To Boldly Go Where No Democrat Has Gone Before
It's time for predictions for the balance of 2018. One of the questions is whether the coming year could be as tumultuous as the last one? That answer is easy......of course.... With the American political circus in full bloom and both political parties demonstrating that it is difficult to get to the finish line when you have both sides of your horse led by asses, mayhem will more than likely reign supreme. With that, some predictions for the upcoming year.
- Contrary to everyone's expectation, Robert Mueller's investigation will drag on through the November midterms. A final report from Mr. Mueller and his team will be released as a Thanksgiving gift to the nation. That report will hold a mixed bag for the President, failing to indict him directly, but destroying his inner circle and ultimately, his presidency.
- There will be a mass exodus from the President's cabinet. In no particular order, the Secretaries of State, Education, Attorney General, Labor, and Transportation will all resign. That will be followed by the resignation of Nikki Haley from her role as U.N. ambassador.
- The November elections will result in a Democratic wave, particularly in the House of Representatives. The carnage for the republicans will be especially heavy in California, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Polls will be so bad that Speaker Ryan will not run for re-election.
- Nancy Pelosi will not be the new speaker of the house. That job will go to a younger, less polarizing female democrat.
- The control of the senate will still be in question two weeks after the general elections with at least two states being so closely contested that recounts will be necessary to determine who controls the senate by a 51-49 margin or in a 50-50 split.
- The U.S. will back off their promise to make Jeruselum the location of the American embassy.
- The U.S. will rejoin the Climate Change Accords.
- No Supreme Court Justice will retire. If there is a change in the Supreme Court, it will be because of the death of a justice. If that happens, there will be a grueling and possibly unsuccessful attempt to seat a new justice. It would be possible that we would have an eight person SCOTUS for an extended period of time.
- The electoral map will become clearer. The northeast and the rustbelt, as well as the west coast states {less Alaska} will be reliably blue. The deep south and the lower Midwest as well as parts of the desert southwest will become reliably red. The battle for election supremacy will be held in the new battleground states of Texas, Virginia, Georgia, North Carolina, and Arizona. These states will become the new purple.
- ISIS will increase lone wolf attacks throughout the world, including the United States. Other terrorist groups, including the extremist right will adopt ISIS tactics. President Trump's administration will be forced to take a stand against the American radical right.
- Both the official democratic and republican party lines are going to move toward the center. The voting public will make clear that only a small percentage of the voting population will support radical politicians.
- Although some of the new stars of both the Democratic and Republican parties will come out of Washington, the majority of new faces that will have an impact on the national scene will come from state and city politics. They will be recognized as problem solvers and individuals who can work with members of the opposition party to get things done.
These are my predictions. How about you? Where do you think we are heading? Do you agree or disagree with these predictions? Why?
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The above is more like a wish list than reasonable predictions, the flourishing economy having been completely ignored.
Here are my predictions:
The Presidents lawyers will find a way for the President to have an interview with Robert Mueller, possibly with a requirement that all answers are limited to a yes or no. It will also be like all such interviews - NOT UNDER OATH. I know the liberal media loves to keep holding Donald Trump to every slip of the tongue he makes, but his lawyers will get control of how he grants an interview. Shortly after that interview, Mueller will wrap up his investigation with findings of Russian intervention but no collusion via the President.
Although the party out of power usually wins about 25 seats in the House during the midterm elections, the democrats will come up short. The booming economy will be very good for the GOP and there will be more uncovering of that scandal at the FBI with operatives at the DOJ.
John McCain will either reconsider another Senate run or somehow become incapacitated. He cant continue as US Senator missing key votes in the Senate.
California will have officially announced that they are allowing illegal immigrants voting rights via possession of a driver license and therefore the state never had to allow any inspection of state voter rolls.
There will be an amnesty for Trump's 1.8 million DACA + "dreamers" by the (real) March 5 deadline. Whether the President gets the border security requirements & immigration reforms to go with the deal will depend on moderate democrats up for election in the US Senate
I dare not predict much more than that. It will be an interesting year
Your predictions are fairly appropriate for those on the republican side. The only thing that I would comment on is how little power the attorney's for President Trump have over the scope of Mueller's questioning. It makes no difference whether the president is under oath or not. Lying to the FBI or to a federal prosecutor is a felony {no oath needed}. If Mueller wishes, he can subpoena Trump to testify before the Grand Jury and place him under oath. My guess is that the interview will not be before the grand jury. What you are pre-supposing is that the questions that Trump gets will be yes/no questions.....They will not! These will be deep, probing questions designed to either corroborate or refute other testimony. In some cases, the questions will be designed to fill in the blanks. Much of the President's testimony will be designed to fill in the timeline from his first contacts with Russia to today. Yes/No answers won't cut it, nor will pleading the fifth amendment. The real fear that Cobb and Trump's other attorneys have is that the man is going to have to give complex answers which he has tended to embellish and change over the past year and they know that Mueller has copies of all those statements. It is a nightmare scenario for this white house.
I am aware of the "lying to the FBI standard". We saw how it was used in the case of Michael Flynn. The whole country is now well aware of the options Robert Mueller has in questioning the President. The one option you didn't mention is the one I would recommend for the President - taking the 5th amendment. Some don't think its feasible politically, but in Trump's case it changes nothing. Those who loathe him will always loathe him and those who think he's been unfairly investigated will continue to believe it. I also believe there is actually plenty of political capitol for the President to do that, simply because of all the biased actions of FBI agents and DOJ officials we are now learning about. At least the President wont end up trapped in some unrelated lie and I got a feeling that is the only way remaining to remove this President.
Although "pleading the 5th" is the President's right, the wording, "I plead the 5th amendment because any statements that I make might be used to incriminate me." is, in many ways a de facto admission of criminal guilt and would be looked at that way by the majority of the American people. You might be right that it might be Trump's best out, but it would be political poison. It would allow all the testimony that has been given to Mueller and his team go unrefuted by the President. That, in itself, could be used for impeachment. The other problem with pleading the fifth is that it is absolute. Once used, the President can't answer other related questions he might want to answer. It can't be used selectively. The other thing that Mueller holds over the President is to give the President transactional immunity from criminal prosecution. That would take away any right the President might have to plead the fifth. Any way you look at it, this is a nightmare for the President.
That's Ok, we would finally, at long last know what that testimony was and Mueller should bring the investigation to an end after an interview of the President. Through the whole process the reputation of the FBI & Justice Department has been tarnished via biased agents (one of whom Mueller removed from the investigation) and what seems to be a double standard in the way Hillary Clinton was investigated and the President has been investigated. I think the American people are more than ready to know what Mueller knows.
Was there collusion by the President?
Was there obstruction of justice?
If so let the rule of law prevail and impeachment should take place. If neither happened, there are many that owe the American people an explanation. Why then was the President under investigation? Where was the initial crime?
If it turns out there is a third outcome, (like the blue dress in the Clinton investigation) the results will be the same for Trump as for Bill Clinton.
We will then be more divided at that point, than even now.
Good guesses. I predict RW internet trolls who spread anti-American foreign propaganda on social media will be indicted for treason...
Although they have done so in past history (that is to go boldly where they used to), I would hope they would head for the planning room or their equivalent of such.
They cannot do anything without a plan and trashing Trump is not a plan in my estimation. It's about time for them to present their case for the future of America and the path to get them there.
As an aside, they might want to attempt to come up with a few viable candidates, no one they have trotted out thus far has tickled my fancy (not that the GOP has either)
once they release the FISA memo? the lefts games are done. and they will release the info... count on it.
other than and after that, some globalist / anti trumper pricks are going to have some explaining to do.
tick tock
Sorry Doc... not a chance.
not only will Trump finish this term but he will also be re-elected in 2020
Cheers
I wouldn't hold my breath on that one. The Democrats using DACA as a part of their "we lost temper tantrum" only re-inforced that they don't care about actual US citizens, I don't think will be forgotten anytime soon. The only way they will have a wave would be if they all sat in a group and did one like could be seen at sporting events.
That was made clear in November 2016.
tigation will drag on through the November midterms
That will be the test of Mueller's honesty. If he pulls a despicable move Like Lawrence Welsh and indicts someone or issues his report on the eve of the election, we'll know he was playing politics. It needs to either come out in the summer or after the election. I imagine the report will be critical of Trump but not recommend impeachment.
I don't know in his inner circle Mueller can destroy. Kushner? Even a report that goes after Trump hard will almost certainly have no effect on the actual policy makers in his administration.
hat will be followed by the resignation of Nikki Haley from her role as U.N. ambassador.
IF she resigns, it will be to become Sec of State.
Polls will be so bad that Speaker Ryan will not run for re-election.
Not going to happen. He may leave office, but his polling is fine. Democrats may win the House, and will undoubtedly pick up seats as per mid term custom, but I doubt it will be on the scale of 2010. Certainly, the improvement in generic ballots over the last month shows a positive trend for Republcians.
No Supreme Court Justice will retire.
Kennedy will quit this summer.
Both the official democratic and republican party lines are going to move toward the center.
That, I think, is probably your prediction with the least chance of happening.
federal grand jury