Donald Trump is getting a new round of criticism, from the NY Times for presumably mocking the disability of one of their reporters and from John Kasich in an ad depicting Trump doing the mocking and then asking the question:
"Is someone like Donald Trump really worthy of following in their footsteps?"
This question is asked over flashing photos of widely respected presidents: Washington, Lincoln, Ted Roosevelt, FDR, Eisenhower, and finally Reagan, whose face is framed by an American flag.
Watch it yourself: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9krV-Yo9Nc
Trump's strength is his unguarded frankness, at a time when many Trump (and Carson) supporters feel constrained by "political correctness" to hide their feelings of racial and religious identity and pride. They want a candidate speaking of Christian faith, traditional families, and a familiar social order, in a manner unhedged, uncomplicated, and unafraid of appearing racist or xenophobic. Donald Trump's frankness gives people permission to abandon "correctness" and just say what is on their mind. So does Carson, in the area of religious faith, comfortable in expressing unabashed political preference for Christianity over other faiths. Lots of people feel this way: http://wpo.st/Y4Rt0
Trump's weakness is his unguarded frankness. Because he is largely extemporaneous on stage, responding to crowd comments and shout-outs, he says things that aren't filtered and groomed for close scrutiny by opponents with a take-down agenda. And unfiltered Trump voices a tone that is objectively very different from the presidential grand words schoolchildren memorize, "Fourscore and seven", "malice toward none", "noting to fear but fear itself." The extemporaneous comments by presidents have largely disappeared from history and mind, leaving a rhetorical highbrow standard and expectation.
This "respectability" standard is meaningful for Republicans. An overwhelming majority have open contempt for Obama and Clinton, but this heightens rather than diminishes their expectations on the successor to Obama. They want someone they can be proud of.
And that is the judo move for Trump opponents, make his strength of frank political incorrectness into a negative.
But, of course, it works two ways, and Trump is a master of hitting back. Advocates of decorum and complicated language come across as mealy-mouth. Trump is not admitting to being a narcissistic boor; he is admitting to telling it straight, something long overdue in Washington.
"Is someone like Donald Trump really worthy of following in their footsteps?"
This question is asked over flashing photos of widely respected presidents: Washington, Lincoln, Ted Roosevelt, FDR, Eisenhower, and finally Reagan, whose face is framed by an American flag.
Watch it yourself: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9krV-Yo9Nc
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| Casual and comfortable here, but now attacking Trump |
Trump's weakness is his unguarded frankness. Because he is largely extemporaneous on stage, responding to crowd comments and shout-outs, he says things that aren't filtered and groomed for close scrutiny by opponents with a take-down agenda. And unfiltered Trump voices a tone that is objectively very different from the presidential grand words schoolchildren memorize, "Fourscore and seven", "malice toward none", "noting to fear but fear itself." The extemporaneous comments by presidents have largely disappeared from history and mind, leaving a rhetorical highbrow standard and expectation.
This "respectability" standard is meaningful for Republicans. An overwhelming majority have open contempt for Obama and Clinton, but this heightens rather than diminishes their expectations on the successor to Obama. They want someone they can be proud of.
And that is the judo move for Trump opponents, make his strength of frank political incorrectness into a negative.
But, of course, it works two ways, and Trump is a master of hitting back. Advocates of decorum and complicated language come across as mealy-mouth. Trump is not admitting to being a narcissistic boor; he is admitting to telling it straight, something long overdue in Washington.
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