Welcome to 2024. We now have a President who is prosecuting his chief political rival. By the way, I am a Reagan Conservative. I am not necessarily a natural fan of Donald Trump. I am surmising that Trump will be found guilty in the current trial in New York City. And I don’t care what political viewpoint you have, prosecuting former Presidents is a dangerous thing. We recently had a President who executed American citizens without a conviction. Murder does not have a statute of limitations.
I’ll give you my theory of why Trump is important later in the column. Remember, I was very suspicious of Trump in 2016. Here is how scared people are of ‘Orange Man’: following the absurd political labeling of Donald Trump as being an insurrectionist, Trump was never indicted on any charges of this crime. Why?
If Trump was truly guilty of any crime, he should have been indicted in 2021 or 2022. The Biden administration appointed Jack Smith as a special prosecutor. Smith’s track record is so checkered that he has lost all credibility. Why didn’t the Biden administration indict Trump in 2021? The Biden team made a bet, that Trump would be running, and an indictment would make Joe Biden completely unbeatable.
Well, that did not work out so well. In polling this week, Trump is leading in 5 of 6 battleground states. President Biden will be forced to go on the offensive, which is like catnip for Donald Trump. 2024 is totally unprecedented. We have two leading Presidential contenders who are either holding the position or once was President.
Here is something that Democrats and Republicans agree on: It’s an inside job. There are billionaires and political insiders who have an inside track for success. There is an inside cabal to keep the people down. Sometimes this slur is used to express bigotries against a certain ethnicity or religion. But with every fear or conspiracy, there is a certain grain of truth.
Democrats have elected Presidents, Senators, and Congresspeople who promised to soak the rich which they claim is the cause of all of our misery. Let’s tax the rich 90%! Great idea! Back in the day, when this was the tax rate, no one paid that. There were deductions and loopholes. It felt good for people in some sectors to claim that was the highest tax rate.
There have been two candidates who have expressed the populist diatribe that the deck is stacked against the working man in the last decade. Those two men… Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump. If you truly evaluate their messages, these two men were singing out of the church hymnal. Bernie was blaming the rich and huge corporations. Bernie asked for small contributions and preached on the ethical promises of an all-encompassing government. Bernie, an old man, was able to attract young, idealistic voters. This geezer just charmed college kids.
Donald Trump just turned the system upside down. Trump was accused of enriching himself due to the tax system. Trump said that he did take advantage the system.
Trump is chemotherapy. He claimed that there is a deep state after the average American. Ok, a billionaire who went to Wharton claimed that there was a cabal of an overly oppressive government coming after the average American. Then, Donald Trump proved it. This man did another crazy thing. Trump entered The White House and came out poorer. Trump fans know that the Donald is loathsome and a bore. They don’t care. Trump fans look at this Billionaire as one of them. Indicting him just proves the theories that there is a hidden conspiracy coming after working-class Americans.
How does this apply to News/Talk radio? Trump became the voice of the working class. Trump said things that people believed to be true. Are you representing the people? Can you be the host that understands the voiceless? Are you the champion of the people?
Some wonderful listeners are struggling to feed their families. Are you paying attention to them? There are crime-riddled neighborhoods. Are you paying attention? Trump became the champion of the little man. This billionaire with a funny haircut, orange spray tan, fine suits, and private planes is the voice of the voiceless. Are you?
When is the last time that you stopped in a poor neighborhood? About 12 years ago, I received a tour of the projects in the Bronx. The tour leader was a former gang member who became a pastor. I met the amazing people of the projects. These were lovely people who were captured by a system meant to hold them down.
You have frustrated listeners. These good people work hard. They are not criminals. They need a champion. Are you that human? Do you speak for them or criticize these individuals?
We are living in times of falling real estate values, rising inflation, and smothering interest rates. Be the champion of the people. Represent them. The regular guy or gal is busting their butts every day. Many people are the working poor who are too proud to beg. Be there for them.
Peter Thiele is a weekly news/talk radio columnist for Barrett Media, and an experienced news/talk radio programmer. He currently serves as News/Talk Format Captain for Zimmer Communications. Prior to joining Zimmer, Peter held programming positions in New York City, San Francisco, Des Moines, Little Rock, Greenville, Hunstville, and Joplin. Peter has also worked as a host, account executive and producer in Minneapolis, and San Antonio. He can be found on Twitter at @PeterThiele.
