"Willy was a salesman. . . . He's a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back--that's an earthquake. And then you get spots on your hat, and you're finished."
 |
| Lee J Cobb as Willie Loman |
Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman
Trump sounds different. Desperate.
I may just be imagining this.
Do you notice Trump's pressured speech? The mental health people look for it as a sign of someone experiencing the manic side of bipolar disorder. Speech is rapid, frenetic, urgent. The speaker moves from topic to topic without natural pauses. Manic episodes are associated with inflated self worth, delusions of grandeur, risky behavior, sleeplessness, and exaggerated optimism.
I will leave to others to diagnose mental illness in Trump. I see a salesman, and I sense the salesman who realizes a sale he thought he was going to make is slipping away.
It is that sound you hear in the car salesman's voice after he hears the dreaded words "let me go home and think about it." Every experienced realtor, insurance salesman, carpet salesman, or financial advisor knows what is happening. Something isn't working, the customer isn't sold and they want out. It is probably hopeless, but the salesman can try selling harder, give it one last try, restate the case, review the features and benefits, make assurances, remove the alternative choices by stepping up criticism of the competition.
"And frankly the Democrats should be ashamed. They don't want us to succeed. They want us to fail so they can win an election--which they aren't going to win. They do everything they can to make things as bad as possible."
He had the sale, in hand. The official whitehouse.gov website has not been updated. Things are still great there:
"Economy & Jobs. The economy has come roaring back to life under President Trump. The stock market has hit record high after record high, helping more Americans build wealth and secure their futures. Through needed tax cuts and reform, the Administration will bring jobs back to our country. . . " https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/economy-jobs/
But they aren't great anymore, and Trump knows it. "Two months ago we had the greatest economy in the world, the best employment numbers we've ever had in history." Click: one minute More pressured speech.
There is a scent of Willie Loman in the air. The smile and the shoeshine aren't working and the customer isn't smiling back. There is a spot of virus on his hat.
Trump appears to be grasping at straws. Maybe that malaria drug, already here, it's a miracle. Maybe try disinfectants. Maybe Gilead has something new. Maybe vaccines, coming sooner than the experts think. And maybe it's just the flu, mostly hype, made worse by overcautious governors. Or it's the fault of China, the W.H.O., Obama, or the Democrats, or mostly just a misunderstanding from caused by the media.
Trump is drifting from his brand. This is "poor me," loser Trump, not Trump-the-winner, telling Fox reporters his travails were like Lincoln's, worse actually:
"I am greeting by a hostile press, the likes of which no president has ever seen. The closest would be that gentleman right up there. They always said Lincoln--nobody got treated worse than Lincoln. I believe I am treated worse."
The image is not one of Trump mirroring a great president. It is one of Trump dwarfed by one.
Trump-the- salesman sees it. The customer doesn't like the product so they are finding fault with the salesman.
I will leave to others to diagnose mental illness in Trump. I see a salesman, and I sense the salesman who realizes a sale he thought he was going to make is slipping away.
It is that sound you hear in the car salesman's voice after he hears the dreaded words "let me go home and think about it." Every experienced realtor, insurance salesman, carpet salesman, or financial advisor knows what is happening. Something isn't working, the customer isn't sold and they want out. It is probably hopeless, but the salesman can try selling harder, give it one last try, restate the case, review the features and benefits, make assurances, remove the alternative choices by stepping up criticism of the competition.
 |
| Click: Watch. 57 seconds |
"And frankly the Democrats should be ashamed. They don't want us to succeed. They want us to fail so they can win an election--which they aren't going to win. They do everything they can to make things as bad as possible."
He had the sale, in hand. The official whitehouse.gov website has not been updated. Things are still great there:
"Economy & Jobs. The economy has come roaring back to life under President Trump. The stock market has hit record high after record high, helping more Americans build wealth and secure their futures. Through needed tax cuts and reform, the Administration will bring jobs back to our country. . . " https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/economy-jobs/
But they aren't great anymore, and Trump knows it. "Two months ago we had the greatest economy in the world, the best employment numbers we've ever had in history." Click: one minute More pressured speech.
 |
| Dwarfed |
Trump appears to be grasping at straws. Maybe that malaria drug, already here, it's a miracle. Maybe try disinfectants. Maybe Gilead has something new. Maybe vaccines, coming sooner than the experts think. And maybe it's just the flu, mostly hype, made worse by overcautious governors. Or it's the fault of China, the W.H.O., Obama, or the Democrats, or mostly just a misunderstanding from caused by the media.
Trump is drifting from his brand. This is "poor me," loser Trump, not Trump-the-winner, telling Fox reporters his travails were like Lincoln's, worse actually:
"I am greeting by a hostile press, the likes of which no president has ever seen. The closest would be that gentleman right up there. They always said Lincoln--nobody got treated worse than Lincoln. I believe I am treated worse."
 |
| Hard sell |
Trump-the- salesman sees it. The customer doesn't like the product so they are finding fault with the salesman.
1 comment:
What's he selling, exactly?
Himself. Remember "I alone can fix it", etc?
What the salesman does is "mirroring" and when the customer, or in this case victim, resists the idea that "he's just like me", the bond is broken and the sale becomes coercion or, at worst, attempted extortion. Trump's appeal to his cult is primarily the air of competence, the myth of the tycoon. That image has no credibility in the current situation and is visibly fraying.
People are dying, the economy is cratering and he's the President. It's his job. He can't fix this with lies and obfuscations and he can't avoid being held accountable, at least by those who are losing friends and family every day.
BTW...What about "my good friend President XI"? If he was such a pal why didn't he PM Trump in November? Was it a lie or did Trump get played? Neither is good.
Post a Comment