"Peter Cetera – Sound Stage Live at Chicago" (opens in separate window)

right and wrong lessons from 2018 electionsv

friday, december 7th, 2018

people always learn the wrong lessons from elections.

Most people think the election results just prove what they already believed. The smarter people in politics learn something new from the races they win — and they learn even more from the races they lose.

President Trump could learn from 2018 that immigration isn’t everything. Yes, he needs to maintain his base, but also he needs to expand his electorate. In short, he has to try to win back suburban men.

Everybody is going to write about suburban women. Truthfully, the GOP can lose plenty of suburban women as long as it doesn’t lose suburban men. But this year, it lost the men.

One place for Trump to start would be changing how he talks about immigration. Insisting on border security is good. The scorched-earth rhetoric isn’t.

Why? Because voters don’t hold the racial resentments and fears Trump seems to think they do. From the way he talks, Trump seems to think his base is racist. Forget the fact that the media think it is; Trump campaigns as if it is.

Retaking the majority will require winning some suburban districts. That will involve cutting a deal — giving something (such as the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program) in exchange for border wall funding.

If you are the Democrats, your takeaway has to be that a quality candidate at the top of the ticket matters. At the top of the ticket in Texas, Rep. Beto O’Rourke delivered two congressional seats.

Democrats always said they were going to win Texas based on a Latino surge. They didn’t. They won it on a suburban surge. They had a candidate who set the suburbs on fire.

The second lesson for Democrats is confirmation of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s approach: Recruit the types of candidates who make the party’s base a bit uncomfortable. Veterans who sometimes talked conservative were a big winner.

Democratic strategist John Lapp deliberately recruited such candidates. “When you have people who really reflect the character of the state and their districts and are unique personalities, they can win over new voters,” said Lapp, whose firm, Ralston Lapp, had several House victories with candidates who were more moderate and had military backgrounds.

Lapp, unlike many of the pundits -gaming the elections on social media and cable networks with too much bravado, understood what Democrats needed going in and what they need to do going forward.

However, Democrats also have lessons to take away from losses in winnable races in Georgia and Florida. In short: Socialism is a loser. Some millennial voters love it. Billionaire Democratic donors love it. Swing voters? Not so much. That’s why Stacey Abrams lost Georgia. And that’s why Andrew Gillum lost Florida. They both ran against weak Trumpy Republicans, and they both lost.

The reason this wasn’t a 63-seat night for the Democrats is because many of their candidates were too far left. That’s the same reason Gillum and Abrams lost. Will they learn in time for the 2020 presidential nomination process?

Every election, voters send Washington, D.C., a message with their votes. And every election, Washington misreads their votes. Democrats think they won the House because people like them more. Guess what. They don’t. It was more about disliking the other person more.

The president thinks he won the Senate because of the immigration rhetoric. He didn’t; those races were more about the new realignment in American politics, an insider vs. outsider conservative populist coalition that rejected Washington Democrats who voted too much for their party and not enough with their state.

All of this misreading is why we get the elections we deserve.

© Nov 18, 2018 By Salena Zito.

A Day In The Life.

Awake with bad breathing congestion (COPD) at 3a, I got the Combivent® Respimat® inhaler out and took a couple of puffs to get some of the "stuff" out of my lungs. And just decided to stay-up for the morning. I turned-up the heat, made coffee and checked the weather and news. The flannel sheets that the cleaning ladies put on yesterday, were amazingly warm and comfy. I made some Quaker® Instant Oatmeal, with fresh blueberries, Truvia® and Half & Half®. Mmmmmmmmmmm.

"There were times we had nothing, but somehow we laughed thru it all. There are moments I'll never forget, and some I don't care to recall."

Awww, gee whiz, we're having an Avocado shortage? Whatever will Chipolte, Taco Bell and all the elites and Mexicans do now? Let 'em eat cake! Or a e-coli contaminated Romaine Lettuce salad!

It was a cold 34°F outside, as I left at 7:45a for the nearby convenience store, to get a carton of Marlboros and a quart of Half & Half. I came home, put the stuff away and laid down on the new couch, and slept for 3-4hrs. After another large plate of sliced turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy and peas, I took a drive thru downtown York, to see all the "Queen Anne Fronts & Mary Ann Behinds", taking more pics with my digital Nikon 16.1 MegaPixel camera.

Did you listen to Rush this week? Especially, Thursday? If you did, you heard him get his wimpy ass handed to him, by a guy named Gino, from the Bronx. I clapped.

"I dream of simple things I can believe in; like the miracle of forgiving."

Back home by 5:30, I had 2 UPS deliveries on the front porch to get into the garage, open and get into the condo. I need to get some condo pics this week, to post in here. I watched and listened to Peter Cetera/Chicago live concerts until 11:30p, closed down and hit the flannel sheets. Note to self: get some sleep.

I slept-in until 8:15a on Saturday, kicked-up the heat, made coffee and had some Ensure® Protein Shakes, and grabbed my usual morning shower. It was still raining outside. I had errands to run, and then go to Becky's condo to help her go thru of dozens of Dad's file boxes and other things – tens of thousands of 35mm Family slides from the 50s & 60s in carousel slide trays – upstairs in her office. I also worked on a single box of lithographs, Polaroids, 35mm prints, most with inscriptions on the back, sorting into piles by our Family, and 4-5 other Families-by-marriage. Plus, there are tens-of-thousands of 35mm slides to go thru and sort out. The company that converts/digitizes all this stuff is called LegacyBox, and they ain't cheap. I bought the 20pc closet for $619 (added cost of 2 thumb drives for storage for me), but got the 50% discount, taking the total cost down to $365. I've got tons of work ahead, viewing tens-of-thousands of slides and loose pics, and then selecting 500 to send in that container. I may need to buy another 20pc closet box... we'll see how the first box works out.

"I believe in simple things: ain't nothing like a sunny day, chit-chat at a street cafe."

Anyway, I watched The MotorTrend Channel's (formerly Velocity Channel) "Iron Resurrection" episodes until 11:30p, and quit for the night. Still raining.

Up at 6a on Sunday, it was still raining. Strange, I don't feel 69, today. If I'd have known I was going to live this long, I'd have taken better care of myself. I made coffee, had oatmeal and fresh blueberries, checked the new and weather for today and the week ahead, scanned email, and left at 10a for Becky's condo to get some more work done sorting Dad's slides and pics of our Family, and his papers. By 2:30p, I'd had enough, and my eyes were beginning to cross from viewing and sorting hundreds and hundreds of B&W and color pictures, from the 1920s up to present. Mom had written inscriptions on the backs of many of them, so the sorting wasn't as bad as it could have been.

I left, came home and took a nap on the LR couch. 3hrs later, I had boxes of slides and pics, to bring-in from the garage, take to the basement, label the boxes and store on my shelves. I'm waiting for last evening's Legacy Box® purchase to arrive, so I can view the slides on Dad's old (early 60s) Kodak® 650 Carousel® Projector, or the one-at-time Argus® Slide PreViewer.

"I believe in simple things: take a walk, take a ride, so fine, just you and I."

After making a turkey sandwich (what else?) and heating-up some Panera® Fall Vegetable Soup, I watched newly-missed episodes History Channel's "American Pickers" until 11:30p, and closed down for the night.

I slept-in until 7:30a on Monday, made coffee, checked the news and weather, downloaded new email, and noticed that UPS has branched-out into QVC and Amazon profit areas, ever so slightly, just testing the online retail waters. I had some packages of Amazon returns to take to the post office, and then drove to Becky's to finally finish-up sorting Dad's pics, papers and records. I still have the thousands of slides to go thru, so I brought the Kodak Carousel Projector home, plus boxes of other things. Other errands ate-up the rest of the day, and after a trip to Weis Market to p/u a couple things, I had dinner, and watched History Channel's "Curse of Oak Island" until 12:30a, took my Rx pills, and went up to sleep.

I guess I thought you'd be here forever. Another illusion, I chose to create. You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone, and I found out a little too late.

Sleeping-in on Tuesday, until 8:30a was nice, and I fired-up the furnace, made coffee and grabbed a shower. I did my usual weather and new check, finished wrapping-up packages of pic etc for relatives, of the pics we'd found of them in the many boxes from Dad's condo. I needed to get to the local UPS Store, rather than wait in very long lines at the USPS. I finally left at 10:30a. After a quick trip to UPS, I drove down the road to Weis Market to get a few thing they were out of yesterday, when I was there last. I got some Parmesan Reggiano Cheese, and at over $1.000 per wheel, it's easily the most expensive cheese in the world.

Stopping at the DIY car wash in East York,. I cleaned-up the Jeep, and will use my powerful Dyson® Handheld V7 Trigger Vacuum to clean out the interior, as it's too cold today. And it needs an overnight charge. I watched some old Peter Cetera (former lead singer for Chicago from 1968-1985) concerts; this Sound Stage Live at Chicago is a real good one. And this 2016 Live Salt Lake City Concert is great, too. As is this one in Cancun, MX: Festival de Viña del Mar 2017 (starts at 5:00 mark). He came into my Old Garden Center & "I believe in simple things: I remember how I used to want it all, finding out big things seem so small." Nursery, once in the Summer of 2005, with his wife when they were living in Parkton, MD, driving a 1985 red Ferrari 308 GTS, accidentally locked the keys in the car, bought a lot of stuff, and I drove them both home, with as much as we could pack into my Jeep Grand Cherokee, to get the spare ignition key. We delivered the rest of their plant/Jap Maple purchases the next day, on Monday. He and I had a blast down in his basement recording studio, singing together to Chicago's and his solo career songs. Dad, Jennifer, Brad and Steffi weren't happy that I was gone that long, but I had fun. The pics we took that day, were lost, dammit.

I had medical paperwork to get done before an upcoming visit to a PSU-Surgeon, for a consult only, some uncovered procedure/lab bills to get paid, so I put on of my favorite Jazz pieces: John McLaughlin, Paco DeLucia, Al DiMeola – "Friday Night in San Francisco" ( Full Album ) 1981, finished-up around midnight, and headed upstairs to LA-LA Land, at 11:30p. Jeep to vacuum out, p/u Rxs at Rite Aid tomorrow, and more medical paperwork to do, tomorrow.

"I dream of simple things I can believe in; like the feeling this day brings."

I got-up at 8a on Wednesday, and with a bitter 19°F outside, I quickly turned-up the heat to 76°F, made coffee, and went out into the garage for a smoke. I weighed myself, as I do every

Pearl Harbor, Dec 7, 1941

morning, since coming out of the hospital, down 131-lbs. I'm now up to 172-lbs; a damned good sign! I checked the weather and news, on both local WSBA-910AM, and in DC, on WMAL-105.9FM, on the computer. I needed a charging cord (mine disappeared) for my Dyson V7 Trigger handheld vacuum cleaner, called their parts/order dept, and they're mailing out a free one to me. Merry Christmas!, the lady said.

High for the day was 31°F, with a few small snow squalls moving thru. After Roasted Butternut Squash Bisque, a toasted egg & olive salad sandwich, potato salad and Tapioca Pudding, I watched "This is our time. We have it all. We have a way of knowing, if we have a fall." Discovery Channel's "Gold Rush" until 10, and then listened to previous Peter Cetera Concerts, until 11:15p, and quit for the day. Busy day tomorrow.

Awake at 5a, I went back to sleep until 7, made coffee, checked the weather and news, grabbed a shower, had some Ensure® Protein Shakes, and took the garbage out to the curb for Friday morning p/u. Damn, that 32°F cold is bitter and penetrating. I had online work – banking and paying some bills – to do, so after finishing that up, I bundled-up and went for a short walk around the condo complex. Three doors down and across the street, Safe-Lite Glass Co was replacing a neighbor's SUV's rear window, smashed by vandals yesterday evening. The Springettsbury Police had just left, and will be patrolling here more often. Me? If I see him/her/them breaking into my house or a neighbor's, I'll shoot and kill him/her/them.

400pts here, 800pts there, and I lost over $110,000 in the Stock Market in the past 5 days. Well, you pays your moneys, and you take your chances. (Or something like that.) Damn.

I left at 10:30a, to p/u Sherry (just barely) in South York, since were having lunch in East York at The York First Post Public House Restaurant, a very upscale remake of the historic Post House Restaurant, which used to be a farm, and then a stagecoach layover, bed & breakfast, and then a restaurant with great food and drink. We had a great time, food included, reminiscing about a lot of things, and just getting caught-up from the last time we were together. After finishing lunch, we drove to my condo and I showed her the finally-finished product, of 8-9 weeks. I took her home mid-afternoon, just in time for the school busses to clog the roads and slow traffic to a crawl, even on the backroads, on my return trip.

"Life's a series of hellos and goodbyes. I'm afraid it's time for goodbye again."

I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening watching History Channel's "American Pickers", doing research for next week's "Journal", and taking way too many land line calls from fund raisers: "Sorry pal, I don't donate over the phone." Anyone who does is an idiot, moron, cretin and dumb as a stump.

By 10p, I was ready to call it a day and a week. Tomorrow starts a new week here in the "Journal", and the medical consult meetings at Hershey, re-start with an Indian surgeon who wants to cut-out my gall bladder. The answer is No Frigging Chance.

Fake Liberal Media BS

The most insidious power of the corrupt, criminal liberal media, is the power to ignore the truth.

Here, have some fun. Something stinks within America's newsrooms. It's the stench of liberal bias permeating the so-called mainstream media. From lies and deceit to distortions and character assassinations, the liberal media dish out leftist BS to drive their radical agenda.

Chris Plante, host of The Chris Plante Show on WMAL (DC) from 9-12, weekdays, said, "The most insidious power the media has, if the power to ignore." Think about what that really means and you can readily see what an evil force the corrupt, criminal, liberal-demokkkRAT-controlled, butt-kissing, fawning circlefest media assholes, are.

Think you can detect it? Take some serious time and read/scan these articles and find out just how much BS the liberal media are dishing out. Wear your hip-waders; the bullshit is real deep!

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