I have followed politics for a long time and am completely confused when it comes to trying to define the 'base' of Trump voters. I have Conservative friends that dislike him and Conservative friends that love him. I obviously also have liberal friends that dislike him, some are Bernie supporters, but they also dislike Hillary so much that they are also confused. In my own large family I have kids that are Trump supporters and even one who is threatening to leave the country if he is elected....ouch!
I have never seen the country so divided; it is not only Donald Trump, but on the Democratic side we have an old-time Socialist and Hillary; a lifetime political liar (maybe even criminal) and their voter turnout this primary season has been dismal. It doesn't give one confidence that this country knows how to produce a leader. No matter what happens in this election season we may all be losers, I heard a prominent pollster today describe it best; "We may be choosing the better of two evils".
Those of us on this side cannot comprehend how anyone could vote for Hillary Clinton; not just because of the pending email scandals and possibility of indictment but we still remember Benghazi, the Rose law firm scandal, FBI files, Vince Foster suicide, Bill Clinton's liaisons and rape accusations, etc., etc...the Clinton scandals could be Blog pages in itself. Her involvement in Benghazi and the cover-up afterwards confirms she is one of the most notorious liars in political history, and if you are a potential Democratic voter ask yourself this one question: Would you be comfortable with Hillary Clinton being your Commander-in-Chief ?
On the Republican side it is ironic that the top two candidates are hated by the establishment; it's hard to believe the Republican Party power brokers are spending millions against their own candidates.
Donald Trump's 'base' of voters tells us a lot about the politics and leadership in this country; the average American is fed up with the political leaders in Washington and on an emotional level just want to stick their thumb in the eye of the DC establishment. They don't care what the so-called experts say, they don't care if someone like Trump is bombastic, arrogant, and maybe not always telling the truth, they are just fed up and feel anything is better than what we have in Washington. They are attracted to him because he is tough and not afraid to be politically incorrect.
Obama says he is not responsible for this divided America, but on the contrary I believe he is directly responsible; the folks want the out of control immigration problem solved, they want government out of their lives, they want their Commander-in-Chief to identify "radical Islam', and most of all they want good paying jobs again, not part-time and service work. Trump voters are willing to shake things up no matter what the consequences are, they are coming out in large numbers, and feel that things could not get any worse than the present political cabal in DC that doesn't seem to represent their interests.
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Good summary, except for the out of control immigration problem. Illegals have been returning to Mexico, and the Border Patrol is doing a pretty good job lately. It's the way the illegals are handled in the Courts now that are one issue. I still believe that if both parties wanted to solve this it would happen overnight. After all, they are essentially here fleeing a really corrupt society, and looking for jobs. Take away the jobs and the problem is solved. If Congress simply passes, and enforces, a law that says for each illegal on a payroll a company faces a $10,000 fine, and suspension of their business license for 90 days.....presto, all of those jobs would disappear.
However, who then would cut our meat, slaughter chickens, tend lawns and gardens, look after children, build houses, clean houses, pick our crops, etc. Hey, maybe the problem isn't so simple after all.
I agree Anonymous, but in solving the immigration problem maybe we should face up to the consequences and pay people what they are worth. If that increases costs of our goods,so be it. I have a Latino helper that works for me two hours a week after his normal job to make some extra money. He is the hardest worker you could imagine and at our ages we need someone to do the weekly "heavy lifting". But I also pay him $27.50/hour, nowhere near the minimum wage, and it was my decision to pay that wage, not his, I'm sure he would work for less. More Americans need to think like that.
You are a Progressive after all Chuck.
Ha ha....far from it. I am a Conservative to the bone. There is nothing 'progressive' about liberal philosophy...in fact it is 'regressive'.
Chuck, your latest message regarding Trump and his popularity really makes sense in terms of your assessment that the American people are fed up with our bloated federal government that doesn’t seem to have a clue. You note that Obama is the problem or at least a major part of the problem. Was he qualified to serve as the President and Commander in Chief when he was elected? He was a community organizer in Chicago. Ah, but he was a charismatic public speaker who appealed to the ignorant masses. Most folks thought Obama would herald in the end of racism in America. Then there was Bush who spoke like a blithering idiot. Bush was probably one of the worst leaders we have ever had serving as President in terms of domestic affairs, business, finance, and especially foreign affairs. At least Bush was not caught with a White House intern on her knees under his desk enjoying a little extracurricular activity. The Clinton era in the White House was nothing short of scandalous.
Then there was that great icon among the Republican Establishment, Ronald Reagan, who was one of the least qualified individuals to serve as President. Reagan brought us Trickle Down Economics that was really Trick Up Poverty. His conservative mantra was to deregulation everything. That is the root cause of most of our economic malaise. That brought us Enron, Sempra Energy, unrestricted energy costs that are echoed all across our economy. The laissez faire policies that came from Reagan have put our nation on the edge of total economic collapse.
Don’t misunderstand my political position. I have no love for Donald Trump. I watch the campaign activity and I recognize what Trump is doing. He is building a road to the White House that nobody seems to see. He is offering the electorate an alternative to what they have had to struggle with for the last seven and a half years. Trump is laying down a gauntlet against business as usual in Washington D.C. Can he accomplish what he promises on the campaign trail. That really depends on the size of his rocks. If American industry is overwhelmed by overregulation, there is nothing that would prevent a President Trump from clearing everyone out of the EPA building and welding the doors shut. It is written that Congress makes the laws and the President enforces them. The President also controls the major government agencies via his Cabinet. If congress refuses to do anything but run their mouths, they might change their tune if a message came from Treasury that the pay for Congress was reduced to minimum wage with no additional expenses until they started putting out an honest days work for an honest days pay. As Commander in Chief, a President Trump could close the Pentagon where there are about thirty thousand high rank military personnel employed along with three or four thousand civilian staff. The Pentagon could be replaced with a modest business building and a bank of modern computers.
Our government is currently spending over three trillion dollars per year, which is about forty percent more than what is being taken in through taxation. That is fiscal insanity. So, the bottom line is who is best suited to fix our big fiscal problems. It sure as hell isn’t Bernie or Hillary. It isn’t Cruz or Kasich either. One thing is a certainty and that is the Republican establishment is the least likely group to fix our major problems.
Just a reminder: the only President to balance the budget was the Clinton Administration. If it wasn't for Fox News brainwashing Consevatives most would see Hillary as the only common sense candidate besides Kasich that will keep the country on the upward track it has been on for the past 6 years, and most likely to balance the Federal budget.
Bob, much of what you say is true, with a few inaccuracies. Congressional compensation is Statutory, the President can't do anything there, as is the budget for the Pentagon, EPA, and all other Federal Agencies. He can fire the Cabinet, but he can't clean out a building of its people, nor can he terminate an Agency and weld the doors shut......those are Statutory and must be altered by Congress. Those things were proposed in the past by pundits and shown not to be options. You seem to have forgotten that Obama was also a Congressman, but not for long, so we will let that pass. You give the Prseident far too much power, that's why I'm not all that worried that Trump could do much damage with his stupidity. What bothers me, as it has you, is that we will have another four years of ineffective, wasteful Government. A grassroots movement for a Constituitional Convention to add Term Limits and a Balanced Budget to the Constitution are what we need. Government is incapable of fixing itself because of its vested interests. In my option, our last effective Preseident was Eisenhower, but even he wasn't perfect.
By the way, this is Nighthawk, not the Anon above.
Anonymous, to say that Hillary is the only "common sense candidate" I have to wonder where you have been the past 20 years. I think we have lost you, that comment is not even worth responding to.
Once again, for the record, I'm not the Anon above. He/she did make one valid point. Bill Clinton did balance the budget, and under Obama, the deficit has been dropping. Bushes main budget problem was the two major, and unnecessary, wars he started......at enormous cost in treasure and lives. Had Obama not inherited that problem, with the economic meltdown, I suspect his stats would be better than they are. Wars are a huge drain on the economy in that they are not an investment in National Treasure, they are a dead loss......I mean, what's the ROI on a bomb?
Eisenhower made strong comments about how the military/industrial complex would drive the economy and keep the US at war, or always preparing for war. He was right. Not sure how that can be fixed at this point without endangering National Security, but had the US shifted to a strong program of diplomacy and economic interdependency programs after WW2 we might not be where we are today. Look at Japan and Germany. Former enemies.....now our strongest allies......rebuilt after the war by America, with their industrial base tied to us in one way or another. Russia and China, former allies.....left to their own means to recover from the war and now they are our main enemies. I know it's simplistic, but good diplomacy requires compromise.......maybe our Congress should take a lesson from that and stop fighting over table scraps while the Nation tears itself apart.
I'm curious - would Anonymous like to identify themselves or remain being a lurker? We like diverse opinions so don't be afraid.
I should always use my iPhone for these posts, that would eliminate the confusion. I'm the wordy Anon.
Not you Nighthawk, the other Anon.
OK, I finally logged my iPad on as nighthawk with this post. No information here, just correcting a longtime source of confusion.
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