Trump is toxic.

How come the Republicans didn’t realize this?

In truth, many of them did, but they were more afraid of the president than they were of the public, and this was a grave mistake.

Akin to the Democrats in 2024. Biden said he wanted to “finish the job.” It was clear he had lost a step, he was made inaccessible by his staff. But rather than state the reality, they lined up behind the old man and…

You know what happened. But it’s important to pause here. If Biden hadn’t run there would have been a primary and there’s no way Kamala Harris would have been the candidate and the Dems would have won and we wouldn’t be in this mess to begin with.

But both parties detached from reality and the people. And what we learned in this election is the people still rule. Just when it looked like the system was broken and inaccessible to the public, it was rescued, which is the most amazing thing, but that does not mean we will get the change people want.

Because the Democrats still see themselves as an organized party, with a hierarchy, that sends messages from the top down, when in truth the public hates the Dems even more than the Republicans! That was one of the statistics in the reams of info crossing my desk this morning. This election was not about a love of Democrats, but a hatred of Donald Trump. Then again, the media has acknowledged this anti-Dem sentiment, the same media that delivered partisan screeds for the past two years.

However…

One of the big takeaways from this election is how money didn’t matter. If I get one more f*cking text from a candidate looking for money… They spent this damn cash on television ads. Who in their right mind is still watching broadcast, even basic cable television? And even if they are, why are they not using the remote to avoid these incessant advertisements?

This is another way the media is out of touch with the public. Believing that old systems still rule.

There’s story after story excoriating the public for being out of touch, not getting a newspaper, getting their information from YOUTUBE OR TIKTOK!

Turns out the public is well-informed. And they did get their information online. Where facts and ideas are spread 24/7. They don’t need no stinkin’ mainstream media to know which way the wind blows (even though opinions are based on the reporting that the mainstream media does…print, not TV, which is bloviators opining at best).

So we’ve got DOGE, we’ve got ICE, we’ve got the ballroom…

But even more we’ve got AI and data centers. If these titans of Silicon Valley were so smart they would have found a better way to sell their message. Instead, we kept being told to leave them alone, that they knew better, and if there were potential downsides to AI…well, that’s the price of inevitable progress, right?

That’s not a message that resonated with the public. Tech barons used to be icons, looked up to more than musicians, they were changing the world, and they were RICH!

But it turns out they were the science nerds in high school without a date without social knowledge or graces. The public doesn’t want to follow these people off a cliff.

And people are PISSED that all these same tech companies played ball with Trump. Tim Apple? Thank god he’s gone, he was so duplicitous. But oh, he was saving the company! Well, Apple would have survived anyway. Sometimes you’ve got to stand up for what’s morally right.

Unlike the law firms who settled with Trump. Who lost associates, never mind credibility. They asked us what they were supposed to do, focusing on money first and foremost, driving the legal profession even further into the ground than it was during Watergate. Used to be lawyers were respected, now they raise suspicion.

And it’s not only the attorneys, it’s Live Nation too. Everything comes out. You put Grenell on the board, you met with Trump, you forgot that you’re a public-facing enterprise and that you must pay fealty and have loyalty to the people, your customers, first.

Talk about a bad look…

About as bad as the billionaires in California fighting a wealth tax. Now I voted against that, we need something national, but the sentiment is clear, the public knows these people borrow against their stock and pay no taxes and they’re mad as hell and ready to make these executives pay the price.

As for the acts… They’ve been acting like Reagan is still president. If it makes money, you can’t say anything negative. Hoover up those dollars. To the point where music played absolutely no role in this election, why should it, it’s basically cartoons. Except for people like Zach Bryan… How can a guy with no hits sell out stadiums year after year? By being honest, credible, speaking from the heart as opposed to by committee. This is what people are looking for, truth, as opposed to warmed over commerce.

The major labels have sidelined themselves. Only interested in the bottom line, they don’t get involved with anything that doesn’t render a quick buck. And the joke is on them, their catalogs are delivering big bucks but all the action is in live these days.

Everybody with a buck, everybody with any power, carried on unchecked, not caring a whit what the “little people” think. The cronyism was off the charts. Income inequality has finally come home to roost.

And you’ve got traditional Democrats crying over Democratic Socialists, not realizing it was less about the agenda and more about a poke in the eye of them and the rest of the establishment!

Now I must say, stunningly, I have a little hope. But never underestimate the power of the Democrats to snatch defeat from the hands of victory.

That’s my number one worry. Now back in power, the usual suspects will behave in the usual way, which is not aligned with the public, and as a result they will squander power.

But it’s a new day. And it’s unlike any previous day. This vote was against AUTHORITARIANISM! People felt the American way of life was on the ballot. They believe in democracy, not kings. And there has been enough blurring of the lines for people to be truly upset.

Cozying up to Putin? Check the poll numbers on that. Almost NO ONE is in favor of that, never mind the rest of the anti-Trump checklist.

Meanwhile, Trump got elected because he was on TV, there was nothing there, still isn’t. But the Democrats lost touch with the voters, couldn’t see they were now perceived to be the party of the elites, out of touch with the rank and file, and even worse, these Dems felt they were entitled to their perch, they’d worked hard in school, gotten professional jobs, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE? They had contempt for those working for a living, those who didn’t live life by their rules, and these people jumped to Trump, to stick it in the eye of these left wing elites.

But Trump and MAGA read this as a desire for a return to the past. Which no one in America really wants, they like their flat screens, they like their smartphones, they don’t want to go backward, they just want…

America is a melting pot. We were told we were all equal. We want a level playing field. And we hate it when one group puts its finger on the scale and tilts the game in their favor.

I’m not saying we all agree, I’m not saying there will be harmony, I’m not saying crackpot and fringe elements still don’t exist, arguing for heinous policies, I’m just saying this is not what most people want. And they are the majority.

They want everybody to start from the same line, with no unfair advantages.

And then we get Trump’s corruption. Unlike his predecessors Trump doesn’t hide his questionable behavior, he rubs our faces in it, it’s up close and personal. And…

It’s one thing if it’s Putin, it’s one thing if it’s Eastern Europe, but a president of the United States with his hand in the till, getting rich at our expense?

That’s a bridge too far. You can serve, write a book, do some speaking engagements, be on some boards and end up wealthy, but making a billion in office?

Corruption. Turns out this rubbed the public the wrong way. Sure, everyone’s fighting for an edge, but there are basic rules, you don’t flout them, run right over them. Never mind with impunity.

So if you want to be successful in the coming years, look to the public first, not the enablers who will make your life easier, who you will owe a favor to. Don’t disengage from the street, remember who you are and where you came from.

The unfortunate thing is too many came from privileged positions and have leveraged this to succeed, and we don’t like that. They’ve eliminated opportunity, rising from the bottom to the top is the American Dream, but it’s more achievable in Canada and Europe than it is in the U.S.

And the young are all about climate change, ecology. And Trump doubles down on coal, pays for wind farms to go away, does his best to cripple electric vehicles when they’re taking over all around the world except here? How did we become so isolated? I can listen to music from every country in the world on Spotify, it’s at my fingertips, but my country is living in the 1850s.

It’s a changed world. Will D.C. finally acknowledge this?

I wouldn’t bet on it.

But they should be afraid, very afraid, because it turns out the public is not somnambulant and ignorant like they were perceived to be. Sure, there’s tons of misinformation out there, but basic truths, about gas prices, health care, the war in Iran, they filtered through, more than ever before, because people are online all day long.

And all they’re told is to put the smartphone down. Oldsters reveling in phone-free days. Boasting how they use dumb phones.

These are the same people who refused to embrace automobiles, the same people who refused to embrace COMPUTERS!

And then AOL comes along and everybody is online, and has been ever since.

This is a changing of the guard, a loosening of the power of the baby boomers, who unlike their parents think they’re still hip and in touch and refuse to get out of the way.

Well, they’re being pushed aside by younger generations. Who are sick and tired of being in the back seat.

As for you? Let this be a warning. Think twice about who you associate with, doing something just for the money. It might not be illegal but there’s a good chance you’ll lose the hearts and minds of the public, and the people ultimately rule.

Power to the people right on!