During the debate last night, my husband (who was traveling) texted me, “Cruz and Rubio don’t get that by relentlessly attacking Trump they’re making him a sympathetic character and America loves the underdog. It creates an irony of the front-runner being the guy you feel sorry for.” At around the same time, my ten-year-old son who was watching with me, said, “Mom, you should make the title of your thing [blogpost?] tomorrow, ‘Trump versus All,’ because all the other candidates are picking on him.” This morning’s WSJ had a front-page headline “Trump Is Attacked From All Corners.” So, is the GOP strategy working? Maybe. If their strategy is to get an uber-hawk elected president regardless of the “D” or “R” handle while at the same time laying off the blame, then yes, yes it is.
I think it’s time to question some assumptions and ask ourselves: Who does the right really want to see in the White House? The media on the right does much better when there’s a Democrat to demonize in the White House, while the cronies among the military-industrial-congressional complex (that’s what the draft of Ike’s speech called it) just want war without limit in time and space. No one but a Democrat could silence the anti-war left enough to make that happen. So if the power-brokers of the GOP want Hillary–and with the Clinton’s deep ties to everyone from Bush to Trump to Goldman Sachs, there’s reason to think that that is exactly what they want–but doesn’t want to commit suicide, they might have to do a little maneuvering. To serve these dual purposes, perhaps they came up with a plan worthy of David Axelrod. (Hey, perhaps he’s actually the one who came up with it!) What might such a plan look like? Here’s an idea…
Put up a candidate whom the GOP establishment can appear to reject but who can still win the nomination. Feed into every populist meme you can identify as long as they attract a plurality of voters, not a majority. Put up opponents who will look to be splitting the ticket before the nomination, lending plausibility to the notion that someone could win the nomination without now or ever getting majority support, even among Republicans. Then come out guns ablazin’ after there’s too much momentum to stop that nomination from happening, but in plenty of time to give Hillary a stockpile of ammo against the nominee in the general election.
Who would be the cast of characters in such a drama? Given the blowback that is sure to result, willing players would be people whose political aspirations cannot realistically include the presidency–except for perhaps one hero who fights the good fight (or is too naive to realize he’s being set-up). These might be…
JEB Bush…His brother’s unprecedented unpopularity was a knife in the heart of JEB being a viable middle-of-the-road presidential candidate.
Chris Christie…The Judas Hug was the end of any chance he might have had of being a GOP hero, and in case he didn’t get the memo, Bridgegate drove home the point.
Ted Cruz…The only documentation indicating nationality status Cruz ever produced was a Canadian birth certificate. Until he shows documentation of his parents’ citizenship status when he was born and of his own process to get a US passport while admittedly a citizen of Canada, the assumption must be that these documents would prove that he is not qualified to be president. Knowing he could never be president, he’s got nothing to lose.
Mitt Romney and John McCain…The only two Republicans on the planet who can be absolutely positive they will never be the Republican nominee given that they are both proven losers in that role.
Marco Rubio…He needs practice on the national stage and might come out smelling like a rose. Our hero?
Donald Trump…He either wins or gets a lifetime’s worth of publicity and friends in high office. Why not?
Come to think of it, the Democrats could do the exact same thing to get Hillary the win in the primaries…put up a senior citizen socialist who could never ever win the presidency but would welcome the opportunity to take advantage of the big platform to spread his values (such as they are). Elizabeth Warren, for example, can’t take a fall like that because she still has dreams…
In the immortal words of Clinton mentor, Carrol Quigley,
The argument that the two parties should represent opposed ideals and policies, one, perhaps, of the Right and the other of the Left, is a foolish idea acceptable only to the doctrinaire and academic thinkers. Instead, the two parties should be almost identical, so that the American people can âthrow the rascals outâ at any election without leading to any profound or extreme shifts in policy. (Tragedy & Hope)
See also:
Trump Spends Zero & Is Crushing ItâŚHow?
âA Cautionary Taleâ Courtesy of âDecent Conservativesâ
Update (3/16/2016): There seems to be a lot of transparent reverse-psychology stunts being pulled to serve the cause…check out these headlines concerning recent “attacks on Trump”:
Liberal protesters didn’t stop Donald Trump in Chicago. They helped him.
Poll: Romney’s Speech Helped Trump
In case you don’t want to read through the comments below, this is what I think the proposal to Trump several years ago might have sounded like:
“Hey DonaldâŚyou like to run for president but we black you out because youâre youâŚyou can never win if we black you out so just accept thatâŚbut we can let you run and not black you outâŚgive you tons of free pressâŚyou can make lots of hay with thatâbooks, tv shows, friends in high places etcâŚand you can get your friend Hillary electedâboy would she owe you one! And you can bet if thereâs anything you want to âgo awayâ she can make that happen! So what do you say? We black you out and you fade away or we pump you up, Hillary wins and you get whatever you can get out of it. Now that’s your kind of deal–am I right or am I right?â
“Sounds fine,” said Mrs. Bowles. “I voted last election, same as everyone, and I laid it on the line for President Noble. I think he’s one of the nicest-looking men who ever became president.”
“Oh, but the man they ran against him!”
“He wasn’t much, was he? Kind of small and homely and he didn’t shave too close or comb his hair very well.”
“What possessed the âOutsâ to run him? You just don’t go running a little short man like that against a tall man. Besides, he mumbled. Half the time I couldn’t hear a word he said. And the words I did hear I didn’t understand!”
“Fat, too, and didn’t dress to hide it. No wonder the landslide was for Winston Noble. Even their names helped. Compare Winston Noble to Hubert Hoag for ten seconds and you can almost figure the results.”
This is a quote from Farenheit 451 that I read when I was in my teens. I never forgot it for some reason.ď
Monica,
You present some interesting possibilities as you always do. And I find some points I agree with, and some I don’t. If I understood you correctly, your initial point was that an “uber-hawk” was acceptable to the elites, regardless of party, and I took that to mean Trump would be the “R” uber-hawk. This is one of the points where I totally disagree with you. Trump is clearly on the record of wanting to work with Putin, letting Russia deal with ISIS in Syria, and letting China deal with North Korea. Yes Trump wants a strong military, but he seems to want to use it prudently, only when necessary.
Another point in your second scenario was that there might be a “hero” in the mix of candidates and you put Rubio in that slot. I did almost fall off my chair when I read that as Rubio is ineligible per our Constitution, is a full bore controlled establishment toady, and of course gleefully wants AMNESTY, which is suicide for the U.S. You really did surprise me! Perhaps I misunderstood your point there?
But I am very concerned re Trump’s flip-flop, subsequently corrected, position on H1B visas as evident in the recent debate. I never understood why Trump spoiled one or two of Pat Buchanan’s earlier runs for the Presidency, so I do not discount your scenario re a major scam here. My position at present is that Trump has been a closeted Patriot in the past and is now coming out as he does know how dire things are. But I would not bet the farm on my thought. If Trump fails or looses, I will probably make a write-in at the general election. I refuse to support any of the current field of Traitors and such!
I wasn’t talking about Trump. Hillary is the uber-hawk…they don’t care if there’s a D next to her name (and neither does she! No loyalty to their causes.)
Great! I was hoping I was drawing the wrong conclusion re uber-hawk!
An interesting note. Con-men don’t get the “con” in their name from being convicts. The “con” is short for confidence. The trick to a confidence game is to gain enough confidence from the mark so that he’ll dismiss the little slip-ups and contradictions that could ruin the whole thing. A really good one makes you love and admire him, defend him from those that would expose him, and even fabricate excuses for his contradictions. Marks often love and admire the talented Con-man long after he has ruined their finances and their reputations, making prosecution all the more difficult.
It’s not so much genius level sleight-of-hand that does the work. It’s your desire, your hope, your prejudices, and your fears that he uses to make you WANT to believe him.
In answer to a facebook post asking ‘why would Donald do it?’ I responded: i think this is how it went down…”hey donald…you like to run for president but we black you out because you’re you…you can never win if we black you out so just accept that…but we can let you run and not black you out…give you tons of press…you can make lots of hay with that–books, tv shows, friends in high places etc…and you can get your friend hillary elected–boy would she owe you one! and you can bet if there’s anything you want to “go away” she can make that happen! so what do you say? we black you out and you fade away or we pump you up, hillary wins and you get whatever you can get out of it. wanna make a deal? You’ve got nothing to lose!”
Have you ever seen a time frame in Obama’s presidency where he has been so quiet for so long? Can’t imagine the damage being done.
I noticed that! People throw around the notion that he might swoop in and arrange for a third term–I don’t think so at all, and my doubts were confirmed when I realized that he is not in the spotlight at all. This on the heels of maneuverings by him and Ash Carter to entangle us in active, troops-on-the-ground war from Libya to Ukraine and I realize he’s busy setting the stage for the next
guygal…I agree. No third term. People who spew things that people want are a dime a dozen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rLmnxoMBgc
Sorry, AJ, that clip you posted was totally laughable, in my opinion. Pure establishment! I highly encourage all view your clip with an open mind to pick up the multiple manipulations she attempts. What was the media source, USA Today or similar…bastion of honesty! Ha!
I thought it was interesting to hear people saying a Trump nominee will result in a November rout of the GOP. I agree. And I think Trump agrees, too, since a Hillary win has likely been his goal all along.
I’m in Pat’s corner on this one!
http://www.wnd.com/2016/03/the-oligarchs-super-pac-anti-trump-savagery/
Democrats draw plan to shatter the GOP http://www.politico.com/story/2016/02/democrats-2016-strategy-gop-219957
AJ, perhaps you don’t like Trump’s Wall and other of his policies and hence you focus on possible conspiracies re Trump and Clinton. I would suggest you consider real issues with the other candidates. For example, the link I attach below makes a serious case that Cruz was effectively an illegal alien who was amnestied under Reagan. Please check out the link!
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AHWtCbvEptw
The true believer in a cult will hear only good about his idol. Those who stand between him and the object of his devotion will be considered unenlightened at best, and when the poison touches his lips and pours into his belly, he will taste only sweetness.
Every politician is evil, because they take by force, and buy devotion with the stolen treasure. Your favorite politicians are all the same in this regard.
Why not place your devotion where it belongs? With your God, and/or yourself, because none of these folks know you, and they have no specific knowledge of your life.
I know Trump is unelectable in the general election. Trump knows this too. As does anyone else with any sense. He’s acting.
I think the voting is tampered with and even then I think he’s not electable!
The Trump phenomenon is interesting. He reminds me of controlled opposition at work. The only group benefitting from his politically incorrect and rude antics is the Democratic Party. Remember the TEA Party last time around? Remember how the media mocked TEA Partiers as uneducated kooks, racists, and backwoods fundamentalists? Trump supporters are the same people: angry, blue collar white people over 50. The establishment knows these people exist, and pose a threat if left to themselves to organize a real resistance. So the establishment organizes a resistance it can control. Trump is an establishment pied piper leading these people to destruction. Trump gets away with saying and doing all sorts of politically incorrect things. But his followers don’t. This is exactly what happens with agents provocateurs. The agents provoke, have immunity, and those who are fooled by them go to prison.
pied piper–exactly!! i would add that i don’t think he has nearly the following they are trying to tell us he does…and the impact of the Romney speech described in this article is not from incompetence, it’s a result of the thinly veiled psychological approach they are using http://www.wnd.com/2016/03/poll-romney-attack-speech-boosted-trump/
Neil Bush, brother of ex-president Baby Bush, has joined the Cruz campaign. Hope that helps dispel the notion that Cruz is an outsider! Cruz is CFR, Goldman, etc. He is flat out an insider, just being marketed as an outsider to con the folks!
I know Monica appreciates the paleo-libertarian site LewRockwell.com. Here’s an excellent commentary on Trump keeping us out of WWIII. See link below. And ps. I think Trump would run the table on Clinton!
https://www.lewrockwell.com/2016/03/donald-w-miller-jr-md/hope-escaping-nuclear-war/
I think I remember hearing Lew Rockwell say recently that he doesn’t vote. If that’s true, I admire him for it. I’m not sure of this however.
He doesn’t vote. Some of his reasons make sense to me, some don’t.
https://www.lewrockwell.com/lrc-blog/why-i-dont-vote/
https://www.lewrockwell.com/lrc-blog/why-i-dont-vote/
AJ,
I appreciate your latest post as you gave me a further understanding of your approach to life. Appears you might be a politically correct Cultural Marxist. I say that as you write about the politically incorrect Trump and his rude antics (in the eye of the beholder!) in a negative light. To those of us who value freedom and free speech and open dialogue, Mr. Trump is a breath of fresh air! All this talk about Trump can’t win is really “I hate his policies and straightforward approach” and he must be stopped. And AJ, I am over 50, but my grade schooling (12 years) was at a top notch private school, I’m a college graduate with additional professional credentials, and have held professional positions my entire working life. You have bought into the MSM narrative that Trump supporters are only poorly educated rubes. Wrong!
And AJ,
I recently attended a Trump rally in Atlanta. The female supporter standing next to me graduated from Yale, and her daughter graduated from Choate! Not everyone is brainwashed at this point!
When Trump said that Mexicans were coming to rape the white women and take our jobs, Hugh fell in love. lol. There was another leader in history that asked people to raise their hands and declare their devotion like trump did. He also felt his culture shouldn’t be polluted by another. If you travelled to his country, it was very likely that you would be asked for your papers and detained. He built big tall fences around people, and thought he was very clever for making these inferior cultures build them. These trespassers were pictured as thieves and rapists who didn’t understand or adopt traditional German culture. Germans were told that their culture was in danger of disappearing if they did not “do something.” They went to rallies where they met other supposedly educated people raising their hands in worship of the man who bucked “political correctness” and said the things they would not dare to repeat in polite conversation. What a firebrand this Adolph is! He really sticks it to the man! He’s not afraid to say the jews are ruining our country! I’ll follow him no matter what! He’ll make Germany great again!
But you won’t see this, even though you “aren’t brainwashed”
Bradrad,
Some of your friends don’t like Trump either. P.s. I live in Georgia.
http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2016/03/hispanic-gang-members-pull-gun-on-trump-supporter/
Bradrad,
Appears you received your copy of the establishment talking points. You are following the narrative impeccably! I was reading a commentary earlier that describes some of those that are driving the extreme vitriol against Trump. It’s all so easily predictable!
I actually thought of all that myself. I heard the rape fear mongering, and remembered history concerning the use of fear mongering. You should read some history about propaganda. “They’re gonna rape our women and take our culture is not new at all. The Chinese, the Japanese, the Blacks, the Irish, The Catholics, the Jews, the Italians all have been accused of threatening the “culture” merely by immigrating. Was this propaganda spread by politicians to appeal to bigots? Yes, in every case.
You’re a college boy, Hugh. You should already know these things.
Bradrad,
You emphatically state, “Yes, in every case” the rape fear mongering is propaganda. Wow, it must be a good feeling to be absolutely assured here! I’ve read numerous reports, worldwide that would differ with your conclusion. And many or most come from the alternative media as the consolidated and controlled MSM prefers to keep us in the dark. I would encourage you to broaden your horizons. There’s a whole world out there for you to learn about!
If one of us trusts in populist politicians not to abuse our devotion to them, and the other trusts them to always abuse this trust and lie to us, which seems the more gullible? Con men and cult leaders will tell you what you want to hear from the podium, but when they retire with their inner circle after a long day, they laugh at you and mock you. This I have seen up close. You’ve seen the cycles of history. You know how convinced the people become when a fiery speaker validates their fears and promises them security. You’ve seen the misery that follows. I don’t fear trump. I fear the true believers in these movements.
Were there any 78 year old men punching black folks at the Ron Paul rallies? I could be wrong, but I just don’t think I remember any. There’s a special kind of man that encourages that sort of conduct.
http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/10/politics/donald-trump-protestor-punch-face/index.html
thebea.st/1TPLGIu
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/03/10/only-one-trump-fan-has-ever-been-charged-for-assaulting-protesters.html?via=desktop&source=twitter
Bradrad,
Of course I disagree. The link I provide shows who the real thugs and haters are. Glad to see Erickson’s name mentioned as he is one extremely sorry individual! Trump handled matters well, but now must develop a strategy to deal with the scum who are intent on violence.
http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2016/03/gop-unhinged/
I think that reporters and protestors should take the same precautions attending a Trump rally as they would a Klan or a skinhead rally.
Is this the bottom line? Other then Trump, who is representing America? Was that meeting of the elites in GA another Jekyll Island scenario? http://dailycaller.com/2016/03/10/ted-cruz-a-bush-by-another-name/
I saw that…honestly, I think in some side room they had a chuckle at how they were going to get their bankster war-monger girlfriend hillary elected and get a cowed GOP voter base at the same time…when people question if there are conspiracies, I think you can safely look at secret meetings like this as evidence…they’re not secret because they’re saying the same stuff there as they are on Fox News….
Alex,
Interesting comment you make. The same thought went through my mind?