Trump is a character and a caricature but is he a candidate?
To the editor:
Let me first of all say, that Donald Trump is dominating the news, leading significantly in the polls, and most candidates are scared of his candidacy. So, one would ask why even a question whether Donald Trump is really running for President of the United States? The answer is because we are talking about Donald Trump.
Donald Trump’s cocky attitude makes Muhammad Ali look shy and humble. Trump’s ego makes Joe Willie Namath look like a nerd at a sixth grade dance. His confidence by comparison, makes Lebron James not sure if he wants to take the winning shot at the end of the game. You get the picture. There has not been a candidate for the presidency like Donald Trump since…ever. Trump has within him a little bit of Barry Goldwater, a little bit of Harry Truman, and a little bit of Ronald Reagan. But Trump also has a lot of Donald J. Trump within him.
Still some students of politics really do not believe Trump is in the race for the long haul. They do not believe he is committed, professional, and serious about this presidential run. Just something for a billionaire to do during the long boring days of summer. Republican candidates had better not count on this way of thinking. If so, they do at their own risk. The GOP establishment is especially and rightfully worried that if Trump’s ego is not sufficiently stroked during the Republican Primary, then he will lead a third party run in the fall of 2016. A third party run by Trump, and say Carly Fiorina as a running mate, would guarantee a President Hillary Clinton. That is something to really worry about!
Trump’s polling numbers are unbelievable and growing as he is leading in all of the Republican polls for the GOP primary. He is not just leading barely, he is significantly ahead in the polls. Trump is probably a conservative when it comes to business, taxes, and illegal immigration, a moderate when it comes to social issues, and a very tough CEO when it comes to foreign policy and the dealings with China, Russia, and Iran. His politics can not be pigeon holed or over generalized. To use a basketball vernacular “Trump is hard to guard”.
Republican voters felt that John McCain would not directly take on Barack Obama for fear of being called a racist. Republican voters felt that Mitt Romney put his campaign in neutral near the end, not going after Obama’s jugular, for fear that he would be called divisive and mean spirited. Republican voters feel that Trump is not fearful of anything and they love a fighter who is unfazed and refuses to buckle to the attacks from the left wing media bias. Many Republican primary voters are sick and tired of the namby pamby “go along to get along” leadership of Boehner-McConnell in Washington DC.
Many Republican primary voters love the way Trump has taken on President Obama. By the way, it was Donald Trump a few years ago, who was the only one capable of forcing Obama to show his birth certificate and prove his constitutional legitimacy to the White House. The GOP did not, Trump single handedly did. These voters believe that Trump can take on the Washington D.C. cartel of the political class. They believe Trump can stem the flow of “illegal immigration” in the United States. And one thing that is greatly being overlooked is that a great deal of voters believe Trump, not Hillary Clinton, would do a much better job negotiating with Russia, China, and the ayatollahs. They believe Hillary will cave to the enemy but Trump will tell them to “Go to Hell”.
Trump is taking the libertarian votes away from Rand Paul, he is taking the business bloc voters away from Jeb Bush and Chris Christie, and he is taking the cultural conservative votes away from Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio. Somehow, repeat somehow, he is getting his fair share of the evangelical vote. It seems, Trump would have no problem telling Planned Parenthood “Your fired!” and thus withhold federal taxpayers dollars from this baby parts selling industry. In other words, the Trump candidacy is carving into every serious candidate’s base of the GOP for the Republican Primary. Ignore Trump at your own peril.
The end of the Republican Primary is still over a year away. With many a twists and turns and many a fumble and fumble recovery in political terms is going to happen. Only time will tell if Trump views this as a 100 yard sprint for the summer or if he is in the race for the marathon. One thing for sure, if he is in it for the duration the next 12 months will be a political commentators dream of personalities and politics. Could you imagine a debate in October of 2016 between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton; get out the popcorn and cover the kids’ ears!
Andrew William Coy
Fort Myers