I was hoping that he would run for the GOP nomination, as he may be the sanest person in that party. Alas.
Oh, I don’t have any particular negative feelings about him. I can’t see me voting for Republicans in the near future.
Hogan is a throwback chamber of commerce Republican. He was a popular governor in Maryland with high approval ratings and was able to work across the aisle. I think he made some good moves during the pandemic - he was viewed as one of the more competent chief executives. I’m thinking centrist Republicans who couldn’t support a Trump candidacy that ended up voting for Biden could be his constituency which could throw states like Arizona or North Carolina to the GOP.
Larry Hogan is the kind of guy I might have voted for 10 years ago.
Trump soured me on the Republican Party. And not just Trump, but the way that the party rallied around him, defended him, sucked up to him, venerated him. And continues to do so.
The fact that Ron’s whole candidacy is viewed through a lens of comparing him to Trump is just gross. Trump has come to embody the Republican Party fully. It’s the Trump party.
This dumb asshole is cratering so hard now, it’s not even funny:
Fucking idiot.
However, it seems like trump is using most of his campaign funds for legal defenses. That’s gonna hurt.
And it also proves my point that trump is a con-man.
It seems to sell in Florida.
But the GOP did find that banning abortion does not sell.
I love that the DeSantis slogan of “help me fight the wars you don’t want to fight” is less appealing than Trump’s “vote for me so I don’t go to jail”.
LOL! You’re right!
I’m not so sure. He can do some of this stuff via executive order, and there’s plenty of outrage in Florida over it. The State Legislature is mostly elected by the rural out-counties who, as usual, have all the land but few of the total population. The ALEC folks ran all frothers in the R primaries, and got a frothing R contingent in Tallahassee. The numerically smaller D contingent is doing all they can to slow the juggernaut, but with too few seats, they can’t accomplish much.
I think Florida is being used as a test ground by teh folks who intend to take over the states for good. Run nothing but wackos on the take in the primaries, then let the natural statistical advantages of the R party ensure there’s nobody but wackos on the take in the legislature. Then slam to door on democracy for good.
The continual legal challenges for Trump are making it very possible that he may not be able to mount a general election campaign. When the polling comes in after the fourth indictment, it might suggest that his support is eroded to the true believers. But that hasn’t happened yet. And it may not.
What I find confounding is that if you do in fact believe it’s a witch hunt - then maybe you’re more careful and aware of that, and perhaps you don’t store classified docs in a bathroom or tell randoms that you have classified stuff in your possession. Like maybe a more discreet flag bearer would be able to fend off these accusations.
Which brings us to RDS. With the debacle over the African American history standards - and his bizarre decision to attack the handful of Black GOP members - and the ties to PragerU’s ridiculous, historically inaccurate, and biased cartoons that are now legal to use in Florida classrooms - and lack of charisma, I can’t see him polling above the single digits among Black Americans.
Trump, with his celebrity status, appeals to some marginal Black folks (think wealthy ex-athletes and celebrities). DeSantis does not have this in any shape or form. As Andrew Gillum said, "Now, I’m not calling Mr. DeSantis a racist, I’m simply saying the racists believe he’s a racist.”
I’m beginning to believe DeSantis’ failure to launch means that Trump is either going to be the nominee, or another candidate will pull those donor dollars and become a viable #2 option. The idea of making America Florida is so unappealing to everyone, especially as the stunts he’s pulled are having legal and business consequences, makes him a very diminished candidate.
Having said all that, I’m not sure facts matter much in this political environment. But DeSantis doesn’t even look like a possibility as a nominee. Ramaswamy and Scott - maybe even Haley - seem to have more life and momentum than the guy who’s on his third reboot, using the Florida team he’s worked with, rather than someone who actually could challenge and change up the race. But that’s who DeSantis is, and probably why he’s failing so miserably.
I’m not sure why you would think that. His support has gone steadily up with his indictments, he is now running neck and neck with Biden and so far ahead of DeSantis it is no longer a race. This is NOT hurting him one tiny bit, it is only rallying his supporters.
DeSantis just “suspended” an elected Florida Prosecutor, named Monique Worrell, who just happened to be a Black woman Democrat. He did this earlier to another Democratic prosecutor.
This is getting close to fascism.
Yeah, I’m coming around to that idea (not that I was deeply opposing it before… but yeah…).
Trump supporters have already made their peace with pussy grabbing and penetration sexual assault and insulting a gold star mother. Indictments that will take years to wind their way through the courts won’t faze them
Lots of polls are in and, on average, inditements didn’t hurt Donald. Given the presumption of innocence, why should they?
If some rogue prosecutors indict Joe Biden, I won’t stop supporting him. Of course I don’t think Willis and company are rogue, but I like Joe.
.
Conviction followed by exhaustion of appeals, in the next 14 months, might be a challenge for Trump, but I doubt the wheels of Justice will turn that fast.
Fair point. I am somewhat nonplussed that this is the person that inspires cultlike loyalty.
I’ve never understood it. I’ve seen outlandish theories that Trump has some kind of “mystical (as in, real magic or mind powers)” charisma that accounts for his attraction from a chunk of voters, and at times I almost believe it.
Again: Trump validates the worst selves of people. Of course they follow him.
Of course, this is very similar to the mentality of Trump acolytes. All prosecutions of their hero are “rogue” and “political” and for many, even more reason to support him.
DeSantis’ messes and missteps can be overlooked because he’s supposedly been so good for Florida. He’s morphing into the Republican version of Dukakis, only with no chance at the nomination.
Dukakis had his tank ride-Ron had his white boots?
You (and I) have simply underestimated the percentage of voters that HRC (accurately) labeled “deplorable.”
For years, I carried that percentage in my head as about 27%. I don’t remember where I found this number, but that was someone’s estimate of the most hardcore, pre-QAnon wackos who would vote enthusiastically for anyone whose politics I would consider out-and-out fascistic. These include avowed racists, pro-KKK, “Hitler had a point”, xenophobes, “All taxation is theft” loonytoons, or those who bother to come out and vote Republican.
But I think we assumed that if they ever got a candidate who explicitly campaigned on their preferred policy, the “normal” Republicans would disavow them. Turns out, not so much.
That 27% turned out to be higher, and the “normal” Republicans turned out to be more like 5% than 100% of them who would be repulsed by a fascist candidate. So we’re where we are.
I think we were always here, just didn’t didn’t realize it.