You could see the momentum shift his way, the key to win any election, as Ted Cruz stole the show last night by calling out the elephant in the room–the three CNBC moderators. That’s moderators with an “S” for S-M-U-G. “The questions that have been asked so far in this debate illustrate why the American people don’t trust the media,” said Cruz. Apparently being smug is a prerequisite to be a starter on the NBC junior varsity team. And it doesn’t translate to real Americans.
Ted Cruz is speaking a language Americans relate to and he’s doing it without seriously dipping into his war chest loaded with cash. He’s likable, he’s sick and tired of Washington, and he’s not out of touch. I’m all ears.
I love Cruz’s op-ed in this morning’s WSJ “A Simple Flat Tax for Economic Growth” calling for a 10% income tax and a 16% business tax. He talks about the potential growth for the economy:
President Reagan knew that after years of economic stagnation the country was ready for a big change, and he knew that he would win if the people had their say.
And the people were right. The Reagan tax cut led to what the late Robert Bartley, then editor of The Wall Street Journal, dubbed “The Seven Fat Years”—the period from 1983-89 when the economy soared by an average of 4.4% a year, including one year by 7.3%. The economy grew by nearly a third, disposable income increased 20%, and 18 million new jobs were created.
This could be the elixir to help get Millennials into the game. When I was at Babson, I had an internship with one of the more successful entrepreneurs in the history of the school. I had dinner the night before my first day with some Babson alumni who had worked for him. They told me stories about how he was successful at everything he did: How his timing was excellent, his execution the best, and on and on. He graduated Babson and hit the ground running. As we were getting up one of the guys said:
“It also didn’t hurt that he was 24 in ’84”
