The year 2019 will assuredly be the most tumultuous and transformative year since 1968.
The Democrats taking over the House of Representatives means full investigation of the Presidency of Donald Trump, and the likelihood of the impeachment of Donald Trump.
It might seem that Trump will survive in office, but this blogger believes he will be forced out by resignation, and a deal whereby his children and son in law will avoid prosecution, if Donald Trump agrees to resign.
The pressure on Trump will grow, and his health will likely get worse, and while it might seem that he will not give in and resign, the same thought 45 years ago about Richard Nixon, this blogger’s belief that he will leave office by mid year is strongly held.
If he leaves office no later than June 20, 2019, then Trump will have served exactly 29 months, matching the exact term of President Warren G. Harding from 1921-1923, which is the 4th shortest term of any President in American history.
The likelihood of a President Mike Pence is strong, but he would face party opposition from a number of Republican potential challengers, including John Kasich, Jeff Flake, or Bob Corker, all of whom will not be in public office in 2019.
Also, the likelihood of growing conflict between Chief Justice John Roberts and President Trump will become part of the story of the end of the Trump Presidency.
And Nancy Pelosi, the best Speaker of the House since Thomas “Tip” O’Neill (1977-1987), will play a major role in the events transpiring next year.
And also expect a major battle between the “old timers” (Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders), as well as between them and a new generation of leadership much more diverse, for the Presidential Election Of 2020, including Amy Klobuchar, Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, Julian Castro, Eric Garcetti, and Chris Murphy, among other Democratic contenders.
First person for 2020.
Elizabeth Warren launches exploratory committee ahead of likely 2020 presidential run
https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/31/politics/elizabeth-warren-exploratory-committee-2020/index.html
Actually, Rational Lefty, Julian Castro announced an exploratory committee about ten days ago, so Warren is not the first to announce, but Warren is seen as more of a front runner. But do not ignore Castro, as I believe, he is someone to watch!
The Beto O’Rourke Campaign Should Be A Model For Raising Campaign Funds
https://washingtonmonthly.com/2019/01/03/the-beto-orourke-campaign-should-be-a-model-for-raising-campaign-funds/
The article corrects misinformation about Beto O’Rourke that is being spread around by some prominent Sanders supporters in the media.
Here is the report by David Sirota:
‘Beto vs. Democrats: Texas Lawmaker Frequently Voted to Help Trump and GOP’
By David Sirota (12.20.2018)
http://capitalandmain.com/beto-vs-democrats-texas-lawmaker-frequently-voted-to-help-trump-and-gop-1220
Following Beto O’Rourke’s spirited run for the U.S. Senate, powerful voices in the Democratic Party establishment have touted the outgoing Texas congressman as a 2020 presidential candidate who, as the party’s standard-bearer, would offer a vision of America contrasting against that of Republicans. However, a Capital & Main review of congressional votes shows that even as O’Rourke has represented one of the most Democratic congressional districts in the entire country, he [O’Rourke] has in many instances undermined his own party’s efforts to halt the GOP agenda, frequently voting against the majority of House Democrats in support of Republican bills and Trump administration positions.
Capital & Main reviewed the 167 votes O’Rourke has cast in opposition to the majority of his own party in the House during his six-year tenure in Congress. Many of those votes were not progressive dissents alongside other left-leaning lawmakers but were instead votes to help pass Republican-sponsored legislation. In many cases, Democratic lawmakers said that those measures were designed to help corporate interests dismantle Obama administration programs and regulations.
…
01.03.2019 @ 04:30 p.m. ET: This news came today.
‘Veteran NBC/MSNBC Journalist Blasts the Network for Being Captive to the National Security State and Reflexively Pro-War to Stop Trump’
By Glenn Greenwald (01.03.2019)
http://theintercept.com/2019/01/03/veteran-nbcmsnbc-journalist-blasts-the-network-for-being-captive-to-the-national-security-state-and-reflexively-pro-war-to-stop-trump/
A veteran national security journalist with NBC News and MSNBC blasted the networks in a Monday [12.31.2018] email for becoming captive and subservient to the national security state, reflexively pro-war in the name of stopping President Donald Trump, and now the prime propaganda instrument of the War Machine’s promotion of militarism and imperialism. As a result of NBC/MSNBC’s all-consuming militarism, he said, “the national security establishment not only hasn’t missed a beat but indeed has gained dangerous strength†and “is ever more autonomous and practically impervious to criticism.â€
The NBC/MSNBC reporter, William Arkin, is a longtime prominent war and military reporter, perhaps best known for his groundbreaking, three-part Washington Post series in 2010, co-reported with two-time Pulitzer winner Dana Priest, on how sprawling, unaccountable, and omnipotent the national security state has become in the post-9/11 era. When that three-part investigative series, titled “Top Secret America,†was published, I hailed it as one of the most important pieces of reporting of the war on terror, because while “we chirp endlessly about the Congress, the White House, the Supreme Court, the Democrats and Republicans, this is the Real U.S. Government: functioning in total darkness, beyond elections and parties, so secret, vast and powerful that it evades the control or knowledge of any one person or even any organization.â€
…
Re: Donations for Democratic candidates
Elizabeth Warren spoke to this on Rachel last night and suggested that one way for all the Democrats vying for the party’s Presidential nomination in 2020 could well be winnowed down by the test of fund raising. If you missed it, I recommend checking it out on YouTube.
I think that the stunning surge in small donations in 2018 is a very positive sign.
Thanks for that Leia. That misinformation by them is yet again another example of why we, and our Democratic/left-wing/progressive/liberal friends in our community, distrust them.
Quite frankly, these ex-Republican commentators that are on the channel sound sane to me, in comparison to the extremists that have taken over that Party.
I agree with you, Rustbelt Democrat!
Re: MSNBC having Jennifer Rubin, Nicole Wallace, etc. on the channel
I’m more open-minded about it than Glenn Greenwald is.
I agree, Princess Leia, that Nicole Wallace, Jennifer Rubin, and other conservatives and former Republicans have added a lot to MSNBC.
I am not a fan of Glenn Greenwald!
Besides healthcare, one of the top polling issues in 2018 was for Congress to do their Constitutional duty and keep a check on Trump, hence one of the reasons why Democrats won back the House.
Democrats will take up voting rights, campaign finance reform, and a lobbying crackdown – all in their first bill of the year, HR 1.
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/11/30/18118158/house-democrats-anti-corruption-bill-hr-1-Pelosi
Of course, this legislation has little to no chance of passing the Republican-controlled Senate or being signed by Trump. Mitch “Turtle” McConnell has already bluntly vowed to reject it.
However, it shows where the Democratic Party stands on these issues.