[quote=SK in CV][quote=njtosd]No – it’s worse than that. It shows that there is a relatively large, angry group of Americans who rejected the candidates presented by the party in favor of a crazy person because they do not feel represented by the GOP. God forbid that these people split off to become a separate party. The Republican Party did not support (and actively opposed) Trump just as the Democratic Party did not support (and actively opposed) Bernie Sanders. They are two sides of the same coin (although I like Bernie Sanders better). This election has proven that the main stream candidates do not represent what the people want…..[/quote]
The election, so far at least, proves no such thing. Trump won. Trump won because he represents exactly what the Republican party has been selling for the last 3 1/2 decades. They’ve been selling that government is the problem. That the government is broken. That the government can’t solve problems. And the solution is to get rid of the government. Now they have a candidate who is promising to do just that. That the party elite now run from him is really incidental. The only difference between Trump and at least 1/2 of the other Republican candidates that he beat is subtlety. He says what they’ve only hinted at. They have plausible deniability. He doesn’t. That’s the only difference.
And Sanders didn’t win. Clinton did. Clearly there is support within the Democratic party for significant change. But that support did not extend to the majority of those that voted.[/quote]
In terms of your opinion about how Trump won, you might be right. However, there are (at least) two ways to sell something (1) sell people something that they already want; and (2) convince people that they want something and then offer it to them. Which works better? My sister was an EVP at a huge ad agency. They spent inordinate amounts of time figuring out what people wanted and then purported to give it to them. In my opinion, and it frightens me, Trump is what a lot of people want. I don’t think people had to be convinced (now or during the previous 35 or more years). My father in law used to say that there are million little Hitlers out there waiting for their chance – I think Trump just gave them their chance. I think a lot of my fellow Americans inexplicably want Trump and like the ridiculous things he says. A lot wanted Bernie, too. Based on his finances, he did outstandingly well.
I have said in other threads that I am disappointed in the quality of both of the candidates, although I would have to chose Clinton over Trump. Why can’t we find candidates who haven’t made suspicious amounts of money in real estate (or trading cattle), who don’t say racist things or stupid things like “I short circuited” and who don’t set my teeth on edge. I am hoping someday for a candidate that I am excited about . . .
