Riding the Trump Bull: What Democrats Get Wrong

bullriding
Better believe…

W.J. Astore

Wisdom can be found in many places.  I was watching Professional Bull Riding today, and the announcer (didn’t catch his name) dropped this pearl of wisdom:

Professional bull riding is not a sport based on hope.  It’s a sport based on belief.

I caught his meaning.  When you’re preparing to ride a bull, you can’t “hope” you’re going to stay on its back.  You have to believe you’re going to do it.  And even when you believe, often the bull is still going to win.

What does this have to do with Trump and the Democrats?  Consider Trump as an intemperate bull.  Sure, he’s ageing, but he’s got plenty of kick left.  How do you “ride” this bull and defeat him?  Not by bringing a weak case of impeachment that you know is going to fail in the Senate.  Not by giving Trump several big victories, such as a massive defense budget and a new trade bill, so-called NAFTA 2.0.  Not by offering only the most tepid objections to his warmongering with Iran.

Consider the DNC and its preferred presidential candidate, Joe Biden.  Is a corporate Democrat who’s both compromised and fading really the best candidate to ride Trump out of office?  As Joe Biden himself might say, give me a break.

You can’t hope you’re going to ride Trump out of office in 2020.  You have to believe it.  And you have to give the American people a candidate with some balls, with firm and principled beliefs, a bull rider like Bernie Sanders or Tulsi Gabbard.

Hope may have been important to Barack Obama’s success in 2008, but it’s not going to defeat Trump in 2020.  To ride that bull, you have to believe.

8 thoughts on “Riding the Trump Bull: What Democrats Get Wrong”

  1. A reminder of the likelihood of Trump being reelected:

    “The president’s campaign ads so far are simplistic yet brutally effective. They portray him as a no-nonsense commander in chief – building a border wall, appointing supreme court justices, cutting taxes and taking out terrorists – while rubbishing Obama and accusing Democrats of indulging in political theatre such as impeachment. A $10m ad will be shown during American football’s showpiece Super Bowl game next Sunday.”

    Charlie Sykes, a conservative author and broadcaster and Trump critic, agrees. “His chances may be actually stronger than 50-50,” he said. “Part of it is the nature of the electoral college and his success in tribalising the electorate and creating alternative reality silos. But also I’m not convinced the Democrats have got their act together.”

    https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jan/26/donald-trump-2020-election-impeachment-democrats

    Liked by 1 person

  2. The way I see it, from Face Book and other social media, there are three tiers to the Trumpet’s support.

    The first tier is the very wealthy, millionaires, billionaires and large corporations that benefited hugely from the Trumpet’s tax cuts, huge defense spending and environmental policies. These people and corporations could care less about social and cultural issues. However, they do not have the votes. So this first tier has to rely on the next two tiers to produce sufficient voting power.

    The second tier is the NRA types who view any type of firearms control as an attack. The Trumpet has made it clear he will follow in lock step with the NRA.

    The third tier, which probably contains most of the second tier are the Evangelical and other Conservative religious types. The Trumpet proudly proclaims his “Pro-Life” position. The Trumpet correctly points out he is appointing “Pro-Life” judges. I suspect these judges will favor Big Business over the environment, tax dollars for religious schools.

    Both the second and third tier love his bombastic approach of attacking anyone who opposes him – the perfect Male-Macho-Authoritarian. No matter how much The Trumpet and his underlings like Pompeo become unhinged the base eats it up and asks for more.

    To a degree this is like Watergate: Nixon had nothing really to fear from George McGovern, yet the instinct to attack propelled the Nixon Campaign to a break-in and then a cover-up.

    The Trumpet had nothing to fear from Biden. The Trumpet’s instinct to attack was too much for him to overcome. You can view The Trumpet’s attack on Biden as preemptive scorched earth or carpet bombing. There are three main candidates the Democrats have, Biden, Sanders and Warren, Biden is by far the weakest. The Trumpet will demolish Biden on the debate stage. So why bother to attack Biden, it is what The Trumpet does.

    Given the make up of the Senate, The Trumpet will not be convicted. The Trumpet will ride the Democratic Bull to a Senate acquittal. The Trumpet will yell it loud and strong – I was persecuted (which will appeal to the Evangelicals) I have been proven innocent of all charges.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. I agree, ML.

      The mainstream media likes to argue the Democrats need a centrist — someone who can win back Trump voters. But Trump’s base isn’t going anywhere. They love their bull.

      If the Republican base can get the candidate they want, why can’t the Democratic base get their candidate? For progressives, this means Bernie Sanders.

      But progressives are endlessly told we can’t have “our” candidate. Too extreme! Whereas the Republicans revel in theirs.

      Why is this? The answer is obvious from your comment. The ruling/owning class are happy with Trump. He’s making them money. Whereas a progressive candidate would likely cost them money.

      The only way to unseat Trump is put forward a candidate with strong core beliefs. That’s Bernie.

      Liked by 1 person

    2. I also think that after Trump is acquitted (or in some future speech, ” found completely innocent”), he will demand the House “unimpeaches” him, as if that will wipe it from history.

      Liked by 1 person

  3. A reminder from Chris Hedges why we need someone like Bernie Sanders.

    “There is no shortage of working-class Americans who feel, with justification, deeply betrayed and manipulated by ruling elites. Their ability to make a sustainable income has been destroyed. They are trapped in decaying and dead-end communities. They see no future for themselves or their children. They view the ruling elites who sold them out with deep hostility.

    Trump, however incompetent, at least expresses this rage. And he does so with a vulgarity that delights his base. I suspect they are not blind to his narcissism or even his corruption and incompetence. But he is the middle finger they flip up at all those oily politicians like the Clintons who lied to them in far more damaging ways than Trump. Trump was weaponized to stick it to the man. Polls in the 2016 presidential election showed that 53 percent of Trump supporters were motivated by dislike of Hillary Clinton and only 44 percent said they were motivated by support for Trump.”

    Bernie expresses that rage too, but he actually wants to help workers, unlike Trump.

    https://www.truthdig.com/articles/the-problem-with-impeachment-2/

    Liked by 1 person

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