As [George HW] Bush mulled over what to do in response to Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait in August 1990 – to repel the Iraqi leader militarily or not – Thatcher would tell Bush in an aside at an Aspen Institute conference,
“Remember George, this is no time to go wobbly.”
Way back before this all started, in November 2022, I made the case that Donald Trump shouldn’t enter the race because the forces arrayed against us would do everything in their power to defeat him - he couldn’t win because they wouldn’t allow it, no matter what.
For good or bad, Trump obviously did not heed that warning. He’s our candidate now. So we have a choice to make: do we indulge despondency, or do we take up the fight?
Thatcher’s case to Bush and my case to you is, if we’re going to be in this thing, and we are, then we need to be all in. That means we shelve the fatalism, and we don’t take counsel of our worst fears.
This isn’t a case for optimism or pessimism - it’s a case for determination.
Some of my fellow conservatives have embraced the notion that the “deep state” will never “let” Donald Trump win. Let me dispel this notion about an all-powerful, unaccountable “deep state”: it’s made up of largely incompetent people who don’t have to compete for anything, like you or I do. These are clumsy, dull-witted people like FBI senior agent Peter Strzok and Justice Department attorney Lisa Page. This isn’t the 1960s and these aren’t Moonshot people. They’re self-selected for political loyalty and not much else.
The deep state actors had a clumsy, paper-thin plan for 2016 and it failed (the Russia hoax). They simply couldn't account for Hillary's laziness and ineptitude as a candidate. The Trump vote overwhelmed the underestimated cheat. In 2020, they had more favorable winds with Covid and the willingness of Fulton County, Maricopa County, Detroit and Philadelphia to manufacture the ballots they needed. But this wasn’t the result of deep state actors so much as it was banana republic ballot harvesting in a handful of corrupt urban centers.
This year, the Democrats don't have the Covid mailout cheat to rely on and ballots are being watched especially closely now in those four lawless regions. The Russia collusion hoax is now a bad joke, and if any candidate is compromised by a foreign entity, it's Joe Biden. So THAT won't work again.
This year's Bombastic Stunt is Lawfare - indicting the former president in friendly districts, attacking his wealth, and challenging his fitness to appear on the ballot. The worst of these stems from the Mar a Lago classified documents raid - but Joe Biden’s already been found guilty of as much or worse (Biden has no Presidential Records Act defense) - and was deemed mentally unfit to stand trial. If anything, this case strikes Americans’ fair play nerve. It’s obviously not fair.
Trump certainly appears up to the legal challenges and is fighting each one aggressively. He now has a truly stellar legal team (team of teams). He needs a handful of favorable SCOTUS rulings (which are expected to be favorable) to push this Lawfare out past the election or get the ridiculous cases thrown out entirely.
Listen to him when he says "we need to overwhelm them" - we need so many Trump votes, they can't possibly overcome his margin. And that's the key to this. This was our war plan in Desert Shield/Desert Storm, an overwhelming force opposing a demoralized and incompetent enemy. That’s the only way you win.
Suggesting "he can't win" or "they won't let him win" is precisely the opposite of what we should be thinking and is precisely what the Democrats and their deep state cronies want us to think.
I would say if it CAN be won, Trump will find a way. He’s a great deal smarter now and has surrounded himself with competent and loyal advisors.
He deserves our support because he fights. But he can only do it if we keep our nerve.
This is no time to go wobbly.
My wife and I are in the early stages of planning a move back to the States, from Puerto Rico. Timeframe could be measured in a few years. We took a trip to visit communities in NC, SC, and GA. I have family in ME and VA (as well as NH, CT, and NJ, but ignore those states).
I'm thinking of moving sometime this year, while I could still register to vote, to one of the five aforementioned states. Then when my wife is ready to move, I'd relocate (or not; maybe the state I pick this year is the one we'd choose to settle in).
In which state would my vote be most helpful?
Jeff, I'd like to share your optimism, but I find it difficult. First, I wish Trump hadn't tried for another term this year. Though I credit him for his "America-first" attitude and policy attmpts, he's not truly "conservative" nor Constitutional (don't even get me started on Warp Speed or his favorable view of red flag laws). That said, I still think the Democrat cheat machine is already in high gear and working hard on the steal. More disheartening is the number of people I see on social media talking about how great a president Biden is (the man is incompetent to stand trial but somehow still competent to act as president) and not only stating they are, but asking others if they will be voting for him. How so many Americans have become so ignorant of the Constitution and of the reality right in front of them is simply beyond me, but it give me little hope this (or just about any) election will change anything.