Help me understand the distain for Donald Trump.

[tackdriver]

A wise man once told me "If you go out hunting poisonous snakes, don't blame the snake if you get bit."

When you campaign claiming "We need to drain the swamp", and then you take decisive action to begin draining the swamp, should you be surprized when EVERY SWAMP CREATURE wants to attack you? The swamp is their home, their career, their power, their whole life. They are vicious creatures at the best of times - that's how they came to rule the swamp, and command the loyalty of an army of lesser swamp creatures. The very fact that they attacked him at every turn just convinced me that he was on the 'right' path.

"It's all in how you tell the story" - It's how the story gets told and spread to us, the people. Given that the very best storytellers in the nation, with the largest audiences, went into overdrive to spin the worst story possible, it's understandable that many, many people started to repeat this tale to themselves.

What is REALLY amazing, is that everyone in the nation didn't start to believe the story they were spinning.

Here is the triumph, and the thing that should give us all hope: That the truth, reason, logic, were able to resist the overwhelming forces against him and what he was doing. The tremendous support he had, despite the very best efforts of the most vile, vicious, opponents (including very many in his own camp), is nothing short of amazing.

 

[Itchytriggerfinger]

I'm pretty sure Manchin is a senator.

As for Trump, people tend to not like someone so braggadocious.

 

[KellyinAvon]

I see this more as an irrational reaction that seems to be self-justifying to those who take part. The question "OK, you hate Trump, why?" is met with shouting and name-calling. This is far beyond "I don't agree with his policies", this is an outright hatred directed towards not only him, but his family AND anyone wearing a red hat.

The hatred also extends to anything POTUS 45 championed. Hydroxychloroquine has been around over 60 years. You'd think he was recommending Russian Roulette for the COVID.

Free speech is violence, violence is free speech. We're living in Orwellian times, fellow citizens.

 

[eldirector]

I suppose some folks conflate his personality with his effectiveness.

I don't like the man either. He is an ass. Then again, so are most politicians, or any other mover/shaker in this world.

Difference: he actually made America stronger for a change.

 

[phylodog]

The constant media barrage of fabricated BS is what drove the vast majority of people to lose their minds when he was elected. The vast majority of the people who weren't convinced by the fabricated media barrage were turned off by his inability to hold his tongue and simply get stuff done. I don't know a single person who likes him for who he is but you'd certainly never know that listening to the media.

He remained popular because he wasn't part of the machine and the enemy of my enemies is my friend. Same reason I'd vote for him again if his name is on the ballot even though I hope it isn't.

 

[Wolfhound]

There wasn’t really much difference between how the media attacked Trump and how they went after GW Bush. “He’s a buffoon” etc. It wasn’t their guy so the knives come out. Now, they have an actual Buffoon in office named Biden who is their guy and it’s just praise and crickets when he poops himself in front of the Pope.

I personally believe Trump was a better president than GW. Maybe not a better person but a better leader at least. Biden isn’t fit to hold their pee bucket IMHO.

 

[Ingomike]

The short answer is he wasn't bought and paid for. I don't care if you're a democrat or republican or in between, if you want to play the game in DC you have to play by their rules and he didn't. Now I'm all for shaking up the status quo from time to time but I'm not sure the end result of Trump's term put us on a better heading. Not necessarily his fault but again he wasn't presidential material and many of us wouldn't have minded his antics if he'd just play the role a little better for the sake of optics in front of the rest of the world. I don't think his policies ever offended the GOP though, just that they didn't have their hooks in him before he ascended to the office. I've long said that's why Pence was VP - Trump didn't choose him, the party did or else they were going to challenge his ironclad nomination. They were hedging their bets that Trump would be impeached or assassinated and good old reliable party puppet Pence would have enjoyed party loyalty Trump was never afforded.

Pence was chosen because he was willing to be the butt kisser Trump demanded of his people.

I’m betting on the former rather than the latter, not that Pence was not the butt kisser also, but I always felt he was biding his time.

 

[jake blue]

I suppose some folks conflate his personality with his effectiveness.

I don't like the man either. He is an ass. Then again, so are most politicians, or any other mover/shaker in this world.

Difference: he actually made America stronger for a change.

I'd also say he was the first president who actually loved America since Reagan instead of a NWO-seeking globalist.

 

[jake blue]

I’m betting on the former rather than the latter, not that Pence was not the butt kisser also, but I always felt he was biding his time.

People have short memories but I remember the lead up to the 2016 GOP convention and it was ... Curious.

 

[KG1]

Pence was the window dressing the campaign needed to cover the moral indiscretions that the religious right believed saddled Trump.

I think the religious right were also willing to overlook Trump's faults because he was telling them what they wanted to hear concerning abortion and religious liberty.

Pence's addition to the ticket was also a determining factor to solidify that support.

Trump's campaign strategy played it right to get the evangelical support.

 

[AtTheMurph]

But many presidents have been 'athholes' (?) Do you think Johnson was a saint? The man thought it was funny to whip it out in company! Yet he's the hero that gave liberals their socialist programs. Personality isn't necessarily a prerequisite for presidency.

And that fact that Trump was from outside the system, is a cheap SOB, and is known in the R.E. world as being frugal with spending and working his suppliers prices down to the bone.

The general disdain is because it is easy to make an athhole look like one, and Trump being an NYC guy doesn't really give a crap.

The RINO's don't like him because he was a threat to their riches, same thing for the Leftists and the bureaucracy itself. Someone from outside, who hates wasting money has to be destroyed.

But I will say one thing about him, he's a hell of an executive and knows how to run a business.

 

[Ingomike]

Yeah, he did that well right up until the 6th of January. Honestly Pence to me embodied most of the religious right, selling their souls for a president who hardly reached the bar of their moral convictions. But for so many it was less about Trump being their candidate as keeping Hillary Clinton out.

The premise you espouse here is just wrong. All men are sinners and have failings, some easily seen others are hidden, but ALL are just men. The left media has long played conservatives with the whole premise that they cannot back a candidate that is with sin, which in truth is no one. Their goal is to quash conservatives from voting. Throughout the Bible God used many very wicked men to further his ends…

Conservatives should vote for the best man to further gods ends to be President…

 

[flightsimmer]

I'm intrigued by your statement that you've seen 'proof' the election was stolen. I don't want to start an off-topic melee but I would be interested in looking at what you've found to be convincing. Perhaps you might send the most convincing couple of links to me by IM?

I'll work on it, but Mike Lindell dug up a lot of it with the help of a bunch of other people but the courts didn't seem to want to hear it, I wonder why?

 

[flightsimmer]

I'm pretty sure Manchin is a senator.

As for Trump, people tend to not like someone so braggadocious.

I believe your right. My bad.

 

[jake blue]

The premise you espouse here is just wrong. All men are sinners and have failings, some easily seen others are hidden, but ALL are just men. The left media has long played conservatives with the whole premise that they cannot back a candidate that is with sin, which in truth is no one. Their goal is to quash conservatives from voting. Throughout the Bible God used many very wicked men to further his ends…

Conservatives should vote for the best man to further gods ends to be President…

My premise is wrong? Trump was asked point-blank if he's ever repented and his answer was that he had never asked forgiveness for his sins. Take that as a refusal of salvation or just a denial or misunderstanding of his need for absolution but in either case it portrays a man who doesn't even remotely align with conservative christian values.

He skirted the abortion issue for most of the campaign. He courted the gays (pun not intended) which christian conservatives hate and Pence himself wants to round up and put in concentration camps. He was in no way, shape or form the candidate for christian voters but as soon as Jerry Falwell Jr. threw his weight behind Trump the flock followed.

 

[KG1]

I'll not deny Trump has character faults but I supported him for his campaign promises and he tried like hell to fulfill those promises and actually did in some cases to strengthen America.

And he did all this while the Democrats, MSM and insider serpents slithering in the darkness within the administration waiting to strike were trying to undermine his Presidency.

Trump's unwavering tenacity against all those odds is a strong character trait that has gained my support and his petty flaws that his detractors try to exploit for political purposes pale in comparison to that in my book.

 

[Ingomike]

My premise is wrong? Trump was asked point-blank if he's ever repented and his answer was that he had never asked forgiveness for his sins. Take that as a refusal of salvation or just a denial or misunderstanding of his need for absolution but in either case it portrays a man who doesn't even remotely align with conservative christian values.

He skirted the abortion issue for most of the campaign. He courted the gays (pun not intended) which christian conservatives hate and Pence himself wants to round up and put in concentration camps. He was in no way, shape or form the candidate for christian voters but as soon as Jerry Falwell Jr. through his weight behind Trump the flock followed.

The premise is wrong because conservatives are not voting for Jesus, or Christian of the year, they are voting for a man. There are good men, bad men and in between, but make no mistake of it, they are all sinners in the sight of God.

Who made the requirement that the candidate a conservative votes for must be a professed Christian?

God has used wicked men for his ends before and if it is best for Gods children to vote for a man some believe wicked so be it.

 

[Timjoebillybob]

The biggest thing that annoys me about him is that he runs his mouth without thinking about what he says. Emotions or Ego?

Never thought he was the kind of person I would have a beer with, but my cousin was actually at a party with him and said he was a good guy, not a big loudmouth that's trying to get attention, so maybe I would have a beer with him after all.

IMO ego.

Eh, I'd sit down and have a beer with him. I would with most people. I've only seen him once in a semi-social setting, at the grand opening of his casino in NWI, he seemed to be a schmoozer who feed off the attention he was getting.

Had he turned off Twitter and locked himself in the White House and let Pence be the lead on Covid he would have been re-elected. He just couldn't stay out from the front of the cameras.

See above. IMO he has ego issues and feeds off attention, good or bad.

Lots of votes were actually anti-Trump as opposed to pro-Biden. Evidence of how ignorant many voters are!

How many votes when he won were actually anti-Hillary as opposed to pro-Trump? I'm guessing quite a few. I wouldn't characterize those voters as ignorant.

 

[tackdriver]

Had he turned off Twitter and locked himself in the White House and let Pence be the lead on Covid he would have been re-elected. He just couldn't stay out from the front of the cameras.

I agree that the Trump Show on twitter etc. gave the left the ammo they needed to flamethrower him. I'm not sure beyond that.

In a way, I saw the Twitter, TV, Facebook etc., and the outrageous things he said at times, like calling in close artillery, or close air support. Get your position wrong, or something goes off course, and it's a really bad day for you. He got scourched, but if he didn't make the call, he would have been quickly overrun and trampled into mush.

I like to play "what if?", but really, I don't know what else would have worked as well, given the situation.

I believe it is also important to consider that his enemy would not have backed off in the least, had Trump been more "nice". They were 100% committed to his destruction, at any cost. Any more diplomatic, polished, respectful, etc., and they would have slaughtered him!

It was subtle, but I saw him say something nice, give them a little, then see what they do. If they de-escalate, give a little more. In his case, he'd give an inch, and at best they'd roll their eyes and mock him for it. At worst, the'd try to turn the tables and stab him with it. There was nothing good in return.

It's possible Trump knew how this would end. Maybe he fought to take as much ground as possible, for as long as he could, hoping reinforcements would arrive in time. Maybe he was willing to die on the hill if they didn't. If so, this is heroic behavior. If not, well it still was good for the cause. I, for one, give him a pass for bringing the twitter knife to a knife fight, even if I thought it was distasteful.

 

[KG1]

How many votes when he won were actually anti-Hillary as opposed to pro-Trump? I'm guessing quite a few. I wouldn't characterize those voters as ignorant.

Although it's true that a lot of it was due to anti-Hillary because they loathed her as an individual for many reasons but at the same time it could also be said that many of those same votes also favored Trump's policy agenda and wanted the country to go in a different direction than what Hillary had to offer.