Rope-A-Doped Republicans
08/11/23 04:36
November 8, 2023 (Vol. 17 No. 47) - Every time the Republicans think they have their opponents on the ropes, the Democrats borrow a strategy from the late Muhammad Ali and "rope-a-dope" them into submission. Like a punch-drunk boxer swingly wildly and hitting nothing, the Grand Old Party was once again a Grand Old Flop in yesterday's off-year elections. In Ohio, Virginia and Kentucky, things didn't go the way the MAGA crowd wanted. They thought they could ride the apparent unpopularity of President Joe Biden to victory in the Kentucky gubernatorial election, Virginia legislative contests and Ohio abortion and marijuana referendums. But guess what? Joe Biden wasn't on the ballot. Freedom was. And the Republicans, who once prided themselves as being a champion of individual freedoms, are now seen as autocratic bullies on the wrong side of the issue. And it has been that way in practically every major election since Donald Trump stumbled into the presidency in 2017. You might say that the voters in those states "woke" up to the realization that Republicans are a dystopian bunch who don't want people to make personal decisions on how they live their lives. They think they know better. Yet, time and time again, the American people show them they are wrong. Of course, Democrats are not worry-free one year out from the 2024 presidential election. Joe Biden's popularity polls are anemic, at best. And he is confronted with a host of foreign and domestic issues that would be a drag on any president's popularity. But to count him and the Democrats out is foolish - mainly because Donald Trump will be on the ballot next year. (That is, of course, assuming that the Great Grifter isn't in a prison cell or doesn't flee the country to avoid one.) Trump is King Midas in Reverse - everything he touches turns to lead (or gets indicted). The only reason Joe Biden is president today is because Donald Trump was on the ballot in 2020. And while less than four out of 10 Americans say Biden is doing a good job, that doesn't mean that they won't vote for him anyway when presented with the alternative of four more chaotic years of the seditious, self-engrandizing and morally corrupt Donald Trump. The Republican Party is rudderless. And if it shuts down the government or allows the Russians to run roughshod over Ukraine, it will be headed toward electoral disaster. Remember: "Float like a butterfly and sting like a bee." As long as the Democrats stick to the real issues - personal freedom, social justice, a strong economy and national security - they will win. That's it for now. Fear the Turtle.