The Race For 2024

[Cheerful Charlie]

Well, there is Ted Cruz......

 

[Copernicus]

When are the Republican primaries?

from what I’ve been seeing, the more people see Desantis the less they like him. Trump would likely run away with the primary, but if the serious criminal charges start piling up, people might shy away from him. Will they be left choosing between candidates that no one has heard of, or one that has to schedule rallies around his court appearances?

My guess is that name recognition would become paramount, if Trump were to withdraw or be hauled off kicking and screaming to a jail cell. Ron DeSantis would probably stand out against others in that respect, and maybe he is hoping for just such an outcome. I think that the others now declaring their candidacies are thinking the same thing, and quite a few probably just want to be considered for at least the VP position on a Republican ticket.

 

[TomC]

When are the Republican primaries?

from what I’ve been seeing, the more people see Desantis the less they like him. Trump would likely run away with the primary, but if the serious criminal charges start piling up, people might shy away from him. Will they be left choosing between candidates that no one has heard of, or one that has to schedule rallies around his court appearances?

A big part of the issue is that the primaries only attract the hard core voters. Centrist, independent, not so much.

It's entirely possible for Trump to bring out his base without becoming any more electable than he was in 2020.

Given everything, he could win the TeaParty primaries while becoming even more of an election loser than he was in past years.
Tom

 

[lpetrich]

5 Applause Lines from Vivek Ramaswamy’s Stump Speech - The New York Times

• “I will be the first presidential candidate to say I will end race-based affirmative action.”
• “I will shut down the fourth branch of government, the administrative state. You cannot tame that beast. You must end it.”
• “We will use our military to annihilate the Mexican drug cartels.”
• “How about a constitutional amendment to make the voting age 25, but you can still vote at 18 if you serve the country or pass the civics test my mother passed to become a citizen?”
• “Today we depend on our main enemy for our entire modern way of life. That is a problem. The Declaration of Independence that I will sign as your next president will be our Declaration of Independence from Communist China.”

That civics test is interesting -- how many lifetime American citizens of *any* age could pass it. Study for the Test (2020 version) | USCIS -- I think that I could do very well in it.

 

[lpetrich]

America’s First Dark Money Ballot Line
From a PAC that calls itself "No Labels".

In 2024, billionaires and corporate executives are preparing to go from using shadowy front groups that influence politics and policy to fielding handpicked candidates on their very own ballot line, which is being secretly purchased outside disclosure rules that have long governed election campaigns.

...
Right now, all the public knows is that No Labels is leading a $70 million campaign to lay the groundwork for a potential 2024 “unity” ticket — which would feature one Democrat and one Republican. Democrats and media outlets have been raising alarms that the move could undermine President Joe Biden and help elect a Republican.

Compared to moneyed groups’ previous failed efforts to field alternate candidates, the No Labels initiative is more ambitious, secretive, and corrupt: Under the guise of bipartisan consensus, the corporate influence machine is buying its own national ballot line, funded by ultra-wealthy, anonymous donors.

Noting
No Labels 2024 Insurance Project FAQ - No Labels

Question: Is No Labels running a presidential campaign?

Answer: No, No Labels is not and never will be running or funding a presidential campaign. We are only obtaining ballot access in states across the country to lay the necessary groundwork, which is necessary because the major political parties have put up such high barriers to competition. In short, No Labels is working to build the launching pad of an independent Unity presidential ticket. If we ultimately nominate a ticket, it will be up to their campaign team to build the rocket to take them to the White House.

Not much of a difference. "It's not our candidate, but we are funding them very heavily".

Question: Who funds No Labels?

Answer: No Labels has donors from across the country, and across the political spectrum, but all of them are united behind our critical mission to bring this divided country back together. We never share the names of our donors because we live in an era where agitators and partisan operatives try to destroy and intimidate organizations they don’t like by attacking their individual supporters. No Labels’ 2024 insurance project is an effort to secure ballot access nationwide and is not and never will be a presidential campaign. Since we announced our project, we’ve been threatened online with acts of violence, including death threats. We’re not going to subject the thousands of patriotic and principled people who support us to that kind of treatment.

How convenient.

 

[lpetrich]

Back to The Lever.

No Labels has indicated that candidates would be chosen by a group of people handpicked by the organization, which has close ties to corporate lawmakers like Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Kyrsten Sinema (Ind.-Ariz.), and Susan Collins (R-Maine).

...
No Labels, by contrast, is a tax-exempt nonprofit and is not required to publicly disclose its donors — even as it’s reportedly spending tens of millions getting ready to run candidates on the “No Labels Party” line around the country.

That's better than supporting a vanity Presidential run.

Back in 2008, Unity08 Plans to Field Fusion Ticket Aimed at Moderates - POLITICO

Then in 2020, Unity 2020: A Tragicomedy. Bret Weinstein’s dual-candidacy… | by Genevieve Weynerowski | Arc Digital | Medium - "Bret Weinstein’s dual-candidacy experiment is hopeless. So why is he doing it?"

If we take Unity2020 seriously, it suggests Weinstein is eyeing a Dan Crenshaw and Tulsi Gabbard joint presidency. Meanwhile, Joe Biden is no more or less imperfect than the average politician. Why does Bret Weinstein rate a Crenshaw/Gabbard ticket as so superior to a Biden/Harris ticket that it’s worth the risk of granting Trump four more years? It’s moot, anyway — Weinstein says he wants common sense to prevail, but Crenshaw and Gabbard will never share the presidency, because that is not how the political system works.

 

[lpetrich]

While No Labels characterizes itself as “the voice for the great American majority who increasingly feel politically homeless,” the organization is best understood as a front for Wall Street and other corporate interests who want to affect policy.

Major donors to No Labels have included billionaires in the private equity, hedge fund, real estate, and oil and gas industries, according to a leaked donor list obtained by the Daily Beast in 2018. The group has also courted Republican mega-donors.

No Labels’ CEO, Nancy Jacobson, was a fundraiser for both Bill and Hillary Clinton, while her husband, corporate consultant Mark Penn, was a top Clinton campaign advisor. The group is co-chaired by lobbyist and former Sen. Joe Lieberman (Ind.-Conn.), as well as ex-Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R). Manchin and Collins are “honorary co-chairs.”

No Labels also sponsors the Problem Solvers Caucus in the House of Representatives — an influential group of lawmakers from both parties that pushes supposedly bipartisan policy solutions in Congress.

What policy platform?

That mission statement says that Americans should “have the choice to vote for a presidential ticket that features strong, effective, and honest leaders who will commit to working closely with both parties to find common sense solutions to America’s biggest problems.”

If that all sounds exceedingly vague, there may be a good reason for it.

As Fischer, the campaign finance lawyer, points out, the lack of specifics from No Labels about its policy platform and what it hopes to see from the Democratic and Republican presidential nominees leaves plenty of room for dealmaking.

“At this point, No Labels isn’t saying what ‘values and commitments’ they are looking for from a major party candidate,” said Fischer. “This raises the specter of No Labels officials or donors using this leverage to extract backroom concessions.”

 

[Elixir]

Given everything, he could win the TeaParty primaries while becoming even more of an election loser than he was in past years.

From your lips to God’s ears.
That’s why I am a BIGLY YUUUGE Trump fan right now.
I can’t wait to see the fascist party choke to death trying to swallow the fat orange traitor for the third time.

 

[lpetrich]

Commenter Rebecca:

This is one of the most frightening pieces I've read in awhile. But, it makes perfect sense. I now understand how 1) Sinema became a millionaire almost overnight, 2) Why Manchin stays in the Dem party and takes the positions he does and 3) why democracy is on the edge of extinction regardless of what the r party does. It's almost like its out of our control. And it will be unless we come together as a nation with one focus...saving democracy!

Manchin stokes Dem fears he’ll run as third-party candidate | The Hill

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is stepping up his criticism of President Biden’s leadership, stirring speculation that the maverick Democrat may challenge Biden as a third-party candidate in 2024.

Manchin notes he has had a 12-year relationship with No Labels, the centrist political group that is trying to gain access to the ballot in all 50 states to open a path for a third-party candidate to run for president.

He praises the group as just about the only one in Washington trying to get Republicans and Democrats to cooperate and says voters are “starving” for less partisanship in politics.

“I’ve been part of No Labels since December of 2010. It’s the only game in town that wants to bring people together and get Democrats and Republicans working together,” he said.

So Joe Manchin might be interested in running, even if Kyrsten Sinema isn't.

 

[Copernicus]

West Virginia is a solid red state. Joe Manchin is the only DINO we've got, and at least he kept the Senate agenda in Democratic hands helped get legislation passed in Biden's first two years. Now he's just looking to hold onto his seat. If the Democrats hope to retain the Senate, they'll have to keep all of their current seats except his and then take two away from Republicans in other states. That doesn't strike me as likely to happen, but Republicans are trying hard to find some way to screw it up, just as they almost did in the midterms.

 

[Cheerful Charlie]

Given everything, he could win the TeaParty primaries while becoming even more of an election loser than he was in past years.

From your lips to God’s ears.
That’s why I am a BIGLY YUUUGE Trump fan right now.
I can’t wait to see the fascist party choke to death trying to swallow the fat orange traitor for the third time.

"The grift must flow!"
- House Trump

 

[Loren Pechtel]

5 Applause Lines from Vivek Ramaswamy’s Stump Speech - The New York Times

• “I will be the first presidential candidate to say I will end race-based affirmative action.”
• “I will shut down the fourth branch of government, the administrative state. You cannot tame that beast. You must end it.”
• “We will use our military to annihilate the Mexican drug cartels.”
• “How about a constitutional amendment to make the voting age 25, but you can still vote at 18 if you serve the country or pass the civics test my mother passed to become a citizen?”
• “Today we depend on our main enemy for our entire modern way of life. That is a problem. The Declaration of Independence that I will sign as your next president will be our Declaration of Independence from Communist China.”

That civics test is interesting -- how many lifetime American citizens of *any* age could pass it. Study for the Test (2020 version) | USCIS -- I think that I could do very well in it.

Yup, at least when I was helping my wife study for it there were a lot of historical questions of little day-to-day relevance. The passing score seems low enough I think I would be ok--tried a practice test, misread one and got one wrong (one of the irrelevant historical ones.) 90% would easily pass.

 

[blastula]

Thune, No. 2 Senate Republican, set to endorse Tim Scott's presidential bid

The minority whip will appear when Scott launches his campaign on Monday, and is making good on his hopes of turning the party away from former President Donald Trump.

www.politico.com

 

[Toni]

5 Applause Lines from Vivek Ramaswamy’s Stump Speech - The New York Times

• “I will be the first presidential candidate to say I will end race-based affirmative action.”
• “I will shut down the fourth branch of government, the administrative state. You cannot tame that beast. You must end it.”
• “We will use our military to annihilate the Mexican drug cartels.”
• “How about a constitutional amendment to make the voting age 25, but you can still vote at 18 if you serve the country or pass the civics test my mother passed to become a citizen?”
• “Today we depend on our main enemy for our entire modern way of life. That is a problem. The Declaration of Independence that I will sign as your next president will be our Declaration of Independence from Communist China.”

That civics test is interesting -- how many lifetime American citizens of *any* age could pass it. Study for the Test (2020 version) | USCIS -- I think that I could do very well in it.

Well, he lost me at biotech entrepreneur. Everything else quoted is such a complete non-starter that it's hard to take him seriously.

 

[Toni]

Sen. Tim Scott files paperwork to run for president in the 2024 election

I don't know a lot about him but his bio does look good.

(Of course I will be voting for the Democratic candidate)

 

[Elixir]

Sen. Tim Scott files paperwork to run for president in the 2024 election

I don't know a lot about him but his bio does look good.

(Of course I will be voting for the Democratic candidate)

I appreciate him too; he will help fracture the "not Trump" segment of the GQP, ensuring that Cheato the Loser will become the nominee.

 

[Toni]

Sen. Tim Scott files paperwork to run for president in the 2024 election

I don't know a lot about him but his bio does look good.

(Of course I will be voting for the Democratic candidate)

I appreciate him too; he will help fracture the "not Trump" segment of the GQP, ensuring that Cheato the Loser will become the nominee.

He sounds sane. He’s properly ‘pro-life.’ In many ways he’s a young throwback to Reagan-era Republican values—so, not crazy tea party/trumpanzie.

 

[Elixir]

Sen. Tim Scott files paperwork to run for president in the 2024 election

I don't know a lot about him but his bio does look good.

(Of course I will be voting for the Democratic candidate)

I appreciate him too; he will help fracture the "not Trump" segment of the GQP, ensuring that Cheato the Loser will become the nominee.

He sounds sane. He’s properly ‘pro-life.’ In many ways he’s a young throwback to Reagan-era Republican values—so, not crazy tea party/trumpanzie.

Yup, all that and … so what?
Trump will be the Fascist Party nominee, not some Reaganoid “leftist” like Scott.
I think ALL these Republican hopefuls are mainly ‘hopeful‘ that Trump drops dead In a timely manner. Because if he doesn’t, they are ALL predetermined also-ran losers. Doesn’t matter if they’re as RW crazy as DeSantis or refried Reagan “reasonable” like Scott. They are irrelevant as long as Trump is still wasting oxygen.
Persoally I hope he lives to be 110 so he can spend 30+ years in jail - but not until he loses the House, Senate and Whitehouse again.

 

[Toni]

Sen. Tim Scott files paperwork to run for president in the 2024 election

I don't know a lot about him but his bio does look good.

(Of course I will be voting for the Democratic candidate)

I appreciate him too; he will help fracture the "not Trump" segment of the GQP, ensuring that Cheato the Loser will become the nominee.

He sounds sane. He’s properly ‘pro-life.’ In many ways he’s a young throwback to Reagan-era Republican values—so, not crazy tea party/trumpanzie.

Yup, all that and … so what?
Trump will be the Fascist Party nominee, not some Reaganoid “leftist” like Scott.
I think ALL these Republican hopefuls are mainly ‘hopeful‘ that Trump drops dead In a timely manner. Because if he doesn’t, they are ALL predetermined also-ran losers. Doesn’t matter if they’re as RW crazy as DeSantis or refried Reagan “reasonable” like Scott. They are irrelevant as long as Trump is still wasting oxygen.
Persoally I hope he lives to be 110 so he can spend 30+ years in jail - but not until he loses the House, Senate and Whitehouse again.

I hear you but I do hate to think that the GOP is doomed forever, more than it was doomed after Reagan or Nixon.

While I feel very confident that Trump would lose any race he was the candidate for going forward, I am reminded every time I think that that he actually won in 2016.

 

[Elixir]

I hear you but I do hate to think that the GOP is doomed forever, more than it was doomed after Reagan or Nixon.

It's only doomed for as long as Cheato draws breath. Take him away, and you'll hear an epic thunderclap as an incredible volume of blowhards rush in the fill the vacuum.

While I feel very confident that Trump would lose any race he was the candidate for going forward, I am reminded every time I think that that he actually won in 2016.

Yeah. As a political "outsider", not as a proven LOSER with a history of insurrection and long coattails that make LOSERS out of those he endorses. Plus, a lot of the dirty tricks and lies that got him the EC in 2016 have since been laid bare. For 2024 I'd give him a snowball's chance in Hell - even on a cold day in Hell. My only worry is that he will certainly try to overturn the election in 2024 after he loses again. Hopefully he will bungle that too.