Motus Mentis

In last night’s post, I wrote that, based on what I’d just seen, I believed that Donald Trump will be re-elected in 2020. The impression, however, that the ten people on stage last night had made on me was so strong — the craziness so palpable — that I had, in the moment, forgotten to keep in mind the one person from the previous night’s debate who might actually stand a chance against Mr. Trump: Tulsi Gabbard, a Samoan-American Hindu now serving as a Congresswoman from Hawaii. (I think Michelle Obama might have a shot as well, should she enter the race, but so far she’s on the sidelines.)

Ms. Gabbard is intelligent, attractive, and articulate, with a beautiful speaking voice. She is a (non-combat) military veteran, and a committed skeptic of military adventurism. At the Wednesday debate, she seemed an adult among children. She appeared briefly on Tucker Carlson’s show last night to explain her anti-interventionist position; you can see the video here.

Ms. Gabbard easily won Drudge’s pick-the-winner poll, and was the most-searched name on Google, after her performance in Miami; clearly she made a strong impression on a lot of viewers. There can be little doubt, though that she is going to face terrific headwinds from both her own party and the media (but I repeat myself) as she tries to knock people like Harris and Warren off the top of the pile (Biden’s already a dead man walking, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the fix is in again for Bernie).

Here is a brief and insightful assessment from the Z-man.