Vivek Ramaswamy: Rebuilding America

Summary: Political newcomer Vivek Ramaswamy looks best positioned to secure the 2024 GOP nomination. He has most of Trump’s advantage. few of Trump’s negatives. His charisma, wealth, and outsider status distinguish him from the establishment candidates – who rely on big donors. More radical than Trump, he is the cutting-edge candidate. Ramaswamy continues to rise in the polls and will likely overtake Desantis in second place in the next few weeks. Many Trump supporters choose Vivek Ramaswamy as their second choice. This is a first post by a new co-author on the FM website!

Elections rarely end the way people expect them when they start. In spring 2015, everyone expected the presidential showdown to be Bush vs Clinton 3: Rise of the Megadonors. Donald Trump’s rise as a serious candidate and victory surprised everyone (especially me), showing outsiders can influence the byzantine swamp of DC. Earlier this year the general consensus expected 2024 to repeat established themes with Trump vs Biden 2: Geriatric Wars. Ron Desantis looked as though he would overtake Trump but started flaming out in March, beginning with his flip-flop on Ukraine.

I first learned of Ramaswamy while attending a Republican event in Iowa. Before that night I did not know he even existed. He quickly won over the crowd with his policies and Ten Truths (see below). His question and answer section impressed me the most. Ramaswamy answered hard questions directly and in detail. Most if not all of his answers ran contrary to mainstream neocon positions in the GOP. Ramaswamy also spoke very favorably of Trump for his contributions, especially trailblazing for others to follow. Establishment candidates such as Tim Scott, Mike Pence, and Ron Desantis speak carefully. They fear angering their donors. They also avoid the elephant in the room: how they will defeat Trump. I think they pray one of the indictments sticks so they don’t have to run against him.

Ramaswamy was born to Indian-American immigrants in 1985, making him the first millennial to run for President as a Republican. He founded biotech company Riovant Sciences in 2014. Later he stepped down to cofound investment firm Strive Asset Management in 2021. His investment firm specifically stands against “wokeness” and ESG (Environmental, Social, and corporate Governance). Ramaswamy has published three books on leftist ideology’s widespread infiltration of American corporations (see links below). When he appeared on Don Lemon’s CNN show, Ramaswamy stood his ground to Lemon’s rude commentary. This reportedly prompted Lemon’s firing from the network. The New Yorker dubbed Ramaswamy the ‘CEO of Anti-Woke’ (see link below to their profile on him).

Ramaswamy enjoys two big advantages over Trump. First, Trump and Biden clock in at 77 and 80 years old respectively, while Ramaswamy is 37 years old. He has the energy to campaign. Since announcing his campaign, Ramaswamy has appeared on a wide range of political podcasts and shows. While Trump has had relatively few appearances and events (but as the incumbent frontrunner doesn’t need to). Still, his age must slow him down. Second, Ramaswamy has little political baggage. Unlike Trump, who is divisive within the Republican party and even among his own supporters. I voted for him in 2016 and 2020, but was not excited for him in 2024. Per FiveThirtyEight, Trump only led Desantis by two points on January 6, 2023. Trump’s rise in the Republican Primary polls has only come from Desantis’ fall. Until July there was no widely known alternative to Donald Trump acceptable to GOP voters. Trump’s supporters might swing to Vivek Ramaswamy in large numbers if these trends continue.

Ramaswamy’s campaign website outlines his 25 policy commitments. He intends to put “America First”, going beyond anything Trump did as President. Here are five of Vivek’s commitments, one from each category.

1.  End affirmative action: repeal Lyndon Johnson’s executive order 11246.
2. Put Americans back to work: dismantle Lyndon Johnson’s failed “Great Society”.
3. Use our military to annihilate Mexican drug cartels: defend against the CCP’s opium war.
4. Shut down toxic government agencies: Dept of Education, FBI, IRS, and more (and rebuild from scratch when required).
5. Pardon defendants of politicized prosecutions: Trump, Mackey, and peaceful Jan 6 protesters.

The core message of Ramaswamy’s campaign is that we can reinvigorate America. Many younger Republicans (under 35) such as myself see America in decline. Ramaswamy tell us that we can change this course. As a Boomer (born in 1946), Trump cannot dismantle the Boomers’ liberal dream. He attempted to trim the out-of-control elements of the generations-long liberal crusade. He failed because he did not challenge its legitimacy. Ramaswamy explicitly challenges core foundations of the modern administrative state, even asking why we need core agencies such as the FBI. He proposes shifting more responsibility to the States and reducing federal involvement in everyday life. Lastly, his intent to pardon Trump and the January 6 protestors will earn him many favors among Trump supporters.

Ramaswamy’s Ten Sacred and Undeniable Truths

1. God is real.
2. There are two genders.
3. Human flourishing requires fossil fuels.
4. Reverse racism is racism.
5. An open border is no border.
6. Parents determine the education of their children.
7. The nuclear family is the greatest form of governance known to mankind.
8. Capitalism lifts people up from poverty.
9. There are three branches of the U.S. government, not four.
10. The U.S. constitution is the strongest guarantor of freedoms in history.

If I told you in 2010 that by 2023 these truths would become contested battlegrounds in the mainstream media, you would have said I was a conspiracy theorist. Now that dystopian future has arrived. It’s not the cool dystopia of Blade Runner, when we wear sunglasses and trench coats in the rain at night. In just thirteen years the leftist revolution has moved very quickly. Even at this late date it faces little organized opposition.

The January 2024 Iowa Caucuses will be Vivek Ramaswamy’s first real test. Until then we will see how Ramaswamy performs in debates against Trump. When Ramaswamy overtakes Desantis in the polls, the media will move against him. In 2016, journalists’ Trump Derangement Syndrome probably on net helped him. We will see how Ramaswamy  does. Should Trump fall from the race, whether due to health or indictments, then Ramaswamy will surge to the top.

For More Information

• Vivek 2024 Campaign Website
• Vivek’s 25 Policy Commitments to Take America First Further than Trump.
• Vivek’s Ten Truths.
• CEO of Anti-Woke, Inc (New Yorker) by Sheelah Kolhatkar, December 12, 2022.
• The Chimera Question by Vivek Ramaswamy, NYT, 16 July 2007 – An op-ed summarizing his Bowdoin Prize thesis on the ethics of creating human-animal chimeras.
• Don Lemon Early Morning Show with Vivek Ramaswamy. Posted on Ramaswamy’s youtube channel.
• Piers Morgan Uncensored Interview with Vivek Ramaswamy. Ramaswamy addresses Trump directly as his Republican opponent.
• Tucker Carlson BlazeTV Summit Interview with Vivek Ramaswamy. Of the attending candidates only Vivek gained points from this event. Trump did not attend.

His books

Woke, Inc.: Inside Corporate America’s Social Justice Scam

Nation of Victims: Identity Politics, the Death of Merit and the Path Back to Excellence

Capitalist Punishment: How Wall Street Is Using your Money to Create a Country You Didn’t Vote