’s no reason to think it won’t keep doubling down on its illegitimacy.This tumultuous period began with a bang on 9/11, seems to me, and I suspect it’ll end with a whimper. Also an era-defining mess to clean up when the next chapter opens. Get ready to do some heavy lifting.
pyrrhus #360675 July 11, 2023 12:18 pm 0
Sure, Trump can get nominated from jail (where he is still entitled to Secret Service protection), and he can get elected from jail…Then he can pardon himself…This scenario is the ultimate nightmare for the Uni-party, and they will do anything to prevent it…
Oswald Spengler #360707 July 11, 2023 2:18 pm 0
How great would it be to have Trump make an election night acceptance speech dressed in an orange jumpsuit and flanked by prison guards. It would the ultimate rebuke to our corrupt system.
Ostei Kozelskii #360716 July 11, 2023 3:20 pm 0
If he was wearing orange, how would you know he was clothed?
Compsci #360661 July 11, 2023 11:18 am 0
One need not bend reason into a pretzel to explain DeSantis/Trump phenomenon.There is anger out there in the population. Anger is the only reason one needs to explain the electorate’s current preferences. Trump has the anger trope all sewn up. The populace has been screwed over. First Covid and lockdowns, then a stolen Presidential election insultingly running a demented vegetable as candidate, then ramped up, record inflation, then a “fortified” midterm election, then another foreign war this time with a first class nuclear power, now a weaponization of law enforcement to remove a Presidential candidate before *re-election*. And we’ve not even mentioned the avalanche of societal promotion of deviancy.Trump is the “in your face” candidate and the personification of the electorate’s rage. DeSantis is the logical choice for a possible, though doubtful, win and governance and rollback of some of the government’s current overreach. However, it’s too late for “same old, same old”. Rather it’s back to the 60’s and “burn baby, burn”!Study after study has shown folks act emotionally rather than logically in their interest. So be it. Hell, I’ll even vote for Trump if he gets on the ballot. In any event, Trump win or Trump lose, I can’t see a downside for the DR folk. The more folk become disillusioned with the present *system*, the more they’ll look for real change.
Pozymandias #360667 July 11, 2023 11:33 am 0
Back to the 60s: I’m starting to think more and more that the years since 2016 have been really the “referendum on the 1960s” that people had thought they got with Reagan. Instead Reagan’s men did a passable job of papering over the 60s and making it look like we could just forgive and forget and get America back on track with some patriotic rock anthems.The reality has always been that the 1960s were a clean break with everything decent and traditional. The people embracing that were never going to re-integrate into our polity and even today the question is “will we finally crush the Left or will it destroy all of us and wreck our society completely?” That’s *really* why there was so much emotion in the Trump vs. Hillary fight and why there remains so much hate today.
Compsci #360685 July 11, 2023 12:41 pm 0
Yep, a good case can be made for your proposition, Pozy.Think about the 60’s. Feminism and birth control and women being told motherhood was acceptance of second status. Civil Rights legislation and the unleashing/uncaging of feral Blacks. Immigration overhaul with the entry denial of Northern Europeans in favor of non-White populations from third world crapholes. Vietnam—a totally fabricated war costing 50K lives. Gay’s and their debauchery let out of the closet on the heals of “Civil Rights”. A myriad of alphabet agencies and departments created to regulate the populace under the guise of environmentalism. First un-Constitutional national gun control acts passed (to protect against the feral Black militants created by Civil Rights.Yeah, the 60’s, what’s not to like?
Ostei Kozelskii #360708 July 11, 2023 2:18 pm 0
Well, the pop music was pretty good…
fakeemail #360698 July 11, 2023 1:44 pm 0
At the time, I wanted to believe the Reagan era closed the book on the 60s; but it just wasn’t so at all. I guess the powers that be decided to give the USA a slight breather, whites a last hurrah, and allow it a moment of glory and unification to win the Cold War. But all the “conservatism” and patriotism of that era was *quickly* ridiculed and memory-holed.
Ostei Kozelskii #360706 July 11, 2023 2:17 pm 0
This post is as dead-on balls accurate as any I’ve read on this site. The cancer that would ultimately kill America was formed in the 60s. What some call “wokeism” is merely that cancer’s largest, most visible tumor.
Xman #360745 July 11, 2023 8:22 pm 0
There’s no better book on this subject than Roger Kimball’s “The Long March.” Highly recommended. You won’t regret reading it. https://www.amazon.com/Long-March-Cultural-Revolution-Changed/dp/1893554309
Ostei Kozelskii #360796 July 12, 2023 10:09 am 0
I respect Kimball very much. Not sure that he qualifies as a DR, but he may well be the most underrated public intellectual on what passes for the Right.
Jack Dodson #360696 July 11, 2023 1:41 pm 0
All true. Think how clueless the Republican Establishment has to be not to realize their party is viscerally hated and the standard GOP conservative policy gruel at best has around twenty percent support. Their party barely functions as controlled opposition, yet the operatives think what they consider victory is right around the corner. Trump simply made a corpse twitch some more and opened a few eyes to the farcical system. The Empire may drop all pretense of citizen participation now until the doors close.
Vxxc #360735 July 11, 2023 7:27 pm 0
What pray is this real change?The DR exists in pixels, and is probably 50%+ compromised, the other half ain’t fighters. This is a blog. There’s probably 100 people in the world in the DR. What change? Mind you when Biden breathes his last DC will empty, the system we grew up with dissolves. But its 1911 China with Ol Joe as Old Buddha. No successors at any point in DC, no replacements. This shuts down when Biden croaks (yes he’ll be re-elected). The American Mao, most fit warlord, now unknown, wins.
usNthem #360659 July 11, 2023 11:17 am 0
It seems to me DeSantis would have done himself far better if he’d just damned the torpedoes and backed Trump 100%. I’m sure his big money donors were (and are) telling him his brand (and political career) would be forever tarnished if he did so. Now, ironically, his brand is being tarnished, at least among republican voters, for being a good little Jeb! 2.0. Hell, a VP slot might have been a possibility, and that combo would probably have been unbeatable – if actual elections were allowed. However, stealing that kind of election may well have been a bridge too far, even for the tards currently running the show. Oh well, shoulda, coulda, woulda (or something like that). Plus he’s got an insufferable “mama” DeSantis who’d probably run the show anyway.
pyrrhus #360676 July 11, 2023 12:22 pm 0
Yep… the only and obvious move was to endorse and work for Trump, and position himself for 2028…There might not be an election in 2028, but DeSantis isn’t smart enough to understand that problem, and it doesn’t change anything..I really wonder why he’s pursuing the present, disastrous course…
Xman #360651 July 11, 2023 10:45 am 0
The problem with Trump being the GOP frontrunner is that there is no way Trump wins again. In 2016 he benefited from having an extraordinarily unlikeable opponent, but let’s face it, even then he was a long shot and he victory caught a lot of people, including people who voted for him out of pure hate for Hillary, by surprise.Once in office trump was effectively stymied on everything, with the notable exception of his three Supreme Court appointments. The Deep State cockblocked him from Day One, arresting Flynn and leaking transcripts of his calls to foreign heads of state and running the Russia hoax. Then he was impeached twice after leaving office, and arrested on 71 felony counts.I am not running Trump down here, he did an invaluable service by defeating “Crooked” Hillary and calling out the “fake news” media. But there is no way he wins again. There is no way that the GOP even gives him the nomination.The U.S. is now a one-party state. Every election henceforth will be rigged. Biden will “win” and Harris will succeed him. There are no other Trumps waiting in the wings to take his place — not to mention they have “made an example out of him” and no similarly situated billionaire will be stupid enough to run against the Uniparty ever again. I wish I could be more optimistic but that is reality.
KingKong #360662 July 11, 2023 11:20 am 0
You are not wrong – the chances of Trump winning again are extremely slim.However the point of Trump isn’t to win against all odds and fix a corrupt system. It is to kill any illusion and love the people may have for the system that parasitically feeds off them.That’s the real power of Trump. To lift the veil and make people finally see that the current political system must be rejected. Anything good is gone, and it’s gone forever.Let Trump campaign again and let them take him down, let them kill the one thing that actually sustains their system: the trust and love people have for the American political system.
Gringo #360739 July 11, 2023 7:33 pm 0
That’s the optimistic take on a Trump defeat. I’m more pessimistic: if Trump loses, he’s not going to be remembered as a martyr the way he might be if he won. It’ll be narrated as another superannuated has-been who should have ceded the field to a younger guy. DeSantis, perhaps.
pyrrhus #360677 July 11, 2023 12:26 pm 0
True, Trump’s role in 2024 is to be the martyr in a blatantly crooked election….Unless our rulers decide to dump Biden, and simply control Trump, which isn’t out of the question…But there is NO way that Harris will ever be allowed to be President, so maybe Newsom as VP?
Vxxc #360736 July 11, 2023 7:29 pm 0
Biden has no successor.DC (not America) dissolves when Biden croaks.
Steve #361321 July 16, 2023 3:01 pm 0
Thank you for pointing out why all this talk about who gets the nomination is completely irrelevant. The GOP choice will not win because the massive elephant in the room has not been addressed: VOTER FRAUD. Until it is fixed, there will never be a GOP Potus ever again. Victory against the DS will only come from the ground up. DeSantis should stay in Florida and keep it as a Red stronghold for when the country breaks up. DC is finished.
Fakeemail #360644 July 11, 2023 10:16 am 0
If by some whim trump is allowed to take office again, I hope he has a better plan than asking advice from javanka and Kardashian and touting black employment. I wouldn’t put it past him to immediately surround himself with Bush Era cabinet.I see little to no way he accomplishes any more than he did in his first term. All institutions will rebuff him and he will again rally the Left to greater heights of lunacy and violence. His great accomplishment will again be to expand the overton window and lay further bare how its all rigged. Hope he has a plan besides people enjoying how he says “china.”
KingKong #360664 July 11, 2023 11:21 am 0
Sadly I fear you’re right. I still don’t see any notion he’s really learned from his first time and has a clear plan to fix things. Anyway I don’t hold any expectations. Politics is a circus and I hope he does his job being entertaining and exposing some fools.
Hemid #360682 July 11, 2023 12:37 pm 0
Trumpism is believing that a still functional America is out there idling, just waiting for the call, like a laid off auto worker who’d hop back on the line today if the boss said he could. Trump’s calling is to be that boss.Being boss-minded, he has total trust in ass-kissers, careerists, “nepo hires,” celebrities, C-suiters, names he recognizes from TV, people who come “recommended”—anyone who’s not a loser. Uniquely among politicians today, he sympathizes in an abstract Mellencamp sort of way withå normal people who’ve been screwed—but, whatever bluster may blow, in the end, *nobody did it*. “Lock her up! Anyway…”No real-life event could ever be vivid enough to dent his mindset. Even a dramatically televised military coup couldn’t do it. When they kill him and his life flashes before his eyes, he’ll be proud he met so many prominent people. His value to us is that they hate him.
Vxxc #360737 July 11, 2023 7:31 pm 0
That is an excellent Valediction for Trump.
pyrrhus #360678 July 11, 2023 12:28 pm 0
Which is why “They” may decide to let him get in, as Biden is too demented to allow another term…
Ploppy #360690 July 11, 2023 1:01 pm 0
If Trump is smart he’ll use the Stalin playbook, since the other side isn’t going to play nice either if he wins. I figure your average bureaucrat is only about two fingers with a pair of pruning shears away from getting on the Trump train.
Vxxc #360738 July 11, 2023 7:32 pm 0
Trump.As Stalin. 🤣🤣🤣
Ploppy #360748 July 12, 2023 2:56 am 0
Well, it isn’t what Trump will actually do, but it is likely the only path he has that doesn’t involve him ending up in prison until the security cameras magically all stop working and his bunkmate Bubba strangles him in exchange for a carton cigarettes courtesy of The Big Guy or California Bateman.
Gringo #360740 July 11, 2023 7:34 pm 0
Trump is a merchant and not a warrior.
Steve #361322 July 16, 2023 3:04 pm 0
That’s the tragedy of Trump and of America too. It’s not that he will be arrested on fake charges or have the election stolen again; it’s that even if he gets back in, you just know that he’s going to spend most of his time tweeting rather than doing, that his top picks will be horrible DS slimeballs, and that he will get nothing done to drain the swamp. I wish people would understand that there is no chance of any solution coming from DC. The corruption is too deep.
Filthie #360643 July 11, 2023 10:13 am 0
Both men would make excellent leaders – were Americans able to tolerate such a thing in the current era. I think it was our esteemed blog host that made an excellent point when he said something to the effect that DeSantis does well in Florida… but Washington is NOT Florida.Indeed, it is not! Washington is a three ring circus, with any number of sideshows running on the periphery at any given time! Dancing monkeys, freak shows, bearded ladies, and of course – endless capering clowns. And – that’s just America! Any leader you elect will need to perform with the other circuses scattered round the world.The clamoring pandemonium of the circus is not the place for a focused and intensely driven men like De Santis. De Santis is a middle manager type that would do well with an equally focused and driven team. There will be none of that in our halls of power any time soon.At this point though… you could elect Jesus Christ Himself as POTUS and the shit show would probably drive HIM nuts too! We will not be voting our way out of what is coming.
JerseyJeffersonian #360642 July 11, 2023 10:09 am 0
Maybe he could take a page from the Michael Dukakis campaign and arrange a photo op of him in a tank, head popped out of the top hatch, and wearing a tank commander’s helmet. That might turn the tide, eh?
Wkathman #360641 July 11, 2023 10:08 am 0
Electoral politics = bottom-of-the-barrel brain rot. Trump vs. DeSantis is considerably less interesting than Coke vs. Pepsi. Same with Trump/DeSantis/some other fraud vs. Foggy Joe. I figure the less I know about this upcoming presidential farce, the better safeguarded will be my brain cells.
Tarl Cabot #360654 July 11, 2023 10:54 am 0
The only thing that could possibly make this election interesting is if Kennedy runs as an independent and Trump runs from jail. A 4 way race would really throw it in the air, but I suspect even then Biden would win, having monolithic support from institutional Democrats and monochromatic support from blacks. It would be more fun, however.
Guest #360712 July 11, 2023 2:39 pm 0
Just a wee bit of Glennie, some chips and you’ll have to agree this will be pleasurable..
Patrick Gibbs #360640 July 11, 2023 10:05 am 0
If he were smart he would have simply stayed out of this race, and given his backing to Trump. As it stands, he’s about to go through a brutal primary that will likely leave him permanently tarnished. Trump is a nasty guy, and he’s not gonna pull his punches.
Woodpecker #360714 July 11, 2023 2:57 pm 0
What if DeSantis goes all in on Trump’s Covid record in the debates? This is DeSantis’s great claim to fame. That he kept his head when all around him were losing theirs and blaming it on him. “Why didn’t you throw Fauci to the leopards? I would have” That’s the big question. Maybe not enough to win the nomination, but enough to give Trump a bloody nose and come out looking like a fighter. And it’s a question that needs answered.
Luber #360741 July 11, 2023 7:36 pm 0
Would you people stop pretending DeSantis didn’t lock down Florida, for fucks sake or do all the Covid crazy? Jesus, I expect better here. https://rumble.com/v2q3j3k-2020-desantis-threatens-to-suspend-small-business-licenses-for-violating-so.html
Patrick Gibbs #360862 July 12, 2023 3:22 pm 0
I mean Trump was seriously at risk of being removed from office during the entirety of 2020. Looking back I’m actually shocked it didn’t happen. A certain amount of playing ball was probably necessary.
Whitney #360633 July 11, 2023 9:49 am 0
Doug Burgum I read as Doug Bugman. He has no chance
thezman #360636 July 11, 2023 10:00 am 0
I spelled it “Bugman” the first time. Please Allah, have the moderators make this error when introducing him.
mikeski #360649 July 11, 2023 10:43 am 0
Please welcome Doug The Bug!
Intelligent Dasein #360631 July 11, 2023 9:44 am 0
One school said he would run as Trump without Trumpism, meaning without the antics.Hold on a second. That’s the wrong way around.DeSantis wasn’t supposed to be “Trump without Trumpism” (which I’m not sure means anything at all), he was supposed to beTrumpism without Trump.And that didn’t mean “without the antics,” it meant MAGA-like, nationalistic policies but championed by someone who actually knew how to get them accomplished.The verdict on Trump, which is the same as the principal complaint about him from people otherwise disposed to support him, is that he instinctively felt the pulse of the American heartland which led him to say the right things on the campaign trail, but when he became president he had no knowledge of what to do and no intention of doing anything other than schmoozing around with the rest of the Washington elites. The short-lived hope for DeSantis consisted in the idea that he would push through MAGA with the seriousness and capabilities of a real political professional.Nobody involved in this whole, vast tragedy seems to realize that thepolicieswere paramount, not the personalities. Trump is so egotistical that he thinks his original success was owning to his Great Golden Greatness, not the fact that he finally expressed the voice of the real America. He had the biggest mandate and the biggest opportunity anybody could ever ask for. He truly could have been the best politician of the century, the man who renewed America and set it on the right path again, but never even understood any of that. He ignorantly threw it all away and to this day he doesn’t realize what he could have been, and why he lost. DeSantis and the Republican elites, meanwhile, won’t pick up the ball and run with it. They seem determined to substitute the thin gruel of GOPe conservatism for the meat and potatoes of MAGA and expect everyone to like it because…? I’m not sure what their reasoning is. They seem unable to come to terms with Trump’s victory, so they just pretend it never happened.The only people who seem to have gotten the message is the Deep State. With the shrewdness of an enemy, they’ve spotted exactly where the threat to them lies, so they’ve gone about crushing MAGA policies with redoubled fury.It’s strange that there is no one in the whole political class that sees the opportunity here. You can do good for yourself by doing good for Americans. The chance is hanging out there. Something like this does not come along very often. We await a Caesar who is equal to it.
Nick Noltes Mugshot #360647 July 11, 2023 10:35 am 0
I know after 8 years of Obama relentlessly grinding down the US economy, Trump seemed to improve things within a few months of taking office. His instincts were right in returning manufacturing to the US, making the country more energy independent, and extracting America from its costly foreign military adventures. Instead of cleaning house in the executive branch he made the mistake of thinking that the art of the deal would work with the DC swamp creatures. The Swamp had no intention of compromising. For them the end game was near and they smelled blood in the water. At this point in our country’s history, any person that could successfully lead a rebellion against the deep state would exceed George Washington’s accomplishments in my estimation. It would not only free this country but improve the lives of people around the World.
Ostei Kozelskii #360670 July 11, 2023 11:44 am 0
“The chance is hanging out there.” And any major figure who takes that chance will be hanging out there too–from a gallows. The Power Structure has made it abundantly clear that it will brook no serious opposition from a prominent individual. The only options with any hope for destroying the Power Structure are civil war, or more preferably, waiting it out until AINO collapses under the weight of its own derangement.
c matt #360700 July 11, 2023 1:53 pm 0
They see the opportunity. They also see what happens to those who seize it.
wendy forward #360724 July 11, 2023 5:46 pm 0
See Huey Long, above.
Dutch Boy #361105 July 13, 2023 6:12 pm 0
Quite correct. Trump had the instincts but not the balls. The next MAGA candidate must enter Washington with a guillotine in tow.
RealityRules #360626 July 11, 2023 9:28 am 0
One set of headwinds that DiSantis has is that he flew to Israel to sign away Floridians free speech rights to hand out pamphlets.I think another headwind he faces is the psychology created by the railroading of Trump during his term as well as the 2020 election. He was elected as the people’s champion to be the CEO who had the power to fix the broken and break the breakers and wreckers. Trump will be their guy to the end if only out of spite.What could DiSantis do to break that mentality?Come out and be an explicitly pro-white advocate.– List all of the corporations and their specific anti-white pogrom activities and vow to burn them to the ground for racial discrimination. (exclude whites from home loans; higher fees for whites; whites excluded from internship and research programs; …)– Ditch all rainbow coalition imageryWhites across the political spectrum will explode with delight and support him. Trump will be left with the platinum plan, some next-gen Diamond and Silk and his video and photo-op backdrops.It is hanging out over the plate.
JerseyJeffersonian #360635 July 11, 2023 9:58 am 0
Hanging out over the plate, eh? I predict that, yet again, Casey, Mighty Casey will strike out.
Tars Tarkas #360646 July 11, 2023 10:28 am 0
What his trip to Israel shows to me is he’s a cuck and cannot be trusted. Going to Israel to pass a Florida law is absurd. The anti-LGBTQI+A… laws will likely get overturned by the courts, but this law stripping Floridians of their supposed First Amendment rights will not. Is he running for President of the US or PM of Israel? What even made him think this was a good idea?
Disruptor #360665 July 11, 2023 11:29 am 0
Viceroy of America.
JerseyJeffersonian #360679 July 11, 2023 12:29 pm 0
Yeah, that was all she wrote for me, his going to Israhell to kiss the ring. Got new for ya, Ron, hymie don’t need no Erhebung in the FUSA, rather the opposite, in fact. Wings need to be clipped all right and proper; tear their little monopolies and cartels to shreds, employing existing anti-trust statutes. Then, if they don’t figure out what time it is, events will take their usual course, especially if their dilatory recognition leads to comprehensive economic collapse. Chance of this recognition happening? Not good, as their conceit will get the best of them.
David Wright #360624 July 11, 2023 9:18 am 0
DeSantis is definitely betting on Trump’s removal before it all settles. So what, consolation prize at best as the Demos have fortified it all. Second prize for you pizza boy. Know what it is? A set of steak knives.
JR Wirth #360623 July 11, 2023 9:17 am 0
While the Republican voters are dense, they know one thing about DeSantis…”Bush family.” They know of that relationship, and know everything they need to know about him based on that. They would rather sell their last cow for more of Trump’s magic beans (these will really sprout, the Democrats sabotaged the last beans.) All you need to know is that Trump stood on stage with Lindsey Graham, lied his ass off, and they still clapped for him like seals and he’s still 20+points ahead. That’s the raw talent of entertainment. “Here we are now entertain us.” If only there was a meteor or a nuclear warhead to do this place in. Fingers crossed.
Ostei Kozelskii #360709 July 11, 2023 2:25 pm 0
Hasten onward, o blazing comet!
TomA #360622 July 11, 2023 9:14 am 0
People tend to forget the flame-out of Jeb Bush in the 2016 primary. He was the anointed standup guy that would automatically get the nomination just by smiling and being convivial. And then he went down so hard and so fast that DC was in perpetual shock thereafter, thus allowing Trump to suck up all the attention.The same thing is happening with Jeb-lite. For crying out loud, Desantis’ wife is a more attractive candidate on the campaign trail; which makes Ron look like a cuck. He’s the proverbial backbencher at a gangbang holding his hands in front of his crotch. And as with Jeb, his political life dies with this debacle.And as in 2016, things are not going according to script for the DC power-players. Most voters have completely tuned out the MSM propaganda campaign and the only real barometer of enthusiasm will be apparent via the Trump rallies. Everything else will be a lie. And the only remaining question of importance is “can they steal the 2024 election with no tangible consequence?” Methinks even Dan Bongino may jump ship when that happens.
Barnard #360657 July 11, 2023 11:05 am 0
It amazes me Paul Ryan and the Bush people thought they could get away with this and with DeSantis as their candidate. They never learn a lesson from any of their failures, it is always the voters who failed them.
c matt #360699 July 11, 2023 1:46 pm 0
Are they really failing, or just playing the role of the Washington Generals all too well?
Peter Wood #360621 July 11, 2023 9:14 am 0
DeSantis’ biggest problem is that he comes across on video as someone who doesn’t want to be doing what he’s doing. There’s nothing they can do about this, because in reality, he doesn’t. In DC he was known as a total introvert, rude and indifferent to other colleagues. People want fire now. He’s all ice.
mmack #360619 July 11, 2023 9:07 am 0
Rather than being Trump-lite or being a kinder, gentler Trump, he is Ned Flanders Hi-diddley-ho Z-arino! Would ya vote for me buddy? 😂 Commentary like this is why I come here.
george 1 #360618 July 11, 2023 9:02 am 0
DeSantis is GWB 2.0. Trump is someone who apparently can’t look at a data set and determine a proper course of action. An example is his rock headed defense of his management of the Covid 19 cluster. The reason to vote for him, as has been outlined here, is that it will annoy the left. Now we should also note that whoever is the next president will likely be presiding over the death or dismemberment of Medicare/Medicade. By the end of 2025, the cost for those programs will overwhelm the federal budget. So change is coming.
AnotherAnon #360655 July 11, 2023 10:55 am 0
That can only mean one thing: rapacious taxing ahead.Trump had a fantastic idea, back when the interest rate was still close to zero and the “spell” had yet to be broken – the 100 year bond. They laughed him down. Of course it would continue to kick the can (the same way we got here), but it would have solved this country’s dire financial predicament for some breathing room to get our house in order (which never was the left’s goal as Bribin has proved). Now the US couldn’t sell such a thing if it wanted to and in fact, it can barely get by on paying out 5%+ on treasuries.
LineInTheSand #360671 July 11, 2023 11:54 am 0
You guys you seem to think about the economy above everything else frustrate me. I’m not saying the economy is unimportant, but massive immigration, out of control black crime, and the consolidation of an anti-white uniparty are a thousand times more consequential than “rapacious taxing ahead.” Do you expect to be able to escape all of this is your gated community?
AnotherAnon #360729 July 11, 2023 6:30 pm 0
My point was that the left proved they had no interest in fixing anything, including the economy, when Trump offered an easy, practical way out of one of Establishment’s big conundrums. Some breathing room. But they weren’t interested, even though they’ll normally do about anything to make hand-over-fist wads of cash. Didn’t say anything about the economy being the be-all, end-all answer to anything. Ultimately, it’s the culture. Women make babies and men make civilization, therefore the progressive totalitarians profess anything but.
Wolf Barney #360617 July 11, 2023 9:01 am 0
Ron DeSantis recently signed bill HB-269, which further restricts free speech. He signed the bill in Israel. That’s significant, but none of the other candidates, including Trump, will bring it up to criticize DeSantis, seeing it as a feature rather than a bug. The candidates are so bad, I’m actually thinking the Indian guy has the best chance of making a big deal about it.
JerseyJeffersonian #360681 July 11, 2023 12:36 pm 0
Well, there’s that “fellow white” privilege again…
c matt #360697 July 11, 2023 1:41 pm 0
We’ve been ruled by the hats for so long, maybe we should give the Indian a shot before the Chinese take over.
Ostei Kozelskii #360710 July 11, 2023 2:32 pm 0
I raise my mango lassi in agreement. (Aieeee! You can really taste the cardamom!)
ProZNoV #360615 July 11, 2023 8:49 am 0
People forget just how narrowly DeSantis won the governorship in 2018. He eeked it out with a 0.4% margin against a meth using jogger who enjoyed the occasional gay orgy on the down low. He may be a competent administrator, but has always been a terrible campaigner. Unless you’re running as a fully “fortified” candidate, charisma still matters when appealing to the great unwashed. As it should. Men are not calculating machines driven by logic and reason; they’re flesh and blood and want to see something in their leaders that inspires them.
Andrew #360620 July 11, 2023 9:12 am 0
That’s the most compelling case against democracy I’ve ever seen.
ProZNoV #360634 July 11, 2023 9:56 am 0
All forms of government have a mythos (which is total BS) that gives it legitimacy in the eyes of the masses. Democracy is no different. When obvious zero charisma decrepit front men like Biden are installed on the front stage, our elites are making a mockery of the system that grants them legitimacy in the eyes of the public. They’re really playing with fire by doing this; not because democracy works, but because they’re destroying their own mythos that grants them legitimacy.
Ostei Kozelskii #360711 July 11, 2023 2:36 pm 0
Well, Andrew may also have pointing to the fact that an Afro-homo dope-head came within an eyelash of winning the Florida governorship. Since then, alas, the state of Pennsylvania has made Florida look like the acme of Periclean electoral wisdom.
Mr. Generic #360645 July 11, 2023 10:17 am 0
> That’s the most compelling case against democracy I’ve ever seen. How many more do you need?
Dutch Boy #361106 July 13, 2023 6:15 pm 0
“Democracy” has given us Pres. Biden. ‘Nuff said.
Chet Rollins #360612 July 11, 2023 8:41 am 0
The voters want authenticity, and it’s a supreme irony Trump, with his gaudy aesthetic taste, brashness, and often self-defeating impulsive ways fits the ticket best. They know an authentic man is the only one capable of truly changing he trajectory of history. While the rest want to talk about democratic norms and returning to the constitution, the people want a man who dares to say, “I found the Crown of America lying in the gutter, and picked it up with my sword.”
Marko #360609 July 11, 2023 8:35 am 0
Don’t most candidates just “get their name out there” for one election cycle, then when they have more national name recognition, they go for the gold? I wonder if DeSantis is being milquetoast because he knows his chances are slim, and maybe he isn’t even that terribly serious about being prez, yet. Better to play it safe now and then go full racist Republican in 2028?My second thought is there are many Tulsi Gabbards in DeSantis. Gabbard had a chance herself to steal the Democrat vote, and she had one or two good zingers at the start, but then fell back into genteel politicking with catch phrases (“regime-change wars”).
Barnard #360611 July 11, 2023 8:38 am 0
DeSantis is already a nationally known figure, he doesn’t need improved name recognition. There is no reason to do this unless he has been told Trump is getting removed. Now given the intelligence and competence of the people telling him that, there is a good chance they are wrong.
AnotherAnon #360660 July 11, 2023 11:18 am 0
DeSantis had any number of ways of being propelled to the top ticket for 28, without aggrevating any Trump diehards (and even receiving their 101% blessing), IF he had had some patience. I’m with you on your theory he was pulled aside and “confided” in – the fact he chose to go this route indicates he was stupid, greedy and gullible. The neocons and GOP played him like the broken chess piece he is. He is Bill Kristol’s Evan McMullin of 24.Ta ta Ron!
c matt #360695 July 11, 2023 1:36 pm 0
Even if true, DeSantis has to know that no GOP candidate has a chance in the general other than Trump, and even his chances are not good (the establishment simply won’t allow it). Does he really want to be 2024’s Romney McCain?
JerseyJeffersonian #360639 July 11, 2023 10:05 am 0
Well, he pussed out by having the Florida legislature remove the rule that, if he were to run for federal office, he would be obligated to resign the governorship. You are neither hot nor cold, I spew you out of my mouth.
Jeffrey Zoar #360668 July 11, 2023 11:38 am 0
DeSantis is being a milquetoast campaigner because he has always been a milquetoast campaigner. It’s who he is. No charisma is his biggest problem. No gravitas. Not a new thing. It was painfully apparent the first time he ran for governor.
Barnard #360608 July 11, 2023 8:33 am 0
Another factor you didn’t mention I have watched video of De Santis in meet and greets after speeches and he is a historically bad retail politician. It is to his discredit he let the Bush people and GOPe talk him into this. They had to give him some sort of assurance Trump is getting removed from the ballot before the voting starts, because that is the only way he gets the nomination. Even with that, I don’t know why he wouldn’t have waited until 2028 when he doesn’t have to deal with being Governor on the side too. He and Gavin Newsom keep making digs at each other like they think Biden and Trump are going to get pushed aside and it is going to be the two of them.
Chet Rollins #360614 July 11, 2023 8:42 am 0
The interview where Desantis was eating pizza was disgusting and gave direct 2016 Kasich vibes. What were they thinking?
Ostei Kozelskii #360713 July 11, 2023 2:43 pm 0
For the love of God, please tell me it wasn’t Papa John’s…
The Infant Phenomenon #360628 July 11, 2023 9:33 am 0
“Even with that, I don’t know why he wouldn’t have waited until 2028 … .” B/c there won’t be any elections in ’28.
FNC1A1 #360607 July 11, 2023 8:31 am 0
One thing that the voters want, and the political establishment wants to deny them, is a clear alternative to the “same old, same old” politics that we’ve had for years. Gov. Desantis is not such an alternative, whatever his good points. Pres. Trump is such an alternative, so the political establishment will do whatever it takes to prevent him from becoming President again. Expect D. J. Trump to be imprisoned, or worse, before this time next year
Jack Boniface #360606 July 11, 2023 8:30 am 0
DeSantis waffling on the Ukraine War hasn’t helped him. The donors won’t let him do anything else.
cg2 #360652 July 11, 2023 10:49 am 0
“While the U.S. has many vital national interests,” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis wrote recently, “becoming further entangled in a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia is not one of them.” The comments inspired a wave of disapproval from conservatives and Republicans, including The Wall Street Journal’s editorial page and the Washington Post columnist George Will, who quipped, “If that is his settled view after the dust settles and he elaborates on this, then he’s not fit to be president, period.”
Presbyter #360688 July 11, 2023 12:57 pm 0
George Will is still alive ?
Arshad Ali #360605 July 11, 2023 8:26 am 0
Could have told you this weeks and months ago. DeSantis is another establishment candidate. Just looking at his face you realise this. Being an establishment candidate his campaign — if it gets off the ground — will be about statistical patterns being scrutinised by his hired data scientists, focus groups, and marketing research. Like Hillary’s campaign in 2016. His visceral impact with people fed up of the crumbling status quo will be next to zilch.


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