Fire up the toaster, political edition

[Bob78164]

Mayor Francis Suarez of Miami has suspended his presidential campaign. --Bob

[silverscreenselect]

Rather than start a new topic every time somebody drops out, perhaps Bob could give this thread a more generic name so we can just add posts to it as the need arises.

[Bob78164]

I figured I’d leave that one to you, but I can change the title of this thread. —Bob

[jarnon]

Steve Laffey leaves the 2024 race, reflects on longshot campaign

Steve Laffey, the former mayor of Cranston, Rhode Island, who announced his candidacy back in February, is dropping out of the race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.

The notion that he had any chance at the nomination is Laffable.

[silverscreenselect]

Not firing up the toaster but changing leagues. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is dropping his bid for the Democratic nomination and will instead run as an independent.

[Pastor Fireball]

Not firing up the toaster but changing leagues. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is dropping his bid for the Democratic nomination and will instead run as an independent.

He must have finally figured out that his anti-vax pro-Nazi attitude is pulling more votes away from Former Guy than it is from President Biden.

[silverscreenselect]

Former Texas Congressman Will Hurd, who did not take part in either debate, has dropped out of the race and endorsed Nikki Haley.

[jarnon]

Months after missing the first primary debate stage -- which prompted a complaint with the Republican National Committee -- businessman Perry Johnson has decided to suspend his short-lived presidential campaign, he announced Friday.

"With no opportunity to share my vision on the debate stage, I have decided at this time, suspending my campaign is the right thing to do," Johnson said in a statement.

He has not withdrawn completely and will remain on the ballot in early states like New Hampshire where he attended the NH GOP's First in the Nation Leadership Summit just days ago.

Johnson is the third candidate to drop out of the presidential race, after Rep. Will Hurd and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez halted their campaigns earlier this year.

Laffey gets dissed again.

[jarnon]

Former radio show host and California gubernatorial candidate Larry Elder has dropped out of the 2024 presidential campaign race and endorsed former President Donald Trump.

"The reason that I'm doing this is because in the very beginning, the [Republican National Committee] shafted me ... if you can't make the first debate, it's almost impossible for you to make the second debate, let alone the third debate. So I'm being realistic,” Elder told ABC News, referring to how he failed to meet the national party's donor and polling qualifications to be at the debates.

Elder is the fourth Republican candidate to drop out.

He never reached the 1% mark, according to 538’s national polling average. He had about $244,000 cash on hand in the third quarter of 2023, according to his filings, and he told ABC News he hopes to put those funds toward his PAC to get rid of "soft on crime" prosecutors.

The first thing he'll do after campaigning? "Rest."

They dis Laffey yet again.

[silverscreenselect]

Meanwhile, as the Republican field shrinks, the Democratic field grows. Minnesota Congressman Dean Phillips, who has been critical of President Biden's age, has announced he is running for President. Phillips said his run is not so much based on a personal desire to be President, but in the hope that other (presumably more electable) candidates will also challenge Biden for the nomination.

[silverscreenselect]

Mike Pence has dropped out of the race. He was concerned he might not qualify for the next Presidential debate. The good news is that he no longer has to worry about being hanged by an angry mob.

[kroxquo]

Mike Pence has dropped out of the race. He was concerned he might not qualify for the next Presidential debate. The good news is that he no longer has to worry about being hanged by an angry mob.

I never thought he ever had any kind of realistic lane to run in. The mainstream would never trust him after 4 years of being the 45th's biggest sycophant and the MAGA nuts would never forgive him for Jan. 6.

[Bob78164]

Senator Tim Scott has suspended his campaign. --Bob

[silverscreenselect]

North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum is suspending his presidential campaign as it appears he wouldn't qualify for this week's final Republican debate before the Iowa caucuses.

[BackInTex]

North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum is suspending his presidential campaign as it appears he wouldn't qualify for this week's final Republican debate before the Iowa caucuses.

Who?

[Weyoun]

North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum is suspending his presidential campaign as it appears he wouldn't qualify for this week's final Republican debate before the Iowa caucuses.

Who?

If you looked at his résumé, you might be impressed by his background and his commitment to his country and state.

[BackInTex]

North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum is suspending his presidential campaign as it appears he wouldn't qualify for this week's final Republican debate before the Iowa caucuses.

Who?

If you looked at his résumé, you might be impressed by his background and his commitment to his country and state.

You see that little yellow thing at the end of my post. The thing that has two dots, like eyes, and an curved line, like a smile? That's called an emoji. That one in particular is a smiley face. It is many times, and this case in particular, used to indicacate humor, sarcasim, or in general "I'm just being facetious, and don't really mean this."

I know who Doug Burgum is. I know many people who used to work for him at the company he founded and we've had many conversations about him. My company also has a large presence in North Dakata so I am familiar with the politics and economics there.

The thing is, if you asked 1,000 people, south of South Dakata, to name the North Dakota governor, you'd likely get 995 "I don't know"s.

[silverscreenselect]

Chris Christie has dropped out of the race, and made an off-the-record comment about Nikki Haley that was caught on a hot mike. He said: "She’s gonna get smoked and you and I both know it. She’s not up to this." He then went on camera and blasted Haley, Ron DeSantis, and Donald Trump during his remarks.

This must be the 2024 equivalent of a scorched earth campaign.

[Ritterskoop]

Zero chance he didn't know the mic was live. Straight out of a West Wing plotline.

I hope he sticks around, with No Labels or as a commentator.

[flockofseagulls104]

Vivek ends his campaign, endorses Trump.

I hope a bright future for this guy.

[silverscreenselect]

Former Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson ended his campaign today after receiving only 191 votes in the Iowa caucuses. That was fewer than Chris Christie, who remained on the ballot after dropping out last week, and Pastor Ryan Binkley, one of several fringe candidates still officially in the race. Like Christie, Hutchinson was an outspoken Trump critic who had campaigned extensively in Iowa.

[flockofseagulls104]

Ron DeSantis is all but toast.

For the life of me, and for many others, I cannot understand why he did not just wait 4 years. He had enormous political capital and stock among the conservative base for his performance and policies in Florida. He would have inherited the MAGA movement. He has squandered that and will never be viewed the same way again. His national appeal and image are GONE.

I think he was seduced by the never-trump - uniparty wing of the repubs. If only to drain resources from trump. I think he was used.

Haley and DeSantis should drop out of the race if they have any concern for their party and this country. The repubs are wasting money that should be used to defeat the dems. All the money spent in Iowa and NH should be used for the general election campaign, not for irrelevant primary campaigns. But that was probably the uniparty strategy to begin with.

[earendel]

Ron DeSantis is all but toast.

For the life of me, and for many others, I cannot understand why he did not just wait 4 years. He had enormous political capital and stock among the conservative base for his performance and policies in Florida. He would have inherited the MAGA movement. He has squandered that and will never be viewed the same way again. His national appeal and image are GONE.

TBH, I don't think there will be a solid MAGA movement after Trump. No one can command the stage like he does, no one can play the victim like Trump or be as arrogant as Trump. There will be a lot of scrambling by others, but I envision a splintering of the movement as different people try to retain the loyalty of the MAGA people.

[flockofseagulls104]

Ron DeSantis is all but toast.

For the life of me, and for many others, I cannot understand why he did not just wait 4 years. He had enormous political capital and stock among the conservative base for his performance and policies in Florida. He would have inherited the MAGA movement. He has squandered that and will never be viewed the same way again. His national appeal and image are GONE.

TBH, I don't think there will be a solid MAGA movement after Trump. No one can command the stage like he does, no one can play the victim like Trump or be as arrogant as Trump. There will be a lot of scrambling by others, but I envision a splintering of the movement as different people try to retain the loyalty of the MAGA people.

Earendel, It is not solely about Trump. I am afraid you are way too reliant on the MSM for your news and opinions.

The MAGA movement is the evolution of the Tea Party movement, which was slandered and attacked by the mainstream media in the same way trump and MAGA was and is. We are NOT going away. We know the MSM lies and slanders us, and we don't care, because we know who we are and we know what they are. We know they are lying. Just as I know most of the stuff trollboy says about me is bullshit.

It is a movement, not something tied to one person. That is what you and the MSM don't understand. Trump is the only possible current Presidential candidate who espouses our values and objectives. And for me, he didn't have my support in 2016. I didn't vote for him then, because my vote was irrelevant, but I would have if I lived where I am now. Just as the lesser of two eviIs. I think he won in 2016 because of the movement and the general unlikability of Clinton. He EARNED my support in 2020 and 2024 because of what he accomplished in his administration.

In coming years there will be more. Vivek may turn out to be one of these. Maybe Don Jr or Eric? Who knows. And my point above is that DeSantis will NOT be one of those. And he could have been. WE will choose. The party won't choose for us, like what happens in the dem party. And what the uniparty is trying to do. The Rona Romneys are on their way out. We will not be blindly loyal to a candidate. THEY have to be loyal to us. That is what most of us have learned. We're not going to be fooled again. DeSantis disqualified himself.

So, yes, DeSantis is toast for 2024, 2028 and beyond. Unless, as Tucker Carlson has pointed out, the left uses its final option, God Forbid.

[silverscreenselect]

Ron DeSantis is all but toast.

For the life of me, and for many others, I cannot understand why he did not just wait 4 years. He had enormous political capital and stock among the conservative base for his performance and policies in Florida. He would have inherited the MAGA movement. He has squandered that and will never be viewed the same way again. His national appeal and image are GONE.

Well, I actually agree with you that DeSantis is finished, not just now but for good as a national player. He's Trump without the slightest bit of Trump's charisma, so he comes across as a bully and a thug. For a while he got away with it, taking advantage of a highly gerrymandered state legislature and a state Democratic party that was disorganized and dispirited. But when he tried to take on people and organizations that weren't cowed by him, like Disney, his house of cards fell apart. His popularity in Florida has plummeted. In March, 2023, before he announced his bid and after his big re-election win, DeSantis favorable/unfavorable in Florida was 59-39. In July, it was 54-43. In November, it was 50-49. In December, it was 45-50 (underwater). And that's in Florida, where he was re-elected by a huge margin a year earlier. All DeSantis has besides his brutish image is his stance on social issues like abortion, whitewashing educational standards, and gay/trans rights that are out of step with the majority of Floridians. Yesterday, the Democrats won a special election for a state House seat in a seat that the previous Republican incumbent had won by 11 points a year earlier (he resigned to become a college president). And Democrats now have a fighting chance to flip Rick Scott's senate seat as well.

DeSantis's personal unlikability, bullying nature, and unpopular stance on the issues would have come out in 2028. Gavin Newsom pretty much exposed him as an empty suit in their debate, and Nikki Haley has cleaned his clock in every debate so far. The only thing his run for President did was end his career four years earlier than it would have.

And before we leave the subject, let's remember the words of wisdom from our resident political guru, Spock, who took time away from drooling over the Vladimir Putin recruitment videos to give us this cogent analysis:

You guys do realize, don't you? That if your wildest fantasy is fulfilled with Trump being marched away in handcuffs, you will have just cleared the way for a much better version of Trump who is waiting in the wings. I speak, of course, of Ron Desantis.

I am a Desantis 2024 guy-my youngest is a Trump 2024 guy so we go back and forth on that. If conditions change and Desantis is the standard bearer-it will be fun to see how fast you guys pivot too-he is "Literally Hitler" and "Actually, he is worse than Trump"-etc etc.

or this one:

I think Tgirl and I are both on the DeSantis train-I will ride that as far as it goes and then we will see what comes next. In my view-DeSantis is Trump without the baggage and would be much better at implementing the MAGA agenda.