Three stones. That is all David Stuckenberg believes he needs to take down Donald Trump.
Three stones, a David and Goliath analogy, is apt given that the former president seems as powerful as he has ever been
Three stones asks a lot of somebody stepping in at the eleventh hour and obscure in political circles, even with a 22-year military career full of combat and service behind them.
Let’s be clear, Stuckenberg’s chances of being the republican nominee for president are long, but that is beside the point; Stuckenberg’s role in this nomination race extends beyond the ballot box.
Because for all Trump claims of unprecedented unity in his party and the media narrative warning of impending doom, Stuckenberg and others like him represent the fight back against authoritarianism within the world’s greatest democracy.
David Stuckenberg is reminiscent of a republican presidential candidate of old. His values, rooted in service and God, are a unique concoction found only when military service and American optimism are combined.
Service to his nation has been the theme of his adult life and it is this that underpins his unlikely run for the White House.
“I believe that the nation is undergoing a mass psychological event.” Stuckenberg claims, as means to explain the continued support for an impeached president convicted of sexual assault and accused of inciting insurrection.
“These have happened before, look at the rise of Hitler and Mussolini.” Stuckenberg says.
“I don’t for one second doubt that he would amend the constitution to maintain power, only yesterday he was calling for presidential immunity!”
The former president has claimed that he should be afforded immunity for acts conducted whilst in office in a bid to prevent his prosecution for his role in events on January 6th, 2021.
Stuckenberg is honest in his thoughts on the former president, refusing to hold back in fear of repercussions, something that cannot be said of senior members of his party.
It is worth noting that Stuckenberg’s future career prospects don’t directly hinge on the favour of Trump, a privilege not afforded to current senators who so scared of his wrath they submitted to his order to block a border control bill that would have handed them everything they profess to want.
"Blood will run in the streets"
That is not to say that his decision to fight against the current of republican politics has been plain sailing.
Stuckenberg says: “I haven’t shared this before but when I was in the testing phase of my campaign, a General Officer that I served with threatened my safety.
“He had become close to the Trump administration, and he said to me blood will run in the streets and there will be tribunals for the political enemies of the United States.
“Stay out of this and come back in 2028 and unify this republic.
“He helped make my decision, because this republic does not need revolution, it needs reform.”
So does Stuckenberg actually believe that he can win?
Maybe. But his showings in primary elections have been modest at best.
The primaries are the means by which the Republican party chooses their candidate to run for president. Held in each state, the winner of each primary wins a varied number of delegates with the overall aim being to win 51% of the total delegates available.
In Washington DC, Stuckenberg received 8 votes equating to 0.7% of the total cast. In North Dakota, he did slightly better, but only managed 19 overall votes compared to 1,632 received by Donald Trump.
Perhaps because of his military career or even his natural disposition, this seems to encourage rather than dampen his confidence.
Stuckenberg commented: “I achieved 1% of the vote after spending zero dollars and giving a 15-minute speech.
“I have spent less than $200,000 overall, Trump has spent hundreds of millions, my vote per cent spent is way ahead of anybody else.”
If he has some doubts as to whether or not he will be victorious, he has no doubts as to why he is the most qualified person for the presidency and you can see why.
His military service and education in strategy and geopolitics gives him an understanding of foreign policy far beyond the limited understanding of a man with a penchant for conducting diplomatic relations via Twitter.
He draws on lessons from the 30 Years War to the Second World War to form his understanding of current events and is clear about the threats posed by state and non-state actors to western countries and liberal institutions.
“I have been involved in the deepest national strategy planning in this country. I have advised the US Department of State, the National Security Council at the White House and have been attached as a Principal Strategist to the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
“My expertise lie in grey zone warfare, war that manifests below the threshold of what you see.”
The occurrence of this type of warfare is well understood amongst western governments even if the strategy for dealing with it is not.
Attempts to combat attacks on shipping in the gulf, deaths of US servicemen and foreign intelligence services meddling in democratic elections have been varied and incoherent and Stuckenberg sees himself as supremely qualified to unite the western fightback.
He does not mince his words on the state of foreign interference in the US and is clear on the malicious intent of countries such as China, Russia and Iran.
He says: “These powers are taking root in the US like rot and the decline is happening quickly.
“There is already a brown shirt movement taking hold of this country that if unchecked will end up leaving us in a fascist type order.
“It is time for those of us who have been defenders of this country to come out of civilian life and stand up and refuse to let it pass.
“Donald Trump represents a threat to this republic and the liberal order.”
We speak on Tuesday, ‘Super Tuesday’ as it is known in the classic hyperbolic arena of American politics, though as it turns out, it is merely ‘Mundane Tuesday’.
Stuckenberg is adamant that Nikki Haley’s race is run (he would be proved right when she dropped out 24 hours later), but does not concede that her defeat crowns Trump the republican nominee.
“I think eventually you are going to see a conviction for Trump and that will change the game, 60% of republican voters will not vote for him in that case.
“If he can be blocked from a clear shot at the convention, I believe that I can get in front of the American voters on that podium and make a compelling case.”
The idea that Trump will be forced to vacate the race because of a criminal conviction, leaving the path open for an alternative is understandable but not inevitable.
Whilst unlikely that the Supreme Court will grant Trump, or indeed any other president immunity in office, it is clear that the Supreme Court’s decision to hear Trump’s arguments on 25th April gives a huge shot in the arm to one person in particular: Trump.
The 2024 US election is shaping up to be a contest that if it were an episode of Friends would be titled ‘The One That Nobody Wanted.’
Caught between a man who openly boasts that he will be a dictator for a day and an incumbent believed by many to be too old and too frail to serve another 4 years, it is refreshing to see a candidate with strong values, age on his side and a clear plan for how he wants to govern.
Moreover, as the great republican missing spine epidemic sweeps across American politics, it is heartening to see that not all on the American right have fallen foul of the cult of Trump and more than that, are prepared to call out acts that go against the fabric of their proud nation.
Featured Image: Via David Stuckenberg Campaign Staff