Donald Trump with his wife, Melania Knauss Trump

Today, Donald Trump announced that he will be endorsing Mitt Romney for President. Some were surprised that Trump didn’t choose Gingrich, and right up until the announcement, there was suspense over what he would announce. For the life of me, I can’t understand why anyone would care who Trump endorsed.

Donald Trump is little more than a reality star. Does anyone care what the cast members of Survivor, Big Brother, or American Idol think about the election?

Sure, Trump mentioned the idea of running himself on numerous occasions, but decided against it. In my opinion, it was nothing more than a ploy to get his name in the news and boost ratings for The Apprentice. The new season of The Apprentice begins in two weeks, so I wouldn’t be surprised if this announcement were planned.

Here’s my guess: Donald Trump will find another “announcement” he has to make around the time of the season finale. If Romney falters, he might also bring up the idea of running again. Anything for ratings.

Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney

“I’m in this race because I care about Americans. I’m not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there. If it needs repair, I’ll fix it. I’m not concerned about the very rich, they’re doing just fine. I’m concerned about the very heart of America, the 90, 95 percent of Americans who right now are struggling, and I’ll continue to take that message across the nation.”

I’m not a Mitt Romney supporter, but I can’t believe anyone with common sense would be bothered by this comment. Sure, progressive Democrats are going to seize upon it, but the last time I checked, they lacked any semblance of common sense. Let’s take a look at what Romney was saying, shall we?

First, the wealthy don’t need any help. They have all the money they need. That’s simple enough. As for the poor, that’s going to take some explaining, especially for those who are accustomed to government sponsored hand-outs.

If you’re poor, you’re eligible for welfare payments, subsidized rent, childcare, heat, utilities, food stamps, free college, free healthcare, and lots of other breaks. These programs are all established at the state or federal level, and are (overly) generous. How many more handouts and programs should be created for those who have a track record of bad decisions? We have a safety net, and Romney said he would fix it if need be.

The middle class? That’s a different story. They’re usually too “wealthy” to qualify for help, and can be a layoff away from economic chaos. Again, this chaos could very well result from bad decisions, but the truth of the matter is that the middle class tend to work harder, and have a track record of better decisions. I don’t have hard numbers to back up those assertions, but I do feel comfortable making them.

With that said, I think we all know that Romney’s interest in the middle class is due solely to their large numbers. Mitt cares about whatever group has the most voters who will turn out at the polls on election day..

Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich Debate

Mitt Romney has won the Florida Primary by a wide margin over Newt Gingrich, but the race for the Republican nomination is far from over.

The media has been portraying each win or loss as a make or break moment, but the truth is that four states have voted, and 46 remain. Florida Senator Marco Rubio seems to think that the winner of Florida will win the nomination, but I’m not so sure. If Newt Gingrich can pick up some wins, along with some strong second place finishes in states which assign delegates proportionally, we might be looking at a nominating convention that is very much up in the air. Is it likely that Republicans are heading toward a brokered convention? No. Is it possible? You bet!

Ron Paul and Rick Santorum also appear to be in it for the long-haul. I don’t see either reaching the necessary 1,144 delegates to clinch the nomination, but I do see them winning some delegates in future primaries and caucuses. The more delegates they win, the smaller the chance of the front-runner (whoever that will be) getting a majority.

The only thing that is certain is that we’re in for an interesting election season.

As for Newt, a picture says a thousand words. This one speaks volumes.

Over the last few years, we’ve seen more and more candidates invoke the memory of President Ronald Reagan. I don’t blame them for admiring Reagan’s accomplishments, but I do often question their sincerity. Are these candidates simply sharing thoughts about their fondness for Reagan, or is it solely a transparent method of trying to ride the coattails of a man they may not really identify with?

This has been going on a while, but it has been Newt Gingrich’s frequent mentions of Reagan during debates that have annoyed me. To hear Gingrich tell it, he and Reagan were rather close, and shared credit for some of the accomplishments of the Reagan Presidency.

Upon hearing Gingrich’s boasts for the first time, I was taken by surprise. How would a fairly young Congressman with little seniority actually gain so much power in the Reagan Administration? Well, it turns out he didn’t.

Since Newt Gingrich’s win in South Carolina, members of the Reagan Administration have come forward to refute Gingrich’s wild claims. Others have pointed to times where Gingrich criticized Reagan on several occassions.

When it comes to flip-flopping and getting creative with the truth, Newt’s only competitor might be Mitt Romney.

The Republican Presidential candidates after a debate. Who will be the next media darling?

Once the field of Republican Presidential candidates began to settle, Mitt Romney was anointed as the front-runner and favorite. While he has consistently led the field with support of 20% to 25% in most polls, that means there are 75% to 80% who are supporting someone else. There’s a desire to find the anti-Romney, but so far, none has been able to pull away.

This past summer, Michele Bachmann seemed to quickly gain headlines and support. Of course, this ended when Rick Perry entered the fray and instantly rocketed to the top of the field. Since then, Perry has shown that he’s ill-prepared for the national spotlight. After some strong debate performances, Herman Cain vaulted into the top-tier, but he’s seen his support erode a bit since sexual harassment accusations have come to light.

The current darling of the GOP contenders is Newt Gingrich. He’s not my first choice, but there’s no denying that he’s intelligent, has experience, and is a strong debater. The question for Gingrich is whether he can maintain the popularity surge. Unlike Perry or Bachmann, he actually has substance, but as his poll numbers have risen, so have the number of negative stories. The media seems to revel in building up a candidate’s poll numbers so they can knock them off the pedestal they created.

With the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary in less than two months, a small, transient up-tick in popularity could greatly alter the race. I don’t see Romney’s numbers changing appreciably, and it looks like Perry, Bachmann, and Cain have hit their peak. Besides Romney, the only candidate who has garnered steady double digit support is Ron Paul. If Gingrich were to falter, or the media succeeds in tearing him down, I’d look for Paul to have a surge in the early states. With a strong organization, I wouldn’t be surprised if he were successful in capitalizing on the potential surge.

Tim Pawlenty can wave good-bye to the Presidency if he loses Iowa, which he probably will.

Tim Pawlenty finally showed some signs of life, when he criticized Congresswoman Michele Bachmann’s record as “non-existent.” It’s nice that he’s showing some signs of life, but I have a feeling that his criticism might not resonate with voters.

Think about this: Voters elected Barack Obama as President after only a few years in the U.S. Senate. Although, he was also a state senator (wow!). On the other end of the ideological spectrum, Sarah Palin has a massive number of supporters, even though she had less than two years experience as Governor of Alaska. Of course, in Palin’s defense, she was the mayor of Wasilla, which is a Metropolitan powerhouse.

Does anyone know if Michele Bachmann is being supported by the major labor unions? I wouldn’t have thought so, but according to actor Alec Baldwin, it appears that way. Here are some quotes from his Twitter feed:

“Fear Bachman bc she is raising so much money,” Baldwin tweeted. “Anyone that inarticulate and full of shit who is raising money that fast…is beholden to some mighty thuggish interests.”

Thuggish interests? Unions were the first ones who came to my mind. Although, it could be another group of formerly liberal constituents. What about the New Black Panther Party? They’re pretty Thuggish.

At any rate, if Bachmann begins appealing to the natural thug base of the Democrats and Barack Obama, she could end up walking away with the Presidency.

Alec Baldwin is being driven crazy by Michele Bachmann's success.

Michele Bachmann's campaign is starting to gain momentum.

I found an article on the Drudge Report, with the headline “Shock Poll: Bachmann Tied With Romney in Iowa.” I don’t know what’s so shocking about that. Romney is a plastic candidate who always seems willing to say what people want to hear. The reason why he had such a commanding lead in the polls was due to the popularity of his highly unsuccessful 2008 campaign.

Let’s remember that a lot of people still aren’t paying much attention to the 2012 Presidential Race, so they probably haven’t tuned in to find out much about the candidates. Once people hear more about candidates like Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, Ron Paul, and Tim Pawlenty, voters will begin to peel away from the familiar name (Mitt Romney).

So far, Bachmann’s campaign has caught on more quickly than I thought it would. The fact that she is doing well in Iowa polling bodes well for her ability to raise donations and get attention from the press. As for Romney, I would expect him to have a slow, steady drop into the rest of the pack. You’ll know his campaign is done when his opponents stop attacking him and Romneycare, and turn to whomever the perceived frontrunner at the moment turns out to be.

Rep. Eric Cantor leads talks to raise the debt ceiling.

Republican negotiators have walked out of talks to increase the debt ceiling. Why? Let me summarize: Democrats don’t want to cut spending, and Republicans don’t want to raise taxes. To this point, some cuts have been agreed on, but no tax increases are being considered by the Republicans.

These talks are taking place because the debt ceiling needs to be raised in order to avoid a bond default on August 2nd. Ideally, both sides would develop some common sense and use this as an opportunity to set the budget straight, to truly fix it, rather than just make temporary repairs.

If I had my way, I would eliminate the income tax and shrink the size of government. Unfortunately, this can’t be done responsibly until we eliminate the deficit, then the National Debt. Once those two things occur, then proponents of small government can accomplish some truly great things. The problem is that such a solution would require a multifaceted approach that both sides are too incompetent to see.

Democrats need to realize that we need drastic spending cuts, and a fundamental change in how we view government and its responsibility to its citizens. Republicans need to realize that they too helped raid the piggy bank over the years, and now it’s time to buckle down and get the bills paid. It’s probably possible to eliminate the deficit and debt with just spending cuts or tax increases, but it certainly isn’t easier. A combined approach is necessary.

If our elected leaders would start thinking past the next election and were afraid to make a tough decision, perhaps they would grasp the opportunity at hand, avoiding this problem in the future. Unfortunately, I don’t think any of them have the ability or courage to work toward such a solution.

Increased borrowing, here we come!