Election, candidates, and Trump.

Election, candidates, and Trump.

A Political Rant. You have been warned.

Here we are, election day. This has been one of the craziest that many have seen. I have been watching elections since 1972. The candidates are some of the most hated in history. The whys and wither or not they are true is another rant. This about how the GOP lost its mind and nominated Trump.

First some history lessons for those of you that were not paying attention in High School. In 1964, the split in the Republican Party started when Barry Goldwater ran for POTUS. The Conservative movement started and forced many moderates to leave and become Democrats. Moderates were labels Rockefeller Republicans (later labeled RINOs).

In 1968, Nixon was losing. Suddenly he came up with a “Southern Strategy.” (Actually it was created by Nixon and Goldwater supporters in what is known as the “Suite 3505 committee.”) Nixon and his cronies started to appeal to the white Southerns who were facing a dramatic change with new Civil Rights laws and the dismantling of Jim Crow laws.

In 1980, Reagan brought in the Evangelicals. They demanded more cultural fights. Mandatory attendance to an annual prayer breakfast and religious test for leaders. Reagan also created an unwritten rule. “Thou shall not speak ill of another Republican.” A number of Conservative politicians bristled at this, chief among them was Newt Gingrich.

In the 1990s, Evangelicals gained strength in the party. Several states at their urging pass state constitutional amendments against gay marriage. The GOP lead congress stated a series investigations to prove that government was corrupt. This ultimately led to the impeachment of the President. (They wanted a corruption charge, but since the Independent Prosecutor couldn’t find one, they went with morality.)

In the Early 2000s, the GOP and Conservatives were in hog heaven. A weak president was elected and was surround by those that would push him any direction they wanted. (War, bad tax cuts, and more government spending for cronies) And then came Barack Obama.

In 2008, Obama was elected. Two major political “movements” were created. First was the Birther movement. Let’s be clear, here and now. The birther movement was a racist attack on the President. Presidential candidate’s qualifications are vetted long before they are elected.

The other was the Tea Party. This was one of those movements with many parents. But in the words of “Deep Throat,” follow the money. The basic idea was that members of this group did not want the bailouts or more government involvement in anything. Purity and the tearing down of the government.

There is your history lesson. Yes, it was done with broad strokes. But, this is the gist of the subjects.

Next is two things that have been happening behind the scenes. Technology and demographics.

The technology revolution has been happen since the late 1970s and early 1980s. The PC, the internet, and smart phones/tablets picked up speed and changed rapidly in the 1990s and 2000s. Because of it, many could not (or would not) keep up with the changes. The changes in Trade policy just exacerbated this change. (Companies leaving the country has been happen since the 1970s)

The demographic change is much more subtle. First is the fact that every year, 4 million Hispanics become of voting age. Secondly, the Millennials have come of age and are getting active. Finally, the baby boomers are retiring.

Why does this matter? Older white voters have been voting in lesser numbers every presidential election. In 2012, only 68% of them voted. They have been dropping out by 2 – 3% every election. So, now we have angry older white (mostly male) electric.

In 2015, 17 Republicans thought they could be President. Let’s not kid ourselves, at least half if not more never had a snowballs chance in hell. They should never have been there and they knew it. It was a pure vanity run. Legacy for the Obit (“Former Presidential candidate ________ died today.”) And yet the people around them kept whispering in their ears about how great they were and how they were winning.

Trump came down the escalator and gave the base what they wanted. After years of telling the country that everybody was corrupt, Trump came out and said it to their face. He was not nice to his opponents. He did not talk policy. No details. He was a reality candidate that spoke in sound bites. No need to think about what he stood for. Twitter was his friend.

That was the appeal. He spoke what “People” wanted to say. He talked about their fears. He fanned those flames better than anyone. He even convinced a large portion of people that the military was incompetent.

So, there it is. The forces and issues that got Trump nominated. I am not a supporter. But it was interesting to watch how this happened. I will talk about Hillary and Johnson after the election.

Note: Talk about Hillary, Stein, or Gary Johnson here, I will delete the post. Stay on topic.

Please make sure that you go and vote.