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The Race For 2024

Why Doug Burgum Could Surprise In The 2024 Republican Primary | FiveThirtyEight
He has a net worth of $1 billion, so he could easily fund his campaign. He is also not very well known outside of ND, and these two factors combine to let him easily decide on what image he wants to project of himself.
As governor, Burgum has been a bit hard to pin down ideologically, and it will be interesting to see how he defines himself once he enters the GOP race. Will we get the wonky, temperate Burgum who geeks out over energy policy and once called an anti-LGBTQ+ resolution “hurtful and divisive”? Or the rock-ribbed conservative Burgum who signed multiple pieces of anti-transgender legislation and one of the strictest abortion bans in the country?
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He may place third behind Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis, but he will have a lot of competition there.
 
TomC said:
Copernicus said:
It is all about getting attention for himself.
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Sometimes I agree with West, sometimes not.

But this does seem like his bottom line.
Tom
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Obviously, I don't know what really motivates him, but he is not stupid. He knows very well that his candidacy can't win the presidency and that it can only attract votes away from the Democratic nominee. So I try to imagine what his reasoning could be. He obviously wants to be interviewed and to spread his ideas, but he is somewhat marginalized as just another minor candidate vying for the nomination, especially in a year where the incumbent sucks all the air out of the room. So he has a platform that will get people to pay more attention to him and his ideas. That seems the most likely explanation to me. He isn't stupid, and he knows that his candidacy and popularity will attract a some unknown number of voters away from Biden, assuming that Biden will be running. Maybe he thinks that he can pressure Biden to be more leftish? I think he is too smart to believe that that's going to happen.

What do you think he hopes to accomplish with his candidacy?
 
Copernicus said:
southernhybrid said:
I've admired Cornell West for many years, as the extremely intellectual, interesting person he is, but what the fuck does Brother West think he will accomplish by running for president, other than to take votes away from the Dems and make it easier for the Repugs to win? Has he become delusional? Maybe he won't get enough support to get on the ballot other than in a few blue states. Maybe he's simply hoping to push the Dems to the Left a bit. I'm just perplexed why an academic who has never held a political position, and who is at least as far left as Bernie, thinks running for president at this particular time is going to be helpful.
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Cornell West has always struck me as something of a political spoiler. He backed Bernie Sanders in 2016, but he switched to Jill Green's quixotic campaign, when Sanders lost. He knows he can't win the presidency as the candidate of an obscure third party, but he helped Donald Trump get elected in 2016. He either hasn't learned his lesson from that disaster, or he doesn't really care. It is all about getting attention for himself.
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Sadly, you are probably right about that. I haven't seen West around in awhile, but I really hoped he was better than this.
 
www.theverge.com

DeSantis attack ad uses fake AI images of Trump embracing Fauci

US politicians continue to normalize AI deepfakes
www.theverge.com www.theverge.com

The campaign backing Ron DeSantis as Republican presidential nominee in 2024 has used what experts identify as AI-generated deepfakes in attack ad against rival Donald Trump.

On June 5th, the “DeSantis War Room” Twitter account shared a video emphasizing Trump’s support for Anthony Fauci, a former White House chief medical advisor and key figure in developing the US response to COVID-19.
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One more reason this campaign will suck more than usual.
 
With all of these persons putting their hands in the air how might a test of PR be used to determine who is the fairest in the land?
 
Pence doing his usual incoherent and spineless act.



 
Mikey in a couple of hours (after Jack Smith’s news conference):
“I’m SHOCKED! SHOCKED I tell you!!”
 
Mike Pence CNN town hall takeaways | CNN Politics

1. "Pence walks Trump tightrope urging DOJ not to indict former president"
Pence urged the Justice Department not to indict his onetime boss, saying such an indictment would fuel division inside the country and “send a terrible message to the wider world.”

While Pence said that “no one is above the law,” he said the DOJ could resolve its investigation into Trump’s potential mishandling of classified documents without resorting to an indictment, just as the department informed Pence’s attorney last week that there would be no charges brought in the case of the classified documents discovered in his home.
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Wanting to claim to support the rule of law while wanting the Trumpie vote.

2. "Pence hits Trump over his praise of Putin"
“I know the difference between a genius and a war criminal, and I know who needs to win the war in Ukraine,” Pence said. “And it’s the people fighting for their freedom and fighting to restore their national sovereignty in Ukraine. And America – it’s not our war, but freedom is our fight. And we need to give the people of Ukraine the ability to fight and defend their freedom.”
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Thus agreeing with Nikki Haley, but not with Ron DeSantis, who calls the war a "territorial dispute".
“Anybody that thinks Vladimir Putin will stop if he overruns Ukraine has what we say back in Indiana, another thing coming,” Pence said. “He has no intention of stopping. He’s made it clear that he wants to recreate that old Soviet sphere of influence in Eastern Europe.”
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3. "Pence talks up parents’ rights – but not for transgender kids’ families"
 
4. "Pence makes his abortion stance clear"
On the question of a federal ban on the procedure, Pence said he supported exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother. ...

“We will not rest or relent until we restore the sanctity of life to the center of American law in every state in the country,” Pence said.

Still, the former vice president acknowledged that his side had a “long way to go to win the hearts and minds of the American people” and encouraged his allies to show both “principle and compassion.”

To that end, he offered qualified support for social spending programs to help support newborns and new parents.

“We have to care as much about newborns and mothers as we do about the unborn,” Pence said. But he stopped short of specifically endorsing paid family leave for all Americans or subsidized child care.
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I'll believe it when I see it.

5. "Pence says he’d ‘take a step back’ from Trump-era First Step Act"
“We need to get serious and tough on violent crime, and we need to give our cities and our states the resources to restore law and order to our streets. And I promise you, we’ll do that, if I’m your president,” Pence told Bash.
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As if that would be contrary to the First Step Act, which released thousands of people imprisoned for drug and weapons offenses, and reduced some drug mandatory minimum sentences.
Asked about DeSantis’ promise to repeal the First Step Act if elected president, Pence again conceded that he would take a different approach than the First Step Act.

“We ought to be thinking about how we make penalties tougher on people that are victimizing families in this country,” he said.
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6. "Pence goes in on Trump criticism"
Pence repeated the criticism he has leveled at his former boss for more than a year, insisting that Trump was wrong to ask his second-in-command to overturn some states’ 2020 Electoral College votes in his ceremonial role presiding over Congress as it counted those votes on January 6, 2021.
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On the question of a federal ban on the procedure, Pence said he supported exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother. ...

“We will not rest or relent until we restore the sanctity of life to the center of American law in every state in the country,” Pence said.
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I'm feeling this is like W's statement that he would sign the assault weapons ban extension if it gets to his desk, knowing his party would never let it go through. Pence will 'support' exceptions, buuuut if the bill that comes through doesn't have them....
 
This is the sort of thing that some Trumpies are willing to say.

Gallego calls Kari Lake’s remarks on Trump indictment ‘dangerous’ | The Hill

Kari Lake is running for the Republican nomination for the 2024 Arizona Senate election.
Speaking at a Georgia GOP convention, Lake threatened violence toward Attorney General Merrick Garland, President Biden, and Special Counsel Jack Smith, and the media for coming after Trump.

“If you want to get to President Trump, you’re going to have to go through me, and you’re going to have to go through 75 million Americans just like me,” Lake said during her speech on Friday, according to the AZ Central.

“And I’m going to tell you, most of us are card-carrying members of the NRA. That’s not a threat, that’s a public service announcement.”
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Ruben Gallego is running for the Democratic nomination in that election.
“Last November, Arizona voters rejected Kari Lake and her off-the-rails rhetoric that does nothing but sow doubt in our elections. As a Marine who went all the way to Iraq to defend this country, our democracy, and our freedoms, I know this language isn’t just hyperbole — it’s dangerous and it threatens the very core of our democracy,” Gallego, who announced earlier this year that he would be running for Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s (I-Ariz.) seat, said in his statement. “For that, Kari owes every America-loving Arizonan an apology.”
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Kyrsten Sinema currently has the seat that's up for election, and she's not yet sure whether she wants to run again.
 
The alt-right has been misled and misinformed for so long, their grasp on politics has become more deluded that Cleveland Browns' fans hopes for 'this being the year'.

Trump is up in polling now. Their partisan goggles have left them daft and blind. They interpret the investigation into documents, as the Democrats being scared of Trump... instead of Trump's violations of the law being so egregious. It is hard to tell if this is a point of no return or whether this movement evaporates with Trump. I kind of thought it was possible DeSantis could inherit, but that hasn't happened. Trump's base is steadfast for Trump. So steadfast, they will use anything to spin the current events into Trump's favor.

Trump isn't indicted because he was so guilty that his own lawyers had to testify, that he is on tape, that his crew is on record for conspiring to break the law... it is a political witch hunt... just like his Ukraine stunt, and that January 6th thing. Their devotion to him despite everything, it is almost too surreal to work in a movie.

Honestly, I don't see Trump serving time in prison, but I do see a conviction which forfeits his right to be President. Though that likely wouldn't come soon enough before the election. We'd literally be looking at an potential President quashing his own trial (if that is even allowed) for crimes committed. The GOP in the Senate is quiet as heck, because again... cash cow. What probably frightens (or excites?) the GOP is that in the primary, Trump's indictment most likely is beneficial for Trump. And others in tthe GOP are licking their lips over that possible benefit moving to others. But Trump, again, is unique and transcends what is normal. Cults of personality are just that, cults, and the devotion is to Trump, not the GOP.
 
Miami mayor Francis Suarez (GOP) seems to have some skeltons in his closet. Some questionable, corrupt business dealings. A typical conservative grifter. Ain't gonna go anywhere.
 
Cheerful Charlie said:
Miami mayor Francis Suarez (GOP) seems to have some skeltons in his closet. Some questionable, corrupt business dealings. A typical conservative grifter. Ain't gonna go anywhere.
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Yeah, look at Rick Scott after the extraordinary Medicare fraud settlement his company had to make. Haven't heard from him since. If this guy falters, it won't be because of ethics. The GOP voting base clearly doesn't care about ethics... any type of ethics.
 
Haley twisting her spine into a pretzel.

www.politico.com

Haley ‘inclined in favor’ of Trump pardon

Her remarks came after she called the former president 'reckless.'
www.politico.com www.politico.com

After calling Donald Trump “reckless,” Nikki Haley on Tuesday said she would still be “inclined” to pardon him if he is convicted of federal charges.

Haley’s remarks on the conservative Clay Travis and Buck Sexton radio show came after the former U.N. ambassador and GOP presidential candidate on Monday said the allegations against Trump, if true, show that he put “all of our military men and women in danger.”

In Tuesday’s interview, Haley maintained that Trump was “incredibly reckless with our national security,” based on the indictment — but not reckless enough to deserve to carry out a sentence.

“When you look at a pardon, the issue is less about guilt and more about what’s good for the country,” Haley said. “And I think it would be terrible for the country to have a former president in prison for years because of a documents case.
“So I would be inclined in favor of a pardon.”
 
So the MAGA wing of the GOP should vote for Haley, because she would consider pardoning Trump? But no promises. She would just consider it. I see her attracting dozens more voters to her side with this news.
 
It looks like Trump has a good cnance of getting reelected.

God, metaphorically, help us.
 
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