Will Donald Trump End Up Like JFK?

The inability of democratic assemblies to carry out what seems to be a clear mandate of the people will inevitably cause dissatisfaction with democratic institutions. Parliaments come to be regarded as ineffective “talking shops,” unable or incompetent to carry out the tasks for which they have been chosen. The conviction grows that if efficient planning is to be done, the direction must be “taken out of politics” and placed in the hands of experts – permanent officials or independent autonomous bodies.

— Friedrich Hayek

AIKEN, South Carolina – Last night, we sat on the porch of the old Willcox Hotel.

The sky was clear. The temperature was perfect.

The sun sank in the West… just as it should.

But today, we’re leaving town. Saying goodbye to Aiken.

Probably not a moment too soon. We’ve heard the local sheriff has collected a posse of architects and is looking for us…

Bumpy, Lumpy, and Slumpy

U.S. stocks were flat yesterday. But the world was bumpy, lumpy, and slumpy.

No matter. We’re going to look on the bright side. The cup is half full! The news is full of commentary on the U.S. presidential primaries.

We watch like a prairie dog staring at a train crash: We have no idea of what is going on, but we can’t take our eyes off it. The smoke. The twisted metal. The luggage and bodies flying through the air.

The Great Hope of the Republican Establishment was junior Florida senator Marco Rubio. But now, poor Rubio is trailing frontrunner Donald Trump by 20 points in his home state.

This comes after, in the March 6 debate, New Jersey governor Chris Christie ripped Rubio apart. In front of the world, he exposed the simple gears of a puppet, mindlessly mouthing his lines as if they were on a cue card.

But a puppet for whom? Who is pulling the strings?

Zombies vs. Cronies

U.S. elections used to be simpler. They were battles between zombies and cronies.

Traditionally, Democrats represent the zombies – the little guys who want more little payoffs and bribes.

Republicans are supposed to represent the cronies – fewer in number but with more money – looking for tax breaks, contracts, subsidies, and ways to keep the zombies in their place…

For Republicans, government was a devil at home but an angel abroad. For Democrats, it was the other way around. In their minds, the feds did nothing but good at home; it was abroad that they made a mess of things.

But politics is fluid. Both parties appeal to popular myths in an effort to lock-in the marginal voter. They move around, like wrestlers circling each other… each looking for an opportunity to get a purchase on his opponent.

Gay rights? Prayer in school? Abortion on demand?

Voters get worked up – convinced that they and they alone must have the one indisputable last word on the subject.

Shadow Government

And while the cultural conservatives were at war with the cultural liberals… the Deep State grew.

It didn’t matter which party was in power… more and more of our lives, and our money, came under the control of the insiders, the permanent government that actually runs things – the “shadow government” that rules no matter who is in power.

The zombies get more food stamps, drugs, and retirement benefits. The cronies get more special deals and favors… including the biggest scam in world history, a money system that shifts trillions in real wealth to the financial industry and its clients.

Today, it’s hard to tell the two parties apart. Hillary, the Democrat, seems to want to prove that she has the cojones to be president. Trump, the Republican, seems to want to draw in the working class by promising to stop competition from abroad.

The little guys are moving to Trump. The fat cats – especially on Wall Street – are casting their lot with Clinton.

Go figure…

But it’s still early. Anything could happen.

Clinton is plainly the most obvious choice of the Deep State insiders. She and her husband played a major role in helping it get where it is today. They support globalization, the Fed, Wall Street, and the Pentagon. Hillary can be counted on: If elected, she will deliver more of the same.

As for Donald Trump, no one is sure what he’ll do… probably not even The Donald himself.  Word on the street is that he may intend to shake things up.

Donald Trump is apparently not in the Deep State’s pocket. But if that is true, there are people – on the edges of the Internet – who worry that he may soon be in its sight.

Around the World Wide Web, you’ll find comments such as: “Donald Trump better beef up his security. Or he’ll end up like JFK.”

Donald’s Biggest Deal

We don’t know. But we find it hard to imagine that The Donald hasn’t already made a deal with the “powers that be.”

His career was forged in the white heat of the building trade – with mafia-run unions, along with banks and regulators in Las Vegas and New York hammering him.

He denies it. But he depends on all of them – the government, the banks, and the system of Bubble Finance – to keep his fortune intact.

He knows how important they are. And he knows how they operate.

Donald claims to be one of the greatest dealmakers in history. It is hard to imagine that he hasn’t made the most important deal of his life.

Regards,

Bill Bonner
for Bonner and Partners

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