Am I alone in thinking it would be quite funny if Donald Trump gained not only the Republican candidature, but also the US presidency itself? Juvenile, irresponsible, pathetic; yes that’s me. After all, Trump is the candidate who accused all Mexican immigrants of being rapists, accused a female TV presenter of asking him tough questions because she must have been menstruating and accused American muslims of cheering on the 9/11 terrorists. How on earth could his elevation to leader of the free world be funny?
Many years ago, I remember reading a copy of Rolling Stone magazine when a journalist – I can’t remember which one – said he thought it was a joke when someone told him that Ronald Reagan was running for governor of California because he regarded the old B movie actor as being, essentially, a buffoon. What his reaction was to Reagan’s elevation to the presidency we may never know. Trump is much, much worse than Reagan.
It seems nothing stop him being on the Republican ticket. He leads by almost 8 points the former neuro surgeon Ben Carson who, judging from his recent utterances, has removed his own brain during the period of the campaign. But Carson’s statements look relatively moderate compared to Trump. Just look at these examples:
“An ‘extremely credible source’ has called my office and told me that Barack Obama’s birth certificate is a fraud”
“Ariana Huffington is unattractive, both inside and out. I fully understand why her former husband left her for a man – he made a good decision.”
“You know, it really doesn’t matter what the media write as long as you’ve got a young, and beautiful, piece of ass.”
“When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending the best. They’re not sending you, they’re sending people that have lots of problems and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bring crime. They’re rapists… And some, I assume, are good people.”
“It’s freezing and snowing in New York – we need global warming!” “My IQ is one of the highest — and you all know it! Please don’t feel so stupid or insecure; it’s not your fault.”
There are plenty more where they came from but he is loved for it. One pollster says: “Trump says what they’re thinking and the more outrageous he is, the more they agree with him. He’s saying what no other politician would say and that’s another reason why they like him.” Now my reaction to this is that the pollster is saying, basically, that Americans are idiots because so many of Trump’s comments are idiotic. And the more idiotic things he says, the more they love him for it.
I call this the Thatcher Masochism Experience. In the 1980s, there was a large group of people who worshipped Thatcher. Not just the rich and powerful who were the real winners during her divisive period as PM, but ordinary working people who fell victim to her scorched earth policies but still loved her for them, despite the devastation she left in her wake. The Americans always admired her. Maybe he’s their Thatcher, someone who calls it how he sees it, even if it is totally barking and he hasn’t really thought it through.
Trump’s campaign is based upon his incompetence, his gaffes, blunders, contradictions and outrageous comments, so when the latest cock up occurs, some people love him for it even more. A campaign will not implode if the entire premise of the candidate is based on all of the above.
It seems incredible to us, across the pond, that a wildly eccentric billionaire businessman with the worst combover haircut on the planet could become the next president of the USA, but American politics is the gift that keeps on giving.
You usually end up with the political leaders you deserve, at least in a democracy. If America takes leave of its senses an ends up with Trump they will truly get what they deserve. That’s why I find the prospect so amusing, even if I really know that I shouldn’t.
