Hi everyone! I’m back and this is my first article since our friendly neighborhood God Emperor has been elected. I though I would begin by explaining some of President Trump’s latest moves from a 4d chess perspective.

As most of you know 4d chess is on of Trump’s specialties. At its core it is a move where the opposing side has no good responses. Any reaction they take would benefit Trump. I am starting with General Mattis as this one is fairly easy to explain and would help me get back into the groove of writing. In the future I will expand this to the flag burning tweet, the Boeing deal and other issues.

In articles like this ill begin by describing the issue briefly, then I will point out the specific group the move is targeted to influence. Lastly I will show the two main responses to the action by Trump and how they both end positively for him.

As everyone knows General Mattis has been appointed as Secretary of Defense. Mattis is unique in that he is one of the few appointments by Trump that the democrats could block straight out. The Republicans would most likely vote as a block to grant the exception and friendly democrats such as Manchin and Heitkamp would mostly likely vote with them. Even with these defections and defections from every other Ruby Red state the democrats would still hold enough votes to block the nomination. Yet you are already hearing rumblings that democrats are waiving the white flag on a Mattis appointment.

Who does this move target? This move benefits Trump with two possible groups. First of is the group of democrats who are already dissatisfied with the way the democratic party has been handled. These would include the supporters of Bernie Sanders who are now backing Keith Ellison. Basically the progressive wing of the party. The second group it benefits Trump with is the military and swing voters.

Mattis is nearly universally loved by the military. If you have a relative serving ask them about him and you would most likely receive glowing praise. Some of this has to do with who Mattis is and the fact that he started as an enlisted person as opposed to being an officer so he would know the struggles of the infantry. Mostly though they feel Mattis will return a sense of sanity and realism to the rules of engagement which make it hard for the military to function. Even bystanders who are initially put off by the Mad Dog moniker and the Mattis quotes you see everywhere grow to like him the more they find out.

Democrats have two basic options. Deny or grant. If you grant the waiver then you look very weak to the progressive wing of the party. They are the least receptive to an officer like Mattis and see the democratic leadership shying away from a fight it could have easily won. This of course increases the divide inside the party and increases the likely hood that these voters stay home in 2018. This is critical because there is a wave of democrats in ruby-red or swing states that do not necessarily align with the progressive side which the GOP will aim to unseat.

If the democrats deny the grant they look bad to the military and independent voters, such as the working class in swing states. Most of the military vote GOP but some still do vote blue. This alienates them further from the democrats. The swing voters see someone who is perfectly capable, in fact he may be the best pick Trump has made so far, getting denied because of partisan politics.

Either way Trump wins.