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I think we've reached the point in the movie where we're starting to ask ourselves, what is the point of the Republican party? Remember that movie Office Space when the two Bobs were grilling that dude about what his role was, what his job was?
So that's kind of my attitude with the Republican Party. What would you say that you do here? And I bring that up because I saw this clip that's running around Twitter this morning. It was published last night. It was published by this guy, and I don't know even know if this is his real name.
I mean, he is blue checked according to Elon's new blue check system. Leskov Brandonovic. He's got kind of a cool bio. He's at war with "DeSimps," which I guess are fans of DeSantis, and Libtards. And his avatar is LGBT - Liberty, Guns, Bible, Trump.
Okay, very cool. So, he doesn't like DeSantis, but that's not really the point. I'm not trying to plug this guy, but he had this video that I had never seen before. It's definitely an oldie... It's of DeSantis and he's being interviewed about his endorsements, and I'm presuming it's the governor's race that this is an undated video, but the interviewer mentions Phyllis Schlafly, who's been passed away for a number of years now.
They don't say who the interviewer is, but it's somewhat friendly to DeSantis given the chumminess in the interview. But, this guy, Leskov, is trying to make the point that it's bad that DeSantis was endorsed for governor by Bolton, by Club for Growth, by FreedomWorks. And look, everybody was sort of hoodwinked by Bolton. The guy seems to be a maniac, but Club for Growth and Freedom Works, these are good folks. Everybody is trying hard to limit some government around here and elect the right people to do exactly that.
But the interview is trying to make the point that, and this is a little bit unique, you've been endorsed by sort of the social conservative crowd, the national defense security crowd, the economic leg of the stool, the conservative movement stool. And isn't this wonderful?
And then DeSantis goes on to say that he's quite proud of the fact that he's united the movement behind him, which is a little, dare I say, sanctimonious, but okay... Again, that's not the point of the video. That's not what interests me about the video. What interests me is that this is years old and DeSantis has fairly interesting things to say about the Republican Party's existence.
Watch it here:
Then you look at small government, free market, constitutional government, basically. And I think that really is where Republicans have failed recently. We've been expanding government and spending. So, you've got to be fiscally conservative, if you don't do that, then the Republican Party really doesn't have a rationale to exist.
I'm not endorsing anybody for 2024 just yet, and this isn't meant to just be a sycophantic exercise for DeSantis by any stretch, but he's right on that.
He's absolutely, stone cold right about it. If you aren't gonna be fiscally conservative and try to limit some government and try to shrink some government, the Republican Party has no rationale to exist. None. And in fact, I'm still not sold that there won't be a an independent candidate in 2024 that could spoil Republican Party's chances, but at the end of the day, you have to at least consider the notion that one side wants to expand limitless government, and then there is no counter-argument to that from the other party.
There is none. Not with the people that are currently running it - in particular the, I don't know, let's say 40 or so guys in the house and about 20 or so Republicans in the Senate, namely McConnell, and the RNC is in abject disaster.
Defining the party as the party of limited government, as the party of advancing individual freedom, and prosperity and virtue. They're just disasters at it. That's why I thought the clip was extraordinarily instructive that it's years old and he puts a fine point on it. There is no rationale for the Republican Party to exist if it doesn't champion limited government and pass legislation reflecting that value system.
I'm assuming this is an interview as he prepares for his run for governor, but the real sad part is that you've got guys like DeSantis who used to be members of Congress, and without dissecting his record in totality, he basically said he left Congress because he couldn't reduce government being one of 200 or so Republican members. Republicans couldn't do it. And so, that's a real failure of the Republican party. You're losing good members. Now, look, Congress' loss was Florida's gain, but you're losing good people to go do other things because look at Senator Braun from Indiana.
It's the same thing. He may not admit this publicly, but I'll admit it for him, it's the same thing. Good guy runs on a message of fiscal conservatism, wins an upset Senate race and just decides, yeah... I'm outta here. I'm gonna go run for governor of Indiana. He's gonna take the DeSantis path.
Could have been a good vote for all of these priorities, but guys like McConnell, just elbow 'em out. You're not wanted here. So look, is there someone that is gonna go independent? Would a Trump even consider that? Would Trump say, "look this party is not reflective of what I want to accomplish, so I'm gonna go run as an independent?"
I wouldn't put it past him. I'll leave it at that, but you're at the point, I think more so now than, and I know this has been talked about in other election cycles, but it just feels to me like this is little bit of a Rubicon crossing moment where the Republican Party is concerned.
They don't know who the speaker should be. They don't know who the the RNC chairman should be. There was a little bit of a tussle as to who the minority leader should be in the Senate, and then there's gonna be a tussle for the Republican nominee, right?
So this is at all levels, at all major federal levels. Senate Leader, House Speaker, RNC Chair, Presidential nominee... You have massive-government Republicans versus small-government Republicans and if you've got small-government Republicans standing up and saying, "no!" like how Rick Scott in Florida tried to take down Mitch McConnell even though he knew he wasn't gonna win. McConnell has too many buddies in there to protect him.
That wouldn't have happened in previous cycles, this stuff that is going on in the House with McCarthy. Previous cycles, he'd probably be a shoe-in. He's next in line. He knows how to raise money. A lot of people owe their careers to him.
It would probably be a shoe-in. Not anymore. You've got Republicans and conservatives standing up for themselves. The platform originally called for much of the same things that Ron DeSantis said in this interview years ago. What is the rationale for the party's existence?
If you are not going to distinguish yourself from Democrats, there is none.
That was DeSantis' point. You ought not exist. And then of course the fourth race is the Ronna Romney McDaniel's race and Harmeet Dhillon. And I don't have a dog in that fight. I don't know if Harmeet Dhillon would be any better, but I don't think Ronna Romney McDaniel should be rewarded. And so I'm looking for a fresh face. Ronna Romney McDaniel has had opportunity, after opportunity, after opportunity to fix electoral processes and procedures and defend their candidates either on the trail or in courtrooms.
In basically the same states, the same problem-states, for Republicans: Nevada, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan - it has been the same issues.
The same states rear their ugly heads and she's had multiple opportunities to remedy this, and what?Nothing. And now you're staring at a situation that it may be almost darn near impossible under current conditions for a Republican to gain 270 electoral votes because of the way the laws are structured in those four aforementioned states, it's just impossible.
It's just a mathematical equation of time. They don't have the apparatus to do the type of mail-in ballot acquisition that these states require to win. The Republican Party does not have those tools in its tool shed, they don't. And she has had an opportunity to build those tools and those tool sheds, and she hasn't.
So for that reason, I'm all for somebody else taking a shot at it. It's not for lack of messaging. Look at Florida, right? They govern in a fiscally conservative way. That is the straw that stirs their drink. And it has become the most attractive state in the country to do business in, to move to, and it's not just because of the weather.
Other states are the same way. And you govern in a fiscally conservative way, you become an attractive state to move to and do business in, and the federal government needs to follow suit.