Permit me to muse. Donald Trump is a presidential candidate such as we've never seen. He is expert at planting seeds in people's minds. For example, he has repeatedly described Jeb Bush as "low energy." He said this so often and so firmly, from the beginning of the campaign, that it became conventional wisdom. Bush wilted under the onslaught. Now Trump is going after Ted Cruz, calling him "nasty" and "a liar" and repeating the claim that Cruz is disliked even by members of his own party. (For what it's worth, I consider that a good thing.) Over and over again, day after day, Trump repeats these scurrilous charges. CNN and the other networks dutifully (gleefully?) play the videos every hour (or so it seems). The problem with these attacks, which are personal, is that, if Trump is not the Republican nominee, the recipients of his abuse will be damaged, perhaps fatally so, in the general election. You can't unplant a seed. I think Trump is doing this on purpose. His desire to win the nomination is so strong (one might describe it as "burning") that he's willing to destroy everyone else in the process, even if that means electing a Democrat. I'm not taking sides here; I'm simply trying to analyze (and understand) what is happening. I wish the Republican candidates would set forth their policy positions and leave it at that, letting the voters decide whom to support. Personal destruction only helps the Democrats.
Politics
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