Well, that certainly cast a pall of gloom over my day. So, Claire, to get even I'll share my opinion that as things stand right now there's a realistic chance that Trump could win the election in November. Six months ago I would have scoffed at that notion, but Joe Biden's poll numbers are positively catastrophic and I have the sense that people have just tuned him out. Now of course it's possible that things could turn around for him, but time's marching on and it's hard to imagine what could happen to salvage his presidency.
As for Trump, it's possible that he could self-destruct, but I wouldn't count on it.
Whichever of them wins in November, it'll be bad news for America. Our current president's too old and too gaga to do the job, so someone else would be calling the shots in a second Biden term. To judge from the absolute pig's breakfast that's American foreign policy today, things would only get worse in a second Biden term.
The trouble with Trump is an amalgam of gross ignorance, contempt for facts and the truth, a mercurial temperament, an ego the size of the "Hindenburg," and plain old bad character. I will say that I doubt he's planning to destroy "our democracy" and make himself Dictator for Life. Trump is running for president to erase the humiliation of his loss in 2020. The thought of the Democratic/progressive meltdown that would follow his victory in 2024 must send a thrill up his leg. He's that guy, not Hitler or Mussolini.
Will he try to withdraw the United States from NATO? Maybe, but I doubt it. He didn't do it during his first term, despite all the NATO bashing. Anyhow, he wouldn't have the power to do so unilaterally. The National Defense Authorization Act for 2024, which was enacted in December 2023, prohibits the President from unilaterally withdrawing from NATO without approval of a two-third Senate super-majority or an act of Congress. Neither would be forthcoming in the new Congress.
I don't understand why the Democrats are not doing big ad buys against Representatives who refuse to sign the discharge petition to force the Ukraine aid bill onto the House floor. There need to be electoral consequences for this and they need to be made clear.
There also needs to be more public education so that more people understand the consequences of a Russian victory and that the bulk of US military aid expenditure stays in the United States because it funds the purchase of munitions from US manufacturers.
Finally, as Claire has said, Americans need to know the scale of the humanitarian disaster in Ukraine. How many people know that Russia killed 100,000 civilians in Mariupol alone? Or about the tens of thousands of kidnapped children taken to Russia? Not many, I would think.
The Democrats have allowed Trump and the anti Israel left to take up too much space.
Then reason is that there are no electoral consequences for inaction on aid for Ukraine. It isn't a burning issue for most Americans; they have other things on their minds.
If Joe Biden were capable of doing so, I'd advise him to take his case on Ukraine to the American people personally, e.g. with a primetime televised address to the nation. But he's incapable of doing that, isn't he? A leader who can't lead is pretty useless, don't you think?
Yes, I have thought for awhile that he should do just that. I don't know why he hasn't. It would seem that if he gave such an address and spoke as well as he did in the SOTU that could move the ball forward.
I suspect that his style is to negotiate things privately and he has gotten lots of legislation passed that way but in this case a prime time address from the Oval might be the only way to shift the playing field. Even if it means going over the heads of the members of Congress.
He’s not doing it because he can’t do it. A prime time address would only be the first step. It has to be a campaign, with the President well in the lead. Biden has neither the energy nor the focus to do that. He and his Administration are adrift at the policy level.
Something new and largely unreported is there are increasingly rumors that now that Dutch semiconductor technology company ASML has chosen a French national as new CEO they are also planning a move from the Netherlands to the France in part due to the fact Macron and his government is basically throwing the kitchen sink of business subsidies to them and the Dutch govt is increasingly seen as not responsive to there needs. Why is this important? ASML's technology is considered of absolute importance to both the US and China(and highly important to Taiwan) and Macron being Macron wants to be at the center of things and ASML moving from the Netherlands to France would make Macron a huge "player"
Anyways this is something I think Claire and Jon should start looking at and possibly cover on the podcast. Also I linked to a few of the small number of articles being written about this possibility.
If they actually think that song will appeal to the kids, perhaps there's some hope after all.
Although, I do get the uncomfortable feeling that it will be stuck in my head for the rest of today.
Well, that certainly cast a pall of gloom over my day. So, Claire, to get even I'll share my opinion that as things stand right now there's a realistic chance that Trump could win the election in November. Six months ago I would have scoffed at that notion, but Joe Biden's poll numbers are positively catastrophic and I have the sense that people have just tuned him out. Now of course it's possible that things could turn around for him, but time's marching on and it's hard to imagine what could happen to salvage his presidency.
As for Trump, it's possible that he could self-destruct, but I wouldn't count on it.
Whichever of them wins in November, it'll be bad news for America. Our current president's too old and too gaga to do the job, so someone else would be calling the shots in a second Biden term. To judge from the absolute pig's breakfast that's American foreign policy today, things would only get worse in a second Biden term.
The trouble with Trump is an amalgam of gross ignorance, contempt for facts and the truth, a mercurial temperament, an ego the size of the "Hindenburg," and plain old bad character. I will say that I doubt he's planning to destroy "our democracy" and make himself Dictator for Life. Trump is running for president to erase the humiliation of his loss in 2020. The thought of the Democratic/progressive meltdown that would follow his victory in 2024 must send a thrill up his leg. He's that guy, not Hitler or Mussolini.
Will he try to withdraw the United States from NATO? Maybe, but I doubt it. He didn't do it during his first term, despite all the NATO bashing. Anyhow, he wouldn't have the power to do so unilaterally. The National Defense Authorization Act for 2024, which was enacted in December 2023, prohibits the President from unilaterally withdrawing from NATO without approval of a two-third Senate super-majority or an act of Congress. Neither would be forthcoming in the new Congress.
I don't understand why the Democrats are not doing big ad buys against Representatives who refuse to sign the discharge petition to force the Ukraine aid bill onto the House floor. There need to be electoral consequences for this and they need to be made clear.
There also needs to be more public education so that more people understand the consequences of a Russian victory and that the bulk of US military aid expenditure stays in the United States because it funds the purchase of munitions from US manufacturers.
Finally, as Claire has said, Americans need to know the scale of the humanitarian disaster in Ukraine. How many people know that Russia killed 100,000 civilians in Mariupol alone? Or about the tens of thousands of kidnapped children taken to Russia? Not many, I would think.
The Democrats have allowed Trump and the anti Israel left to take up too much space.
Then reason is that there are no electoral consequences for inaction on aid for Ukraine. It isn't a burning issue for most Americans; they have other things on their minds.
If Joe Biden were capable of doing so, I'd advise him to take his case on Ukraine to the American people personally, e.g. with a primetime televised address to the nation. But he's incapable of doing that, isn't he? A leader who can't lead is pretty useless, don't you think?
Yes, I have thought for awhile that he should do just that. I don't know why he hasn't. It would seem that if he gave such an address and spoke as well as he did in the SOTU that could move the ball forward.
I suspect that his style is to negotiate things privately and he has gotten lots of legislation passed that way but in this case a prime time address from the Oval might be the only way to shift the playing field. Even if it means going over the heads of the members of Congress.
He’s not doing it because he can’t do it. A prime time address would only be the first step. It has to be a campaign, with the President well in the lead. Biden has neither the energy nor the focus to do that. He and his Administration are adrift at the policy level.
Advertising that most of the money spent on weapons stays in the US might be noticed more overseas than at home.
Something new and largely unreported is there are increasingly rumors that now that Dutch semiconductor technology company ASML has chosen a French national as new CEO they are also planning a move from the Netherlands to the France in part due to the fact Macron and his government is basically throwing the kitchen sink of business subsidies to them and the Dutch govt is increasingly seen as not responsive to there needs. Why is this important? ASML's technology is considered of absolute importance to both the US and China(and highly important to Taiwan) and Macron being Macron wants to be at the center of things and ASML moving from the Netherlands to France would make Macron a huge "player"
Anyways this is something I think Claire and Jon should start looking at and possibly cover on the podcast. Also I linked to a few of the small number of articles being written about this possibility.
https://www.firstpost.com/tech/asml-wants-to-move-out-of-the-netherlands-to-france-but-why-is-china-so-eager-13750216.html
https://www.scmp.com/tech/tech-war/article/3254460/netherlands-seeks-prevent-asml-expansion-abroad-report-says
https://innovationorigins.com/en/asml-is-the-premium-europe-owes-the-u-s/
The best comment I've heard so far is that when Putin goes and Russia explodes, it will take everyone by surprise.
Democracy is the new divine right