We are living in historic times. Sometimes, this is good, and other times, not so much. With some things baked in, such as Joe Biden’s dump, bad economic policy, and confused foreign policymaking, trouble is in the cards. “When troubles come, they come not single spies but in battalions.” (Claudius, Hamlet Act IV, Scene V). So it is today. A never-ending war in the Ukraine, joined by a widening war in the Middle East and the news of a weakening economy, has all the earmarks of a perfect storm.

Thank goodness, with our top-notch leadership, we have little to fear. Of course, I jest. Led by a vain old fool, the administrationc ontinues to make the wrong choices. By designating Biden’s compliant vice president as its nominee, the Democrats are doubling down on failure. Given a chance to bring in somebody new from their outside group of Governors who promised to give them a fresh start, they all jumped on the Kamala bandwagon.

While she’s getting the predicted sainthood treatment from the Democrats and legacy media, she’s been part of the Biden-Harris administration, and that’s not lost on the general public. Added to this mess, she has her own baggage. Can she pretend to be something else besides the San Fransico progressive she’s always been?

Selecting Minnesota Governor Tim Waltz as her vice president will not change perceptions. Instead, it will affirm that the ticket is running to the left. Waltz is a guy who feels that being a socialist is just being neighborly.

I still can’t believe the Democrats couldn’t find a way to nominate someone else at the convention. They secured the opponent they could beat with someone outside the failed administration but misfired executing a winning plan. To make things worse, they declined to move to the center with someone like Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro. He surely would’ve helped in a key toss-upstate. 

One can only hope Shapiro’s Jewish faith didn’t disqualify him in an increasingly anti-Semitic Democratic party. In any case, it’s hard to see how any of this widens the ticket’s appeal. You win elections by addition, not subtraction.

The Democratic ticket’s only saving grace is running against Donald Trump. J.D. Vance on the Republican ticket also fails to broaden its appeal, so the Waltz pick on the other side mirrors the G.O.P. in its narrow attraction.

Trump has gone even further in alienating prospective supporters. As only Donald can do, he prioritizes his animosity over courting people who could help him. How else can you explain his attack on the Georgia Governor, Brian Kemp?

Georgia is one of the few toss-up states determining who will be our next president. Having the Governor’s winning organization on your side would be a big plus in a state Trump narrowly lost in ’20. Having Kemp campaign with you signals unity and a broader appeal. Instead, Trump denigrates him and the Secretary of State for not finding votes to change the ’20 Georgia outcome.

Trump’s reaction to his last election loss is classic narcissistic behavior. Feeling hurt and betrayed by a perceived lack of loyalty from others tracks how a narcissist behaves. He seems oblivious that this is self-destructive.

The election has devolved into a race to see who can alienate the most undecided voters. Why in the world are they paying the big bucks to election advisors? Both campaigns are designed to bring out their respective bases rather than get the middle-of-the-roaders. Only time will tell if this is a successful plan.

What isn’t at the forefront are solutions to our problems. These are approaching existential, yet nobody is asking what exactly the candidates will do on the economy, ongoing and prospective wars, the border, and out-of-control debt. Kamala has yet to answer any press questions. With less than 100 days left, she may never have to.

Trump tells us to have faith and remember that the economy, foreign affairs, and the border were better when he was president. He claims he’ll quickly solve everything, but he doesn’t tell us how.

Candidates should expose their opponents’ records and foibles but should stay away from family and the personal. It is amazing that the Trump camp is slow in defining Harris on her and the administration’s record. Possibly, they thought they’d be facing someone else. After all, they spent millions on Joe Biden only to find they’re facing someone else.

The press’s providence is a deep analysis of the candidates. Trump has been in the public eye forever, but do we know his core beliefs and how they were formed?

When Ronald Reagan ran for President, you knew his thought process and how it was formed. Conservative principles underlay everything he attempted. With Trump and Harris, we’re still in the dark. Trump is even contradicory, favoring small government with less regulation and a government-directed economy through tariffs.

Harris is changing positions like you hope people change their underwear. Up until this week, she’s on record as a solid progressive, but now she’s for fracking? If you Google her, you discover her father is a Marxist Proffessor emeritus at Stanford. Her mother and father met at a protest. Did they share left-wing principles? Were Kamala and her sister brought up as Marxists?

Surprisingly, I found no answers online. The press must ask these questions if they ever get the chance, but will they? So far, they haven’t. Even though Harris has been in politics at a high level for decades, we can find only superficial information.

The big word of this election is “weird.” While the left has mainly applied it to the Republican Ticket up to now, it defines this whole election.