2024 - A Blank Canvas

[PRESIDENT STANTON]

I can imagine that with Kayleigh McEnany as White House Press Secretary and Christina Pushaw as Communications Director, the media won't get the kid glove treatment we saw in the Biden era, and if the DeSantis White House suspects that the mainstream media have an agenda to undernine the president, you can expect the hammer to come down on the toes of the media, especially the CNN alumnus such as Anderson Cooper and Don Lemon. I think the more conservative news outlets such as Fox News and NewsMax will get favorable treatment, especially if DeSantis suspects any kind of overt hostility. Only difference is, that DeSantis will be more subtle than Trump was. As for the type of operating style. I can imagine that DeSantis leadership style will be a combination between George W. Bush and Trump, which is a superhuman work ethic, but zero "executive time" that Trump was known for. I wonder will DeSantis accept the climate change argument or does he dismiss it as nonsense?

[SaintStan86]

November 18, 2024
DeSANTIS NAMES O'BRIEN SECRETARY OF STATE, OTHER APPOINTMENTS
On Monday, President-elect Ron DeSantis announced the first members of his Cabinet starting with Secretary of State, nominating former National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien to serve as his Secretary of State. Appointed in 2019 by former President Donald Trump to succeeded John Bolton, the Los Angeles-born and UCLA and Berkeley-educated O'Brien, who also served as a Major in the JAG Corps of the Army Reserve, is a traditional foreign policy conservative who took a hard line on China during his time as NSA, and has defended the intelligence behind Trump's takedown of Iranian military leader Qasem Soleimani, as well as criticism of China's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. He also helped to secure peace agreements between Serbia and Kosovo (alongside then-acting Director of National Intelligence Ric Grenell), as well as between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, along with four other Arab nations mostly in the Middle East, as part of the Abraham Accords. Before serving as NSA, O'Brien served as an envoy who released unjustly detained American prisoners and hostages on various occasions during the Trump administration, and for a time in the 1990s served as a legal officer with the United Nations in Geneva.

In announcing his appointment, DeSantis called O'Brien's service to the country "filled with distinction and courage" and stated that the appointment "represents a clear signal that it will not be business as usual at the State Department anymore". O'Brien thanked DeSantis for granting him "the greatest opportunity to serve in what will be the greatest administration this country has ever seen", and called DeSantis "the latest in a long line of great Republican leaders who focus on defending the country and not defending from ourselves, while also promoting peaceful negotiation and leadership that is sorely needed". O'Brien also acknowledged his lack of musical candor in contrast to outgoing Secretary of State Tony Blinken: "I may not have songs I can play on Spotify, but at least I know how to have a good time - when I'm off the job of course", but otherwise stressed the importance of "making peace through strength our motto once again".

In addition to O'Brien, DeSantis also named his Director of National Intelligence, selecting six-term U.S. Rep. Chris Stewart, who was just reelected to a seventh term in Utah's 2nd District, which includes Salt Lake City along with its northern suburbs and much of rural western and southern Utah. A steadfast defender of Trump, Stewart is an energy and environmental consultant and retired Air Force major who has served on the House Select Intelligence Committee and is also a New York Times-bestselling novelist (most of work involving techno-thrillers and historical novels) who also co-wrote a memoir for noted child abduction survivor Elizabeth Smart and even co-authored with his wife another story that eventually turned into a performance by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Stewart's appointment will likely trigger. As is the case with his incoming Chief of Staff Byron Donalds, in which DeSantis in his outgoing role as Florida's Governor issued a special election to take place sometime after his inauguration, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox has also announced plans to hold a special election once Stewart's seat becomes vacant.

DeSantis also named his National Security Advisor, selecting Dina Powell, a former Deputy National Security Advisor, to serve in this role. While her husband, GOP Pennsylvania U.S. Senate nominee Dave McCormick, continues to make headlines over the impending recount of his race against incumbent Bob Casey Jr., Powell's credentials in past national security roles both under George W. Bush and Donald Trump are believed to have given her the edge over other candidates, though Powell argued that "my role is independent of what my husband is doing over there and what this administration will do, and my prerogative is to solely focus on ensuring that we have the best intelligence to counter our enemies in defense of our country".

Lastly, DeSantis also chose his U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, the same role employed by his incoming Vice President Nikki Haley, who joined DeSantis at the press conference. That responsibility will fall to Ric Grenell, the former U.S. Ambassador to Germany under Trump who also served as an acting Director of National Intelligence at one point, and who recently ran in California as a candidate for U.S. Senate, losing an all-Republican "top two" battle earlier this month to outgoing House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Grenell, who stands to become the first openly gay Ambassador to the UN, has years of experience both at the State Department and the UN, and also has served as an advisor to the Republican National Committee on outreach to LGBT voters. "The threats our country faces both here at home and overseas warrants the need for a strong and patriotic voice to defend our shared interests and values as a country, and at the United Nations both in New York and Geneva, that's what they will get from me", said Grenell in his remarks.

While today's appointments reflect the nature and extent as to how a DeSantis administration will handle foreign policy, it is far from the only such meeting. Future unveilings will take place stressing other parts of the upcoming administration, with a focus on domestic policy, judicial matters and social priorities. "These appointments represent the pinnacle of success for these individuals, but it is a duty that goes beyond service to the country and speaks to our better angels in the larger world", DeSantis proclaimed.

November 19, 2024
BENNETT EKES OUT WIN IN MAINE SENATE CONTEST AS OPPONENT DEMANDS OWN RECOUNT; BOGNET CONCEDES DEFEAT IN PA REELECTION
On Tuesday, two weeks after the polls closed nationwide, two divergent races saw their final results tallied in with a recount now being demanded in one of those races. That would be the Senate contest in Maine to fill the seat of retiring independent Angus King, where Republican State Sen. and former state GOP Chairman Rick Bennett received 50.4 percent of the vote to 49.6 for his Democratic opponent, Rep. Chellie Pingree, who hoped to reclaim the seat outright for Democrats for the first time since 1994, when Sen. George Mitchell retired (though King himself has caucused with the Democrats during his entire tenure in the Senate). Though Maine law requires five business days after the election concludes for a candidate to be eligible to request a recount, Pingree has called for her own recount, citing continued absentee returns that her campaign argues "appear to favor her", as well as the fact that ranked-choice voting resulted in Mainers waiting days for a majority winner to be declared. Bennett called Pingree's request for a recount "futile" and argued that "the people of Maine have decided who their Senator is going to be, and the margin is big enough to where effectively she's going to have a hard time seeing those magical votes come upstream". Still, Gov. Janet Mills stressed the importance of "counting every vote in this race" and noted that the Maine Legislature is "working on efforts in this coming session to address the long wait times for results to be announced".

Meanwhile, while the recount request in Pennsylvania of GOP U.S. Senate nominee and financier Dave McCormick is proceeding along with endorsement by Gov. Doug Mastriano (and despite strong objections from McCormick's incumbent opponent, Sen. Bob Casey Jr.), Republican Rep. Jim Bognet conceded a narrow defeat in his northeast PA-based 8th District, where he lost with 48.5 percent to 49.4 percent for the man Bognet defeated in 2022, former Rep. Matt Cartwright, who called Bognet "gracious" in his concession and crowed "Dave McCormick, it's time for you to follow suit and take your millions of dollars in dirty money back to Pittsburgh, or better yet, back to Connecticut or the DC swamp you're moving to with your trophy wife", referring to McCormick's wife Dina Powell, who was just appointed to be President-elect Ron DeSantis's National Security Advisor. Cartwright's comment towards Powell drew controversy especially from more Republican-friendly media sources including Fox News host Laura Ingraham, who called Cartwright "a sexist pig" and called on the Democrat to apologize for "an insanely hypocritical attack against a dedicated national security leader who has put our country first before and will again".

Some Fox News viewers and DeSantis loyalists, in response, have petitioned for the incoming President to "consider a role" for Bognet in his administration in response to Cartwright's comments. Cartwright's victory is believed to have been attributed to the strong showing by Sen. Casey in the district; Casey is a Scranton native who is deeply tied to the city and surrounding Lackawanna County, which more than provided Cartwright with his victory margin in the district with the rest of the counties favoring Bognet

Among other outstanding House races, Republican Sarah Palin has clinched a second term in her third consecutive close election (defeating former Rep. Mary Peltola in their third-straight contest, the first of which Peltola won in a 2022 special election only to lose in that year's midterms to Palin), as did Ryan Zinke in his western Montana-based 1st District, where he defeated State Sen. Ellie Boldman in a close race that was decided by a few hundred votes; Boldman has vowed to run again in 2026. And in California's 4th District, north of San Francisco in California's wine country, Napa County Supervisor Ryan Gregory narrowly defeated State Sen. Bill Dodd on the basis of Gregory's endorsement by retiring incumbent Democrat Mike Thompson, as well as sustained attacks by his camp against Dodd over his Republican past and what Gregory's camp derisively called "a pro-corporation voting record that puts special interests ahead of the people of California".

November 20, 2024
FINAL PIECE OF PRESIDENTIAL PUZZLE FILLED AS DeSANTIS WINS WASHINGTON
On Wednesday, outgoing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis won the final piece of the presidential electoral puzzle, winning Washington's 12 electoral votes and becoming the first Republican to win the Evergreen State since 1984 with 48.4 percent to 42.9 percent for Vice President Kamala Harris, who struggled under the weight of a campaign that many viewed as lackadaisical, lingering issues with the Biden administration despite a brief respite during the middle of 2022 after a series of Biden policy victories intended to benefit Democrats in what turned out to be a brutal midterm, and the strong performance of Andrew Yang and his Forward movement, which won 6.7 percent of the vote including over 12 percent in King County, home to Seattle, but otherwise failed to crack five percent east of the Cascades.

Not surprisingly, the projected final electoral result for DeSantis - 420 electoral votes - combined with the date being November 20, 2024, drew plenty on social media of attention given Washington's liberal marijuana laws, where adults 21 and up can possess up to an ounce of marijuana for recreational use - various social media posts have images of cannabis and elephants juxtaposed with each other, while tweets have even shown cannabis plant emojis mixed in with conservative and Republican hashtags (including the DeSantis campaign's #FreedomMatters hashtag. Indeed, one gathering of libertarian-leaning Republicans in Seattle reportedly even hosting a "weed party" complete with patrons smoking marijuana, drinking marijuana-infused cocktails and even consuming pot brownies to celebrate DeSantis's victory. In Florida, DeSantis endorsed the use of medical marijuana, but has opposed recreational use due to uncertainties with the law enforcement consequences of unregulated marijuana use and possession. It is not clear what DeSantis's stance on the issue, as well as the broader and controversial War on Drugs, will be and may depend on who DeSantis selects to become his administration's director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy - the so-called "Drug Czar".

In addition to the decided presidential result in Washington state, three races in the Pacific Northwest were also decided. In Washington's 4th District, anchored in the Tri-Cities region including Pasco, Richland and Kennewick, as well as the Yakima area and the western fringes of the Spokane TV market, incumbent five-term Republican Dan Newhouse went down in defeat, losing to 2022 U.S. Senate candidate and veterans' advocate Tiffany Smiley by more than two percent as remaining ballots postmarked by Election Day broke slightly in Smiley's favor. With Newhouse's defeat, moderate GOP Rep. David Valadao, who won reelection in his Democratic-leaning 22nd District in California's Central Valley, is now the only remaining Republican out of the 10 who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump for the second time for "incitement of insurrection" in the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

In Oregon, former State Sen. Chris Edwards narrowly defeated Rep. Alek Skarlatos with 49.1 percent to the Republican's 47.9 percent on the basis of Edwards' strong support in Benton County, whose reports finally came in including several hundred ballots from Oregon State University. Skarlatos conceded defeat, arguing that while "I am disappointed that we did not fight harder to defeat our opponent, and yes I do often question the integrity of some of these late-breaking votes, the voters of the district unfortunately have spoken and I wish Chris Edwards the very best in representing this district going forward", noting that the margin of victory for Edwards far exceeds the 0.2 percent required for an automatic recount and admitting that "we knew Benton County was going to be hard, but in every county we gave it our all". Republicans did manage to hang onto the 6th District in Portland's southwest suburbs, where freshman Mike Erickson won a second term with 50.7 percent, defeating businessman and Army veteran Cody Reynolds who won 47.6 percent.

November 23, 2024
DeSANTIS HAS THE LAST LAUGH ON 'SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE'
While much of the country was focused on preparing for their Thanksgiving plans the coming week, President-elect Ron DeSantis was in New York City for the last few days, appearing on NBC's long-running sketch comedy show, Saturday Night Live, as the guest host for the week. First appearing in the cold open, where Colin Jost - playing his portrayal of the outgoing Florida Governor - walks to his "desk" only to encounter the real DeSantis who chases him off, DeSantis began his night by giving a lesson of sorts on "authenticity" and "feeding my pet mules Diet Coke infused with 100% Florida oranges - which keeps them from committing voter fraud", among other quips, before being joined by his wife Casey (the incoming First Lady) who thanked her husband for "stressing the importance of not blurring the lines between humor and dark reality in ways that a Baby Yoda can understand" before saying "For all of us here at First Coast News, I'm Casey Black DeSantis (the name she used as a presenter at NBC's Jacksonville affiliate, WTLV). Thank you for joining us and..." with the President-elect joining her in saying those famous seven words: "LIVE FROM NEW YORK IT'S SATURDAY NIGHT!"

Continuing with his opening monologue, DeSantis made a serious of quips about his state, his election travels, his golf game ("Admittedly, Mason qualifies for the PGA Tour - something I can't even get a slightly failing score in even with a good handicap", and even about his feud with Disney over the "Don't Say Gay" bill: "My intention was never to harm gays or lesbians and everyone in between, because I had many of them rooting for me, reminding me that all the Disney executives in California fed them was expired and moldy cheese left sitting out in the Florida Keys", before SNL player James Austin Johnson - in his portrayal of President Biden - threw a baseball towards the SNL set and breaking a window in the process, much like the actual President Biden did during a game of catch he played with DeSantis outside the Rose Garden during DeSantis's White House visit. Johnson then responded "You suck, chump!", to which DeSantis responded "You call that a throw? I used to play Little League in Williamsport and led the Yale baseball team, let me show you how it's done!".

DeSantis then proceeded to throw the same baseball (handed back to him by a member of the Saturday Night Live Band) back to Johnson who pretend to writhe in pain when the ball hit his chest and later responded "You knocked the wind out of me, Governor!", as he proceeded to run around the studio with DeSantis chasing him before Johnson proceeded to say "Please don't hurt me, Governor! I promise to not call the FBI on you..." back on the SNL stage, as DeSantis offered a can of Diet Coke mixed in with orange juice (confirmed to be made with Florida oranges), which Johnson drank and then dumped over himself and went "Whooooo! Free beer!" as DeSantis remarked "So much for that Amtrak ride back home..." before remarking "We have a great show tonight!" as he proceeded to appear in a number of other skits during the show (including serving as a guest anchor on Weekend Update), plus a digital short where former SNL player Andy Samberg and his comedy group, The Lonely Island, made a cameo appearance in a short that drew comparisons to the opening sequence of The Sopranos, with many of the New York City stops replaced with "road trip" scenes from Tallahassee to eventually the White House.

The folk rock band The Lumineers provided the musical entertainment for the night, playing two songs from their newest album, as DeSantis closed out the night attempting to stop James Austin Johnson's impersonation of Donald Trump from interrupting him with lighthearted insults, responding by saying to Johnson "I'm bigger and wiser than you are, smartass - now sit down and accept your loss, snowflake!", with Johnson giving a pouty face and sniff similar to the ones used by Alec Baldwin in his portrayal of the former President. Despite obvious political differences and jabs at his performance as Governor backstage, DeSantis was well received by the cast and Lorne Michaels, who thanked the President-elect and incoming First Lady for "being incredibly charitable for someone like you, enjoyed having you guys over tonight" and even said "We hope to not offend you and we hope you don't get offended!" before DeSantis and his wife retired to their hotel room at the "breath of fresh air right next to Central Park" known as the JW Marriott Essex House. According to Live+Same Day ratings counts from Nielsen, the night's broadcast of Saturday Night Live had a share of 8.4 - arguably the highest of the season, with the next highest rated new episode (from the previous week) clocking in at 5.6, and nearly double the season average of 4.4.

Next post: One last turkey pardon for Joe Biden, as the Senate nears completion...

[PRESIDENT STANTON]

Wow! Robert O'Brien for SoS! A surprise, but perhaps not! Marco Rubio at the State Department probably was a recipe for disaster, as Rubio wouldn't like playing second fiddle and might be viewed as a threat, whereas O'Brien would understand that "he does serve at the pleasure of the President". Also O'Brien will likely understand his brief. Wasn't surprised that Dina Powell getting NSC advisor position.

[BigVic]

Ironic De Santis got 420 with Washington State the final state to be called

[PRESIDENT STANTON]

Ironic? How? I mean Washington could have gone for Harris and he would have 408 instead. If there's irony, it would be how DeSantis has an electoral vote majority of 302, that was exactly the electoral vote which Nixon won in 1968, an election also held on November 5th and where a Vice president with a surname beginning with H ran. For historical buffs, Washington state would not have voted Republican in 40 years until 2024. It voted Democrat in '64, '68 and again in '88 and in every subsequent election until 2020. Also GHWB won 40 state's, Reagan 44 and then 49 state's, LBJ carried 44 state's and DeSantis 43 states. So many firsts and distinctions,  by my count, DeSantis 19.5 million vote majority far surpasses Nixon's 1972 17.9 million vote majority, not to mention Reagan's 16.9 million in 1984.

[2016]

Wow! Robert O'Brien for SoS! A surprise, but perhaps not! Marco Rubio at the State Department probably was a recipe for disaster, as Rubio wouldn't like playing second fiddle and might be viewed as a threat, whereas O'Brien would understand that "he does serve at the pleasure of the President". Also O'Brien will likely understand his brief. Wasn't surprised that Dina Powell getting NSC advisor position.

Robert O'Brien, Chris Stewart & Dina Powell are solid Picks BUT picking an 2020 Election Denier in Ric Grenell for an UN-Ambassadorship will cause trouble for President DeSantis even with his own Party. Grenell said thousands of Nevadans were dead people voting in the Aftermath of the 2020 Election.

Grenell continues to date to defend Trumps conspiracy Election theories.

Now, Grenell might still get confirmed given the large Republican Majority in the Senate (they now have 65 Seats with that Maine Win) but his Confirmation will be rocky. Ironically Marco Rubio sits at the Foreign Relations Cmte.

Will be interesting who gets Attorney General, Homeland and Defense.

[PRESIDENT STANTON]

I can't understand the Grenell pick either, no pluses there; unless it's a nod to the LGBT community; I think in selecting both O'Brien and Powell, DeSantis has played more than enough homage to the Trumpian element. Grenell's confirmation hearings, as Democrats will be trawling for potential flash-points, and his election denying will be source of aggravation. Also DeSantis may think he has the political muscle to give Grenell the UN job, it's problematic and if I were him, I'd steer clear of such a controversial nomination. It's a unnecessary distraction. Kris Kobach for Homeland Security possibly. If anyone is thinking of Ted Cruz for AG, wouldn't go there, as it is the worst choice possible.

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

I can't understand the Grenell pick either, no pluses there; unless it's a nod to the LGBT community; I think in selecting both O'Brien and Powell, DeSantis has played more than enough homage to the Trumpian element. Grenell's confirmation hearings, as Democrats will be trawling for potential flash-points, and his election denying will be source of aggravation. Also DeSantis may think he has the political muscle to give Grenell the UN job, it's problematic and if I were him, I'd steer clear of such a controversial nomination. It's a unnecessary distraction. Krobach for Homeland Security possibly. If anyone is thinking of Ted Cruz, possibly the worst choice possible.

I mean it could be an f-you to the Islamic countries

[PRESIDENT STANTON]

I can't understand the Grenell pick either, no pluses there; unless it's a nod to the LGBT community; I think in selecting both O'Brien and Powell, DeSantis has played more than enough homage to the Trumpian element. Grenell's confirmation hearings, as Democrats will be trawling for potential flash-points, and his election denying will be source of aggravation. Also DeSantis may think he has the political muscle to give Grenell the UN job, it's problematic and if I were him, I'd steer clear of such a controversial nomination. It's a unnecessary distraction. Krobach for Homeland Security possibly. If anyone is thinking of Ted Cruz, possibly the worst choice possible.

I mean it could be an f-you to the Islamic countries

Oh yeah forgot,  being gay in the Muslim world is a no no and that being said, Grenell at the UN is certainly a red rag to the proverbial bull! You could say DeSantis is saying to Muslims "Hey if you're intolerant bigots, well guess what? I don't give a f**kahstan if Grenell being at the UN upsets your sensibilities such as they are! Bite me!"

[SaintStan86]

I can't understand the Grenell pick either, no pluses there; unless it's a nod to the LGBT community; I think in selecting both O'Brien and Powell, DeSantis has played more than enough homage to the Trumpian element. Grenell's confirmation hearings, as Democrats will be trawling for potential flash-points, and his election denying will be source of aggravation. Also DeSantis may think he has the political muscle to give Grenell the UN job, it's problematic and if I were him, I'd steer clear of such a controversial nomination. It's a unnecessary distraction. Krobach for Homeland Security possibly. If anyone is thinking of Ted Cruz, possibly the worst choice possible.

I mean it could be an f-you to the Islamic countries

Oh yeah forgot,  being gay in the Muslim world is a no no and that being said, Grenell at the UN is certainly a red rag to the proverbial bull! You could say DeSantis is saying to Muslims "Hey if you're intolerant bigots, well guess what? I don't give a f**kahstan if Grenell being at the UN upsets your sensibilities such as they are! Bite me!"

Except when word came of an Islamphobic tweet IRL by Kathy Barnette, this is how Grenell responded:

"There are millions of Muslims who are conservative Republicans.

People who are on the front lines calling out radical Islam.

Anyone saying the American government should ban a religion is unfit for public office."

 - From Grenell's Twitter account via his iPhone, at 6:38 PM on May 11, 2022.

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

I can't understand the Grenell pick either, no pluses there; unless it's a nod to the LGBT community; I think in selecting both O'Brien and Powell, DeSantis has played more than enough homage to the Trumpian element. Grenell's confirmation hearings, as Democrats will be trawling for potential flash-points, and his election denying will be source of aggravation. Also DeSantis may think he has the political muscle to give Grenell the UN job, it's problematic and if I were him, I'd steer clear of such a controversial nomination. It's a unnecessary distraction. Krobach for Homeland Security possibly. If anyone is thinking of Ted Cruz, possibly the worst choice possible.

I mean it could be an f-you to the Islamic countries

Oh yeah forgot,  being gay in the Muslim world is a no no and that being said, Grenell at the UN is certainly a red rag to the proverbial bull! You could say DeSantis is saying to Muslims "Hey if you're intolerant bigots, well guess what? I don't give a f**kahstan if Grenell being at the UN upsets your sensibilities such as they are! Bite me!"

Except when word came of an Islamphobic tweet IRL by Kathy Barnette, this is how Grenell responded:

"There are millions of Muslims who are conservative Republicans.

People who are on the front lines calling out radical Islam.

Anyone saying the American government should ban a religion is unfit for public office."

 - From Grenell's Twitter account via his iPhone, at 6:38 PM on May 11, 2022.

Difference between conservative American Muslims and a bunch of middle eastern countries mad that gay people exist.

[PRESIDENT STANTON]

Grenell is likely to have his name withdrawn than Trump is to become a Democrat and accept the results of the 2020 election. Speaking of elections, any guess on the final tally of the 2024 presidential election? I'm guessing that DeSantis won his home state by close to 2 million more votes than Harris, Ohio by just 2 million, Texas by well over 2½ million, Missouri by 1 million, Michigan and Pennsylvania by roughly the same amount and North Carolina by the same amount. They would have to be, if he's winning by over 19.5 million in the national popular vote. I think that Casey will likely win the recount. Thus this allows McCormick to get Treasury as a sort of compensation. I am guessing that Josh Bolten, Card's successor as Dubya's WHcos might get Defense, considering that he once ran OMB under Bush and would not be part of the military industrial complex clique, thus he could keep Pentagon spending honest. There's precedent for this, I recall that Reagan's first Defense Secretary, Cap Weinberger was once OMB Director under Nixon or Ford. The only problem was that Weinberger over time became part of the culture of wasteful spending at the Pentagon. Who knows. Larry Kudlow should get Commerce. Make Dan Coats Ambassador to Russia 🇷🇺 or to the UK 🇬🇧.

[PRESIDENT STANTON]

Grenell is likely to have his name withdrawn than Trump is to become a Democrat and accept the results of the 2020 election. Speaking of elections, any guess on the final tally of the 2024 presidential election? I'm guessing that DeSantis won his home state by close to 2 million more votes than Harris, Ohio by just 2 million, Texas by well over 2½ million, Missouri by 1 million, Michigan and Pennsylvania by roughly the same amount and North Carolina by the same amount. They would have to be, if he's winning by over 19.5 million in the national popular vote. I think that Casey will likely win the recount. Thus this allows McCormick to get Treasury as a sort of compensation. I am guessing that Josh Bolten, Card's successor as Dubya's WHcos might get Defense, considering that he once ran OMB under Bush and would not be part of the military industrial complex clique, thus he could keep Pentagon spending honest. There's precedent for this, I recall that Reagan's first Defense Secretary, Cap Weinberger was once OMB Director under Nixon or Ford. The only problem was that Weinberger over time became part of the culture of wasteful spending at the Pentagon. Who knows. Larry Kudlow should get Commerce. Make Dan Coats Ambassador to Russia 🇷🇺 or to the UK 🇬🇧.

[2016]

To be quite frank I just don't understand President-elect Ron DeSantis:

# 1 You have just been elected with a Record Margin of 420 to 118 Electoral Votes.

# 2 When all is said and done and California & New York (who are usually the Final two States to certify Election Results at the beginning of December) post Final Results you will have rougly 20M Votes more than the Democratic Vice President.

# 3 Voters were eager to turn the Page from Trump and Biden otherwise DeSantis would not cut so massivly into the Suburban Vote.

# 4 Now is not the time to pick a Fight with the Republican-controlled Senate over Cabinet Appointments/Confirmations.

# 5 It is just massivly bizarre that Ric Grenell, a 2020 Election Denier, was picked and neither Christina Pushaw nor incoming WH Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany gave any reasoning for this.

# 6 Smart move would be to withdraw Grenells Name because I don't think his Confirmation will get voted out of the Senate Foreign Relations Cmte.

[PRESIDENT STANTON]

What's to understand? He's a different generation of Republican, not captive to the old school Republican, but wise enough to give a nod to both branches of Republicanism (the neo conservatism as represented with Card, and the MAGA element of Republicanism, as epitomized with O'Brien, Mulvaney, Powell and Grenell). Bottom line DeSantis will probably give the lions share of cabinet and administration picks to people that are of the new generation that DeSantis is from. You see it with appointments of Donalds to be WHcos and Stewart to be DNI. Don't be surprised if he doesn't invite a Democrat into administration, not because he must or should, but because it pleases him.

[SaintStan86]

November 25, 2024
McCORMICK RECOUNTS CONTINUE AS COUNTIES CANVASS VOTES
While several counties across Pennsylvania have already canvassed their county-level results for the 2024 election, including the U.S. Senate race between incumbent Sen. Bob Casey Jr. and his Republican opponent Dave McCormick, who has requested recounts for his election in several counties across the state, particularly in ones where the gap between President-elect Ron DeSantis and himself is notably wide or where a sizable "whiff of voter fraud" exists. However, while recounts do remain ongoing, a number of higher-profile counties, including Harrisburg's Dauphin County and suburban Philadelphia's Montgomery County, have decided against conducting such a recount as other counties, including Lancaster County in the heart of Amish country, as well as suburban Pittsburgh's Westmoreland County - a stronghold for McCormick, have already canvassed their results.

As of Monday, the results show Casey with 49.3 percent of the vote to 48.7 for McCormick. By contrast, DeSantis won 52 percent to 42 percent for Kamala Harris and 5 percent for Andrew Yang, with DeSantis outperforming McCormick in blue-collar northeast Pennsylvania, where Scranton-born Casey has deep ties. The results in Scranton's Lackawanna County, where Democrats generally outperformed the presidential ticket even when combined with the votes of Yang, also played a hand in the defeat of first-term Republican Rep. Jim Bognet, who narrowly lost to former Rep. Matt Cartwright in a rematch of their 2022 race. While updated totals won't be released until the recounts in individual counties are complete, many election law experts do not expect the recount to flip the result for McCormick.

November 27, 2024
BIDEN PARDONS ONE FINAL THANKSGIVING TURKEY; DeSANTIS HEADS OUT TO MAR-A-LAGO FOR THANKSGIVING EVE DINNER WITH TRUMP
On Wednesday, President Joe Biden hosted his last ceremonial Thanksgiving turkey pardon at the White House, pardoning a pair of 42 lb broad breasted white turkeys named Cass and Errol (a play on the dish term "Casserole") in a ceremony that was televised during the afternoon and carried live on cable news networks such as Fox News and CNN. In announcing the pardon of the turkeys, originally from Pennsylvania, Biden acknowledged the importance of "celebrating time with the people you love" while also extolling the values of the turkey farmers: "The turkey farmers of this great nation are a major reason why millions of families get to enjoy Thanksgiving this year, and their sacrifices and hard work to feed America's breadbasket are to be celebrated". He also expressed no regrets about his presidency and further added "America's best days are straight ahead, and these holidays are a great time for us to celebrate America and what she stands for".

For Thanksgiving, the Bidens intend to spend their Thanksgiving with their extended family at their vacation house in Rehoboth Beach, Del., with his children Hunter and Ashley (the latter of whom is Joe's daughter with Jill) and his grandchildren. When asked about what he will miss most about being President, Biden cited "Being able to relate to millions of Americans who celebrate Thanksgiving together from a position of leadership - both during my time as a Senator and in a capacity of executive leadership, but what matters more is family, and family is what keeps me going". The Bidens have also requested privacy from the media for their Thanksgiving celebration, intending to celebrate "like any normal family would without the paparazzi chasing them", with additional Secret Service detail provided as security at the president's personal expense.

Meanwhile, the incoming President and his family headed further down the Florida peninsula to attend a Thanksgiving Eve dinner at Mar-a-Lago, hosted by former President Donald Trump and his family. During the dinner, Trump remarked endlessly about President-elect Ron DeSantis's appearance over the weekend on Saturday Night Live, particularly how DeSantis "literally schooled the guy pretending to be me about winning and losing, and then pretending to be Sleepy Joe", and considered it quite 'remarkable' that "Ron wasn't chased out of the room by Lorne Michaels - I probably wouldn't have lasted an hour in there knowing how it went then", referring to his own guest hosting of Saturday Night Live in 2015 during the early months of his presidential campaign. Trump also admitted "I haven't spoken to Larry David since then", referring to the comedian and former Seinfeld executive producer-turned-Curb Your Enthusiasm star who portrayed Bernie Sanders on the iconic NBC late-night sketch comedy show. (Coincidentally one of Trump's friendliest allies, former advisor Steve Bannon, continues to make money from reruns of Seinfeld courtesy of his investment in the show through its production company, Castle Rock Entertainment.)

The visit with Trump wasn't without the sort of "fatherly advice" that was expected for DeSantis, with the latter being advised to "hold the America First faithful in your thoughts every time you think through the issues facing the country", "never forget the people who put you in office and who got you there", and stressed the importance of "standing up to the swamp that is only there to bring you and your family down". Trump also made rank admissions on shortcomings within his administration, singling out former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell as "someone who has thrown conservatives under the bus time after time and made Republicans out to look 'worse than the Democrats'". DeSantis was unsurprised by Trump's comments, vowing that "John Cornyn will know better than to screw over the very people who put me in office. I beat their guy in 2018 by running as a conservative, and I will succeed in Washington by governing as one", also referring to his 2018 rival, former Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, who DeSantis defeated in the Republican gubernatorial primary that year.

Notably absent from the discussion was the discussion surrounding 2020, save for Trump's continued assertion that "the election was swept out from under me from vile forces who hated me and will hate you no matter how good your deeds are". With DeSantis having blown out his opponents in 2024 for the most part, the memory of the 2020 election is now largely viewed in retrospect as (in Trump's words) "an aberration from our long-shared goal to 'Make America Great Again'". Trump also saw general approval with DeSantis's picks, calling would-be Secretary of State Robert O'Brien "someone who stands to become a great leader for our interests in the world" and defended his choice of Ric Grenell for Ambassador to the United Nations: "They can say all they want about the steal, but Grenell is going to make those clowns at the UN sh*t in their pants every time they try to throw America under the bus with help from China".

Perhaps in regards to California, Trump praised DeSantis for "building a great team for Republicans in California to build around with Robert O'Brien and Ric Grenell leading the way", and called on DeSantis to "remind Kevin McCarthy that the Republican gains in Kamala's backyard are 'just the beginning'", and argued that "Harry and Meghan should have their crowns defrocked and their celebrity privileges taken away for the awful things they advocated for - for all I care, they can go work for Kamala and whatever excuse of a 'charity' she has in mind for them". The DeSantises plan to spend their Thanksgiving with

Across the country Americans are celebrating Thanksgiving, with the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the National Dog Show, three NFL games and countless Thanksgiving dinners going on simultaneously. Then comes a weekend full of shopping, as radio stations turn over their schedules to nothing but Christmas music. As Small Business Saturday, a recent shopping holiday created in part by American Express where shoppers are encouraged to patronize small businesses, commences across the country, a Senate result has become clear enough where no amount of difference would have changed the result...

November 30, 2024
PINGREE CONCEDES DEFEAT IN MAINE AS RECOUNT SHOWS BENNETT STILL AHEAD
On Saturday, following a last-minute recount of votes that failed to move the needle let alone change the outcome, Democratic Rep. Chellie Pingree conceded defeat in her very close bid for the U.S. Senate on Saturday afternoon. The announcement came just hours after the results of the recount - released just before Thanksgiving - failed to change the outcome projected ten days ago by most media sources, only to be retracted following Pingree's request for a recount being granted by Democratic Gov. Janet Mills. The result, however, did not change much as Pingree remained at 49.6 percent, behind Republican State Sen. Rick Bennett's 50.4 percent; in fact, the recount resulted in Bennett gaining a few dozen more votes than previously, and attorneys for Pingree admitted that "nothing more could be done to change the outcome" with almost all of the absentee ballots now reported in.

In a press conference held on Saturday afternoon outside her home in the island town of North Haven, the 69-year-old Pingree conceded defeat with her family by her side, and thanked the people of her southern-based 1st District, which includes Portland and surrounding suburbs, for "giving me the opportunity to serve you in Congress for 16 years" and wished the best to Bennett going forward. Following the speech, Bennett thanked Pingree as well as the Senator he will be replacing, retiring Sen. Angus King, for their "unmatched record of service and accomplishments to Mainers that will forever persist for generations to come", while also remarking "The victory seen here and across the nation is proof that Americans are done with business as usual in Washington, and I intend to serve as a Senator for all Mainers".

With Bennett now projected to be the winner of his Senate race, the seat effectively returns to the Republicans (who had previously held it for three terms with Olympia Snowe from 1995 to 2013), even though Democrats themselves had never really held the seat since before Snowe given King chose to only caucus with the Democrats while being elected as an independent. Gov. Mills has vowed to reform the electoral process to "make it to where the final stage of election returns is counted instantly", pointing to Australia as "the example that we need to be following as a state, and as a country, going forward when it comes to our elections, because you have a right to know right away, not several days later, who your elected officials are going to be".

Republicans will now have 65 Senators in the upcoming Congress, the most ever in the history of the Senate, to 34 for the Democrats including a Progressive from Vermont that will be caucusing with the latter. The only outstanding race remains in Pennsylvania, where Sen. Bob Casey Jr. has maintained a narrow lead over his Republican challenger, Dave McCormick. Recounts requested by the McCormick campaign and other supporters are ongoing in several counties where the results are being disputed, though as some key counties have already chosen to canvass the results, McCormick's window to change the outcome is increasingly seen as diminished, with many Democrats calling on McCormick to concede the race. Republican Gov. Doug Mastriano, however, has encouraged counties to "keep counting the results until a fair outcome is reached", despite increasing odds against the outcome flipping in the Republicans' favor.

December 2, 2024
DeSANTIS TEASES 'CYBER MONDAY' TO HIGHLIGHT ECONOMIC PICKS FOR CABINET
While most of the country was shopping online on what has become known as "Cyber Monday", President-elect Ron DeSantis took the opportunity to highlight key members of his incoming economic team at a meeting held at Kiawah Island Golf Resort in Kiawah Island, S.C. Donning a sweater vest underneath a sportcoat, the outgoing Florida Gov. highlighted the importance of "creating a sustainable and productive economy that will make the United States the envy of the world once again" and called a strong economy "important to our national psyche and to our collective security".

Topping the list of DeSantis's latest appointments is Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin for Commerce Secretary. A former McKinsey & Company consultant who later became co-CEO of The Carlyle Group, Youngkin received his Bachelor's degrees in managerial studies and mechanical engineering from Rice University (where he played college basketball) and an MBA from Harvard Business School prior to his eventual consulting and executive roles, and in 2021 became Governor of Virginia after a hard-fought race against former Gov. Terry McAuliffe that turned on Youngkin's vow to rein in "unaccountable school boards" that became lightning rods for controversy during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as lingering issues with Virginia's economy under eight years of complete Democratic control. Youngkin, who cannot run for reelection as Virginia law prohibits Governors from serving consecutive terms, called DeSantis "a once-in-a-lifetime Governor whose governing philosophy served as the inspiration for my own leadership in the Commonwealth of Virginia". Youngkin has largely maintained relatively healthy approval ratings for most of his tenure as Governor, largely hovering between 45 and 55 percent in a state once thought of as "lost" to the Democrats due to rapid growth in the largely Democratic Northern Virginia suburbs outside Washington, D.C.

Another key appointee of DeSantis, one even more familiar to the crowd of media and other dignitaries present at Kiawah Island is for Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, is Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina. Reelected to a second full term in 2022 (which he vowed would be his last political campaign), Scott called DeSantis "one of the most forward-thinking, visionary Governors in our nation's history" and called his appointment as HUD Secretary "the pinnacle of my distinguished career, one defined by service to the people and overcoming barriers once thought to be insurmountable". A financial advisor and owner of his own Allstate insurance franchise in Charleston, Scott has long been viewed as a rising star in the Republican Party for years and also serves on the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee (among others), at one point even serving as Chairman of the subcommittee dealing directly with HUD. While Scott says he will miss serving as South Carolina's junior Senator, Scott expressed "eternal gratitude" to his fellow South Carolinians and vowed "The iniquities that divide us as a country demand a leader who will break those barriers, and as your next HUD Secretary, we are going to make the values of our communities mean something again".

DeSantis on Monday also announced his picks for Transportation Secretary, selecting former President Donald Trump's last Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration in Nicole Nason to serve in this role, as well as for Administrator of the Small Business Administration, where he has selected Brad Close, the President of the National Federation of Independent Business which has become a force in both Beltway politics and election campaigns, endorsing DeSantis and dozens of other Republicans in races across the nation; though Close's personal political views are not well-known, most if not all of NFIB's endorsements have gone to Republicans. Other appointees announced include Steve Moore, co-founder of the Club for Growth, for Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors; Drew Baglino, Senior Vice President of Powertrain and Energy Engineering for Tesla, for Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy; and recently defeated Rep. Jim Bognet to chair the Export-Import Bank of the United States. With the exception of Baglino, whose appointment is viewed as a nod to Tesla kingpin Elon Musk, these three appointees all have past experience in the Trump administration.

When asked about the appointments of the incoming DeSantis administration, incoming Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany defended the picks, pointing out that "the transition team has been working very hard to build a Cabinet that speaks for the American people" and noted that the focus is on "who these people represent in the present tense, versus whatever past indiscretions may come about". For instance, when pressed by appointee to U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Ric Grenell, McEnany pointed to Grenell's experience as U.S. Ambassador to Germany as well as his past work both in a national security capacity and at the UN, and noted that whatever concerns regarding the 2020 election Grenell had "are not germane to the position he has been appointed to, as the unfortunate result of 2020 is a merely domestic matter".

Unsurprisingly, some critics of Republicans in general, but most particularly those who questioned the result of the 2020 election, were not amused; however, one source did state that "As bad as the cries of 'election integrity' look on the surface, the reality is 2024 is a completely different cycle and the issues surrounding Kamala Harris's shocking defeat are more of her own doing and Andrew Yang's than that of overzealous Republicans who spent the last four years crowing about an allegedly 'stolen' election - the fact that Doug Mastriano is more concerned about whether or not Dave McCormick wins his Senate race than whatever happened four years ago is just one textbook example of how 2020 really doesn't matter anymore."

Next: It's getting pretty crowded in the Capitol basement, plus DeSantis makes his next moves for his Cabinet - and himself...

[Zedonathin2020]

November 25, 2024
McCORMICK RECOUNTS CONTINUE AS COUNTIES CANVASS VOTES
While several counties across Pennsylvania have already canvassed their county-level results for the 2024 election, including the U.S. Senate race between incumbent Sen. Bob Casey Jr. and his Republican opponent Dave McCormick, who has requested recounts for his election in several counties across the state, particularly in ones where the gap between President-elect Ron DeSantis and himself is notably wide or where a sizable "whiff of voter fraud" exists. However, while recounts do remain ongoing, a number of higher-profile counties, including Harrisburg's Dauphin County and suburban Philadelphia's Montgomery County, have decided against conducting such a recount as other counties, including Lancaster County in the heart of Amish country, as well as suburban Pittsburgh's Westmoreland County - a stronghold for McCormick, have already canvassed their results.

As of Monday, the results show Casey with 49.3 percent of the vote to 48.7 for McCormick. By contrast, DeSantis won 52 percent to 42 percent for Kamala Harris and 5 percent for Andrew Yang, with DeSantis outperforming McCormick in blue-collar northeast Pennsylvania, where Scranton-born Casey has deep ties. The results in Scranton's Lackawanna County, where Democrats generally outperformed the presidential ticket even when combined with the votes of Yang, also played a hand in the defeat of first-term Republican Rep. Jim Bognet, who narrowly lost to former Rep. Matt Cartwright in a rematch of their 2022 race. While updated totals won't be released until the recounts in individual counties are complete, many election law experts do not expect the recount to flip the result for McCormick.

November 27, 2024
BIDEN PARDONS ONE FINAL THANKSGIVING TURKEY; DeSANTIS HEADS OUT TO MAR-A-LAGO FOR THANKSGIVING EVE DINNER WITH TRUMP
On Wednesday, President Joe Biden hosted his last ceremonial Thanksgiving turkey pardon at the White House, pardoning a pair of 42 lb broad breasted white turkeys named Cass and Errol (a play on the dish term "Casserole") in a ceremony that was televised during the afternoon and carried live on cable news networks such as Fox News and CNN. In announcing the pardon of the turkeys, originally from Pennsylvania, Biden acknowledged the importance of "celebrating time with the people you love" while also extolling the values of the turkey farmers: "The turkey farmers of this great nation are a major reason why millions of families get to enjoy Thanksgiving this year, and their sacrifices and hard work to feed America's breadbasket are to be celebrated". He also expressed no regrets about his presidency and further added "America's best days are straight ahead, and these holidays are a great time for us to celebrate America and what she stands for".

For Thanksgiving, the Bidens intend to spend their Thanksgiving with their extended family at their vacation house in Rehoboth Beach, Del., with his children Hunter and Ashley (the latter of whom is Joe's daughter with Jill) and his grandchildren. When asked about what he will miss most about being President, Biden cited "Being able to relate to millions of Americans who celebrate Thanksgiving together from a position of leadership - both during my time as a Senator and in a capacity of executive leadership, but what matters more is family, and family is what keeps me going". The Bidens have also requested privacy from the media for their Thanksgiving celebration, intending to celebrate "like any normal family would without the paparazzi chasing them", with additional Secret Service detail provided as security at the president's personal expense.

Meanwhile, the incoming President and his family headed further down the Florida peninsula to attend a Thanksgiving Eve dinner at Mar-a-Lago, hosted by former President Donald Trump and his family. During the dinner, Trump remarked endlessly about President-elect Ron DeSantis's appearance over the weekend on Saturday Night Live, particularly how DeSantis "literally schooled the guy pretending to be me about winning and losing, and then pretending to be Sleepy Joe", and considered it quite 'remarkable' that "Ron wasn't chased out of the room by Lorne Michaels - I probably wouldn't have lasted an hour in there knowing how it went then", referring to his own guest hosting of Saturday Night Live in 2015 during the early months of his presidential campaign. Trump also admitted "I haven't spoken to Larry David since then", referring to the comedian and former Seinfeld executive producer-turned-Curb Your Enthusiasm star who portrayed Bernie Sanders on the iconic NBC late-night sketch comedy show. (Coincidentally one of Trump's friendliest allies, former advisor Steve Bannon, continues to make money from reruns of Seinfeld courtesy of his investment in the show through its production company, Castle Rock Entertainment.)

The visit with Trump wasn't without the sort of "fatherly advice" that was expected for DeSantis, with the latter being advised to "hold the America First faithful in your thoughts every time you think through the issues facing the country", "never forget the people who put you in office and who got you there", and stressed the importance of "standing up to the swamp that is only there to bring you and your family down". Trump also made rank admissions on shortcomings within his administration, singling out former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell as "someone who has thrown conservatives under the bus time after time and made Republicans out to look 'worse than the Democrats'". DeSantis was unsurprised by Trump's comments, vowing that "John Cornyn will know better than to screw over the very people who put me in office. I beat their guy in 2018 by running as a conservative, and I will succeed in Washington by governing as one", also referring to his 2018 rival, former Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, who DeSantis defeated in the Republican gubernatorial primary that year.

Notably absent from the discussion was the discussion surrounding 2020, save for Trump's continued assertion that "the election was swept out from under me from vile forces who hated me and will hate you no matter how good your deeds are". With DeSantis having blown out his opponents in 2024 for the most part, the memory of the 2020 election is now largely viewed in retrospect as (in Trump's words) "an aberration from our long-shared goal to 'Make America Great Again'". Trump also saw general approval with DeSantis's picks, calling would-be Secretary of State Robert O'Brien "someone who stands to become a great leader for our interests in the world" and defended his choice of Ric Grenell for Ambassador to the United Nations: "They can say all they want about the steal, but Grenell is going to make those clowns at the UN sh*t in their pants every time they try to throw America under the bus with help from China".

Perhaps in regards to California, Trump praised DeSantis for "building a great team for Republicans in California to build around with Robert O'Brien and Ric Grenell leading the way", and called on DeSantis to "remind Kevin McCarthy that the Republican gains in Kamala's backyard are 'just the beginning'", and argued that "Harry and Meghan should have their crowns defrocked and their celebrity privileges taken away for the awful things they advocated for - for all I care, they can go work for Kamala and whatever excuse of a 'charity' she has in mind for them". The DeSantises plan to spend their Thanksgiving with

Across the country Americans are celebrating Thanksgiving, with the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the National Dog Show, three NFL games and countless Thanksgiving dinners going on simultaneously. Then comes a weekend full of shopping, as radio stations turn over their schedules to nothing but Christmas music. As Small Business Saturday, a recent shopping holiday created in part by American Express where shoppers are encouraged to patronize small businesses, commences across the country, a Senate result has become clear enough where no amount of difference would have changed the result...

November 30, 2024
PINGREE CONCEDES DEFEAT IN MAINE AS RECOUNT SHOWS BENNETT STILL AHEAD
On Saturday, following a last-minute recount of votes that failed to move the needle let alone change the outcome, Democratic Rep. Chellie Pingree conceded defeat in her very close bid for the U.S. Senate on Saturday afternoon. The announcement came just hours after the results of the recount - released just before Thanksgiving - failed to change the outcome projected ten days ago by most media sources, only to be retracted following Pingree's request for a recount being granted by Democratic Gov. Janet Mills. The result, however, did not change much as Pingree remained at 49.6 percent, behind Republican State Sen. Rick Bennett's 50.4 percent; in fact, the recount resulted in Bennett gaining a few dozen more votes than previously, and attorneys for Pingree admitted that "nothing more could be done to change the outcome" with almost all of the absentee ballots now reported in.

In a press conference held on Saturday afternoon outside her home in the island town of North Haven, the 69-year-old Pingree conceded defeat with her family by her side, and thanked the people of her southern-based 1st District, which includes Portland and surrounding suburbs, for "giving me the opportunity to serve you in Congress for 16 years" and wished the best to Bennett going forward. Following the speech, Bennett thanked Pingree as well as the Senator he will be replacing, retiring Sen. Angus King, for their "unmatched record of service and accomplishments to Mainers that will forever persist for generations to come", while also remarking "The victory seen here and across the nation is proof that Americans are done with business as usual in Washington, and I intend to serve as a Senator for all Mainers".

With Bennett now projected to be the winner of his Senate race, the seat effectively returns to the Republicans (who had previously held it for three terms with Olympia Snowe from 1995 to 2013), even though Democrats themselves had never really held the seat since before Snowe given King chose to only caucus with the Democrats while being elected as an independent. Gov. Mills has vowed to reform the electoral process to "make it to where the final stage of election returns is counted instantly", pointing to Australia as "the example that we need to be following as a state, and as a country, going forward when it comes to our elections, because you have a right to know right away, not several days later, who your elected officials are going to be".

Republicans will now have 65 Senators in the upcoming Congress, the most ever in the history of the Senate, to 34 for the Democrats including a Progressive from Vermont that will be caucusing with the latter. The only outstanding race remains in Pennsylvania, where Sen. Bob Casey Jr. has maintained a narrow lead over his Republican challenger, Dave McCormick. Recounts requested by the McCormick campaign and other supporters are ongoing in several counties where the results are being disputed, though as some key counties have already chosen to canvass the results, McCormick's window to change the outcome is increasingly seen as diminished, with many Democrats calling on McCormick to concede the race. Republican Gov. Doug Mastriano, however, has encouraged counties to "keep counting the results until a fair outcome is reached", despite increasing odds against the outcome flipping in the Republicans' favor.

December 2, 2024
DeSANTIS TEASES 'CYBER MONDAY' TO HIGHLIGHT ECONOMIC PICKS FOR CABINET
While most of the country was shopping online on what has become known as "Cyber Monday", President-elect Ron DeSantis took the opportunity to highlight key members of his incoming economic team at a meeting held at Kiawah Island Golf Resort in Kiawah Island, S.C. Donning a sweater vest underneath a sportcoat, the outgoing Florida Gov. highlighted the importance of "creating a sustainable and productive economy that will make the United States the envy of the world once again" and called a strong economy "important to our national psyche and to our collective security".

Topping the list of DeSantis's latest appointments is Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin for Commerce Secretary. A former McKinsey & Company consultant who later became co-CEO of The Carlyle Group, Youngkin received his Bachelor's degrees in managerial studies and mechanical engineering from Rice University (where he played college basketball) and an MBA from Harvard Business School prior to his eventual consulting and executive roles, and in 2021 became Governor of Virginia after a hard-fought race against former Gov. Terry McAuliffe that turned on Youngkin's vow to rein in "unaccountable school boards" that became lightning rods for controversy during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as lingering issues with Virginia's economy under eight years of complete Democratic control. Youngkin, who cannot run for reelection as Virginia law prohibits Governors from serving consecutive terms, called DeSantis "a once-in-a-lifetime Governor whose governing philosophy served as the inspiration for my own leadership in the Commonwealth of Virginia". Youngkin has largely maintained relatively healthy approval ratings for most of his tenure as Governor, largely hovering between 45 and 55 percent in a state once thought of as "lost" to the Democrats due to rapid growth in the largely Democratic Northern Virginia suburbs outside Washington, D.C.

Another key appointee of DeSantis, one even more familiar to the crowd of media and other dignitaries present at Kiawah Island is for Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, is Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina. Reelected to a second full term in 2022 (which he vowed would be his last political campaign), Scott called DeSantis "one of the most forward-thinking, visionary Governors in our nation's history" and called his appointment as HUD Secretary "the pinnacle of my distinguished career, one defined by service to the people and overcoming barriers once thought to be insurmountable". A financial advisor and owner of his own Allstate insurance franchise in Charleston, Scott has long been viewed as a rising star in the Republican Party for years and also serves on the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee (among others), at one point even serving as Chairman of the subcommittee dealing directly with HUD. While Scott says he will miss serving as South Carolina's junior Senator, Scott expressed "eternal gratitude" to his fellow South Carolinians and vowed "The iniquities that divide us as a country demand a leader who will break those barriers, and as your next HUD Secretary, we are going to make the values of our communities mean something again".

DeSantis on Monday also announced his picks for Transportation Secretary, selecting former President Donald Trump's last Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration in Nicole Nason to serve in this role, as well as for Administrator of the Small Business Administration, where he has selected Brad Close, the President of the National Federation of Independent Business which has become a force in both Beltway politics and election campaigns, endorsing DeSantis and dozens of other Republicans in races across the nation; though Close's personal political views are not well-known, most if not all of NFIB's endorsements have gone to Republicans. Other appointees announced include Steve Moore, co-founder of the Club for Growth, for Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors; Drew Baglino, Senior Vice President of Powertrain and Energy Engineering for Tesla, for Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy; and recently defeated Rep. Jim Bognet to chair the Export-Import Bank of the United States. With the exception of Baglino, whose appointment is viewed as a nod to Tesla kingpin Elon Musk, these three appointees all have past experience in the Trump administration.

When asked about the appointments of the incoming DeSantis administration, incoming Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany defended the picks, pointing out that "the transition team has been working very hard to build a Cabinet that speaks for the American people" and noted that the focus is on "who these people represent in the present tense, versus whatever past indiscretions may come about". For instance, when pressed by appointee to U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Ric Grenell, McEnany pointed to Grenell's experience as U.S. Ambassador to Germany as well as his past work both in a national security capacity and at the UN, and noted that whatever concerns regarding the 2020 election Grenell had "are not germane to the position he has been appointed to, as the unfortunate result of 2020 is a merely domestic matter".

Unsurprisingly, some critics of Republicans in general, but most particularly those who questioned the result of the 2020 election, were not amused; however, one source did state that "As bad as the cries of 'election integrity' look on the surface, the reality is 2024 is a completely different cycle and the issues surrounding Kamala Harris's shocking defeat are more of her own doing and Andrew Yang's than that of overzealous Republicans who spent the last four years crowing about an allegedly 'stolen' election - the fact that Doug Mastriano is more concerned about whether or not Dave McCormick wins his Senate race than whatever happened four years ago is just one textbook example of how 2020 really doesn't matter anymore."

Next: It's getting pretty crowded in the Capitol basement, plus DeSantis makes his next moves for his Cabinet - and himself...

I always imagined that DeSantis would choose Youngkin for Education Secretary.

[PRESIDENT STANTON]

I now think that McCormick will get Treasury as the contest in Pennsylvania looks unlikely to pan out in his favor. Since the bulk of the economic team have been named, DeSantis will wait for the never ending recount in Pennsylvania to complete before he makes his announcement on Treasury, so McCormick kinda gets his "golden parachute" and shouldn't be all that upset. Youngkin for Commerce, a solid pick and Bognet getting a job in the administration must be a slap to that Democratic nobody who made the snide "Trophy wife" crack. One more thing for Democrats to be pi**ed off at DeSantis for,  me thinks!

[NewYorkExpress]

I feel like Mastriano is just going to declare McCormick the winner in the Pennsylvania Senate race anyways.

[2016]

President-elect DeSantis Cabinet thus far (pending Confirmations)

Secretary of State: Robert O'Brien
Ambassador to the United Nations: Ric Grenell
Director of National Intelligence: Chris Stewart
CIA Director: TBD (To be determined)
Attorney General: TBD (To be determined)
Department of Homeland Security: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Commerce: Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin
Secretary of Transportation: Nicole Nason
Administrator of the Small Business Administration: Brad Close
Secretary of the Treasury: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Education: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of the Interior: TBD (To be determined)
Administrator of Environmental Protection Agency: TBD (To be determined)
NASA Administrator: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Housing & Urban Development: South Carolina Senator Tim Scott
Secretary of Health & Human Services:

Non-Cabinet Level Appointments

White House Chief of Staff: Byron Donalds
White House Press Secretary: Kayleigh McEnany
White House Communications Director: Christina Pushaw
White House Counsel (Head of WH Legal Team): TBD (To be determined)
Chair Council of Economic Advisors: Steve Moore
National Security Advisor: Dina Powell



When it says DeSantis makes a move for quote "Himself" it probably means he resigns his Governorship paving the way for his Lieutenant Governor Jeanette Nunez to take over as Governor of Florida as first Woman and first Cuban-Hispanic.
And if Youngkin gets confirmed his Lt. Governor Winsome Sears will create even more History becoming the first Black Female Republican Governor in the History of the Country.

Given how this is going I wouldn't be surprised if indeed Pam Bondi gets the AG Spot. That move probably would be praised by Conservatives but shredded by Liberals.

One thing though is for sure: Given the extraordinary large Republican-House Majority President DeSantis will likely be secure from any Investigations for the entirety of his Presidency. He basically can do what he wants and no one can ask Questions or issue subpoeanas.

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

I'm thinking Don Blankenship for EPA Administrator

[PRESIDENT STANTON]

President-elect DeSantis Cabinet thus far (pending Confirmations)

Secretary of State: Robert O'Brien
Ambassador to the United Nations: Ric Grenell
Director of National Intelligence: Chris Stewart
CIA Director: TBD (To be determined)
Attorney General: TBD (To be determined)
Department of Homeland Security: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Commerce: Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin
Secretary of Transportation: Nicole Nason
Administrator of the Small Business Administration: Brad Close
Secretary of the Treasury: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Education: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of the Interior: TBD (To be determined)
Administrator of Environmental Protection Agency: TBD (To be determined)
NASA Administrator: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Housing & Urban Development: South Carolina Senator Tim Scott
Secretary of Health & Human Services:

Non-Cabinet Level Appointments

White House Chief of Staff: Byron Donalds
White House Press Secretary: Kayleigh McEnany
White House Communications Director: Christina Pushaw
White House Counsel (Head of WH Legal Team): TBD (To be determined)
Chair Council of Economic Advisors: Steve Moore
National Security Advisor: Dina Powell



When it says DeSantis makes a move for quote "Himself" it probably means he resigns his Governorship paving the way for his Lieutenant Governor Jeanette Nunez to take over as Governor of Florida as first Woman and first Cuban-Hispanic.
And if Youngkin gets confirmed his Lt. Governor Winsome Sears will create even more History becoming the first Black Female Republican Governor in the History of the Country.

Given how this is going I wouldn't be surprised if indeed Pam Bondi gets the AG Spot. That move probably would be praised by Conservatives but shredded by Liberals.

One thing though is for sure: Given the extraordinary large Republican-House Majority President DeSantis will likely be secure from any Investigations for the entirety of his Presidency. He basically can do what he wants and no one can ask Questions or issue subpoeanas.

In response to that statement, knowing how Democrats despise the CW that DeSantis is "untouchable", some are saying "hold my beer", but you are very likely right. If Pam Biondi gets the AG spot, DeSantis is pretty sure that he could have anyone he pretty much wants as AG, and if Pam Biondi or someone else is chosen, who can also torque liberals off no end, and DeSantis wants to p*ss on them too, then he will do it, because he can and there's not much Democrats can do about it, except probably whine like crybaby little bi*ches on CNN, Sean Hannity can then give a monologue about how whiny little liberal crybabies need their hot cocoa, crayons, coloring books and special crying rooms!

[2016]

Former Texas Governor Rick Perry assumed the Governorship on December 21st 2000 after then Governor George W Bush resigned that same Day to preparing to assume the Presidency in 2001.

So yes, my guess is DeSantis resigns soon and Lt. Governor Nunez will take over.

[SaintStan86]

President-elect DeSantis Cabinet thus far (pending Confirmations)

Secretary of State: Robert O'Brien
Ambassador to the United Nations: Ric Grenell
Director of National Intelligence: Chris Stewart
CIA Director: TBD (To be determined)
Attorney General: TBD (To be determined)
Department of Homeland Security: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Commerce: Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin
Secretary of Transportation: Nicole Nason
Administrator of the Small Business Administration: Brad Close
Secretary of the Treasury: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Education: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of the Interior: TBD (To be determined)
Administrator of Environmental Protection Agency: TBD (To be determined)
NASA Administrator: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Housing & Urban Development: South Carolina Senator Tim Scott
Secretary of Health & Human Services:

Non-Cabinet Level Appointments

White House Chief of Staff: Byron Donalds
White House Press Secretary: Kayleigh McEnany
White House Communications Director: Christina Pushaw
White House Counsel (Head of WH Legal Team): TBD (To be determined)
Chair Council of Economic Advisors: Steve Moore
National Security Advisor: Dina Powell



When it says DeSantis makes a move for quote "Himself" it probably means he resigns his Governorship paving the way for his Lieutenant Governor Jeanette Nunez to take over as Governor of Florida as first Woman and first Cuban-Hispanic.
And if Youngkin gets confirmed his Lt. Governor Winsome Sears will create even more History becoming the first Black Female Republican Governor in the History of the Country.

Given how this is going I wouldn't be surprised if indeed Pam Bondi gets the AG Spot. That move probably would be praised by Conservatives but shredded by Liberals.

One thing though is for sure: Given the extraordinary large Republican-House Majority President DeSantis will likely be secure from any Investigations for the entirety of his Presidency. He basically can do what he wants and no one can ask Questions or issue subpoeanas.

In response to that statement, knowing how Democrats despise the CW that DeSantis is "untouchable", some are saying "hold my beer", but you are very likely right. If Pam Biondi gets the AG spot, DeSantis is pretty sure that he could have anyone he pretty much wants as AG, and if Pam Biondi or someone else is chosen, who can also torque liberals off no end, and DeSantis wants to p*ss on them too, then he will do it, because he can and there's not much Democrats can do about it, except probably whine like crybaby little bi*ches on CNN, Sean Hannity can then give a monologue about how whiny little liberal crybabies need their hot cocoa, crayons, coloring books and special crying rooms!

You forgot blankies, adult diapers and an endless supply of wipes, barrier cream, Similac and Sesame Street for the crybaby socialists!

Also I have an UPDATE with regards to Alaska: Mary Peltola ekes out a win over Sarah Palin in the special election for Don Young's seat in real life. This doesn't necessarily mean that Palin is going to lose in November, but while this trend is certainly concerning of Democrats outperforming Republicans in a consistent string of special elections since Dobbs, this is certainly not how it's going to turn out. What Republicans do need to do is ask themselves if constantly crowing about 2020 + attacking Joe Biden without offering an ACTUAL prescription rooted in conservative principles is really worth it.

They also need to boost turnout not just to beat the Democrats, but rather crush them, all while treating ALL of their potential voters like family regardless of their attitudes about Trump, and it goes without saying that in the Hudson Valley, Marc Molinaro is going to have a better time in November than he did a couple of weeks ago, given that the current NY-19 is more an Ulster County seat that favored Pat Ryan than an Ulster-Dutchess split, and that Molinaro's only problems mainly are going to be that Dutchess County is not in the new NY-19 but Ithaca (where Josh Riley, his Democratic opponent) is. For Molinaro in November, Binghamton will be the true wild card, and it is the sort of region where Obama-Trump voters are quite plentiful and will likely prove crucial to him in November.

But getting back to point, this special election result in Alaska is more an indictment of Palin herself than that of the national mood. Again, Democrats are quite energized in the post-Dobbs stage of this election, but the whole "Caribou Barbie" and wannabe Gretchen Wilson/Teen Mom/Kardashian act has gotten quite old with enough Alaska voters of a certain persuasion to where some relatively rational Republicans who voted for Palin will unsurprisingly give Nick Begich III a second look in November. Indeed, Begich got the endorsement of both the state GOP (which also gave the big middle finger to a certain Senator who shall not be named in this cycle IRL) as well as the state chapters of AFP and FreedomWorks - two organizations whose emphasis on principled conservatism should never be ignored regardless of Trump's influence (and Palin's loss certainly doesn't bode well for him or Nikki Haley or Stefanik, who all endorsed Palin). For what it's worth, I can see this election all coming down to those who voted for Chris Bye, the Libertarian nominee, as well as the expected shift of a couple of Palin voters to Begich, including plenty of those who are looking forward to Sen. Kelly Tshibaka in November.

For now, in this TL I'm going to say that Palin will benefit from Trump's exposure to eke out a win in the midterms and will have gotten a second term, but it won't be easy and there will be a competitive reelection regardless of whether Palin or Begich is the winner, especially since Peltola will now get to serve four months as Alaska's Congresswoman and - as is the case with the aforementioned Pat Ryan in New York - will have a record of sorts that is going to get poo-pooed by the Republicans. But it's fair to say that if Begich overtops Palin in November - which actually would be the preferable course especially given what just happened (another one of Begich's endorseés happens to be the CURRENT Mayor of Wasilla, as well as Palin's ex-in laws), he will likely beat Peltola (especially with the exhaust votes that doomed Palin coming back online to help Begich) and will probably have an easier time getting reelected in 2024.

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

President-elect DeSantis Cabinet thus far (pending Confirmations)

Secretary of State: Robert O'Brien
Ambassador to the United Nations: Ric Grenell
Director of National Intelligence: Chris Stewart
CIA Director: TBD (To be determined)
Attorney General: TBD (To be determined)
Department of Homeland Security: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Commerce: Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin
Secretary of Transportation: Nicole Nason
Administrator of the Small Business Administration: Brad Close
Secretary of the Treasury: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Education: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of the Interior: TBD (To be determined)
Administrator of Environmental Protection Agency: TBD (To be determined)
NASA Administrator: TBD (To be determined)
Secretary of Housing & Urban Development: South Carolina Senator Tim Scott
Secretary of Health & Human Services:

Non-Cabinet Level Appointments

White House Chief of Staff: Byron Donalds
White House Press Secretary: Kayleigh McEnany
White House Communications Director: Christina Pushaw
White House Counsel (Head of WH Legal Team): TBD (To be determined)
Chair Council of Economic Advisors: Steve Moore
National Security Advisor: Dina Powell



When it says DeSantis makes a move for quote "Himself" it probably means he resigns his Governorship paving the way for his Lieutenant Governor Jeanette Nunez to take over as Governor of Florida as first Woman and first Cuban-Hispanic.
And if Youngkin gets confirmed his Lt. Governor Winsome Sears will create even more History becoming the first Black Female Republican Governor in the History of the Country.

Given how this is going I wouldn't be surprised if indeed Pam Bondi gets the AG Spot. That move probably would be praised by Conservatives but shredded by Liberals.

One thing though is for sure: Given the extraordinary large Republican-House Majority President DeSantis will likely be secure from any Investigations for the entirety of his Presidency. He basically can do what he wants and no one can ask Questions or issue subpoeanas.

In response to that statement, knowing how Democrats despise the CW that DeSantis is "untouchable", some are saying "hold my beer", but you are very likely right. If Pam Biondi gets the AG spot, DeSantis is pretty sure that he could have anyone he pretty much wants as AG, and if Pam Biondi or someone else is chosen, who can also torque liberals off no end, and DeSantis wants to p*ss on them too, then he will do it, because he can and there's not much Democrats can do about it, except probably whine like crybaby little bi*ches on CNN, Sean Hannity can then give a monologue about how whiny little liberal crybabies need their hot cocoa, crayons, coloring books and special crying rooms!

You forgot blankies, adult diapers and an endless supply of wipes, barrier cream, Similac and Sesame Street for the crybaby socialists!

Also I have an UPDATE with regards to Alaska: Mary Peltola ekes out a win over Sarah Palin in the special election for Don Young's seat in real life. This doesn't necessarily mean that Palin is going to lose in November, but while this trend is certainly concerning of Democrats outperforming Republicans in a consistent string of special elections since Dobbs, this is certainly not how it's going to turn out. What Republicans do need to do is ask themselves if constantly crowing about 2020 + attacking Joe Biden without offering an ACTUAL prescription rooted in conservative principles is really worth it.

They also need to boost turnout not just to beat the Democrats, but rather crush them, all while treating ALL of their potential voters like family regardless of their attitudes about Trump, and it goes without saying that in the Hudson Valley, Marc Molinaro is going to have a better time in November than he did a couple of weeks ago, given that the current NY-19 is more an Ulster County seat that favored Pat Ryan than an Ulster-Dutchess split, and that Molinaro's only problems mainly are going to be that Dutchess County is not in the new NY-19 but Ithaca (where Josh Riley, his Democratic opponent) is. For Molinaro in November, Binghamton will be the true wild card, and it is the sort of region where Obama-Trump voters are quite plentiful and will likely prove crucial to him in November.

But getting back to point, this special election result in Alaska is more an indictment of Palin herself than that of the national mood. Again, Democrats are quite energized in the post-Dobbs stage of this election, but the whole "Caribou Barbie" and wannabe Gretchen Wilson/Teen Mom/Kardashian act has gotten quite old with enough Alaska voters of a certain persuasion to where some relatively rational Republicans who voted for Palin will unsurprisingly give Nick Begich III a second look in November. Indeed, Begich got the endorsement of both the state GOP (which also gave the big middle finger to a certain Senator who shall not be named in this cycle IRL) as well as the state chapters of AFP and FreedomWorks - two organizations whose emphasis on principled conservatism should never be ignored regardless of Trump's influence (and Palin's loss certainly doesn't bode well for him or Nikki Haley or Stefanik, who all endorsed Palin). For what it's worth, I can see this election all coming down to those who voted for Chris Bye, the Libertarian nominee, as well as the expected shift of a couple of Palin voters to Begich, including plenty of those who are looking forward to Sen. Kelly Tshibaka in November.

For now, in this TL I'm going to say that Palin will benefit from Trump's exposure to eke out a win in the midterms and will have gotten a second term, but it won't be easy and there will be a competitive reelection regardless of whether Palin or Begich is the winner, especially since Peltola will now get to serve four months as Alaska's Congresswoman and - as is the case with the aforementioned Pat Ryan in New York - will have a record of sorts that is going to get poo-pooed by the Republicans. But it's fair to say that if Begich overtops Palin in November - which actually would be the preferable course especially given what just happened (another one of Begich's endorseés happens to be the CURRENT Mayor of Wasilla, as well as Palin's ex-in laws), he will likely beat Peltola (especially with the exhaust votes that doomed Palin coming back online to help Begich) and will probably have an easier time getting reelected in 2024.

What will you do if the Democrats (gasp) don't face an R+10 national environment in November?