Behind closed doors, Trump’s team had long viewed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as the bigger threat.... They quietly agreed to allow Haley to surge.... But now it was time to train Trump’s full arsenal of attacks.... In what senior Trump adviser Chris LaCivita described as a “pincer” movement, Trump bombarded Haley from both ideological sides....
[Nikki Haley had been] a guarded candidate who was reluctant to fully engage with voters and the media, and whose tight, streamlined stump speech offered prescriptions for multiple problems — but without a clear sense of what her top priorities would be....
“She was a blank canvas, and we had a bucket of paint,” LaCivita said....
And here's something Governor John Sununu said Haley said to him, as she was (successfully) seeking his endorsement:
"Man, this 'live free or die' thing is real — like you can feel it. I want to carry that to the White House."
How free are you if you're "guarded" and "reluctant" and reciting a "tight, streamlined stump speech"? You keep yourself free to be a blank canvas onto which others can project what they want.
Meanwhile, Trump isn't tight. He's very loose. I've been listening to his rally speeches. He's not guarded. He's freely expressive. But he's facing 91 felony charges, and his antagonists (some of them) picture him in prison. You can't "live free" there.
Ah, but you can, and he's already thought it through. He said this in Concord, New Hampshire last October:
"I don’t mind being Nelson Mandela because I’m doing it for a reason. We’ve got to save our country from these fascists, these lunatics that we’re dealing with. They’re horrible people and they’re destroying our country."
Posts
68 comments:
Live free or die--but make sure that you register with the Federal Government before you say anything about it.
does Anyone think that the democrats will peacefully cede power? Anyone? Any one at all?
The Commie Pinkos have a lot of ammo left in the arsenal. They will continue to ramp their efforts. Of course, their cheating expertise at the ballot box has not been remedied.
LaCivita said…
“She was a blank canvas, and we had a bucket of paint.”
If Jackson Pollack had gone into politics…
You can vote for any flavor of John McCain you want. Female #WarKaren McCain, actual McCain, brown McCain, fat McCain, democrat McCain, republican McCain, dementia-ridden McCain....get all emotional about it. Let it ruin your family functions when alcoholic aunts and uncles throw shit at each other during Thanksgiving. Send around memes about your chosen flavor of McCain taking shots at another team’s McCain.
When it's all over you will still have just another McCain. They've all been McCains. Taste the wonderous variety, the 31 flavors of McCain the deep bureaucracy has given you to choose from. Welcome to Baskin-McCains, what would you like today!
Have you been to New Hampshire lately? That live free or die thing is dead, at least in Hanover and Durham- they are as Marxist as Cambridge or Portland or San Francisco and the others. The Sununu quote sounds like the carefully worded candid-comment-into-an-open-mic shtick political consultants get paid seven figures to conjure…
"Man, this 'live free or die' thing is real — like you can feel it. I want to carry that to the White House
Man, like this thing feels so - unreal. I want to die. Carry me away…
I guess he really did say it, and we didn't just think he said it.
Now the Mandela thing- his supporters will coo at the political and racial persecution* and his detractor’s heads will explode for this man daring to compare himself to….that whole thing, man - that’s tight.
* Are we ready to admit the Trump persecution is racially motivated or too soon?
whose tight, streamlined stump speech offered prescriptions for multiple problems
Her problem was that she did not offer prescriptions for any problems - she simply uttered pablum like "I will fix the economy." She has been running for a significant period of time and I still don't know (a) any specific thing she did as the governor of South Carolina, or (b) any specific actions she intends to take (as opposed to problems she wants to somehow tackle) if she becomes president. Her main campaign platform seems to be that she can beat Biden and she is not old. Yawn.
Isn't a pincher move against a woman sexist? Especially by a Latin (lacivita)
I blame Trump's misogyny
John Henry
Haley has no chance, so he should stop going nuclear on her and hit back at Joe's stupidity.
They’re horrible people and they’re destroying our country.
Well he's not wrong.
But he's facing 91 [trumped up] felony charges, and his antagonists (some of them) picture him in prison.
Trump IS the ham sandwich!
She was a blank space, baby.
We are headed for disaster in November.
He’s not lyin’…
Like Pence’s candidacy, Haley wasn’t serious about winning. She was in it for the $$.
She comes across as authentic as Hillary & Kamala. And as clueless
"Do anything you want with me – roas' me, hang me, skin me, drown me – but please, Br'er Fox, don't fling me in dat briar-patch..."
Nikki is not even a speedbump by now. They will do for Trump what they did for Martha Stewart, who used to be the incarnation of bougie. Now she's on a bottle of 19 Crimes like Snoop, who has an endearing kid movie coming out at a theatre near you.
Welcome to 2024. Trump will win from a jail cell, televised live. Then what? How will they stop him then?
Stay tuned. You won't want to miss what comes next!
That's what you're thinking, like me, isn't it?
I don’t mind being Nelson Mandela because I’m doing it for a reason. We’ve got to save our country from these fascists, these lunatics that we’re dealing with. They’re horrible people and they’re destroying our country.
This pretty much sums up support for Trump and the MAGA base. What he says here is the truth. We are dealing with fascist, corrupt, lunatics.
I hope DeSantis hops on the train. Don't return Paul Ryan's phone calls.
Time to start thinking about what comes after Biden's victory in November. He will be a vegetable by the end of the second term, but that's likely what his handlers want. As is the case now, the country will be governed by staff and cabinet. That's probably preferable to being governed by Kamala, who would win the grand prize for Stupidest Person ever elected to high office. She's probably not smart enough to get anything past the people who would become her handlers, so the status would remain quo. Life goes on.
Where are we going to put the 30-40 million people who will cross the border during the "Biden" administration?
The Dems will have 1-2m illegal aliens in TX voting Dem.
Texas has 45 Electoral College votes.
The MSM will act all surprised when the GOP loses Texas.
This is obvious to me. Why isn’t anyone but me talking about this?
Being a blank slate worked pretty well for Obama for most of his first campaign. Many years ago we bred some horses... so in our household, we referred to him as "the foal" because you can invest so many hopes and dreams in a foal if they start out looking pretty good.
Blogger Dave Begley said...
We are headed for disaster in November.
Only if they can pull off the voter fraud again. You forget Trump won in 2020. It's make believe to think they wouldn't try it on DeSantis if he were the nominee.
The upside is COVID is now a distant memory. I'm sure the Democrat ballot harvesting will be in full swing, but without COVID as the fear/backdrop, it might be harder to flood fake absentee ballots into the count. But...we are talking about Madison, Milwaukee, Philly, Atlanta, Detroit, and Maricopa...anything is possible.
If the voter fraud is successful again, then you are correct. We are headed for disaster. We already experienced it in 2020...and here we are.
Correction. TX has 40 EC votes. Still the second most.
To the tune of “99 Bottles of Beer”
Ninety-one felony charges to try
Ninety-one charges to try
If one of those charges is just a big lie
Ninety felony charges to try.
And so on………
Nikki's a Profile in Putty. She'll be whatever the e-GOP wants her to be.
He'll call himself Anne Frank next "and the crowd goes wild"
gilbar said...
does Anyone think that the democrats will peacefully cede power? Anyone? Any one at all?
Definitely not. I'm actually imagining the fed workers plus Blacks of DC might shut down the city itself outright in the days leading up to inauguration, and not even let Trump (or Ramaswamy) step into town to take office.
Seriously.
For a while, NH's motto was "Mask Up Or Die."
The elephant in the room which the Althouse Editorial Board has omitted from its analysis is what happens if the deceased Hugo Chavez reaches out from the afterlife to interfere with the voting machines, like he did once before.
i'm old enough to remember how mad they were when the president said 'semi'
'does Anyone think that the democrats will peacefully cede power? Anyone? Any one at all?'
joe literally did so in 2016. so far the only ones who've failed were djt and the 2020 maga nuts. you don't have to be crazy to disbelieve, but it helps.
Blogger Dave Begley said...
The Dems will have 1-2m illegal aliens in TX voting Dem...This is obvious to me. Why isn’t anyone but me talking about this?
People ARE talking about it. On X at least. But...if you say "the great replacement theory" you're a racist. Typical bullshit. It's obvious why Biden has left the Southern Border wide open, and fights any attempt to manage it. They are importing votes, and sending the bill to the American tax payer.
Just wait until all these young, fighting age men they've imported are activated like they did with ANTIFA. Perhaps by summer. They have basically imported an army.
Perhaps the massive influx of illegal aliens is the the 2024 absentee fraud. Hopefully Texas sent enough of them to NYC and CHI where it doesn't matter.
But you are right Mr. Begley. Voter fraud, whether absentee or non-citizen, is the biggest 2024 variable. Everything else is just make-believe.
Secret sauce.
The Daily Beast nailed the Republican Party:
It’s time to drop the crap about reluctantly making a “binary choice” or Trump being the “lesser of two evils” when compared to Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden. Having rejected the options of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis or U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, you decided to give us Barabbas [Luke 23:18-25]. Again.
It is telling that the biggest moment of the 2024 GOP primary campaign came, not after Trump did something heroic or said something inspiring, but rather, the moment he was indicted.
What does it say about a political party when being indicted boosts you in the polls?
I would love to see what might have happened if Ron had a heart and Nikki had courage, but it’s also possible that a “Jesus-Reagan, ‘24,” ticket still would have fallen short of beating Trump within the current GOP electorate.
”They’re horrible people and they’re destroying our country."
A succinct summary.
"I don’t mind being Nelson Mandela because I’m doing it for a reason. We’ve got to save our country from these fascists, these lunatics that we’re dealing with. They’re horrible people and they’re destroying our country."
I do think Trump, after seeing the horrible sacrifices made by troops, believes it's his duty and calling, especially at his age. Plus, it will secure his place in history.
"a guarded candidate who was reluctant to fully engage with voters and the media, and whose tight, streamlined stump speech offered prescriptions for multiple problems — but without a clear sense of what her top priorities would be"
IOW, another GOPer ready to stab the base in the back. The sense that that is always the top priority explains a big chunk of the support for Trump.
Of course, it also means we are royally effed: the yuuge loser of 2018, 2020, and 2022 will nicely unite the anti-Trumpists.
Blogger gilbar said...
does Anyone think that the democrats will peacefully cede power? Anyone? Any one at all?
They certainly didn't cede power peacefully in 2020. They implemented massive absentee voter fraud. They were willing to massage COVID numbers to create fear; even contaminating nursing homes. That's how they increased absentee voting, and ignored state election laws. They encouraged rioting, arson and violence throughout the summer of 2020 through BLM, and even denied their ANTIFA army was real.
Then, on J6, the infiltrated the rally and the feds set up a fake insurrection. Then the US locked up political prisoners...and created a sham J6 committee to perpetuate the propaganda to stupid Americans.
They had to cede power peacefully in 2016 because they got surprised by the Trump win. I do not expect 2024 to be peaceful. Should be insane by summer.
The only thing I don't get about DeSantis supporters is what makes them think they wouldn't do all this to prevent his Presidency?
Trump calls her a bird-brain.
= the arsenal.
Uh, she did offer solutions to problems. THe WaPo just doesn't want to admit the "solutions" are unpopular with Republicans.
solution to illegal immigration: Make all immigration legal.
Solution to border? Cut a deal with the D's and pass Amnesty
And her other solutions? Cut social security/medicare. Fight climate change. Send more money to Ukraine. Give Israel a blanck check to committ genocide. Start WW III with Iran, Russia, and China.
And more bad trade deals. More outsourcing. Fewer conservative Judges. stop fighing with Ds over social issues and let them win. Including Transgeneders.
Dave Begley said...
The Dems will have 1-2m illegal aliens in TX voting Dem.
Texas has 45 Electoral College votes.
The MSM will act all surprised when the GOP loses Texas.
This is obvious to me. Why isn’t anyone but me talking about this?
Consider this, Dave:
Voting laws in Texas are the most restrictive in the country. And voter turnout here is among the lowest, too. Maybe those facts are related.
Republicans run the polling places because they run the state government.
Campaign advisers really aught to keep their mouths shut. Their boastfulness harms the candidate.
Yeah, Gadfly, Texas doesn't allow non-citizens to vote, and Texas has an enormous number of non-citizens.
I early voted for DeSantis yesterday.
But even if every DeSantis supporter votes for Trump, if every Republican does, Trump will LOSE AGAIN. There is no "path to victory" for him if he is the nominee.
Meanwhile, if the primary season is essentially over, then voters will be treading water waiting for November. There will be no build up of excitement, no repeated news of victories in this primary or that. All the news of Trump will be negative. And a huge percentage of people who just might vote for Trump will be doing so out of some sense of obligation, with no real passion for him, or even with disgust. None of that is a good position to be in.
Halery?
"Blogger Dave Begley said...
The Dems will have 1-2m illegal aliens in TX voting Dem.
Texas has 45 Electoral College votes.
The MSM will act all surprised when the GOP loses Texas.
This is obvious to me. Why isn’t anyone but me talking about this?
1/24/24, 8:03 AM"
Who is this "anyone" you are talking about. Hell her in texas we are putting up barbed wire and having to go court to keep the g-men from cutting it donw and LETTING ILLEGAL ALIENS cross the border without even asking for asylum. The federal government is promoting this, at the point of a gun.
I think the Mandela framing is effective, it shows a case where a political candidate was persecuted by a state. That will give US voters permission to vote for him even if the trumped up charges stick in some jurisdictions.
From pipe bombs to 51 intel liars to I can’t tell you if the fbi undercover agents were at J6. The Beiden admin and Pelosi congress can’t get away forever with saying trump is the crook here, trump is the martyr.
‘He'll call himself Anne Frank next "and the crowd goes wild" ‘
Keep doing your kegels, Howard. You can do it!
"Blogger Mark said...
I early voted for DeSantis yesterday.
But even if every DeSantis supporter votes for Trump, if every Republican does, Trump will LOSE AGAIN. There is no "path to victory" for him if he is the nominee.
Meanwhile, if the primary season is essentially over, then voters will be treading water waiting for November. There will be no build up of excitement, no repeated news of victories in this primary or that. All the news of Trump will be negative. And a huge percentage of people who just might vote for Trump will be doing so out of some sense of obligation, with no real passion for him, or even with disgust. None of that is a good position to be in.
1/24/24, 9:49 AM"
Yes, let's surrender to the lying democrat media, the corrupt DOJ and the democrat federal government prosecuting it's political opponents. Anyone not supporting trump fron the republican side should be ashamed, they are condoning the democrat tactics.
All anyone had to do to turn off on Nikki Haley was to examine her views on foreign intervention.
Dave Begley:
This is obvious to me. Why isn’t anyone but me talking about this?
There are plenty of people talking about it. Don't do this, you sound like Crack.
Re: TX voting-
It is more restrictive, as gadfly says, but restrictive in a good way.
Voters have to present ID, which is checked in real time to ensure nobody votes twice. Voters lacking approved ID can cast a provisional ballot. Every vote is recorded on a paper backup ballot that is signed individually by the registrar and deposited in a locked container after it is fed through the scanning device. The papers ballots are available for use if there is a recount, or any concern about electronic chicanery. That's the way it was done in my purple county last time I voted (in Nov).
They may try some fast moves in Harris, Travis, and other D counties, but the state government will be watching (at least until SCOTUS says they can't).
@gadfly
From your link:
It’s harder than in 49 other states, according to a “cost-of-voting index” compiled by political scientists at Northern Illinois University, Jacksonville University and Wuhan University in China.
Two social scientists (that's what political "science" is a moniker for) and Wuhan University in China. That'll be an evenhanded study. /s
Blogger Yancey Ward said...
Yeah, Gadfly, Texas doesn't allow non-citizens to vote, and Texas has an enormous number of non-citizens.
Yeah, I'm sure liberal Austin, TX is making sure everything is by the book. Just like Madison, WI.
I think the quote from the Governor was from current Gov Chris Sununu. His father John and his brother John were both former Governors of New Hampshire. His father also was GHW Bush’s Chief of Staff. Lots of Sununus.
The left are destroying our country. Fact.
Gadfly,
Is texas as restrictive as Puerto Rico? Counterfeit proof voter ID card, finger ink dipping, double finger scanning, double checking name on voter rolls, virtually no absentee ballots and no early voting, voting in person 10AM to 2PM on election tuesday, paper ballots marked in pencil.
Does any other state including Texas come close to our voting restrictions?
And can you name any states with higher registration levels and/or higher turnout than Puerto Rico?
If I ever move to the upper 50 I doubt I will register to vote. Even in the best states the process seems systemically corrupt and/or sloppy. Not trustworthy.
This morning I told someone the joke about "My father voted Republican all his life. He has voted Democrat ever since he died." This was to a fairly knowledgable adult and I had to explan the joke to him. It just makes no sense to anyone who has lived their life in Puerto Rico. It is impossible to cheat our elections and unthinkable to try. My son in law had a similar reaction a few years ago when I told him a similar joke. It made no sense.
John Henry
John henry said...
"Isn't a pincher move against a woman sexist? Especially by a Latin (lacivita)"
Someone somewhere at some time said something about certain women allowing a certain subset of men to grab them in the NYC and they would like it. So not always.
OTOH, an older woman pinching a younger boy's cheeks... well, that's just cultural diversity.
'“She was a blank canvas, and we had a bucket of paint,” LaCivita said....'
Sounds like political bukkake. Kind of what Popeye was doing yesterday...
'He'll call himself Anne Frank next "and the crowd goes wild"'
Well, Democrats are Nazis and revel in killing innocents, so he wouldn't be wrong...
Trump's disinhibited approach to speechifying makes him entertaining. It also is incoherent, inconsistent, and makes enemies out of people who should be his friends.
As they say in the markets, Trump's convictions and jail time have been factored into the equation already.
But even if every DeSantis supporter votes for Trump, if every Republican does, Trump will LOSE AGAIN. There is no "path to victory" for him if he is the nominee.
Is that you, lefty Mark? Let's see what happens. Fraud is the weapon that worked in 2020 but we have had 4 years of Biden. I know Biden is going to run on abortion but even college education white women are capable of learning.
I think.
Yeah, Trump has lost. Doesn't have a chance. The polls are wrong.
LOL!
Those two wordsn "lunatics" and "horrible," need to be repeated until when the opposition is even thought of, those two words are all that comes to mind.
And Michael K, Biden is gonna win by having ice cream at 3pm every day and going to bed. He will win on the basis of harvests of universal mail in ballots, period. There are more Democrats in more states whose votes will be made, or harvested, and counted than there are actual Republican voters who vote whose votes will be counted.
“As a crowd of supporters in Concord, New Hampshire, chanted "Nikki! Nikki! Nikki" the former South Carolina governor said "this race is far from over. There are dozens of states left to go."“
Naggy Nikki.
Post a Comment