Beware of Pseudo Conservatives

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was designed to ultimately be established as a socialist health system. The strategy was that it would be so expensive that if Hillary Clinton had won the elections, it would automatically be turned into a single payer system. So why after six months of a Trump presidency, the disastrous system is still in place?

Since the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) was passed by the Democrats without any support from the Republicans, the latter have been promising to repeal and replace it. With a Republican President in the White House and a majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, they still fail to keep their promise.

Both the conservatives and the moderates in the Republican Party cannot come to an agreement how to repeal and replace the (ACA). Seemingly, the conservatives want to repeal and make the system less costly to be able to reduce taxes. The moderates would like to keep the government’s funding of Medicaid. With only a majority of two in the Senate, it becomes very difficult to pass a bill if more than two Senators vote against it. With only two defections the Vice-President can cast his deciding vote and thus pass the bill.

After some arduous tries to get something done after the House had already voted and passed their version of an alternative to Obamacare, the Senate ultimately got the courage to take their version of repeal and replace to the floor. The leadership knew full well that Senators: Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska were always going to vote ‘NO”. Not expecting any other defections, the Republicans counted on a vote by the Vice-President to break the tie and get the bill passed.

After being diagnosed and operated for brain surgery, and knowing that a crucial vote to repeal and replace Obamacare was going to take place he made what is called a heroic return to the Senate to take part in the vote. He pleaded for bipartisanship in an impassioned speech when  he called for the Senate to make sure that a vote took place. Every Senator and the American public characterised his speech as seminal and his return to the floor as heroic.

In the past he had opposed Obamacare. But on the crucial vote at 1.30 am on Friday 28^th of July 2017, the maverick John McCain could not get away from the drama and self-centred decision, he voted “NO’ and as a result killed the Republican bill to repeal and replace Obamacare; thus helping the Democrats and self–aggrandizing himself in the history books.

McCain the long-time Senior Senator from Arizona has been a Republican in Name Only (RINO) for years. Revered by many because of his wartime service and capture by the Vietcong, he has, over the years, played a significant role in the Republican Party. He twice sought the Presidency of the United States; he lost to George W. Bush in the 2000 primary, and then lost to Obama in 2008.

In my view Senator McCain is a dejected politician who could not live with the fact that his past political decisions and stance on some issues prevented him from ever being President of the United States. Although well-regarded by many, his failure to be a true conservative had made him a less than powerful force in the party. Furthermore, his relationship with President Trump was never a good one after candidate Trump had refused to call him a hero during the campaign. Trump ignored Newton’s  third law that states:” For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. The actions of McCain in my view was a calculated on;

It is reported that when asked how he would vote he replied ‘Wait for the show’. When it was his turn to vote, he looked at the reporters and then the ceiling and shouted ‘NO’.  He came back to a heroic welcome, he voted ‘NO’ in a vindictive manner to send a resounding, and thunderous ‘F*** U’ to Trump.  Once again as a true RINO he placed his personal feelings ahead of the party and the nation, and voted with the Democrats, He then decided to return to Arizona where perhaps he may never return to the Senate again due to his illness. In my opinion, he accomplished what he always wanted to do – be a thorn in the Republican Party that he always wanted to lead and was never capable of doing.

To conservatives, let the McCain actions be a warming to you. Very often the conservative movement has seen rifts among the ranks. Closer to home, in Alberta, watch out for the progressives who have for years been hiding among true conservatives. They have never had the guts to call themselves Liberals but will vote with the left when it will suit their political aspirations.

 It is often said to beware of a woman’s scorn, but in politics be very aware of wounded and dejected politicians. They may not only hurt the party but more treacherously the nation.

To Tweet, or not to Tweet - that is the Question

I may not support all of President Trump’s tweets, but the obsession and behaviour of the media is distorting his many accomplishments. While some of his tweets maybe off base and downright obnoxious, I believe that this new form of communication is neither un-presidential or out of place. Perhaps we should focus more on the policies rather than the tweets.

Since his election President Trump has demonstrated that he is not your run of the mill politician, in fact he has very rarely acted like a politician in the past 6six months. The Democrats have done everything to scuttle his presidency. Helped by an increasingly hostile and biased media, the Liberal left has decided to form a ‘Resistance’ force as their strategy to regain power.

The Democrats in the Senate have obstructed many of his appointments and President Trump still does have a complete cabinet. The failed policies of the Obama years are being reversed and the Democrats are helpless. As a result they have resorted to a barrage of accusations, many unsubstantiated. The Russian ‘collusion’ accusations have now turned into an Independent Council investigation. His firing of the FBI Director has come under scrutiny, despite the fact that he has every right to hire and fire personnel. His travel ban, very similar to the one ordered by Obama, has been stopped by lower courts in a purely political move. Despite the fact that the Supreme Court unanimously suspended lower courts bans, the Democrats are still trying to prevent its implementation.

Failing all their attempts to oppose his policies, the Democrats are trying to use the 25^th Amendment to declare him insane or of unsound mind to govern. I believe they tried this with Reagan and failed. The burden of proof is so high that it is unlikely that it will ever happen. Nevertheless it will be used as another tool and the resist and obstruct strategy to undermine his Presidency.

Comedians and Hollywood types who still cannot believe that he won the lections have resorted to very nasty so-called satire to attack him. Late night shows, programs like the ‘View’, Morning Joe and cable TY including CNN and MSNBC have led the charge in an unprecedented attack on any President before him. The Washington Post and the New York Times have done their utmost to publish stories from undisclosed sources to inform the public and yet they are offended when he calls them Fake News.

Today every time he tweets, there is uproar from the left as well as some on the right. Their comments are always accompanied by the word un-presidential. The content may be obnoxious and sometimes vulgar; however what should be considered un-presidential,in my view are the following:

·         The continued apologist tour by former President Obama who goes around the world undermining Trump’s policies to safeguard his failed legacy.

·         President Johnson sitting on the toilet while the door is open and conducting the affairs of the State.

·         President Clinton’s affair with an intern.

·         President Kennedy’s affair with an actress and the wife of a mobster.

The real issue is that Trump has chosen a different path from any of his predecessors. He has decided that he will fight the media at every corner and opportunity when he feels that he has been wronged or not. This is a trait lagging among conservatives today. He seems to have a vindictive personality that he has honed over the years as a businessman. Too often the problem with his tweets is that he uses language which goes beyond what a normal politician will use, especially when it comes to women. The use of 142 characters tends to limit the ability to fully express his thoughts. On the other hand it seems that this type of communication resonates with his base and the ordinary men and women of America who voted for him. We may quibble with the content of his message but in many cases he is right on context.

I am also a supporter of his foreign affairs strategy; if that is the one he has chosen. He seems to disparage every previous international agreement; for example he berated NATO and then got members to pay their fair share. On trade, in particular NAFTA he wanted out and then got the partners to agree that some changes have to be renegotiated. He refused to participate in the Paris Climate Agreement, and it seems that he may get the rest of the world to make changes to accommodate the U.S position, which I believe he won’t change. Once again his use of Twitter to make theses pronouncements is a tool to change the conversation to what he wants, and not to what the media wants.

In my view just like the first TV debate was the turning point between Kennedy and Nixon, today social media is the new means of communication that Trump uses to disarm his opponents. Should he stop? In my mind, an empathic –No. Should he change the style? A resounding -Yes. I believe that he should counter punch at every opportunity, on policy  but not on purely personal issues. His favorite tool - Twitter gives him the ability to reach millions of people without resorting to the hostile media.

This presidency has brought some of the most hostile and nasty environment to politics. The delusional left must come to the reality that they lost the last elections, not necessarily because of the Russians, or even Trump, but because of their failed candidate and their failed socialist policies. To continue on a path of ‘Resistance’ instead of doing their job to serve the public, will result in nothing less than further defeat for the Democrats at the ballot box.

Trump’s tweets if used properly and with better vocabulary will defeat the politicians, the media and the vacuous delusional Liberal elite of Hollywood every time.