Rob Maness

I’m happy to have a discussion about tariff implementation, how to improve it, etc., but this constant effort to cast tariffs as the predominant drag is just wish-casting. Gas, groceries, healthcare costs, mortgage rates, etc., the predominant affordability drivers were minimally or not affected at all by tariffs. The Iran war correlated to 30-40% of the increase in the Consumer Price Index. Tariffs correlated to 3% of the increase. Plus, the Iran war, as a purely foreign policy position unrelated to affordability was also significantly unpopular. This seems to be an effort to convince themselves of this because otherwise, what the data shows, conflicts with much of what they have otherwise been saying. Dana is a patriot, and she loves the United States, and it’s ok for us to disagree on things, but we have to be objective about what the data actually says if we are to learn the right lessons. The election was not a signal that isolationism is the right answer, but it appears to be a rejection of neoconservative foreign policy. I think there needs to be a significant resurgence of realist thought if we want to make sure that isolationist thought doesn’t prevail, but we can’t do that if neoconservatives and those who don’t want the Iran war to have been a drag won’t admit that it was the predominant drag as a foreign policy/affordability driver.

Should someone who is actively calling for, specifically, the destruction of the United States or the U.S. Constitution be able to take the oath of office and be sworn in as a member of Congress?