Wednesday, September 14, 2016

...because Trump says it like it is

By Douglas V. Gibbs
Author, Speaker, Instructor, Radio Host

Even Donald Trump originally did not think he was going to get this far.  He was a businessman, not a politician.  But, even he has admitted that the days of him being a businessman are long gone.  Whether he likes it or not, he is now a politician. . . and it turns out he is quite a good one.  Somehow, going against political conventional wisdom, and against what any insider or consultant would recommend, in the Grand Ol' Party, Trump is the last person standing.  He has managed to relentlessly prove the political pundits wrong. They did not expect him to win the Republican nod, and they darn well sure are not expecting him to have a chance against Hillary Clinton in November.  Yet, despite lacking the experience and skills to be a presidential front-runner, he is beginning to take a small lead in some of the polls over Hillary Clinton.

Is it because of Trump's prowess as a candidate?  Has he found some magic formula?  Perhaps it's not him, but it 's Clinton, whose health is suddenly a front page story.  Perhaps people are finally realizing she is something to fear.  Or, perhaps, it is simply because Trump says it like it is.

Early on I have been describing Trump as the stick in the spokes of the establishment, or the bigger hammer in the rock yard.  Pamela Geller calls him a "brass-knuckles fighter," and adds, "which is exactly what we need."  He doesn't apologize, and Geller has said that is one of the things she likes about him.

Trump was number fifteen on my original list of seventeen candidates in the GOP.  I had only Christie and Kasich below him, and Jeb Bush one slot above him.  I was not a fan of the businessman as a politician.  Scott Walker was my guy.

Walker is a quiet little man.  While brilliant as a politician, and he proved to be gutsy against the unions in Wisconsin, running for President of the United States (it turns out) requires more than brilliance and a pile of guts as governor of a State.  With a number of voters out there, the ones who are usually less informed than you and I, it takes name recognition, a loud mouth, a controversial personality that rattles cages, and great hair that nobody can figure out how is combed.  A little honesty, and willingness to say it like it is, helps as well.

Trump is not politically correct and he comes across as "genuine" and “authentic.”  Whether or not is is actually genuine and authentic is yet to be seen. . . but he comes across that way.

For a large swath of voters, that is refreshing.  They are tired of being lied to, and for it to be done so in such a brazen manner.

Trump, we have learned, is not only satisfied with being merely politically incorrect.  He likes to go a little farther.  Dangerously farther.  I hear often, "If only he would not say such stupid things."

Stupid?  Are you sure that's what they are?

To be honest, most of his "stupid" remarks are brilliant.  He pushes the envelope so far that the envelope tumbles over the edge, and the liberal left mainstream media is there to report it. . . hoping that this is finally the stupid remark that turns people off.  But, with all of the free attention and publicity, and people figuring they know what he really meant under the well-calculated "stupid" remark, Trump rises further in popularity. . . leaving the pundits scratching their heads in disbelief.

He's crude, frustrating, and outside the system.  He's standing there with a sledgehammer waving it at the establishment's political machine, and it scares the hell out of them - which is exactly why many folks are cheering for him to win. . . character flaws, and all.  They love the existence of the threat of his huge sledgehammer, and the thought of Trump's sledgehammer smashing through the establishment's political machine without any care about what it might do to the poor and frightened lives of the ruling elites.

The difficulty is trying to figure out if Mr. Trump's professed values are indeed his values.  Has he always felt that illegal aliens and imported Muslim refugees can be dangerous to our system if not properly checked and monitored?  Is he truly anti-abortion in his heart and soul?  Can he really get the countries who have been screwing us economically to play fair?  Does he give a hoot about the United States Constitution?

Some folks fear he may be the Republican equivalent of Barack Obama, willing to fling around executive orders and federal supremacy like a leather whip, snapping the States and people with each vicious snap.  Even if for the right intentions, can unconstitutional federal intrusion upon the States be a good thing?

Donald Trump clearly is not a constitutionalist.  The original intent of the Founding Fathers does not seem to be something he holds on to firmly in his mind.  From what I am gathering, what little he understands about the Constitution has primarily been fed to him by his team, of which I am gathering are not exactly constitutional powerhouses in their own right.  But, rather than attack Trump about that, I can only say, "Mr. Trump, welcome to the team of usual suspects."

Two Presidents since 1900 really had a firm handle on the U.S. Constitution.  Calvin Coolidge and Ronald Reagan.  We might be able to squeeze Harding in there as number three.

So, if the problem is that Trump doesn't understand the Constitution, he's not much different than the majority of our candidates.  I am not saying that is okay.  I am saying that is what usually happens.  The nice thing about Trump, however, is he has shown a willingness to learn.  He has surrounded himself with conservatives, and folks that know the Constitution better than he.  That's a good thing, and I will take it.

Trump rambles when giving speeches, adds things he probably ought not to, and has a history of working with Democrats.  Should we be worried?

No.

He was a businessman, and when you are in the business of separating people from their money, or gaining political favor so that you can get a project done, among the first things you realize is that political party really doesn't matter.  They are all a part of the establishment's political system, and they all have money or something to give.  So, you work with everybody.  You smile, you pose for pictures, and you make deals.

Now, Trump is no longer a businessman.  He's a politician.  His days of kissing the butts of Democrats for a few favors, is over.  He is a deal-maker, so he will still talk to them, shake their hands, and try to get along with them on the surface so he can make his deals. . . but his business relationships with them are over.  He knows it, and they know it.

He is unscripted, politically incorrect, and seems to be a person that leans rightward on most issues.  In other words, Trump has emerged as the anti-Obama.  He's the loudmouthed guy with the unorthodox methods who doesn't apologize or worry about the Democrat Party's feelings that we've been waiting for. . . I believe, and hope.

And best of all, he's not Hillary.  That, right there, is an attribute that moves me into the "Vote for Trump" column.  Untamed, maybe.  Not a perfect candidate? Sure.  But, he's also not a far left progressive commie who, like Obama, seeks to fundamentally change the United States.  Sadly, Hillary Clinton is one of those kinds of people who can't wait to make the next Supreme Court nomination.
at

No comments:

Post a Comment