Trump, Cruz and others

Submitted by Michael S (United States), Apr 5, 2016 at 05:39

Hi, Daniel. I hope this finds you well.

Unusually long comments by both of us... I see that your reaction to the "Trump Phenomenon" is emotional.

You say Donald a "Narcissist", as you and many here also have perceived our current President, Mr. Obama. I have seen some of his speeches (like the one you saw, at AIPAC) and interviews; and I don't see this at all. Concerning Obama, I don't see that either. To me, he is and always has been a complicated person, whom I don't completely understand.

Ad hominem attacks, such as calling someone a "narcissist", "ignoramus", "racist", etc., are logical dodges to cover up the real issue -- which often seems to come down to "gut" feelings. One person simply doesn't like Donald Trump, and is looking for a convenient label to attack him with. "Racist" will do, or "Narcissist"; but neither are true. It's also pointless to attack the "Jewish" credentials of Donald, who grew up among Jews and whose daughter has converted to Judaism

http://forward.com/news/breaking-news/318770/trumps-strong-jewish-ties/

It's also off the mark, to question Trump's "conservative" credentials, seeing that he is backed by Gov. Christie, Sarah Palin and Ben Carson.

A legitimate argument can be made, that Trump's supporters tend to be "paleo-" conservatives; Bernie Sanders' supporters tend to be "paleo-" liberals, and those who oppose these two tend to be "neo-" conservatives and neo-liberals. Charles Krautheimer makes an astute observation on these matters:

"CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER: I think the larger point is none of this is a racial grievance... To me the issue is not race, but class... This has to do with people making less than $50,000 a year. People with less education than others. And to me the central problem is a really deep, historical one that neither party knows how to solve. That we have entered an information age, leaving behind the industrial age, and it is littered with people who don't fit..."

-- http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2016/04/04/krauthammer_trump_exploiting_fear_muslims_not_as_huge_a_problem_as_trump_has_made_them_out_to_be.html

Regardless of your position or mine, both the polls and the betting odds favor a Trump vs. Clinton election this Fall; and the outcome is too close to call: At the moment, Clinton is favored over Trump, but a few weeks ago it was a dead heat; and literally, "God only knows" how it will turn out.

I haven't mentioned Ted Cruz yet; whose numbers have been steadily rising. He seems to be a candidate whom both you and I could stomach without much trouble; though none of the prognosticators, other than Glen Beck, give him much of a chance. A few points:

1. Religious credentials. Ted's home church is Houston First Baptist, a megachurch in the Southern Baptist Convention. This gives him a slight edge among "Megachurch Evangelicals":

http://www.christianitytoday.com/gleanings/2016/february/8-charts-evangelicals-vote-donald-trump-super-tuesday.html

I wouldn't put too much weight on a Megachurch crutch, though; because just the fact that Ted's father was Catholic until 1975, is enough for some Evangelicals to suspect he's the Antichrist. For my part, I am not impressed by the Southern Baptists we've gotten as Presidents lately -- namely, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton; and "Born Again" President George W. Bush is the first US President who made the "Two State" solution for Israel official US Policy. The latter also brazenly courted Saudi sheikhs literally at the same time that he slighted Israeli Prime Ministers. The Southern Baptist and Evangelica BASE, however, has come out strongly for Trump,

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2016/03/06/why_evangelicals_support_trump_129864.html

which may have a lot to do with why he beat Cruz handily in the Deep South.

I tend to follow the advice of Inspector Maigret,

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107221/

who said one should "understand, but never judge". Whoever we end up with as President, in my opinion, we got because God, for His own reasons. contrived to put him there; and I will not try to oppose that mighty Hand. Concerning my gut feelings, though, I like Donald Trump -- and concerning yours, you don't. I'll leave it at that.

Shalom shalom :-)

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