“Conventional wisdom tells us that Donald Trump is the antithesis of Ronald Reagan. But in fact, Trump is far closer to Reagan’s brand of conservatism than the Republican congressional leadership is.
At first blush, this seems preposterous. Reagan was a sunny personality, much like his boyhood idol, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Trump is anything but. Reagan used humor to defuse his critics; Trump clearly prefers insults. Reagan spoke often of America’s promise, while Trump speaks more of its decline. Reagan condemned bigots and racists. Trump’s facially evenhanded approach to the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, has convinced many that he shares white nationalist beliefs.
Despite these key differences, Trump’s active leadership style and his combination of populism with market economics is far closer to Reagan’s words and deeds than anything House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin or Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky offer.”
From the moment Trump entered the 2016 presidential race, he ran as a tribune of the forgotten American. Telling blue-collar workers that America’s political and financial elites had abandoned them, he campaigned on populist economics (reverse the North American Free Trade Agreement and Trans-Pacific Partnership, protect entitlements) and populist cultural issues (immigration, guns, political correctness). He combined this with support for certain orthodox GOP ideas, including large tax cuts, deregulation and appointing judicial conservatives to the Supreme Court. This mix enabled him to beat many favored rivals for the GOP nomination and win the general election.
Reagan followed a similar script in his presidential campaigns. He championed populist cultural issues (opposition to forced busing, gun control and the Equal Rights Amendment) and struck to an anti-establishment tone. Saying as early as 1964 that conservatives represented “the forgotten American,” Reagan focused on jobs rather than growth. Even Reagan’s signature market economics struck a populist tone. His tax cuts always gave low- and middle-income taxpayers significant relief, even if that meant he didn’t cut the top rate as much as some wished.
Trump is also arguably closer to Reagan on hot-button issues like entitlements, immigration and trade than the common wisdom recalls. Reagan generally exempted programs like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid from budget cutting — even as the deficit exploded.
Reagan was an adamant free trader, but he never hesitated to impose sanctions on foreign companies if they engaged in unfair practices. His tariffs on Asian motorcycle companies, for example, helped save the American icon Harley-Davidson from bankruptcy.”
——————
“The Republican congressional leadership proclaims fidelity to Reagan’s ideas, but its deeds don’t match its words. The leadership has been AWOL on the populist issues of our day, allowing illegal immigration to continue and permitting foreign competition to hollow out communities without resistance. They have ignored the rising tide of restrictions on free speech and protests on our nation’s campuses and streets. It’s not for nothing that Ryan’s and McConnell’s favorability ratings are far lower than Trump’s.
Ryan and McConnell would surely reject this characterization — perhaps mentioning their tax reform and Obamacare repeal plans as proof that the Reagan flame still burns brightly on their watch. But their plans are so far from Reagan’s actual principles that it mocks the great man’s memory to compare them.”
“Just when you thought liberals had sunk as low as they could, they break out the shovel and start digging.
Nothing is sacred anymore. Nothing is off limits, and everything is political. This week showed us once again there is nothing Democrats won’t exploit, no grave they won’t dance on, if they think they can score political points. And there’s nothing “journalists” won’t spin, won’t lie about, and no hypocrisy too great to prevent them from smearing their political opponents.
The sad deaths of four soldiers in an ambush in Niger normally would not be a political football, but these times are anything but normal.
In the past week, a media narrative developed about how President Trump hadn’t spoken publicly about the deaths of the men at the hands of an ISIS affiliate group. This didn’t happen by accident, it happened suddenly and from multiple media outlets and “journalists,” as if it were coordinated.
“Why hasn’t Trump said anything about this?” they asked.
Of course, the White House had spoken about it the day after it happened, but since it came from the president’s spokeswoman and not him directly, this fact was ignored. Presidents don’t speak about every death in battle and never have, but this one was manufactured to be different. It was going to be “Trump’s Benghazi,” or so the media hoped.
But there were no warnings ignored, like in Benghazi. There was no 13-hour delay in sending aid. There was no blaming of an Internet video to cover up the failure of the administration to act, and no one was sent to prison for a year to aid in the re-election of the president. The only similarity with Benghazi is the body count.
But liberals never let the facts get in the way of a good story, and since they control the media there is no reason to. Human decency used to be what held back their darker impulses, but they are no longer burdened by such constraints.
When clownish Florida Congresswoman Frederica Wilson (D), accused the president of callousness in his condolence call to the widow of Sgt. La David Johnson, it was a new low for a party setting new lows at a record pace.
Calls from a president are not spontaneous. Staff calls and sets up a time convenient for both. So that Wilson was there was not a coincidence, it was planned. It was going to be a painful call to receive, as every condolence call is soon after losing a loved one. That the Johnson family was upset after it was not surprising; what was is how Wilson marched right to a receptive media to spin their grief into a political knife.
Wilson’s actions were despicable, as was the media’s adopting of her word as gospel and her tactics. Basic human decency was torched when the president’s response was portrayed as “an attack on a Gold Star family” and not what it was – a refutation of a partisan attack by an activist Democrat and media.
President Trump never has been critical of Johnson’s widow. He’s been critical of Wilson and her fellow travelers in journalism. But you’d never know that if you watched CNN or MSNBC. They are lying to their audience because, well, that’s what they do.”
“When he left office, Obama, having made the world much less stable and far less safe during his tenure, was well on his way to his goal of depleting our military to pre-World War II levels.
President Trump campaigned on rebuilding our military and refocusing its mission on military matters rather than on political correctness and voracious down-sizing. He also campaigned on destroying ISIS and radical Islamic terrorism.
In aid of these twin campaign promises and goals, Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) permitting the United States Air Force to recall up to one thousand retired pilots. The cap lift applies to all branches of the military.
The left’s response was an epic meltdown.
Fox News reports:
The Air Force could recall up to 1,000 retired pilots after President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at addressing what the Pentagon has described as an “acute shortage of pilots.”
The order, which Trump signed Friday, amends an emergency declaration signed by George W. Bush after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.
Under current law, the Air Force is limited to recalling just 25 pilots. The order signed by Trump temporarily removes that cap for all branches of the military.
A Pentagon spokesman, Navy Cmdr. Gary Ross, said in a statement that the Air Force is currently “short approximately 1,500 pilots of its requirements.”
“We anticipate that the Secretary of Defense will delegate the authority to the Secretary of the Air Force to recall up to 1,000 retired pilots for up to 3 years,” Ross said. “The pilot supply shortage is a national level challenge that could have adverse effects on all aspects of both the government and commercial aviation sectors for years to come.”
In August, Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson confirmed that the service was short 1,555 pilots of its requirements, including 1,211 fighter pilots.
We’re short pilots, so the president remedies the problem. Seems simple enough.
Aj. That is correct. The paragraph beginning with “At first blush………….” describes it perfectly. Also, Trump lets his mouth speak before his brain thinks.
Otherwise he wouldn’t have uttered he ridiculous, “And I’ll make Mexico pay for it.”
But Congress only mouths Reagan doctrines because it gets them money and election. When it comes to action, K Street calls the plays.
Trump was probably contacted by someone in the financial services industry, but it is clear he understand and believes this comment.
Last week, it leaked out that Congress was considering reducing the limit on 401K contributions as part of Tax Reform. For a nation of people that fails to save, that would have been the height of folly. Trump has now nipped that plan in the bud. Good for him!
In Arabia, we had a navigator who was recalled. He was a WWII vet and was a teacher before he was recalled. He was always bitter about that. He, otherwise, might have been a nice guy. He was a !st Lieutenant and had a family at home. We signed up for this.
He didn’t.
I’m beginning to think this is not just rudeness or stupidity. I think he is continuing the fight with the grieving family because he thinks his base is enjoying this.
Well, I finally did it. Last night I broke down and ordered Henry Olsen’s book The Working Class Republican. I look forward to seeing if it changes my mind about the Reagan revolution…or at least, the revolution that appropriated his name for itself. We’ll see. :–)
“The latest subject of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election is a Democratic lobbyist and the brother of the chairman of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, John Podesta.
Tony Podesta and his lobbying company, the Podesta Group, are now being investigated after ties were discovered with Paul Manafort, the former chairman of the Donald Trump presidential campaign, sources told NBC News.”
———-
“Mueller’s team was originally on a fact-finding mission about the ECMU and Manafort’s role in the campaign. But now, it is looking into whether the Podesta Group may have violated the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), which requires people or companies that lobby on behalf of foreign governments or political parties to file disclosures with the Justice Department, sources told NBC News.
Manafort’s consulting company DMP International registered as a foreign agent only in June, three years after the work it undertook in Ukraine between 2012 and 2014. The registration filings revealed that DMP International received $17.1 million from the Party of Regions during that period.
People who willfully neglect to register as foreign agents can face up to five years in prison, although prosecutions are rare, as it is often difficult to prove that failure to register was willful rather than as a result of negligence.”
” … In other words, this World Series should be close, and it could very well end up going down as an all-timer. Of course, a great matchup on paper doesn’t always translate to a memorable championship duel; conversely, sometimes a weak matchup on paper yields thrilling results. But based on what we know right now, this Astros-Dodgers matchup looks like the best possible way to end a year in which baseball’s elite teams were unusually dominant all season long.”
dj: It should be a great series, but I believe it’s the Astros’ turn, not only b/c it would be their first title, but especially in this year of Harvey…
Kershaw grew up in Highland Park, near Dallas. In high school, he pitched against my son’s school and struck out every batter he faced. He also homered and doubled. My son’s best friend (Michael) came in as a relief pitcher and got Kershaw to ground out to 2nd.
Years later, Michael saw Kershaw at the State Fair of Texas outside of the Texas/OU game. They discussed the Super Perfect Game.
Reagan = Trump? I may actually agree with an AJ post. Both are B grade actors who convinced working class whites to vote against their interest. As a result the elites get richer and the middle class is hollowed out.
Benghazi=Niger. No and Trump’s base wont care if it was or if he insults a war widow. As the widow was on her way to pick up her husband’s body, i doubt the phone call was planned. Trump probably just picked up the phone and ad libbed with fragments of Kelly’s advice. Waters was in the car as a congresswoman taking care of a constituent.
Kelly lost face here. He reduced himself to just another Trump minion.
I eagerly await Debra’s book report, but here are a few thoughts on Olsen’s article and the Reagan/Trump comparison:
1. As Noonan made clear, the unbelievable contrast in the character of the two men really makes any comparison seem absurd.
2. Olsen was not correct in his statements about Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. Reagan went after Medicare and Medicaid like no President before or since. He would have cut more but Congress balked. The reason that seniors now buy Medicare supplement insurance is that Reagan increased the co-pays. Had he been allowed to cut more, the post @8:34 would be different. Reagan saved Social Security (which was about to go bankrupt), but he did it by asking everyone to sacrifice: businesses and workers (particularly the wealthy) paid more taxes and the retirement age was slowly and gradually increased.
3. Olsen is right that Reagan was the candidate of the middle class and the South. Big Bush had the country club Republicans and did better in the North. Carpetbagger Bush called Texas his home state, but Reagan defeated him in every single Texas Congressional district in the 1980 primary. We were proud of that.
4. Reagan never tried to pit Americans against each other and never favored one class over another. The 1981 tax cut was a 25% phased in, across the board cut for everyone. In other words, the cuts were proportional to all taxpayers. As noted, the Social Security fix shared the burden to everyone. The 1986 tax reform bill favored neither the rich nor the poor, but closed many loopholes.
5. Both Reagan and Trump both got middle class votes, but what happened to that middle class? Reagan’s middle class worked, got married, had children in wedlock, paid taxes and were active in their churches. By 2016, Murray’s Coming Apart division had taken place. The upper middle class looked and acted like Reagan voters, and they were in fact the children of Reagan voters. The lower middle class were increasingly having illegitimate children, spending their money on tattoos, not working, committing crimes, dropping out of church and becoming Trumpkins as they blamed Mexicans, the Chinese, the elite, and globalists for their problems.
Wandering Views 
Blasphemy!
Hehe.
I know someone who won’t like this. 🙂
https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/most-republicans-wish-they-were-reagan-trump-actually-ncna801471
“Conventional wisdom tells us that Donald Trump is the antithesis of Ronald Reagan. But in fact, Trump is far closer to Reagan’s brand of conservatism than the Republican congressional leadership is.
At first blush, this seems preposterous. Reagan was a sunny personality, much like his boyhood idol, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Trump is anything but. Reagan used humor to defuse his critics; Trump clearly prefers insults. Reagan spoke often of America’s promise, while Trump speaks more of its decline. Reagan condemned bigots and racists. Trump’s facially evenhanded approach to the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, has convinced many that he shares white nationalist beliefs.
Despite these key differences, Trump’s active leadership style and his combination of populism with market economics is far closer to Reagan’s words and deeds than anything House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin or Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky offer.”
From the moment Trump entered the 2016 presidential race, he ran as a tribune of the forgotten American. Telling blue-collar workers that America’s political and financial elites had abandoned them, he campaigned on populist economics (reverse the North American Free Trade Agreement and Trans-Pacific Partnership, protect entitlements) and populist cultural issues (immigration, guns, political correctness). He combined this with support for certain orthodox GOP ideas, including large tax cuts, deregulation and appointing judicial conservatives to the Supreme Court. This mix enabled him to beat many favored rivals for the GOP nomination and win the general election.
Reagan followed a similar script in his presidential campaigns. He championed populist cultural issues (opposition to forced busing, gun control and the Equal Rights Amendment) and struck to an anti-establishment tone. Saying as early as 1964 that conservatives represented “the forgotten American,” Reagan focused on jobs rather than growth. Even Reagan’s signature market economics struck a populist tone. His tax cuts always gave low- and middle-income taxpayers significant relief, even if that meant he didn’t cut the top rate as much as some wished.
Trump is also arguably closer to Reagan on hot-button issues like entitlements, immigration and trade than the common wisdom recalls. Reagan generally exempted programs like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid from budget cutting — even as the deficit exploded.
Reagan was an adamant free trader, but he never hesitated to impose sanctions on foreign companies if they engaged in unfair practices. His tariffs on Asian motorcycle companies, for example, helped save the American icon Harley-Davidson from bankruptcy.”
——————
“The Republican congressional leadership proclaims fidelity to Reagan’s ideas, but its deeds don’t match its words. The leadership has been AWOL on the populist issues of our day, allowing illegal immigration to continue and permitting foreign competition to hollow out communities without resistance. They have ignored the rising tide of restrictions on free speech and protests on our nation’s campuses and streets. It’s not for nothing that Ryan’s and McConnell’s favorability ratings are far lower than Trump’s.
Ryan and McConnell would surely reject this characterization — perhaps mentioning their tax reform and Obamacare repeal plans as proof that the Reagan flame still burns brightly on their watch. But their plans are so far from Reagan’s actual principles that it mocks the great man’s memory to compare them.”
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Despicable people doing despicable things. And they’re not all liberals. I’ve heard some never-Trumpers making the same flawed argument.
https://townhall.com/columnists/derekhunter/2017/10/22/despicable-people-n2398499
“Just when you thought liberals had sunk as low as they could, they break out the shovel and start digging.
Nothing is sacred anymore. Nothing is off limits, and everything is political. This week showed us once again there is nothing Democrats won’t exploit, no grave they won’t dance on, if they think they can score political points. And there’s nothing “journalists” won’t spin, won’t lie about, and no hypocrisy too great to prevent them from smearing their political opponents.
The sad deaths of four soldiers in an ambush in Niger normally would not be a political football, but these times are anything but normal.
In the past week, a media narrative developed about how President Trump hadn’t spoken publicly about the deaths of the men at the hands of an ISIS affiliate group. This didn’t happen by accident, it happened suddenly and from multiple media outlets and “journalists,” as if it were coordinated.
“Why hasn’t Trump said anything about this?” they asked.
Of course, the White House had spoken about it the day after it happened, but since it came from the president’s spokeswoman and not him directly, this fact was ignored. Presidents don’t speak about every death in battle and never have, but this one was manufactured to be different. It was going to be “Trump’s Benghazi,” or so the media hoped.
But there were no warnings ignored, like in Benghazi. There was no 13-hour delay in sending aid. There was no blaming of an Internet video to cover up the failure of the administration to act, and no one was sent to prison for a year to aid in the re-election of the president. The only similarity with Benghazi is the body count.
But liberals never let the facts get in the way of a good story, and since they control the media there is no reason to. Human decency used to be what held back their darker impulses, but they are no longer burdened by such constraints.
When clownish Florida Congresswoman Frederica Wilson (D), accused the president of callousness in his condolence call to the widow of Sgt. La David Johnson, it was a new low for a party setting new lows at a record pace.
Calls from a president are not spontaneous. Staff calls and sets up a time convenient for both. So that Wilson was there was not a coincidence, it was planned. It was going to be a painful call to receive, as every condolence call is soon after losing a loved one. That the Johnson family was upset after it was not surprising; what was is how Wilson marched right to a receptive media to spin their grief into a political knife.
Wilson’s actions were despicable, as was the media’s adopting of her word as gospel and her tactics. Basic human decency was torched when the president’s response was portrayed as “an attack on a Gold Star family” and not what it was – a refutation of a partisan attack by an activist Democrat and media.
President Trump never has been critical of Johnson’s widow. He’s been critical of Wilson and her fellow travelers in journalism. But you’d never know that if you watched CNN or MSNBC. They are lying to their audience because, well, that’s what they do.”
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Still trying to clean up the mess Obama left, and of course, taking flack for doing so.
https://legalinsurrection.com/2017/10/trump-signs-eo-permitting-recall-of-1k-retired-usaf-pilots-leftist-heads-explode/#more-230919
“When he left office, Obama, having made the world much less stable and far less safe during his tenure, was well on his way to his goal of depleting our military to pre-World War II levels.
President Trump campaigned on rebuilding our military and refocusing its mission on military matters rather than on political correctness and voracious down-sizing. He also campaigned on destroying ISIS and radical Islamic terrorism.
In aid of these twin campaign promises and goals, Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) permitting the United States Air Force to recall up to one thousand retired pilots. The cap lift applies to all branches of the military.
The left’s response was an epic meltdown.
Fox News reports:
The Air Force could recall up to 1,000 retired pilots after President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at addressing what the Pentagon has described as an “acute shortage of pilots.”
The order, which Trump signed Friday, amends an emergency declaration signed by George W. Bush after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.
Under current law, the Air Force is limited to recalling just 25 pilots. The order signed by Trump temporarily removes that cap for all branches of the military.
A Pentagon spokesman, Navy Cmdr. Gary Ross, said in a statement that the Air Force is currently “short approximately 1,500 pilots of its requirements.”
“We anticipate that the Secretary of Defense will delegate the authority to the Secretary of the Air Force to recall up to 1,000 retired pilots for up to 3 years,” Ross said. “The pilot supply shortage is a national level challenge that could have adverse effects on all aspects of both the government and commercial aviation sectors for years to come.”
In August, Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson confirmed that the service was short 1,555 pilots of its requirements, including 1,211 fighter pilots.
We’re short pilots, so the president remedies the problem. Seems simple enough.
The left, however, has come unhinged on Twitter.”
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Henry Olsen should spend some time with Peggy Noonan or, like Kevin DeYoung, he could simply read her book.
https://blogs.thegospelcoalition.org/kevindeyoung/2015/12/22/when-character-was-king/
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Aj. That is correct. The paragraph beginning with “At first blush………….” describes it perfectly. Also, Trump lets his mouth speak before his brain thinks.
Otherwise he wouldn’t have uttered he ridiculous, “And I’ll make Mexico pay for it.”
But Congress only mouths Reagan doctrines because it gets them money and election. When it comes to action, K Street calls the plays.
LikeLike
This is the single best Trump Tweet ever:
Trump was probably contacted by someone in the financial services industry, but it is clear he understand and believes this comment.
Last week, it leaked out that Congress was considering reducing the limit on 401K contributions as part of Tax Reform. For a nation of people that fails to save, that would have been the height of folly. Trump has now nipped that plan in the bud. Good for him!
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In Arabia, we had a navigator who was recalled. He was a WWII vet and was a teacher before he was recalled. He was always bitter about that. He, otherwise, might have been a nice guy. He was a !st Lieutenant and had a family at home. We signed up for this.
He didn’t.
LikeLiked by 1 person
A simple lesson in good lawyering: Convince your client to stop acting guilty.
http://www.politico.com/story/2017/10/23/trump-russia-tweets-mueller-probe-244004
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Since we are going to continue to have a largely socialist health care system, this is a good cost-cutting idea. The docs would squeal.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2017/10/23/cut-health-costs-put-doctors-on-salaries-arthur-tim-garson-jr-column/777179001/
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I’m beginning to think this is not just rudeness or stupidity. I think he is continuing the fight with the grieving family because he thinks his base is enjoying this.
https://mobile.twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/922440008971292672
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Well, I finally did it. Last night I broke down and ordered Henry Olsen’s book The Working Class Republican. I look forward to seeing if it changes my mind about the Reagan revolution…or at least, the revolution that appropriated his name for itself. We’ll see. :–)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ooops. They probably weren’t supposed to find this.
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/tony-podesta-russia-probe-investigating-124348025.html
“The latest subject of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election is a Democratic lobbyist and the brother of the chairman of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, John Podesta.
Tony Podesta and his lobbying company, the Podesta Group, are now being investigated after ties were discovered with Paul Manafort, the former chairman of the Donald Trump presidential campaign, sources told NBC News.”
———-
“Mueller’s team was originally on a fact-finding mission about the ECMU and Manafort’s role in the campaign. But now, it is looking into whether the Podesta Group may have violated the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), which requires people or companies that lobby on behalf of foreign governments or political parties to file disclosures with the Justice Department, sources told NBC News.
Manafort’s consulting company DMP International registered as a foreign agent only in June, three years after the work it undertook in Ukraine between 2012 and 2014. The registration filings revealed that DMP International received $17.1 million from the Party of Regions during that period.
People who willfully neglect to register as foreign agents can face up to five years in prison, although prosecutions are rare, as it is often difficult to prove that failure to register was willful rather than as a result of negligence.”
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Not working out like they expected.
http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2017/10/nfl-hell-several-stadiums-nearly-empty-anthem-protest-backlash-rolls-week-7-photos/
“Several NFL stadiums are nearly empty post kick-off as the National Anthem controversy rolls into week 7.”
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Mueller plays it down the middle. There are crooks on both American sides plus the Russians. Who can predict what he will find?
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” … In other words, this World Series should be close, and it could very well end up going down as an all-timer. Of course, a great matchup on paper doesn’t always translate to a memorable championship duel; conversely, sometimes a weak matchup on paper yields thrilling results. But based on what we know right now, this Astros-Dodgers matchup looks like the best possible way to end a year in which baseball’s elite teams were unusually dominant all season long.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
dj: It should be a great series, but I believe it’s the Astros’ turn, not only b/c it would be their first title, but especially in this year of Harvey…
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Astros in 5. Kershaw losses not once, but twice.
Remember where you heard it. 🙂
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Kershaw grew up in Highland Park, near Dallas. In high school, he pitched against my son’s school and struck out every batter he faced. He also homered and doubled. My son’s best friend (Michael) came in as a relief pitcher and got Kershaw to ground out to 2nd.
Years later, Michael saw Kershaw at the State Fair of Texas outside of the Texas/OU game. They discussed the Super Perfect Game.
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An article for those interested in understanding the unintended consequences of protectionism:
http://theweek.com/articles/731367/donald-trump-job-killer
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Is there a correlation; the loneliness of old white men and the election of Trump
http://www.macleans.ca/politics/worldpolitics/donald-trump-and-our-crisis-of-loneliness/
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Reagan = Trump? I may actually agree with an AJ post. Both are B grade actors who convinced working class whites to vote against their interest. As a result the elites get richer and the middle class is hollowed out.
Benghazi=Niger. No and Trump’s base wont care if it was or if he insults a war widow. As the widow was on her way to pick up her husband’s body, i doubt the phone call was planned. Trump probably just picked up the phone and ad libbed with fragments of Kelly’s advice. Waters was in the car as a congresswoman taking care of a constituent.
Kelly lost face here. He reduced himself to just another Trump minion.
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HRW, Freudian slip there. Congresswoman Wilson is very similar to Maxine Waters, but they are from different coasts.
LikeLike
I eagerly await Debra’s book report, but here are a few thoughts on Olsen’s article and the Reagan/Trump comparison:
1. As Noonan made clear, the unbelievable contrast in the character of the two men really makes any comparison seem absurd.
2. Olsen was not correct in his statements about Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. Reagan went after Medicare and Medicaid like no President before or since. He would have cut more but Congress balked. The reason that seniors now buy Medicare supplement insurance is that Reagan increased the co-pays. Had he been allowed to cut more, the post @8:34 would be different. Reagan saved Social Security (which was about to go bankrupt), but he did it by asking everyone to sacrifice: businesses and workers (particularly the wealthy) paid more taxes and the retirement age was slowly and gradually increased.
3. Olsen is right that Reagan was the candidate of the middle class and the South. Big Bush had the country club Republicans and did better in the North. Carpetbagger Bush called Texas his home state, but Reagan defeated him in every single Texas Congressional district in the 1980 primary. We were proud of that.
4. Reagan never tried to pit Americans against each other and never favored one class over another. The 1981 tax cut was a 25% phased in, across the board cut for everyone. In other words, the cuts were proportional to all taxpayers. As noted, the Social Security fix shared the burden to everyone. The 1986 tax reform bill favored neither the rich nor the poor, but closed many loopholes.
5. Both Reagan and Trump both got middle class votes, but what happened to that middle class? Reagan’s middle class worked, got married, had children in wedlock, paid taxes and were active in their churches. By 2016, Murray’s Coming Apart division had taken place. The upper middle class looked and acted like Reagan voters, and they were in fact the children of Reagan voters. The lower middle class were increasingly having illegitimate children, spending their money on tattoos, not working, committing crimes, dropping out of church and becoming Trumpkins as they blamed Mexicans, the Chinese, the elite, and globalists for their problems.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Since liberals are already calling Murray a White Nationalist, it gives him a certain freedom to post politically incorrect articles:
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A very good article on Trump’s war against objective truth:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/how-trump-broke-conservatism/2017/10/23/e68f180e-b817-11e7-be94-fabb0f1e9ffb_story.html?hpid=hp_no-name_opinion-card-d%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.344ea9733366
I would argue that only a startling rise in idiocy on the Right allowed Trump to take this path.
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David French on the latest O’Reilly scandal:
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