Facing the dire scenario I laid out in the last post, Republican Presidential wannabes will attend their first debate on Wednesday, August 23rd. Former President Trump may or may not show. I believe he won’t. Why take incoming from the likes of no-chance Chris Christy? Let the former New Jersey Governor and others continue to beat up on Trump’s closest challenger, Ron DeSantis.

As I’ve pointed out, the Florida Governor has faced an unprecedented attack from all sides since he scored a resounding reelection victory. Trump spent millions on negative ads long before DeSantis could wind up his Florida duties and declare. Democratic allied media never let a day go by without several negative stories. When given a chance, other Republican candidates joined in.

While several of the debaters have executive experience as successful governors, not unexpectedly, the two getting the most pre-debate buzz are the two without government administrative experience: Senator Tim Scott and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy. 

Besides echoing some standard Republican boilerplate like “energy independence” and sealing the border, Scott offers little of the toughness to turn the government away from its present anti-democratic course. Having a sunny disposition and trying to be everyone’s friend indicates more of the same.

Joining Vice-President Kamala Harris in her phony attack on Florida’s Slavery curriculum to play the race card on DeSantis shows that under his likable guy persona is a dark side. It reminds me of Joe Biden.

Ramaswamy is auditioning for vice president on Trump’s ticket. Promising to pardon Trump is a giveaway. Writing and talking about being “anti-woke” and being in the trenches getting actual legislation and policies to combat the movement is a different thing. A governor has to do stuff. Vivek is this election cycle’s, Mayor Pete. North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum’s record is far more impressive if you want a successful tech tycoon. 

So long as Trump dominates the news with his endless indictments and court appearances, any story out of the debate will have a short life. The Democratic plan is working perfectly. The candidate they fear most is Ron DeSantis bloodied with plenty of Republican help. Trump will lock up the Republican nomination on Super Tuesday or earlier. As soon as he’s locked in, Joe Biden, either for health reasons or because of a smoking gun proving he’s a crook, will throw open the nomination.