Commentary Donald Trump will beat the brakes off Ron DeSantis in the GOP Primary

Hobb servation Point

By Chuck Hobbs

I am willing to bet that come January 20, 2025, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will not be inaugurated as President of the United States!

If you’re wondering, “Hobbs, what makes you so certain,” please consider:

1. The man is unlikeable.

Ron DeSantis has a perpetual scowl on his face that comically looks an awful lot like Italy’s Fascist Dictator Benito Mussolini, so much so that on the occasions that he does smile, it seems forced and fake.

That, and the condescending manner that DeSantis speaks to citizens in public and from what I’ve been told by one source who worked directly for him, also in private, will be a problem for him in national politics. Lest we forget that while it may seem simplistic, people still vote in droves for candidates that they “like”—not ones who come off

Morant

From 3 the team plane, which runs contrary to FAA and NBA rules and this past weekend, showed extremely poor judgment during an irresponsible moment of dancing with a firearm on a video that has since gone viral. We all know that Morant, 23, is a $200 million dollar man, one whose skills could earn him billions of dollars on the court and via endorsements if he doesn’t throw it all away. But that’s just as jerks. (See Richard Nixon vs. Jack Kennedy circa 1960, and Hillary Clinton vs. Donald Trump 2016, for reference).

2. The man will face a machine: Donald Trump. I have never hidden my distaste for Donald Trump’s politics or personality, but I admit that the man has a charisma that’s appealing to his base and those independent voters who share his doom and gloom about an America that’s growing browner, queerer, and less bound to religious litmus tests each day.

DeSantis shares most of Trump’s politics, especially regarding the culture wars, but as I point out in prong one, he will fail and fail miserably against a perpetual showman like Trump.

Remember, despite being a lawyer, DeSantis was handily whipped on substantive issues all across the debate stage by Andrew Gillum during the 2018 debates; Trump won’t even much try to “out-substance” Florida’s governor, but once he starts with the comical nicknames and the low blows against DeSantis, his wife, and maybe even his kids, DeSantis will lose his cool just like every Republican that Trump faced in the 2016 primaries lost their cool at some point or another.

3. The majority of Americans do not share the point, he is surely at risk of throwing it all away if he can’t figure it out really quickly that there is a time, place, and manner for everything under the sun and when it comes to firearms, he is violating all of the above to his own detriment.

Now, Ja Morant has not been convicted of any felony offenses, thus, he has a right to bear arms the same as any of us. But as my father taught me, and his father before him instructed as well, a firearm is not a toy, and safety is paramount if one is to own a weapon that WILL kill if not handled with the utmost care.

Over the past two days, many critics have raised the issue that Morant is a Black his vision for the country.

If, by chance, DeSantis does defeat Trump in a GOP primary, which is possible even if I don’t see it as likely, DeSantis’s viciously nasty demeanor and championing of the culture wars will lose independent and moderate Republicans voters in a general election tilt against President Joe Biden.

Yes, I know that at this stage, many of the latest ABC and Washington Post polls show DeSantis with a slim lead over Biden in a general election race, but the spotlight on DeSantis has yet to shine brightly across the country this early in the election season.

When that spotlight does shine, voters kid that grew up with both parents and wasn’t raised as a “thug,” but is one who surely is embracing the “Thug Life” as an adult. I don’t personally know the young man so I can’t make that judgment, however plausible or likely that such opinions are factual.

What I do know from personal experience is that Memphis is a beautiful city—but just like any major metropolitan area, it has its share of rough areas where one would be wise to pack heat for protection, or, exercise the wisdom that so many young men Morant’s age seem to lack—which is to stay away from completely!

What Ja Morant and will learn more about:

*How DeSantis’s “Don’t Say Gay” Bill has led to a war with Florida’s largest private employer, Walt Disney World, and led to the homophobic governor and his top lawyers being outwitted, outclassed, and soundly defeated at every step of the way by the House of the Mouse. What’s worse is that for a party that touts itself as “probusiness” and “anti-Fascist,” DeSantis has proven to be just the opposite on both points.

*Voters will learn all about how DeSantis championed a bill to criminalize peaceful protests in the wake of George Floyd’s murder; they will realize that DeSantis recently called Daniel Penny, the Marine who choked a mentally ill Black man millions of other young men his age don’t realize is that there are lifelong consequences to playing around or intentionally using a firearm to kill another human being. Long ago in jails and courtrooms across the South, I learned what they don’t show in movies like Menace II Society or Boyz ‹N the Hood, which is that many of the hardest gang bangers cry REAL tears— I’m talking snot coming out their noses with loud wails and screams for their mommas— when they realize that they are facing life without parole or the executioner’s chamber after pulling those triggers and ending another person’s life. And for those who kill named Jordan Neely to death on a New York subway, “a good Samaritan.”

When the spotlight shines, voters will learn all about DeSantis’s drive to ban books that teach real truths about America’s racist past, while he subsequently pushed to eliminate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts in Florida’s public schools; they will learn all about DeSantis’s harassment of the LGBTQ community through the legislative process; they will realize that DeSantis has pushed for the most restrictive abortion deadline in the country, six weeks, which is much more draconian than other GOP led states.

My opinions about DeSantis’s Oval Office impossible dreams are only strengthened by two losses that the soon to be presidential candidate took this week, the first being Democrat Donna Deegan winning the Jacksonville mayoral race last night over Republican Daniel Davis, a man that DeSantis endorsed for office.

Separately, up in Kentucky, DeSantis backed Kelly Craft in the Republican gubernatorial primary—but she was trounced by Daniel Cameron, the Black MAGA Republican that Donald by accident, while they may not go to prison for life, they spend the rest of their lives haunted by the sound of their firearm expelling a projectile into the flesh of a friend or family member who exists no more due to their reckless mistake.

Again, I don’t know

Ja Morant and can’t tell whether he is a reckless 23-year old manchild who, like every man who was once a 23-year old, is still prone to do dumb stuff or whether he really and truly just wants to be a gangsta?

I don’t know…

But what I do know is that if Morant isn’t careful, that there is nothing that the NBA, the Memphis Grizzlies, his family, or his friends will be able to do to help him if he accidentally shoots someone (or himself). Or, more ominously, if he should find himself facing off with the real boys from the hood who will pull his card to see if he is really about that gunplay life. My prayers are with him… Hobbservation Point is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Chuck Hobbs is a freelance journalist who won the 2010 Florida Bar Media Award and has been twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary.

Trump endorsed, 47 to 17 percent! Trump wasted no time deriding DeSantis, noting on his dubiously named Truth Social network that “Ron’s (endorsement) magic is gone!” While DeSantis has every right under the sun to run for the presidency, the facts lead me to submit that the only way that he wins the Republican Primary is if Donald Trump is convicted and sentenced to some form of detention or probation that would infringe upon his ability to serve if elected. And while that’s a blog for another time—my lingering doubts that Trump will ever serve any prison time—suffice it to say that it makes little sense for DeSantis to jump up to get beat down by his far better financed, and far more experienced political mentor who just loves to wallow in the mud and tempt temperamental types like Florida’s Mussolini 2.0 governor. Stay tuned… Hobbservation Point is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Chuck Hobbs is a freelance journalist who won the 2010 Florida Bar Media Award and has been twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary.

CTC will stage two world premieres; an international sensation; a Holiday smash hit; and a 3-Time Tony Award®-nominated musical

Children’s Theatre Company (CTC) said it’s 2023-2024 Season features seven productions including: two world premieres, Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress and Babble Lab; the international sensation Cookin’ from South Korea; the only Minnesota stop of the national tour of The Carp Who Would Not Quit and Other Animal Stories from Honolulu Theatre for Youth; the return of last year’s sold out production of Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas!; the 3-time Tony Award®-nominated musical A Year With Frog and Toad; and the wildly inventive Alice in Wonderland CTC Artistic Director Peter C. Brosius is directing three productions in the 2023-2024 Season. It was recently announced that Mr. Brosius has decided to depart CTC on June 30, 2024, at the end of the 2023-2024 Season. His artistic vision has transformed the theatre into the nation’s leading theatre that serves a multigenerational audience.

“We are thrilled to announce this season of imaginative and inventive world premieres, as well as touring productions, that have dazzled audiences across this country and around the world,” said Peter C. Brosius. “In addition we will be bringing you our very own Tony Award®-nominated musical and our wholly original reimagining of a hilarious classic tale, and of course the most beloved holiday show we know. We can’t wait for you to see all of these shows. It is a joy to share brand new works and productions that have never been to Minnesota and productions we just had to bring back to delight, surprise, and carry you away.”

The season kicks off with knife-juggling, food-flying fun with a production from South Korea! With a crazy deadline looming, the four frenzied chefs of Cookin’ turn their kitchen into a dynamic, veggies-flyingeverywhere performance as Korean samulnori drumming and martial arts take center stage. During this outlandish cooking competition, the chefs put on a masterful display of food chopping, knife throwing, pot banging and fire-blowing wizardry that will make you laugh, scream in delight, and even beg for a chance to sample their food. Get ready to stomp your feet and clap your hands for a show that’s truly Cookin’!

Directed by Seung-Whan Song, Cookin’ comes to CTC from PMC Production Co. and Broadway Asia.

Best for all ages, this production runs September 12-October 22, 2023 on the UnitedHealth Group Stage.

“I can’t wait to meet the audience in Minnesota at a prestigious theatre like Children’s Theatre Company,” said Director Seung-Whan Song. “I hope you will feel the freedom from the unique rhythm of Korea and, through the comedy on stage, also feel the great pleasure of getting away from your daily life.”

Next comes Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress, by juliany taveras, based on the book by Christine Baldacchino and Isabelle Malenfant, with direction by Heidi Stillman. Morris likes lots of things: doing puzzles, painting pictures, pretending to be an astronaut, and wearing a tangerine dress from his school’s dress-up box because it “reminds him of tigers, the sun, and his mother’s hair.”

But some of his classmates think boys can’t wear dresses because … well, because they’re boys. With his vivid imagination and space-animal friends, Morris travels the galaxy in search of an answer to the allimportant question: “Do astronauts wear dresses?” Running October 10-November 19, 2023 on the Cargill Stage, Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress is recommended for everyone aged 4 and up.

“It’s been an absolute delight to get to write this play,” said playwright juliany taveras.

“Diving into the expansive, resilient imagination of Morris Micklewhite has nourished me in a way I hope our audiences will experience too, because this story is a salve. Amidst the (often fear-fueled) rules and binaries of the world around us, Morris reminds us of the power of authentic, loving self-expression— even (or at times, especially) when it ruffles the feathers of the status quo.

CTC has been such a wonderful dream-maker and co-conspirator, and I’m thrilled that this tale we love so much will soon premiere on their stage!”

He’s back by popular demand! CTC’s smash-hit crowdpleaser Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas! returns for the holiday season. Featuring a book and lyrics by Timothy Mason and music by Mel Marvin, the production will once again be directed by CTC’s Artistic Director Peter C. Brosius with choreography by Linda Talcott Lee. A miserly and miserable, ever-so-cantankerous Grinch has observed the despicable Christmas joy of the Whos with disdain, from a distance, for decades. Enough! In this beloved holiday favorite, filled with music and Seussian rhymes, he plots the greatest heist imaginable— stealing the very thing they love the most!. Until, that is, the smallest of the Whos, tiny Cindy Lou, extends a hand. Through the combination of kindness and community, we witness not only a change in the course of Who-History, but the size and capacity of the old green guy’s heart. Best for all ages, this musical extravaganza runs November 7, 2023-January 7, 2024 on the UnitedHealth Group Stage. “When composer Mel Marvin and I were writing this musical adaptation of the How the Grinch Stole Christmas nearly 30 years ago, we were aware that we’d been entrusted with the genius of Dr. Seuss and his irrepressible spirit,” said bookwriter & lyricist Timothy Mason. “We wanted the Seuss to shine through. It’s one of the great joys of our lives to know that children who saw the Grinch at Children’s Theater Company all those years ago are now bringing their own kids to see this show, and that for them and many others his spirit does indeed live on right here on this stage.”

Winter magic continues at CTC with The Carp Who Would Not Quit and Other Animal Stories by Reiko Ho and the Honolulu Theatre for Youth (HTY)

Ensemble. Reiko Ho also directs the production. See a heroic carp climb up a waterfall (and so much more) in this energetic retelling of traditional fables from Japan and Okinawa. Through artful puppetry, masks, and three imaginative actors, you’ll also meet a grateful crane, a mouse who shares, and an industrious rabbit who teaches everyone to do the mochi dance! During this invigorating show from Hawaii, live music played on the koto and taiko drum will accompany young audiences as they dance, clap, and sing along. Running January 16-February 18, 2024 on the Cargill Stage, this production is best for everyone aged 4 and up.

“Sharing our cultural stories is one of the most important things I do as Asian American theatre maker,” said creator/director Reiko Ho. “I’m delighted to adapt a few of my own favorite childhood stories for the stage and introduce some of the beautiful performance traditions and aesthetics of Japanese and Okinawan culture to a new generation of young people and families.”

Up next, prepare to take a tumble down the rabbit hole with Alice in Alice in Wonderland and you’ll land in a wonderfully wacky world of rhymes and ridiculousness, checkerboards and cheeky cats, Mad Hatters and mayhem. In this headspinning version of Lewis Carroll’s timeless classic, adapted for the stage by Sharon Holland with music by Victor Zupanc, Alice chases the White Rabbit through the audience, attends the most absurd tea party in history, and faces off with the ragingly red Queen of Hearts, all amidst a melee of teeny tiny songs. Humpty Dumpty on a ladder — what could possibly go wrong?

Curiouser and curiouser. Directed by CTC’s Artistic Director Peter C. Brosius Alice in Wonderland is recommended for everyone aged 6 and up and runs February 13-March 31, 2024 on the UnitedHealth Group Stage.

“Our Alice in Wonderland features an extraordinary scenic and costume design by the remarkable Skip Mercier,” said director Peter C. Brosius. “Skip created a world of illusion, surprise, mystery, and hilarity. We are thrilled to bring this wonderfully quirky and joyfully theatrical production to our stage. It is a magical tale of discovery, of standing your ground and following your curiosity. Alice is a musical and visual feast, a wild journey down the rabbit hole and into incredible new worlds.”

Strap on your safety goggles and clean out your ears!

When an experiment unexpectedly goes awry, a concoction of sneaky, sprightly L E T T E R S takes over a weird and wondrous science lab in

Babble Lab. Watch them jump into jars, spring from drawers, bounce around the room, and even play hide-and-seek as our scientist makes her surprising findings: Bluku terullala blaulala loooo! Rakete bee bee? Rekate bee zee! Enjoy the exploration of spoken blurbbles as they spring forth in this one-ofa-kind, gee-gaw-filled laboratory.

Written by CTC Company Member Autumn Ness and directed by Sarah Agnew, Babble Lab runs March 9-April 14, 2024 on the Cargill Stage. Babble Lab was created with early learners in mind and is best enjoyed by audiences aged 0 to 105!

“I am so excited that with the world premiere of Babble Lab, I get to return to performing for my favorite audience, the pre-schoolers,” said playwright Autumn Ness. “This play is about discovering the power of your own voice, and learning to be fearless in using it. I want every preschooler that sees our show to find their own magical, musical, courageous, EPIC voice!”

Returning for the first time since 2017, the cherished CTC original musical A Year With Frog and Toad will conclude the 20232024 Season. In the only show from Minnesota ever to be nominated for three Tony Awards® (including Best Musical), you’ll meet Frog and Toad: best friends who embark upon a year’s worth of adventures with great merriment, comedic agility, and joyful song-singing. Join them as they go swimming (and boy does Toad ↓look funny in a bathing suit↓), rake leaves until they ↓ache, ache, ache↓, bake ↓cookies, cookies, cookies↓, and send letters via a real live ↓Snail with the Mail↓!

A Year with Frog and Toad is based on Arnold Lobel’s Newbery and Caldecott Honor books, and features music by Robert Reale with lyrics and book by Willie Reale. The 2024 production will be directed by CTC’s