Yours portly is slightly strapped for time after a raucous Labor Day weekend, so I’m assigning my readers some homework.
I’ve been kicking around the idea of a post comparing Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., to the Gracchi Brothers of the Roman Republic. The Gracchi were members of the elite who realized that the common people were struggling mightily under the republic’s economic system, which blatantly favored wealthy Roman Senators and other patricians at the expense of the people. The Gracchi proposed land reforms and modest redistribution, which would have eased tensions between patricians and plebeians, giving the plebeians a chance at living modest, fulfilling lives.
Similarly, Donald Trump and RFK, Jr., both hail from the upper echelons of American society and politics. President Trump represents the business and cultural elites in this pairing, with RFK, Jr., representing the political elites. Both men have something of the common touch about them, and both recognize that, in order to save the country, the elite class of which they are a part must give up some of their massive power and wealth; otherwise, they risk losing it all, while making the rest of us miserable in the process.
That’s a very quick rundown of what I have in mind. To prepare you for this essay (which I might have up this Saturday, but possibly next week), here is a great video from the YouTube channel Tribunate, which breaks down the life and policies of one of the Gracchi, Tiberius Gracchus:
More to come on this topic, as well as the intriguing alliance between Trump and RFKJ, soon.
Happy Studying!
—TPP
The Portly Politico 
And when, do you suppose, you’re going to have time to do that kind of writing??? Do you recall circus acts where a person had plates spinning on the tips of sticks? Isn’t that pretty much what you do every day? Keep those plates spinning? I suspect a better time would be over the next long-ish school break.
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Hahaha, you have a good point, Audre. Yes, I might need to pull that together over a long weekend.
It’s an unusually busy time of year, but I’m enjoying a much more manageable work schedule. Still lots of plates to spin, but not as many as last school year. It’s amazing how having fewer classes and getting to teach something fresh have buoyed my spirits. I feel so much less stressed.
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Amazing! I’m looking forward to this.
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Me too! I was really glad to see RFKJ endorse DJT. I think they could make an effective unity ticket. Both are talking about issues that Americans believe are important, but which the elites ignore or suppress. RFKJ (and your blog) has opened my eyes to the importance of conservationism and maintaining clean foods.
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Yes, 100%! I would have loved to see RFK Jr. in the White House, but realized from the get-go it was a bit of a pipe dream given the MSM manipulation of the narrative. I first heard RFK Jr on Joe Rogan’s podcast in June 2023 and it blew my mind–as you mention in your post, both Trump and Kennedy are from the elite class but still very much in tune with the middle class and every day people. Kennedy, especially, thinks with a low time preference, so he’s thinking about future generations, which I think is a habit lost on most Boomers. I’ve accepted that things may not get better in my lifetime, but I’ll gladly put in the time and effort if it means my kids or grandkids have more opportunity than I did. Very people people think like that. Kennedy does and, I suspect, Trump also has some degree of strategic future thinking. I’m excited for the Unity ticket… let’s just hope the machines don’t go haywire, they don’t lock us in our home due to monkeypox, and we don’t ship in millions of non-citizens to cast their votes…
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I’m hoping and praying for the same.
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