Tonight I’m in Buffalo, heading for York, Pennsylvania in the morning. Everything’s going fairly well, the weather’s nice, no problems. Nothing left to report out here really.
Lots going on these last few days in the Democrat race, though, so let’s get to it.
So, Maryland governor O’Malley has announced for the presidency. I suppose that’s no shock, he’s been bubbling under the surface for some time now and I’ve been seeing references to his setting this up for some months. If he manages to survive between now and the election without ending up face down in Ft Marcy park with a bullet in the head and a gun that wont fire in his hand, I suppose we’ll all be surprised.
Now, O’Malley comes down in my view somewhere between Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton in terms of how far left they lean.
We both know the political positioning has very little to do with one’s actual positions. In terms of one’s actual policies, you probably can’t fit water between O’Malley and Bernie Sanders. It should be interesting to watch them debate each other. It’ll be a contest to see how much of other people’s money they can give away inside of the 60-minute debate or whatever the time limit is.
Regardless though, of any other outcome there is one site thing that we can draw from this situation. Hillary Clinton is not going to have an easy time of it, even from her own party at this point. O’Malley is if nothing else a pragmatist. He wouldn’t be going in this direction if he didn’t smell blood in the water.
With that in mind, O’Malley is a pragmatist in a party of them. If he smells blood in the water, do you suppose nobody else does?
I mean, look at her numbers. [1]
Ponder the level of insanity surrounding the Democrat Party. When it takes the insanity of Bernie Sanders to make their leading candidate thus far, Hillary Clinton, look like a sane choice.
Look anyone who believes in socialism, and its many offshoots, is a mental midget to begin with. Sanders is certainly no exception. That said, he’s been hanging around for a lot of years, and has had a mode of political success, particularly in the left-leaning state of Vermont. Which, these days is occupied mostly by aging hippies who’ve never gotten out of the idea that wearing a tie dye t-shirt is the in thing to do.
But his sudden rise on the scene leaves me wondering about the grassroots claims. Democrats are always going to claim that their candidates, however positioned, are very organic, very grassroots ish. But the fact is, they almost never are. Usually, corporate sponsors are coming out of the candidates years. And that, usually in the hopes of buying influence I like Hillary Clinton.
But Sanders and his sudden pop star status, to me has a different feel to it… And probably a different explanation. Certainly, one of the complaints that can be leveled very easily at Hillary Clinton is that she is too far left of the mainstream. How to correct that image? Certainly, she can’t change her position… not substantially anyway. But with a few dollars here in a few dollars there, she could pump up Bernie Sanders to make him look like a serious threat to your candidacy. Then, if he gets too large, it does actually presented a serious challenge, you can always question his birth certificate.
Oh wait, that’s what she did with Obama. Well, you get the idea anyway.
Suddenly all the money dries up, and charges start flying out of the woodwork.
What I guess I’m saying here is that I suspect and suppose that Sanders and his sudden rise to power is all for the benefit of Hillary Clinton.
Yes, I know that I’ve mentioned that aspect before, but I mentioned it as a possibility at the time. Thing is, the more time goes on the more I am convinced that that’s precisely what’s happening here.
Let’s also consider George Soros. If anybody had the kind of money needed to pull something like this off, Soros would certainly be very close to the top of the list if not at the top. Getting the party as a whole to bend more to the left, what should the purposes of Soros very nicely. You know, it was only several weeks ago now that Sanders and his people were gloating over the amount of money that all then, very quickly after his announcing his candidacy. I would be very interested in seeing where precisely that money comes from. I will guarantee you but if you follow the money a couple of hops back, Clinton calculates very large of those figures.
In the end, it’s my view the Bernie Sanders has about as much chance of obtaining the Democrat nomination as Rand Paul does the Republican nomination… And for the same reason. But, often as not, watching the outliers gives you an indication of what’s going on in the middle, because usually the outliers have strings tugging on them from the middle. Controlling them.
As for O’Malley, I strongly suspect that he’s going to end up being nothing more than an also-ran in this contest, assuming even survives that long.
One more thing. I’ve been watching David’s comments as regards Bruce Jenner, and I can only add one comment to it all…
The question that seems to go ignored in this Jenner thing, is one that’s been asked several times previously about other people. What happens when, as happens so frequently, the person involved decides that the surgical disfigurement didn’t make them happy either?
It seems to me that no matter how you slice this one, what we are witness to is a case of a number of people trying to justify their own leanings against the societal status quo, by latching onto an emotionally troubled individual. Is Jenner what our society has reduced itself to and its perception of bravery and heroes? If so, I think I can easily predict our society is not going to be around come the turn of the next century.
And down the road I go . I’ll see you tomorrow.