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Imagine If Donald Trump Ran As A Democrat - It's Not Too Hard To Do
The Daily Caller ^ | December 14, 2015 | Jamie Weinstein

Posted on 12/14/2015 12:12:20 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife

Imagine for a moment if Donald Trump made the decision to run for president as a Democrat instead of as a Republican.

As Trump-mania continues to dominate the Republican presidential primary, it's not hard to envision an alternate reality - one where the real estate billionaire is taking the country by storm as a Democrat.

In many ways, it would have been easier for Trump to enter the Democratic primary than the Republican primary. Trump was registered as a Democrat from 2001 to 2009 and donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to Democratic candidates like Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid over the years. (In fairness, he has donated a lot of money to Republican candidates as well.)

As a native of liberal New York City, it's not surprising that Trump has a much longer record of being pro-choice than he does of being pro-life.

"I support a woman's right to choose," he said on NBC's "Meet the Press" in 2000.

Trump was never a staunch opponent of gay marriage either until recently. In fact, Rick Santorum says that Trump chided him in 2011 for being "too hard-core" on gay marriage and abortion.

"I don't know anyone that shares that opinion with you," Santorum said Trump told him.

So it's not too hard to envision Trump running as a socially liberal Democrat. Indeed, it would seemingly be a far easier act for the thrice-married New Yorker to pull off than convincing evangelicals that he is staunchly pro-life and against gay marriage.

On foreign policy, Trump isn't all that different from Barack Obama. To the extent his foreign policy worldview is comprehensible, he comes across as the least hawkish candidate in the GOP field, with the possible exception of Rand Paul, even though rhetoric sometimes masks this. While he says he wants to increase military spending and "bomb the shit" out of ISIS, he regularly makes the case for reducing America's leadership role in world affairs and focusing on nation building at home.

"I'll tell you what, there is going to be nation building. You know what the nation's going to be? The United States, that's what the nation's going to be," Trump told me in September, speaking of his foreign policy outlook.

As Trump also repeatedly highlights, he opposed the Iraq war (though the first evidence of this comes from 2004, over a year after the war began). Such a position is far more endearing to the Democratic base than Hillary Clinton's support for the military action that removed Saddam from power.

Trump wouldn't be out of place on economic issues in a Democratic primary either. At this anti-Wall Street moment, Trump could paint himself as the insider who is ready to turn enemy of his class for the good of the country.

What's more, Trump has a record of favoring proposals that would be far more vexing to the one percent than anything Bernie Sanders has proposed. In 1999, Trump proposed a one-time 14.25 percent tax on wealthy Americans and trusts over $10 million. Even now he doesn't back away from that proposal philosophically, even though he says he doesn't intend to pursue it in the White House.

"At that time we could have paid off the entire national debt and we could have started the game all even," Trump told Sean Hannity in August, noting that the proposal was actually "very conservative."

Trump is also a supporter of universal health care, if not Obamacare.

"I am going to take care of everybody," Trump said on "60 Minutes" in September. "I don't care if it costs me votes or not. Everybody's going to be taken care of much better than they're taken care of now."

Trump even praised the single payer health care programs of Canada and Scotland during the first Republican presidential debate in August.

"As far as single payer, it works in Canada, it works incredibly well in Scotland, it could have worked in a different age, which is the age you are talking about here," Trump said when asked by the moderators about his past support for single payer health care.

Of course Trump would have had to made the strategic decision to position himself to run in 2016 as a Democrat way back in 2010, before he went on his birther kick. You probably can't win a Democratic primary as one of the leading birthers in the country.

His rhetoric on immigration also wouldn't fly in a Democratic primary. But if he made the decision to position himself as a Democrat contender back in 2010, he would never have called for the deportation of all the illegal immigrants in the country. In fact, after Mitt Romney lost in 2012, Trump criticized the Republican contender's rhetoric on immigration as "mean-spirited," which suggests Trump's instincts on illegal immigration may be less harsh than what we are seeing today

"The Democrats didn't have a policy for dealing with illegal immigrants, but what they did have going for them is they weren't mean-spirited about it," Trump told Newsmax. "They didn't know what the policy was, but what they were is they were kind."

But if Trump made the decision to run as a Democrat in 2010, he may be even better positioned to win the Democratic presidential nomination today than he is to win the Republican nomination. The Democratic field is far smaller and with Joe Biden's decision to not enter the race, there is no candidate opposing Hillary Clinton who people can actually imagine winning the nomination, even if Sanders could potentially threaten her in a few states.

Trump may have been that guy. He could have successfully branded Clinton as untrustworthy and even criminal over her email scandal and shady Clinton Foundation dealings, just like he negatively branded so many of his GOP foes. And it very well may have worked, just like it seems to have worked with "low-energy" Jeb Bush.

So it doesn't take too much of an imagination to envision a world where Donald Trump is on the verge of winning the Democratic nomination. In fact, it may even be far easier to get your head around than our current reality.


TOPICS: Editorial; Front Page News; Government; Philosophy; Politics/Elections; US: Arkansas; US: Florida; US: New York
KEYWORDS: 2016election; arkansas; boohoo; cruz; cruzn4abruisen; dailycaller; demagogicparty; democrat; donaldtrump; election2016; florida; gopprimary; hillary; hillaryclinton; hitlery; itstdstimekids; jamieweinstein; jebbots; jebbush; liberalism; marcomanni; marcowomanni; mediamatters; memebuilding; newyork; newyorkcity; ntsa; partisanmediashill; partisanmediashills; realitytv; scottwalker; scottwalkerlost; tds; tedcruz; trump; trumpbots; truth; voting4trump; wolfsheep
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To: The Ghost of FReepers Past

Tell that to Moses, who didn’t get the hint until the age of 80 when a burning bush talked to him.


261 posted on 12/14/2015 4:19:26 PM PST by HiTech RedNeck (Embrace the Lion of Judah and He will roar for you and teach you to roar too. See my page.)
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To: dynoman

I appreciate you championing my posts, both #85 and the thread.

I hope people come to realize what I wrote has merit and veracity.


262 posted on 12/14/2015 4:34:37 PM PST by Lazamataz (It has gotten to the point where any report from standard news outlets must be fact-checked.)
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To: Lazamataz

Does that mean that she is a GOPe whore? We just have to know!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


263 posted on 12/14/2015 4:43:13 PM PST by DH (Once the tainted finger of government touches anything the rot begins)
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To: exnavy
I believe Trump has done that.

You believe wrong.

264 posted on 12/14/2015 5:19:27 PM PST by itsahoot
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To: Lazamataz

WOW...really great post !


265 posted on 12/14/2015 5:20:33 PM PST by nopardons
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To: Cincinatus' Wife

As a teen and before her Methodist Youth Minister turnbed her into a screaming lefty termagant


266 posted on 12/14/2015 5:22:47 PM PST by nopardons
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To: Cincinatus' Wife

He’s given no indication that he’ll shrink government beyond cutting wasteful spending.

What he has offered is a southern border wall, immigration enforcement and stopping the inflow of radical Islam. He’s offered to renegotiate trade deals and make tax changes that disadvantage American workers. No one else has been strong on these issues that matter very much to life in America.

As of this week, it appears he is for racial discrimination against white people and against standing up to the big fat Rino, Mitch McConnell.


267 posted on 12/14/2015 6:06:58 PM PST by SaraJohnson
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To: itsahoot

Vera Coking.


268 posted on 12/15/2015 12:28:30 AM PST by exnavy (good gun control: two hands, one shot, one kill.)
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To: exnavy

ping to post 241


269 posted on 12/15/2015 2:48:07 AM PST by dynoman (Objectivity is the essence of intelligence. - Marylin vos Savant)
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To: itsahoot

Yes, wrong. Check out post 241.


270 posted on 12/15/2015 2:52:47 AM PST by dynoman (Objectivity is the essence of intelligence. - Marylin vos Savant)
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To: Cincinatus' Wife

When you have the DT’s...you get help.


271 posted on 12/15/2015 2:55:11 AM PST by Osage Orange (Some people are like clouds. When they go away, it's a brighter day.)
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To: Jim Robinson
Have to disagree with the boss........

I truly think DT is a Trojan Horse...and will be exposed sooner or later.

I think he say's many good things....but many of those things he can't deliver on. Saying isn't doing.

Of course...all / most politicians..say things they can't make happen.

Gut speaking here.........I don't trust DT.

I don't trust him at all. I think emotions are ruling people that support him.....I actually like many things he say's...but I still don't trust him. Period.

272 posted on 12/15/2015 3:04:27 AM PST by Osage Orange (Some people are like clouds. When they go away, it's a brighter day.)
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To: anton
Trojan horse...is what you are saying actually.

And I agree....

The end result...remains to be determined.

273 posted on 12/15/2015 3:15:38 AM PST by Osage Orange (Some people are like clouds. When they go away, it's a brighter day.)
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To: Monty22002

Apparently....you would have brayed about the anti-Romney, anti-McCain, anti-Dole....posts of the past too?!?!?


274 posted on 12/15/2015 3:20:11 AM PST by Osage Orange (Some people are like clouds. When they go away, it's a brighter day.)
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To: nopardons
I learned a new word!!!

Termagant!!

Thanks...I will use it at work.

275 posted on 12/15/2015 3:23:24 AM PST by Osage Orange (Some people are like clouds. When they go away, it's a brighter day.)
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To: exnavy
Google is your friend.


I, for one, do NOT like to be told, "Go look for it yourself."

Any jury in America wants to see the EVIDENCE in a case.

So do I.

276 posted on 12/15/2015 4:19:14 AM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: HiTech RedNeck
Although the BUSH did not talk... Exodus 3 reports that...

God called to him from within the bush, "Moses!

277 posted on 12/15/2015 4:20:46 AM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: nopardons

The day has started GOOD!

I’ve learned a new word...


1. a harsh-tempered or overbearing woman.
2. historical - an imaginary deity of violent and turbulent character, often appearing in morality plays.


278 posted on 12/15/2015 4:22:35 AM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: Osage Orange

What the hell's a term agent?


279 posted on 12/15/2015 4:24:34 AM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: Elsie
Oh!!

I get it now!!

LOL!!!

280 posted on 12/15/2015 5:03:38 AM PST by Osage Orange (Some people are like clouds. When they go away, it's a brighter day.)
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