The Donald

The Donald

When I think of Donald Trump and how he has been campaigning, his sayings, his personality, and the nature of his agenda, I'm reminded of a really old golfing story that rather fits the bill. Don't stop me if you've heard this one. 

 

The long-time golfing foursome was disrupted one week when one of the members took ill at the last minute. The other three didn't want to cancel, but one of them had an idea. “I have just the partner who'd love to come along”, he said. The others said, “why not?”, and the outing was on.

That Saturday morning the other two golfers showed up, to find their partner waiting with a 400 pound gorilla next to him. “WHAT???”, they said. “Come on! He can't really play!” “Oh, sure he can, said the third member. Let him show you”.

The foursome went to the first tee, which was a monster par-4 500-yarder, slight dog-leg to the right. The regular three golfers made their shots and then it was the gorilla's turn. He selected a two-iron, addressed the ball, and “WHACK!!!”. The ball went over trees, past the dog leg, landing on the edge of the green and rolling to within about 30 feet of the cup. The other golfers looked at that and said, “This is not going to be a fun morning.” They moved to their ball positions and made their shots to the green, where the gorilla was waiting for them. The other three golfers made their shots for bogie or double-bogie, then the third golfer handed the gorilla the putter. The gorilla addressed the ball, then reared back, and “WHACK!!”, another 400 yard shot onto the second green!

Why does this story remind me of Trump? Well, not because he is an avid golfer himself, or that he owns several courses both in the US and Scotland. It is because he has all of the finesse of that gorilla. He doesn't seem to have, politically, a lower gear. (I can attest to that on a personal level; I have a Scottish pen pal who tells me that Trump is a very tough, fussy person to deal with. He knows folks who have had to deal with him.)

Now, don't get me wrong: Donald Trump has a value. He is serving a purpose, by injecting something into American political life that hasn't been seen by our side, or anywhere, and that something is...... Courage. Now, understand that I am not a big "The Donald" fan by any means, and my reasons are the same as many of yours. I've just mentioned one. However, he is validating what most Americans are already thinking and feeling—that the very same political incorrectness which the leftist thought police rush to crush in prominent folks of every type, from Washington to Hollywood, is killing us as a nation.

Trump is having none of that. He has the wealth and the chutzpah to say what he feels and do what he wants, and he uses that wealth, and his army of lawyers, to make it stick----as the City of Boston, which just barred him from doing business there, may find out, much to their sorrow, soon enough. As a man of great wealth, Trump can be the pioneer in that sense, because he has resources available to most of We The People, and, in the saying and suing that The Donald is doing, he has shown the other Conservatives in the race how to unlock that "testicle lock box" we've heard so much about from you-know-who (and it's not at Chappaqua, either). By showing our side that such political sassiness against the Left can be done, and what it does to them, he's inciting others to do the same. That can only be good for America. The other dozen or so (for now) "candidates with an 'R' by their names had better start finding, and using those 'tools', if they're going to survive. Some are starting to, and they're now the ones on top in the Republican polls at this stage of the campaign.

For instance: The first candidate who already has shown such courage, is the only one who was actually born without the real physical cojones. Anyone been paying attention to Carly Fiorina? If you're not, you should. She is not afraid to take on the Left. And, she was telling it like it should be before Trump was, she has resources similar to Trump's, and I'll bet that she also has plenty of lawyers just itching to spring into action on her behalf against the trolls of the Left, sitting inside her electronic Rolodex. I'll also bet, from what I've seen, she's not afraid to launch a salvo against them if need be, either. And that includes The Donald himself. She already has. She was the first candidate to take on Trump toe-to-toe when he decided to diss her regarding her looks some weeks back. That oughta warm the cockles of your heart.

Add to that Ben Carson, and he in particularly is driving the Left totally crackers. Furthermore, he has impeccable life credentials, a reputation as a very thoughtful man, and behind that unusually gentle manner, we are beginning to see a backbone of steel. And the proof? No one in the Republican side of Presidential politics drawing more fire from the media and the Socialist pundits.... and the RINO's. Remember the demand of one rival candidate that Carson withdraw immediately as a candidate because of something politically incorrect the Dr. Ben uttered? Darned if I've forgotten who demanded that...and rightly so.

But getting back to the original premise: that's the value of the rich. Let me make an analogy here: Not only can the rich give more to Charity than most of We The People can (since we are financially mere mortals here) but they are also the pioneers of innovation, because they can afford to buy and test all that innovation before the rest of us can even dream of it. Think of hydrogen-powered and all-electric cars and air conditioning, just for starters. Think of your own examples. By the same token, learning to speak up and fight for the truth is a real innovation to our side. Apparently, it takes a person of relatively large means, and the willingness to both risk it all, and to bet that he or she can win and thus make the Left pay and pay BIG for their arrogance, to show the rest of us that not only can it be done, but that it must be done. It is my considered opinion that stategizing this way is the best way to defeat The Left.

That's the value of a Donald Trump. But having said that, there is one thing which Trump lacks, to this point, and that is 'Balance'. One must have a balanced temperament to be able to properly strategize as President. It's a vital requirement when dealing with foreign leaders, political allies and opponents, and the American People. But Trump, to this point, hasn't shown that he has that ability. He's full speed ahead, all the time---bombastic, if you will. It comes across as one-dimensional, and that's important, because if you can't keep people guessing as to how you're going to react to them or present yourself to them, they have the advantage against you. In short, you can't be that kind of predictable in those situations. You have to keep them off-balance, and while Donald has proven in the past that he's good at doing that in business, I would suggest that dealing in business, and dealing in situations both foreign and domestic, are two different types of dealing. And while Trump has that endless list of folks to whom he can delegate many such things, he can't delegate all of it. In the final analysis, he can't be the 400 pound gorilla on the golf course. That's where and why he is at a disadvantage against some of the other candidates in the Republican race for President, particularly Carly, or Dr. Ben, or maybe even Ted Cruz. Maybe. Think of it as the iron fist inside the velvet glove. Such a temperament has served many world leaders well in the past. It's what American needs now.

One more note: a lot of Conservative commentators have made surly note of the fact that Trump was once a big Democrat donor. True enough. But, for a sense of perspective, can you name two other prominent Democrats who later turned Republican, and actually enhanced their prominence? I can. The two I have in mind are..... Frank Sinatra, and..... Ronald Reagan. Enough said.

For the Art of Conservatism, I'm Art Reis