Podcast 495

The Light At The End Of The Tunnel? The Light At The End Of The Tunnel? It’s probably a train, right? First Ted Cruz quits the race, then the next day John Kasich quits. So, it is now fair to say that Donald J. Trump has a clear path to be nominated as the Republican Presidential Candidate at the Republican convention this summer. Yes, suddenly the republican establishment which so hated ‘The Donald’ it allowed #nevertrump to continue and in some cases encouraged it, has suddenly embraced the hated Trump even switching over to #neverhillary. So much for the so called ‘principled conservative’ at the top of the GOP. Now what? There’s a lot of ground to cover between now and the last primaries in June, and the conventions. Since there have already been a number of surprises in 2016, it’s fair to say just about anything could happen at either the republican or democrat convention. In treating the media story-lines with healthy skepticism, one wonders what happens to the Red State Blogs and Glenn Beck’s of the world? What happens to all the #nevertrump and Cruz supporting talk show hosts? Do they suddenly start working for Hillary Clinton? What about the outside possibility Bernie Sanders wins California and democrat super delegates start abandoning the USS Hillary? If Trump is the nominee – and to be fair it looks like he is going to be unless something happens between now and Cleveland – can he win the presidency? Already we’re seeing the same kind of ‘predict the future’ journalism now, we saw at the beginning of the Trump candidacy. Trump can not win, he starts in the hole and will never beat Clinton or Sanders. He’s a bully. He’s a xenophobe. He’s an authoritarian. If you’re a woman you’ll vote for Hillary. There are protests against Trump in the streets which may end up helping his candidacy, actually. Can Trump win? Of course he can. He went against the odds and crushed a whole field of republicans, although media compliments aside, the republican field this year was a disaster and the debates exposed them all as completely unprepared for the spotlight, except for the one guy who knows how to play the TV Reality Show Game. So yeah, Trump can win. The only problem with a Trump presidency is, republicans will probably regret it. Conservatives for Trump? Don’t make me laugh. Trade protection, Keynesian economics and nativism are hardly ‘conservative’ ideas. There are going to be a lot of long faces for republicans when they learn what a Trump presidency might actually mean for them, unless you want to work at a bucket factory or coal mine, where millennials with graduate degrees want to work, right? On the other hand, why not? It’s gonna be great! For too long republicans have masqueraded as conservatives, railing against abortion and same-sex marriage while they voted to increase budgets year after year for things like ‘education’ and stadiums for billionaire sports owners. Who deserves Trump? Republicans deserve Trump. The Light At End Of The Tunnel? It’s a Trump. No wait! It’s a train. Sponsored by X Government Cars and Ryan Plumbing and Heating of Saint Paul.

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Podcast 463

Inside An Iowa Caucus. Live from Tennessee, we take a final look at the Iowa Caucuses, by taking subscribers inside a rural Iowa precinct caucus. Thirteen US States and 2 US territories use the caucus system. People who live in states with primary elections – where people cast a single vote on a ballot of some kind on primary election day – may hear the word ‘caucus’ but have never been inside one and don’t really understand the process. As democrats argue about how Hillary Clinton eked out a victory in the Iowa caucus, and Donald Trump making noises about Ted Cruz’ efforts to win, just how a caucus is conducted is news. In this podcast we take you inside an Iowa Caucus; The Rules, The Speeches, The Vote Counting and The Results. If you’re lucky enough to live in a state with caucuses, when you participate you’re taking part in one of the oldest democratic processes in the world. Classic representative government in Athens, Rome, and the Venetian Republic among others, allowed a sort of people’s congress. All citizens in good standing could participate in choosing candidate for leadership positions. We still do it to this day with caucuses. It’s fascinating to participate, or listen to everyday citizens conducting an orderly meeting in which leaders are nominated, voted upon, and citizens from that precinct are chosen to represent their neighbors at the next level meeting. While these podcasts have questioned Iowa’s permanent position as the first in the nation vote in presidential cycles, the commitment of its citizens to the process should be celebrated. Having escaped the snows of Des Moines and decamped to Chattanooga Tennessee, I am joined in this podcast by an old friend, who also provides some insight as to how one of the key states in the so called ‘Southeastern Conference’ may vote on Super Tuesday. From here, its on to South Carolina, where all the campaigns are headed after New Hampshire. This concludes the Iowa Caucus portion of 2016 coverage for the Bob Davis Podcasts. A few days of barbecue, shooting and some southern hospitality and we’re back on the road again. (Big thanks to John Berg of Jefferson, Iowa for inviting the Bob Davis Podcasts into his precinct caucus!) Sponsored by Brush Studio and Ryan Plumbing and Heating of Saint Paul.

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Podcast 415

Republican Nightmare. With the suspension of Governor Scott Walker’s Presidential campaign comes an opportunity to critique Republican politics, specifically the leadership and Republican rank and file. Aside from the snark, the media has reported that the Wisconsin Governor lamented the absence of ‘Reagan Style Optimism’ in Republican politics so far in the 2016 cycle. Thing is, Republicans themselves aren’t optimistic. In fact Republicans these days are so pessimistic one wonders if they would recognize Ronald Reagan if he were resurrected, or even vote for him. It sure seems like most Republicans think the President is a secret muslim, hell bent on destroying the country, that China took all our jobs, that Jesus is coming back (as soon as the election is over) and all sorts of other rather negative ideas, even if you think they’re true. Can the Republicans win a national election with this kind of negative view of the present situation and the future? Can you win a national election with no real economic plan, save for tax cuts, no foreign policy plan, no real domestic plan and nothing but a list of debatable complaints? The solution appears to be Donald Trump, a reality TV star with a penchant for one liners, and the absence of something called ‘a plan’. As Trump’s popularity increases, preference for the so called Republican Brand decreases. And yet, because of GOP rule changes in 2012, if Donald Trump can translate poll numbers into wins in five states, he may have enough delegates to win the Republican nomination. Who will stop him? Jeb Bush? Chris Christie? Rand Paul? Mike Huckabee? Marco Rubio? Ted Cruz? Lindsay Graham? Which of these candidates can win five states? Or, even one? Scott Walker is suggesting the party unite around someone, anyone other than Trump. Who’s fault IS Trump anyway? Have the moderates — interested only in holding onto their power — screwed the pooch? The moderates are the ones who wanted the debates, and they’re responsible for the monolithically stupid rule changes in 2012, and the rules that allowed the debates to be stacked toward candidates who did well in hack polls. Because of this, you might be saying hello to Republican Presidential Nominee Donald Trump in the future. This is why 2016 may turn out to be a terrible sequel of 2008, and 2012 for the GOP. We are getting close to Halloween, after all. Sponsored by Autonomous Cad, and Pride of Homes. 

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