The Daly Weekly (2/20)

Prince Andrew, 9/11 conspiracies, RFK Jr. and Kid Rock, and more.

Hi everyone.

Welcome to this week’s Daly Weekly, where I answer whatever questions you throw my way.

Let’s get right to your questions…

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John, Do you believe the British inquiry into prince Andrew and Ambassador Mendelson's Epstein ties will result in anything interesting and news worthy? —Sharon H.

Yes, I do (like Andrew’s recently arrest). Where it will lead, I don’t know. I wish I understood British politics and culture enough to give you a better answer than that, Sharon. I will say that the sense I’ve gotten so far is that other countries’ governments and leaders are taking these Epstein ties more seriously than here in the United States. Here, most political leaders and media-types are pointing a finger at the “other” side, while whitewashing the involvement of those on their side. I’ve even seen some folks like Jesse Watters and Greg Gutfeld try to downplay the notion that Epstein was all that bad of a guy. Remarkable stuff.

John: As the host of Reagan Caucus Podcast, what opinions of yours have changed more in the conservative direction since Reagan left office in 1988? What opinions have shifted more liberal? I don't think this is flip-flopping, just a thoughtful reconsideration based on new evidence, something we should all do. — Steve R.

Good question, Steve. I should start off by saying that I was only 16 years old when Reagan left office, and I essentially had no political views at that time, other than broadly believing in conservative tenets like capitalism, personal responsibility, fiscal responsibility, respect for the rule of law, etc (which I didn’t exactly associate with politics until later in life). My political ideology didn’t really begin to take shape, and find alignment with Reagan conservatism, until the early 2000s. So, any sort of political ‘change’ would have come since then, rather than when Reagan left office. But let me try and get to the meat of your question…

• I used to be supportive of the death penalty. Now, I lean more toward opposing it (though I’m still not terribly passionate about the issue). I just don’t feel like capital punishment lines up well with my pro-life sensibilities.

• I hadn’t thought much about gay marriage until it started to become a serious national issue around George W. Bush’s second term… at which point I basically took Dick Cheney’s supportive position on it. I even wrote a conservative case for gay marriage several years ago. But I suppose that wasn’t much of a “change” for me, as it was a deviation from the traditional Republican stance on the issue (which has largely since fallen by the wayside).

My political ideology just hasn’t changed much at all, unlike that of the GOP platform, GOP leadership, and much of the Republican base. I still believe in small government, federalism, fiscal responsibility, personal responsibility, the importance of character, free markets, free trade, free speech, the separation of powers, respect for (and adherence to) the Constitution and rule of law, facts over feelings, the NATO alliance, standing against corruption, opposing tyrants who invade our allies, etc. And on the Reagan Caucus podcast, we feature a lot of guests who also want those things represented in the GOP again.

This week, for example, we talked to Tim Chapman, president of Advancing American Freedom (Mike Pence’s think-tank):

Sir John: many people on both sides of the aisle predict a blue wave during the mid-terms, and with that blue wave, many are predicting another impeachment of Trump. Okay fine but even if the Dems are successful in another impeachment, I noticed that in previous actions against Trump, legal & “extra-legal” (“Guilty of 34 Felonies!”) as well as assassination attempts, for various & sundry reasons, Trump not only survives, but in the end it’s only the Democratic base that is pleased, and Trump not only suffers no consequences, but he also tends to gain even more popularity than before. This tells me that ultimately impeachment will possibly HELP Trump and anger the swing voters against the Dems. I think the Dems could do more damage ultimately if they take the high road and allow Trump to dig his own grave. Your thoughts? —“Between The Dems & The Deep Blue Wave” regards from The Emperor

I have a bit different take, Emperor.

I don’t think either impeachment helped Trump (nor do I think a third would), but I do think the GOP Senate’s refusal to convict him after his second impeachment (when he absolutely deserved to be convicted) not only let him off the hook, but nullified the impeachment process from ever again being used in this country (at least at the federal level) as an accountability measure for egregious abuses of power. I mean, if provoking a deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol with two months of relentless lies about an election being stolen doesn’t warrant an impeachment conviction, nothing does. So, the Democrats may momentarily please their base (and some independents) with a third impeachment, but the Senate would never convict Trump (even if he nuked Greenland), and I don’t think the process would do much (if anything) to change his approval ratings.

I think the criminal indictments probably helped Trump with the Republican base, but mainly because the New York ones reeked of political retribution, and they went to court before the federal ones (which I think were well-founded and appropriate). The assassination attempt, from a political perspective, could have only helped Trump, but he primarily owes his return to the White House to four years of the Biden administration.

Is it just me, or has there been a big return of 9/11 conspiracy theories online lately? — Alex D.

It’s not just you, Alex. I’ve noticed it too. And it’s really the same idiotic, thoroughly debunked “truther” conspiracy theories from 20 years ago. Nothing new, as far as I can tell. I think Tucker Carlson and a couple other wing-nut media grifters are primarily responsible, and they seem to be presenting their case to younger people who have no memory of this idiocy from the first time around, and thus, I guess, are more likely to buy into it.

What’s with the RFK Jr. and Kid Rock shirtless workout video? — Ben G.

A lot of us probably have a friend on Facebook or Instagram who really likes to post pictures of themself working out. It’s basically the same type of thing, but in this case, it’s paid for by you and me, the U.S. taxpayers, under the guise of providing some kind of public service.

Some of the online spoofs of the video have been cracking me up.

Thanks everyone! You can send me questions for next week by leaving a comment in the comment section.