There are 7 comments.

1. Member
   Scott Wilmot

   @ScottWilmot

   4:08 PM EDT ⋅ Sep 17, 2019

   Dang, that Enter Sandman entrance was so good he might have gained quite a few new supporters in NYC.

   Good stuff.

2. Member
   Clifford A. Brown

   @CliffordBrown

   Post author

   4:11 PM EDT ⋅ Sep 17, 2019

   Unfamiliar with fight walkouts?

3. Member
   Clifford A. Brown

   @CliffordBrown

   Post author

   4:17 PM EDT ⋅ Sep 17, 2019

   And here is the Sandman himself:

4. Contributor
   Gary McVey

   @GaryMcVey

   6:12 PM EDT ⋅ Sep 17, 2019

   You’ve got a good series going here on possible political transformation, C.A.B., and backed it up with logic.

   So far, you (and we commenters) haven’t fallen prone to wishful thinking syndrome, and I’ve sen a lot of it over the years: “The Latinos will vote for us, forever, because we’re the anti-abortion party!” “Blacks will come our way once someone tells them Frederick Douglass told them to buy guns in 1881! Yeah, that’s the ticket!” “Of all retired couples who listen to Hannity together, half of them are women! So if we just interpolate that among 330 million people…”

   Here’s a cautionary note: My people, the Irish Catholics, largely moved from Democrat to Republican-voting (though probably not GOP-registered) in only ten years. Nixon didn’t win them over by constantly belittling, denouncing and slighting JFK. It would have been understood that his presidency was still recent and a moment of real pride for most Catholics. Later, they’d peel off, but not in 1964-70. The analogy is clear: constantly telling Blacks that Obama was no good, a cause of their situation, not the cure is counterproductive. They don’t want to hear it yet. Yep, sorry–what works great for us is poison for them. President Trump doesn’t act like he knows that.

   Infrastructure hasn’t happened. Putting young Blacks to work rebuilding their own neighborhoods would be a natural for urban developer Trump. It has been tried, and it works, but it’s disproportionately expensive.

   Big government payrolls get Black votes. In my lifetime Blacks have gone from being about two thirds living in poverty to about 25-30%. They like the government programs that largely did that. They don’t see it like we do and we shouldn’t expect them to. Blacks work in some of the least economically efficient sectors of society–health, education, bureaucracy in general. A disproportionate number of them made it to the middle class via civil service or government jobs. Any massive shrinkage of the government workforce, including the military, would be a direct attack on their livelihood.

   I don’t regard these as arguments, but as realistic facts that would have to be dealt with if the GOP really wants to win over the reachable part of Black America.

5. Member
   Clifford A. Brown

   @CliffordBrown

   Post author

   7:36 PM EDT ⋅ Sep 17, 2019

   Gary McVey (View Comment):

   Here’s a cautionary note: My people, the Irish Catholics, largely moved from Democrat to Republican-voting (though probably not GOP-registered) in only ten years. Nixon didn’t win them over by constantly belittling, denouncing and slighting JFK. It would have been understood that his presidency was still recent and a moment of real pride for most Catholics. Later, they’d peel off, but not in 1964-70. The analogy is clear: constantly telling Blacks that Obama was no good, a cause of their situation, not the cure is counterproductive. They don’t want to hear it yet. Yep, sorry–what works great for us is poison for them. President Trump doesn’t act like he knows that.

   I agree that he should focus on a dysfunctional bipartisan legislature as the source of bad law and failure to enact good law. He just called out RINOs in New Mexico. Make the target Speakers of the House, not one of which are in the good column since the brief time Gingrich held the gavel. Except, occasionally stick up for the old broad from San Fran, being put upon by the Squad.

   Infrastructure hasn’t happened. Putting young Blacks to work rebuilding their own neighborhoods would be a natural for urban developer Trump. It has been tried, and it works, but it’s disproportionately expensive.

   Yes. More, he needs to do a major event very soon on the New Deal for Black America. Talk about the progress so far and then push for boot-strap programs of apprenticeships in the building trades in the neighborhoods NOW.

   Big government payrolls get Black votes. In my lifetime Blacks have gone from being about two thirds living in poverty to about 25-30%. They like the government programs that largely did that. They don’t see it like we do and we shouldn’t expect them to. Blacks work in some of the least economically efficient sectors of society–health, education, bureaucracy in general. A disproportionate number of them made it to the middle class via civil service or government jobs. Any massive shrinkage of the government workforce, including the military, would be a direct attack on their livelihood.

   This goes back to Jim Crow and before. Hardy individuals made it as cowboys and such way out in the Old West. At the same time, the Buffalo Soldiers were “banished” to do the hard work on the frontier, establishing a tradition of enlisted military service, including all the supervisory enlisted ranks. As the federal civil service was professionalized, blacks got in during windows outside of virulently racist Democrat Party presidents (Wilson).

   While predominantly White female officers were pushing for access to high prestige “combat arms” assignments, disproportionately Black female sergeants wanted stability in the specialties that translated into civilian careers (office administration, logistics,…).

   Note that President Trump has been emphatic on growing military budgets, no cuts in stuff or personnel.

   Note that President Trump highlighted a Black sergeant who had transitioned to a major automobile manufacturer and who was rapidly advancing through their on-the-job supervisor training program.

6. Contributor
   Gary McVey

   @GaryMcVey

   8:59 PM EDT ⋅ Sep 17, 2019

   Clifford A. Brown (View Comment):

   Gary McVey (View Comment):

   Here’s a cautionary note: My people, the Irish Catholics, largely moved from Democrat to Republican-voting (though probably not GOP-registered) in only ten years. Nixon didn’t win them over by constantly belittling, denouncing and slighting JFK. It would have been understood that his presidency was still recent and a moment of real pride for most Catholics. Later, they’d peel off, but not in 1964-70. The analogy is clear: constantly telling Blacks that Obama was no good, a cause of their situation, not the cure is counterproductive. They don’t want to hear it yet. Yep, sorry–what works great for us is poison for them. President Trump doesn’t act like he knows that.

   I agree that he should focus on a dysfunctional bipartisan legislature as the source of bad law and failure to enact good law. He just called out RINOs in New Mexico. Make the target Speakers of the House, not one of which are in the good column since the brief time Gingrich held the gavel. Except, occasionally stick up for the old broad from San Fran, being put upon by the Squad.

   Infrastructure hasn’t happened. Putting young Blacks to work rebuilding their own neighborhoods would be a natural for urban developer Trump. It has been tried, and it works, but it’s disproportionately expensive.

   Yes. More, he needs to do a major event very soon on the New Deal for Black America. Talk about the progress so far and then push for boot-strap programs of apprenticeships in the building trades in the neighborhoods NOW.

   Big government payrolls get Black votes. In my lifetime Blacks have gone from being about two thirds living in poverty to about 25-30%. They like the government programs that largely did that. They don’t see it like we do and we shouldn’t expect them to. Blacks work in some of the least economically efficient sectors of society–health, education, bureaucracy in general. A disproportionate number of them made it to the middle class via civil service or government jobs. Any massive shrinkage of the government workforce, including the military, would be a direct attack on their livelihood.

   This goes back to Jim Crow and before. Hardy individuals made it as cowboys and such way out in the Old West. At the same time, the Buffalo Soldiers were “banished” to do the hard work on the frontier, establishing a tradition of enlisted military service, including all the supervisory enlisted ranks. As the federal civil service was professionalized, blacks got in during windows outside of virulently racist Democrat Party presidents (Wilson).

   While predominantly White female officers were pushing for access to high prestige “combat arms” assignments, disproportionately Black female sergeants wanted stability in the specialties that translated into civilian careers (office administration, logistics,…).

   Note that President Trump has been emphatic on growing military budgets, no cuts in stuff or personnel.

   Note that President Trump highlighted a Black sergeant who had transitioned to a major automobile manufacturer and who was rapidly advancing through their on-the-job supervisor training program.

   I wish you were chairman of The President’s Ricochet Advisory Council. Seriously; he needs people who are absolutely loyal but also absolutely clear-eyed and tactically creative. 

7. Coolidge
   TBA

   @RobtGilsdorf

   6:38 PM EDT ⋅ Sep 18, 2019

   Beats the hell out of Fleetwood Mac.