David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

Retired engineer, married, multiple cats and dogs, RUSH, MAGA, Pro 2A, pureblood, no DM’s please!

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@SenDuckworth Well (D)one Tammy! You (D)emonstrate(D) the (D)emocrat (D)irective for(D)efining who is (D)evine and who is a c(R)iminal.

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@UntoldWarFacts Don’t recall ever hearing about the Seafire before. Thanks!

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@GovPritzker Where’s the cut for working families, Prick?

Corporations are receiving billions in tax relief so you can make it appear that ILLinois is a thriving state, and you are handing out millions more to illegals, while ILLinois families are getting nothing.

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@JBPritzker

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@GovPritzker The only huge news ILLinois needs to hear is that you have resigned!

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@ZeekArkham Absolutely horrible (but not surprising) that the “party of love” would do this.

If you were to visit ILLinois, I’d happily buy you a beer or two!

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@JBPritzker @BarackObama Yet another stain in the legacy of ILLinois. Abe is spinning in his grave.

[Cynical Publius @CynicalPublius]

RE: Intra-Party Squabbles

As we watch Tucker Carlson and his elite group of emotionally wounded narcissists do everything they can to destroy the Republican Party and hand the federal government to literal Communists (who knows why they are doing this), I think it’s important that Republicans understand the Democrat tactic of ALWAYS uniting behind their party’s candidates so we can adopt the same approach.

I’ll explain using a personal example.

I’m not sure who I will support for President in 2028. I used to think I would be a slam dunk for JD Vance, but frankly some of his associations, his connections to this “common good” movement and his handling of the Iran negotiations have given me pause. I have not really dug deep into any of this yet, so it could be that I am being superficially swayed by false reports, but the fact is I may choose a preferred Presidential candidate for the GOP that is not the choice of many other Republicans.

That’s OK.

As we swing into primary season (which will heat up the minute the 2026 midterms are over), we in the GOP SHOULD vigorously debate who we want as President. Vance? DeSantis? Rubio? Gabbard? Let the arguments flow. Be fierce. Be committed. Stand by your beliefs and fight for your candidate. THAT is America.

But know this—whomever I support, once the GOP candidate is chosen through the primary process, THAT is my candidate who I will fight for tooth and nail.

Why?

Because the alternative is LITERAL COMMUNISTS.

Too many on the Right let the perfect be the enemy of the good. If you have some pet grievance against Trump that causes you to shut down and walk away, then you don’t see the big picture—i.e., the alternative big picture where President Kamala ran roughshod over the Constitution and opened up our borders to millions of illegal aliens demanding handouts from your tax dollars.

Does the GOP suck in its current incarnation? YES IT DOES.

But I repeat: THE ALTERNATIVE IS LITERAL COMMUNISTS.

So the way to do the most good is to fight fiercely for incremental change in the party but then support who it nominates.

The Carlson/Massie/MTG style of “I’m taking my ball and going home” causes grievous harm to America and hands it over to its enemies.

There is a difference between (i) fighting for your candidate and ultimately supporting the nominee and (ii) purposely destroying your party so the bad guys can take power.

This is an immutable reality that too many on the Right fail to understand. I get it. You don’t like it. It makes you mad. But it is a reality that you can do nothing to change, so the only solution that will actually advance the goals you seek is to operate within the framework we are stuck with, and try to change it incrementally as best we can.

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@GovPritzker And THE most powerful “corporations” are governments. The exorbitant taxes you charge to support your voting base (aka illegal aliens) are a huge negative impact on ILLinois. If you want to help ILLinois families, RESIGN!

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@SenatorDurbin After defending Fauci, you have absolutely no right to complain about somebody “lying under oath“.

[The Real Mike Rowe @mikeroweworks]

Not the way I planned on spending my afternoon, but 7,600 comments should not be ignored! Bots, trolls and personal attacks notwithstanding, the critics of yesterday’s post were dominated by a large and vocal contingent who rushed to remind me that there’s “a difference between socialism and communism,” an obvious indication that they didn’t actually read the post.

Shelley Armour writes… “Mike! You know there is a difference between democratic socialism and communism, right?”

Hi, Shelley. Yes, I know there’s a difference, and I understand what the difference is. The larger point, and the fundamental flaw with your comment, is that you seem to believe the candidates within the Democratic Socialist Party are both “democratic and socialist" simply because that’s the name of their club. Well, maybe some of them are. I really couldn’t say. What I can tell you for sure is that more than a few have called for the complete dismantling of capitalism, free markets, representative government, property rights, borders, police, prisons, and the Constitution in general. My post referred to them, as well as a number of elected Democrats who have agreed to campaign on their behalf – including Gavin Newsom, who said, "The Democratic Party must accept the DSA in order to take back the Congress.” His words, not mine.

Tracey Steele writes…“Wow! I cannot believe Mike Rowe said this. He has a huge reach, and he is actually spouting the word “communism” like it’s the 1950s! Wow Wow Wow!”

Wow indeed, Tracey, and thanks for noticing the size of my reach! (Contrary to popular belief, size does matter!) To say it again, I am not the one “spouting” communism or conflating socialists and communists. The word is being “spouted” by members of the DSA who are using it to describe themselves. I am not accusing them; I am quoting them.

John Engles… Hey Rowe, what’s the difference between the Communists who want to run the country and the Nazi/fascist who currently is?

Several differences, John, but the only one relevant to this conversation is the fact that the communists currently running for office have clearly identified themselves as such. They do not dispute or reject the label. They embrace it. It is who they are, who they claim to be, and who they want to be. The president, on the other hand, has never claimed to be a Nazi or a fascist. That doesn’t mean he isn't, but it is worth noting he has rejected the accusation outright. Obviously, you are entitled to that opinion and the right to share it publicly, thanks to our Constitution. Unlike in a fascist, Nazi, or communist regime. (Also worth noting, Nazis and fascists are not the same thing.)

Chris Tomaloff writes… “Kinda like how the political right didn’t shout down the extreme rhetoric coming from their candidates?”

No, Chris, not like that at all. In the video I shared, we saw examples of prominent Democrats saying things like, “We need to elect more communists!” (Cea Weaver, Director of the NYC Mayor’s Office.) Mamdani himself literally tweeted, "Each according to their need, each according to their ability." That’s a direct quote from the Communist Manifesto.

But what exactly is the corollary from the right? Are prominent Republicans tweeting, “We need to elect more Nazis! We need to elect more fascists! Eat the poor!” I don’t think so. John Engles may think Trump is fascist and a Nazi, but Trump disagrees, and so do a majority of voters. Communists, on the other hand, say it loud and say it proud. I’m inclined to take them at their word.

Beto Ojeda… “Mike has always leaned to the Trumpian view of things but never states it, so as not to alienate anyone, but we know how to read between the lines. This “communist” talk is McCarthyism 2.0.”

I wasn’t around in the 1950s, Beto, but from what I’ve read, it was indeed a very difficult time to be a communist in this country. Lots of private citizens were dragged before Congress, made to take “loyalty oaths," and blacklisted in their places of work. I can’t justify it or condone it, but I can explain it. We had just fought a hot war against fascism and Nazism and just begun a Cold War against a communist regime. The existence of an organized Communist Party in this country at such a time strained the limits of tolerance. But do you really think we’re less tolerant today than we were seventy-five years ago? Do you really believe my comments about communists who claim to be communists are synonymous with another Red Scare? If you haven’t noticed, Chris, no one in the DSA, including the communists, is being dragged before Congress and made to swear a loyalty oath to the Constitution. Today, a communist in America can run for office…with the endorsement of the governor of California! And the tacit approval of a major political party! Seems to me we’re about as far from McCarthyism as we can get.

As for my desire not to alienate anyone, I suppose I am guilty of that. I run a foundation that is open to people of all political beliefs, and we’ve assisted lots of Americans who lean to the left. I also know for a fact that many Democrats have supported mikeroweWORKS historically, and I have no desire to run them off. But do you really have to “read between the lines” to understand where I’m coming from?

True, I’ve never endorsed a candidate or publicly encouraged people to vote. But I’ve been very transparent about the fact that I’m a registered Independent who favors policies and programs that often align with conservative principles. Obviously, I would not characterize those conservative principles as “Trumpian,” because a) they were around long before him, b) Trump is not a conservative, and c) I do not agree with or support everything the President says and does. So, is it possible, Beto, that your accusation is rooted in the fact that I have never publicly denounced the president to your satisfaction? Is it possible you think I'm a Trumper, simply because I've never called him a fascist, or a Nazi, or a liar, or a conman, or a traitor, or whatever else you believe him to be?

Gretchen Seipp… Mike, the fact that you still act as though you’re not political after all this time is a bit ridiculous. I still support your work and foundation because I believe in it, but the folksy act has worn thin.

Aw, shucks, Gretchen. Folksy? Lil' ole me?
Honestly, how am I acting as if I am “not political?” This entire conversation is the very definition of “political.”

Christopher Pugh… I would have voted for Mike Rowe and Freddie a few years ago before he went full-on MAGA, and I’m all in favor of his project, but it’s pretty clear the political direction that he’s moved in and the money trail that has influenced it.

It’s Freddy, not Freddie. (I don’t much care, but he’s a terrier and particular about such things.) As for the “full-on MAGA” moniker, is there something I did specifically to earn that designation? Is there some kind of general definition you can share? Or, are you coming from the same place as Beto? Is calling me “Full-On MAGA" your way of saying that I’ve failed to condemn Trump to your satisfaction?

For the record, MRW is supported by liberals and conservatives alike. I have no idea what “money trail” you are referring to. Also, regarding my personal politics, think about the implications of what I wrote. I said that the Democrats have been given a gift – an opportunity to appear reasonable by speaking the truth to their own party, just as Bill Maher has done. All they have to do is distance themselves from candidates who have called for the complete dismantlement of our Constitution. All they have to do is say, “Hold on, comrade. Our tent is not that big. We respect your right to hate America, but we don’t want you in our party, and we will not support your candidacy.”

If they say that, I think a lot of Independents would see them as they see John Fetterman, who has, in the eyes of many voters, become the most “rational” Democrat currently in office. If they don’t – if they actually welcome communist candidates into their party – then I’m afraid the Democrats, by default, will offer the American people a very simple choice in November – a party that disavows communism vs. a party that doesn’t. I think such a choice would be very positive for Republicans because I don’t think most Americans want to align themselves with a Democratic Party that welcomes communists. The question for you, Chris, is why would a “Full-On MAGA” like me encourage Democrats to act in a way that would disadvantage the Republican Party? And the answer is simple – it’s because I support the existence of a Democratic Party that believes America is still a fundamentally good place.

I think there’s a lot of room for improvement in our country, and I believe the best way to realize those improvements is for Democrats and Republicans to have continuous, robust and public debate about all the issues. But if one of those parties is affirmatively determined to transform our democratic republic into a communist state, then we’re no longer debating the various ways to make our country better; we’re debating the merits of destroying it. And really, what’s the point of tolerating that?

America is already a big tent, filled with hundreds of millions of people with wildly differing views and lots of political parties that represent those views. We’ve got the Green Party, the American Freedom Party, the Socialist Workers Party, the Constitution Party, and of course, the Communist Party USA, as well as the Democratic Socialist Party. America’s tent is so big, we can even tolerate fringe parties like the KKK, the Proud Boys, the Oath Keepers, and so forth. Why then, does Gavin Newsom want to make room in the Democratic tent for socialists and communists? There’s only one reason, and he’s already spelled it out for us – he believes the Democrats need them to win back the Congress. I think it’s a bad bet for the Democrats and for America. And if a prominent Republican reached out to the KKK with the same “big tent” offer, you’d better believe my vote would be in play.

Michael Tillman… When are you going to throw your hat into the ring, Mr. Rowe?

Ha! When it no longer fits my head!

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@pritzkerpress You clowns are idiots.

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@ChicagosMayor Can you BE any more of an idiot?

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@GovPritzker YOUR TAXES are “unfair pricing and profiteering”

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@SenDuckworth I didn’t realize the overcoat was born in ILLinois!

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@CynicalPublius “Jane Crow” 🤣
Unfortunately that was not just an attempt at humor.

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@JBPritzker BULLSHIT! You “got into government” because of your lust for power and you figured you could buy your way in. M

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@MusicLive__ Any idea where/when these performances were from?

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@vivien2112 @HumbleAnthem @Rush74Kyle YESSSSS!!!

[David Spurlock 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @RealSpurdaddy]

@vivien2112 @HumbleAnthem @Rush74Kyle #rush #rushfamily
Tonight’s Cardinals-Yankees game!