Dems had an election win in their hands then ran the worst campaign I have seen since 2016.
Not fighting the last war but fighting one from a couple of generations ago.
Not a recipe for success.
And surprisingly, the more Musk has gotten involved, the calmer Trump seems to be. Fewer stupid nicknames, actually acting more like an adult etc.
And now the Democrats are playing defence - will Kamala go on JRE? (She won't is my guess). When Anderson Cooper is calling you out, you know the plot has been lost.
We have an incumbent VP in a strong economy and she is on her heels. I still think there is a path to victory for her but wow is it a narrow path.
And she has shown little ability to thread the needle.
Thanks for your insights as always.
Jeff King
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"If I feel broke, you're not going to convince me otherwise by doing the math."
OMG, thank you for writing this. It's incredibly frustrating. On the one hand, logic says, of course, you want to counter these MAGA arguments with math and facts. On the other hand, MAGA doesn't want to hear all that. They're mad, and they blame the world for the crappy position they're in. They want punk rock! They want to feel that their anger is justified with more like-minded leaders.
Sadly, my brother and a few cousins have been seduced by the dark side and given in to their hate (they're full MAGA now). No matter how often I try to show them that their emperor is lying to them by clearly laying out the facts with evidence, they don't care.
The blue side definitely needs a punk rock leader - someone who isn't afraid to show more passion and emotions and mix it up and bend some rules when it comes to their outreach and campaigning
Adam L.
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Ugh Bob. I read your email and then went to Tik Tok. Trump fills the Garden and the wide shot shows a packed house. Production value through the roof. A few more swipes and I'm at Kamala's rally in Philly (?) and it's a robocam medium shot twitching back and forth. Her audio has a hum in it throughout and when the walk off music plays it is distorted. Totally embarrassing. No wide shot because they can't show you the Garden. I so want her to beat Trump, but why can't the Dems at a minimum provide the standard of production everyone expects? They can afford plenty. They're gonna cheap out and blow it if they haven't already. God help us.
Stan Kellam
Cat Head Media, Inc.
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My wife said one hope is these young people—the young men—don't take the effort to vote. But: If these young men are registered, will they get that sticker as a symbol of being part of their tribe?
The Trump signs are back up in Michigan on the outskirts of Ann Arbor, in Superior Township & Canton on Ford Road, plus the expected small towns in mid Michigan, littered with lawn signs. I am getting the spider sense that I had in 2016 when I was bar gigging across the state. I know, we aren't supposed to use our gut.
Trump supporters can't be shamed into being a Harris voter. And more people who are embarrassed by Trump's behavior will vote quietly like 2016. Harris has to inspire. The constant fearmongering about another Trump presidency can't be the main message. We know!
Mike Vial
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Very well said. I was a round table the other night with some very experienced politicians who have been in the White House on both sides of the aisle, and one of them said that Trump will win because he represents the biggest middle finger Americans can give to the system. They are fed up with inflation, endless government spending that never makes its way to the middle class, and the fact that leadership doesn't seem to care. Democrats in particular are so self absorbed and delusional so as to be unaware of any of this, and they can't fathom how anybody would dare vote against their self-righteous (if well meaning from an emotional standpoint) agenda. Don't forget the budget hasn't been balanced since Clinton, though. I was glad to see both speakers adopt a conciliatory tone during the conversation and recognize that continued diviseiveness will be very detrimental to the country. Hopefully somebody somewhere can find a way to lead us without resorting to every single lowball dirty tactic in the book. As you mention, social media, the internet, and technology in general have transformed the profit equation in many industries, some for better and some for the worse. Seemingly in music and politics, it's for the worst. Let's hope for the best.
Robert Corwin
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Al Ries and Jack Trout wrote "Positioning: The Battle For Your Mind" almost 40 years ago. The entire book boils down to the idea that it's not what you do to the product, it's what you do to the mind of the prospect.
Their premise remains "…same as it ever was"- people's perception IS THEIR REALITY. Mind boggling that so many smart people can't understand a simple reality we all deal with daily. BTW, you are right about Mark Cuban who could well be President in 4 or 8 years. Would have been a great Harris VP pick.
Mark Maheu
Barrie, Ontario
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Thanks Bob,
You make a lot of great points here. I feel like the Democrats are akin to old school car salesmen/women that don't realize the consumer likely knows more about the car they are selling than they do. It seems to me that the Dem's need to start talking about things as they are and not how they could be. Perhaps then the conversations and perhaps even the debates could have more substance.
One other point you touch on is a deep concern for me and that is the marginalizing of young men and boys. I'm not against women doing well for themselves but the risk of diverting most of our resources to their advancements is the neglect of boys and men. My feeling is that if boys/men aren't getting a modicum of education they cannot effectively voice/communicate (if anyone even cares anymore) their wants and needs which I think will ultimately lead to a violent means of expression and or joining clubs/groups of the like minded. Our culture and its institutions sometimes require a level of forward thinking that cannot be understood without reading/education and the further our men and boys get away from understanding the basic concepts of our social contracts the closer I fear we get to their last resort, which is violence. I'm not sure the remedy here but one place to start is to start listening without judging the lack of depth. Maybe.
Colin Dutton
____________________________________
You pretty much nailed it on this one Bob. The Dems live in a bubble. The masses see through their grift & gaslighting. Trump may not be the best option, but he seems to be the only one the masses have, when they're desperate for the "Hope & Change" that never ultimately came their way.
My mentor once told me, "Just remember, things will never be ideal. Things will always be JUST good enough for you to get by".
Well that isn't good enough.
-Rick Marino
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What you say is undoubtedly true, but sadly it's been this way for decades. As you say, it's not about facts but perception. And the fact is that for decades, the left have been horrible at electioneering, branding and marketing but very good at actually governing, whereas the right are fantastic at campaigning, branding and marketing and a disaster at governing.
Which is why as you say, Trump very well may win, and the pattern of Republicans screwing up the economy, deficits and environment and leaving a mess for Democrats to clean up While Republicans successfully complain that the Democrats aren't cleaning up the mess fast enough is likely to repeat yet again.
-Zach Ziskin
____________________________________
I have a great story for a snapshot of America.
My very democrat mother in WV heard a man at breakfast loudly saying that we would never vote for a former prostitute for president. He kept going on and on until my mother had enough and stood up and said "that doesn't make any sense.!" The man pushed back and said "even Kamala admits to being a prostitute"
This idiot had confused prosecutor and prostitute.
He gets to vote.
Philip Pendleton
____________________________________
If Elon is wrong about something he posts, there is community notes to correct him.
Who else in politics and/or mainstream media allows direct correction to a statement by "the people"?
A correction in a newspaper will never be with the published article.
The amount of times Tv news has corrected itself over it's lifespan can be counted on one hand. That's why a lot of it is opinion based.
Elon's first answer to a question is frequently a response question: "What do YOU think? "
What a concept!!
So he ruffles feathers…who gives a sh*t! We can be happy we have him in our generation!
Cheers,
Andy Altmann
____________________________________
Nailed it!
Steve Androulakis
____________________________________
You're right AGAIN, Bob!
Marhsall Block
____________________________________
Nailing it Bob - keep it coming.
Respectfully,
John Murray
Traverse City, Michigan
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"God, if I was Kamala Harris I would lean into my days as a prosecutor. That's what resonates with so many. You're out there fighting crime, preserving order, so I can raise my family in peace. "
I couldn't agree anymore.
John Rodriguez
____________________________________
"Meanwhile, you've got Elon Musk spewing willy-nilly, constantly on X/Twitter, and he's completely unrestrained, like the rock stars of yore."
And this is good somehow…. Pls enlighten, how exactly?
Spew lies, cheat and hurt people… but hey, you are authentic and you are RNR somehow?
I don't want our leaders to be celebrities and also to entertain me necessarily. I don't want our cultural icons to promote lies, be weird, invoke and promote the unchecked, lowest passions all in function to divide us and antagonize us, so they and their businesses may benefit unimaginable wealth.
These are not lessons DNC should be learning.
Yes… they should find a better message for young men in particular. That messanger should not be a DNC version of Elan Musk. Less RNR, pls. More normalcy and decency.
Srdjan Mihaljevic
____________________________________
I'm a white old man for Trump. "Im mad as hell and im not gonna take it anymore." F the men in dresses.
Chris Badynee
____________________________________
This is the most "on-target" thing I've seen in these emails since I started receiving them.
Thanks,
Bob Sheehan
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Unfortunately 'progressive' America is still not ready for a female President, let alone one who is of mixed race, regardless of how good or bad she is as a candidate. It's 2024 and the world is still living in the Stone Age where men rule and women were barefoot and pregnant back in the cave and had no say in anything.
Trumps going to be your guy come next week and chaos will reign for the foreseeable future. Musk, Bezos and the other uber male billionaires will thrive while the world fall into further decline because the common folk just don't know any better.
Good luck to America and anyone that relies on them for guidance or assistance, you're going to need it!
mmpoppa1
____________________________________
If Musk is your idea of a leader, you are so far gone the capitalism poop shoot you can't even see daylight. The man is a fraud and a grifter. Do some research about his "hidden past". He has not really been a productive citizen. If you look at it from a the conservative view he is a foreigner with 12 anchor babies!
How long does it take a person making 40K a year to net 1 billion. 25 fing thousand years. People don't make a billion dollars. They lie cheat steal and fraud their way to that much money. Fink outright states it. He doesn't care who wins the election. It doesn't matter. Blackrock is king today. All the while mainstream push that this is the most important election of your lifetime.
We all wake up everyday, usually it's a urge just to survive while Musk blathers on about how to repopulate the planet and colonize another one. Sh*t is upside down and backwards.
Derek Lowe
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Via some CNN instagram posts, I've clicked to see comments out of curiosity and on a few recent posts and I've seen nothing but Trump supporters bashing whatever/whomever the post was about (usually pro Harris story). And I've seen a few more Trump signs in my neighborhood than before.
My point, I am hoping for a blue wall like no other with all the early voting that is occurring. There are more of us than them.. That is the only thing I can add to this.
Steve Anderko
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Bob…you are right…the tech billionaires are the rock starts of today. But I don't think it's ok that someone like Musk can buy a public forum like Twitter and turn it into a propaganda arm for one side of the political spectrum. That shouldn't be acceptable in a democracy and we shouldn't celebrate it.
Adam Gorgoni
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Well said Bob!!
Elon is a hero to so many I know, he is unbridled to a fault and leads by example,
Kanye tried to be punk rock but Elon is kickin a*s and breakin glass babeee,
Love em or hate he's leading.
Julien Jorgensen
____________________________________
Great view on things! Not a fan of either side. I was born middle class. lol. She really has to do better to convince me to vote for her..
Best,
Michael Canter
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Kamala went on "Call Her Daddy" podcast and was excellent. She's going on Shannon Sharpes very popular podcast tomorrow. She is doing a fine job playing it relatively safe versus Trump who is a weak, sad, low energy old man.
Van Patton
____________________________________
I hope Ol'Bob doesn't die of Terminal TDS before the election that Harris still might win. By hook or by crook.
He can't really be saying the media hasn't consistently propped up and covered for Harris and Biden.
Any reasonable person knows each side is acting like a "used car salesman" now - but he is pretending Harris is truth telling - really Nazis, Hitler that scare stuff isn't gonna win over any voters at this stage.
Ol'Bob is better than this, but as I have said many times - politics is not his strong suit.
Ernie Pinder
____________________________________
I think you insult young men. But worse change a name or two and it's an endorsement of Adolph Hitler. "Hey! Hop on board! They are mendacious and clearly corrupt and evil but they have the money & power". So let's blame the ones playing by the rules meant to support democracy because it's old fashioned and in the way. Not all young men want to be Elon Musk. Some have character and self respect. So old fashioned but this period like Nazis in Germany will pass unless we capitulate which is how you sound. MAGA is even, not winning. It shouldn't be even so you could say that's winning but the country is a rotten corpse of what it used to be. But that doesn't mean MAGA wins.
Michael Fremer
____________________________________
As I have watched the last four years play out, I have come to realize that 2020 was a necessary evil.
2020 was the wake up call that many people needed in America. We needed to see what kind of evil we were really up against. And we saw that tenfold. We saw four years of an administration that has put America last. We saw an administration that has taken every single American citizen for granted, has robbed them blind and imported a brand new class of voters to replace them.
2020 showed us all that we have that fighting spirit. We saw the rise of a new and more awake conservative, who was ready to mobilize and fight back. We saw an awakening among independents and minority voters after four years of destruction by the left. Our movement grew, it became stronger, more diverse and more inclusive. The old Republican party died in 2020 and out of its ashes rose a party that is for the people, a party of common sense. We added powerful allies in RFK, Elon Musk, David Sacks, Bill Ackman, Nicole Shenihan, and Tulsi Gabbard.
The left and their depraved hatred of Donald Trump have alienated so many and instead of destroying Trump, they made him out to be a martyr.
They thought they destroyed him in 2020 but instead all they did was invigorate us to fight even harder for the choice to pick who we want as our president, which only made him that much stronger.
2024 feels different. The vibe check is definitely bigger than 2016 and 2020.
The momentum is on our side and we need to continue to do what we have been doing, which is to act like we're 20 points down but talk like we already won.
John Warden
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Thanks for the missive, Cassandra. There is definitely a bad moon on the rise. I had to look it up to make sure I knew what myth I was talking about...The figure of Cassandra is symbolic in Greek mythology and is still interesting today. The term "Cassandra" is sometimes used to describe someone who can see what will happen but is not believed." Dirty job, Bob but someone's got to do it. Like John Lennon said in 69 about the Beatles, "the dream is over, luv." Same for the American dream. Put a fork in it. It's done.
Chip Lovitt
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I'm sure you'll be happy if Trump wins..Then you'll have stories and more bullsh*t to spread…what have you done to improve things with your cache?..always second guessing..after many years you're wearing out your welcome..
Peace,Jason
Jason Miles
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Meanwhile, the Rogan-Trump interview is getting a million views an hour.
Kelly Breaks
____________________________________
Hey Bob-
But don't forget who's angrier - women.
Grace Mosqueda
____________________________________
Landslide. Harris. You missed the bottom line. America, not the 80 million, despise Trump. Online and off.
A John Pithie
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