Ryancare, Russiagate, immigration things to think about
I hesitate to share my political thoughts with you. Not because of the outrage they might receive or the likelihood our president will wire tap my phones, but because by the time I knock these thoughts out onto paper, Trump and his team will have created 27 more controversies to think about. I guess that is just the risk I take. Let’s see how many of these are still floating in the Trump era of media coverage by the time this goes to press.
GOP Congress: They don’t get it. They want us to believe the level of anger voiced to them at their recent townhall meetings is the result of paid protesters and not a reflection of voters. They also want us to believe their new health plan, Obama Lite, is about as satisfying as an ice cold Modelo when in reality it is more like a warm Miller Lite.
Health Care: Why hasn’t Trump pushed the same health plan he and Congress receive (as elite government employees) for our new universal plan? It’s a pretty simple question and it should be asked of every elected official up for reelection and they should be shouted down when they tap dance around their answer.
The GOP Should Be Afraid: People talk about how afraid illegals are of being rounded up by immigration. It’s the GOP who should really be afraid. They have to stand for reelection and the more they support Trump’s policies, the more they increase their chances of losing office. They need a plan on how to break from him while still offering voters an alternative to the progressive left. That’s about as easy for them to do as it is to devise a decent alternative to Obamacare.
North Korea: If in fact they have made great gains in their ability to deliver long-range missiles with nuclear warheads, this regime will have to be dealt with in a severe manor and not soothed over as has been done in the past. This is why it is so important to maintain a strong relationship with China. They are better equipped to drop the hammer on North Korea than we are without it literally blowing up in our faces.
Travel Ban: So now that Trump has corrected the legal flaws with a new travel ban, does anyone really think it isn’t any less racist than before? What does 90 days buy us that the previous 15 years has not already provided? With the ban in place, ISIS has no reason not to continue using chemical weapons as was recently discovered and they won’t hesitate to murder and rape women and children. A legal travel ban should not be confused with a moral plan.
Obama in 2018: Now that Trump has accused former President Obama of wiretapping Trump Plaza last year, you can bet Obama will be more than willing to hit the campaign trail and raise oodles of money to defeat Trumpsters at the mid-term elections. There is no longer a political hate for Trump by Obama; it is now personal and you can bet he will make full use of his influence to help bring Trump down. Free of the White House, Obama will take off the gloves and gladly jump in the ring to teach Trump a lesson.
Bathrooms: Is it just me or have you noticed the people who make the most noise about wanting to ban bathroom access to transgenders are also the same people who take pride in how loud their belches are and how horrible their farts smell?
Names: What sounds more offensive: President Donald Trump or the Washington Redskins? I am betting the Redskins name makes far fewer people cringe in the DC area than the name Trump.
Daylight Savings: Can Congress do away with this useless tradition or is this another thing the left and right disagree on?
Couchgate: Never before have I seen so much made of so little. The left, who refuse to respect the man in the Oval Office, claimed Kellyanne Conway failed to respect the couch that sits in that office. Do you really think old Donald or any of the others in there for the photo op thought twice about her method of sitting on the couch? I think there is now going to be a team of people whose entire job is to dream up things for Kellyanne to do to take heat from the media just to get the press off of less important stuff like Trump’s policies or behavior. Smart tactic.
Camp Trump: By now you know how much Trump loves getting out of Washington DC on weekends. However, rather than retreating to Camp David like many presidents have done, he goes to Florida where he stays at his Mar-A-Lago Resort. I am sure the Secret Service would prefer he stay at Camp David because of their experience securing the place. However, until it is renamed Camp Donald, he’s not about to stay somewhere that is not named after him if he doesn’t have to.
New Oath: Can we just change the standard oath people take before testifying to Congress to say, “Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth until you get caught lying about it?” I think if I were under investigation by the Attorney Generals office, I’d lie my ass off from start to finish. When I am found guilty of a crime, I will appeal with the defense that I only did what Jeff Sessions did so I thought lying was the new truth telling.
Dems in 2020: There is talk of them running a celebrity candidate like Oprah in 2020 against Trump. I think they need to be careful about doing so. Running a black female against Trump becomes a no brainer for Trump supporters who might be a bit disappointed by their man.
They have already shown they circle the wagons when Democrats field a strong black man or equally strong female candidate. Oprah would just make their voting choice much easier.
Democrats need to find a white male who is a popular celebrity who women will flock to in droves, men admire, and who can charm the pants off of the media. Mr. Hanks should go to Washington and do more than buy a new cappuccino machine for the media. What do you say, Tom?
Photos are YouTube screen shots
Top photo: Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly. “We’re the poor shits that have to trot out and defend this latest unconstitutional act.”
James Moore is a life long resident of California and retired school teacher with 30 years in public education. Jim earned his BA in History from CSU Chico in 1981 and his MA in Education from Azusa Pacific University in 1994. He is the author of Teaching The Teacher: Lessons Learned From Teaching and currently runs his own personal training business, In Home Jim, in Hemet, CA. Jim’s writings are often the end result of his thoughts mulled over while riding his bike for hours on end.