At this point, I’m still supporting Cruz as my first choice. Do I think he’s perfect? Of course not. But once again we are forced to choose between the lesser of two evils.
In my view here are a few pros and cons of each:
Trump pro:
political outsider, not a career politician
not politically correct, willing to say what a lot of people are thinking
opens up discussions about things that others are afraid to mention, shakes things up
financing his own campaign
RNC doesn’t like him
doesn’t take crap from anyone
Trump con:
buffoon
illogical
claims to be a Republican/conservative, yet has a very liberal past
too closely linked to the Clintons for my comfort
inherited wealth and power
supports eminent domain when it helps him and hurts the little guy
highly inconsistent, I’m concerned about whether he has an core convictions or is just self-serving
seems to have limited knowledge of foreign affairs (this could be overcome, but it gives me pause to hear some of the goofy remarks he makes on the topic)
not particularly bright (no, he’s not stupid, but he’s not super bright either)
Cruz pro:
staunchly and reliably conservative on nearly every issue
the most intellectually gifted candidate in my memory
has great command of the issues and would shred any opponent in an honest debate
has supported conservative positions when it was not popular to do so, risked his own career to do this
RNC doesn’t like him
Cruz con:
lawyer
career politician
lacking in charm
too closely connected with Wall Street (I don’t hate Wall Street, per se, but I am fully against cronyism)
Hispanic (I have nothing against Hispanics or any other ethnicity and no problem voting for them, but at this point in time (after 8 years of the AA candidate who got in mostly based on ethnicity) I would be a lot more comfortable with a WASP (and male) presidential candidate). I am not looking to vote for the first Hispanic or female or current popular “oppressed” group.
Nice post.
Nice to see.
I generally agree. You articulated things well.
DT does know how to buy politicians and is also connected to wall street.
While I’m at it I did a little research into DT’s investments...
Title:Study: Trump investments underperformed in 2015
“Trump also argued that several of his individual stock picks, like Apple and Goldman Sachs, have done very well for him.
“I hit the market exactly perfectly,” he said.”
http://thehill.com/policy/finance/274178-trump-investments-underperformed-in-2015
Title:Know Who Else Has Received Loans from Citibank and Goldman Sachs? Donald Trump.
“He’s made the nonsensical claim repeatedly that Ted Cruz can’t “protect people” from Citibank or Goldman Sachs or whoever, because he has taken out loans from them or personally guaranteed loans to his campaign from them.”
“As for Goldman Sachs, Trump is himself a shareholder in Goldman Sachs, which means he has a direct financial interest in its success. One would think that would make Trump even less enthusiastic about protecting me from Goldman Sachs (whatever that means) than Cruz would.”
[DT is super owned by the banks. In fact I think his fear of losing everything is the biggest motivations for running, the other is another psychotic reason]
No mention of TPP/TPA? For many of us who are supporting Trump, this issue is the battlefield. Those who favor these global trade deals are the ESTABLISHMENT, and this thread is suggesting that Cruz, despite any positives which you have mentioned, is on the wrong side.
Trump knows how to form a narrative over the heads of the media.
He has demonstrated he can beat the media.
He brings in the Reagan democrats for the first time since the eighties.
I take exception with the following cons, they are untrue, this one belongs in the pros IMHO:
inherited wealth and power He didn't inherit his wealth. He used some inherited wealth and built it to be huge. It's the same with his power. Both grew from small to huge under him, it's a big positive.
The idea that he is not bright is untrue, and far from a negative.
I think you should revisit Jim Robinson's last two posts about who Trump is, and rethink.