Whither goest #NeverTrump?

The clear distinction between diehard progressive liberals and #NeverTrump that is visible to date is that the latter have accepted a Trump presidency and in many cases are actually hopeful (though unconvinced) that some good will come out of the 2016 election.  The former group are out in the streets creating havoc, or at a minimum sporting Not My President placards.

There's another important distinction. While the Democrat party are never going to work with president-elect Trump (though many say they will), team #NeverTrump now realize that this was not just a Trump win.  They see that Republicans still control the senate, congress, the presidency, the supreme court and a stunning number of state legislatures and governorships, with the wind at the back of the Republicans in the senate for 2018.

Every challenge is also an opportunity and those on the conservative and Republican side have largely realized this.  Today Paul Ryan even said big things are coming.  That's a profound revelation.  It's not about revelling in the glow of the win, it's about the GOP having more power than they have in nearly 100 years. The opportunity does not present itself often obviously. The window, despite the very real prospect of further gains in 2018, is inevitably going to be short.  Furthermore, under Obama the aggressiveness in the shift left for the country was astounding.  Their actions not only justify a strong reaction, but also provide some limited cover for that reaction.  Obama also spelled out for conservatives exactly what "the fierce urgency of now" means.

#NeverTrump is more likely to be heard and influential from inside the tent than outside the tent.   Trump and his supporters meanwhile have won and allies in politics are hard to find.  There's little harm in working together and developing some synergy with those who were #NeverTrump in order to have that notion dissolve away and get things done rather than alienate them in some sort of vendetta.  No one wants Trump have to get his allegiances from the Sanders crowd because that will not only enshrine that #NeverTrump was right but possibly destroy what's left of the republic in the process. I don't think anyone expects that at this point, but why leave it to chance.

So unless your name is Glenn Beck, you're probably safe to come back into the tent.  Many are doing so openly, some more reluctantly, and some not at all. It's up to Trump and his team to move people from (pardon the phraseology) from the bucket of resolute, to the bucket of hesitant to the bucket of surprised and now on board. It's also up to the #NeverTrump crowd to make up their minds so they don't end up (again, pardon the wording), at the back of the bus, because some other people are now getting ahead of them in the lineup.

America - bigger than Obama

Something important conservatives need to be reminded - Obama is not the Grim Reaper. I say that not because I don't think he's toxic for liberty, justice, and entrepreneurial freedom - he is. But I say that because one man, even in the Presidency, cannot destroy a country and an ideal that has stood for hundreds of years in a mere four years.


Despite the fact that President Obama appears to believe that he is bigger than America (for example nominally putting himself above the partisanship of both parties, giving an air of I'm above this and you all had better be too or America will suffer), the reverse is in fact true. The United States is bigger than Obama, it's bigger than the Democrats, it's bigger than the Republicans, it's bigger than the spending spree the government is about to embark on. The United States is big. No, in fact it's massive.


Let's put a little context around it. The United States is the 4th largest country in the world by geographic area. Only Russia and Canada have more area, and lets face it - Russia and Canada have a lot of their geographies covered by permafrost and uninhabitable.

In terms of military resources it's big. Only China has more troops but they are poorly equipped and have inferior training. The US defense budget is as large as the rest of the world's combined. Tanks? Russia has 4 times as many and China almost as many, but Russia's volume of tanks aren't exactly Abrams quality. 50% of the world's aircraft carriers are American. Nuclear weapons - only Russia has more, but again less technological than America's. And as far as Air Force capabilities and number of aircraft - second to none.

In terms on natural resources it's big. The United States is one of the few countries in the world that could sustain itself in most any capacity with the notable exception of oil. This is a self-imposed short-coming that could be mitigated. Indeed, between a fully productive US, plus Canada and Mexico, the petroleum needs of North America could be met and so could electrical needs with more utilization of coal and nuclear power.

In terms of population, it's big. Only China and India are larger (though significantly so).

In terms of capital, it's massive. Until at least 2040 it has the largest GDP in the world. In 2000 if you combined the economies of China, Japan, Germany, The United Kingdom, India, Russia and half of Brazil's you would have had a comparable economy in size.

In terms of ingenuity it's big. The number of patents registered in the United States is as much as Japan and Germany combined or as much as the 6 next highest ranking countries combined.


So we know, America is big. It can face tests without crumbling. The Obama administration will indeed be a test, the same way Jimmy Carter's administration was a test. But America survived it. America has survived a lot, and it will survive Obama. I'm not saying people shouldn't stand firm against socialism, because ultimately something as big as America can really only be destroyed from within. There are lessons to be learned from the Roman empire about that.

But, to quote (or paraphrase?) the Emergency Broadcast System, 'this is a test, this is only a test'. The good news is America can pass this test. It's got the required components, all that's lacking is the actual fight. A test means you've got to work to pass the test. American's who care need to display the willpower to stand up to the de-Americafication of America. Stand up to socialism, and if in fact it gets imposed, tear it down as soon as possible - 2010, 2012.