Posted on 03/02/2022 9:34:40 AM PST by Heartlander
Many leading Republicans and conservatives want someone other than Donald Trump to run for President in 2024. But this judgment requires an assessment of Trump’s vices and virtues in the context of our current political and cultural circumstances, as well as an assessment of other prospective Republican presidential candidates. Among the talked-about alternatives to Trump, I have not yet seen anyone who possesses either his virtues or his backbone. I am not suggesting that everyone make way for Trump; rather that it is too early to throw him overboard.
I regularly ask Republican politicians what they think of Donald Trump. The most frequent response is some version of, “I like his policies but don’t like the rest of him.” But this formulation gets it almost backwards. Although Trump advanced many important policies, it is the “rest of him” that contains the virtues that inspired a movement.
Trump was born for the current American crisis: the life and death struggle against the totalitarian enemy I call “woke communism.” The “woke comms” have seized every political, cultural, and economic center of power in the country from where they ruthlessly push their agenda. That agenda rests on the conviction that America is thoroughly bad (systemically racist) and must be destroyed.
If there is one thing that patriotic Americans know about Trump it is that he, like them, is unequivocally pro-American and willing to fight to defend the American way of life. When Collin Kaepernick and his ilk knelt before the American flag, Trump called them “sons of bitches.” As always, he was being forceful, authentic, and unmistakably clear.
Trump stood up for America every time he violated the strictures of political correctness. Trump has said over and over exactly what political correctness prohibits one from saying: “We have our culture, it’s exceptional, and that’s the way we want to keep it.” Trump’s contempt for political correctness showed patriotic Americans that its ever-tightening grip could be loosened. As Trump and his supporters know, political correctness cripples our ability to think clearly and act decisively.
Trump said Haiti is a “shithole” and that Representative Maxine Waters has a low IQ. These were not racist lies but uncouth, politically incorrect observations that most people would agree with but not dare say. Most of us, conservatives no less than liberals, are reluctant to criticize black Americans for fear of being called a racist. Trump, on the other hand, is an equal opportunity criticizer. This is what we used to call “colorblindness.”
Trump treated the woke media with the same contempt he treated political correctness, provoking their outrage and revealing their utter corruption.
Trump made no apologies for America’s past. His unlimited confidence in America is, in this time of national doubt and self-loathing, just what the doctor ordered. Trump thinks America can vanquish all comers if we just put our mind to it and he is right.
Trump is a man of action, guided by facts and common sense. He has no use for theories. He knows that slavish devotion to theory can lead to nonsensical beliefs; for instance, that children should be able to undergo “gender conformation”; that police forces should be defunded; or that biological boys should be able to compete against girls in athletics.
Trump knows it is time to make a stand, and for that we need strong men. Weak men do anything to avoid admitting the hardest truths because they lack the resolve to do what truth demands from them. Trump is a manly man. In present times, when manhood is being stripped of its masculinity, traditional manhood, even when flawed, has much appeal.
Trump is also comfortable in his own skin, a prerequisite for independence and courage. Trump ripped apart people he thought were weak. Sometimes he went overboard, but his supporters forgave his excesses because strength is in such short supply. Trump plays to win. And he knows that in war reaching across the aisle is usually a sucker’s game
A large part of Trump’s appeal was that he is a bona fide outsider who distrusted the expert class, which comprises so much of the “swamp.” Although his own administration sometimes made it difficult for him to get done everything he promised, his supporters knew he was on their side and was trying his damnedest not to let them down. Culturally, Trump, fueled by Big Macs, understands, as does the outsourced American worker, that a cheap smartphone is not a replacement for a meaningful job and the life it supports. Trump also understands that what Americans of all races and creeds desire are stable communities, and the opportunity to raise their families in a culture that values industriousness, self-reliance, patriotism, and freedom.
Trump revealed—not “caused”—the divide in this country. He awakened the public to the dangers of woke communism and, as good leaders do, gave his supporters the breathing room to voice their discontents. This may have been his most important achievement, made possible by qualities independent of policy. You cannot win a war unless you know you are in one.
This enumeration of Trump’s virtues does not fully capture his uncommon courage and firmness of purpose. Trump is the most towering political figure in living memory. He has, like it or not, defined the politics of our age. In 2016 he was the political leader most fit for war-like circumstances. Yes, he has vices; even so, we should pause before we move on to someone else.
If Republicans do choose another candidate, they must do so in full confidence that he will embody Trump’s virtues. If not Trump, his positive qualities must be the standard by which we judge other candidates.
Trump is the one man who wants to stop the illegal alien inundation that has been supported by BOTH parties for 30 years.
He has my vote just on that.
Trump is the only candidate for the presidency, period.
yeah...you and what army? By all measures he was the best President since Reagan. It’s funny to watch all the never Trumpers pretend they like $4 a gallon gas, I admit, but SloJo has to GO! (Hey, that rhymes)
Trump’s virtues
Inflation 1.5%
National unemployment rate 3.5% (Massachusetts rate 2.8%)
Southern border sealed tight
Gasoline $1.85 a gallon
Violent crime half of what it is today
Grocery bills 20% lower than today
National debt $5 trillion less than today
The world’s dangerous psychopaths kept under control
Etc,etc,etc...
Gut feeling here is that Trump won’t run in ‘24. Someday history will appreciate him (if there is history ahead). I’d love to see a second Trump term, but right now I don’t.
Nor do I see any other Republican I like better. Nobody even comes close.
My fear is that depending on what happens in Ukraine, Romney gets back into the game.
Can you imagine a Romney/Cheney ticket? It’s just too horrible to contemplate, but the chances of it happening have gone up dramatically in the last week.
I will never vote for another Bush League Republican.
Trump is probably exasperated with the fickle nature of politics. With business, success is obvious. I wouldn’t blame him if he doesn’t trust the voting public who chose a leader of the free world (Biteme) who should be cared for in a nursing home.
Western Civilization is in an advanced state of decay. Whether or not decadence can be reversed once it has afflicted a civilization is yet to be determined. Perhaps there is a point of no return.
Donald Trump believes that the USA can still be saved from the quagmire of decadence, returned to ascendancy, and saved from destruction. So convinced was he that he risked everything, a considerable amount in his case.
It was the Truth that he spoke that amassed the enemies of Truth--and of the USA--against him with the resolve to destroy him. What they really want to destroy is Truth.
Whether or not America will return to ascendancy or will sink into destruction remains to be seen, but if Donald Trump succeeds, the American Dream will prevail and the USA will arise like a phoenix into her greatest glory and splendor.
This is a very astute essay. He tells it like it is. Oh, and in our house we admire DJT very much.
The bozos in the GOP and all the Bush wing Repubs had better be made to understand We The People want Donald Trump back in office and not their sorry ass pick for president.
Romney 2024. Yeah, that’ll galvanize the base!
He may try. Some people can’t take no for an answer. He needs to have a talk with Jeb Bush. Money bags and elevator toes don’t generate votes.
Christie wants to be the anointed establishment candidate.
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