Walker Missed The Point On Exit

When your chips are down, you have to know when it's time to step away. Rick Perry did it. And now Scott Walker. And I think he was right to do it. The truth is that while his campaign started off with good fanfare, it simply fizzled out. I actually had high hopes for him when he stepped into the race simply because I liked him as Governor of Wisconsin, and liked what he did for the state—he will continue to do well in his return to his old job. For that reason I thought he could do well as president too.

I voted for him twice in the three elections held in four years, and the only reason I did not cast my vote in his favor in the last one was because I had left the state.

The thing that bothers me in his exit are his comments regarding the "front-runner," basically insinuating that Donald Trump is sucking all of the oxygen out of the room and making it difficult for more traditional GOP candidates to take control of the race. Rick Perry said as much in his own exit, neither one of them referring to Trump by name. Both of them encouraged other weaker candidates to step aside and make way for someone to knock out Trump.

My problem is that Trump, while abrasive and very much unlike any presidential candidate we've seen with such strong support, is at the top because right now he's running a successful campaign that is capturing the attention of a great many in the voter field of the republican party, even if the establishment is not so captivated. While it is true that at this stage of the game the candidates are essentially auditioning for the establishment to decide their fate rather than the American people as a whole, at the end of the day the American people are what matter. Not the establishment. And as it stands right now the American people are supporting Donald Trump.

Love him or hate him the people are speaking loud and clear. The old way of doing things has become tired, things are not getting done, and a good many of the "traditional" candidates are not acting like they really want to change anything for the better. That's why they are lagging in the polls. It has nothing to do with Trump. It has to do with what the American people want.

Whether or not Trump would make a good president is still up for debate. You could say the same for how long he'll stay on top, and whether or not he'll actually win the nomination. Either way, what I think the other candidates need to focus on is not how to knock out Trump per se, but to fundamentally understand why he's on top and bring the same message to the American people in that more "positive" manner that they would prefer. In a way when Rick Perry and Scott Walker make these kinds of comments, what they are really telling the American people is that they don't want the wishes of the voters to be considered here. Again. I think this actually helps Trump. It helps any of the three candidates that are less traditional to stand out as anti-establishment, and signals that just maybe they'll bring a sea of change to Washington that is badly needed and wanted.

I put those three as Donald Trump, Ben Carson, and Chris Christie. And by the way, if you like Trump, Christie may well be the man to support since he has a similar personality and style as Trump, but also has just enough decorum to balance it out. Something I think Trump lacks.

I am not suggesting that Scott Walker was wrong in his exit speech. What I am saying is that I think part of his failure in garnering more support for his campaign is that he simply missed the point. His comments make that all too clear. If one thing rings true this time around, I think for the first time in a very long time whoever steps into the White House ultimately is the people's choice.

Let's just hope it's not one of those on the other side. If you think voting for Trump is crazy, voting for anyone on the other side right now is as nuts as playing Russian Roulette with a fully loaded gun. Yeepers!

Trump for Prez?

Into the republican presidential race enter none other than Donald Trump.

For most of us on the conservative side of the political spectrum, and I would assume many on the other side as well, Donald Trump is a hard guy to envision sitting in the Oval Office of the White House. I'll admit it's a tough sell for me as well. If one word comes to mind right off the tip of the tongue when you think of Donald Trump, it's abrasive.

But there are a couple of other things that I think of when I think of old Mr. Trump, real estate mogul and businessman. For one, if he were to become president, you'd be hard pressed to be guessing where he stands on any given issue. Whether or not you would like or agree with any position he might take, you would know exactly what he thinks. The man has practically made a second living from speaking his mind and cutting right to the chase when he does it. But, at times it can get downright nasty. Whether or not you like Rosie O'Donnell, for example (and I do not), the feud between her and Trump some years back when she was originally on The View fell just short of a boxing match.

You have to admit the exchange did make for good TV.

But he is also a smart guy, and of course he is a businessman. He's also not a politician per se. I say per se because most politicians like to say what they think the American people want to hear. Donald Trump says what he thinks, and he doesn't particularly care what anyone else thinks about that.

I am interested to see how he performs throughout the campaign cycle, and I hope he gets at least enough traction to be able to sit in on the debates. While the last thing we need is one more talking head on the stage taking up valuable time, I do think he could add both comic relief and high value entertainment to the entire debate. And there's one more thing he could add to the debates as well.

He could actually get democrats watching republican debates.

And that could prove valuable since while debates are filtered, mainly by a limit of time, we all know how filtered the mainstream media is, especially when it comes to republicans. So if more democrats are tuned in just to see what antics Donald Trump might deliver, they might just get something out of the debates that they won't get anywhere else.

Do I think that Trump would make for a good president? Like I said, it's a tough sell for me. I like the fact that he is transparent, that he likes small government, that he believes that China is a threat both politically and economically to the future of the United States, and that he really does believe in American exceptionalism and is a proponent of a strong military force. All good things. I also think that, being a businessman and not being a politician, he would be great for improving the economy, and especially slashing the budget and I think could even dramatically reduce the national debt.

Again, good things.

So where do I think he might go wrong? It really does come down to his abrasiveness. One sentence could destroy a relationship with a foreign national, and even send the United States into an all-out war. If Donald Trump were to become president he would need to have a guy in his cabinet to stifle him just a bit. You want people to tell the truth. But just like you don't necessarily want to come right out with it and tell your co-worker she's a whale as she stuffs her fifth donut into her face, you don't want to say exactly what's on your mind about important issues. There needs to be a delicate balance between the truth and how that truth is presented. And Donald Trump would have difficulty with that, and in some instances I think it could cause some Americans, and even some foreign dignitaries to tune out when it comes to what President Trump would want to convey.

If for no other reason one thing that Donald Trump would most definitely accomplish? I think he would make for the most entertaining presidency the country has ever known. And interestingly enough even that could be a plus for the country in an off sort of way.

When politics makes for good TV people will watch, and having more eyes and ears tuned into our government and the most powerful man in the nation cannot be a bad thing.