Trump and Christie … And the Bullies Shall Inherit the GOP

New Jersey Gov. Christ Christie, aka, “Jabba the Bully,” has officially endorsed Donald Trump, aka, “the Antichrist of NY,” for president. And somewhere in hell a little demon just got their wings.

A lot of political pundits were, so they claimed, shocked by this turn of events in a political season that was marked by many wild swings.  Actually, in a perverted and utterly shameful way, it makes perfect sense.

Love him or hate him (59% of New Jersey voters disapprove of the job Gov. Christie is doing), Jabba the Bully is a career politician that happens to be a pragmatist. As things stand, the republican presidential race has essentially become a three-man slog fest consisting of Donald Trump, Sen. Ted Cruz R-Texas, and Sen. Marc Rubio R-Fla.

Christie’s endorsement of Trump is based on three factors. First, he has made the political calculation that the Antichrist of NY might actually win enough delegates and get the republican nomination. Jabba the Bully might want to be on the short list for Vice President, or more likely, get a cabinet appointment. The Czar of Krispy Krème Doughnuts is a vacancy that he could fill.  

Second, Gov. Christie doesn’t like Ted Cruz, who he sees as political opportunist that represents the worst of Washington dysfunction, and he absolutely hates Marc Rubio, who he pummeled in the New Hampshire debate for being overly scripted. Third, Donald Trump wants Christie in his camp. The Antichrist of NY is really good at tweeting disparaging remarks about his opponents, and slinging mud at his campaign events. However,  despite all his reality star showmanship, Trump is unable to put a coherent noun and verb together to explain any of his policy views and therefore, Christie has been recruited to help in that department.  

 Christie’s decision to jump back into the presidential campaign alongside Trump, a mere two weeks after dropping out, is a colossal reversal of fortune for a popular Republican governor who three years ago was considered a leading 2016 presidential contender. In a cringe worthy interview, on ABC’s “This Week” the famously pugilistic governor, whose presidential campaign slogan was “telling it like it is,” had trouble explaining his support of Trump’s policies and instead sputtered inane platitudes about the electability of the billionaire businessman and former Atlantic City casino tycoon.

“Given the other options on the stage, let me tell you something, he's the strongest, best guy to be our nominee to beat Hillary Clinton and to be the next president of the United States.”

Not exactly a ringing endorsement from the guy that loves to tell people to sit down and shut up. But alas, Gov. Christie is really a “sad guy” that has come to the sobering realization that his political aspirations have turned to ash, and all his tough talk wont help him get back his mojo.

Adding fuel to the fire, some of Gov. Christie's former allies are no longer marching in lock step with him and instead have decided to attack his endorsement. One notable example, Hewlett-Packard CEO,  Meg Whitman, a former top supporter and  co-chair of Christie's national finance team issued a statement denouncing the governors endorsement as "an astonishing display of political opportunism."

Yup ... that pretty much sums it up.

So, to recap:  

Jabba the Bully has been reduced to endorsing Donald Trump,  and  the Republican establishment is working overtime to derail the good ship Trump before he can seal the deal.  David Duke and his KKK pals really like the Antichrist of NY, and he in turn, refuses to denounce them. And Jeb Bush is sitting at home, shaking his head in disbelief, asking himself "how did it go so horribly wrong?," while the rest of us are left wondering, when did the bullies come to inherit the GOP?

MSNBC: The Place for Politics … Leaning Backwards

The writing has been on the wall for a long time. Throughout 2015, after years of dismal ratings, the leadership at MSNBC decided to  pivot to a hard news format and announced many programming changes.  The afternoon line up was virtually dismantled and many familiar faces were demoted or handed pink slips.

The shows that were spared: Hard Ball with Chris Matthews, All In with Chris Hayes (which may get canceled), The Rachel Maddow Show,  The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell, and Morning Joe show with Joe Scarborough and Mika  Brzezinski.

The shows that were demoted: Politics Nation with Rev. Al Sharpton moved from Monday to Friday (6 p.m.) to Sundays (8 a.m.)

The shows that got the ax: Ronan Farrow Daily, The Reid Report,  The Cycle, Now with Alex Wagner, and The Ed Show. 

The latest victim seems to be the Melissa Harris Perry show or MHP.

The show, which launched 4 years ago, has been repeatedly pre-empted in favor of providing more coverage for the political farce that we call the presidential campaign of 2016.  The self-proclaimed “nerd-land” host issued a statement in which she explained to her staff and loyal viewers the reality of the shows future:

“Here is the reality: Our show was taken — without comment or discussion or notice — in the midst of an election season,” she wrote in the email, which became public on Friday. “After four years of building an audience, developing a brand and developing trust with our viewers, we were effectively and utterly silenced.”

If the leadership at MSNBC has indeed canceled the MHP show through a process of attrition it comes as no surprise, and sadly, it continues a long downward spiral for a cable news station that once had some journalistic standards. Starting with the abrupt departure of Keith Olbermann in 2011, the struggling cable network has desperately tried to find a winning formula to keep pace with the ratings of  the FOX News Channel. 

Giving up all pretenses at being a liberal counterweight to Faux News, the management at MSNBC has cast off any semblance of racial diversity and journalistic integrity, and instead, has embraced a more homogenous on-air look to score bigger ratings. However, to be fair, there are still a few non-white faces on the air, Tamron Hall, Joy-Ann Reid, Kristen Welker, former RNC chairman Michael Steele, Harold Ford, Jr. and  Craig Melvin to name a few. But lets be honest, that list is conspicuously small and ever shrinking.

Unfortunately, Melissa Harris Perry and "nerd-land" have most likely been consigned to the dustbin of history. In retrospect it was a good show, hosted by a supremely qualified and educated woman who genuinely cared “about substantive, meaningful and autonomous work.” 

Sadly, the management at MSNBC doesn’t value such work and anchors, and the whitewashing of the network will continue into the foreseeable future. "The Place for Politics" has no place for liberals like: Keith Olbermann, Ed Shutlz, Dylan Rattigan, Martin Bashir, Karen Finney, Krystal Ball, Touré, Alex Wagner, Cenk Uygur, and Rev. Al Sharpton. 

The look of MSNBC has become decidedly white and conservative and some anchors think that is a good thing. Joe Scarborough of Morning Joe went on the air (August, 2015) and gleefully thanked network chairman Andy Lack for cleaning up the liberal network. I guess if the conservative whitewashing of MSNBC is okay with Joe and the rest of the “antichrist of NY” cheerleading squad, then it must be a good thing. 

Real investigative journalism is overrated anyway.

RIP  MSNBC …

2016 Politics and the Antichrist of NY

In June of 2015 Donald Trump, aka, the “antichrist of NY,” launched his presidential campaign and no one took him seriously. Fast-forward eight months later and the reality show guy has the republican establishment worried and desperate to find anyone who can stop him…  its no longer funny. 

The sobering reality that Trumpeinstein might become the next President of the United States has far reaching consequences.  For instance, if the antichrist of NY keeps on winning, winning, winning and he becomes President: the GOP gets back the Whitehouse, Obama care is overturned, millions of people get deported, Wall Street and the rich get huge tax breaks, the shrinking middle class gets the bill, Reince Priebus (the chairman of the RNC) can breath a sigh of relief and keep his job. Happy ending all around, right?

Not so fast.

 If the antichrist of NY does indeed keep winning, and becomes the 45^th President, there will be some political fallout. In particular, Trump’s ascension to the Presidency will galvanize democrats and independent voters like nothing else. Voters could actually do the unthinkable and actually go out in huge numbers and vote. Huge voter turnout is typically not a good thing for the GOP; simply put, they lose elections when voter turnouts are huge.

The aftermath of Trump winning the Whitehouse could result in: a liberal tea party like revolution, which in turn, could result in the Republican Party losing the House and the Senate. Afterward, Reince Priebus will hang his head in shame, lose his cushy, high-paying job and might have to flee the country … maybe Mexico will take him in. 

Establishment republican’s like Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. have made the above calculation and are understandably scared out of their minds. And they should be. The antichrist of NY is truly the gift that keeps on giving, and he could actually benefit the democrats by winning the republican nomination and becoming America’s next commander in chief. 

I have no evidence to back up the following claim, but I think Debbie Wasserman Schultz (the chairperson of the DNC) probably keeps Donald Trump in her prayers, and wishes that he remains’ in great health and spirits. After all, it’s not everyday that the antichrist of NY helps you keep your job and dismantle’s the Party of Lincoln.