#TRUMPED
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He leads the polls among Republicans seeking the 2016 Presidential nomination.
He insulted a previous Republican nominee for that office and refused to apologize.
He even gave out another candidate’s personal cell phone number at a rally in that candidate’s home state.
To whom am I referring?
Donald Trump. A businessman, a real estate mogul, a television personality, and, right now, the man who is DOMINATING the political news with his “boisterous personality.”
He made inflammatory statements about our southern neighbors and Mexican immigrants. He flaunted his immense wealth in a complaint about financial reporting. One national news outlet publicly relegated their coverage of him to the Entertainment section, rather than Politics.
His campaign style can only be described as a brash, insulting spectacle.
Trump is also a political enigma that stymies the traditional candidates, as they ponder whether to rush to be more like him to get their faces on television or to distance themselves from him.
Regardless of these things and his political positions (or lack thereof), Trump captivates the American public today.
He does that on style alone.
In an era where word choice, tone, and even tie color are polled and run by focus groups, he is the opposite. He is a candidate that seems to have no filter.
Americans are DESPERATE for something different from the traditionally bland selection of Governors, Senators, and Congressmen that seek the Presidency. Take a look at the campaigns of Herman Cain (2012), Dr. Ben Carson (2016), and Carly Fiorina (2016), none of whom brought with them any prior political experience in elected office.
Today, voters get that with Donald Trump. They also get flamboyance, cash, and a penchant for saying things that others would never dare say. Couple that with the desperation for something DIFFERENT, and he easily pushed to the front of a crowded field of Republicans.
Does he talk about meaningful issues? Or are people just enamored by his celebrity, his insults, and his ability to grab their attention?
Is he really a part of the debate? Or is the spectacle just something to watch?
What happens when people take a closer look? I think we all remember the media scrutiny with the also-rans in 2012 after their moment in the sun.
Do the voters really want another wealthy elite, albeit from the beneficiary side of Big Government, in charge? Maybe a better question is, will Trump’s still undefined political positions resonate with voters once the shine of his splashy entrance dulls and fades?
Maybe one of these days, someone who isn’t part of “the club” will get a chance to talk about the real issues we face and how freedom, rather that Big Government, is the catalyst to our return to peace, prosperity, and the republic the Founders envisioned.
I look forward to that day.