Posted on 02/01/2016 7:26:20 PM PST by Haiku Guy
CRUZ 28 Trump. 24 Rubio. 23
Wait a sec, isn’t that George Walker Bush, the most recent Republican President? Well something my something, how about that!
I wonder what the song would be if the Trump had won, probably it would be that Bush went on to easily win the nomination and that the Trump was certain to do likewise.
But since Cruz won and the Trump was only barely 2nd, Iowans are a bunch of socon hicks that don’t matter. It’s all about the narrative you want to tell.
Let’s write today’s news yesterday...
IF TRUMP HAD WON: It is a YUUUGE victory, and Trump rolls on to New Hampshire and we all must wait for his inevitable fall when he finally steps on his crank one too many times.
IF RUBIO HAD WON: That’s it! It’s all over folks. The People of Iowa have spoken, and the only thing to do now is line up behind the New Inevitable Candidate for 2016.
IF CRUZ HAD WON: Don’t mean nuthin. Bunch of hayseed hicks with their screwed up process. Cruz only won because he moved to Iowa three years ago and never left, and he won’t go anywhere now...
Write all the stories in the afternoon, drink until midnight, and file the right one when the results come in.
But think about this for a minute. How much would Cruz have won by if he had knuckled under and endorsed subsidies for ethanol? He won Iowa by going up against King Corn!
That sounds easy, I shoulda been a reporter.
I hear Cruz got a lot of Libertarian types that voted Paul last time, they probably wouldn’t have liked ethanol pandering.
But what was that 9% Carson vote if not pro-ethanol conservatives?
I called it here.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3390833/posts?page=138#138
“I would not be surprised if Cruz wins or gets much closer than expected. The MSM would love for Trump to be disappointed in Iowa.”
That would be foolish and not even I would be engaging in that kind of crowing.
I’d say it proved he has a great chance, but with a danger.
What has happened has still proved he has a fair chance. Maybe now, like the proverbial Avis, he will try harder. Not believing himself anymore to be a shoo-in, a more humble tone will prevail, which should be good news to those who like his potential but don’t like his own “edge.”
Could some people be coming to believe that gifts from Uncle Sam end up being paid from their own pockets, yes even “ethanol” gifts?
It’s not like hog troughing is only happening in Iowa. Once the practice begins, then everybody wants in, and the main beneficiaries are a bloated body of drones who (it is true) spend, but who don’t produce anything that adds to the national wealth.
And, Trump is going to need to get a different mind on the subject (look for private alternatives to things whenever possible) if he is to hope to have a cogent and self-consistent argument against Bernie Sanders, who may edge Hillary out yet. People hate Bernie a lot less than they hate Hillary.
This was a test. Cruz got the A, Trump got a B. Trump needs to study now. We cannot stand on superficialities.
Well it was a Republican primary in a state that traditionally goes for evangelicals. The general against Clinton will be much different.
Of subsidies, I find the Ethanol subsidies to be the saddest of all.
Here you have these farmers in Iowa, which is God’s Gift to Corn. You plant the kernel, and the corn springs up so thick and fast you practically have to jump out of the way. Farmers in Iowa have an advantage over farmers anywhere else in the World, and the demand for their product as a food product grows year after year. If they just went about their natural business of growing needed food, they would already be the richest farmers the World has ever known.
But instead they have to go on the government dole, and subvert their entire industry to produce a product that nobody wants in order to grab that “free” government dollar. They tie themselves in knots to preserve their precious little slice of the government pie, and worry all day and night that somebody is going to take it away.
They are like a dog protecting a gnawed-over bone when he lives in a butcher store.
I thought the subsidy expired.
I am already tired of the Rubio line, that the guy who came in Third in Iowa is now INEVITABLE, and it is time for us all to fall in line behind the centrist candidate who is electable.
It is appropriate that we are hearing this Rubio line on Groundhog Day, because I am certain I have heard the same thing a thousand times before.
I remember a story, ... from the late 1980s or early 1990s, that described some architects trying to instruct Donald Trump about the what was and wasn't good taste in the matter of architecture ornamentation. They had endeavored to save him from something like six-foot gilt letter "T"s in hotel lobbies. As I recall, their efforts were to no avail, much to the deliciously appalled appreciation of readers, who delighted in Trump's horrifying exhibitionism. (The essence of camp: it's good because it's so bad.)
That said, I want to emphasize that I do not object to Donald Trump's vulgarity. It may be the most appealing thing about him. His instinct for the ersatz, his embrace of the patina-glamor of the casino, is certainly the most genuine thing about him.
Donald Trump is all smoked glass and mirrors...
No more news bytes like “I could stand in the middle of Times Square and shoot somebody and still win.” End the bluster.
“Cruz can’t beat Hillary though and Trump will.”
The polls say the opposite:
RCP Head-to-Head averages:
Clinton 44.0 Trump 41.3
Cruz 46.8 Clinton 45.5
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/president/2016_presidential_race.html
“I hope Trump moves back to his more conservative persona after this.”
The fact that he has multiple “personas” should worry you...
How about we all vote for the guy we would want to be President, and let the chips fall where they may? Because we suck at this strategic stuff. We pick “electable” candidates who can only win if the Donks put up the biggest loser in the World.
The point is not backing a candidate who is telling you what you want to hear today. The point is picking a candidate who you would want to be President of the United States for eight years.
If Trump has multiple personas now, which one do you think will be sitting in the Oval Office? I suspect it will be Trump 1.0, whom we know from 1950 thru June 2015, not Trump 2.0, whom we only know from the past nine months of campaigning.
I like Instant Gratification as much as the next guy, but we have to think a year or two down the road. A great Trump Campaign Sound Bite is not going to be worth a thing after Inaugeration Day.
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That Iowa/Ethanol myth sort of burned up, huh!
Those that sell their soul to Babylon for the short term prize deserve what they reap.
Stay strong Arthur!
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Cruz turns off the gimmies.
Good, we don’t need them.
Mr. 3rd choice Rubio gained on Trump, but not on Cruz.
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The problem for the ethanol lobby, is that the same thing happens that always happens with the government subsidy. Sharp operators have moved in and sucked up all the money. This concentrates the subsidy with a very small number of individuals. They care about this issue a lot, but each one can only vote once. They are victims of their own success.
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