Among Republicans, Vice President JD Vance appears to be growing more powerful, popular and presidential. However, the overall RealClear poll average gives Vance just a 41 percent favorable rating, with 47 percent unfavorable.
The high-profile vice president is seen in nearly every Oval Office meeting photo, signaling a close relationship with President Trump. Such proximity is deliberate, since the “showman-in-chief” leverages optics more effectively than anyone as a powerful messaging tool.
Although the 2028 presidential campaign is three years away — centuries in political dog years — the 40-year-old Vance is on a trajectory to win the Republican nomination. In a recent Emerson poll, he garnered 46 percent support among registered Republican primary voters for 2028.
Vance knows that his 2028 prospects hinge on Republican success in the 2026 midterms, which will be linked to Trump’s sinking job approval. Therefore, in addition to his demanding day job, the vice president has been in full campaign mode since March, when he was appointed finance chair of the Republican National Committee. That strategically brilliant early move by Team Trump positioned Vance as a presidential heir, facilitating frequent interactions with the party’s most powerful donors and state party leaders.
For Vance, raising money from wealthy Republicans is relatively easy, since he has around a 50 percent chance of becoming the next president and stands a heartbeat away from replacing the 79-year-old incumbent.
But can millions of dollars translate into the millions of votes needed to keep the Republicans in control of the House and Senate when Trump is not on the ballot? For that task, Vance is Trump’s point man, and he has the most to gain or lose. Political history favors Democrats winning back the House, but if Vance can work some magic and defy the odds, he could go on to win the early 2028 primaries and quickly claim the nomination.
Some Republicans argue that the party will “waste time and money” better spent fighting Democrats if Trump does not quickly anoint Vance. The operative word is “if,” because Trump cares deeply about his legacy. A family dynasty would further solidify his place in history. Read more..
Today is synonymous with fireworks, flags, parades and barbecues, but 33 percent of Americans do not plan to celebrate the nation’s 249th birthday. National pride has fallen to record lows, and a 2023 poll found that 41 percent of Americans do not know the meaning of Independence Day on the Fourth of July.
As a lead-up to next year’s 250th anniversary, a concerted effort should be made to educate citizens about the holiday and the risks the Founding Fathers took to make it happen. Little attention is paid to the collective bravery necessary to establish our country after the Declaration of Independence was signed, which severed ties with Great Britain, then a leading world power.
Most significantly, God’s role is often downplayed or ignored in the Declaration, with three godly references that altered history and remain politically relevant. For example, after President Trump authorized the bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities last month, he addressed the American people and concluded by saying, “And I want to just thank everybody, and in particular, God. I want to just say, we love you, God, and we love our great military. Protect them. God bless the Middle East. God bless Israel, and God bless America. Thank you very much.”
While Trump expressed gratitude and love for God after a successful attack, the Founders justified their Declaration of Independence because of God. Knowing that winning freedom from Great Britain would be a David-vs.-Goliath battle, our revolutionary leaders placed God at the tip of their spear both philosophically and militarily.
Let’s analyze the three references to God in the Declaration of Independence. Read more..
(As of June 22, 2025, the National Debt has reached $37 trillion.)
My Albanian-born father-in-law was an American patriot. In the mid-20th century, he served for decades as a CIA operative, quietly fighting against the spread of communism in Europe and Southeast Asia.
Before his death at age 92, he lamented America’s future, saying, “I’m glad I won’t be around to see the end.” Long before the U.S. was on the brink of World War III, I shared his bittersweet pessimism, prompted by the “death spiral math” found on the U.S. Debt Clock.
The “clock” ticks real-time government data showing the ever-growing national debt — $36.9 trillion as of this writing — the most owed by any country or empire in human history.
Nonetheless, this decades-long travesty of overspending, attributed to presidents from both parties, is still manageable if the U.S. gross domestic product — estimated at $29.2 trillion in 2024 — were to exceed the nearly $37 trillion national debt. At least, that is the economic theory recently espoused by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent,who stated, “If the economy grows faster than the debt, we stabilize the country.”
Bessent’s philosophy of “we can grow our way out of debt” supports adding an estimated $3.3 trillion to the national debt, according to the Congressional Budget Office, if President Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” were to become law.
Cue the laugh track, because Bessent’s growth fantasy is a joke when viewed through the lens of history and facts. The national debt has exceeded GDP since 2013, and the Debt Clock shows the U.S. debt-to-GDP ratio today at 123 percent. Reducing that unwieldy ratio requires a sustained economic boom not seen since the decades following World War II. Read more..
According to the Census Bureau, the “white only” share of the population is now 58.4 percent. Non-Hispanic whites are projected to fall below 50 percent by 2045.
So the “D” in DEI represents America’s destiny. Although contentious race-based policy debates will continue, diversity is the new America and must be embraced.
The DEI acronym, along with tariffs, ranks among Trump’s most frequent utterances. But due to overuse and clouded meaning, change is afoot to rename DEI, starting with the “Office of Belonging” at the renowned Mayo Clinic.
Therefore, I propose changing DEI to mean “drama, exaggeration and incoherence,” reflecting Trump’s unique communication and governing style.
“Drama” captures the daily, head-splitting, inescapable second Trump term. Every day is Trump Day, as Americans are surrounded by media and compelled to tune in. The president’s insatiable desire to consolidate power, combined with his unconventional need to create drama, leads to constant breaking news that affects every citizen’s life to some degree.
Such intentional “drama by design” could be perceived as a subtle form of domination. Through daily headlines — regardless of whether the news is good or bad, since bad news is spun, justified or rationalized as good — Trump keeps himself prominently on your screen. He “wins the day” by overshadowing or blotting out others.
His need to be on your screen evokes George Orwell’s classic dystopian novel “1984,” written long before screen viewing became a daily ritual. In “1984,” a totalitarian state dominates and controls its people through pervasive surveillance via their “telescreen.” Maintaining a constant screen presence is “Big Brother,” the all-powerful leader who is always watching and enforcing ideological purity throughout the land. Read more..
President Trump sparked what is likely to be a brutal battle for the 2028 Republican nomination during his May 4 interview on “Meet the Press.” After extinguishing his ongoing “third-term” tease, Trump name-checked the two leading candidates to succeed him: Vice President JD Vance (as expected) and Secretary of State Marco Rubio (very unexpected).
This week, questions about Rubio’s own birthright citizenship (neither of his parents was a citizen when he was born in Florida) generated headlines, so watch this developing issue.
Rubio, formerly a third-term U.S. senator from Florida, had been a critical rival of candidate Trump in the 2016 presidential primary. Rubio, whom Trump degradingly taunted as “Little Marco,” has suddenly morphed into powerful “Big Marco,” concurrently serving in four separate leadership positions: Secretary of State, interim National Security Advisor, acting administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development and acting archivist for the National Archives and Records Administration.
Trump’s recent unleashing of a Vance vs. Rubio rivalry will effectively sustain media interest over the next three years. Once again, the president proves he is a master manipulator of the 24/7 news cycle.
Now, during any Trump-news lull, he can tease a Vance vs. Rubio “Truth Social” post about the state of their rivalry. He can also inject new possible successors, tease a potential 2028 endorsement or adopt the firm non-endorsement strategy of “let the MAGA primary voters decide.” This continues his reign as the all-powerful lame-duck kingmaker, while 2028 hopefuls kowtow for his favor.
In any case, expect the GOP presidential primary to be 100 percent Trump-centric, with entangled high-stakes drama and factors at play. Such factors include enshrining Trump’s all-important personal and presidential legacy, a potential family dynasty, and ensuring the nomination of a “MAGA movement heir” worthy of that title who could capture 270 electoral votes in Trump’s name.
Recognizing and satisfying that checklist is why Trump’s “succession reality show contest” began this month. The president is known to enjoy extended chaos and infighting when he controls the situation.
In his inaugural address, President Trump boldly declared the beginning of America’s “Golden Age.” Instead, with news and headlines that screamed “lowest 100-day approval in 80 years,” Trump’s Golden Age appears to be founded on “fool’s gold.” Those minerals with gold color that “flake, powder or crumble” aptly describe plunging consumer confidence amid overwhelming economic cynicism.
While ABC and CNN polls found that 72 percent of adults believe Trump’s policies will cause a recession, and tariffs will hurt the economy, the Golden Age began in the Oval Office with new blinged-out decor.
Given widespread dismal polling and a shrinking economy, Trump’s first 100 “daze” could be described by repetitive words and phrases that should be retired like a sports star’s jersey when Trump exits the White House in January 2029. (If he does exit.)
The first retired word should be “deal” — the “king” of Trump’s vocabulary, used ad nauseam. For Trump, “deal” is not just a transactional word but also his brand identity. The president’s never-stop-fighting persona is inseparable from a “never-lose” dealmaker who always comes out on top.
Trump indiscriminately applies “deal” to any conflict needing resolution involving allies or enemies, concerning all possible matters, international and domestic. With such widespread overuse, “deal” often sounds harsh and out of place for situations that require more nuance and sensitivity, especially when conducting the diplomacy of war, peace and its aftermath.
For example, Trump often uses “deal” when negotiating or discussing the Ukraine-Russia war, resulting in the rare minerals deal that Ukraine finally and desperately signed this week.
Contrast that transaction with the 1948 Marshall Plan, by which the U.S. helped rebuild Europe after World War II. At the cost of $13.3 billion ($176.4 billion in today’s dollars), the Marshall Plan was never thought of or characterized as a “deal.”
Surely, “deal” rhetoric makes the president feel more powerful and in control of the narrative. However, a deeper philosophical reason was revealed in “The Art of the Deal,” Trump’s 1987 best-selling business advice-autobiography, ghostwritten by Tony Schwartz. Schwartz wrote, channeling Trump’s voice, “Deals are my art form. Other people paint beautifully on canvas or write wonderful poetry. I like making deals, preferably big deals. That’s how I get my kicks.” Read more..
Donald Trump 2.0 is the first “I can do anything” president.
To facilitate that governing philosophy, his squad of four powerful female enablers mirrors his cocky, bullying leadership style of never backing down and never admitting mistakes.
These fine-looking ladies are always camera-ready for their frequent Fox News and social media appearances. They have the “MAGA look,” with long hair, perfect makeup and stylish wardrobes, so pleasing to the president to whom they owe their jobs and influence.
But for anyone suffering from, or negatively affected by, the president’s policies, these foot soldiers in designer heels might be called the “MAGA Mean Girls.”
Although Trump declared April 2 “Liberation Day,” the women discussed below have been “liberating” America from its Constitution every day since Jan. 20. At the behest of their boss, they are bullying into submission two of the three co-equal branches of government, resulting in the most powerful executive branch since President Franklin Roosevelt. Read more..
In the media world, the phrase “developing story” refers to the potential for new facts and changing circumstances that can alter the reporting. Thus, Vice President JD Vance’s apparent quest to win his boss’s job three and a half years from now is the perpetually “developing story” that began less than 24 hours after President Trump’s second inauguration.
Officially, “Vance 2028” is merely political speculation. The vice president has not announced his presidential intentions, commented, hinted, or established any campaign infrastructure, except for various iterations of JDVance2028.com, reserved at GoDaddy.
Any Vance influencer can still buy www.electJDVance.com for only $47,000 if enticed by the sales pitch: “This domain is more than just a web address; it’s a digital platform for those who believe in his policies, his vision for the future, and his potential to lead the nation to greatness from the Oval Office.”
The coronation is underway for Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) to become Florida’s 48th governor on Jan. 5, 2027.
Too soon? Not for President Trump, who on Feb. 20 endorsed and anointed Donalds with usual Trumpian flare. “Byron Donalds would be a truly Great and Powerful Governor for Florida and, should he decide to run, will have my Complete and Total Endorsement,” Trump wrote. “RUN, BYRON, RUN!”
Donalds, a three-term congressman from the southwest “Gulf of America” district, announced his intention to run five days later.
Given that the calendar reads March 2025, and Florida’s gubernatorial primary will not be held until Aug. 18, 2026, Donalds may be riding a bit too high a bit too soon. At the very least, Trump’s ultra-early endorsement is eerily abnormal — a blatant attempt to ensure that Donalds will have no serious primary opposition.
Moreover, the need for a Republican victory does not seem to have been part of the calculus in Trump’s super-early endorsement. Florida Democrats’ lack of leaders and potential candidates, combined with the state’s increasingly red tilt, means the Republican nominee should win easily.
Donalds, a New York City-born Black conservative congressman, was unknown to 66 percent of Florida voters before receiving Trump’s endorsement. His most significant political accomplishment by age 46 has been to stay in Trump’s good graces through blind loyalty.
There are three main reasons Donalds has quickly emerged as the GOP’s leading 2026 gubernatorial candidate.
The first is that the governor’s race is about Trump, not Donalds. If Donalds wins, expect Trump to exercise control over his adopted home state, with its third-largest population and immense concentration of wealth.
Starting in 2020, Donalds, then a state representative, launched his successful congressional primary campaign. He described himself as a “Trump-supporting, gun-owning, liberty-loving, pro-life, politically incorrect Black man.”
Still showing off his penchant for political incorrectness, Donalds echoed a cringeworthy Tucker Carlson quote on the occasion of Trump’s inauguration. “Daddy’s back,” he said, in an attempt to describe for a Fox News audience what new Trump administration would be like.
The congressman made his MAGA voters proud at the inaugural parade rally when Trump gave Donalds a priceless political shout-out, saying, “Stand up, Byron, what a future this one has.”
Exactly a month later, Trump endorsed Donalds for governor.
Fortuitously, the congressman represents a safe GOP district. He won his third term with 66.3 percent of the vote, slightly outperforming Trump’s 65 percent over Kamala Harris — a feat worthy of presidential respect.
Nevertheless, were Donalds to win the statehouse but then govern or act disloyal, the president could taunt him over how his early endorsement “made” his career.
Sound familiar? Ironically, that scenario points to the second reason Donalds has great prospects. The 2026 Florida gubernatorial race is about Donald Trump and his continuous revenge campaign against Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and wife Casey for their “disloyalty” when challenging him for the 2024 presidential nomination, instead of patiently waiting for 2028.
Before and during DeSantis’s disastrous presidential campaign, Trump repeatedly bragged that he was responsible for Ron’s success, with versions of “I got him in. He had no chance. His political life was over.” Trump was referencing his surprise early endorsement of DeSantis in December 2017, when the little-known congressman from northeast Florida was still an underdog headed for an August 2018 gubernatorial primary. Despite starting with low name-recognition, DeSantis ended up winning that race by a 20-point margin, then went on to squeak out a very narrow general election victory.
Note that Trump’s recent endorsement of Rep. Donalds, potentially Florida’s first Black governor, sounded remarkably like his endorsement of DeSantis.
DeSantis proved to be a very popular first-term governor and, in 2022, won reelection by a stunning 19 percentage points. That unexpectedly large margin led the ambitious couple to believe 2024 might be their presidential year. Instead, DeSantis’s extraordinary primary race failure is a campaign management class case study.
Today, the still ambitious but more cautious couple faces another monumental political decision: Should Casey DeSantis run for Ron’s “third term”? Early polls show Florida’s first lady could be competitive with Donalds. And unlike her stiff, combative and wonkish husband, Casey has a friendly, approachable personality and media presence. She was a huge asset to Ron when he won his two statewide elections. Add to that her invaluable presidential campaign experience. If elected, Mrs. DeSantis would become Florida’s first female governor.
But warning signals abound for Casey should she take the plunge. Given Donalds’s extraordinary head start, the same powerful MAGA forces that destroyed her husband’s presidential campaign have been reactivated. That includes White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, who remains an archenemy of the couple after they nearly politically decapitated her in 2019.
The third reason for Donalds’s early gubernatorial grand emergence is also about Trump’s rule by fear and loyalty. With his exuberant endorsement of Donalds, Trump created an unprecedented early bandwagon for the highest-profile Trump-world endorsements — all decidedly anti-DeSantis.
This week, Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) joined the growing A-list, along with Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.). Already on it were Donald Trump Jr. and Lara Trump, a newly minted Fox News host. Adding more heft is Charlie Kirk with his Turning Point USA army and media megaphone. Additionally, the formerly DeSantis-friendly Club for Growth has changed teams.
Numerous big-money power players will assist Donalds in raising millions, starting with his campaign kickoff event on March 28. Naturally, a Mar-a-Lago fundraiser is scheduled for May 1.
Meanwhile, Casey DeSantis is left with the fundraising equivalent of crumbs. This week, NBC reported that the governor is urging Florida lobbyists not to back Donalds. This race will either become messy or fizzle if Casey declines to run, which is precisely the objective of Trump’s uber-early endorsement of Donalds.
But wait for the “law of unexpected events.” Expectations are impossibly high for Donalds, who is still untested in a statewide race. In the age of Trump, voters still matter, and the primary is 17 months away. In the meantime, watch for sizzling hot Florida drama with severe sunburns.
Shane Trejo, its leader, has said he is “pushing support in the grassroots…for Trump to get a rightful third term. We believe that he was robbed in 2020 of a term that he should have served.”
The mission of Third Term Project is to support a proposed constitutional amendment introduced three days after Trump’s inauguration by Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.). Ogles wants to create an exception in the 22nd Amendment that would allow Trump to serve a third term. For all intents and purposes, it is a purely Trump-specific proposal, applying only to presidents who have served two non-consecutive terms.
The Third Term Project’s CPAC debut was comical and historically ironic. Its banners displayed a profile bust of President Trump in classic ancient Roman style, mimicking an iconic sculpture of Julius Caesar, the general and politician who forced his way into the position of “dictator for life” before his political rivals assassinated him this month 2,069 years ago.
Fast-forward to December 2023, when then-former President Trump vowed, if elected, not to be a dictator “except for day one.” Then, after winning the popular vote by a mere 1.5 percentage points and the Electoral College by a more convincing 312 to 226 votes, Trump seems to believe he has an overwhelming mandate to rule with an iron fist and usher in “America’s Golden Age.”
Starting on Inauguration Day, Trump has not stopped strategically expanding presidential powers. He appears to take great pride in attempting to overturn the constitutionally mandated separation and balance of federal powers between the executive, legislative and judicial branches.
The Founders specifically instituted co-equal branches to guard against an all-powerful, despotic ruler like the one from whom they had declared independence. With Trump keen on testing this delicate power balance, the Supreme Court continues to issue rulings with foundational consequences and checks on executive power with which Trump must comply.
That points us back to the 22nd Amendment that Ogles dreams of modifying so that Trump can legally run again in 2028.
There is a zero chance that it will pass the House and Senate with the required two-thirds majorities, let alone be ratified by three-fourths of the states. But that won’t stop Trump the showman from teasing his adoring loyal followers about a third term. In February, at a White House event celebrating Black History Month, Trump asked the friendly gathering, “Should I run again? You tell me.” Then added, “There’s your controversy right there,” followed by chants of “four more years.”
Earlier, one week into his second term, Trump wasted no time posing the reelection question to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) during a Republican retreat at Trump’s Doral golf resort. Provocatively, the president said, “I think I’m not allowed to run again, I’m not sure. Am I allowed to run again, Mike? I better not get you involved in that.”
But count on Trump to involve himself, because third-term-tease-talk supports a Machiavellian strategy, boosting what appears to be his insatiable quest for expanded power. Given the political reality that Trump is a time-limited lame duck, the prospect of a third term helps downplay the inevitable January 2029 expiration date on his political career, all the while continuing to rule through fear, demanding absolute loyalty among friends and foes.
Trump could use the prospect of a third term for as long as possible, to rally support for his policies and “finish the job” — the slogan of the Third Term Project. But after the 2026 midterm elections, regardless of the outcome, lame duck status kicks in, and the 2028 open-seat presidential race begins. So, how will Trump act?
If he remains healthy and popular with at least 45 percent of voters, will he dare to run again at age 82? Will he test the 22nd Amendment using the dubious non-consecutive term argument promoted by MAGA influencer Steve Bannon? During Bannon’s recent CPAC speech, he did again advocate for a Trump 2028 run.
Third-term talk keeps 2028 Republican wannabes off-balance, so that Trump remains more powerful. Most notably, it helps Trump exercise control over Vice President JD Vance, his natural successor, who appears increasingly ambitious, outspoken and high-profile.
Furthermore, at any time, Trump can engage in political theater, showing off by asking the “run again” question, knowing a friendly crowd will chant “four more years!” — music to his ears. Headlines will follow. Perception is reality — the people “demand” another term. Trump’s act could leave all the 2028 presidential contenders in the dust.
Since Trump loves generating controversy that guarantees headlines, an illegal third term — or at least ambiguity about one — fits the bill. He has perfected the art of repeating lies or advocating outrageous policy and personnel appointments until they are “normalized” with MAGA media amplification across all platforms. Will he “normalize” a 2028 presidential run?
In that case, Democrats and disgruntled Republicans should remind voters that it was the 1947 Republican controlled House and Senate that passed the 22nd Amendment’s very clear limitation: “Noperson shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice.” Then, it took until 1951 to be ratified by three-fourths of the states. The amendment was the Republican response to Democrat President Franklin Roosevelt winning four elections from 1932 to 1944.
Post-war Republicans acted to curb presidential power through term limits. Now, Rep. Ogles and the Third Term Project’s banners scream, “For Trump 2028 …And Beyond!”
Remember that Franklin Roosevelt’s four presidential victories resulted from fighting the Great Depression, followed by his leadership during the Second World War.
Myra Adams: Just a Concerned American 