"How did you go bankrupt?"
"Two ways. Gradually, and then suddenly."
Something new is happening in the presidential election. Over the past week Trump ended the uneasy alliance with Republican establishment people. After a long primary campaign during which he drew crowds to their feet in condemning the feckless leadership in the Republican Party, condemning Paul Ryan by name, he spent the summer back in alliance with them. The campaigns were sharing resources, Trump and Ryan had semi-endorsed one another, and Trump was criticizing crooked Hillary, not bi-partisan elites.
The campaign had met an equilibrium at that point. Then the pussy-gate tape.
For three or four days everything stayed in place. Ryan, Rubio, the RNC and other Republican leaders condemned the pussy-gate words, but remained in support of Trump's candidacy. Trump's media support stayed in place.
Fox News articles focused on Hillary's emails. The headlines introduced stories not with the accusation but with the defense: "Trump blasts accusations as 'completely false'." Or, "Media bias hurts Trump."
Trump is unapologetic and Fox News has his back. Throughout this period poll results put the best face on polls that showed Trump behind nationally. The Fox headlines would say: "Trump keeps Ohio lead" and "Trump within margin of error in battleground states." But his firewall is starting to crumble.
Last night Fox News headlined that Trump is behind in the polls. It was unvarnished. Trump is behind. The headline wasn't buried behind stories on large crowds attending a Trump rally nor was the lead something about Hillary emails. They led with the bad news, which to my observation is brand new.
And something new is happening to Trump. He has changed. Readers who are instantly disgusted by Trump may not notice it. They might think Trump was "crazy" or "beyond the pale" before and he still is. But I have watched Trump closely enough to see a difference. Before, Trump looked commanding, angry, forceful, composed.
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| Ocala Florida speech |
Now he looks desperate. His has a cornered-animal look and sound. He is striking out at everyone and everything. Now he is "unshackled", as he puts it, and is condemning Republican leadership right along with Hillary. I remain of the opinion that his issues of patriotic economic and military isolation has signifiant voter appeal but the big theme of the campaign has slid away from his issues. Now it is about Trump's suitability and his manner is now confirming the Hillary Clinton narrative. This may not be reversible, in which case the Ernest Hemingway quotation from The Sun Also Rises may be in that final resolution. The campaign is crumbling all at once.
Watch him. Trump red faced and desperate
Wait. There is even more! That's right, there is also a podcast. Thad Guyer and I hash out the meaning of the current polls. We disagree on what data is real and relevant. We discuss the videotape and the debate and Bill Clinton and whether or not Trump can stick to issues that have popular appeal with, maybe, enough voters to get him elected.
Click Here: Disaster for Trump? Maybe not. Hear us out
4 comments:
I think God has a good sense of humor. After all, He gave women the pussy.
He may be crashing but as Peter has regularly reminded us, Trump has still unleashed a powerful movement of discontented people who will go far to rationalize their views. Even if he loses the election.
He can hit the bottom of the Mariana Trench, without a breathing device, and the basketful of deplorable type people he has fired up are going to continue to be on the loose. His calls for "watching the polls closely" are already inspiring some of the less tightly connected followers to begin trying to intimidate people. See Charlie Pierces blog entry today about the two escapees from Deliverance standing outside a Hillary campaign office brandishing their guns and glaring at the workers. I support the second amendment, all of it, especially well regulated, but i don't believe it was ever meant to trump all the others (pun unintended). Great piece Peter, going to be an interesting 31/2 weeks.
He can hit the bottom of the Mariana Trench, without a breathing device, and the basketful of deplorable type people he has fired up are going to continue to be on the loose. His calls for "watching the polls closely" are already inspiring some of the less tightly connected followers to begin trying to intimidate people. See Charlie Pierces blog entry today about the two escapees from Deliverance standing outside a Hillary campaign office brandishing their guns and glaring at the workers. I support the second amendment, all of it, especially well regulated, but i don't believe it was ever meant to trump all the others (pun unintended). Great piece Peter, going to be an interesting 31/2 weeks.
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