The chatter on the morning talk shows is all about the
disintegration of the Trump campaign and the collateral damage being done to
the Republican Party. Joe Scarborough
reports that more than a year ago, Trump had a lengthy phone conversation with
Bill Clinton, who encouraged Trump to run for the Republican nomination. It would be an understatement to say that I
dislike Bill Clinton, but I have boundless admiration for his political
skill. Is it too much of a reach to speculate
that he foresaw the sort of damage Trump could do to the Republicans?
God, I love this stuff!
Bill is trying to say "sorry" for ... well, the list is too long.
ReplyDeleteWhat about the damage Trump can and is doing to the country just running, let alone if he wins (which isn't impossible)?
ReplyDeleteIt is an interesting question whether destroying the Republican Party and opening the way to a strong progressive movement is worth that damage. He won't win. Of that I am now certain.
ReplyDeleteMe too. Trump is self destructing in a bizarre and textbook fashion. There are different kinds of certainty, however. How would you put in words, how certain you are?
ReplyDeleteWould you say the odds are greater that you win the lottery or get hit by lightning or a a meteor?
He's really damaged his chances, severely.
I mean, I have to ask- but this is too good to be true
If this were in Octuber, we could be almost completely certain that Trump will not win. But there is a lot of news times between now and November and the Republicans could find Hillary's weak point, if she doesn't reveal it herself inadvertently.
ReplyDeleteI don't claim that everyone has ultra short memories, but your average potential Trump voter probably is not gifted with a sense of history or even aware that yesterday's presidential election news counts more than who was Miss New Jersey last year.
Too early to be certain of anything. Every presidential election is a coin flip.
ReplyDeleteI hear this all the time, but why exactly do people think the Republicans will be destroyed by Trump? It seems to me that even the rare person who defects from the party this year will be back in the fold in 2018.
ReplyDeleteI don't think, Professor, that you are taking into account the growing resentment of the "precariat" - the vast numbers of unemployed and underemployed who live terribly insecure lives. Add to this the fact that establishment politicians have shown utter contempt toward the "precariat:" Alan Greenspan celebrated this worker insecurity in the 90s (in that it helped explained the transfer of wealth to the top); Clinton, Bush II, and Obama have floated the idea of cutting and/or privatizing social security. They have all supported trade deals that have hurt the average worker. They bailed out the people who crashed the economy and stuck it to those who lost their homes. Under Obama, 95% of all new income has gone to the top 1%. No one on Wall Street has been prosecuted for fraud and they still get large bonuses. The evidence of an establishment billionaire class preying on the rather defenseless working stiffs is everywhere. Throw in the reality of endless wars, increasing surveillance, attacks on whistleblowers, and the erosion of basic freedoms, and you have a very volatile situation where many in the precariat are gleeful every time Trump goes off the reservation and shocks the punditry for doing so. Meanwhile, Clinton, who has lied to the American people and even lied under oath, gets a pass from the FBI, is partners with Wall Street, loves trade deals, and can't warm up to a $15 minimum wage.
ReplyDeleteA huge swath of voters, who think that the system is rigged against them, also believe that the only one making noise about it is the same guy, from their point of view, who is vilified by the oligarchs who benefit from the rigged game.
The more outrageous Trump is, the more establishment types are shocked by and not shocked by the malfeasance of a ruling class, the more intense his followers become.
Bottom line: we are a long way from the finish line.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteJerry, I completely agree with everything you have said, especially the last sentence. I shall be volunteering again this Saturday and will continue to do so until the election. But I think the polls plus the electoral map plus the results now coming in from key battleground states makes it clear that Trump has an extremely narrow and perilous path to the finish line. At least that is what I tell myself so that I can sleep at night! My God, we have fourteen more weeks.
ReplyDeleteWell, it appears that the guy who was eating third rails for lunch, may have stumbled onto one that really is untouchable.
ReplyDeleteOur only hope is that he hangs in there. Ryan would be formidable against Clinton.
Jerry, I think four or five of the Republican hopefuls could have beaten Clinton. The Republicans picked the only candidate she could beat.
ReplyDelete