If you’re reading this you’ve no doubt already read at least one of the many recent articles on the rise of Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders and populism in the United States. If you haven’t read any yet and are looking for intelligent writing, Jonah Goldberg provides some well thought out analysis. But if intelligent analysis is not what you’re looking for and you just want a quick, simple explanation then keep reading here, my friends!
The rise in populism from both sides can be summed up pretty simply. America was promised to become some Hopey-Changey Nirvana when this god-like metrosexual, black Abraham Lincoln came into office eight years ago. What’s actually happened has been a spectacular failure, with an economy being propped up by the Fed-fueled stock market bubble. In this regard, both leftists and conservatives share in their anger about how our leadership in Washington has failed us.
Here is where things get interesting and both sides go in opposite directions. Conservatives are suggesting that we need to do an about face on these failed policies and turn to economic policies that actually work (there’s a reason people are leaving states dominated by leftists for red states). On the other side, the Sanders crowd think that the problem is that we just haven’t taken President Obama’s failed policies nearly far enough, and our current problems are the fault of Republicans for not acquiescing to the president’s policies enough. Really! Because somehow economic basket cases like Greece, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, California, and Illinois are examples to be followed, not painful lessons to be learned.
Even more interesting is how the two candidates view illegal immigration. Trump is talking a good game, but his past history and the feasibility of what he suggests don’t inspire a lot of confidence. Bernie Sanders is even more interesting, as we get to see the rare display of economic literacy from a proud Socialist!
Sanders also addressed the already high unemployment rate of Hispanic and African-American youth and how illegal immigration would affect their job opportunities. “When you have 36-percent of Hispanic kids in this country who can’t find jobs and you bring a lot of unskilled workers in the country what do you think happens to that 36-percent of kids of today who are unemployed? 51% of African-American kids [are unemployed],” Sanders said.
“I frankly do not believe we should be bringing in significant numbers of unskilled workers to compete with those kids,” Sanders made clear.
It always warms my heart when leftists choose to not ignore the most basic laws of supply and demand and how they affect prices! But back on topic, I’ve never made any effort to hide my dislike for Trump. Maybe having grown up in New Jersey during Trump’s heyday and having no desire to see him do for America what he helped do for Atlantic City prejudices me against him. So I’ll close with what National Review’s (A publication that is no friend to Trump) Jim Geraghty posted in a recent newsletter, an excerpt from The Atlantic that gives what Geraghty called the most compelling argument for The Donald:
Many would probably question why, of all people, a decadent, rude, and pompous billionaire should be trusted to meddle with American culture? I think it comes down to a perception that America has already drowned in a post-modernist nightmare of moral relativism, from which extreme political correctness and protest culture stem. Trump, on the other hand, is all absolutes. Everything he says, accurate or not, is stated in absolute, definitive terms. His personal morality is clear: He respects people who work hard, are loyal, innovate, and “win,” and he shuns those who don’t meet the criteria. Cruel as it may sound, I think America needs to reenergize these fundamental cultural values before we can ever hope to create a better society.
There is zero doubt in my mind that both Trump and Sanders are the wrong people for the job, but it will be interesting to see if the presidential candidates stop listening to their consultants and studies based on focus groups and start listening to what the American people are actually saying. Because we are shouting our message loud an clear.
Follow Brother Bob on Twitter and Facebook
Cross posted from Brother Bob’s Blog
See authors page
I read on another website about the Trump rally in AL. He was compared to George Wallace and his 20K attendance was deemed a small turnout. The press and MSM are really scraping the bottom of the barrel. What will they say next?
Trump may or may not win the nomination but he has certainly created some excitement and also caused heartburn to Karl Rove and friends.
Hopefully Trump and Sanders will cause the parties to get in touch with “We the People”. It is actually fun to watch the elitists in both parties go into a frenzy. On the Republican side, should Trump surprise everyone and get the nomination (and even if he doesn’t) it may cost the Republicans the WH in ’16 in what should have been their year for winning the WH. The party will have no one to blame but themselves because people are sick of their spineless leadership. Trump challenges PC and Obama. The Republican Party is terrified of both.
On the Dem side of the house, HRC was annointed as the next POTUS. Now that her campaign is faltering, the Dems have no one to turn to because they put all of their eggs in one basket. While Hillary may win the nomination, she is going to be far more vulnerable in the General Election and if these scandals keep snowballing, she may become unelectable. The Benghazi lies, the email lies, the joking about her security lapses, the physical barriers put up between her and the press, her storming out of interviews when questioned about the emails, the “Get over it” response to Benghazi, and other negatives have all been captured on film and will make for great reminders of exactly the type of person she is. If it costs the Dems the WH, they too will have no one to blame but themselves.
It should make for an interesting presidential election year.
@old guy:
As soon as the local CBS station decided to cover the rally 100% people started to decide to stay home and watch it from there.
If I read it correctly both CNN and MSNBC started to cover the event then quit after a few minutes.
I wonder what the local CBS station’s ratings were.
And add in their streaming online numbers, too.
@Old guy: As much as I dislike Trump it is satisfying that he’s getting under Rove & company’s skin. Maybe they’ll start taking the filthy masses seriously
@another vet –
An understatement to say the least. 🙂
An observation made by Charlie Gasparino on Fox Business yesterday maybe closer to what maybe going on. In 2008, after the economic meltdown, people had this desperate feeling, they decided to go with a very green, untested candidate named Obama. In 2015, these same people, and more, still have that desperate feeling, and have decided to try another very green, untested candidate named Trump. (Gasparino has said Trump’s run is more about Trump building his brand.)
If what Gasparino says maybe the case, there are much more intelligent choices than Trump – notably Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina. Jeb Bush, likeable as he is, he’s fast becoming a candidate who’s time already passed. If it’s rust, he’d better shake it loose much faster – don’t sound desperate, but sharpen his message.
In another thread, I don’t remember if Ditto made the comment, or someone else, but said Trump is saying things people want to hear. Two ways to take this observation – either Trump is in tune with people, or Trump is pulling a fast one on everybody.
@David: There is a good chance that by 2016 we could see another meltdown. Given that we haven’t recovered from the last one, it could strengthen the appeal of a non-politician. As much as I don’t want to see President Trump, he does have at least two things going for him that Obama didn’t. One, he is far more qualified for the job. Then again, so are my two dogs. Second, he doesn’t dislike the country. Ditto for Carson and Fiorina.
As for the pols, Jeb, unlike Perry and Santorum, lacked the courage to take on Obama in 2012 when he was needed. Walker and Jindal both took on Obama as governors. Cruz has been a big thorn in his side and Rubio hasn’t shied away from him either. Christie gave him a hug and Kasich caved on Obamacare. The Republican side is much deeper than the Dem side. They can run multiple, qualified teams. The Dems, not so.
@old guy: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/30k-show-donald-trumps-campaign-rally-alabama/story?id=33250704
Not much cause for ”disappointment.”
Perhaps the run up to 2016 will turn into a tag team match. I’ve been wondering at what point we’d see photos of these two side-by-side. They’d be hard to beat.
Nanny G #7: Thanks for the update. I am amazed a major news group did the story.
@Brother Bob:
No, I seriously doubt it. That is not how progressives think. The Washington establishment and their Wormtongue consultants like Rove who whisper in their ears have nothing but disdain and contempt for the common people.
@Greg: Biden/Warren? Would they be as hard to beat after Biden suggests that she should be working at a 7-11?
@Ditto: Wormtongue is a good one, but I’m not sure it’s the best comparison. Rove wasn’t always completely evil, unlike Wormtongue who was in Sauron’s pocket from the beginning. Boromir might be a closer match, although Boromir did have enough decency to feel remorse at the end
@Brother Bob:
Certainly it’s not the best comparison. Wormtongue was a manipulating a ruler, while Rove In Rove’s case (and the MSM,) he is more in cahoots with the progressive leadership and serves purposes to manipulate the public.I hold much of the MSM in the same regard.
Even in Tolkien’s world, one would not naturally assume that the characters were born evil. Grima might have been a charming boy, His master, the Wizard Saruman was good until seduced by Sauron, and even the dark lord was seduced from his lawfulness:
I consider the comparison to Wormtongue apt specifically because Grima wholly accomplishes his agenda through his artful mastering of rhetoric persuasion.
@Ditto: Touche, my friend! =8^)
@Brother Bob, #11:
Consider the front running competition. Given two options, I suspect most thoughtful Americans will be inclined to choose continuity and stability over populace rhetoric.
I could be wrong. Trump is a master at recognizing what buttons to push. It astonishes me that he’s gaining momentum. So far he’s been rolling right over all GOP resistance. He’ll either take the party or break it.
@Greg:
There you go again, with thinly veiled insults. as if anyone who doesn’t vote as you would have them ‘must not be thoughtful.’ You really need to work on your Wormtongue tactics.
Sure Greg, I’m certain that you would love to see Obama’s “transformation” continue and for his “legacy” to remain intact. Your problem is that the majority of Americans feel America is going in the wrong direction and they don’t appreciate his efforts to turn us into a third world country.
@Ditto: have nothing but disdain and contempt for the common people
“I want to put the Republican leadership behind this mirror and let them see,” Luntz said at the conclusion of the survey. “They need to wake up. They don’t realize how the grassroots have abandoned them. Donald Trump is punishment to a Republican elite that wasn’t listening to their grassroots.”
Yup, disdain and contempt. It’s not that the Establishment Class failed to carry through any of their promises, it’s not that they abandoned us. Nope, it’s that we’ve abandoned them.
@mossomo:
Exactly. It’s classic transference of guilt. They made promises on the campaign trail to fight Obama, then they rolled around after the election and supported everything Obama has been calling for (even giving him carte blanche on the Iran deal). But after snubbing the will of the peons out in the hustings, those voters are understandably livid about being patted on the head and lied to, (which is incidentally the whole reason that TEA Party protests were started in the first place). The RINO leadership is also declaring war against the TEA Party and conservative base, yet these Washington establishment jackasses now have the unmitigated gall to whine that the voters have abandoned them for Trump and other “outsiders”.
And Trump was also right about Luntz being in the pocket of establishment RINOs at FOX and other “progressive” news agencies. Luntz who manages his polling groups and the questions he puts to them to favor progressives.
Bernie and Donald are gonna have to settle things with a throwdown.
Greg: Maybe a coin toss!