The political lives of some Republicans literally depend on their carefully crafted messaging around an unpopular war and unpopular president. Many know they can’t abandon Trump, and getting on his bad side doesn’t generally end well for Republicans, either.
Rep. Mike Flood (R-Neb) said Americans will have to sacrifice and accept things for now: “As it relates to gas prices, you got to play the hand you’re dealt.”
“From a communication standpoint, I think he’s doing a fine job,” said Mike Dubke on the right, who added that America did achieve some things in the Middle East so far. “We’ve degraded the support and effectiveness of Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, and I don’t think we should treat that lightly.”
But on the left, Mo Elleithee thinks the people can see right through the Republican talking points.
“The president’s the one who dealt this hand,” he said. “He’s the one who put us in this mess, and all of the pressure points right now seem to be controlled by Iran. Americans are paying more at the gas pump, and there’s no off-ramp in sight.”
The USS Abraham Lincoln is leaving the Middle East after several reports detailed the dire conditions onboard from the extended deployment to Iran.
President Trump dismissed the reporting as fake, and even lashed out at a reporter who asked him about it.
“The Secretary of Defense just went before Congress asking for tens of billions of more dollars to go into this,” said Mo. “The questions I think are relevant for two reasons. One, what is the cost to our service members? And two, how is this strategy affecting American readiness overall?”
To replace the USS Lincoln, the military moved its last remaining aircraft carrier out of the western Pacific.
But Mike says despite this news, overall morale in the military is high because of the Trump Administration, and high recruitment proves that.
“We finally have a period of time in which we have recruitment at all-time highs,” he said. “Part of that is because there have been significant compensation increases, better training programs, and a sense that people want to serve again.”
“Recruitment is totally going up, that’s absolutely right,” said Mo, “but I think what history shows us is that recruiting spikes often track the economy, and people may simply see the military as a stable place to go right now.”
A listener asked us how to research candidates, especially for down-ballot races where there isn’t as much coverage.
“Once upon a time I would have said, ‘Follow your local news religiously because they’re the ones who focus on these local races,’” said Mo, “but we have seen such a gutting of local news where they do not have the resources to focus on politics the way they once did.”
But Mike said more people will probably turn to AI to make the research go a lot faster.
“AI, I think, is gonna change the game for an independent who wants to compare the records and what has been said by two different candidates,” he said, “and especially in races that are down ballot that don’t get a lot of attention by the news media.”
Producer: Leo Duran
Host: David Greene
Guests:
Mike Dubke, veteran GOP communications strategist and advisor. He was the White House Comms Director under Donald Trump in 2017 - @MikeDubke
Mo Elleithee, executive director at Georgetown University’s Institute of Politics and Public Service - @MoElleithee
Community Guidelines
As a reminder, this space is for thoughtful, good-faith conversation. Disagree passionately, but stay respectful. No violent or dehumanizing language is tolerated. We reserve the right to remove comments that break these rules in order to keep the discussion safe and welcoming.
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.