December 16, 2015

Synchronizing their watches.

A sure sign of the Trump-Cruz conspiracy. Carson's in on it too.

AND: If you don't know what I mean by the conspiracy, watch Joe Scarborough speculate: "After the debate, I started thinking, ‘This was an inside deal.’ You’ve got Trump and Cruz who were kind of hitting each other, but they see now that they’re locked in first and second place, everybody else is a distant third. Notice everybody on the stage was attacking everybody but the top two guys. So Trump goes after Jeb, Cruz goes after Rubio— the establishment’s favorite candidates– and they refuse to touch each other. It smacked of an inside deal. If this maintains the status quo, neither Jeb or Rubio catches them. It’s a smart political move, and they made it; they either made a direct or indirect deal."

ALSO: A photo of Cruz that made me go "aw."

35 comments:

traditionalguy said...

Voila. The rude clown of bombast turns himself into a political genius. What will he do next.

Sebastian said...

"ALSO: A photo of Cruz that made me go "aw."" Which makes me go OMG.

Steve M. Galbraith said...

Trump is Obama's revenge on conservatives. He drove them nuts, enough of them, and the nuts went to Trump. Enough, it looks, to get Trump the nomination. If not the nomination at the very least to cause so much internal havoc that Hillary will easily win.

Irony of ironies: Obama destroyed the Democrats nationally - they lost the Senate and House - to a lesser extent on the state level; AND he's destroying the GOP.

The man to heal us, to bring us together ended up destroying the two main political parties.

History is funny like that.



traditionalguy said...

The Obama/Soros paid rioters are practicing their chant lines. There are several new ones with a nice desperate tone to them. It seems that the Baltimore people are still slaughtering black people at will and they would just as soon die attacking white property owners. There is a samurai kamikaze emotion delivered with a rap beat.

Bob Ellison said...

Cruz is doing the stuttering thing. You can tell I'm serious because I stutter and because I keep repeating basic words, like is, but, and that.

He's turning into Obama. The thing is, is, that, that, we have issues with these things, but, but, but, the thing is, is, is, that, that, it's not what's going to help America.

Not a good sign. Just now on FNC he said is, is, is, to, to, to, that, that, that, and such several times.

Watch his YouTube videos. He never stutters or repeats words when speaking extemporaneously. Cruz is a famous debater, famous from Harvard Law School for knowing how to talk. Really, watch one of his videos. The man knows how to talk.

The is, is, that, that is not a failure to talk. He doesn't lack a teleprompter.

He lacks honesty.

mccullough said...

Another dumb theory. Trump is way ahead of Cruz. No reason for him to attack at a debate when he said the day before that Cruz doesn't get along with anyone in the Senate. Trump didn't attack Jeb, he just lashed back at him.

Cruz attacked Rubio on immigration, which I'm sure made Trump happy. Trump's position on immigration is much more strict than Cruz's mushy approach, which is only slightly less mushy than Rubio.

Maybe Cruz is hoping to peel off some more of Carson's supporters. Trump is not worried about Cruz.

Mike Sylwester said...

I think the Republican ticket will be Trump for President and Cruz for Vice President.

I recently switched my own support from Trump to Cruz, but I think Trump will win the nomination.

TWW said...

Democrat debate, circa 1944 – 45:

Wolf Blitzer: President Roosevelt, you have said you would, quote, “carpet bomb Nazi Germany into oblivion,” testing whether, quote, “sand can glow in the dark.” Does that mean leveling Berlin and other German Cities, where there are hundreds of thousands of civilians?
Wolf Blitzer: To be clear, President Truman, would you use a nuclear weapon to bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where there are a lot of civilians, yes or no?

madAsHell said...

....and Sanders is tired of hearing about Hillary's emails.

Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...

I don't believe it. Since when do Republicans ever engage in inside, shady deals?

Other than the ones they keep putting over onto the American people, of course.

Bay Area Guy said...

Trump or Cruz would be infinitely better for the country than Hillary. That is almost an unassailable fact.

JackWayne said...

If Reince Priebus won't winnow the field, the candidates have to. Smart play all the way around.

chickelit said...

It sounds about as "inside deal" as that little televised skit by Clinton and Sanders to get the press off the Clinton email story. "I'm tired of it" said Sanders. Clinton smiled. That cemented Bernie as her VP.

chickelit said...

Having a Republican Administration will make DC reporters work for a living again. They don't like that.

Marc in Eugene said...

Am not paying attention to their nonsense but have never 'liked' what I've seen of Senator Cruz, however brilliant &c he may be and however much I may agree with this or that political position: if that's him happily enjoying his daughter's company, though, then it does put the other not particularly photogenic images I've seen into perspective.

garage mahal said...

The anti-establishment outsiders are making a typical insider deal. I bet Trump supporters will snap at that bait like fresh cut red meat. Trump is great at making deals! He wants to make this country great again! That billionaire is in my 30k per year back pocket!

garage mahal said...

It sounds about as "inside deal" as that little televised skit by Clinton and Sanders to get the press off the Clinton email story.

Hmm. Great point! Where can I buy a Trump Trucker Hat?

He wants to make America Great Again!

Once written, twice... said...

Ted and the Donald are some crazy hillbillies! God knows how many brothers and sisters had to fuck to spew out these two carny freaks.

eric said...

From some of the hyperbolic articles I've read from the establishment sorts, it'll be a miracle if Trump, Cruz, or Carson can pull off the nomination.

If they do, they'll deserve to be President.

To put it another way. Beating the Republican establishment is really tough to do. They have a big section of the media working in concert to bring down non-establishment candidates.

Hillary has a strong wind at her back and she still does terrible. She is a horrible candidate but is fortunate that a large chunk of power brokers have her back. Plus, she is the right sex.

It'll be amazing if Trump, Cruz or Carson beat her. But if they do, they'll be great Presidents, having proved themselves via the process.

buwaya said...

If you make 30k per year, and are white, you have very few friends. Certainly no Democrats like you at all. The stated purpose of their party is to exterminate you, literally. The hate, the acid, the genocidal rhetoric, both the crude sort and the academic sort, leave no doubt.
The Republicans, maybe you can't trust them, maybe they wont keep promises, maybe they are weak and foolish, and maybe they don't think much of you, but at least they don't actually hate you and don't dream of your death.
Speaking as a longtime foreign observer. In most other countries if a group like the second and third income quintiles were so rhetorically abused and symbolically mistreated by their upper class, there would be blood, and an insurgency in the hills.

Lewis Wetzel said...

Republicans are fundamentally unable to carry out a successful conspiracy. This is why I, a conservative registered as an independent, usually end up voting R.
But not for Trump. It would be like voting for Jesse Ventura.

Static Ping said...

If you play strategy games like Diplomacy - I haven't since it is a good way to lose all your friends but I have read interesting stories - there will be situations where two or more parties act in concert without any explicit or implicit coordination. Their actions simply benefit each of them individually. It was logical to do what they did regardless of what anyone else did (or at least made sense with what they predicted other players would do). Accidental conspiracies are fun!

But, yeah, if it was an accident or intentional or semi-intentional, I don't care. It's politics. Wear a helmet. If you ever get to be President things will get a whole lot tougher.

David said...

"A photo of Cruz"

I did not know he had a daughter. Props to Cruz for not using her as a prop.

gadfly said...

So they are all checking the features on their Apple Watches. How did Politico miss that?

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

Shit, I hope Cruz and Trump have an inside deal. Given that they're yards brighter than Hillary, Bernie, or the average media hack, together they could play merry Hell with the Establishment's assumptions. At the very least they'd leave Hillary with a heaping pile of sauerkraut to try and govern with.

mikeyes said...

Both parties (Cruz and Trump) can see the advantage in not confronting each other pretty clearly and they are both well ahead of the party elite nominees. There is no value in confronting each other at this time and it is to their mutual advantage to minimize the other candidates if only to eliminate the power of the GOP in the nomination process. Combining these two and Carson's numbers shows that if they remain in concert at least until the first states are in that one of the three has a good chance of winning the nomination.
The issue here is the outsider/insider basis of their run for the nomination with the outsiders having the power at this time, something that has not happened before, and if they allow Rubio or JEB to get their nose in the tent, then their chances diminish considerably. It is better to eliminate those candidates first and then fight it out. Simple game theory.
It does help to have such a weak field running against them.
I was watching Trump talking in Mesa, AZ today and he is a compelling speaker who appears confident and capable. His ability to say almost anything and still be considered by the electorate is astounding to me. His record, which is out there for all to see, will have no effect on his people who see him as a strong leader. He will be able to simply say he changed his mind about various positions from the past without penalty whereas the politicians will hem and haw or lie because that is what they do and will suffer as a result.
There hasn't been a campaigner like Trump in a long time and certainly not one who is as successful at this time in the race.

Achilles said...

Rhythm and Balls said...
"I don't believe it. Since when do Republicans ever engage in inside, shady deals?

Other than the ones they keep putting over onto the American people, of course."

That would be the GOPe. Case in point Ryan's omnibus that he wrote with the democrats that is full of the worst kind of pork and cronyism. Trump and Cruz teaming up on the republican field that is full of insiders and shills? Not what I would call shady since this has been a poorly kept secret.

Carnifex said...

Trump is not a reaction to Obongo and anyone that thinks so is a dumb enough to be a Democrat. Trump is the result of the GOPe spitting on the conservative base for decades. The base has found someone who is a big Eff U to the GOPe, and we really don't care about anything but punishing the slapnuts. For years we were told you have to vote for the moderate, its the best we can do. We'll take care of your needs after we win. Instead they keep giving into the mighty Kenyan. And now that the shoe is on the other foot, you see how many of the so called moderates are vowing to NOT vote for Trump or Cruz if they win the nomination. The GOPe made this shit sandwich, and now they can eat it.

PS. I'd rather Cruz. He is just as hated by the GOPe, and has more conservative bonafides. But I really don't care as long as its not the GOPe. I'll even vote for Hillary if that's the choice.

Mid-Life Lawyer said...

I've noticed that Cruz has picked up the little stutter in his interviews, as well. One of my big concerns about him is that he is such a good speaker that he comes across as slick. Apparently, others critiqued him the same way and due to this, he has adjusted his speaking style in order to try and make a better impression on more of the listeners. I does not change the content of what he is saying so I don't view his desire to communicate more effectively as dishonest. Is it dishonest for a lawyer to rehearse his opening and closing statment in order to have maximum effect on a jury? I hope not.

Like I have said numerous times here and elsewhere, it's pretty clear that Cruz and Trump have some type of agreement. But that doesn't mean it isn't fluid. The most significant thing regarding this from the debate is that Trump took back the negative comments he made about Cruz, during the debate. (By the way, have you listened to the comments Cruz made? Cruz was merely claiming to be a better candidate than either Trump OR Carson, behind closed doors at a fund raiser. They were not bad at all.) But Trump backed off because of Rush, Levin, and Beck. Also, Cruz clearly adopted some of Trump's verbiage during this debate and Trump didn't call him out on it. Using a running analogy again, often elite runners work together during a race. They take turns in the lead and the other runners sometimes get in their draft while they lead. Sometimes there is an assigned pacer and he drops at a point later in the race. But occasionaly the pacer finds himself feeling exceptionally good at about the time he is supposed to drop and he stays in a races all the way. Regardless, almost always at some point in the race, they stop working together and everyone tries to win.

Curious George said...

"Terry said...
Republicans are fundamentally unable to carry out a successful conspiracy. This is why I, a conservative registered as an independent, usually end up voting R.
But not for Trump. It would be like voting for Jesse Ventura."

So a vote for Hillary then.

Michael K said...

I think Trump is going to win it but, if he stumbles, Cruz will be right there. I would prefer Cruz as Chief Justice but we are in a very strange year. Obama and the GOP Congress have gotten us here and I don't see the future as peaceful.

Anonymous said...

A vote for Hillary or Bernie is a vote to continue Obama's reign. You like This America?? Then vote for them. Americas fall will be on you.

dbp said...

A conspiracy theory only makes sense if those participating in it have something to gain from their role in it.

Trump is only number one right now because there are so many main-stream Republicans dividing up the main stream Republican vote. It is in his interest to keep it this way. If it boils down to Trump and one other, Trump will lose. Trump does not like to be criticized and always retaliates. He isn't attacking Cruz, because Cruz is not attacking Trump.

Cruz understands this. There is no point in attacking Trump, there is only value in attacking the person who stands in the way of being the non-Trump. This is Rubio.

SeanF said...

ALSO: A photo of Cruz that made me go "aw."

"Hey, Rocky, watch me pull a little girl outta my lectern!"

(That was close - I almost said "podium")

damikesc said...

Trump is Obama's revenge on conservatives. He drove them nuts, enough of them, and the nuts went to Trump. Enough, it looks, to get Trump the nomination. If not the nomination at the very least to cause so much internal havoc that Hillary will easily win.

Ryan is passing a Democrat budget.

Why should a conservative be worried that Trump "isn't conservative"? Republicans sure as fuck aren't conservative. We're delaying the damned Cadillac tax --- a tax that impacts Dems primarily and that DEMS PROPOSED --- for...reasons.

Trump is a God send. I hope he killed the damned GOP. Name it the Trump Party for all I care. The Republican Party is a joke.