Posted on 04/03/2011 12:36:19 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Donald Trump may not be an officially declared candidate, but he is already playing an important role in the run up to the 2012 election. Here's why he may play a key role in the proceedings.
I've never been a real fan of Donald Trump. He always impressed me as more of a showman than anything else, and I've never had much admiration for anyone who made a spectacle of himself. But in the right time and place, Donald Trump, bad hair and all can be an asset. Now may be that time and place.
Don't take this as some kind of endorsement of Trump as a presidential candidate. I have some serious reservations about whether or not he may be able to function in the White House. After all, his personality might find it extremely difficult to handle situations where he can't carry the day by telling anyone in earshot "You're Fired!" There are other concerns on a policy level, but this writing is not directed toward them. There will be plenty of time to go there if he becomes a serious candidate.
In the mean while, what is more important is what a Donald Trump candidacy can bring to the election and to the Republican Party. There are, at bottom line, three things that present a problem on the current electoral scene:
1) Unexciting candidates
2) A lack of disclosure by at least one candidate, and
3) A partisan media.
At present the Democrat Party is dominated by one person; a person who has gone from being a phenomenon to a less than ordinary man, who has now shown himself to be incompetent and in way over his head. The media, which traditionally has acted as a filter for candidates for public office, has failed to admit this in public. Their position can best be described by saying that if Barack Obama committed mass murder in front of a national television audience, they would make excuses for him and assert that he is still the smartest, best and most wonderful person ever to walk the halls of government at any level. This is difficult to counter, but a Donald Trump figure can make a difference in such a situation because he has the ability to attract attention to the issues that the media is ignoring. His outspoken nature and inability to be shamed by an unfriendly press becomes a tremendous asset. .
Meanwhile, the Republican Party has a large number of potential candidates from a variety of backgrounds. None have declared their candidacy yet, which may be part of the problem. In any event, none of these potential candidates have been able to attract enough public attention to create a race that will stir the public out of its slumber. It is as if no one is interested or paying attention. Trump, using his extreme ability to attract attention can help remedy this. His involvement in the birth certificate issue has already made it more significant than it has been in the past. It was known that there were cases at law involving the issue going on, but little attention was paid to them. Trump has made it a significant subject of discussion by his personal involvement. It is likely that he will be able to stir debate on other issues as well, simply by addressing them. This is a necessary aspect of a proper campaign. Issues cannot be allowed to languish, untouched; particularly at a time when the nation is facing a number of critical challenges that cannot be kicked down the road for other generations to face. And there is more.
At present the Republicans are, to a large degree, dependent on TEA Party groups for the support that they need at election time. What is ticking off a large number of influential TEA Party activists is the lack of open confrontation with the Democrat Party. After years of Republican cooperation with Democrat spending and big government programs culminating in George W. Bush's involvement in Medicare Part D and "No Child Left Behind" followed by the disasters of the 2000-2010 legislature, they want a reversal. They have gone so far as to suggest that they might challenge John Boehner in 2012. Mr. Trump has already shown that you can challenge the "establishment" and that you can raise a lot of noise without necessarily damaging your potential. He can also provide a shield against negative media attention by attracting attention away from other candidates, by acting as a media lightning rod. Finally, if someone else takes up the same issues he does, and gets a negative reaction, they can always point at Trump and say "why are you ignoring him when he says the same thing?" This could be a valuable tactic on occasion.
This attention grabbing ability of Trump's may be the most important thing that he may bring to the election. He has a large number of very strong opinions that he has no problem with addressing whenever asked. When he puts those concerns in the public spotlight he may make it much more difficult for the press and the other candidates to ignore them. Equally important to this is that he has essentially nothing hidden about his past. Thus, he acts as a foil against those who prefer to keep their personal backgrounds out of the picture. This is extremely important, for presidential candidates should not be permitted to keep their personal records from public view. The position they seek makes it essential that the public know anything and everything that they may want about anyone who runs for that office. In fact, the law of the land should state that anyone running for the office of president must be placed completely and totally outside of any privacy laws that may exist. It is only fair. If they want the power of the office, then they must prove themselves worthy. But back to Trump.
As stated above, he may not be the best candidate that any party might offer for president in 2012, and he may be a disaster if elected. I don't expect him to be elected. Despite this, he may well be the most important person in the election if he decides to run. Right now, with no declaration of candidacy, what happens next is anyone's guess. And, even if he decides not to run, he may well play a key role in the process of determining who takes over the oval office in 2013. The most important person isn't always the one who wins; he could be the one who makes it possible.
He’s doding what no one else will.
Bottom line: Good work ethics and hard work win.
He’s certainly better than Newt, Romney and some of the other boring candidates.
President Trump? Not so sure, but he sure is rattling the old Marxist/Musims’s cage.
_________________
Brighten your day
Phoebe the hummer’s babies get ready to leave
the nest. (live cam)
It seems to me that Trump could just say “hey I’m thinkin about running” and he’d be invited to appear on every TV and radio program without ever coming near the birth certificate issue. So why has he done so?
he’s not dumb, and he doesn’t have a big track record of being a political ideologue (he’s switched parties in fact) and he isn’t known for just going off chasing wild geese for no reason.
Maybe this time is different but it just seems real odd that he’s going after the BC when he could be getting just as much free publicity by talking about all the other issues instead.
This new found Trump love by some here reminds me of when Scott Brown first showed up. I recall being flamed when I pointed out that Brown was no conservative..I’ll point out the fact that Trump is no conservative...
Hillary?
Re the birth issue, he is trying to round up the birther base which is vocal and active for early efforts. The strongest thing he has going for him in actual experiene is his international business dealings. He bested Qaddafi?? Oh, joy. Why he is running? He has reached the top of his field, there is not much more UP ahead of him.
Thanks for posting this article; it really hits all the best points. Indeed, it says why I’m going to vote for Trump in any straw polls that come along and why I urge everyone else to. It doesn’t matter that he may be a showman, a self-seeking attention grabber, a charlatan, or even a DemonRat. All of that will come out in the wash. What’s vital now is that he forces all the other pubbies to address the Illegal’s massive legitimacy issues, which are symbolized by the birth certificate issue, but are far more important than just that issue.
I'll support Trump on the eligibility part though.
Trump is a loose cannon, but at least he’s on our side (hopefully for the long haul).
People who think this way would do well to read about the history of the Wollman skating rink in NYC, and reflect upon how often they've heard Trump talk about it.
ML/NJ
Never said he was a conservative. My candidate is Gov. Sarah Palin, but I hope Mr. Trump keeps bringing up the birth certificate, trade and military issues.
I have a hummingbird nest in the tree outside my window and also enjoy watching them come and go. 2 eggs in it, should be hatching soon.
I think trump hates obama for his anti business, anti American marxist crap and feels it his duty to start tearing bo up.He will never become a candidate, not that into the job.
I know Trump is no conservative, however he *does* bring the missing “leadership factor” to the table.
In addition, Trump is Trump, and there’s nothing the MSM can do about it.
Saw a local ad for Oprah tomorrow and Trump will be the guest. Will be interesting to see if he raises the birth certificate issue in Obama’s neighborhood which is the constituency Oprah represents. If so, I expect he will be booed and called racist.
He is just working for Hillary
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