The gloves are off. Up until this point, the relentless attacks on former president Donald Trump have been mainly subversive. Russiagate. Censorship. Fake News. Social media algorithmic manipulation.
The 2020 election kicked it up a notch, and remains an opaque, scattered mess that we may never get to the bottom of. January 6th, 2021 was likely a farce, with certain characters like Ray Epps fomenting the push into the Capitol Building, with Capitol Police waving them in for a largely inconsequential riot, not insurrection.
This week’s decision by the Colorado Supreme Court to kick Trump off the primary ballot marked something different. You have a state of our union overtly attempting to strip a former president of his ability to run again. Read that sentence again, and let it stick. Twitter/X firebrand, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, rightfully slapped down the US in response.
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The Colorado Supreme Court has stayed its own decision (legal-speak for a temporary hold), until the U.S. Supreme Court reviews the case. As CBS News reports:
Trump will appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, a spokesman for his campaign said, setting up a high-stakes showdown over his eligibility to run just as voters in early states begin casting their ballots in the Republican primaries. In pausing its decision, the Colorado Supreme Court said that if review to the nation's highest court is sought before Jan. 4, its stay will remain in place, and the secretary will be required to list Trump on the 2024 primary ballot until the U.S. Supreme Court rules.
Some are downplaying the move as an isolated political ploy: just some rogue judges in a liberal state. They say it will be overturned by SCOTUS anyway.
Well, at least 16 other states have pending motions to do the same thing. And, California’s Lieutenant Governor, Eleni Kounalakis issued a statement “urging” the California Secretary of State to “explore every legal option” to remove Trump from the ballot.
In other words, Kounalakis and those like her already have the conclusion they want in mind — they just need to figure out a legal way to do it.
Many are pointing out that Trump hasn’t even yet been convicted as a defense against the Colorado ruling. The thing is, even if he were convicted, it likely would still be bullshit. We’ve seen how they’ve attempted to shotgun Trump since 2015, trying to get something, anything to stick.
In all likelihood, that conviction is coming. Equally likely, it will be absolute garbage, but some court will use it to knock Trump off the ballot.
The Colorado decision follows polling that shows a nation-wide sentiment shift on Trump. Recent polling from the New York Times and Siena College have found Trump leading in five of six battleground states:
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As
wrote recently, Trump lost a chunk of political capital after the January 6th riots. This Colorado decision, he says, is reversing this slump:Donald Trump has — improbably, shockingly — regained nearly all the political capital he lost in January 2021. It’s the most amazing comeback story since the Buffalo Bills won the Frank Reich game, and I’m not talking about Trump. The rally-cappers here are Biden Democrats, who’ve come from laps behind to overtake Trump in the race to find the illiberal bottom of American politics. This would be amazing to watch, if not for the fact that in this particular contest, the audience loses no matter who wins the game.
In response, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick has suggested to flip it around on the White House:
“Seeing what happened in Colorado tonight … makes me think — except we believe in democracy in Texas — maybe we should take Joe Biden off the ballot in Texas for allowing 8 million people to cross the border since he’s been president, disrupting our state far more than anything anyone else has done in recent history,” Patrick said in an interview with Fox News anchor Laura Ingraham.
“…Except we believe in democracy in Texas.” Democrats play dirty because they have no morals and never face accountability. Many Republicans don’t either, but most of the genuinely moral statesmen are currently on the right. But, in being moral, you play by the rules.
The problem is, with stakes as high as the fate of the nation, Western civilization, the global power balance, can you afford to play nice? To play by rules your opponent actively refuses to abide by? And, they used to at least make the attempt to put a paper-thin veil over it, but now, as we see with Colorado, there is no more pretense. Zero. It’s all plain as day.
We’ve crossed many lines since 2020. As consequential as this is, it’s just yet another line demarcating on one side: sanity, balance of powers, and shared national fabric; and on the other: uncharted and dangerously volatile territory, where the world’s chief superpower and cultural engine is thrust into a Cold Civil War that is heating up with each passing day.
As we look back, I think we’ll realize that the first line — wherever that is — was way behind us.
On the bright side: all the cards (or at least most of them) are now on the table. There is no more fronting about where we are now. This is a raw battle of power. Logic, reason, and conventional politicking are out totally subordinate to this reality.
Mike Cernovich summed up what our duty is moving forward:
Let’s take the next couple of weeks to recharge, refresh, and enjoy the warmth of family and friends. We are in for a fight in 2024 — and beyond. Merry Christmas and happy holidays all.
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This seems like an unintentional win for Trump. He's back in everyone's eyes now