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The Supreme Court Resets the Game for Trump’s Vice-President
Gold, Guts, and Guns ^ | March 4, 2024 | Tom Luongo

Posted on 03/05/2024 4:47:59 AM PST by Jim Noble

Now that the Supreme Court has unanimously destroyed the dreams of Davos to use January 6th as a means to keep him off the ballot, Donald Trump has passed the easiest of the hurdles in front of his returning to the White House.

Some things, politically, in the US still function.

This ruling was a lay-up. The SCOTUS had to rule decisively here.

Trump was never convicted of ‘insurrection.’ He was impeached and character-assassinated, sure, but none of that carries any weight of law. But, even if you somehow believe he was guilty of the crimes the Democrats accused him of, the facts of January 6th are so murky from that perspective, there was no way the SCOTUS could concoct a justification for his ballot disqualification.

At stake itself was the SCOTUS’ own validity as an institution. And if there is one thing I believe about organizations it is they always move to defend themselves if their leadership is honest.

Like it or not, the SCOTUS does not exist to enforce anyone’s opinion on reality. They exist to conclude whether an action is or is not constitutional. Did Trump ever lead an armed insurrection against the government? No.

Did he question a questionable election? Yes.

Is that unconstitutional? No.

Case closed.

But this case was an important first step to shut off the Nikki Haley insurgent strategy of handing delegates to her by default:

Take Trump off the ballot. She’s now the only “Repuglican” left to vote for. She gets to go to the convention with a bunch of unearned delegates to steal the election before November.

Oops. Now she gets further embarrassed on Super Tuesday.

Now the strategy backfires completely and he’s now Obi-Don Kenobi.

Unless somehow Jack Smith or the Fulton County Gang that Can’t Lie Straight put him in jail Trump is the GOP nominee.

So, now, how does Trump take this political resurrection and change the game completely?

With Biden’s disapproval rating reaching historic lows of 59% (6 out of 10 US votes HATE JOAH! Biii-Den!), the path to the White House for Trump goes through Vice-President Kamala Harris.

While conversations abound about subbing in Big Mike and/or Gavin Gruesome, the more likely threat from the DNC is Hillary, who is clearly angling back into the conversation as Biden falters.

But whoever Trump winds up running against, there is one person who Trump can leverage to drive even more people who hate him bat-shit crazy than he does.

And he knows who that is. So, as Primary Trump morphs, just like in 2016, into Candidate Trump, he will look to shore up his weaknesses.

Candidate Trump became a guy who preached bringing the US back from a dark place. He ran on a populist platform that incorporated the Bernie Bros (remember them) as well as the tradesmen.

He broke the Democrats’ Trinity of Victimhood – Unions, Minorities, young people — that was their base and squeaked to victory over The Hildabeast.

If you think it’s Trump’s team or even US ‘white hats’ pushing out this stuff about Biden, you may be missing the obvious player, Hillary.

If there is one thing I know for certain about Trump it is that he’s a master of media. He knows exactly how and when to push everyone’s buttons.

For that reason (and many others) Trump’s only real choice for running mate is Tulsi Gabbard.

At a minimum, right now, Trump is using Gabbard, bringing her into the VP conversation. She’s okay with this. She’s allowing herself to be used by him. It’s mutually beneficial.

I’m well on the record as being a Gabbard fan (some would say simp… whatever). It doesn’t matter whether you trust her or not. It’s not about you. It’s about perception. And, for better or worse, Gabbard has a now long track record of service to the country that is honest.

She was someone targeted from the beginning as someone the DNC could groom into shape. Young, attractive, woman of color, veteran. Boxes are ticking off left and right. And those are all attributes that she still has which Trump doesn’t.

When Hillary stole the 2016 primary from Bernie Sanders she resigned from the DNC. This is a woman who crossed Hillary Clinton and, so far, has lived to tell the tale. No mean feat in the 21st century.

Long story short, Gabbard has stones. Some would call them principles, but that’s a stretch to ascribe those to any politician. She told Davos to go scratch. She told Hillary to slag-off.

And in 2024, she’s an ex-Democrat ,on Fox News, headlining at CPAC etc. Is she a stalking horse for the establishment? I don’t think so. Is she a grifter who just wants to trade up from the collection of dead-enders that are the current Democrats? Maybe.

Again, I don’t care about these things, because here’s the real story.

Trump needs to run as a real Unity candidate. He’s destroyed the GOPe’s (GOP establishment) gaggle of neocons. Now, he needs to seal the deal with the emerging Radical Center I discussed in a recent article.

That {being for something better rather than against what is} becomes a decision point for a lot of people. It’s the moment when the established idea, brand, etc. wakes up to the threat and fights back. This is what the 16% chasm represents, that gulf between opposition and affirmation.

This is also what Davos and their ilk are truly exceptional at managing. They keep the Overton Window framed over irrelevant side issues to ensure that a new majority doesn’t “cross the 16% chasm,” by uniting over that better solution that doesn’t include them.

I’m calling this group they are afraid of, “The Radical Center.”

And every time I bring Gabbard up in the VP conversation I hear a whole lot of side issues discussed without actually addressing the core goals of how to save the country from collapsing into conflict.

So, allow me to make one of my lists of reasons why Trump has only one real choice for VP:

Former Democrat Congresswoman, veteran, former Trump critic. Loudly rejected the Democrats for becoming something unrecognizable Stood up to Hillary Clinton She destroyed Kamala Harris in a DNC debate Is fundamentally populist in most of her positions Is NOT dogmatic about key issues, having shifted off previous positions on guns, abortion, etc. Is not a warhawk, but rather supports Trump’s views on foreign policy She’s a negotiator and a moderate. She’s a patriot with a strong sense of honor and duty. Ran a pure grassroots campaign for President in 2020, no outside donor support. If you look at the totality of Gabbard’s record you see someone who is the opposite of Trump, but who winds up in the same place he did.

Politically, she is someone who neuters all of the Democrats’ screeching about Trump hating women, being a Nahtsi, and dog whistling for the alt-Right.

If he picks Gabbard as his running mate he neuters all of those narratives with normies, softens Trump’s bombast, while leaving the media and Davos with nothing but “he’s pandering” as their fall back position.

That will backfire on them hard and they will take the bait, hook, line, and sinker.

And, like her or not, Gabbard is no Sarah Palin for them to pick apart. She’s seasoned at this level of the game.

Lastly, she is Globalist/Neocon Insurance as Trump is more compromised on this front than she is. And when you run through the Senate right now, who can you point to that doesn’t have huge stalking-horse-for-globalist vibes? Rubio? Scott? Rick or Tim?

Go through the Senate of possible people to succeed Trump and give me a good name you can trust to survive even the transition period between November and January.

If you could then some of them would have already tried for the job during the primaries. None of them wanted the Ron DeSantis treatment.

Of all the options for Trump only Gabbard is the person who can reach out to voters that matter, the ones in swing states/counties who are looking for our politics to focus on country first and ideology second.

The fundamental problem with all of this is that Trump is not a hard-ass. He’s a deal-maker. Gabbard is a consensus-builder. We need a hard-ass. You go to war with the Generals you have and the army you’ve built, not the ones you want.

Trump isn’t the General for this war I want, he’s the one I’ve got. And if my alternative is Harris, Gruesome, or Hitlary, then I want Trump to have the best possible VP for the job. I don’t want Mike Pence 2.0, which is how I see any of the mannequins in the Senate.

Will Trump do this? I have no idea. Should he do it? I honestly don’t think he has a real choice.


TOPICS: Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: nation; save; the
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To: Brian Griffin
Okay, I agree she is better looking than Hubert.

..

21 posted on 03/05/2024 5:27:30 AM PST by deport
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To: Jim Noble

Article is wrong on the person but right on the gender. Trump needs the women’s vote to beat the democratic machine. He has already started to peal some of that vote away. There is really only one choice of a conservative woman with the street creds for the base and a nationally recognized figure for the independents. That is Gov. Kristi Noem.

I like Gabbard as a person. But not as a Vice President. She would make a great cabinet official where she is following the principles of the commander and chief. But she is too liberal to be a safe choice for VP.


22 posted on 03/05/2024 5:31:06 AM PST by stig
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To: Jim Noble

Ben Carson


23 posted on 03/05/2024 5:31:11 AM PST by nikos1121
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To: NorthMountain

Neo-Con warmongers is bulls***? Are you a Liz Cheney fan? Bill Kristol? Maybe you prefer the Gorgon Victoria Nuland? Max Boot maybe?

I would vote for Gabbard in a heartbeat over ANY hack GOPe Neo-Con.


24 posted on 03/05/2024 5:37:00 AM PST by TTFlyer (Lenin: that by the infliction of terror, a well-organized minority can conquer a nation.)
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To: TTFlyer

I would NEVER vote for a hard-core leftist. You damn yourself with your own words, leftist.


25 posted on 03/05/2024 5:38:21 AM PST by NorthMountain (... the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed)
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To: NorthMountain

Okay, Neo-Con.


26 posted on 03/05/2024 5:39:30 AM PST by TTFlyer (Lenin: that by the infliction of terror, a well-organized minority can conquer a nation.)
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To: Jim Noble

I am old enough to remember that the most conservative President ever was a converted Democrat ... Yes, Ronaldus Maximus was a former Union boss from CA. I do not doubt that Tulsi could become a conservative, I just don’t think it has happened yet. If Trump wants her as his VP, he needs to put her on a speaking tour where she walks back her previous leftist speech.


27 posted on 03/05/2024 5:41:58 AM PST by RainMan
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To: TTFlyer
ROFL!!! You pretend to insult me by using a bullshit word. You only degrade yourself.

Meanwhile, you proudly and notoriously proclaim your desire to vote for a hard-core leftist.

Your degradation is complete.

28 posted on 03/05/2024 5:42:25 AM PST by NorthMountain (... the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed)
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To: NorthMountain

A Paleocon can’t be degraded any lower than he presently is


29 posted on 03/05/2024 5:43:35 AM PST by bert ( (KE. NP. +12) Hamascide is required in totality)
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To: RainMan
[H]e needs to put her on a speaking tour where she walks back her previous leftist speech and proves herself to be just another slimy, dishonest politician.
30 posted on 03/05/2024 5:43:51 AM PST by NorthMountain (... the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed)
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To: NorthMountain

Okay, Neo-Con.


31 posted on 03/05/2024 5:44:35 AM PST by TTFlyer (Lenin: that by the infliction of terror, a well-organized minority can conquer a nation.)
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To: Jim Noble
1. I don’t trust her. She was a Bernie Sanders supporter, for crying out loud.

2. Trump will not select his running mate. The GOP leadership will, and they will never accept a ticket that doesn’t have at least one career GOP politician on it.

3. Kristi Noem will be the VP candidate in 2024.

32 posted on 03/05/2024 5:45:27 AM PST by Alberta's Child (If something in government doesn’t make sense, you can be sure it makes dollars.)
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To: Jim Noble

Whenever I see a write use terms like, “Repuglican” in a serious context…I stop reading. That kind of language is not used to educate or persuade. It is used to communicate with the simple minded.

It’s akin to Sarah Palin talking about “The Lame Stream Media.” It’s fingernails on a chalkboard.


33 posted on 03/05/2024 5:46:43 AM PST by Vermont Lt (Don’t vote for anyone over 70 years old. Get rid of the geriatric politicians.)
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To: TTFlyer

ROFL!!! You pretend to insult me by using a bullshit word. You only degrade yourself.

Meanwhile, you proudly and notoriously proclaim your desire to vote for a hard-core leftist.

Your degradation is complete.


34 posted on 03/05/2024 5:48:04 AM PST by NorthMountain (... the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed)
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To: stig

I like Noem too ... a lot. But in the game of politics, the Dakota’s don’t push Trump over the top because a) he already has them and b) not enough electoral votes. I think Kari Lake is much more likely but it appears she is running for a Senate seat now. I do agree that Trump will pick a woman.


35 posted on 03/05/2024 5:48:31 AM PST by RainMan
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To: Jim Noble

I would vote for Gabbard. There are a lot of things to like about her. I will never vote for Nimrata the Hindu supremacist.


36 posted on 03/05/2024 5:50:35 AM PST by wildcard_redneck (He who sacrifices freedom for security deserves neither.)
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To: RainMan

VP candidates aren’t selected based on key state considerations anymore. It’s more about enhancing a candidate’s appeal among key demographic groups: women (Sarah Palin), evangelical Christians (Mike Pence), metrosexual men (Paul Ryan), etc.


37 posted on 03/05/2024 5:52:54 AM PST by Alberta's Child (If something in government doesn’t make sense, you can be sure it makes dollars.)
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To: Jim Noble

I won’t vote for any ticket that has a Bernie Bot on it.


38 posted on 03/05/2024 5:57:40 AM PST by ChuckHam
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To: RainMan
But in the game of politics, the Dakota’s don’t push Trump over the top because a) he already has them and b) not enough electoral votes.

It really depends on what women from Wisconsin and Michigan think of Kristi Noem.

I likel Kari Lake but she is unproven. She has never run a large business nor been a governor, senator, or congressman. She is conservative enough. But I don't think she does anything for us being from the Southwest, when we need to pull in Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Georgia.

39 posted on 03/05/2024 5:57:43 AM PST by stig
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To: Jim Noble

I would agree that Gabbard might end up as SecDef....beyond that? No.

I also think that the ‘true’ VP list is a awful lot smaller (probably just Vivek, Donalds, and Scott). Vivek’s true purpose in the end...may be designed as the downsize-the-government ‘Czar’, and lessen 200k government employees by the end of 2025.

Grenell? He’ll likely end up as Secretary of State.


40 posted on 03/05/2024 5:59:15 AM PST by pepsionice
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