Either the Democratic Party is mind-numbingly stupid, they’re deliberately lying, or they’re drunk on their own B.S.
How is it possible, in the age of AI (the “I” being dubious at best), that a party with all the might of Big Business, Wall Street and most of the BIG media behind them could be caught so flat-footed at the outcome of the 2024 Presidential election?
For months, weeks, then days before November 5, the Democratic Press Machine insisted that the race was too tight to call, that it would all come down to the wire; that can mean one of only three things:
- They are utterly clueless (never a good thing for a governing party), or,
- They refuse to accept reality (also not good) or
- They’re compulsive liars ( which is precisely what they accuse Trump of being)
By the way, the Republicans had conducted many of their own polls before the election, which showed they were so far in front of the Democrats that they began to question the veracity of their pollsters because the legacy media kept insisting, ad nauseam, that their public polls showed a 50/50 split.
But surely the Democrats and Media wouldn’t twist the facts … would they?
To Scream that Trump is an Unbridled Liar Misses the Point
When people shake their heads at Trump’s debating techniques and get downright hostile (which I used to do), it might be time to pause and examine what’s really happening.
Doing so gave me a very different perspective.
First, the common narrative of all of his opponents (media, public, politicians) is that Trump is a liar who makes things up.
I won’t dispute that.
However, I have a problem with the implication — which can only mean that his opponents don’t lie and make things up.
Yikes!!! This is politics we’re talking about!
Politics is NOT a Discussion; it’s a Streetfight!
Unfortunately, if any politician didn’t use all the ugly tools of argument (strawman, ad hominem, exaggeration), they would be at a considerable disadvantage; in fact, they wouldn’t garner votes in any quantity.
The public generally responds to what politicians say emotionally, not rationally. That means political soundbites are just a form of verbal clickbait, and we know the veracity of all that.
When I changed my perspective just slightly, I completely changed my view of Trump.
There’s an “Honesty” to Trump’s “Dishonest” Tactics.
There’s a quality about him that makes his argument style and campaign tactics endearing; they’re so audacious that they “rise above” the tactics of other politicians.
Hear me out.
Trump is so far out there (like a comedian on stage) that he seems to be mocking the entire political system — and he’s not wrong to do so.
If we consider a confrontation between two opposing politicians to be anything other than a street fight, we’re being myopic.
The basic assumption — and outrage — by many observers of our recent trend of political debate is that both sides should stick to the facts and behave as though they’re in a rational, civil discussion… not on this planet and certainly not in America.
Trump plays the game of politics with bemusement.
On the surface, it seems he says whatever pops into his mind, unfiltered like a 4-year-old child, but that’s a false read.
He’s a consummate actor and a marketing genius. He understands human nature and emotion and how to pull the right strings.
He plays with the media like a cat with a mouse — and there’s no denying his extraordinary success. Trump gets all the press imaginable because he believes in and practices the old advertising adage: say whatever you want about me, but just be sure to spell my name correctly.
He doesn’t take himself too seriously when he’s campaigning and bantering with the press.
I used to take what he said to the press, in his tweets, and sound bites at face value, and I would blow a gasket. That was because I was taking what he said pretty literally (a fundamental mistake when listening to any promotion), and I drastically misunderstood how deliberate he was. He knew what he was saying and exactly what he was doing (minus a few slips here and there)!
Think What You Will, but He’s NOT Stupid
I imagine that Trump considers his soundbites and all the other inanities he tosses out so cavalierly about as serious as one should view the depth of a bumper sticker. In other words, if we expect wisdom and clarity from a political soundbite or a quip to the media, we’re delusional.
I think he’s actually sneering at that whole concept of media soundbites, and it’s his way of mocking it because it’s the only thing that explains his outrageous behaviour and extraordinary success.
He put some schtick into the whole political circus and treated it like the carnival that it is.
But give him credit; he’s willing to have a lengthy discussion or interview to explain his position (right or wrong). Every politician should welcome such an opportunity.
So clearly, he’s not quite as crazy as the Democrats make him out to be; he didn’t destroy America during his first term as the press predicted he would.
He didn’t put “lying” Hillary in jail. He kept the country out of war. He shook up foreign policy (he almost brokered a Middle East peace treaty in the Abraham Accord, which the new administration inexplicably killed), and he didn’t destroy the economy.
I think many Americans saw a different side of the Democratic party (and many other governments around the world) during the past four years and how they took such draconian, fascist measures during the COVID period. They declared free speech and opposition to the party line verboten.
That, to me, is far scarier than any of the musings Trump tosses about.
So yes, for that reason alone, I’m glad Trump won.
As I see it, the Democratic party (as well as the Republican party) need a time-out. They both need to ask themselves what exactly it is that it’s trying to accomplish.
Americans are unique. They have a different DNA than any other people. To use an old term, they’re a melting pot, not a salad bowl. People who live in America become Americans.
Outsiders (non-Americans) look at America with baffled perplexity — it’s like watching two sisters try to claw each other’s eyes out during a fight, but if an outsider tried to interfere and choose a side, they would immediately and mightily defend each other.
That is America today. It’s having a family quarrel, and its present political and governing system is temporarily dysfunctional, but America will right her listing ship; she’s a survivor, and for the rest of the world, that’s a good thing.