(11-06-2026 12:54 PM)westsidewolf1989 Wrote: (11-06-2026 12:13 AM)GoodOwl Wrote: (11-05-2026 04:57 PM)westsidewolf1989 Wrote: Chatter around Rubio resigning and launching a 2028 campaign. He already received an endorsement from an Indiana congressman.
I think Rubio needs to either (a) resign immediately, wash the Trump stench off and move to launch a 2028 campaign or (b) stay on and put all his energy into ending the war in Iran and getting elections in Venezuela. He is already more sophisticated than Vance and his Cuban heritage/Spanish fluency are positives, but he needs some foreign policy wins that can be sold as America first.
DeSantis is a decent choice, but still has some Trump stench on him (not as much as Rubio or Vance). Personally, I think that Brian Kemp should throw his hat in the ring. Popular governor of a now-purple state and has kept out of the Trump pigpen.
Brian kemp appears to be mostly a joke, and part of the reason Republicans lost the Senate in 2022, and clearly he didn't do a d@mn thing to help GA this cycle either. He could have helped by running for Senate against A$$off. He and Raffensbooger are part of the problem in the South. I'll likely never fully trust someone with DeSantis' background, but I might be willing to hold my nose and vote for him in '28 depending on how things shake out.
It appears 70% of Georgians approved of the job Kemp was doing according to an AJC/UGA poll in October, so he must have been doing something right. He probably should have run for Senate, but, given the poor relationship between he and Trump, I expect Trump would've still endorsed Collins and the outcome would have been the same.
You neglect the Georgians who saw the writing on the wall and fled the state before it turned from purplish to blue. As well, those who were fed up that in 2025 Trump and Republicans were keeping campaign promises and prices were down, economy improving in meaningful ways to average citizens (border closed down, illegals detained and deported, fuel prices down substantially from Biden*-Dem disaster years, inflation brought under control from disastrous Democrat legislation and Autopen control, massive Democrat fraud in government and Deep State investigated, identified and beginning to be addressed).
Then starting in Feb 2026, with the advent of the Iran war, on the heels of unfortunately high hubris from the (now forgotten, but still significant game changer) resounding success in Venezuela (non-Persian, valueless crazies in control in terrorist Iran not the Christianized bad guys in control in Venezuela) much of the good will built up the previous year was undone enough that he lost the voters who had switched and or come out for him and the Reps in 2024.
These were not ideological conservatives, they were the populist middle classes, Reagan Democrats, middle class folks so hurt by the Democrat's oppressive, individual and family-killing big government overspending, over taxing and over regulation that they gave Trump and Republicans a chance to begin to undo some of the damage the Democrats caused in such a short time during the Obama and Biden* years.
A big part of the problem was that the same Admin who pointed to the folly of the previously idiotic Democratic messaging of things like "temporary inflation" and a "roaring economy that's fine" and "more jobs created than before COVID" when every sane voter knew the reality was Permanent, Democratic-caused CRUSHING Inflation that persists to this day, without adding the war price increases to gas and diesel, terrible economy under Biden for poor, middle and upper classes (Biden*-connected insiders and elites excepted, but of course) and mostly the very same jobs shut down under COVID returning in a lesser form and often part-time or temporary instead of full-time. The same Republicans who rightfully ridiculed those and other Democrat lies resorted to some of the same messaging: The war will be short and 'temporary" as would the higher gas prices.
The difference being that under Trump, the underlying economic numbers were in fact getting better, inflation was actually way down in percentage increase from the Horrendous Biden* years, and as we continue to see, jobs, including an increase in full time versus part time employment are trending upwards and unemployment falls down.
The problem is entropy: It is far easier to destroy in a short time and takes much longer to recover and build back up after. And fighting a war with hands tied behind your back (no ground troops! Ceasefires! "Deals" with folks who don't and have never believed in them, et cetera) never works (see: Vietnam and Chamberlain's appeasement of Germany between WWI and WW11) certainly doesn't help and gave the enemy time to wait out our election cycle featuring too much of a fickle and sacrifice-averse leftist coopted American population infiltrated by tens of millions of non-citizens who hate the very place they ran off to in order to destroy it from within with glad-handing and cheering for the DSA-types who will do and say anything for power. Just look at who is cheering the Democrat gains around the world and who is not. Not good for America, but, hey, it's 'hope and change' all over again...Buyers remorse will be a biatch, even worse this time,. The destruction from Democrat DSA policies will be even harder to crawl out from when the fickle voters realize and beg for help in 2, 4, or 6 years. Problem is, there will be fewer people to help them back up.
Building a country takes individual time and recovering from socialist damage takes several times a s long as it takes Democrat policies to destroy in the first place. The war was not properly prepared for, the economic consequences and duration not properly assessed and planned for, and the messaging felt the same as Biden* and the Democrats telling American citizens how great the terrible inflation, mass illegal invasion and unaffordability the Democrats created was good for them.
Now, many people are still in pain, renters suffering from the ungodly high rents from so much absorption and squatting by illegals and their never-ending chain migrations, subsidized heavily by taxpayer money the illegals get handed to them for free, the massive, trillions of dollars of fraud sucking taxpayer money from hardworking American citizens trying to do their fair share only to be pizzed on by Deep State government operatives, millions of foreign scammers plugged into the NGO system because Democrats protect it from vigilant oversight and prevent ending fraudsters and holding them accountable every step of the way (because they take a cut for the Democrats themselves--how do you think they get so much money in the first place? It ain't from their churches (they hates Christianity, right Tallywhacko?) So they have lost patience and turn back to the very people who originally caused so much of that pain because they think they can't hold on any longer.
Only it's not going to stop or get better by more taxation, more economy stifling regulations, more green new scams sucking billion of taxpayer dollars away from the folks that need those dollars for themselves and their families, more illegals coming through again a semi-open border by Democrat governors who care not for you, but only how they can line their own pockets using illegals as a pawn to gain and retain power, America be d@mned (as they openly shout these days with PRIDE!)
And don't forget the all-important impeachments! and Investigations! My goodness, THIOSE will REALLY help make American's lives affordable again (they'll only spend half a trillion or so on the necessary background research and paperwork, since it's for the 'cause', right?)
Too many weak, frustrated people, rightly so, bought the lies. Now, everyone unfortunately will pay for their short-sightedness.
The fundamental rule of Economics is scarcity: everyone CAN'T have everything they want. The fundamental rule of Politics is to avoid the fundamental rule of Economics. We have just seen that truth work like a charm. Those who don't study history are doomed to repat it. But hey, I'm sure the Socialism will work THIS time!
/
2028 Presidential Horse Race Open Thread
