In the before times, Bill Buckley would claim that he could know everything about a man’s politics based on his opinion of Israel and abortion. These were clarifying issues that did not easily allow for nuance or ambivalence. If you had any politics at all, you had an opinion on these issues. To some degree it is still true, but the clarifying issue of this age is Donald Trump. You cannot engage in politics at any level without having a position on the most famous pitch man in history.
All politicians, once they become famous, evoke strong opinions. This is due to the hive mindedness of the ruling class. For them, the friend-enemy distinction has come to dominate every aspect of their being. They have imposed this binary mindset on the culture so everyone, even the least informed, feels they must have a strong opinion on everyone and everything that is in the news. These opinions are moral signifiers that users wear like badges to indicate group affiliations.
Trump is something different. His biggest fans can and often do talk about his many faults as a politician. They can list all of the failures of his administration, while also praising him as a man and president. Many have fallen into a cult-like trance, but most of his fans are clear-eyed about the reality of the man. Despite his many faults and failures, they remain loyal to him because of what he represents. He is the ultimate protest candidate for people not allowed to protest.
For dissidents he has mostly been an amusing bull in the China shop, creating havoc among the beautiful people. Lots of people on this side foolishly thought he was going to be a something other than Donald Trump once he got into office, so they are still a bit salty about Trump, but they did enjoy the show. Others saw Trump as a chaos agent who created havoc in the enemy camp. The demise of conservatism was underway, but Trump swung a wrecking ball through it.
Last night Trump made it official. He will be running for president in 2024 and he is the prohibitive favorite to be the Republican nominee. The usual suspects are now rushing out to play their role in the drama. Here is state media making sure the drones in their cult know that Donald Trump hates democracy. The yesterday men of conservatism are doing their same old act. Then you have the moral panic crowd promising to be as ridiculous as ever.
Many on this side of the great divide are not thrilled by this. Again, some are still salty over falling for the god-empower stuff. Others, like RamZPaul, think Trump is too old and want someone younger. Ron DeSantis is half Trump’s age and seems to hold most of the same views as Trump. Having a young and more predictable version of Trump has obvious appeal. DeSantis has also shown that he understands government and could possibly get something done as president.
The other issue with the reboot of the Trump franchise is that his act feels dated now, like a now out of clothing style. When Trump bulldozed his way through the primaries and then the Clinton campaign, it was hilarious because it was refreshing to see someone give these people the business. His name calling and snide comments are not as funny now. His targets are just as loathsome, maybe more so, but Trump’s attacks just lack the same punch as 2016.
American politics is not kind to second acts. Pat Buchanan had a great run in 1992 but was largely ignored in 1996. Ron Paul had a similar run in 2008, but his 2012 reboot was a flop. Ross Perot is another example. Trump stands out because he won the primary and the general election, but like his populist predecessors, he will face strong headwinds from an audience not fond of reboots and sequels. That and the GOP will call in their vote counters this time around.
That is the critical question for dissidents. Is it better that they steal the 2024 election from Trump or is it better that they steal it from someone else? What happens if the GOP assembles their dream ticket of Nikki Hailey and Tim Scott only to see the magic of mail in votes hand the election to Biden? That is the other piece of the puzzle that has been ignored. It now appears likely that Joe Biden will be the first zombie to top the ballot for a major party.
On the other hand, what if the GOP rigs their primary this time and they assemble their dream ticket despite strong opposition from the voters? Pulling shenanigans on DeSantis or someone else would not get much attention. If they do this to Trump, it will be a disaster for the party. Given the corruption and incompetence of party leadership, this is a very possibility. Keep in mind that Democrats did this to install Joe Biden as their nominee in 2020, so it a strong possibility.
There is plenty to chew on for dissidents with regards to Trump 2.0, but now the debate must shift from whether he should run to how best to take advantage of it. Trump made the call and he will no doubt spend 2023 barnstorming the country doing rallies and media events to keep himself in the news. As with 2016, this has to be viewed as nothing more than an opportunity to change some minds. Who knows? Maybe Kanye West will join him on the campaign trail.
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I feel so blase and jaded by all this electoral circus, I can’t make fine distinctions between the circus performers. If Trump runs, I’ll vote for him. With the same lack of enthusiasm I had the previous two times. As a true dissident I don’t expect anything from the political process except a few cheap thrills for the rubes and marks.
This sucker (the USA) is going down and our energies would be better employed in creating and nurturing small communities that may have some chance of survival among the rubble and detritus.
2
Trump’s angle was revolutionary in 2016, but for 2024 a completely different angle is needed (such as Z’s idea of declaring that no run is possible until the elections are fixed). Trumps civnattery nonsense was holding on by it’s fingernails in 2020, but with supporters jailed and the vote permanently rigged it’s not going to be enough in 2024, I don’t think even DeSantis, as he is, will be enough (and in fact DeSantis can heavily out-flank Trump by wising up to those issues along with black crime).
I agree that Trump running again doesn’t have anywhere near the same vibe – at least not yet. He never should have walked away from the bogus 2020 selection. That said, he’ll surely drive the leftards even crazier which will be fun. May be time to go long box wine and Ritalin. Of course the GOPe cucks will get their panties in a bunch as well, so it may take a bit of the sting out of the mounting economic issues.
2
Many have fallen into a cult-like trance
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I was at the house of an associate (of sorts) that does the whole “talk like MLK live like KKK thing” when a neighbor of his drove by with three giant Trump flags on his truck (natch) and a Trump paint job on the vehicle to boot. My bugman associate took my grimace to mean that I was keen to his own bizarre world-view; I let him keep his fantasy as the truth wasn’t called for at that moment (cults, all the way down).
2
All that is going to happen is the left will ratchet up the demonization even more than the past. If you vote for or support Trump this time around, you will be removed from your job, have your possessions stripped and quite possibly hauled off to jail for denying “democracy” and having wrong think.
Personally I find Trump to be an annoying blow hard who simply follows the same path as all of the other conservatives. He goes out of his way to prop up blacks and hispanics but fails to show any support for white people who are still the slim majority in the land mass (I refuse to call this place a country or nation). Trump hasn’t learned a thing. You can’t out-welfare or out-pander the left with regards to pleasing the criminal race. Look forward to hearing about more “platinum plans” and black unemployment.
The only reason I care at all about the potential for a Trump presidency is that it will be the final match required to ignite the country. The low IQ savages will be out in full force and will burn down all of the cities. The left will completely meltdown like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Mass chaos will ensue and all of the white liberals living in urban areas will have their homes burned and looted. This would bring me such inescapable joy that it couldn’t be measured. The unfortunate reality is that in order for something new to be born, we are in need of killing the diseased cells.
Of course, this is all fantasy because it will never happen. What will happen instead is that Trump will lose in a landslide due to the embarrassing comedy show that is elections in the USA. They will never let him win, and the rigging will be upped to levels superseding even 2020. Maybe with his loss in 2024, some more normies will make the jump to our side, but I have to admit that I am not all that optimistic.
4
“They will never let him win, and the rigging will be upped to levels superseding even 2020.”
I agree. And this recklessness will come at a cost that will be hard to underestimate. Our managerial/elite/ruling class is losing its collective mind and whatever is left of its reputation. The 2024 election will finish it off.
Regardless there are way more questions than answers at this point. Trump will be tied up in legal maneuvering by various authorities, and I agree his schtick has worn thin.
I sincerely hope DeSantis is smart enough to decide not to run. The People In Charge will never allow him to become POTUS, and he is a shining beacon of how to be the executive of a state. Plus I plan to move there in a few years.
The regime is trying to do the bait and switch game with DeSantis. They are giving him the Trump treatment in the hope that he runs and splits the vote in the primaries. Then the party slips in one of their zombies as the nominee. They tried this in 2016 but it was far too late to make Cruz into a useful sock puppet.
I highly doubt that Desantis will run. The campaign would be brutal and even if he miraculously got the nomination , he knows what slim chances there are in the general election. He also won bigly in a state with 20 million people and looks magisterial running it. I’d keep that for a while, he’s young.
As for Trump running while seriously believing he can win? This thing is all ego driven and a personal diversion for dealing with his final declining years. Of course all bets are off if Putin helps again 🙂
2
All bets are off while mail-in ballot harvesting and voting machines are still in use.
1
I don’t think they would need to steal the 2024 from any Republican. GOP elite dream candidates would get crushed by any Democrat just like Jeb or Rubio would have lost badly to Hillary in 2016. That’s not say they wouldn’t continue committing voter fraud, they have these people on the payroll so they might as well use them. The big change would be if the Republicans really threw someone like Nikki Haley up there, the potential for an independent to run and get 10-15% is pretty high. There is no repairing the party after that.
1
DiSantis keeps looking more like an establishment-directed bot and less like a MAGA candidate. Getting endorsements from the likes of Dubya and Jeb! is not a good sign. Yesterday, DiSantis called for the removal of a Florida Confederate statue and its replacement with some obscure 19th century negro educator. I’m sure the Judeo-Puritans are having spasms of ecstasy this morning.
A couple of things about Buchanan and Ross Perot. When Buchanan ran a second time, he chose some obscure black woman as his running mate to deflect media charges of racism. Many of his potential followers turned away with a silent groan. As for Ross Perot, he was initially in the race and leading when he mysteriously decided not to run based on some idiotic excuse. Then he changed his mind and jumped back in. Too late. Both men dealt fatal blows to their respective candidacies by their own bad choices.
3
“American politics is not kind to second acts.”
Grover Cleveland and Richard Nixon have entered the chat.
Joe Biden would like to enter the chat but is using a piece of soap as his mouse and thinks his television is an iPad.
I know, I know, exceptions that prove the rule.
1
Just a hunch, but from here it seems like the dems might happily let Biden decay and run pretty boy Gavin Newsom.
1
My apathy toward Trump is likely felt by many others. But it’s not just an apathy toward Trump. It’s an apathy toward the whole system. Trump, 2020, Jan. 6, all of it, just showed what a farce the whole election game is.
Combine that with the changing demographics, which, eventually, will make voter fraud unnecessary, and it’s clear that I have no stake nor feeling toward the system.
I might as well be an ex-pat living in another country. I live in this country, but it’s not my country, and I have no ability to change the system, so I’ll take a peak every once in awhile at what’s happening politically out of curiosity but it’s more liking checking in on a game between two teams that I don’t care much about.
2
I agree Trump at this point is like Joe Montana playing in Kansas City, the best is behind him.
Can anyone on the national ticket beat the mail in ballot vote harvesting schtick anyway?
I doubt it.
Not even Desantis in my opinion.
The lunatics have not brought out their full arsenal on Desantis yet.
They will if he gets the nomination in the future.
It’s over at the national
level, except for entertainment value and even that is not much fun anymore.
It’s like NFL football, glance at it once in awhile at the sports bar but most of the fun is gone, it’s all fake and gay and filled with people who hate me,
I rather go to the park or go fishing.
This also applies to Trump now.
2
My own opinion is that Trump was like the uncontrollable crazy man who came out of the Wild Woods of Politics, smashed in the the front door of the comfortable front door of the clubhouse that both parties had created. Trump smashed the furniture, drank all the booze in the bar, started fires in the restroom, and took a big smelly dump in the closet that the republicans were allowed to use in the clubhouse. Now the place is wrecked, the republicans can’t use their closet anymore. Trump really upended their worlds. However tearing up the clubhouse is a different kind of skill than rebuilding. I’m just not sure he’s the one to do it. Sometimes fate gives you a role to play, and then decides like Moses, you aren’t the one who goes into the Holy Land. Like the farmer in Field of Dreams, you are tasked with building the ball park, but aren’t allowed to go back into the corn to meet your heroes, but others are. And you don’t know why. History is like that sometimes.