The Right Resistance: First day of the RNC and, what difference does it make who Democrats run?

First day of the RNC dominated by Veep announcement, the “forgotten Americans” – and Trump

I never knew how much I missed good ol’ fashioned big-show political conventions until the

Republicans convened their 2024 version in Milwaukee, Wisconsin yesterday (at least the speeches portion of the festivities). Already super-charged with enthusiasm after former President Donald Trump was nearly assassinated last Saturday evening, Republican delegates could barely contain their enthusiasm as they enjoyed a well-planned night of nominations – newly named vice president nominee J.D. Vance of Ohio – and orations that broadly hit the theme of the day, “Make America Wealthy Again”.

Not surprisingly, the program was an honorarium to Trump himself. Why not celebrate your deck’s best drawing card?

It’d been eight years since Republicans (or Democrats, for that matter) had been “permitted” to conduct a full convention tribute, the 2020 version being altered greatly by the absurd COVID situation. As previously noted, in 2020 Trump and his team thought up a stellar multi-site RNC that nonetheless accomplished many of the “fun” aspects of conventions.

But it still was great to see the Republican folks all in one room again. Or more descriptively, one arena, packed to capacity with Trump supporters itching to get going on the hard work required to win in November.

They did so on Monday, primarily by devoting big chunks of time to cheering on J.D. Vance, the 39-year-old Ohio senator who’s come a long way in his short political career. It’s hard to contemplate that a year from now – or even sooner – Vance could, through unforeseen circumstances, be occupying the Oval Office. It’s a sobering thought.

But not one filled with panic. The Ohioan and author of “Hillbilly Elegy” proved himself worthy of the high honor bestowed upon him by Donald Trump. Sean Hannity conducted a lengthy interview with Vance during Fox News’s 9 o’clock hour where the senator talked a lot about foreign policy, demonstrating that he’s not exactly a neophyte when the subject comes up. J.D. prefaced his answers with, “Donald Trump thinks…”, showing that he’s ready to observe and learn as well as serve and be loyal to his boss.

And Vance would be a thousand percent better than Kamala Harris. Or senile Joe Biden.

The highlight of the evening, or at least the televised portion of the coverage, was when GOP presidential nominee (yes, the vote had taken place earlier in the afternoon) Donald Trump entered the arena and sat with family members and party supporters (including Tucker Carlson!) to view the last hour of speeches. Trump sat next to Rep. Byron Donalds, who’d addressed the delegates earlier.

Trump looked tired – “subdued, almost choked up” is how one of the ABC onlookers described him -- which was understandable. But I also think he much prefers speaking and feeding off the energy of the room rather than listening to others talk – even if it’s about him. Anticipation is building to hear his “toned down” (because of what he’d just been through) address on Thursday evening.

The primetime portion of the program was devoted to “ordinary people” talking about their experiences and reasons for supporting Trump’s candidacy. Particularly poignant were model Amber Rose (with a tattoo on her forehead, no less) and immigrant and Las Vegas resident Linda Fornos, who sheepishly admitted that she’d voted for senile Joe Biden in 2020.

Multi-ethnic Rose famously relayed that she was “pissed” when she put gas in her car and saw the prices. She also said her military member father introduced her to Trump and refuted the notion that he was a racist.

Teamsters President Sean O’Brien offered what probably was considered the keynote speech, commending Trump for inviting a union leader to speak at the Republican convention. Predictably, O’Brien talked a lot about union workers and the benefits of unionization, a subject that wasn’t widely applauded by the GOP delegates, many of whom were likely on the management side of things. The tractor trailer driver from Massachusetts also railed against corporations and the Chamber of Commerce.

My how things have changed in Republican-land. But much of what O’Brien spoke about matches Donald Trump’s populist appeal, so it wasn’t necessarily out of place.

Overall, the first day of the RNC was well done and memorable, just the way Trump wanted it.

I was right; Trump chose J.D. Vance for his second running mate. Good choice!

Earlier in the day on Monday speculation raged over who Trump would name as his running mate. Names were dropping like fake Democrat ballots in a drop box – Vance, Ben Carson, Glenn Youngkin and some pols who probably never got any consideration at all. Then it was said that Trump had told North Dakota governor Doug Burgum and Florida Senator Marco Rubio that they wouldn’t be the choice.

Which left anti-establishment Vance, whose nomination was largely greeted with enthusiasm by the conservative crowd. Simply put, Vance was a great selection for a number of reasons. I wrote last Friday:

The rationale for choosing J.D. Vance isn’t complex or complicated. Simply put, Vance is as young as senile Joe Biden is old and serves as a stark contrast in this age/mental capacity focused presidential race. Trump is no spring chicken either, of course, so anointing Vance as his successor instantly removes all or most of the age-related hesitations surrounding Trump himself.

Vance has been on TV a lot lately, which doubles for an extended on-the-job interview for the Republican party’s leader to see whether the late thirty-something former stern Trump critic has really changed his attitude and can hold up to the intense pressure he’ll face under the eternally antagonistic establishment media and hate-filled Democrat opposition’s glare.

It should also be noted that, unlike the others in the finalist category, Vance has never run for president before. Therefore, the Ohio junior senator hasn’t endured the constant days on the campaign trail, the 24-hour news crush, endless requests for interviews, the big-time debate stages or anything else that comes along with running the gauntlet seeking the highest office in the land/world.

Needless to say, as veep nominee, Vance would be asked a ton of questions regarding his views on foreign policy since, as president (if he steps into the office), J.D. would be the center of attention for devising American policy outside our borders. That being said, I personally believe American voters don’t base their votes on foreign affairs unless there’s a war involved. Most Americans are too preoccupied with domestic issues to worry about what the politicians think on American policy on continental Africa, as an example.

This may not be as true this election, since, again, Kamala Harris is Biden’s vice president (and may be president sooner than we thought). Harris’s weaknesses are in every area, particularly on immigration and foreign policy (no experience). Vance is a Marine and has a Yale law degree. He’s also a best-selling author. I doubt anyone will be arguing he’s not sharp or prepared.

Lastly, Vance has a very telegenic and professionally accomplished woman-of-color wife (Usha Vance), so the “racist” and “misogynist” labels wouldn’t stick to him – or her, since she shares her ethnic heritage with Kamala Harris.

We’ll hear more from Vance on Wednesday night after the dust has cleared and the gravity of his new title has sunk in. Should be inspiring.

Republicans ready for Biden or Biden’s replacement.

It seems like ages ago now, but those who bothered to tune-in to incumbent president senile Joe Biden’s post-NATO press conference last Thursday night received, again, additional assurances from the mouth of the man himself that he had absolutely zero intention of heeding the calls of actor George Clooney and a multitude of others – including a growing number of Democrat elected officials – to gracefully take himself out of the 2024 equation and leave the hard campaigning and Democrat message-bending to someone younger, and, let’s say, not so well past his prime.

Senile Joe’s subsequent establishment media appearances over the weekend responding to the astonishing assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump were pretty standard boilerplate “let’s get along” and “political violence is completely unacceptable” reactions one would expect from any chief executive. Was Biden sincere? He seemed to be, but will his tone really change from here on out?

Particularly revealing last week was Biden’s answer to a media question about why he’s breaking his 2020 pledge to serve as a “bridge candidate to a younger generation of Democrats” like vice president cackling Kamala Harris, from which the old dolt blubbered about how he’d had more accomplishments than “most any president since Johnson” to supplement his “wisdom on how to deal with Congress to get things done” – and those reasons compelled him to break his prior vow. Lastly, senile Joe offered that he wasn’t done with the job (whatever “job” this entailed wasn’t clear).

Biden also mumbled something about the “threat” that Trump and the conservative majority on the Supreme Court represents, which kept him from passing the proverbial baton to Harris or someone else. Yeah, like he suddenly woke up one morning after assuming the position and said to himself, “Gee, it’s worse than I thought. I’m the best one to move the Democrat agenda even though practically the whole world tells me I’ve lost my marbles.”

Translation: senile Joe Biden never intended to step away – not after one term, countless gallons of ice cream, hundreds if not thousands of gaffes, embarrassing himself and the country before the world and screwing over the American population with policies that provably worsen their quality of life and weakened traditions and culture. Biden’s a selfish, egotistical moron who doesn’t care what anyone else says. And he’s staying put.

Republicans must be confident that they can beat the doddering dunce from Delaware, but they should also be equally assured that they could best any Democrat who runs this year if the issue mix is the proper one to present to the American people. If last night’s first night of the convention (themed “Make America Wealthy Once Again”) was an indication, they’re on the right track.

And Saturday evening’s incident helped paint Trump in a sympathetic light, except to those on social media who post things like, “I hope they care as much about a third-grade classroom being shot up as they do an ear”.

But what if senile Joe wasn’t on the level about not stepping down? In an opinion piece titled “Republican chairman says party is ready to handle any Democratic nominee”, Salena Zito wrote at the Washington Examiner last week:

“…Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley said he is pretty focused on one thing: winning. And he says their plans to win can handle any candidate switch by the Democrats just as well as it can handle President Joe Biden as the chief opponent.

“’Winning is the only thing,’ he said with a broad smile in a 25-minute comprehensive interview after leaving the morning RNC Rules Committee meeting in Milwaukee.

“Whatley is a North Carolina native, father of three, and former chairman of the North Carolina state party. He said the RNC and Trump campaign will get there by developing together a strong get-out-the-vote apparatus that includes a mail in ballot program, a cohesive message that is united up and down the ballot, and a concerted effort led by the presidency but also for governors’ seats and the majorities in the U.S. House and Senate.”

Reading Zito’s report on Whatley was pretty reassuring. As everyone knows, the GOP suffered loss after loss under the “guidance” (if you can call it that) of establishment-to-the-core previous chairman Ronna McDaniel, a well-meaning but incompetent party leader whose good intentions fell far short of the end goal, which was simply to win elections.

That’s all parties are good for, basically, raising money and helping candidates win elections. The governing is done by the office-holders after they’ve vanquished their opponents at the ballot box. The party’s not ideological as much as it coordinates a team effort to put points on the proverbial scoreboard and “Ws” in the win column. And there’re no kudos or prizes for second place.

For years, conservatives have argued that the leadership of the Republican party had to stop caring about political correctness or appeasing “woke” constituencies who wouldn’t vote for GOP candidates anyway. Trump basher and former RNC Chairman Michael Steele works at MSNBC now because he couldn’t grasp what was going on with the grassroots.

Whatley, however, is correct – Donald Trump changed things, and the GOP is better off for it.

One could readily analogize what the RNC is doing to prepare to “play” the Democrats to a football team/coach that’s practicing to face an opponent who’s being coy about which of their quarterbacks they plan to start. The NFL has rules against teams lying about their injured players, but there’s nothing that requires any ball club to state unequivocally who will start the game at any position.

Football fans know that the starting quarterback usually plays most if not the entire game, so it’s useful to game plan for the starter vs. a backup. There’s only so much practice time and it’s a pure waste to devote precious minutes and hours to preparing for the wrong guy.

Thankfully, the Republicans are implementing their pre-election plans towards getting out the vote and protecting the ballot in all fifty states. The latter concentration – protecting the ballot – was particularly lacking in 2020, which led to the heinous troubles in ensuring accurate vote counts. The onset of universal mail-in balloting tossed a huge wrench in the party’s post-election operations resulting in the losses of several states.

No one particularly chooses to remember, but Georgia and Arizona in particular created quite a bit of heartache and indigestion for not only Donald Trump and the GOP officials, but also the tens of millions of Trump voters who couldn’t believe what they saw and heard. Attorney Sidney Powell and her “release the Kraken” promises didn’t help things. It was ugly.

Post 2020 election analyses by many entities pointed to the essential nature of protecting the ballot this time around, and it’s heartening to hear Chairman Whatley and co-chairman Laura Trump talking about what’s being done to fix the mistakes from last time – and to anticipate what might go wrong this year. If it’s said that generals err by plotting to fight the last battle, the same thing applies to political parties.

In terms of Republicans being primed to match any Democrat presidential opponent, this is most definitely true. Speculation regarding senile Joe Biden’s health and mental state has swirled for years, not just the last few weeks. Any Republican party or Trump campaign staffer who’s zeroed-in on Biden-only has been off-base from the beginning. The fact that Biden himself swears he’s going to stay in the race is irrelevant.

Whatley correctly pointed out that it’s Biden’s policies that Trump and the Republicans are running against in 2024, and it can’t be any other way. The Wall Street Journal’s Kimberley A. Strassel made a convincing case last week that the Democrats’ problems run much deeper than worrying about whether senile Joe can stumble past the electoral finish line, and that putting cackling Kamala Harris or California’s Gavin Newsom or Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer in Biden’s shoes won’t cure what ails the party.

The fact that most Democrats have circled the wagons around bumbling Biden primarily indicates that they don’t have anyone who could replace Obama’s errand boy veep as leader of the party. It’s not that Democrats love ol’ broken-down Joe that much – they simply see him as the one who can win. But perhaps not anymore, which is why the “ditch Joe” talk hasn’t subsided after the debate.

Trump himself has said it many times, that it doesn’t matter who his opponent is, because he would beat them anyway, and this is done through consistent messaging and good old fashioned hard work. Trump has sworn that no candidate will outwork him on the campaign trail, a vow he’s kept for three election cycles. Senile Joe Biden boasts about his “schedule” and uses his creepy whisper to chastise his staff for always adding to his daily burden. But no one buys it.

The Democrats can and no doubt will continue with their bickering over whether to try and kick senile Joe out through the 25th Amendment or just let him run his course and try to make up ground the old-fashioned Democrat way – by cheating. The calculus is still the same and it’s heartening to see that Chairman Whatley and the Republican party’s leadership are doing what it takes to make sure Donald Trump returns to the White House next January.

Republicans seem ready to put it all together this year

No doubt, it will be hard for Republicans to top the news-making quality of their convention’s first day. The long-awaited announcement of Trump’s running mate and the appearance of the man himself at the convention arena made for quite an introduction to the party’s main arguments for supplanting senile Joe Biden this November. What will they do for an encore?

• Joe Biden economy

• inflation

• Biden cognitive decline

• gas prices,

• Nancy Pelosi

• Biden senile

• January 6 Committee

• Liz Cheney

• Build Back Better

• Joe Manchin

• RINOs

• Marjorie Taylor Green

• Kevin McCarthy

• Mitch McConnell

• 2022 elections

• Donald Trump

• 2024 presidential election