Posted on 04/03/2011 12:53:30 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Donald Trump will announce in June whether he plans on being a contender for the presidency in the Republican primaries later this year. For several reasons, my excitement over the prospects of a Trump candidacy is mounting.
Let me say first, that in a perfect world, the very idea of a man like Trump running for the presidency, on either party's ticket, would be unthinkable. This isn't to suggest that Trump is a bad man, but only that he has no experience in the art of governing. It is a common misconception among many on the right that success in business is likely to translate into success in politics. Not only does this assumption ignore the fact that the frameworks of incentives and constraints within which politicians and free enterprisers respectively operate are by and large mutually antagonistic; it ignores as well the fact that success in business could just as easily portend political failure.
Any business is an enterprise. An enterprise is defined by the goals toward which it is oriented, the goals toward the realization of which each of its members is expected to contribute. Now, obviously, the enterprises that constitute a "system" of "free enterprise" are not compulsory organizations. However, a state is indeed such an organization. It is a mistake of the first order, then, to confuse government with a private employer and citizens with employees.
Free citizens must be free to determine enterprises of their own choosing -- not those that the government decides to impose upon them. And what this in turn implies is that a government belonging to citizens, not subjects, free men and women, not servants and/or slaves, simply cannot be patterned on a business or enterprise model, for it exists for no other reason than to facilitate peaceful and orderly co-existence between individuals engaged in all manner of self-chosen pursuits.
A wildly successful businessman like Trump is no less likely to lose sight of this than someone devoid of all business experience.
There is another reason why, in a perfect world, no conservative would treat Trump with any seriousness in connection with the presidency -- namely, Trump is no conservative. That "business" and "conservative" are considered virtually synonymous terms by right and left alike is a standing testimony to how effectively the left trades in fictions. A person's involvement in business is no signifier of his political orientation, it is true, but it is also true that the tycoons of the largest businesses -- what the left derisively refers to as "Big Business" -- usually donate to Democrats. That he has contributed to the coffers of no small number of Democratic politicians proves that Trump is no exception to this rule.
Still, our world, the real world, is far from perfect. Given current political realities, Trump may be just what Republican voters need at the moment.
As Trump himself has noted, if not for pervasive voter disenchantment with President George W. Bush, we wouldn't now have President Barack. H. Obama. In 2008, voters in both major parties and everywhere in between had grown weary of Bush's "compassionate conservatism." Of course, being but a euphemism for ever larger government -- that is, exactly that thing against which Republican campaign rhetoric rails -- it was neither compassionate nor conservative, as conservatives understand these concepts. The Republican Party claimed to have learned this lesson, but beyond vague references to "spending," no GOP 2012 hopeful has so much as explicitly repudiated Bush "conservatism," much less specified the respects in which their governance will differ from that of the last Republican president.
Trump, in glaring contrast, has already indicated the willingness, the eagerness even, to make it abundantly clear to both the party and the nation how and why he will be no Bush Republican. This the party faithful and -- more importantly, to hear the Republicans tell it -- the independents and "moderates" regarding whom the politicians from both parties spare no occasion to woo both need and deserve to know.
But this is not all.
It would be a gross understatement to describe The View as Obama-friendly. Yet just this past week while making an appearance on it, Trump did what no other Republican, much less a Republican with presidential aspirations, would so much as think of doing: he unabashedly expressed his skepticism concerning Obama's birth certificate. With a single utterance, the Donald in effect legitimized a group of people whose concern for this very same issue earned them the scornful name of "birthers" and rendered them a collective object of derision by left-wing pundits as well as such "respectable" right-leaning personalities as Bill O'Reilly and Michael Medved. And what Trump did for this issue, he will be able to do with any number of issues that McCain and the GOP establishment sought (and continue to seek) to avoid like the plague.
This is the point: there is simply no way that anyone can succeed in depicting someone as internationally famous as Donald Trump as a fringe figure. This, obviously, isn't to suggest that Trump would be anything at all like an invulnerable candidate; no one is without weaknesses. But Trump's enemies (among the establishments of both parties) will simply not be able to dismiss him as an "extremist."
Finally, there are enough disenchanted Democrats, along with similarly disenchanted independents and Republicans, who would be more than willing to give Trump their ears. When this Washington outsider -- indeed, outsider to politics! -- promises that upon his election to the presidency, "business as usual" in Washington will become a thing of the past, they will have good reason to believe it.
Trump in 2012? This may not be such a bad thing.
All I asked you was why you want Trump as President. If you are selling something you are not doing a good job. If he was going after Treasure Secretary or something maybe, but President? I mean suddenly he is a conservative. He gave money to Harry Reid for his reelection for goodness sake. What is going on with folks on Free Republic suddenly?
http://www.therightscoop.com/what-you-need-to-know-about-donald-trump/
Look at this beauty and you believe he is right for the Republican Candidate? I can’t believe people are calling him conservatives.
I take back the “kid” part.
You don’t even have “youthful naivety’ to fall back on as an excuse]
It amuses me no end that you’re right on my heels as far as [chronological] age goes.
[now, intellectuality maturity is a whole ‘nother thing]
In a surprisingly *few* short years, you’ll be as “ancient” as I [and the rest of the “FReeper dinosaurs”] and hopefully, a bit wiser.
:)
And, FYI, I -never- said I *wanted* him as POTUS.
My initial post was _sarcasm_ meant to point out the disparity between him and our current [alleged] POTUS.
I’m sorry for you that you “missed” that.
I’ll aim lower, next time.
In the meanwhile, some of us Ancient Posters will continue to enjoy his public lockjaw-grip on <0’s leg.
“What is going on with folks on Free Republic suddenly?”
An extremely bright, gutsy, high profile, powerful man is bearding the lion cub in his own den by *loudly* asking the questions and making the points that nobody else will touch.
What’s not to like about that?
My initial post was _sarcasm_ meant to point out the disparity between him and our current [alleged] POTUS.
My post on age was sarcasm meant to be funny about not voting for Reagan. See we are both in the sarcasm mode. Let’s just say Trump will not be President and leave it at that. He has too many problems and can’t figure out which party to send money to so he sends money to everyone. I guess in the overall picture I win since I didn’t want Trump for President and I will be right. Sorry for your loss.
Well I agree with this post.
Do you ever use eBay or Craig’s list?
Ship by UPS?
Buy anything at Lowes?
[or a hundred other big stores/businesses]
Go look up their donations.
Every time you make a purchase from any of them, you’re feeding The Beast.
My father taught to me respect my elders.
I would not *ever* make a sarcastic crack about anyone’s age for *any* reason.
His logic was that, one day, *you* will be ‘old’, too.
Perhaps it’s a difference in upbringing.
There are FReepers here much older than I and *much* wiser.
I would never jest or mock their advantage of years.
“I guess in the overall picture I win since I didn’t want Trump for President and I will be right. Sorry for your loss.”
If you were older, you’d be aware of the ‘ancient” Usenet adage:
“Even when you win an internet flame war, you’re still a loser”.
Have a nice day and enjoy your retirement, “old man”.
:)
Isn’t it amazing what you can learn when you read something in its proper, pertinent context instead of instantly going berserk?
She wouldn't commit one way or the other until I let her know I had a case of Hamms in the balance. She told me to keep it on the QT but admitted that she indeed is running.
Is my case of Hamms on the way or do you want more proof than this?
(I don't have any idea how she got my cell number.)
There...fixed it....:)
Is your toaster eligible?
I respect elders. Anyway, we will have to see what happens when the final Republican Candidate is nominated. I believe regardless of who it is everyone will come around and vote for him or her. Everyone here knows that Obama must go, but I do believe that having “flame wars” at this point is not really that bad as long as everyone comes together when it matters. Have a good one.
Now if Michele doesn't run I would vote for Trump over the other RINOS. Trump will go after China, that is what we need. If you watched Fox News this morning Frank Luntz did his thing with the ads. There was an ad I'm sure you've seen where a Chinese guy is talking to students how they conquered America. None of the RINOs currently running or planning on running have even mentioned China.
There will NEVER be a candidate that will be 100% on every issue we support. It doesn't work that way. Michele Bachmann is from Minnesota and a Twins fan. I HATE the Twins but does that make me hate Bachmann? Absolutely not!
I'm not trumpeting RINOS (pun intended) I want to see someone who can win and take on the economy, namely China.
I know that some businessmen contribute to both parties. But Trump contributed over $65,000 MORE to Democrats than to Republicans.
And look at the Democrats he contributed to. Mostly hard left candidates, NOT moderates.
Weak attempt on your part to make excuses for Trump. Care to try again?
- JP
Frankly, if I had my druthers, I want DeMint but nobody in the GOP is going care what I want.
As usual, the crossover and same-day voter registrations will pick _our_ candidate, just like they did McLame.
Why the hell that’s even LEGAL is beyond me.
Even here in the Freak State, you vote in YOUR party primary *only* and you bloody well better choose your party affiliation well before.
[this, coming from the state where 70% of Baltimore Dem voters ceased sucking air decades ago]
Frankly, I’m still amazed that, somewhere, there’s a clothing shop that caters to hippos.
“Big & Tall”, sure...but “Short & Wide”?
Who knew?
I like Bachmann too but I really worry that O has “jinxed” any more “first [fill in the blank] president” possibilities for some time.
Freaked out Americans will probably go for the typical “old white guy” again, for weal or woe.
LOL. Nice spin. I assume you do listen to Rush and respect his values/opinions? His has a lot of influence, wouldn’t you say? So why doesn’t his personal life matter? Don’t care wether you voted for Reagan or not, he was President and a Great One. Additionally he was married twice and did a hell of a lot better then the one in office now who has been married only once. So please try again and explain your logic?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.