will strengthen as all it will serve to do is embolden his support base?
will strengthen as all it will serve to do is embolden his support base?
Not really - it may embolden his support base but it won't make it grow particularly and every time he attacks one of the pillars of the establishment and threatens their sacred constitution, he alienates more and more of the conservative base that he still needed to elect him
No, this was a poll of his supporters' view of him. I think you're making the mistake of thinking in Democrat/Republican terms. Trump's not a Republican, he's an independent who got in on the Republican ticket. His supporters like his 'outsider' status and actively want to see him attacking pillars of the establishment. Every perceived 'insider' who is seen to thwart him actually makes him stronger because it vindicates his narrative of 'the swamp' trying to protect itself.
Right. And even more importantly, *this* is his wife and C-Span have their Nielsen share to worry about
http://s.mlv-cdn.com/img/08543080d6b...b916f.600x.jpg
Moderates and the undecided....cant win without them.
Still, aside from gaining another four years his popularity only equates to political capital and I don't think you can measure that in the same way with Trump. Alienating most of Washington seems to be his default position.
Yes - you're right I am thinking in terms of Republican/Democrats - and agree with what you are saying in terms of his supporter base. But he needs more than that supporter base, I would say, to strengthen his grip on power, which was Monty's assertion. He has undoubtedly given a bloody nose to the establishment but he hasn't knocked it out. I was thinking in terms of a potentially increasingly fractious relationship with Congress and the damage that will eventually do to him. His base will stay with him whatever.
Mind you, he's proved me utterly wrong about most things over the past two years (and a fair few others), so we'll see
Yes, that's the way. A long-term criticism of Republican candidates and presidents is that they always meekly accept whatever their opponents say about them, for fear of causing offense. You know, to darkies or women or whatever. Trump fans adore him in large part because he actually fights back.
It seems refreshing, if nothing else.
The problem his opponents (Dem and Rep) have is that for business as usual to return, Trump's Presidency really has to be a disaster. If it isn't, the paradigm of what a 'good' presidential candidate looks like in the voters' minds could shift permanently to their disadvantage. That's why they actually have to relentlessly push the negatives - even to the point of creating them themselves.
Yes, of course. But when you consider that he is Commander in Chief with direct control of the military, a mind that refuses to be sidetracked by potentially catastrophic consequences is a rather worrying thing.
Thus far, the bravado has been largely promises and posturing. Hopefully it stays that way.
So everyone can get back to doing the things that made them elect someone like him in the first place? Yeah, terrific. Essentially, what you seem to be saying is whatever President Trump does will be wrong because President Trump?
Anyway, the military controls the military, not a mere Commander-in-Chief.
Yes - hence I added the caveat in another post - this is all so unpredictable. I would say he is the bending the status quo as far as it can go, something has to give. I would say it's going to snap back into usual form at some point but quite possible it might just snap into pieces
Your assumption, or someone's assumption, seems to be that everyone that voted for Trump did so because of his anti-establishment pitch, or anti-swamp pitch, you might say.
I think he got a lot of anti-Hillary support, and much of that will be less than enamored with his continual run ins with traditional government and, in some cases, the constitution. I just don't think there's been enough time and enough incidents to see the full impact of that.
Or to put it another way, if he wants 4 more years at some point he is going to have to play some 'ball', as the Americans put it,
I don't think I said that. I certainly didn't intend to do so.
In ordinary politics the military controls the military because the President is house-trained. This is not ordinary politics.
I expect it will work itself out but he is still a scary guy to have in charge of anything.