CHARLOTTE, NC: In his song The Gambler, Kenny Rogers warns us that you have to “know when to hold’em, know when to fold’em”. Good advice, but apparently a lesson that is yet to resonate with Democrats. Especially those who are challenging Donald Trump in Presidential poker for the mailbox at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Since day one and before, Trump’s opponents have spent (or more accurately, wasted) countless hours trying to oust him from office rather than offer productive alternatives to his policies. The biggest unknown is trying to determine when the Democrats will reach the point of no return.
Because their strategy was so new to the traditional way Washington goes about its business.
Democrat Debates: Kamala Harris, the herd’s newest alpha
Oddly enough, the first presidential debates of nearly a thousand more similar such made-for-television political reality shows that are yet to come, would normally have been premature by taking place more than a year and a half before the election, may have been that defining moment for the Democrats.
If nothing else, the two-night rhetorical free-for-alls demonstrated to the normally unyielding devotion of the opposition party just exactly how much their “get-rid-of-Trump” tactics have backfired.
If anything, the one person who came out looking most competent was, of all people, House Speaker Nancy “we have to pass the bill, so we can see what’s in the bill” Pelosi (D-CA).
Not that Pelosi has wised up.
But without opening her mouth, she has recognized the hand-writing on the wall that the only hope for her party next year is to provide some legitimate competition.
To this point, the Democratic front-runner is Joe Biden, who is leading largely due to name recognition and the false appearance of being the least whacko of the candidates. That changed, too, thanks to the strategy of Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) to attack Biden’s racial positions.
Joel B. Pollak, Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News put it this way:
“If Biden, as many now expect, fades from the lead, there is no serious moderate candidate to replace him.”
When the microphones and cameras go silent, what is left are party zombies. And they offer little of anything new. All that remains are radical, unworkable proposals and the same old “get Trump” mantra.
The general public feeling of the last few presidential campaigns is that they have been “the lesser of two evils” elections.
Only “Barack Obama 2008” was different in recent years. The junior Senator from Chicago brought a battle between the first black and the first female candidate. And Hillary Clinton could not match his energy or his social media data savvy.
Had the Dems fielded a strong candidate, instead of a failed one, in 2016, Donald Trump would not have taken the White House. However, by then Obama had squandered much of the charisma he initially brought to the party and a tired Hillary Clinton was viewed by many as nothing more than Act III of the BO legacy.
Liberals, Democrats, and Socialist : As Mad as a Sack of Ferrets
In 2016, Americans were looking for a change
Donald Trump might not have been the ideal choice, however, he brought a fresh feistiness to the game. Republicans in the fly-over states responding to his willingness to fight back – for them – brought him the election..
Now the Democrats were faced with someone who used the same nasty tactics that had been part of the Democrat’s political playbook for decades. Along with the variable of Trump’s unpredictability.
When the votes were tallied and the “surprise” winner was announced in November 2016, the distraught Democrats were reeling as never before. Their one and the only conclusion is to get rid of the blonde headed, egomaniacal billionaire who is wiping out decades of their control of Washington.
The battle since 2016 has been ugly, and largely detrimental to the Democratic obsession with power. Sadly for them, 2 1/2 years after the fact they are still wandering in the wilderness.
Even worse, the debates demonstrate how weak their list of candidates really is.
Nonetheless, it’s still a to way make valid predictions. Politics changes hourly, but for Democratic hopefuls, the point of no return has been reached. Did they hold their cards too long?
Maybe, as Kenny Rogers said they should have “known when to fold’em.”
*******
About the Author:
Bob Taylor is a veteran writer who has traveled throughout the world. Taylor is an award-winning television producer/reporter/anchor focusing on writing about international events, people and cultures around the globe.
Taylor is the founder of The Magellan Travel Club (www.MagellanTravelClub.com)
Read more of What in the World and Bob Taylor at Communities Digital News
Read more of Bob’s journeys with ALS and his travels around the world
Editors Note: Support Bob’s GoFundMe to give him a hand up
Follow Bob on Twitter – Facebook
Lede Image: President Donald J. Trump arrives to address military personnel and their families Sunday, June 30, 2019, at Osan Air Base, Korea. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead)
