Podcast 494

Surprises. In an early spring shocker, Senator Ted Cruz suspends his campaign after losing the Indiana Republican Presidential Preference Primary to New Yorker Donald Trump. On the democrat side, Bernie Sanders bested Hillary Clinton in the Hoosier State Democratic Primary. The story of the week, however, is the shocking suspension of the Ted Cruz campaign. Surprises. Cruz supporters were preparing for a contested republican convention. Though stories appeared late last week suggesting — off the record of course — Cruz campaign officials were ‘demoralized’ due to polls showing at least double digit leads in Indiana for Trump, the Senator’s introduction of Californian Carly Fiorina as his ‘running mate’ would suggest the campaign was still thinking about the Golden State and its hundred plus delegates as late as two weeks ago. Media story lines have now shifted to the ‘inevitability’ of a Trump nomination, or that Trump is the ‘presumptive’ nominee for the GOP. These kinds of over reactions to Trump’s Indiana win are to be expected in a self serving Media, but it’s still premature. Certainly one cannot predict the future. While it’s true that Trump’s path to the nomination is clearer in the remaining state primaries, with the absence of Cruz, the actual delegate count in Cleveland remains to be determined. It would be unwise for the Trump campaign or the media to count the republican establishment out. Down? Yes. But not out. Surprises. Then there is the question of what happened to Cruz? Are self identifying ‘conservatives’ finally settling on Trump, as opposed to Cruz? Was it a mistake for Cruz to encourage talk show hosts to campaign with him and were all the fasts, comparisons to George Washington and religious exhortations a turn off for some? And, what about the #nevertrump crowd? Looks like another talk-show-blogger-host effort that failed miserably. Finally, to get a real sense of the surprise inside the Cruz campaign after tonight’s bombshell, we talk to one of the campaign’s state coordinators, Mandy Benz. A tough night for someone who has worked very hard for her candidate and what she believed in, which deserves respect regardless of your political views. (Editor’s Note: Late breaking news, rumors that John Kasich is out, and the RNC is supporting Donald Trump as the presumptive nominee. This changes the picture regarding Trump’s delegate count in upcoming primaries.)Sponsored by Hydrus Performance and Brush Studio in the West End, Saint Louis Park, Minnesota.

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Podcast 491

Raising The Stakes. Screenwriters have a tool they employ to make movies thrilling. It’s called Raising The Stakes. This is where the hero seems to be winning. The detective is close to solving the case, but suddenly he’ll find his office has been broken into and all the evidence stolen. Or, the guy is about the get the girl, but he sees her with another guy. Raising The Stakes is how viewers are kept engaged up to the last moment when the plot comes to a climax. This is exactly how political junkies should view the latest results from Tuesday Night April 26th’s presidential primary preference polls. Donald Trump’s sweep of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Connecticut and Rhode Island, the Hillary Clinton’s commanding victories in four of those states over Bernie Sanders raise the stakes. They haven’t won their respective party’s nominations for president yet, but they’re about to. Or are they? Get ready because the mainstream media is about the raise the stakes on you again with the next group of primaries all the way up to the final primaries in June. In this podcast, along with results from all the states for both republicans and democrats, a restatement of my bias in this election cycle; I really can’t stand any of the candidates on either side of the political spectrum, and I am not campaigning for any of them overtly or covertly. I am also not part of the so called ‘objective’ #nevertrump crowd. In fact, I wouldn’t cross the street to meet with any of them. Watch the delegate selection process very closely because the final delegate count is going to be different – maybe very different – from what is advertised on all the 24 hour cable news shows. Watch the Senate races where incumbent republicans are vulnerable (I’ll provide a list in this podcast), because for republicans this is going to have a lot more to do with who the nominee will ultimately be than delegates. If the RNC sees the possibility of losing the senate, there may be some plays called in from the sidelines. Hint; A Trump or Cruz candidacy do nothing for vulnerable republican senators, one of whom happens to be Florida’s Marco Rubio. Remember him? Watch the story lines for the next couple of weeks, because suddenly it’s all about how Trump is inevitable. Again, Raising The Stakes. Chances are this race will go down to the conventions, and there’s still a very good possibility it will be a contested convention on the republican side. On the democrat side, all is not well either. Hillary Clinton may have the lion’s share of delegates and super delegates, but many progressives view Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama as sell-outs. There is tepid support for Mrs. Clinton, which might cause her some problems at her convention and in a subsequent general election if she is the nominee. Stay tuned. It’s just getting interesting. Sponsored by X Government Cars and Ryan Plumbing and Heating of Saint Paul.

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Podcast 474

Gonzo Talk. No prep. No notes. No editing. These are the rules of Gonzo Talk. I’ve done it before, under different names. I kind of like ‘Gonzo Talk’. This is the way I used to do podcasts, but after nearly 500 podcasts you evolve. It seems weird now, to do Gonzo Talk since I have become comfortable with a little more planning, or what I like to call a controlled burn. I know what I want to say, and rather than pussy foot around, I am able to get right to it because I have put some thought into it beforehand. Not so with Gonzo Talk. You start talking and you keep talking until the podcast is over. What comes up, is what comes up. What is said, is what is said. No editing. We start talking about different coffee makers, progressing to Minnesota’s establishment ‘republican’ effort to get rid of the state’s caucus system, and in view of Iowa’s Pride over their caucus system it seems a little statist. What a surprise. Progressing through the primary and caucus wins this weekend for Ted Cruz and Donald Trump. Isn’t it funny how the two candidates winning are most decidedly not establishment candidates. The only candidate that has more potential than Trump to freak the fuddy duddies out in the republican establishment, is Senator Ted Cruz. Just this last week Mister Loser himself suggested breaking the rules he backed to defend himself against Ron Paul at the RNC in 2012. Now Romney is pulling the aw shucks I don’t know nuthin, mister routine. After creating a process that has resulted in unmitigated disaster for establishment republicans, now they want to flush the whole primary process and contest the convention, thus nominating old Milque Toast himself, Mitt Romney. What about sealing off Washington, and forming a new government in Council Bluffs, Iowa? We don’t tell Washington they’re not in charge anymore. We just let them think they’re running things! Wait! Isn’t that kind of the way it is? Or maybe the way it will be? The people are speaking and they are not speaking establishment, on either side of the supposed political spectrum. Of course the tone deaf establishment, democrat and republican, isn’t listening. Why should we listen to them? Hey! I kind of like Gonzo Talk! Sponsored by Brush Studio and Pride of Homes and Luke Team Real Estate.

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