by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner
As I’ve written before, I don’t hate Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, but I do know that if he can just get past dingus Donald Trump he can be America’s first autocrat. I say this because DeSantis is younger and organized and, from what I can tell, an actual adept governor. But he’s also an aspiring autocrat.
If this was 25 years ago, DeSantis would probably just be a basic Republican. He would probably be somewhere on the Bush I or Bush II spectrum of politics. But that’s not what’s going on. DeSantis has one obstacle to becoming very powerful and extremely wealthy: dingus Trump.
We haven’t reached the battle royale that could happen very soon between Trump and DeSantis. It could be, of course, that DeSantis may be co-opted by Trump rather than destroyed. This might come because, in the end, that Trump is a lot weaker than we all — including Trump — current believe.
And, this doesn’t even begin to address the other issue, which is Mike Pence might dive into the little kerfuffle of wannabes who somehow think there can be MAGA without Trump. (Which I think is bullshit.)
The key thing is — Trump is too lazy and stupid to be a true autocrat. But whomever he picks as his MAGA success (probably his veep) will, in fact, be our first Putin-level autocrat. The person who will establish white minority rule in the United States. Given how nuts Trump is, it’s possible that our first autocrat might be Gen. Mike Flynn. It could really be that bonkers.
If that happened, then we’re probably going to have a civil war.
But if DeSantis somehow cockblocks Trump and is the nominee in 2024, then I believe that through hook or through crook DeSantis will be POTUS in 2025. Then he will, by definition, be America’s first autocrat. He will probably push through a Constitutional Convention and he will, through grift, become fabulously wealthy.
Remember — there are macro trends at work. Around 2024 -2025 we’re either going to become an autocracy or have a civil war. That’s it. No other options. We might punt things down the road a little bit, but we’re totally, completely fucked. Get ready.
