Miscellaneous

When Obamacare hit the fan, almost two years ago, it occurred to me that this was Roberts’ doing.  The unforgettable spectacle of the website fiasco was a turning point in our politics, a lancing of the boil, so to speak.  For this to happen, for all to see, the law had to be upheld.

That’s my theory, and I’m sticking with it.  So far there are 50 commenters at AT, one of whom agrees with me, and he sounds like a Democrat.  I’m getting beat up pretty bad.  They’re a tough crowd.  Anyway, here it is:

The law was clear.  But so was the politics.  In the spring of 2012, as he reflected on his decision in NFIB v. Sibelius, the Chief Justice in the end chose to protect the Court rather than uphold the law.  But in allowing Obamacare to take effect, he fostered the turn in the political tide that occurred in October of 2013, with its actual implementation.   This was an inflection point in our politics.  For a generation, it will undermine the proponents of big government.    I believe he knew exactly what he was doing.  I believe he’s conservative to his bones, and is the smartest man in public life today.

Here’s the link to the rest:

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2015/09/speaking_for_john_roberts.html

Rumors circulate that Walker’s campaign manager, Rick Wiley, is on his way out, which makes sense.  The idea of “I am Walker, Destroyer of Worlds, Wreaker of Havoc” must have come from him, or at least he signed off on it.  My God.  And then I hear that one of Walker’s post-debate spinners is out there proclaiming that his man has shown himself to be unintimidated, yet again.  A line that had been prepared by, one must assume, Wiley.  Go sell some insurance, man, you’re in the wrong business.

In the debate, Walker was himself, which is a problem.  He’s not good enough.  This field is too big, and too good, and he doesn’t stand out in any way.  I assume he has some gullible donors who will keep him afloat for a while, but you’ve got to cross him off your list.  He’s a bland man in a television age.

Jeb! was the earnest, if ineffectual, vice principal trying to get the kids to stop shooting spitwads at Miss Quigley.  He’s a nice man.  Too nice.  If we want nice we go with kindly Dr. Carson.  We want strength and confidence, not nice.

Parson Ted is unnerving.  He looks straight in the camera, straight in your eye, and like a trained hamster he rattles off his exquisitely crafted sentences and paragraphs, as though he were reading a legal brief.  And just as inspiring.  There’s something robotic about this guy.

Especially compared to Don Juan of Florida, who speaks just as fluidly, but to far more effect.  It seemed a little canned, but it was very good.  The bottle of water gimmick, though.  Fire whoever came up with that idea.  This man will win Florida for us, and be a fine Vice President.

I happened to catch a little of the under card, enough to see that little pipsqueak Lindsey Graham do his Patton imitation.  Pathetic.

I thought Kasich was terrific, except at the end. He wasn’t on much, but he handled himself well, and for those who were paying attention he made far more sense on Iran than any of the others, especially Cruz.  At the very end, when he interjected about defending Judeo-Christian values, it just didn’t work.  He was too rushed, and he couldn’t make his case coherently.  I understand what he was trying to say, and it’s worth saying.  But this format didn’t give him the time.  That case needs to be made in some detail.

Kasich was under no pressure in this debate.  He’s on a roll in New Hampshire, which is where it counts.  He just needed to put in a solid performance, which he did.  He chose, for the most part, not to join the clamor for recognition.  There were others up there who needed it more than he did.

I finally came up with my Trump-alike:  Joe Pesci, in My Cousin Vinnie.  I don’t think the Donald won any new fans, but I doubt he lost many either.  He’s a celebrity, not a politician.  A celebrity is judged by an entirely different set of rules.

I just don’t know what they are.

I’m working on a piece for AT, which I’ll probably submit in a couple days, and post here.  It’s a defense of John Roberts, who I think is the smartest man in public life today.

I generally like politicians.  During my eight years in the legislature, I got to know a lot of them pretty well.  Almost all of them, even some of the ones that were corrupt, wanted to do good.  Very few were just in it for themselves.  So when I think of the fifteen candidates on the stage tonight, I sympathize with every one of them.  Competition is always good, and politics is no exception.  Whoever emerges will be stronger for the competition.  And the rest will be a legend within their family for generations.  A hundred years from now, mothers will tell her children, “Did you know that your great grandfather ran for President?”

Or, great grandmother, thank you very much.

Down South they take college football seriously, and this weekend the student athletes of South Carolina will travel to play a game against the student athletes of Georgia.  Our man in Georgia, Senate Majority Leader Bill Cowsert, will host the South Carolina House and Senate Majority Leaders, and possibly the Speaker, in a private box at the game.  He has also arranged a meeting with the KIngfish of South Carolina politics, octogenarian Hugh Leatherman, Senate Finance Chair.  Bill is a very savvy guy, and we could not possibly have a better envoy to the, frankly, bizarre world of the South Carolina legislature.  If we’re going to get South Carolina next year, it will be Bill Cowsert’s doing.

Speaking of football, I think broadcaster and former NFL coach Jon Gruden, or “Chuckie”, as he was called, should do an imitation of Trump.  There is an eerie similarity.

Bill Fruth confirmed this morning that he will meet with Senate President Phil Nicholas on 9-22.  He’ll spend a few days traveling in Wyoming, seeing other legislators, but Nicholas has always been the key. My bones tell me Bill pulls it off, we get Nicholas, and we get Wyoming.

Mike Sterns says our chances in Virginia depend on the November elections to the State Senate.  Right now R’s are up 21-19, and hope to add a seat, or maybe two.  But they may wind up losing one instead, which would put the D’s in charge, and end our chances.  Biddulph will be doing what he can to help in the key races.

Because Trump brought such a huge audience to the first debate, it was far more important than it normally would have been.  24 million of the most politically aware voters in the country got their first impressions of the candidates.  A first impression creates a presumption in our minds.  We presume we know something about what we see.  It is a rebuttable presumption.  But until it is rebutted, it is our opinion.  Scott Walker did not make a good impression.  According to a new NYT poll, he’s down to 2 from 10, Bush is down to 6 from 13, and Carson is up from 6 to 23.

Now the candidates get to make another impression.  In most cases, they seek an improvement, but there’s that little thing called authenticity.  Take Walker, and his wild talk about going to Washington and “wreaking havoc.”   He reminds me of these pretty boy actors, like Brad Pitt, when they try to play the role of some tough guy.  It doesn’t work.  They’re not believable.  And neither is Scott Walker as a berserker.*

I saw clips of Trump in Dallas, and it’s so obvious what’s going on.  He’s putting on a one man show.  Improv with the Donald.  It’s got nothing to do with politics.  It’s entertainment.  People would pay to see it.  He’s a goddamn rock star.

This has very little to do with politics. It’s all pure theater, and good theater at that.  He’s a great entertainer, kind of like a cross between Don Rickles and Bob Hope.  I said last week that we’d reached peak Trump.  If I’m wrong it ‘s because Donald Trump knows how to put on a show.

Politics is more fun than football.

*In Norse folklore, one of a class of warriors who in battle were seized with a frenzy, howled, bit their shields, foamed at the mouth, and were believed invulnerable.

$25,000 will get an initiative drafted that could save Uber.  It would redefine employment in California law, so as to exclude Uber drivers.  Written by Tom Hiltackh, the foremost attorney in California in this field.  If this sum can be raised in the next month, the initiative would be submitted for a 60 day review by the State.  And when it is approved the Ubervolk would decide, in January, if they want to spend the money to put it on the ballot  — a couple million, tops.  Thanks to Bob Naylor, and Tom Hiltackh, for arranging to make this option available.

I emailed this info to Greg Wendt, along with a venture capitalist I have a passing acquaintance with.  If anyone reading this blog knows an Uber executive or investor, please pass it along.  I think the powers that be in the State of California are out to kill Uber, and the sharing economy in general.  The people of California, if given a chance, would stop it.  Thanks to this blog, I’ve run this thing up the flagpole.  Now it’s up to all the smart people in Silicon Valley, with all their smart money.

I see my friend Bill Cowsert, Georgia Senate Majority Leader, has signed on as Kascih’s Georgia Co-chair.  Good for Bill, good for Kasich.  I wish more Article V activists, like Bill, would follow his example.

It’s frustrating to see all the fires in the West.  Idaho Speaker Bedke explained to me that forest land in Idaho that is owned and managed by the State doesn’t have much of a fire problem.  Scientific forest management, selected harvesting, and other methods on State land all work very well.  But the 60% of Idaho owned  by the federal government is not managed properly.  Environmentalists, bureaucrats, and politicians see to that.  So Idaho burns.  Someone explain to me, please, why the federal government owns all this land?  Let’s help balance the budget by giving this land to the states where it’s located, and the people who live there.

I said last week we were at peak Trump, and nothing has changed my mind.  The latest national poll, Monmouth, puts him at 28%.  I don’t think he’ll ever be north of 33% again. We will see.

I’ve figured if Biden gets in, he wins. He wouldn’t run if he didn’t have some sort of assurances from Obama and the NYT that they’re going to take Hillary out.  I wasn’t taking Sanders seriously, and that may have been a mistake.  I remember McGovern in ’72.  He caught lightning in a bottle, and came out of nowhere.  And Bernie is actually a more appealing figure than McGovern, who usually wore a snarl on his face.  Democrats were really, really pissed off about Vietnam in ’72.  I know that Republicans today are just as pissed off as the Democrats were back then.

Are Democrats that pissed off today?   Maybe so.  Maybe everybody is pissed off.  Maybe somebody should run like that.

Be the leader of the pissed off party.