The Uprising of the American Party?

These days, being a lifelong republican is met with some angst. Many times in the past I have written about the disarray of the democrat party and how that ultimately effects their standing with the voters, and of course, how it effects elections. But here we are, republicans, pretty much in a mess worse than I have ever seen on the democrat side. And what is it all about? Donald J. Trump, of course. He's absolutely frazzled the establishment—and frankly I don't think they know how to handle this. But it should be easily explained away for these guys if you ask me.

Why is Donald Trump, our nominee, resonating with the voters of our party?

Look, it's a simple thing really. I have long said that I do not feel a need for term limits in Congress and the Senate so long as the voters are engaged and paying attention. We have a system designed where it is the people's choice who stays or who goes when it comes to elections. The only reason term limits would be needed is when voters are pretty much tuned out, not paying attention, and just checking boxes at the polls without knowing what it is their elected officials accomplished...or did not accomplish.

Clearly the voters are engaged right now, at least for sure on the republican side, and what they have concluded is that the republican party has not done their job. Thus, Donald Trump gets their vote.

But yes, this is a time of angst. If you have paid attention to the republican party over the years the one thing many of us have argued is that we do not ever have a candidate that speaks directly to the people. We wind up with guys who look exactly like the tired and old stereotype of a typical republican. Old rich guys.

Granted, Trump is old. And he's rich.

But, he's Donald Trump. And say what you will about why Donald Trump is a household name for many Americans no matter which side they happen to be on, he has at least accomplished one major thing—he has tuned in many Americans to the electoral process who may have never bothered to care or tune in at all to.

So, he at least has our attention. Republicans and democrats and independents and non-voters alike mind you.

And because they (the American people) are now tuned in they now also realize an awful truth. Washington D.C. and all of these elites who reside there now, and who frankly have been there before them for many years, are screwing us over and good. And they have gotten away with it largely because no one was paying attention, and no one was there to bring it all to light. Donald Trump is saying to the American people what is wrong with the process, what is wrong with America, and why it is so important we all get it this time around and begin the long and daunting process toward real change. To start the process of restoring America to HER people as it was intended by our founders, and stop dead in their tracks the establishments on both sides to stack the deck and rig the whole kit and kaboodle to the detriment of everyone.

Americans rejoiced about change not so long ago when Obama made it his promise to bring it about. But he didn't change anything for the better, and unfortunately no one was paying attention to what he failed to do, and thus he was elected twice.

So, the republican party now has a guy at the forefront who is speaking to swaths of Americans, who is bringing new excitement to the electorate and bringing new-found interest to the party, but yet all they want to do is shut him down. Why? Because they don't like what he says, or how he says what he says. Look, the truth is that Donald Trump is more like you and I despite his billions of dollars in the bank than any career politician, and frankly I think this is one of the reasons why he scares the hell out the establishment the way he does, and why they are so eager to try to shut him down. He's an American. Dare I say an everyday American? When he speaks about economics, and when he speaks about wars, and when he speaks about back room deals in Washington he speaks like each and every one of us speaks in our break rooms, at our family gatherings, and in general to our friends. He says what is wrong, he does not parse his words, he does not spout off in terms no one can understand, and in ways that skirt the truth and make the ugly sound pretty. And again, this scares the hell out of the establishment because for years they have been able to use words in fancy ways to make the American public see things in a different light than the truth would lay out before them.

If you have a good thing going and no one is any the wiser, why throw a cog in the wheel to mess that up?

That's exactly what the establishment has had for years. A good thing. The people were none the wiser. And so long as they were none the wiser, why mess that up?

Trump is the bad guy, and the target of establishment republicans, because he threatens to mess up a good thing they have had going for years. That's why they want to shut him down. That's why they want to rally around Hillary Clinton, attacking Trump instead of her. Because Trump threatens their existence in a way no one before him really has. He's telling the American people the truth. He's shedding light on well hidden realities. He's engaging regular, working people like you and I. He's getting us, the American people, the average working Joe, to see that what politicians tell us, what they promise us, and what they do, and what the effects of lies, innuendo, and spin do to hurt us greatly with us virtually unaware it is even happening—but slowly. The pain comes slowly. The tactics and the policies and the fancy speak hurts us in calculated measure over time so that piece by piece, bit by bit, wrong by wrong, we simply get used to things as they are, and by the time things are so bad—we don't feel the pain as greatly. It has become the norm. It has become our way of life.

Surely the democrats have mastered that with the welfare state. 

It's like the mindset of an embezzler really. I can take a few pennies here and a few pennies there and no one really notices. The ones who get away with it are the smart embezzlers. The ones who get caught are the ones who grow impatient with the process of embezzling a little bit and then just go for broke. Politicians don't have to grow impatient. They control the process. For them they don't have to worry about getting noticed. There is nothing more friendly to an embezzler than the lack of an accountant. And for a politician, there is nothing more friendly than a voting public who is none the wiser.

Trump is the accountant who just walked in on a huge and long-time embezzlement.

And just take a look at who's who in the establishment now denouncing Trump—again—either directly or indirectly. Career politicians. Elites. Paul Ryan, the Bush family, and John McCain just to name a few. Go ahead and toss in the Romney family as well if you want to. These are family businesses...careers in politics. These are the embezzlers of our freedom and of our lives, stripping away one piece at a time, slowly but surely, but with calculation. And now someone has called their bluff. Now someone has shed light on their deeds, And now someone has the ear of the people.

Again, this scares the hell out of them.

The fact is that I am a republican. But I am also able to observe. I know what's going on and I don't like it. And that is why I can and do support Trump. Maybe it's not even a republican thing. Maybe that is just what I have been calling it all these years for lack of a better word. But I have checked the boxes just the same, and I had faith that the guys I sent to Washington with R's behind their names would do my bidding and make America a great place to live. I sent them there with the faith that they would right the wrongs of progressives and slam the door on liberal policies. I sent them there with faith that they would tell the American people the truth about why conservative principles worked better, and why anyone should rejoice in the implementation of conservative policy and ideology.

But they failed. And Trump is winning, at least when it comes to republicans. And he is dismantling the party. So being a republican these days is met with angst. Because I am angry as hell at my party and like so many American people are too. I am so angry that Trump resonates with me too. And I am angry that the republican party in all but denouncing Trump has shed light on the real corruption I denied was ever there within even my own beloved GOP. I am angry that it appears that the republican party, when all is said and done, really were no better than the democrats I so deplored were. I am angry that it appears that a two-party system is really just one party.

The political party.

And the rest of America be damned.

I am voting for Trump, now, not because he happens to the republican nominee. I am voting for Trump because I think he has the right plan to bring the country back to the people. Parties be damned. Republican, democrat, green party, libertarian, independent? To hell with all of that garbage. It's time to simply be an American.

Why Hillary Will Not Win The Election

In the stock market we typically follow the philosophy that past history is not necessarily indicative of future results. But a lot of the time when it comes to presidential elections and politics in general, history can be very telling. Even while there are some changing demographics and of course, different dynamics at play with this upcoming election, there is still enough data among the electorate right now that tend to suggest that history may well be very telling as to whether or not Hillary Clinton can seat herself in the Oval Office.

I am taking the position that Hillary Clinton cannot win, although I am also openly saying that it is too early to firmly stake that claim.

Set aside some of the issues of her political tenure that I think should be enough to preclude her from ever holding an elected office or cabinet position of any kind such as Benghazi, or the email scandal. The question becomes whether or not Americans are satisfied with the current state of the Union, and how they feel about the direction the country is headed.

In a recent Monmouth University poll likely voters were asked whether or not they would vote for Obama for a third term if he was able to run, and only 27% of those polled said yes. 43% said they wanted someone else. With Hillary Clinton not having clearly defined how her presidency would be different than Obama's, and how her candidacy is not necessarily a continuation of the same policies of the Obama administration, this puts her almost in lock-step with Obama. If 43% would be unlikely to vote for Obama, how would they then circle back to Clinton, essentially equating to a third Obama term?

I do not believe that voters will.

Let's not forget that many Americans, even those who typically have supported Obama, are also becoming more aware that perhaps the policies of the Obama administration, for all of the hope and change promised, have simply fallen short. The economic numbers have not improved much. The jobs situation has perhaps seen lower unemployment numbers, but there are still many quality of life issues when it comes to what types of jobs are being filled. Even having more people working means nothing if those jobs aren't helping to dramatically improve anyone's bottom lines. And it would appear that foreign policy has been a disaster at best—and the recent events in France won't help Clinton either—and according to other polls Americans are not exactly convinced that the country is safer today, and many are also considering that the next attack on American soil may just be a matter of time.

History shows that it is extremely rare in any event for one party to maintain the White House for 12 years straight. I do not believe that, despite all of the hype surrounding Obama's two-terms, and any excitement for another historical moment in the making if Hillary makes it to the White House, that there is enough there to provide her an opportunity to buck the trend.

And Hillary is also trailing every single one of the republican candidates, and I think that is quite telling considering who she is ultimately up against. The usual players are not the front runners. Who is leading in nearly every single poll?

The non-establishment. Non-politicians. Non-government.

The numbers alone seem to signal if not for a history repeating shift to the republican party as would otherwise be the case, but a strong and growing dissent and resentment toward the status-quo when it comes to the entire landscape of politics. Hillary is clearly completely immersed in this world that a growing number of Americans are simply tired of. As well, it seems to me that even if you take a look at the small list of democratic candidates, and any enthusiasm that may exist in the democratic side going to just one primary candidate, it begs the question; If the democrats, or any democrat in the party, felt strongly that the Obama presidency was a huge success, would there not be more candidates coming front and center to eagerly make an attempt at continuing the legacy? Enthusiasm can sometimes be defined by who shows up to take a shot, and on the democratic side that number is quite small. This becomes even more glaring when you consider the controversies which have surfaced during Clinton's run. Anyone eager to take up any slack in what would be considered a strong and in-the-bag victory would readily step forward and say, "What about me?"

I think the truth is that Hillary Clinton is not the automatic president everyone seemed to want to suggest she was going to be. That becomes even more clear to me now.

It is still too early to tell as I stated before. But what does seem clear to me is that the republicans have the best shot they have had in a long time to secure a victory, and I would not be at all surprised if that victory doesn't even necessarily go to the republican party even if the future president bears an "R" after their name, but to the non-establishment which just happens to be strongest running on the republican tickets.

I simply feel that history will prevail despite the changing demographics and dynamics of this election, and democrats will not enjoy another four years in the White House. That leaves Hillary out almost indefinitely since Bernie Sanders, her strongest opponent, comes nowhere near the numbers of any of the republican candidates. If Donald Trump is a "long shot," Bernie Sanders is a shot in the dark in comparison.

Whoever wins the White House, rest assured it will not be Hillary Clinton.

Argument Against Voter ID in Wisconsin Is Silliness

If ever there was a word in the english language that has been overused, and frankly misused in the last few years, it is the word 'disenfranchise.' And it happens to be a word often used when opponents of the voter ID laws in Wisconsin try and make their arguments against the law. "Requiring voter ID," they say, "infringes on the rights of certain people to exercise their Constitutional right to vote in an election."

I say this is a load of hogwash because the way I see it, making that claim could be applied to any number of opportunities we may wish to take part in. For example driving a car, or buying a pack of cigarettes, or a six-pack of beer. In Wisconsin, and I'm certain this is also the case in other states as well, one must have a valid photo ID to receive food stamps, to cash a check, to make a withdrawal from a bank account, and the list goes on.

The bottom line comes down to something very basic for me. Participating in certain things requires us doing the basic things to actually do it.

While it's not along quite the same line, if I want to start a business for example, I have to obtain a license. I may need to find investors or obtain a small business loan to get started. Using the argument of the opponents of the voter ID laws, making me do these basic things may disenfranchise me. Requring me to do these things may make it harder, or impossible to actually start a business.

The simple fact is that if I want to start a business I must do the basic things to do this. Just like if I want to drive a car I must obtain a license. Heck, you need a license to fish or hunt too.

And how hard is it really to obtain some form of legal photo ID I wonder? If one really wants to cast a vote and exercise their right, they should not be looking for a way to play the role of the victim and cry woe-is-me I can't vote. They should be looking for a way to do the basic things they need to do to go to the polls and vote. If they are not willing to that, these people are not disenfranchised. They are creating their own circumstances. The tools are there. The opportunities are there, and the argument against voter ID laws in Wisconsin is just nothing more than silliness and whining.

THREATENING OUR ELECTED LEADERS SOLVES NOTHING

The American people are angry. After all the polls clearly indicated that the majority of the American people did not want this health care reform bill that ultimately was passed, it passed anyway. The president and the democrats in the Congress went forward clearly knowing that at least 52% of the population opposed the bill.

But is it appropriate to direct that anger at our elected leaders through death threats? Through violence? Should we decide that beating down our elected leaders is the answer? Of course not. We've got to get it together. We need to direct our anger appropriately and effectively. This kind of reaction will only make us look like crybaby buffoons.

Look, we said it when Bush was determined to be our president after all the debacle over chads and whatever else—it is what it is. So let's move on and get on with the business of the people and stop bickering about what is. We need to take our own advice. The deal is done, it stinks to high heaven, we all know that all too well, but here is where are, and now what we need to do is to focus on what we do next to appropriately and effectively make things better tomorrow.

The fact is that whatever we think about our current elected leaders, ultimately I think it is an absolutely fair statement to say that our system of government works. The Congress and the President of the United States got this one terribly wrong. Of that there is no debating. This big fucking deal, as the vice presdent so eloquently put it, is going to cost us far more than just an arm and a leg to be sure. We're in for one hell of a debt dealing ride that could make a swingset do loop the loops like a roller coaster. The dems clearly did this vote with their fingers crammed deep in their ears.

We cannot fairly measure our system of government based on this one bill, even if it's a big one. Even if it's a disastrous one. Literally sending our elected leaders to the guillotine may sound enticing, but...

We can vote. That's what we can do. And we'll have just such an opportunity coming around this November to send a loud and clear message that the American people are not happy with what's gone down. This is our proper discourse. Waving fists, raising bats, or sending idle threats against our elected officials when things don't go our way is not the answer. It's frustrating. At times it can be downright maddening. But to strongarm the process? Even if they did it?

How can we expect our elected officials to make the right choices and vote accordingly if they have to do so in fear? Fear only serves to taint and corrupt the system even further. Let our politicians fear their jobs when they get it wrong or ignore the people. Not their lives.

MORE OPINION ON THE HEALTH CARE BILL:

ALL WE NEED IS ANOTHER BIG "EFFING" DEAL
DESPITE IT ALL, HEALTH CARE BILL PASSES