Spanberger's opponent, Energy - the Big Thing, and Biden's date with history.

Janet Jackson, Allman Brothers, N.W.A., David Bowie and Bing Crosby

Quote of the Day

Mike Tomlin, Head Coach Pittsburgh Steelers - William & Mary ‘94:

It’s not about what you’re capable of, it’s about what you’re willing to do.

Top Five

1 - Congressman Bobby Scott is thinking about running for the Democratic nomination for Governor in Virginia per Punchbowl News:

“Usually people running statewide take about a three-month leave and I’m not ready to do that, but we’ll see. I haven’t ruled it out,” Scott said in an interview.

Top Democratic sources are doubtful Scott will get into this race. But Scott has been privately talking to colleagues about it. Scott has laid out his case and what his strategy would be if he entered the primary race against Spanberger.

Bottom Line - Congressman Scott is technically, but not legally, a candidate for Governor. Until a candidate says “No”, he or she is a “Yes.” A long time veteran like Scott doesn’t just throw statements “haven’t ruled it out” around for Skittles and Beer.

Extra Bottom Line - If Virginia is still the nation’s bellwether, Democrats are not uniting anytime soon.

Speaking of Virginia 2025…Energy, Data Centers, and AI - OH MY!

2 - Dave Ress in Richmond Times Dispatch - Virginia watchdog: Data centers mean big cost increases for Virginians

Gov. Glenn Youngkin said the JLARC study showed “Virginia has a simple choice: embrace ‘all of the above’ and deliver affordable, reliable, and, yes, increasingly clean baseload power to support future economic growth, while taking advantage of the billions of dollars in capital investment, high-paying jobs, and local and state tax revenues that come from data centers; or bend the knee to a green energy agenda and give away Virginia’s leadership position.”

Bottom Line - Energy is likely to be the #1 non budget issue in the 2025 “short session” in Virginia. With the national overlay of increasing supply (drill, baby, drill…) will be a big campaign theme.

Speaking of 2025…Kevin Williamson comes down high off the turnbuckle on Joe Biden

3 - Kevin Williamson in The Dispatch- History Will Not Have Mercy on Joe Biden The defining qualities of Joe Biden the political man were arrogance and dishonesty.

The defining qualities of Joe Biden the political man were arrogance and dishonesty, compounded by stupidity. That Biden lasted as long in politics as he did—he first was elected to the Senate the year your gray-bearded correspondent was born—and that he rose as high as he did is an indictment of the state of Delaware, the Democratic Party, and the American electorate, which was wise to choose Biden over Donald Trump in 2020 but foolish to put itself in such a dilemma to begin with.

Bottom Line - Joe earned it. Democrats lost the race when Biden decided to run again. No mercy shall be granted unto them. They were told.

Speaking of losing…Democrats are seriously dropping among Hispanics and will have a tough time for the next several cycles.

4 - Ruy Texiera - The Liberal Patriot - The Democrats’ Hispanic Voter Crash It’s not as bad as you think—it’s worse.

It’s been widely noted that the Democrats fared very poorly with Hispanic voters in the November election. But I believe that the scale of the Democrats’ crash among Hispanic voters has not yet been fully processed nor the extent to which this crash undermines Democrats’ plans for the future.

Bottom Line - the whole Demography is Destiny mantra is dead. Very dead. It turns out calling your opponents racist, doesn’t do a damn thing for your voters. Kick it, Janet…

Speaking of What Have You Done for Me Lately…the GOP has a super slim majority in the House. They can use it and grow their majority or they will lose it.

5 - Chris Stirewalt in The Dispatch: The Marvelous Moderation of the Majority Makers Five Republicans who helped the party secure control of the House have one important trait in common.

The verdict for the red team is the same as it is for the blue: Swing voters favor moderation. And if there’s a mandate for anything from this year’s results it’s the same one we’ve seen in cycle after cycle for a decade: The majority markers in American politics sit squarely in the squishy center.

Bottom Line - NOW would be a good time for the Republicans to embrace that their majority is not monolithic and work to solve the problems that got them elected.

Videos

How did I miss this song all these years???

Syria’s Assad never heard of N.W.A and he never read ANY history. Lyrics alert - profanity. I would have posted the one titled F the Police, but it’s too graphic for You Tube.

Bottom line - don’t lose the streets.

Now for a Christmas classic - NO, not that Mariah Carey one.