Sunday, Nov. 8: Politico Owes Ben Carson an Apology for False Claim

Politico had it wrong. A Politico story claiming that Ben Carson admitted to lying about a scholarship to West Point was grossly misleading. I referenced the story in my report last Friday, November 6, 2015, after seeing the “Carson lied about West Point” reported by credible sources like Financial Times, CBS News, The Guardian, MSNBC and the Christian Broadcast Network.

Politico has since removed the words “admitted fabricating” from their story. In reference to the story, the Washington Post concluded, “The Politico story seemed to mischaracterize a small but key detail in the way Carson has told the story,” that he never claimed he applied to West Point. CNN Money refers to the incident as “a major black eye for Politico.”

Politico should apologize to Carson for such an irresponsible mischaracterization.

What follows is my revised report.

History Says Trump, Carson and Fiorina are History; No Elective Office or High Military Rank, No White House.

   November 8, 2015          Vol. VIII, No. 17 REVISED           11:13 am

Trump, Carson and Fiorina are History

On Tuesday, November 10, 2015, beginning at 9 o’clock EST, while you are watching GOP presidential frontrunners Trump, Carson and Fiorina during the Fox Business/Wall Street Journal debate from Milwaukee, remember this fact: only two presidents in United States history won with either no prior experience in public office or high military rank … like Trump, Carson and Fiorina.

The last president with no previous elected-office experience was President Dwight Eisenhower (1953-1961). However, he was a five-star general in the U.S. Army who served as Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in Europe during World War II. Eisenhower led the Normandy Invasion and the coalition that defeated Hitler. He was a qualified executive.

In 1928, Republican Herbert Hoover won the presidency despite having no elected-office or military experience, although he had presidential timbre after serving as Secretary of Commerce under Presidents Warren G. Harding and Calvin Coolidge. Hoover, along with President William Howard Taft (1909-1913), are the only two U.S. Presidents with the dual distinctions of having no elected-office experience or high military rank … like Trump, Carson and Fiorina.

Most GOP Contenders will Drop Out by March 15

The following states and territories will make Republican presidential decisions by March 15, 2016, North Carolina’s new primary election day: Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Nevada, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Wyoming, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Idaho, Michigan, Mississippi, Guam, Florida, North Carolina, Illinois, Missouri, Northern Mariana Islands, Ohio.

Trump, Carson and Fiorina will likely be out on or before March 15, 2016. Carson will go down first due to a growing realization that he lacks executive credibility and has few defensible solutions for the most important problems facing the nation. Fiorina will soon follow because she will continue to struggle to raise money, grow her base and otherwise demonstrate electability.

Trump will drop out as soon as losses are imminent. If he can’t win it all, he will parlay his presidential notoriety into even greater wealth. The best billionaire ever!

As I concluded in my report on August 19, 2015, Trumped-Up Political Credibility will be Undermined by Sobering State/National Concerns:

Look for Trump to hire every available political operative in the country to swarm the early caucus and primary states to keep the perception going that he is a serious presidential contender. It’s worth hundreds of millions of dollars in free advertising world-wide benefiting his casinos and resorts.

As Trump told Fortune, “It’s very possible that I could be the first presidential candidate to run and make money on it.”

Ted Cruz will Inherit the Anti-Establishment Voters

Ted Cruz, the quintessential antiestablishment (Government Shutdown 2013) candidate among the Republican contenders, will likely inherit the Trump/Carson/Fiorina voters. Cruz will combine his surge in popularity among antiestablishment Republicans with his impressive war chest and create an enthusiastic army of evangelical and Tea Party conservatives who will help him take the lead by Super Tuesday, March 1, 2016, and solidify his lead on March 15, 2016.

Cruz is the #1 fundraiser on the latest list (10/16/15) of Republican campaign fundraisers, as opposed to those candidates, like Jeb Bush, who have more money in allied super PACs.

According to OpenSecrets.org, the candidates with the largest campaign war chests are:

• Ted Cruz campaign: $39 million; his Super PACs have raised $27 million
• Ben Carson campaign: $31 million; his Super PACs have raised $7 million
• Jeb Bush campaign: $25 million; his Super PACs have raised $103 million
• Marco Rubio campaign: $16 million; his Super PACs have raised $17 million

I fully expect the Jeb Bush A-team to parlay their $100 million Super PAC into a full recovery for the son and brother of U.S. Presidents. There is simply too much knowledge and too many resources in the Bush corner to rule him out. Bush will likely reemerge as a viable establishment candidate and battle with Ted Cruz all the way to the GOP convention in Cleveland.

Bottom line: only two presidents in United States history won with either no prior experience in public office or high military rank … like Trump, Carson and Fiorina. And that fact is not likely to change in 2016.

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Thank You for Reading the John Davis Political Report

 John N. Davis