In my opinion, that while his uncouth Archie Bunker style may appeal to some true misogamist and racist types, he actually only reflects as does a mirror, the attitudes and true sentiments of the vast majority of the American public. The only difference is that he’s honest and brash enough to openly state it and not politically correct or “sophisticated” enough to hide it as most others do. That’s one of the reasons I think why he strikes such a deep cord with so many people that are tired of all the propaganda and BS, and a raw nerve with the rest and the establishment who absolutely hate him for it.
But at heart as I read him I don’t believe he’s actually a true bigot deep down. And if I’m wrong, He’s not any more of a sexist and racist than are the general public and all the liberal hypocrites that twice voted for war making Obama, just because it’s so nice to have a black man in the white house, in order to ease their own guilty racist conscience. Nor is Trump any more sexist than the feminist German Greer that publicly endorses the sociopath “We came, we saw, he died” Hillary Clinton and calls young women voting for Trump “just girls who are following the boys” (moderator ZZ notes – this comment was Sander supporters not Trump supporters). And that 500,000 children died in Iraq “is worth the price” genocidal witch Madame Albright, announcing that “there’s a special place in hell for women that don’t support women” implying that’s for all those women that don’t blindly vote for Hillary. Witness the racial slur Hillary cast against poor black single women much earlier in her political career by saying that their fatherless children were “parasites” sucking on societies blood, that’s before the boldfaced lying hypocrite learned how to be politically more correct so as in order to get reelected.
Not to mention that she helped spread the vicious lie around the world that Qaddafi was using black Africans as mercenaries feeding them Viagra so as to rape and murder “his own people” Only so that after he was sodomized with a bayonet and beaten to death (over which she hysterically laughed) and “freed” Libya fell into utter chaos, with all the blacks being rounded up and lynched with the kinds of atrocities inflicted on them that we have not seen since the Holocaust and are now seeing in Syria being committed by the US created and sponsored proxy Daesh beheaders almost on a daily bases.
Nor are there any real differences here among any of the other anti Muslim warmongering “regime change” political hacks that are the current gang candidates running for the job of POTUS.
Bennie Sanders for all of his fine revolutionary “socialist” talk is just another timid reformer that wants to restore some small measure of economic and income equality, without rocking the boat or in any way seriously threatening the establishment and the elites status quo. All while he has nothing at all to say about ever trying to stop the empires perpetual wars in the ME and against Russia and China.
As for your “try getting a Jew to publicly defend Trump’s racist comments”. I think that while most will probably hide it between themselves and won’t ever tell it straight to the face of a gentile, I suspect there are lots of zealot Zionist Jews in Israel that openly would, given how they hate their fellow Ethiopian Jews and deny any and all Palestinians the right of existence.”
Having dispensed with the justifications for self righteous outrage and the hypocrisy surrounding the anti Trump movement, lets focus on the facts and some of what he’s actually said to date.
Firstly, if he’s such a staunch sexist why would he ever hire his daughter to help run his real estate empire? Wouldn’t you think that as any true misogynist he’d relegate all of his women folk to the kitchen and never entrust them with any kind of real responsibilities and power.
Secondly, If he’s such a rabid racist, why would he publicly say that he “likes Mexicans” and that they’re “very smart businessmen”? I think being as he’s a real estate tycoon he can’t really afford to discriminate and does business with the Chinese, the Jews and Muslim Arabs alike. His daughter is married to a Jew, making them all part of the same family. He says that while he supports Israel he just wants to stay neutral so that as President he can deal with both as a fair broker in a peace making process and a land settlement deal between the Israelis and the Palestinians. He may be naive, but he’s light years ahead of what any of the other bought and sold bigoted anti Muslim candidates ever dare to talk about.
What he’s talking about when he says we have to “stop Muslim immigration until we can figure out what the hell is going on” is simply a reference to the mess Europe is in now with the thousands of Muslim EU nationals that have returned having become mercenary ISIS terrorists with many others terrorist holding fake Syrian passports hiding among the millions of hapless refugees flooding over it’s boarders, Until the US actually figures out a secure way of verifying their legitimacy. Given all the dangers of not doing so, I can see why that simple logic resonates with so many Americans.
Similarly, And while I think his idea of building a 10 ft high 900 mile long wall, similar as those that segregate the Palestinians from the settler Jews in Israel, is a ridiculously dumb one, as were his unnecessary comments about Mexican “rapist” and “drug dealers” illegally crossing the borders just in order to hit home his point. He is nevertheless talking about “illegal immigrants” which constitute some 13 million undocumented Mexicans now residing as slave laborers living underground in the US which is an unmitigated disaster for all concerned that must to be addressed. That Trump’s now doing so, however crude his proposed solutions may be, does not in and of itself automatically make him a racist. At least not anymore than all of the other warmongering candidates whom have sworn their unqualified allegiance to and support of the segregationists walled off state of apartheid Israel, who want al Assad’ head off and consider Russia their number one enemy to contain and “make feel more pain”.
Donald Trump, not being a professional politician on the inside and in the loop nor even as a self made multi billionaire wheeler and dealer that rubs shoulders with presidents and celebrities and the rich and powerful, means that he’s on the inside track. And by not understanding their geopolitical games and the US’s real imperial aims and the machinations of it’s deep state, it’s establishment or the media, He’s the only one that’s bringing to the table and into the light of public discourse, fundamental issues of vital importance both to the American electorate and the rest of the world. Issues of “War and Peace” and of real “Jobs” and “wages” and of rebuilding “America’s infrastructure” and economy.
Issues that no one wants to touch with a ten foot pole, such as the Saudi connection to 911 over which the western world went to war in Afghanistan for a decade and then the US attacked and destroyed Iraq on the pretext and lie of weapons of mass destruction. Trump was the only one that’s always been against it and can’t understand why they ever invaded and bombed Iraq or Libya to rubble.
He’s against the so called “Free Trade” deals such as NAFTA and the now being negotiated TPP (Trans Pacific Partnerships) and wants to abrogate or renegotiate them all because they’ve massively robbed Americans of their jobs, shipping them to Mexico and overseas to other Asian countries which has devastatingly gutted the industrial heartland of the US. (not to mention robbed Canada and Mexico of their own sovereignty) but for the benefit of the empires 0.001% of international financiers and their multi national corporations.
He wants to institute tariffs again so as to keep jobs in America and bring home jobs. And as Roosevelt did, create massive employment again by rebuilding the entire crumbling US infrastructure. And take proper care of all the neglected war vet’s (many of whom are black Afro Americans and Hispanics) so as that they don’t have to live homeless in the streets or commit suicide en mass.
He wants to get serious about actually defeating worldwide terrorism and crushing ISIS, after 15 years of the US bombing and pretending to be wagging a “War on Terror” that instead has destroyed much of the middle east and North Africa just so as to control it all and spread the terrorism over the entire world like a malignant cancer. Causing the worst refugee crisis since the second world war.
And most important he wants to make peace in the middle east and negotiate a settlement between Israel and the Palestinians. And he likes President Vladimir Putin and wants peaceful relations between the US hegemonic super power and it’s rivals such as Russia, thus ending the 2.0 cold war being waged against Russia and starting world war three and the potential of provoking a nuclear holocaust that will affect every living being on the entire planet.
Trumps clearly an outsider who’s crashing their party and giving away their game and….
That’s exactly why all hell has broken loose. Why the deep state elites are all up in arms and all of it’s political establishment going apoplectic with rage. Why dozens of the worlds most powerful men are now meeting to discus doing whatever it takes to stop him, (with assassination not off the table I bet.) Why George Soros has now sicked all of his paid for “NGO’s dogs from his “open society foundation” out on the streets to violently protest and disrupt all of Trumps meetings. Why the republican party is pulling out all the stops to dump him. And the Democrats are rallying their troops. Why Anonymous (or a fake CIA version of it) has just declared war on Trump and is now hacking all of his personal information and emails and disrupting his campaigns internet communications. Why there’s an internet iPhone “Block Trump” campaign. And why all the hysterically screaming for his blood from the left liberal fanatically politically correct Obama and Hillary hordes are sure to make a big scene and try to disrupt every future public venue wherever Trump might be making an appearance and speaking.
Thus they’ll all insure that the essence of Trumps message is drowned out by the mob and that any remote chance that he might ever have had of challenging the Wall Street and it’s corporate backed hacks and the criminally insane war-making Clinton to a national debate about real life and death issues that affect not only all of the American electorate but the rest of humanity. Thus doing the elites dirty work for them by guaranteeing that their next shoe-in Hillary Clinton (such as was Obama) will grasp the throne as commander in chief of the most powerful nation on earth, uncontested, putting in jeopardy all of mankind with another decade of austerity and perpetual wars around the globe.
Is that what you want to see? I would hope that with some reflection and perhaps by doing some more research on Hillary’s criminal legacy, you’ll try and attend the AIPAC Policy Conference on Monday, with more of an open mind to what the man actually has to say, leaving behind and at the door all of your hastily formed preconceptions and holier than tho judgements and take into account the implications of blindly following your emotions not understanding what’s political reality and all that’s at stake here.
If you feel so strongly about your moral values opposed to any form of bigotry, why don’t you just go and protest at the doors of AIPAC or the Israeli and US embassies against the grave injustices that have been perpetrated in Palestine against your own Semite brothers there for over half a century now. Or does your Jewish heritage and blood bonds prevent you from applying the same kinds of standards on your own tribesmen as you have on Trump and his supporters?
Trump may be a far cry from the perfect candidate or an ideal leader, but he’s speaking the truth as best as he knows how, and given the line up of political hacks, what other real choices do Americans have on election day? But for given the chance, to vote for him in a quest to achieve some measure of peace and security and possibly even a return to prosperity. You tell me what’s the alternative?
Thank you RayB for your comments and thank you Mod ZZ for spotting and rewriting them.
I do not read all comments from this blog because of time constraints and I certainly miss several jewels like this one.
RayB, your analysis of Trump is factual, logical and greatly inspiring. In this emotionally charged freak show, you have a refined and elegant way of sorting the wheat from the chaff. You have changed my perceptions of the Trump phenomenon and provided a ray of light that was greatly needed.
Someone asked who I taught would be the next POTUS. “Hillarator” was my reply. The USA has a history of providing the very worst to its citizens by assassinating promising candidates, engineering public opinions at the proper time with false flags or offensive scandals or simply manipulating the elections results. I believe that something big is going on beyond the headlines.
I would love so much to be wrong…
Yes,that is how they work. And their latest plan to destroy Trump is going forward. If Trump wins the Republican nomination. The Republican elite neo-cons plan to run another “independent” Republican “conservative” . In the hopes to split the Republican vote. Which would hand the election to the “other” neo-con on the Democrat side,Hillary Clinton. So either way a neo-con stooge would win.And be able to keep the wars going.Its an evil but clever plan.And should work for them. The only “wild card”, would be if Sanders, after being cheated by the Democratic Party elite out of the Democrat nomination would also run as an independent and split the Democrat vote too.That might allow the people a choice and someone not “totally” neo-con become President. But most likely Sanders will be the “good soldier”. And accept being robbed, and support Clinton.
“And their latest plan to destroy Trump is going forward”
Fantasia balderdash.
Trump is one of them.
Repeat after me…“it doesn’t matter who wins”
Maybe so ,we’ll have to see. The story comes from the NYT about another Republican running. The interpretation of the results from that is my own. Certainly he is part of the elite,you are right there. But he’s an unruly one. They can’t always be sure he will obey them. And they demand total obedience from their stooges. Which is why they are now hedging their bets with Clinton.
As a wry watcher of as little as possible POTUS ‘Theatre for the Masses’ SElection process, I’m not qualified to cynically proclaim Sanders the sheepdog herding Dem-onic voters, Trump the Rep-ulsives Rottweiler / Giant Schnauser equivalent …whilst Hitlery Hag from Hades / Cruella Clinton has her $1 : 1 voters in the bag … and pray I’m wrong!
Be that as it may, Israel Shamir’s latest article (always a worthwhile read imo) is relevant to RayB’s opinion too :
“The Blessed Bigotry of Mr Trump”
A dee-lightful read :
http://www.unz.com/ishamir/the-blessed-bigotry-of-mr-trump/
A thousands words compressed
Here it is:
Make no mistake – whites are the minority within this globe of ours. We represent by the wildest estimates about 7-9 percent of the population of the planet – ergo – we whites, are not overpopulating her.
We are not the oppressors.
We are the minority – factually.
Do with this info what You may.
Agreed except for the conclusion. We are often the oppressors (even more often the instigators of oppression) because we consume on overproportional share of earth’s resources.
10% of world population uses 50% of its resources.
20% of world population uses 80% of its resources.
80% of world population lives on the remainder.
The top 10% or 20% can only do so by continuously ripping the majority off.
Marcel! Nice to talk to ya bro.
I have never had a slave.
My ancestors were slaves(peasants). I am their offspring.
I will b independent – if it kills me.
….and I am white, just a guy trying to farm, nuttin’ special.
What do You say?
Thanks, love to comment here whenever I have time.
I am white too but no farmer yet. Hence I have to rely on shoulders like yours to some extent. Hopefully, your land is fertile and serves you well. Use it wisely such that it will further increase its fertility with time for centuries.
Even though I was born into the top 20%, I don’t follow the mainstream. As a result, I live on a footprint of approximately one third of many of my neighbors. And I will keep it at that level or below, because I think that the individual radical reduction of waste is the only way out of the global mess.
The American people would do well to consider removing themselves from political party affiliation. It’s obvious the party leadership chooses not to abide by the will of its membership, so why continue supporting this facade of democracy? There is no longer clear defined principles of ideology that separate the Republican or Democratic party anymore. They have amalgamated together and have been transformed into an association of elitists who are only concerned with their own channels of power and acquisition of personal financial wealth.
The focus should be on what each candidate as an individual believes is the right path for the nation concerning the domestic economy and foreign policy and a practical plan to achieve those goals.
The party system is a distraction and should be dissolved.
it is.
“They have amalgamated together and have been transformed into an association of elitists who are only concerned with their own channels of power and acquisition of personal financial wealth.”
If only that…
The powers that be finance this facade over this theater with daily repetition…to our children from the age of – our consent…and ours to be honest…
How the F… do You think we have ended up with the notion, that You can invest a coin and receive 16 of them in return?
Amazing – ain’t it?
Watch out baby, that is a loaded question – for pro and con.
Re: You tell me what’s the alternative?
Not to vote. I agree with the Sake on this.
“Almost novelist quality in style” …mmm… a lot of words for very little that’s for sure.
i just kinda glanced over ray b’s comment..i do think i got the gist of it. earlier tonight i checked out the trumpster’s address to aipac and i could only stomach about 4 minutes of it. anyone who supports the the iran/syria/hezbollah arc of resistance to the imperial west can now be under no illusion about trump being a neutral middle east deal maker.
Any candidate speaking at an AIPAC meeting would never get elected by me. Even more so if said candidate trumps his independence of the ruling cabal.
For all those deluded people who keep insisting on holding up the Donald to be some sort of great hope for Americas future they ought to read the article written in todays Sputnik International about him.
For someone so “keen” on making a complete “depature” from the way America normally conducts business (according to him and his supporters anyway) he seems to be going about it in a funny way by slowly surrounding himself with neocon advisors LOL.
Im surprised even people like Larchmonter445 are falling for this guys BS. Theres one born every minute.
I used to read the Sputnik (german version) almost every day,but for a while I just observed that the newspaper is simply biased.Just yesterday I’ve read an article about the German last election’s winning party (in numbers) AfD.The party has obtained very good support from the electorate in three regions – as for being a newly formed party.The article in Sputnik had a critical approach towards this party in such a way,almost asking for the germans to give a chance to Merkel and not to be so critical against her.That has left me with a bad taste.Regarding Donald Trump,well,it might be the same case,it looks as if the Sputnik is trying to be in a neutral position,waiting for the winner in both cases.Personally I don’t think that this kind of editorial policy is a good point for them.Those who comment in that newspaper (web page) will discern from now on.
A Mafia Don with a Pompadour
http://journal-neo.org/2016/03/20/a-mafia-don-with-a-pompadour/
tom, glad you brought that one in.
Gentlemen.
Let us define some terms.
If I may:
Neocon: red diaper babies. trockist murderous scum personally responsible for thousands of executions – ultimately millions of deaths.
Democrat – the opposite of a “republican”
Republican – simpleton trying to get ahead in a game of chess no-one explained to him the rules of…
Free trade – exporting my well paid job to india/china/ whatererthefuck. Make me explain to the rapeugees how not to get found out for supremacist ideas and raping cooworkers called on the job training.
‘Cos they be.
Listen to the next generation of intellectuals…that is where the nextest IfuckUphone is developed:
https://youtu.be/fhNtmI3PRzI
Tolerance – making sure the most amount of criminals get away with the most of Your possessions – and live.
Trump?
Hell, we noze no waay, he alredy got too much of Manhattan out of our control.
…and when I say control…I mean it.
The docks
The borroughs
The unions
The cooooöntracts of hiring….
You got no idea….I’m telling ya,…but The Donald has..
Have I been evasive?
On the scale of ten – I hope to deliver.
.
I just read this, and I don’t like it:
Trump: ““My number one priority is to dismantle the disastrous deal with Iran,” Trump said, speaking before AIPAC in Washington, DC on Monday evening. “I have been in business a long time…this deal is catastrophic for Israel – for America, for the whole of the Middle East… We have rewarded the world’s leading state sponsor of terror with $ 150 billion and we received absolutely nothing in return”…..
Trump criticized the deal for not requiring Iran to dismantle its military nuclear capability and only limiting its nuclear program for a certain number of years. He chastised Iran for contributing to problems in Gaza, Syria, Lebanon, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia by providing weapons and money.
”https://www.rt.com/usa/336506-trump-dismantle-disastrous-iran-deal/
and
Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump said that the United States must move its embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Read more: http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160322/1036703022/trump-move-embassy-jerusalem.html#ixzz43c9F9ix7
But I must admit the he is not the worst one, see what the other candidates said:
Hate language peaks as US candidates address AIPAC
http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/03/21/456943/aipac2016-
I agree with one of the commenters there: “It is sickening to watch every single one of our leaders tripping over each other so they can bend to their knees and say anything that AIPAC wants to hear – They would never do this for any other group – Even if it was an Irish American Group”
Well, “concise” is not how I would describe this text, and as Spanish I found it a bit confusing but, may be it is my bad English, having been selected as a “great piece of English writing”….
Anyway, I am not so sure about the ray of light……it seems that the general impression out of the US is as if we had a new monster in the city…..See for yourself:
“If Donald Trump stars in the classics of horror”:
“There is a new monster in the popular imagination. It is called Donald Trump, wears an impossible hairstyle and unless we send as soon as possible Terminator back in time to kill his mother, may be the next tenant of the White House. Panic fear causes the bigmouth Trump, a sort of Jesus Gil cubed, to the extent that The Economist place the Republican candidate as one of the ten global risks for the world.
While the world holds its breath watching the results of the caucus, voting and other preliminary to the choice of candidate, Design Crowd web asked its readers to become Donald Trump on the main character of horror films. This has been the most celebrated proposals”:
http://blogs.publico.es/strambotic/2016/03/scary-trump/
I don’t know elsi…who does?
I could write a 6000 word monogram over why I do or do not like The Donald.
It would sell either way. ‘Cos I’m good
Not as good as Scott(word)…but OK.
Scott is polished, I am crass.
Now, all aside, sure, I do not know myself.
One thing I am sure of – whatever Trump is – the alternative is horrendous….and this is the speach used in civilised society.
Trump WILL. be held in place – trust me, there are of us who posess a copy of the constitution.
A Prez – who is elected to leave folk alone will not survive if he doesn’t so – and the indications are, that he actually gave this a though.
Now contest this with the beast.
…and sorry Ladies, we ARE ready for a Leader for our country….but this is not it.
that thing….
Elsi, Hey there babe!
I’ll make it simple. Not , that You are simple, I just want to make You realize, that the rhetoric is just a tool. Look, I do not like Trump. I think my dog will make better choices in this charade we call “democracy”.
I just wanna keep that murderous psycho out of the reach of the red button
That is about it – thus I am for Trump
non racistas and all that crap.
Elsi, Wouldn’t You want a fine charismatic Leader to represent our country into the information age? Just like Russia has?
Goddam, I am jealous.
And if he doesn’t deliver, hell, I’ll shoot him myself.
American English I do not understand very well.
Look, I’m not a baby, a little grown up already in fact, man.
And yes, I would like a charismatic leader for my country, but as I am not satisfied with less, I will not help up a clown fascist like Trump while the other appears.
Don’t worry Elsi, since You were not alarmed this far along the grandfathering of the bill of rights…
Whatcha gonna lose? Your chains?
Thank you for your comment Ray B; it’s a very long comment about Trump . . . : (
i like the comments, there’s a poem hatching up my sleeve on the subject of Trump… (the comment below is from a search of ‘comment’ definitions.)
Comment:
Noun:
Phrase:
Verb:
Origin:
No comment: Used in refusing to answer a question, especially in a sensitive situation:
I spent the day saying ‘No comment’ to every reporter
Reporting Verb: ‘She’s an independent soul,’ he commented
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/comment
Trump worst
Sanders worster
hellary worstest
I’ve got beer and chips. This should be fun. Schadenfreude comes to mind but I’m not sure if it is a tragedy or comedy and I don’t care.
@RayB,
Would you please be able to comment on the AIPAC speech of Trump? Thank you.
“Good evening. I speak to you today as a lifelong supporter and true friend of Israel. … When I’m president, believe me, I will veto any attempt by the UN to impose its will on the Jewish state. … We will move the American embassy to the eternal capital of the Jewish people, Jerusalem – and we will send a clear signal that there is no daylight between America and our most reliable ally, the state of Israel. The Palestinians must come to the table knowing that the bond between the United States and Israel is unbreakable. They must come to the table willing and able to stop the terror being committed on a daily basis against Israel and they must come to the table willing to accept that Israel is a Jewish State and it will forever exist as a Jewish State. …”
–Donald Trump AIPAC speech on 3-21-2016
http://time.com/4267058/donald-trump-aipac-speech-transcript/
Donald Trump’s Full Rousing Speech AIPAC Policy Conference (3-21-16)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3d0LOIMmQQ
What the Congress has become under the boot of the zionist entity:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Txrcpl49GQ
Regards,
Carmel by the Sea
Carmel,
I wouldn’t take Rayb at all seriously – I asked him this:
/the-next-presidential-election-a-meaningful-choice-for-the-first-time/comment-page-1/#comment-217598
““and that he is so hated by the establishment”
Are you serious?…”
Rayb answered with this /the-next-presidential-election-a-meaningful-choice-for-the-first-time/comment-page-1/#comment-217624:
“I’m dead serious. Question is are you? Why would I have to be “part of the establishment” nor you, to know what’s splattered all over the news and on the internet? if you bothered to inform yourself. ”
The sheep are truly many.
I thought this was a nice poem, full of depth, rhythm and alliterative texture:
Trump worst
Sanders worster
hellary worstest
I cannot improve on that, so here’s one from e.e cummings:
what if a much of a which of a wind
gives the truth to summer’s lie;
bloodies with dizzying leaves the sun
and yanks immortal stars awry?
Blow king to beggar and queen to seam
(blow friend to fiend: blow space to time)
–when skies are hanged and oceans drowned,
the single secret will still be man
what if a keen of a lean wind flays
screaming hills with sleet and snow:
strangles valleys by ropes of thing
and stifles forests in white ago?
Blow hope to terror; blow seeing to blind
(blow pity to envy and soul to mind)
–whose hearts are mountains, roots are trees,
it’s they shall cry hello to the spring
what if a dawn of a doom of a dream
bites this universe in two,
peels forever out of his grave
and sprinkles nowhere with me and you?
Blow soon to never and never to twice
(blow life to isn’t: blow death to was)
–all nothing’s only our hugest home;
the most who die, the more we live.
e e cummings
Sheldon Adelson is supporting Trump. The Trump phenomenon was clearly finished at that point. AIPAC was simply a nail in the coffin.
The hopes expressed in the article regarding a Trump presidency are poorly founded. Much will depend on the advisers with whom Trump surrounds himself. To date, his level of sophistication on policy still seems to be at the Sarah Palin level. For example, he claims to be against the Iraq war but expressed his admiration for John Bolton, a strong supporter of the war.
Still, we could have perhaps forgiven him such failings because of the man we thought he was. He was a paleo-conservative, an America-firster. He was independent and not in the pocket of the oligarchy. He spoke his mind and didn’t cater to special interests. We might have hoped he would work the details out in the right way because we knew his heart and mind were in the right place.
With the endorsement of Adelson and now the AIPAC speech, Trump has shown that he is not that man.
He never really could have been. The common perception was that Trump’s wealth made him less vulnerable. In fact it makes him more vulnerable. As an oligarch Trump remains a small-timer. An individual whose wealth is based on leveraged assets such as real estate can be ruined quite easily if he does not do as he is told.
Hi Jonathan,
I was reading a news about Sanders, who seems to be reaching and even surpassing Hillary in some states, and I found that they were talking about “superdelegates”. Here the news:
“New Poll Shows Sanders, Clinton Neck-and-Neck for Democratic Nomination”
http://sputniknews.com/us/20160325/1036990373/clinton-sanders-tied-polls.html
Since my foray, and even my interest, in the US election campaign is relatively recent, could you explain, please, if you can, what this issue of “superdelegates” is, who are they, and if they determine the final choice?
Thanks, in advance.
( We are going to win! )
No worries, Jonathan, I have read something about the American election system, and now I know already about these superdelegates.
So about the 20th-27th of July in Philadelphia…..
But it seems that before these Conventions the thing must be already decided….
We will see.
Thanks, anyway.
Hi Elsi,
In the United States, the nominees for the national election are technically chosen by the parties at the national conventions, not the voters. This is actually probably similar to the European systems. The current primary system has only existed since 1972. By giving the people of each state a vote, the process gained more credibility with voters who were tired of secret deals in smoke-filled back rooms. This gave the voters some power. Some, but not all. Unfortunately however, Democrat McGovern lost the 1972 election in a landslide.
This had the effect of the Democratic party leadership asserting more control over the nomination process and the superdelegate system was introduced in 1980. Only the Democratic party uses superdelegates. The superdelegates are simply senior members of the Democratic party. Their identity is not exactly secret but I doubt if many voters could name a superdelegate. I do know that Bill Clinton happens to be one.
The superdelegates are permitted to vote for whomever they choose at the national convention. Other delegates are pledged to a particular candidate based on the popular vote in their state. They cannot change their vote. Superdelegates are powerful since they number about 1/6 of all delegates. Also they represent the opinion of the party. If the party is committed to a candidate the Democratic party network is powerful in turning out the voters. However, if the favoured nominee seems to be in trouble they can change their vote. This happened with Obama.
The superdelegate system is apparently used to keep the voters from selecting the “wrong” candidate. Of course one could ask what other considerations exist for choosing a candidate beyond the will of the voters. Here it gets very unclear. Certainly the desires of major funding donors are very important. The need to choose a candidate that can have broad enough appeal to win the actual election is also a concern. It seems to me that suppressing the will of voters will simply lead to more extreme radicalization of the electorate over time. Trump is a good example of this.
In Hillary’s case, it is again mysterious. As was the case in 2008 there is apparently in the Democratic Party a very strong consensus that she should be the nominee. The reasons for this are not open to public view. For that reason the superdelegates were overwhelmingly in favour of Clinton from the start. If the delegates do not think she can beat Trump they can change their vote.
I am somewhat at a loss as to how Clinton is receiving so much support. I live in a majority Democratic state. Despite that, there is quite a bit of excitement over Trump. Noticeable support for Sanders too. Very little apparent interest in Clinton.
I remain very excited about Sanders. At least I hope he can establish a new trend in American politics. The political center has drifted so far to the right that Ronald Reagan would be a leftist on the Republican side today. The Democrats abandoned New Deal Social Democracy in the 1980s as well. I’m hoping that will change.
Hi Jonathan, thanks a lot for the explanation.
It looks that we all, same here, must reforma electoral systems so that the people have more representation and the result is more in keeping with the wishes of citizenship.
In this regard, do you know if Sanders takes some point about this in his program? It would be nice, and would be a good sign in face to gain the trust of the people.
We must also reform the constitutions to make those in power accountable of mismanagement and be able to remove them from power if they do not fullfill the programs voted by the people.
Here at least we badly need this, because they bear one thing in the program and then do the reverse, or modify the Constitution by agreeing between the two parties in power for decades, as happened here in Spain for to apply the cuts imposed by the Troika, which, otherwise, would be unconstitutional, and this is not only illegal but an electoral fraud.
Well, to see what happens.
I do not know if you are Jew ( by your name ) but, if yes, I wish you a good Sabath, and, anyway, a good day!
Hi Elsi,
Bernie Sanders has been heavily involved with campaign finance reform. The influence of money in politics is strong and has gotten worse since the decision of the Supreme Court (Citizens United vs FEC) allowing so-called SuperPACs. Now almost unlimited funding can be given to candidates. Sanders wants to reverse this decision.
I do have Jewish heritage and have also lived in Israel. I am not a religious believer or observant however.
Best Wishes