Credit where credit is due

In the three weeks since President Donald (Donnie John) Trump was inaugurated it seems his administration has been plagued with the "Ready, Fire, Aim" syndrome.  His Executive Orders have almost become comical in how half-baked they come out.  Not surprisingly, all Democrats, many Independents, and even a growing number of Republicans are shaking in their boots, wondering what's going to hit the fan next.  

The good news in all this is that Saturday Night Live has no shortage of material to run with.  There's no such thing as "bad" publicity, right?  Right?

But to be fair, I can think of one thing that Prez Donnie John has done that he should be commended for.  On a regular basis (so far) he has held meetings with business leaders as diverse as Intel, Ford, GM, and all the airlines, small business groups, labor groups, and even special interest groups, supposedly to find out what's on their minds and what he can do to get them to ramp up hiring.  

Some of it has been for show no doubt, as when the CEO of Intel announced that they were spending $7Billion on a new facility in Arizona that will all total add 10,000 new jobs.  Donnie John of course took credit, even though it later turned out that Intel had been planning this for several years.  Still, momentum being what it is, expect others to jump on the bandwagon, too. From his perspective it might be an "ugly win", but it's still a win.  Kudos.

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Yesterday all the stock markets shot through the roof on the news from the Oval Office that we could expect a major announcement in a couple of weeks on tax reform.  "It's tremendous, just incredible.  You'll love it!  Really, you will."

This could be trickier to get through than you might think.  A big tax cut sounds great, until you realize that it will swell the Federal deficit even more, something the hard-core GOP deficit hawks are going to balk at.  The sales pitch will be that the deficit will be offset by more tax revenue due to increased business activity / lower unemployment.  

The Democrats will throw right back Kansas Governor Sam Brownback's failed attempt to do this very thing, leaving his state with a terrible budget mess.   

What do I think?  I think it will be interesting.  *wink*

S

What if they gave a party and nobody came?

Since I have been such a highly accurate *snicker* political prognosticator so far this election year, I'll swing my bat once more and go for the home run....or will it be strike three?

So far I've predicted the Tea Party would run its course in due time as they were just a bunch of radical extremists (redundant?), but they're still here.  I failed to take into account the American people's ignorance / indifference / gullibility (choose one).

I predicted Donald Trump's ongoing reality TV show would eventually flame out, but it hasn't.  Oops.  I predicted Ted Cruz would be unmasked for the pure McCarthyesque pot-stirring opportunist he is.  Double oops.  The rest of the field hasn't made a move, and might not be able to in time.

I predicted Hillary Clinton was a shoe-in for the Democrats as her only competitor was a life-long avowed Socialist.  He's smoking her....didn't see that coming, either!

So what's next?  IMHO....

The Republicans will nominate The Donald.  His star power will be hard to overcome.  The conservative special interests will line up behind him as they will see him as "one of them", despite his protests *wink*.

The Democrats will nominate Hillary C.  I don't think Iowa or New Hampshire are representative of traditional Democratic voters....both states are ''too white".  When the primaries move to states with sizable numbers of minorities, Hillary should climb back on top.   *heehee...not going there*  She might come across as a poor man's champion, but Wall Street owns her lock, stock, and barrel.  She would sell her soul to be elected president, and they know it.

If Trump is elected, will he appoint good advisers, and will he LISTEN to them?  And if he wins, and the Republicans have control of the House AND the Senate AND the White House, will they govern like a bunch of drunk sailors on shore leave?

If Hillary is elected will her presidency be doomed from the get-go?  Let's face it....she's reviled by many, and considered untrustworthy by even more.

So it's a choice between being stuck between a rock and a hard place.  Saturday Night Live should have plenty of material to work with.  That might be the only good thing about this election year.

S

It's always something!

Yesterday I went to the doctor to have him check out a bump on the bridge of my nose underneath where my glasses rest.  Turns out it's skin cancer.  Not a biggie, but still another nuisance that I have to deal with.  Of course they're reminding me to slather on the sun screen, but I hate the stuff.  Isn't a hat enough?  Jeez!

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Looks like it's "sink or swim" time for FEMA, pardon the pun.  The Federal Emergency Management Agency is responsible for coordinating federal, state, and local response to national emergencies, such as hurricane Sandy. (The actual work of putting things back right again still falls to the governors and the states.) 

They botched it big time after hurricane Katrina all but destroyed New Orleans.  Now we'll see if they've learned anything since.  Any time there's a federal bureaucracy involved I'm skeptical.  I hope I'm wrong.

The images coming out of the aftermath of the storm are incredible. The cleanup looks like an impossible task.  Where do you start?  They showed how things were down in the underground subways.  Yuck!  I can't imagine how long it will take to get it put back like it was before, if they can at all.  

Looks like unemployment in the area will fall to near zero for years to come, just by putting everyone to work hauling off debris.  For building material suppliers I'm sure they'll be producing stuff as fast as they can to replace what was destroyed, which will mean upward pressure on material prices nationwide.  Yes, we'll ALL probably feel it with every trip to Home Depot.

Wouldn't it be great to have things all going our way, smoothly, as planned, even if only for a few days?  What was it SNL's Roseanne Roseannadanna said?....It's always something!  *sigh*

S

I didn't see THAT coming!

  
I think like many people I watched the Veep debate last night expecting to see a personable Joe Biden yap and on que say something funny that Saturday Night Live can take and make into a hilarious skit.  That SNL skit may still happen, but what I actually witnessed was an informed, powerful, very combative, stand-his-ground candidate Biden.

Specifically, here's what I saw:  Biden probably said the words "middle class" 20 times.  Same with "level playing field", and "a fair shake".  He came across as the populist defender of The People, something I think will play well with blue-collar voters.   And what is THE most critical state still in play?  Ohio....gritty, blue-collar Ohio.  Eighteen electoral vote Ohio.

Biden got so worked up on several occasions I fully expected to see him start foaming at the mouth.  But again, that much passion is probably appreciated by the blue-collar types.  Just go into a bar in Ohio and bring up Michigan, or vice versa.  You'll see lots of "mouth foaming"!

And Biden had something for war-weary voters, too, when he promised we would be out of Afghanistan by 2014.  "Sure, the Afghans would be happy to let us keep doing their fighting for them forever.  That's why we put them on notice.  'You'd better be ready to defend YOUR country come 2014.'" I think that struck a popular chord and will be well received.

In this case at least I think Biden's age and experience trumped Ryan's youth and vigor.  How could Ryan compete with Biden's "I was right there with Ronald Reagan and Tip O'Neil (and a bottle of scotch?) during their epic budget battles"?  Or, "I was on an hour-long conference call with Bibi Netanyahu (Israeli PM) and the President and we're all in complete agreement...." 

I think that "complete agreement with Israel" reference probably reassured the Jewish community, too.  And correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't Florida have a sizable Jewish community?  Twenty nine electoral vote Florida.  Smooth.

Paul Ryan is a numbers man; a budget, Medicare and Social Security expert.  While very important stuff, it's also very boring to talk about.  It's all based on "projections" and "assumptions", and with accounting being such a fraudulent practice today, can easily be refuted.  It's a "He said, She said" argument that politicians have been throwing at us for so long they're hardly believable any more.   "Projections" are a tough sell.

Most awkward exchange:  Ryan sharing Gov. Romney's compassion for a family who had suffered through a horrible car crash, while Biden explained he WAS the family that suffered through a horrible car crash.  OUCH!

Best zingers:  When Ryan mentioned that Jack Kennedy cut taxes, Biden chimed in, "Oh, so now you're Jack Kennedy?"  Also, when Ryan explained how Romney mis-spoke when talking about the 47% quip, saying, "I'm sure you know what it's like to have your words come out not the way you meant for them to."  Haha!

While the red states are still red and the blue states are still blue, I think Joe Biden's performance probably picked up quite a few net votes for the Democrats.  This is going to make for an interesting finish come November.

S

Please, say it ain't so!

Did any of you watch the Westminster Kennel Club dog show last night?  It was the final evening of judging and when the big reveal finally came this was declared the grandest dog in all the land:

Really?  Really??  I know, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" and all that, but Jeez, that thing....it's technically a Pekingese....looks like a prop from a Star Wars movie.  Or maybe something from a Saturday Night Live skit:

Anyone remember Gilda Radner as "Roseanne Roseannadana"?  I think all that hair (on the dog) is to cover the wind-up key.  And to think they passed over some beautiful dogs like a Dalmatian, a Doberman Pinscher, and a regal looking Irish Setter that was my personal favorite.  The sole judge was a lady from Colorado.  I'm guessing she lives on a 14,000 ft high mountain, without oxygen.  Sorta makes K's Yorkie look rugged and manly, don'tcha think?

S