Posted on 01/31/2016 10:18:08 AM PST by Behind Liberal Lines
That's not something for which you need a President. Regular people can do that simply by refusing to be intimidated, and in fact Trump himself can continue to do it even if not elected.
He is the one that has defeated the media army. (Rush is great on this topic.)
That's a significant overstatement that misses the limited scope of what he's actually accomplished. He has shown that the media cannot sway his committed supporters by reporting negatively on him. That's it. It's an achievement that is limited to his popularity among his own supporters, and in fact his very high unfavorable show that the media is still able to heavily influence public opinion on him. And I don't see how the ferver of his support translates into any more general "defeat" of the media. They'll still be there long after he's gone.
He is the only one that had the guts, originally, to say we need to deport all illegals and ban the Muslims. I’m still not sure anyone else is fully on board.
I think his rhetoric on illegals is ambiguous, and sometimes bordering on nonsense. In terms of ambiguity, he talks about having a gigantic wall with a "huge door", and then saying that he would let "the good ones" back in "expeditiously". What does that actually mean, though? Nobody really knows except Trump, and I suspect even he doesn't. All he's got is a general thought about it, and he'll worry about the specifics later. But the specifics matter.
And in terms of nonsense, deporting by force 11 million people almost all of whom would be entitled to a court hearing would take a decade even if you could find them all. The practical, reasonable alternative to that -- self-deporting -- is something Trump previously stated was "mean-spririted" and "crazy". So where does that leave us?
And the "barring all Muslims" is something you cannot do. It would mean that Heads of State could not come. It would mean that we could not train/work with Muslim officers of allied countries, which would be a very bad thing because very often, those military-to military ties are the single best bit of influence we have in places like Egypt. So as a blanket prohibition, I think it's a bad idea.
What I do think is a good idea is stopping general immigration from a bunch of specific Muslim-majority countries. But that's something most Republicans already support.
The socialism that has taken hold in this country is Full-Spectrum, permeating far below government programs, into the schools our small children attend as well as of course their universities.
This, right here, is the biggest disagreement I have with Trump supporters because I do not see why Trump is the answer to this. He is actually more supportive of the welfare state than any candidate not named John Kasich. So if he wins, and the welfare state expands...what have we really won?
And in terms of things like schools...I really don't get this at all. Honestly, it seems to me more like people are having some emotional resonance with the guy rather than thinking rationally about what he'll really accomplish. How is Donald Trump unique on the education issue? Other than Kasich and Bush, every GOP candidate opposes common core. All advocate that it should be a state issue. So why is Trump, specifically, the education guy?
What I sense is that people get catharsis from hearing him say things they want said, in plain language, and that resonates emotionally. Fair enough. But to me, that amounts to style points, because all the tough sounding language in the world doesn't mean squat unless the resultant legislation is better, and that's the specific area in which I have the most concern about Trump. To the point where I question whether I can vote for him even if he is the nominee.
Ridiculing entitlement reform should be a disqualifier for anyone running for the GOP nomination, because we are on a fast train to hell in that regard. 4, or god forbid 8, years of a guy who refuses any reform on the benefit end is unacceptable. At least to me.
His statements on health care really worry me as well. The only specifics he has ever given are praise to things I abhor, and when asked for the specifics of how he is going to replace Obamacare, he offers only the vaguest of generalities. So again, I just can't go there.
“I’m sure that means that you’re admitting that Trump is not, in fact, promoting socialized medicine?”
I don’t think Trump knows WHAT he is promoting. He could have said so, on national TV - “I plan to do X, Y & Z”. Instead, he said he would work with hospitals and doctors and make sure everyone was taken care of because he isn’t like Cruz. That was total nonsense, and only a fool would fall for it.
Asked what he would do, he just blathered. Of course, his followers believe anything The Prophet (PBUH) says. I now know how Mohammed did it...
.
You constantly lie to yourself.
Wake up and look at reality.
Thank you for the thoughtful analysis. We continue to see things differently, but I value the discussion. Time will tell I guess.
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