Are you exhausted? Are you angry? Outraged? Do you dream of the day you can put your keyboard away and enjoy some political peace and quiet?
You deserve some peace and quiet.
Say it with me:
“I deserve some peace and quiet.”
“I deserve some peace and quiet.”
“I DESERVE PEACE AND QUIET DAMNIT!”
Deep breaths.
In….
Out…
Good.
The first step is understanding just how much today’s politics suck the joy out of us.
The next step is to do something about it.
Even before the 2022 Midterms, the nation’s never-ending presidential election cycle churns in our stomachs like a shot of tequila chased with sour milk.
Former President Donald Trump, deep in drama from the raid at Mar-a-Lago, is all but certain to announce a 2024 campaign. On Truth Social last week, he called for a redo to the 2020 election or for the “rightful winner” to be declared (presumably he meant himself). Meanwhile, President Joe Biden still maintains he’s running for reelection, despite polls indicating that his own party would prefer he didn’t. He delivered a speech in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia on Thursday proclaiming “MAGA Republicans” as a threat to our nation despite his own party’s Congressional election arm using donor funds to prop up those very same “MAGA Republicans.”
See what I mean? Exhausting.
Do we really want four more years of either of them? Do we really want four more years without a moment of political peace and quiet?
Allow me to suggest an alternative. A 2024 ticket that would not only save America from runaway spending, skyrocketing costs, and increased crime – but would do all of that without the sideshow.
Enter Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez.
The case for Francis Suarez as VPOTUS
Don’t let his pretty boy appearance fool you: Suarez isn’t here to be anyone’s eye candy (except maybe his wife’s).
Elected with 86% of the vote in 2017 and 78% of the vote in 2021, Suarez is wildly popular in his hometown of Miami – one of the most culturally exciting cities in America.
But why should a mayor be propelled to the second highest office in all the land?
Put simply, Suarez has no off switch. He has no quit. That’s exactly what we need in a vice president – especially after four years of Kamala Harris.
Suarez’s tenacity is transforming Miami into America’s newest tech hub, luring entrepreneurs away from West Coast cities that treated their economic contributions as a burden. The mayor holds regular “Cafecito Talks” (Cafecito is Cuban espresso) with techies, asking questions about their decision to move to Miami and what their hopes are for the future.
I interviewed Suarez last year about his efforts to build up his city’s tech sector as Seattle looked to tax Amazon to high heaven.
“I don’t want you using this interview to take our tech jobs away,” I joked with him.
“I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to do that,” he quipped.
But what he said next made me realize the extent of his political potential.
“I’ll be president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors in January and we’re going to try to export that winning formula to the rest of the United States. We don’t think it’s a Miami secret. We think it’s one that could be replicated and should be replicated across the country.”
“My cellphone is always available,” he added, “all the mayors have it.”
Imagine that. A politician who cares about the success of others, not just himself.
Oh, and did I mention Miami has a record budget surplus, and the lowest property tax rate in the city’s recorded history?
Did I mention that Miami, which was dubbed the “Murder Capital of America” in the 1980’s now has the lowest homicide rate its seen since the 1930’s? That is thanks, in part, to Suarez prioritizing police funding rather than defunding and supporting targeted stings to get illegal guns out of the hands of violent criminals.
Yeah, not bad.
I’d also note that Suarez is 44 years old – plenty young to serve two terms as vice president and still have enough energy to run for the presidency.
The case for Larry Hogan as POTUS
There is a strong case to be made that our next president should come from the ranks of governors – rather than a member of Congress. Congress is the height of dysfunction and petty political gamesmanship. Governors, while not always above the fray, know what it takes to keep things afloat.
Sure, some Trump loyalists will call Hogan a RINO. I prefer to call him a wildly popular Republican governor in a deep blue state. Joe Biden got 65% of the vote in Maryland in 2020. The same voters continually give Hogan an approval rating above 70%. That’s no easy feat in today’s hyper-partisan climate, especially while holding onto your conservative bonafides.
“But he’s a never-Trumper!” some might argue.
While it is true that Hogan is no Trump fan, it doesn’t consume his every thought or utterance. His focus is where it needs to be – where it must be – on moving forward and helping people prosper.
"I think if the Republicans are to get any power back, we’re going to have to start talking about the issues people care about and not re-litigating what happened in 2020 or denying things that are fact," he told FOX News in a recent interview.
Many of the problems facing our country are challenges Hogan has proven capable of addressing. We could talk about the “Open for Business” motto he adopted his first day in office. Or the jobs he’s added since 2015. Or the tax cuts he’s delivered to the working class.
Hogan is competent and qualified, no doubt. He's also just a genuinely kind, down-to-earth guy (as I discovered when I sat down for an interview with him last year).
But the biggest factor in placing him atop a 2024 dream ticket is that he will force Democrats to run a candidate on the merits.
As President Biden underscored during his primetime address yesterday, Democrats plan to play their MAGA card until the cows come home. Anything and anyone with a tie to Orange Man Bad will be painted as extreme, dangerous, and un-American. That goes for DeSantis, Haley, Whitmer, and even Pence.
Democrats can’t get away with that if Hogan is the GOP nominee.
In fact, Biden himself recently called Hogan a Republican “he can deal with” while on a campaign stop in Maryland. Kind of takes the wind out of their sails if Dems can’t use their favorite talking point to vilify their 2024 opponent, doesn’t it?
It means candidates will be forced to debate the issues and Americans deserve an election that is focused on the issues.
In fact, if I were Hogan, one of my first actions if elected would be to issue sweeping pardons for Trump and Hunter Biden – hell, he can throw in Hillary Clinton and Dr. Fauci while he’s at it. Give the country a clean slate. Put the past political bullshit behind us.
And hey – speaking of bullshit – don’t think I forgot about pleasing the identity obsessed!
Hogan’s wife, Yumi Hogan, would become the first Korean American FLOTUS. A milestone, indeed, although those of us who don’t prioritize physical characteristics know she is much more than the pigment of her skin.
Mrs. Hogan was raised on a farm in South Korea as the youngest of eight children. Her ties to that nation helped Maryland secure 500,000 COVID test kits early on in the pandemic. She is a mother, grandmother, and a dedicated wife who helped nurse her husband back to health after a battle with Stage 3 non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. An acclaimed artist, Mrs. Hogan founded a program at the University of Maryland Children’s Hospital to help young patients channel the healing power of art. Domestic violence, human trafficking, and food security are other issues you could see Mrs. Hogan take up as First Lady.
Doesn’t that sound, dare I say, pleasant?
Timing is also on Hogan’s side as he is term-limited out of office in January 2023. That’s a perfect time to launch a 2024 campaign and means he’ll be free from the distraction of simultaneously trying to run a state.
In conclusion
I realize no one gets exactly what they want with a Hogan-Suarez ticket. There would be a lot of convincing to do to get the Trump base and moderate Democrats onboard. But think of this ticket as going to the gym or eating healthy. You might not be excited about it right now, but you know it’s good for you and you’ll be happy you did it.
I truly believe a Hogan-Suarez ticket is our key to ushering in a long overdue period of political peace and quiet.
Say it with me:
“I deserve some peace and quiet.”
“I deserve some peace and quiet.”
“I DESERVE PEACE AND QUIET DAMNIT!”
Deep breaths.
In….
Out…
Good.
