• Part of Series - Guide to Geo-Economic-Politics
• Military GeoPolitics Guide and Series (this doc)
• Scr for Geo-Politics
• Humanities and History Guide and Series

US Politics Under the Hood -- XFR --

Gaming the System

Structural electoral inequities and huge flaws in our democracy have allowed the Republican elite to game the system. Democrats eg Obama left fighting with hands tied behind their backs.

Control of SCOTUS and Packing

Filibuster

Gerrymandering

Voter suppression

Campaign finance (aka legalized bribery).

Blocking Confirmation of Appointees

=== Republican Political goals 2022, 2024

Get back control of Congress 2022

The 2022 midterms are right around the corner. RNC hope to get one or both branches of Congress to flip to Republican control.

To most Republicans, the mandate is to obstruct and take back the House and Senate in two years. Given their almost-certain unwillingness to work with Biden and help America, the nuclear option must happen.

2024 Regain Presidency

RNC hopes Democrats get really stymied and Harris runs against Trump in 2024 and we have the real possibility of four more years of Trumpian nightmares to come.

Impeach Trump so he loses control of RNC, Can't run in 2024

Republicans and Political Control Strategies

Greased by Wealthy, Trickle down for Masses

Since 1980 Reaganism, pie in the sky republican con game of handing it all over to the wealthiest and waiting forever for that long promised trickle down.

Taunting, Cruelty

One thread that runs throughout the entire history of the GOP since Reagan was in office: cruelty and enjoyment of it.

Confederate Rebels

Trump and Cruz incited an insurrection. And some of them continue to love him because they like his brand of anarchy. Too bad they don't realize that the anarchy will devour them. Although we wouldn't miss them or their brand of obstructionist "governing".

Republicans like Trump use Mind Control, NLP and Fake-News and Propaganda

Republicans aren’t stupid, they think voters are

Republicans Political Control Methodology

Most Republicans are Anti-Democratic

The anti-democracy wing of the G.O.P. appears to be most of the party. - Paul Krugman, NYT

Right wing media

FoxNews

FoxBusiness

---- Niche Support Groups

Budget Hawks - ANTI-Tax-and-Spend - Turn off Stimulus, Free spending

Mitt Romney expressed opposition to a new economic relief package, declaring: “We just passed a $900 billion-plus package. Let’s give that some time to be able to influence the economy.”

Rural Military "Volunteers", Bases

Military, Arms

Israeli Lobby

Gun Control Lobby

White Supremacists and right-wing terrorism

Bill Clinton presided over peace and prosperity — and still faced scorched-earth opposition and right-wing terrorism. White supremacists aren't satisfied with living well, they insist that others suffer.

At his inauguration Joe Biden said "White Supremacists" along with terrorists must be handled.

Energy Lobby - Climate Change Denial

Republicans like Ted Cruz criticized Biden's rejoining the Paris climate agreement

RED States

Red States vital for Republican Domination esp. in Senate

Pennsylvania

• Pittsburgh is a major oil fracking and industrial area - heavily

Blue States and Republican Strategies

California

Republican Second Tier Leadership - post-Trump

--- Center/Right

Mitt Romney

Romney deserves a lot of credit for standing up to the authoritarians who dominate his party. He was the only Republican senator who voted to convict Donald Trump after the late-2019 impeachment; he congratulated Biden and Harris almost as soon as the election was called.

In the years since he was governor of Massachusetts he has shut himself into the conservative intellectual bubble, and he no longer listens to sensible economic analysis, or knows what it sounds like. - Paul Krugman, NYT

Mitch McConnell

Mitch McConnell waited more than a month to congratulate Biden after the election was called.

--- Right, Hard Core

Trump

--- Regional/State Base

--- Texas - Keeping or Turning Previously Red States and Republican Strategies

• Legalizing 11m illegals could help Democrats
• One problem is Texas is chock full of hard right wingers that resent Hispanic immigration and blame for
• Hence the Border Wall!

Texas: Ted Cruz ##- Right, Hard Core Trump

Cruz, a smart man, epitomizes the bad faith Biden will have to contend with.

Ted Cruz has raw ambition and dreams of being the NEXT TRUMP. Ted Cuz wants Trump's militant base to transfer its allegiance to him.

People with fewer and "lesser" credentials than his understand what needs to be done. The problem is that Cruz has some power and isn't shy about using it to hurt others. One thread that runs throughout the entire history of the GOP since Reagan was in office: cruelty and enjoyment of it.

Is Texas a home base - four million Texans voted against his re-election, so it is not a slam-dunk.

But he has spent many years pursuing power by trying to appeal to the worst instincts of the Republican base.

In Jan 2021, he has been among the leading voices joining Trump in pushing the false narrative of a stolen election and bears significant responsibility for the sacking of the Capitol.

Ted Cruz led the govt shutdown in 2013. All it succeeded in doing was to cost our economy $24 billion, deprive people of income and risk defaulting on our US Treasury debt. All just to launch the Ted Cruz brand - moderate Rs hated him for it, while his star rose with the tea party. Cruz is willing to shatter this country to get power.

Florida

• Legalizing 11m illegals could help Democrats
• One problem is Florida is chock full of influential hard right wing Cuban emigres that resent other-Hispanic immigration.

Florida: Marco Rubio - Right

Arizona - Biden'20 won narrowly

Utah - Biden'20 won narrowly

Josh Hawley ??

Mo Brooks ??

--- RNC Old Influencers

Bush Family esp. Jeb Bush, Florida