18 Comments

My two 30-something sons vote more conservative than do their friends, but they have an interesting observation when I complain to them that young people are blowing it and throwing away all that is good to chase ideological ideas that will lead to their misery. They say "well yeah... that is the cycle... life is too easy... young people are rebelling against everything being handed them and voting for the things that will cause them to be thrown back into a place where they can more easily attain a life meaning from struggle." Raises the hair on the back of my neck but does explain the left youth supporting deconstruction and nihilism.

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As I was telling my sister this morning, this is the most disappointing election I remember watching. Yeah, there were worse elections for Republicans but I did not have any high expectations, like in 2008. I knew that Obama was going to win and we were going to do badly after that financial crash. But I guess I drank too much of the red Kool-Aid this cycle, believing there was going to be a GOP wave, and we were going to pick up close to 50 seats in the House. Boy, was I off! That's why it's not healthy to stay in a bubble and listen to cheerleaders with their building false hopes (i.e. Bannon, Kirk, etc).

This also hurts Trump because many of his endorsements lost, his juvenile behavior by insulting DeSantis, and bringing too much attention to himself by hinting at the "big announcement" of running for Prez (which likely was a catalyst for bigger turnout by Dems yesterday).

If Republicans can’t win in this kind of depressed environment in the country, with all the inflation, energy costs, crime wave, WOKEism, etc., then maybe the country has changed more than I thought--and not in a good way.

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As long as republicans keep saying "if we just do again what we did before, we will win", we will never win again. The democrats set the table, changed the rules, and aren't going to lose unless they want to.

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First of all, I hope your wife's scans came back good.

This is all so disappointing. I was watching the news briefly last night, and noticed that the numbers coming in were way more in favor of Dems than I was lead to believe. I officially do not believe polls anymore. You had the best analysis of them- and it's still incorrect by a lot. They are a waste of time. I have never been polled. Ever.

I appreciate what President Trump did for our country. But- I think it's time he bow out gracefully. I wish he could figure out how to get along with more republicans, and have the sense to not mess with Gov DeSantis! That is a huge mistake! In my dream world, Trump doesn't screw everything up with his big mouth and half the country doesn't hate his guts. He could be President for 4 more years, THEN Ron DeSantis run for President.

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Thanks Erick for admitting you had gotten caught up in the polling and became irrationally exuberant. It happened to a lot of us. And thank you as always for being able to put things in perspective. We are all exhausted and need a few good nights' worth of sleep to refresh and recover and then redouble our efforts to pull the Republican Party back to its core values and away from Trump.

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Someone HAS to convince Donald Trump to appeal to his better angels and urge him to stop right now and become the statesman he could be by announcing he is not running in ‘24 and that he’ll support the party’s nominee. He served, in a strange way, a noble and successful purpose during his time in office—he showed us what a good and prosperous country we could be. Unfortunately the left has made it their main purpose to besmirch that accomplishment, and by appealing to, primarily, the uninformed voter, we wind up with what happened yesterday. DeSantis, at this point, is clearly our best hope; and Donald Trump could be the national hero he wishes to be. Never forget, he is the one the Left passionately wants to be the Republican nominee. Never doubt that for a minute. He’s the one they gleefully want on the Republican ticket.

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I believe your are right on. The loss can be traced to the arrogant attitude of Trump who believes he was a king maker. DeSantis pulled his with him. Trump continued to fall by the way side. Trump has great policies as President, just a lousy communication skills. ya think!!!!

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I told several of my friends that Trump just screwed republicans when he attacked Desantis. Unfortunately, I think the only thing that will make him go away is for Epsteins/Maxwell's client list to be leaked and for him to be on it.

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We have got to stop getting overconfident prior to an election. Erick, this goes for you also. Overconfidence makes voters lazy. The dems pounded abortion rights, and end of democracy so hard their base and many suburban women ran to the polls. They voted like their life depended on it. They made issues such as the economy, crime, border, and school degradation non-existent. We need to learn this lesson from the dems. We have to stop trusting positive polls and quit getting complacent!

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Trump lost re-election two years ago, and yet, every single day since then, there has been a "story in the news" about Donald Trump...something he said, something someone said about him, an opinion piece about his voters, another lawsuit or a prediction about him being charged with a crime...something.

I think the Republicans would be far more willing to let Trump go than the Democrats will ever be. Ten years from now, any comment about politics will be responded to with "But Trump!"...because the people who hated him just can't let the hate go, and he revels in the attention.

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Is it wrong at this point to hope Trump gets indicted? My fear is that he and DeSantis will run with DeSantis winning the nomination. Trump and his ego then run as an independent, split the vote and we get 4 more years of a liberal White House.

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“Some trust in chariots and some in horses,

but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.

They collapse and fall,

but we rise and stand upright.”- (Psalm 20: 7-8)

_______________________

Is there Ballot Box salvation?

Have we placed our hope in man?

Will we fall for disappointment?

Will we rise upright to stand?

Were the chariots found faulty?

Did the horses pull up lame?

Is there room here for reflection?

Is the mirror here to blame?

In this world of trial and error,

Is The Vote our Golden Fleece?

In this realm of good intentions,

Can the mundane bring us Peace?

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Very very nice!

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Can't disagree with anything you wrote. My last thought before going to bed last night was that the upside to our poor results means Biden stays where he is. The downside being Whitmer stays, and the execrable Fetterperson et al comes in.

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