Stop Playing Trump’s Game

Trump is a racist. He’s also sexist, elitist, and many other vile things. But he’s also very adept at picking pockets. A well-trained pick pocket is really a master of diverting attention. If he’s going to take your watch, he’ll make you worry about your wallet. If he’s going after your necklace, he’ll have you holding on tight to your watch. In that manner, the pick pocket will shift your attention from spot to spot on your body, and you’ll pride yourself on how well you held on to the things he made you think he was after, only to discover later on that he took every last item he was interested in.

Trump could give a master class in this. No matter how much I want to believe he’s nothing more than an oaf and a buffoon, he’s somehow become very adept at this to the point that I think he does it instinctively. Sure, he might seem like a cartoon sleepwalker, stumbling from obstacle to obstacle, with each one promising complete disaster, only to emerge from them all unscathed. But at this point, I don’t think that’s likely. I have to think some of it’s intentional and calculated.

The press helps in all of this, perhaps inadvertently at times. They’re turning more and more into a business of eyeballs and not actual facts, and so more of the reporting turns into a stream of editorials and side notes, each of which does nothing but further upset Trump’s opponents and convince his base that he’s persecuted. I feel like he’s doing enough terrible things that the inflammatory articles aren’t helping anything. Report the facts accurately and trust people to be smart enough to recognize just what sort of a person Trump is.

Yes, the things Trump tweeted are racist. Yes, it would be lovely to have the whole country recognize that without needing a map, a compass, a flashlight, and a bright blinking neon sign above his head. But all this energy talking about it isn’t really getting anything accomplished. It’s not solving any of the many problems he’s created. Even if at the end of the day, he admitted to being a racist, that wouldn’t get him out of office. All it’s doing is distracting us from the pockets he’s picking.

I worry that Democrats are approaching this next election cycle like it’s a grand opportunity to get their most liberal candidate elected. That surely anyone could win against Trump. But that’s what they thought about Clinton, and how did that work out for us all?

If it were up to me, I’d have the Democrats nominate someone a bit left of center. Someone who won’t alienate a good portion of independents. Who might even be attractive to the Republicans who are disgusted by Trump. That road makes it much more difficult for Trump to convince his base that Armageddon is coming and it’s just him between them and the Antichrist. He’ll throw everything he’s got at the next candidate. The ultimate goal needs to be Get Trump Out of Office.

If there are two Democrat nominees to choose from, one of which represents 80% of the party ideology but is expected to just barely squeak out a win against Trump, and another that only represents 40% or something like that, but has a much broader appeal to everyone in the nation?

Please take the one with broader appeal. Sure, there’s a chance the very liberal candidate would win, but to me, it’s not worth the risk of another 4 years of Trump.

Can the election just be over now?

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