Does the Great Orange Hope know how despised he is? Does it matter?
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The lead story on the news tonight was about a 19-year-old, who had driven from California to a Trump rally in Las Vegas with the intention of killing the Republican Presidential candidate.
Once at the event, the young man tried to snatch away a gun from a police officer to carry out the deed, but the would-be assassin was thwarted before he could put any lives at risk.
Even prior to this individual’s driving across state lines burdened with a frightening mixture of hatred, murderous intent, and lack of a true plan, I had decided to write about why Donald Trump is such a polarizing figure.
I just had no idea that my opening was being written for me on the other side of the country.
In the spirit of full disclosure, I must admit that I am no fan of Trump.
I have mocked him on my blog for months, spent a large portion of this past TV season penning monologue jokes about him for the late night show on which I am a writer, and even asked in this column if he would be the President who signed Purge Night into law.
I’m terrified of what could happen to this country under the leadership of President Trump, and would prefer that he never step foot inside the Oval Office, even as part of a White House tour. However, the only weapon I would ever think to use against the man is the written word.
Even if you’re a Trump supporter, (and clearly a majority of the Republicans in this country willing to cast a vote in the primary elections are) you have to see why your fellow Americans dislike the man with a passion usually reserved for movie villains, sports rivals, or ex-spouses.
While jumping on the anti-Trump bandwagon is even simpler than registering to vote against him in the upcoming election, I think the only fair and balanced thing to do is to first consider why Trump is the way he is.
Has anyone bothered to take the time to do that?
Sure, the political pundits on the 24-hour news networks like to speculate that Trump’s behavior is entirely scripted and meant to engage a specific portion of the electorate that feels like politicians don’t speak their language or care about them.
You don’t need to be a psychologist to theorize that Trump is acting so over the top because he knows that shocking people will get him all the attention his campaign and ego need to remain constantly at the forefront of both the news cycle and the minds of potential voters.
Some people are convinced that Trump doesn’t really believe any of the venom that is spewing from his mouth like a geyser and that he is well aware that the more outlandish he is, the more people will talk about him and push the other candidates out of the conversation.
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Whether Trump is a true believer of his angry, sometimes despicable message, or simply the greatest puppet master to ever seek public office, the fact remains that he comes across as a bully, a racist, a misogynist, a hate monger, and a buffoon.
Is that the kind of person we want with the nuclear launch codes?
Act or not, it has to be hard on the man to know that he is deeply despised by so many. Even the thickest, most orange skin can’t possibly prevent some of the hatred from seeping through and hitting him where his heart should be.
After all, despite what he might want us to believe, Trump is as human as the rest of us.
Don’t get me wrong—I’m not shedding any tears for Donald Trump. I’m a firm believer in karma, and I do not want to be in the same room, let alone the same state, as the guy when all the negativity he has put out into the world comes roaring back to bite him in the butt.
But sometimes I have to wonder what is going on inside his head, underneath that strange creature that lives atop his skull. Does Trump realize that the number of people who loathe him is huuuuuuuge? Does he understand that even if he is elected President, he will be hated, mocked, and threatened by citizens who don’t care that he earned enough electoral votes to call himself our Commander in Chief? Does it unnerve him that someone hated him enough to make an attempt on his life?
This leads me to one simple question: Does Donald Trump need a hug?
When I was a kid, nothing made me feel safer or more loved than a big hug from my Dad. No matter how upset I was, or how challenging my day had been, one hug from the man who was my hero would make everything alright.
When’s the last time anyone not on his payroll or family tree gave Trump a hug? Who’s willing to step up, reach over Trump’s personal border wall, and wrap that angry man in a bear hug? In light of the events that took place in Las Vegas, would the Secret Service allow anyone close enough to the man to offer him the hug he so desperately seems to need?
I’m not saying that a single hug might be enough to get the Republican frontrunner to tell his inner hate monger that he’s fired, but I’m not hearing any other viable solutions for America’s nagging Trump problem.
In the immortal words of Ari Gold, who might actually be a Trump supporter now that I think about it, “Let’s hug it out.”
We’re not going to make America great again by ostracizing or bullying people and then hiding behind walls built to keep out anyone who isn’t a perfect patriotic 10 of American citizenship.
We’re also not going to make America great again by complaining about the candidates who have thrown their hats and mysterious hairpieces into the ring to be our next President.
Greatness comes through action, which we all know speaks louder than words.
I suggest that one of our first actions be to give Donald Trump a much-needed hug.
And if that doesn’t work, at least we can hold our heads high and say we tried before we move to Canada.
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Photo: Getty Images
Read Austin’s column every week here on The Good Men Project!
And thank you for sharing this!
I don’t despise him as much as I fear what he might do….
I don’t understand why people keep using the term “make American great again.” When did we stop being great? When it was Corporations were allowed to be counted as “people” or was it when Republicans started bullying each other and the citizens of this country? Was it when we allowed hate rhetoric to overtake the airwaves? When we allowed real news stations to report on fake news and doctored tapes? Because if those things aren’t what made us “not great” then nothing else could.
I think the exact moment was when the first episode of The Apprentice aired. 🙂
Or possible the year before when Keeping up with the K-Plastics first aired?
Could be. I will need to do more research on this!
This election could leave this county very messy!
Watch this and you’ll know…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmumRMFx1YA
Jennifer, you made some good points and I would tend to say that it was when the media took control. News is no longer “news.” And the media that made it this way? Liberal main stream media that’s found that they can control people or should I say sheeple.
I can’t count the number of times people myself included, respond here at GMP, challenge what’s stated in articles as being fact. More often then not, our challenges result in no response.
Maybe most politicians need a hug? There are no good choices in this year’s election.
Maybe they do all need a hug. I’d love to be able to vote for Bernie. Might just write him in…
That’s what I fear. People writing in candidates and allowing an orange bully to take center stage.