In my last piece, I made mention of a few of President Trump’s various and numerous nominations/picks for some of the important positions throughout his administration. I compared it to (and I do apologize) several sports analogies. Don’t you just hate it when folks do that? I know I do. Surely there must be a better way to understand political goings-on. Weeding a garden? Plowing a field? A moon landing? Nope, I think I’ll just stick with some sports analogies. But first, “a penny for your thoughts?”

A penny, about the same value as an English “Pence.” Hey, where have I heard that word before. Oh yeah, the VP during President Trump’s first term. I have just seen where he is sticking his head out from the hole he dug for himself four years ago. You know the one. He’s now being rather outspoken about a few of the President’s choices. RFK Jr in particular. Mike… nobody wants to hear what you think. You showed your colors. So, I’ll keep my “two-pence” (two cents) and you can keep your penny-thoughts to yourself. Especially the un-requisitioned ones. The thoughts nobody asked you for.

So, let us return to a couple basic sports analogies. The chess board and, I don’t know, the 2002 Oakland A’s baseball team, the analogies I used in my previous “diatribe” (rant) as some might call it. I think of it more as “logic.” President Trump is playing a complex game. A game that requires both a 30,000 foot and an intimate microscopic view simultaneously. And analyzing changing data by the nanosecond on top of that. It’s a bit like what must be going through Tom Brady’s mind as he scouts the field for a pass target. The best target, not just a target. And watching the rushers and the blockers, the clock. A lot to consider. Oops, I believe I said baseball. The “A’s.” How did I do that?

So, the “A’s” Manager, Billy Beane, handpicked players who were not only skilled but “good” for the team as team-players as well. (Something Mike Pence obviously knows nothing about.) Moldable players. Players willing to perhaps abandon many of what they thought of as being their most valued skills or traits and take on roles assigned them by Beane. A team was built using several unlikely choices. But all choices that accepted his leadership (blindly even) and they wound up “champs.” So too is the White House a team. The ol’ “If he’s a good hitter, why doesn’t he hit good?” Quote I used last week. The head coach is there for a reason.

In chess, there is a complex field through which to maneuver. Often requiring the sacrifice of multiple pieces on the board throughout the match. Often not utilizing a bishop or rook to their fullest potential as it were so as to set up a winning strategy with an end victory in mind. The chess pieces do what they are told, unquestioning loyalty. Mike… go home.

I know Mike Pence is said to be a man of God (claims to be). I also know he was no longer on the ticket for 2024. No longer in the running. Many say that President Trump’s life was spared in Butler, PA that day my a miraculous event. So too, I think that just maybe, God took the long way to remove Pence from the winning ticket. I wrote about this several weeks back, I am so glad it is VP JD Vance this time around (and hopefully President Vance in ’28) and not Mike Pence. We had to suffer through four years of Democrat rule in the process, but, praise the Lord, we dumped Pence. The Lord’s will prevailed. Mike, take the hint.

We need team loyalty. Not turncoats. Just like the chess board, just like the 2002 Oakland A’s, If the head coach, team manager, hires you and tells you to play shortstop rather than second base or be a linebacker rather than the tight end you always thought you were… whatever, just do it. If it means having a bishop do a pawn’s work… whatever, work for the team, work for the country. So, Robert, Mr. Kennedy, respect your employer, stay away from pushing abortions. Everyone else too…do what the President is hiring you to do, create that well oiled machine.