Bye, Bobby! Jindal drops out

Kunstler remarked on the state of the campaign at his blog yesterday.

The cowardice in the college executive suites is mirrored in our national politics, where no persons of real standing will dare step forward to oppose the juggernaut of Hillery-the-Grifter (sic), or take on the clowning Donald Trump on the grounds of his sheer mental unfittedness to lead a government.

I disagreed with him about the Republicans being unwilling to take on Trump.*

There are plenty of people with stature in the Republican Party trying to dislodge Trump and Carson from the top two spots.   Off the top of my head, I count four current senators, three current governors, a former senator, and four former governors, along with a former CEO of a Fortune 500 corporation, all trying to beat that "immigrant-bashing carnival barker" and his competitor Doctor Pyramid.  They're just not succeeding at it.

This morning, there is one less "person of real standing" among the Republicans taking on Trump.  Wochit News reports Bobby Jindal Ends Presidential Campaign.

Bobby Jindal ended his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination on Tuesday. The Louisiana governor had been attempting to appeal to conservative voters who have embraced Donald Trump, and was gaining some ground in Iowa, polling in the top 10 in that crucial caucus state. But in the most recent national poll conducted by CNN, he was only supported by 1% of Republican primary voters. Jindal said in a interview with Fox News, "It has been a great honor for me to run for president of the United States. This is not my time. I’ve come here to announce that I’m suspending my campaign for the presidency.”

Don't just take Wochit's word for it.  Jindal himself explained his reasoning as well as what he'll do next to CNN.

Bobby Jindal announces he is ending his presidential campaign. "Sometimes it's better to live to fight another day," he told reporters.

On the one hand, the exasperation I expressed in A farewell drink for Larry Lessig over three Democratic candidates dropping out while none of the GOP candidates did has decreased.  On the other hand, I'm surprised it was Jindal.  His campaign has met all the filing deadlines so far including those for South Carolina, Alabama, and Arkansas.

Meanwhile, Pataki and Gilmore have missed the filing deadlines for Alabama and Arkansas, so they won't be on the ballots there.  That happened four years ago to Perry and Gingrich, while Bachmann, Santorum, and Huntsman didn't even submit petitions, leaving only Romney and Paul on the ballot there.  That's when I found out who was serious about continuing their campaigns, who had the organization, and who had already given up.  On those criteria, I expected either Pataki or Gilmore to be next.  Surprise!

Whatever.  It's time say good-bye to Bobby and drink a Flaming Volcano while you do.


Stay tuned for a gas price update.  Regular fell below $2.00 in my old neighborhood yesterday, just as I predicted it would do before Thanksgiving.

*I don't disagree with him about Hillary and the Democrats, but that's a comment for another day.