BIG POLITICS!
July 31, 2024
July 2024 was perhaps the most volatile yet consequential month of American politics during my lifetime.
Donald Trump had been leading Joe Biden in the polls by 7%-10%. Then, during their televised debate, Joe Biden performed at an atrocious level. Watching personally, I felt bad for President Biden merely three minutes into the debate. Aside from his known speech impediment, Biden was especially slow to find the words required to communicate effectively. It was clear the Democratic party would need to consider options.
A few days later, Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt while speaking at a rally in Pennsylvania. The would be assassin was a documented Republican whose father registered the AR-15 used in the plot. It is still shocking to think how close those bullets were to ending Trump’s life. In total, several attendees were injured and one killed in the attack. Trump claims to have been shot in the ear, although that claim remains disputed.
In response to the assassination attempt, MAGA republicans across X/Twitter proudly shared the now historic image of a bloodied but bold Donald Trump surrounded by his Secret Service personnel chanting ‘Fight’. For their failure to properly protect the former President, US Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle resigned and the US Secret Service Chief testified it was a "failure on multiple levels" when grilled on Capitol Hill by a bipartisan collection of Senate members.
Before the Trump campaign could capitalize on the momentum, Joe Biden dropped out of the Presidential Race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him. In one of the truly historic acts of Patriotism, the President stepped aside so the younger generation could take over. And take over they did!
Donald Trump picked JD Vance of Ohio as his running mate, but the Democratic party’s momentum has nullified any enthusiasm by calling Vance’s policy positions, physical demeanor simply ‘Weird’ which has both offended and buried the Republicans’ momentum. Between Vance previously comparing Trump to Hitler and reciting his weird / overbearing policy ideas against abortion in stride with Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025, the Democrats are back in the Presidential race. Some reports suggest neck-and-neck, while others still show Trump leading by a margin of error amount. We have ourselves an election.
Meanwhile, in Venezuela, citizens are revolting in the streets against President Nicolas Maduro, following a countrywide election which appears to have been corrupt. The presumed winner, opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzales, claims to have had more than twice as many votes as Maduro. At the time of this writing, 11 people have been killed in the protests. Maduro has requested the Court's help with an audit.
Venezuela’s election matters for several reasons; chief among them being international relations. Maduro is supported by Vladimir Putin in Russia. A loss for Putin in Venezuela places added strain on Russia’s ability to denounce democracy in favor of a dictatorial government. Luckily, with Joe Biden in office, stable coordination with democratic governments in the region, such as Brazil, is a step forward for democratic elections. On the topic of elections, we need to return to the U.S. sphere and discuss the upcoming November elections in the U.S.
One of the more cryptic and disconcerting statements made in July came from former President Trump when he stated / threatened “You won’t have to vote anymore, my beautiful Christians” in reference to his plans if he were to win this November, hinting that future election results would be cemented, amplified, and/or rigged in his favor. Even more troubling, it would appear such plans are setting up; specifically for Republicans and swing state election officials to refuse to certify November election results if they do not receive the results they seek.
U.S. Democracy and voices of citizens around the world is at stake in 2024.
THIS is BIG POLITICS on an unprecedented scale!
Peace & Love, Worldwide ✌🏼❤️🌍
-anthony