Carnes: Not exactly a done deal yet
Like death, taxes and snowfall in May, some things in life are just guaranteed.
It is a certainty, a done deal, a fait accompli.
However, most things in life are just the opposite, outcomes decided by constantly changing situations from week to week, day to day, and even minute by minute thanks to our daily data dumps of information.
So why in the world is the media trying so hard to convince us that it’s a done deal for the 2024 presidential election, and no matter what we do or say it will be President Joe Biden versus the twice impeached, sexually abusing Florida Hotel owner and former reality TV show host?
Balderdash, I say, pure malarkey.
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And though a Bidenism, I’m not taking sides, as personally, I don’t want either of them. Age notwithstanding, Republicans know they can’t win with the “Indictment King” and Democrats fear they can’t win without him, but what I want is for the GOP to take its party back and put up a real challenge with an honest candidate for a change.
Face it, we already have a three-party system, as those in the MAGA camp are as far from real Republicans as Alpine skiers are from ski bikers, and though about the same percentage on the hill, are acting like they actually have a chance, even if it’s to the direct detriment of the GOP and their chances for ever returning to some semblance of their former glory.
The first presidential primary is over nine long months away, so here are a few GOP possibilities that can change the race dynamics at a moment’s notice, along with a personal thought or two:
Ron DeSantis: Currently fighting an unwinnable battle with Disney, but enough seem to support him as a true frontrunner once the Indictment King fades into grifter oblivion.
Nikki Haley: Trying way too hard to play both sides with her left foot in the GOP stream and her right planted firmly in the MAGA sewer, but currently the only female with a shot.
Asa Hutchinson: A U.S. attorney, congressman, DEA administrator and two-term Arkansas governor that shows real promise. I like the guy.
Tim Scott: One of the Senate GOP’s strongest fundraisers and wildly popular in South Carolina, so could be a real dark horse (pun intended, but not in a racist manner).
Chris Sununu: His people seem to love him as he’s won four gubernatorial elections, and to top it off, New Hampshire is a first-in-the-nation primary state, giving him the potential to start exceptionally strong.
Mike Pence: Oh, please.
On the Democrat side, as long as they can keep Bernie Sanders rocking on a Vermont porch, Kamala Harris would be the traditional choice, but I’d love to see real challenges from the likes of Raphael Warnock, Gavin Newsom or Pete Buttigieg if they can convince Biden to be happy with a “one and done” so he can focus on keeping Hunter out of jail (Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is, well, a Kennedy on the far left, and will never be a valid contender).
A lot can happen before next February, and that one guy attempting stand-up routines on CNN opens the door for a real GOP candidate to answer, but either way, as long as it’s two Americans with integrity and neither has a personal bone to pick with the other, I’m all in for an entertaining and respectable race.
Yeah, I can be incredibly naïve at times.
Richard Carnes, of Avon, writes weekly. He can be reached at poor@vail.net.
