Friends, perhaps like me you saw this one coming: Matt Gaetz will not be America's Attorney General. He withdrew himself from consideration because he said he was becoming a "distraction" from Trump's MAGA magnificence. Well, I guess that's true, but I also suspect that Gaetz would have stuck it out if he thought he had a chance to be confirmed in the post. In all likelihood, he didn't. This makes one wonder what Trump was thinking when he nominated him. Was Gaetz a feint all along? Did Trump nominate him only to pry him out of Congress, where he might have been a nuisance to the slim Republican majority in the House, and especially to Speaker Johnson? Maybe. Was Gaetz meant to attract the incoming fire that might otherwise have been directed at RFK, Jr., Pete Hegseth, et al.? Maybe. If so, he served his purpose admirably, although not for very long. In any case, ole Matt will now have to reinvent himself as a private citizen. My guess would be that he'll have a bright future in talk radio. He sure knows how to lob a rhetorical hand grenade!
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/8511148187940933062/1551732021359088213
In other news, this article gives us some needed perspective on how Republicans, and Trump specifically, managed to transform the playing field of American politics this cycle. They may have been at a financial disadvantage, but for a change they weren't necessarily at an organizational and tactical disadvantage. That's extremely important.
Since you're asking Dr. Waddy, I'll play.
ReplyDelete- No doubt the Gaetz nomination was a distraction. To your point, anyone/everyone could have predicted the shrapnel that bomb would shed. I agree. In all likelihood, he didn't ever expect to be confirmed.
- Was it a strategy to remove him from Congress? Nope. Gaetz made that decision ahead of time. Trump is clearly a disrupter, never afraid to throw grenades, as you infer. A bomb-lobber inside the House chamber would only play into his hand.
- Was it to deflect criticism? No doubt that was one of the benefits of this play.
- Gaetz is no dummy. One would have to think otherwise if he accepted becoming a nominee without a Plan-B. Make that Plan-A. The more interesting question is: What is plan A?
Prediction... for highly personal and twisted reasons that go back over 5 years, Gaetz has a powerful burn against the DOJ and FBI. He has never shied away from the heat of the media or powers that be. In some private or public capacity, he'll take a role that allows him to be instrumental in exposing their deeds.
Richie, I hope you're right. Maybe Gaetz could have a role as a DOJ Inspector-General, or as a roving troublemaker inside the executive branch? That could be fun to watch...
ReplyDeleteDr. Waddy , Richie et al from Jack: Well bless me for a fool; I thought that after this election the rinos would have abandoned cringing apology to the now incensed left. I guess not. Maybe to draw them out
ReplyDeleteand size them up now was DJT's tactical intention. Bondi should be a real hombre though.
Dr. Waddy from Jack: For sure now I share your concern about the attrition among GOP Congress members. I can't imagine but that DJT and his team are weighing the risks very carefully. His Cabinet selections are really good on the whole(there were bound to be glitches) but none of them is indispensable (though some may well prove to be in office) and worth any reasonable chance of losing the House. I suppose he could withdraw some nomination (s) if that became an
ReplyDeleteeventual possibility. Maybe that is the risk DJT is willing to run(?)
I do have one concern about one of his nominees; that Treasury Secretary nominee. I mean, anyone who worked for Soros! Soros has been a disgrace for a long time. Marxists savaged his Hungarian homeland in '56 and he's old enough to remember. But he's just fine with neomarxists over here. Of course he wouldn't have been very comfortable with Victor Orban.
Dr. Waddy from Jack: One thing else does bother me about the prospective movement of GOP Congress members to the Cabinet: Speaker Johnson has been quoted as expressing concern. I hope those replacement elections go ok. You are right, the Dems will go all out in those contests.; even if they can't get the House thereby, if the margin is slim enough they must be ready in case serendipity favors them down the road. Hakeem Jeffries two steps from the Presidency is an appalling prospect for many reasons.
ReplyDeleteJack of Slim Margins: I share your concern good sir! It seems anything can happen with these special elections. Especially if the lefties are more motivated after the Red Wave.
DeleteStill, the Districts of Gaetz, Stefanik, Collins, Zeldin and Waltz seem to be under significant Republican control. I've got to believe that the special elections are of considerable concern and advance consideration by Trump's team. It's not lost on him that control of Congress is YYUUUGGGE!
Regardless, as margins potentially narrow, the cost to buy those fewer numbered votes falls significantly in the favor of the opposition.
Let's hope "the next (wo)man up" are legit!
Dr. Waddy from Jack: I attended a talk given by a Russian Stalingrad veteran at a WWII museum close to where I live perhaps 20 years ago. It was a humbling experience.
ReplyDeleteDr. Waddy from Jack: C'mon far lefties: be true to form and reflexively castigate anyone who dares to criticize the Treasury Secretary nominee for any reason. He is of course in full possession of a politically correct credential which you hold shields him from any doubt. I do not attribute the bias this reflects to him.
ReplyDeleteBut then no, it may well be the far leftist reaction to attack him for his unforgiveable apostasy! If they have learned anything from their national repudiation, let them fool us here and stand aside.
Richie from Jack: I lived in what became Elise Stefanik's district, NY's very unNYCish North Country. It is very conservative but I think maybe her predecessor was a Dem. Also, the Adirondack region in that area attracts alot of millionaire absentee land owners who might be willing to finance a Dem. Don't know about the other reps but yeah, we can probably be confident that DJT's people are paying close attention to this.
ReplyDeleteJack, yes -- even the reddest of Congressional districts can stray off the MAGA reservation from time to time... We should take nothing for granted.
ReplyDeleteI'm not 100% confident in the Treasury nominee either. The fact that the establishment finds him reassuring is the opposite of reassuring. But then again perhaps Trump has no ambition of breaking the existing financial order. Does it need to be broken? Arguably, all it needs is to be shored up. That is to say, if we got our fiscal house in order, we could all feather our capitalist nests indefinitely. Then again, what do I know about high finance!?!! Probably less than the incoming Treasury Secretary.