And the thing I found most extraordinary, having covered Trump on and off all these years is how quickly — when he realized that he was physically okay — that he pivoted to a complete understanding of what the image was, what the moment meant politically. Right? And, and there's just this extraordinary moment of defiance where he balls his fists and the crowd starts to chant "U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!."
I just can't emphasize how extraordinary that was. And just like he had this instinct that this may have been a horrific event, but he was somehow seeing it as a political one. He was making use of it and, and really connecting with the people at the rally.
Somebody who worked with Trump for many years said this to me a long time ago. A lot of other politicians play the music. They can read the notes, Trump can hear the music. And that was one of those moments where he intuitively understood the moment, understood the image, understood the sound, and behaved in a way that maximized his position going forward. It was really, really something else.
Trump takes whatever comes to him and uses it as material. He did it in an instant, immediately after a close brush with death. Now, he has a longer but still short space of time before he gives his convention speech. What music is he hearing?
Is he Trump, the changed man, or Trump, the defiant one, same as ever?
Not only did he have a near-death experience — with all the potential for real spiritual change as well as the opportunity to appear dramatically changed — but he also has a new near-certainty that he will win the election, and with that comes an opportunity to speak in presidential terms, bringing us together... and leaving the Biden campaign in the dust... in the embarrassing tatters of its Trump-is-Hitler theme.
Posts
95 comments:
I doubt any political instinct kicked in there- he was pissed off as I would have been- that raised fist was anger, real anger and defiance. That it plays well visually is just gravy.
but he also has a new near-certainty that he will win the election
From your lips…I and Trump however suspect differently. Maybe in a free and fair election world…
You can call it a political instinct, and that's true. But Trump's own description of the moment is more about being connected to his audience. He felt their anxiety, the held breath, and wanted to reassure them. A Trump rally is a community.
Some of that analysis is correct, but it leads only to Trump as a PT Barnumesque figure; a master manipulator. I think a better understanding is that Trump loves these rallies and genuinely appreciates the people who attend. He understand these folks are looked down upon and take risks to be associated with him. For that, he is grateful. When he realized he was okay, he wanted these people he loves to know he was okay and deliver to them a message. I believe that was what drove the fist-pump and not a photo-op.
Glenn Thrush: ' And just like he had this instinct that this may have been a horrific event, but he was somehow seeing it as a political one."
Talk about misreading the event and Trump's reaction. Absolute DEFIANCE is what I saw.
Biden doesn't hear the music.
He spoke to the nation from the oval office and we hardly noticed. He stumbled over words, mangled sentences and it was just some old man, talking the way he talks. He has fully exposed his weakness and had nothing to say except the usual hoax/hokum and blame shifting, but the band plays on.
Trump is a deal maker (meaning finding deals that benefit both sides) with a Don Rickles sense of humor as a defense against the deep state.
He needs the votes of women though so common sense has to be put aside for a while.
Have I mentioned how useless women are outside of a neighborhood-sized space? National narratives are murder.
Maybe I don’t see it as some extraordinary political instinct. Selfless yes, thinking of the people with whom he’s connected and yes, perhaps defiance and euphoria of escaping death, like those who done it speak about…
We learned for the first time (at least for me and I've closely followed Trump for a long time), that Donald is a music lover. His wife told us.
What music does he love other than Lee Greenwod's song "God Bless the USA?"
I know one thing, Trump hasn't released a list of his favorite tunes like Barack did. Barack loves Drake and such classics as "Pimp the Butterfly."
I know its probably going to be Vance, and I used to want it to be Burgum (but too rigid on abortion), but if I could have my wishes (and imaginging what choice Democrat leaders would most despair of) it would be Tulsi Gabbard. A democrat only 3 yrs 9 mo ago and someone who would f-ing destroy Kamala in any debate. She's moderate on abortion and young. Talk about a unity ticket. "I didn't leave the democratic party, the democratic party left me" reonates with so many moderates.
I don't think Trump has it in the bag yet. But with Tulsi I think he would be unbeatable and the whole abortion issue which lost Republicans so much just two years ago, would lose much of its punch.
Trump is unaffected by the near death experience, he's just using it.
He has to tiptoe around the 19th Amendment for a while though.
When Trump raised his fist and shouted, "Fight, fight, fight!" The crowd exploded. Ann noticed that right away.
It was like when Doug McDermott hit his three-point shot for 3,000 career points. The roof came off the arena in Omaha.
Imagine if a competent Secret Service had just whisked him away without the crowd knowing he was OK.
Trump prevented further chaos in the midst of his DEI protectors.
That is a question I don't see asked much - what VP do Democrat operatives most want Trump not to pick. Would love to know the answer.
Liking the chamber music of Faure would be a good sign. So good that it's banned in Iran.
Have you ever watched Whiplash? If you're a sheet reader, you have no chance against someone who has the gift. Besides which, it takes extraordinary physical courage to look to anything but your own safety when gunfire starts and you can't shoot back.
But then Glenn Thrush, who is Jewish, has no concept of courage in any respect. Yet many Israelis, including Benjamin Netanyahu himself, need that courage just to stay alive. So it's a problem of the culture that many of Thrush's compatriots share.
Trump hatred never rests. Something as simple as reassuring the crowd that they had not just witnessed an assassination has to be seen as some darker image of him as a manipulative Svengali.
I have said here before that Donald Trump reminds me of James Gatz, AKA Jay Gatsby. There are facts about him and his personality that are beautiful and extraordinary. There are also some negative facts that we either ignore, accept, or emphasize, depending on what team we are on.
Jay Gatsby and Donald Trump symbolize America.
"he had this instinct that this may have been a horrific event, but he was somehow seeing it as a political one"
It was a horrific political event he immediately turned to his use. First by surviving and then using this overt political action as symbolizing what he has been asserting all along.
It wasn't staged but it so perfectly played into the narrative that Trump just kept in the story.
He didn't make it political. It was the politics that has been there for years.
The anger and hate that is murder in one's heart
Virgil Hilts said...
That is a question I don't see asked much - what VP do Democrat operatives most want Trump not to pick. Would love to know the answer.
7/15/24, 8:53 AM
And I keep telling people that they are missing the point. President Trump knows he is a unique threat to the oligarchy, and now most Americans know it as well. He's not going to make picks based on who promises to carry his program forwards against the bullets, as if the kind of leeches and timeservers infesting modern politics would ever do so.
Ben Carson, Kari Lake, Sarah Palin, Donald Trump Jr. I would be okay with any of these picks. I would be okay with a complete unknown. President Trump is the main draw that matters.
but he also has a new near-certainty that he will win the election
The voter fraud in Wisconsin is back full force since our liberal coven Supreme Court reinstated drop boxes meant for stuffing. They know it, and we know it. Madison and Milwaukee are corrupt.
Be interesting to see if enough black men in Milwaukee abandon the Dems and vote for Trump. Could balance out some of the insane suburban white women in Ozaukee County.
But I have a feeling many of them will show up and find out a vote was already cast in their name. That's who it works.
"a new near-certainty"
We all know what can stop him and I'll refrain from saying it. He is not hiding himself away.
He just truthed that he "cannot allow a 'shooter,' or potential assassin, to force change to scheduling, or anything else" — and he has already arrived in Milwaukee.
There were cool clips of him getting out golfing yesterday.
See the "Great Man" hypothesis that's used by some historians. Everything post-2016 has been a denial of this thesis, as Hillary was supposed to be the Great Woman who ended they myth that females cannot be "Great Men."
Cognitive dissonance in action.
OT but the documents case has been dismissed.
in fairness to the short SS agents, that were supposed to cover them..
Trump heard the music that TOLD HIM: Stand Up.. And BE PROUD!
He was "supposed to cower, on the floor, covered up by agents.. But he refused.. He STOOD TALL
gilbar said...
He was "supposed to cower, on the floor, covered up by agents.. But he refused.. He STOOD TALL
7/15/24, 9:00 AM
Yes. Those women, whatever their lack of stature, made up for it with loyalty. And the core guards responded as quickly as could be expected. President Trump is happy with his personal team, even as he demands answers from the USSS director.
It is said in moments like this, it is the character of a person that is revealed. I think that is what we saw. Some suggest, "Trump had the presence of mind to realize what this was for him". No. This is who Trump is as a person. He is defiant to those who wish him ill, and he fights such resistance. That's his character being revealed, and it is no secret. Many just chose to ignore it for so long.
'Dont you know to take the hint man, not only did you refuse to die, but you dont quiver' translation,
As to who is the running mate yes all those are fine but look what they have done to one or another at any time and look at how they have put kamala or stacey on a pedestal
"Maybe I don’t see it as some extraordinary political instinct. Selfless yes, thinking of the people with whom he’s connected and yes, perhaps defiance and euphoria of escaping death, like those who done it speak about…"
He's so unusual that it's hard to imagine his point of view, and this was an extremely unusual situation. I would guess that it was instinct but I also think maybe his mind really does do very fast calculations.
I saw a description of his face -- and I've seen his face -- after he stood back up. That for a moment he looked stunned/vulnerable/uncertain but then he suddenly clicked into very high anger and made the first fist pump (which was followed by telling the Secret Service to wait and the addition fist pumps and the shout "Fight! Fight! Fight!"
But that doesn't resolve whether it was instinct or calculation. I have no idea whether he thought of the idea of wanting to help the people in the crowd deal with their anxiety, saving them from needing to wait to hear that he was okay. He could have been thinking of himself: I must go on, I must be strong, I must fight. He could have been calculating to produce what has become a famous photograph: This is like the mugshot opportunity, I can make it work, this is golden.
This writer is wrong.
The first time Trump raised his fist was reflex, to show the audience that he was alright. That was certainly my first thought. Is there anyone who saw it live who interpreted it differently in the moment?
His repeating of the gesture seconds later, supplemented by saying, "fight," was was what resulted from his quickly considering the symbolic effect of it.
Reprising my comment on the earlier post regarding the BlueAnon theory the assassination attempt was staged, Thrush illustrates the Left's disconnect from reality that turns everything into a brushstroke in the creation of A Narrative, a view projected outwards that every event occurs with political calculation in mind.
In my fever dreams I hope that Trump seizes the cosmic moment and pledges to run a campaign without resorting to mischaracterizations or name calling. Policy policy policy. His dream for every American to prosper, if government would get out of the way. If democrats had to stop the endless loop of Hitler-fascist-bigot-racist-homophobe-existential threat to Democracy, they would have zip zero nada.
The Classified Document case was just dismissed because Jack Smith hiring was unconstitutional.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/15/politics/classified-documents-case-trump-dismissed-aileen-cannon
Yancey Ward said...
I doubt any political instinct kicked in there- he was pissed off as I would have been- that raised fist was anger, real anger and defiance. That it plays well visually is just gravy.
7/15/24, 8:42 AM
This!
I believe it was much more instinctually Trump. Not politics, not the possible headlines, not the photo-op, just Trump being Trump. Likely shock, relief, and anger. A desire to show all he was still OK and "this shall not stand".
Hacks always see everything as an angle, a calculation to promote, a put-on job and it is all colored through politics.
If the exact same thing that happened to Trump and it happened the VERY same way to Biden, the entire narrative would be the opposite AND every single Republican anywhere would be required to issue a strong denunciation of volant rhetoric, cause EVERY SINGLE REPUBLICAN would have been responsible for this.
Back in reality, of course it is Trump's fault and of course Trump cynically took advantage of this "opportunity", in fact he likely planned it! Why has he not yet been arrested for his part in getting that fireman killed?!?
We learned in early childhood education classes the base definition of learning: "learning takes place when there is a change in behavior." Trump learns quickly and adapts to circumstances. Salena Zito reports (link to Washington Examiner):
Former President Donald Trump has completely rewritten his convention speech in light of the assassination attempt against him on Saturday and will call on Thursday for a new effort at national unity. In an exclusive interview with the Washington Examiner a day after being hit by a sniper’s bullet, Trump said he wanted to take advantage of a historic moment and draw the country together.
“The speech I was going to give on Thursday was going to be a humdinger,” he said, “Had this not happened, this would’ve been one of the most incredible speeches” aimed mostly at the policies of President Joe Biden. “Honestly, it’s going to be a whole different speech now.”
Biden mentioned "unity" seven times in his inaugural address but has IMO sown division for the subsequent time in office, continuously otherizing "MAGA" and Trump voters. Perhaps Trump can make the case Thursday night that he is the unity candidate.
Trumps fist pump reminded me of Mel Gibson portraying William Wallace. All he needed was a kilt and a sword.
gilbar said...
the greatest political speech i've ever heard was: let me get my shoes
i get knocked down, but i get up again.. You're never gonna keep me down
7/15/24, 9:09 AM Delete
Yancy nailed it.
Ann Althouse said...
He's so unusual that it's hard to imagine his point of view, and this was an extremely unusual situation. I would guess that it was instinct but I also think maybe his mind really does do very fast calculations.
7/15/24, 9:04 AM
This is the difference between the paper (or fake) alphas which dominate modern America, and the more traditional definition that defined many Western kings and warriors. Not just courage, but the ability to use (and suppress!) emotion while putting thoughts into action. The Democrat attempt to murder President Trump not only failed, it revealed his fearlessness in a way that's absolutely devastating to the pretender, Joe Biden.
I would say that women rarely think of such matters, but clearly Trump's guards are just as focused in this matter as he was. Why does the oligarch media want us to know who the killer was, but not the guards? I think you know the answer.
my take was that Trump realized that the crowd needed to know whether he was alive or seriously wounded (or dead). So up he popped. And yes he had the presence of mind to make a "strong man" statement.
Later I wondered what would have been the current president's response if he had been in that situation. I think he would have gone down and stayed down and been carried to the armored limo. But that's total speculation as he never would have been in front of a crowd of several thousand people to begin with.
Blogger Ann Althouse said...
"a new near-certainty"
We all know what can stop him and I'll refrain from saying it.
I don't know exactly what it is we all know that can be stated?
1) There will be another assassination attempt or,
2) Absentee voter fraud will stop him as it did in 2020.
Madison is a cesspool of Dem vote cheating. If only someone would organize a community (a small army actually) of smart outsiders who would come to Madison for Election Day to watch the vote counting.
God forbid we consider the possibility that that was Trump being Trump. He pumped his fist in defiance not out of mere political calculation, but because it is in his nature to be defiant against attacks.
No, cant consider that. Must be showmanship.
He spoke to the nation from the oval office and we hardly noticed.
I noticed. I noticed he called him "Donald." President Clinton's statement called him "President trump." President Bush's statement called him "President Trump." President Obama's statement called him "President Trump."
But Biden stuck to the childish leftist habit, like Liz Cheney did, of never referring to Trump by his proper title or last name. I DID pay attention to Biden. That old husk of a man makes me sick. He can't even show normal respect in a moment of national importance because he's stuck on stupid, pretending to "restore the office" anf bring normalcy back to DC.
in the embarrassing tatters of its Trump-is-Hitler theme.
For this morning at least, MSNBC cancelled Morning Joe and his arrogant psycho Wife Mika this morning along with the rest of the Hitler accusation crew.
Donny Deutsch is probably the worst of them all. Elitist prick who doesn't wears socks with his $1000 leather shoes. Scarborough copied him like you did your favorite Uncle when you were a kid.
It was like the end of the first ghostbusters: https://youtu.be/mNuG25oq_b0?si=XOitHoUo2czRBGjq&t=164
I think if you have been the President of the United States you have probably thought about an assassin's bullet trying to find you, as much as you would hope that it wouldn't happen, I don't know how you couldn't not think that it just might.
That is what struck me the most, is how he didn't really seem surprised, when he felt the bullet and reached up with his hand and saw the blood and then just dropped and stayed down and then got up with the agents and the sound of his voice, "let me get my shoes", he sounded calm and his voice was steady and they weren't having to carry him away, he moved on his own power.
Blogger Dave Begley said...
Madison is a cesspool of Dem vote cheating. If only someone would organize a community (a small army actually) of smart outsiders who would come to Madison for Election Day to watch the vote counting.
You could have stopped at "Madison is a cesspool." But you're right. Madison protects the interests of Madison ONLY. They use minorities in Milwaukee during election cycles, and then hang them out to dry the rest of the time.
You have to give them credit though. They don't even hide the voter fraud. "Ballot Harvesting in the Park" during summer 2020 was just in...your...face.
There's been quite a disparity in the attendance at Trump's rallies vs. Biden's. This tragedy might not only give Trump, but his "deplorable", a reason to think twice about attending a Trump rally in the future. We'll see.
"Gusty Winds said...
Blogger Ann Althouse said...
"a new near-certainty"
We all know what can stop him and I'll refrain from saying it.
I don't know exactly what it is we all know that can be stated?
1) There will be another assassination attempt or,
2) Absentee voter fraud will stop him as it did in 2020."
Her nest sentence "He is not hiding himself away." makes it pretty clear.
Enlighten-NewJersey: "There's been quite a disparity in the attendance at Trump's rallies vs. Biden's. This tragedy might not only give Trump, but his "deplorable", a reason to think twice about attending a Trump rally in the future. We'll see."
I realize you might be from Jersey, but are you even paying attention?
If anything, the schedule will accelerate, broaden, enlarge, and the crowds will grow bigger and bigger.
Whether that's enough to compensate for the dems/LLR-dems/Deep State/corrupted judges/tech Cheat Machine remains to be seen.
Mike (MJB Wolf) said...
He spoke to the nation from the oval office and we hardly noticed.
I noticed. I noticed he called him "Donald."
7/15/24, 9:20 AM
It was the perfect time to announce that RFK Jr. was getting Secret Service protection before he gets killed like his father. But Biden is a deeply stupid and morally rancid Third World thug who is fine with murdering all of his opponents.
I very much hope he survives to be absolutely humiliated by President Trump.
The Professor nails it again. A near death experience opens up sympathetic emotions even in a Super Thinker like Trump. We may even see him tear up during his speech. After all even the best tight end in the NFL does it.
Gusty Winds said...
in the embarrassing tatters of its Trump-is-Hitler theme.
For this morning at least, MSNBC cancelled Morning Joe and his arrogant psycho Wife Mika this morning along with the rest of the Hitler accusation crew.
----------------------------------------------------------
CNN says "A person familiar with the matter told CNN that the decision was made to avoid a scenario in which one of the show’s stable of two dozen-plus guests might make an inappropriate comment on live television that could be used to assail the program and network as a whole. Given the breaking news nature of the story, the person said, it made more sense to continue airing rolling breaking news coverage in the fraught political moment."
LOL, MSNBC can't even trust their top on-air people to avoid the hate and rancor.
Dave Begley said...
When Trump raised his fist and shouted, "Fight, fight, fight!" The crowd exploded. Ann noticed that right away.
---------
I found the chant of "USA! USA!" instead of "Trump! Trump!" interesting. I think they sensed the moment as well.
"If democrats had to stop the endless loop of Hitler-fascist-bigot-racist-homophobe-existential threat to Democracy, they would have zip zero nada."
What would make them stop? He's already not a "Hitler-fascist-bigot-racist-homophobe-existential threat to Democracy" and that hasn't slowed down the lies.
And in other important news, CNN Business reports Huma Abedin is engaged to George Soros' son, Alex.
In before the harpies!
Enlighten-NewJersey said...
" There's been quite a disparity in the attendance at Trump's rallies vs. Biden's. This tragedy might not only give Trump, but his "deplorable", a reason to think twice about attending a Trump rally in the future. We'll see."
7/15/24, 9:26 AM
There won't be any more lapses in security I can tell you that. Future crowds will be "youuuug"
You from Jersey, I'm from Jersey too!! What exit?
It's only July! People will forget about even this ... Trump would have waited til at least September if he'd set this up.
and behaved in a way that maximized his position going forward. It was really, really something else.
Or maybe, and hear me out on this, he did it because it was the right thing to do for the crowd and the country? Being a good citizen includes leading others to good citizenship.
I wish more politicians (and pundits) were citizens first.
Yancy hit it pretty good in the first comment. This is not an unknown emotional response from soldiers in combat. It is, however, a totally alien emotional response to Leftie, NYT, soy boy reporters like Glenn Thrush, who'd probably still be cowering under the podium while the USSS agents tried to coax him out like a frightened cat.
I remember the iconic moment from the Las Vegas mass shooting when the guy stepped out into the open and raised his middle finger to the shooter. Fuck you! Trump has been hounded, prosecuted, defamed, and now shot at. That wasn't a fist he raised. That was a middle finger to his persecutors. Fuck you!
Not to say he won't use it to his advantage. He should and will. It would be stupid not to, but what I saw in that moment was not a political calculation, but defiance pure and simple.
Washington crossing the Delaware.
This is one way to look at it and I keep reading this 'take.'
But Trump is a fighter. He's a street kid in rich kid's clothing.
His instinct was to let people know that he was OK and to tell them to fight.
He doesn't think like normal people, which is maybe why he's a billionaire and was POTUS.
There were cool clips of him getting out golfing yesterday.
But what he needs to do ASAP, and what I assume he will do, is visit the people in the hospital and visit the family of the many who was killed.
His 'protective' team probably wouldn't let him the day of the incident, but he should try to do it this week...
Biden has repeatedly, in the wake of his disastrous debate, stated that when a Biden gets knocked down he gets up again".
That is a statement about being "knocked down" in polls and negative comments.
Trump was frickin' SHOT and immediately got back up to fight.
"For this morning at least, MSNBC cancelled Morning Joe..".
Because the MJ regulars just can't help themselves.
Hey, ABC News Divisio. You own "The View" (really). Are you going to let the screachng harpies on the air?
But that doesn't resolve whether it was instinct or calculation. I have no idea whether he thought of the idea of wanting to help the people in the crowd deal with their anxiety, saving them from needing to wait to hear that he was okay.
I have seen people get blown up. I have seen that look on people’s faces. I have seen it on people that I trained with. I have seen it on a lot of “civilians” in Afghanistan/Iraq.
It takes an amount of time for people to snap out of it and people come back at varying levels of capability.
We had a cook that really wanted to go out with us. It must be pointed out how shocking and crazy that was. We operate on trust. Someone must have liked him. We wouldn’t let regular army come out with us without reason. He got shot in the leg right above the knee on one of the first couple missions. I carried him to the medivac. Cool as a cucumber. Some people are naturally inclined.
There are more people who are not.
I wouldn’t say Trump spent a lot of time training to get blown up but he came back pretty quick. He also was able to think about what the crowd needed. When you are in that headspace you are going to see what the natural inclinations are. Trump is obviously going to come out swinging.
But what really comes out is that his natural instincts and first thoughts are about what the crowd and other people need.
Embarassing tatters of the Dim lawfare scheme. As they used to say on the old Dick Clark American Bandstand, "It's got a good beat. I'd give it a 1776 and I can dance to it."
Blogger Joe Smith said...
There were cool clips of him getting out golfing yesterday.
But what he needs to do ASAP, and what I assume he will do, is visit the people in the hospital and visit the family of the many who was killed.
No. Let the victims get treated by the hospital staff and stay out of the way of that staff. They don't need a circus, especially one in this type of situation. The right thing is to reach out later. Send a card, flowers, make a phone call, fund medical care or memorial services, say a prayer, keep them in your thoughts. Stay out of the hospital. Hospital visits by celebrities are for the chronically ill.
Trump is a mensch.
I guess I should catch up to the news before commenting further, but I will just say that I too noticed the clear utility of big men over small women in the post-shot pile-on and retreat.
Selena Zito is out with an article with Trump stating he was changing his Thursday speech from going after Biden to one about unity.
Trump's got a real McKinley in the election of 1896 moment opportunity
Here's Karl Rove discussing his book on McKinley and the speech he gave to bring the Confederate and Union veterans together
https://youtu.be/So2gCW659SE?t=2152
No. Let the victims get treated by the hospital staff and stay out of the way of that staff. They don't need a circus, especially one in this type of situation.
Being politically calculating, but also morally correct here: If I were assisting Trump with his convention speech I'd spend a LOT of time eulogizing the people who died and were wounded in the assassination attempt. They were there supporting him, they were his people, and they were Americans willing to stand with him when all the cultural elite demonized Trump and anyone who dared support him.
Trump could speak to their lives without mentioning a thing about the current administration, or the yapping news media, or the preening peacocks of entertainment. A just the facts kind of thing.
The elegy would be a devastating blow to the people trying to divide America for their own aggrandizement.
It would honor the martyrs, and honor We the People. I hope he does something like it.
This tragedy might not only give Trump, but his "deplorable", a reason to think twice about attending a Trump rally in the future. We'll see.
I've never been to a Trump rally but I'm going next time he's in Arizona. My wife frets about the danger but I am not going to let that stop me.
I agree with phantommut above. The Democrats have no useful response. They based their whole campaign on Trump hatred. They have nothing else.
Democrats, the media, the left are teaching (sic) us to fear that which can harm us - just as the did in the UK - as a prelude to a ban of that thing which must be feared.
Some people do not cower when faced with the prospect of death, or in this case a near miss. They confront and challenge it.
Yes, I live in NJ (the closest exit is 127) but am not from NJ. Drago, I am paying attention. And as I said, we'll see. You don't think there will be pressure for Trump to hold rallies in closed venues? You don't think people might be reluctant about bringing their families to those huge open events? The man who was killed and the people shot were not even close to Trump. I think it's been a miracle some nut hasn't tried before. It's a worry I've always had about Obama and Trump. The Secret Service could certainly have done a better job on Saturday, but it's an impossible task to keep an eye on everyone at those huge rallies and goodness knows there is always some crazy copycat.
This tragedy might not only give Trump, but his "deplorable", a reason to think twice about attending a Trump rally in the future. We'll see.
I would imagine that any event involving Donald Trump is now going to be the safest, most secure place on planet earth. At least it better be.
A lot of other politicians play the music. They can read the notes, Trump can hear the music
I don't understand the analogy. It makes no sense. unless deaf, everyone can hear the music, many can understand the music. A smaller but still sizable portion can play the music and many of them can read the notes.
Donald Trump is hardly unique in any of those regards.
A correct analogy would be that he can create the music which is a different skill altogether and possessed by very few people. Mozart could not hear the music being deaf. Luis Prima could not read music until later in his career ("I learned to read a little but it didn't hurt me none"), Irving Berlin lived to be nearly 100 without ever learning to play anything other than the white keys on a piano.
Yet all created great music that lives forever.
Donald Trump hears, reads the notes, and plays. Sure. That makes him a great craftsman. More importantly he can create the music, a rare skill. That makes him an artist.
Great artists are sometimes great craftsmen/women. More often there is a disconnect. Great artists (creators) may only be middling craftsmen/women. Great craftsmen/women (doers) may only be middling artists.
I mentioned Ballad of Ira Hayes yesterday. Peter LaFarge wrote it and I have it on his "As Long as the Grass Shall Grow" album. It is a pretty good album and he does it well. But compared to Johnny Cash? Johnny OWNED than song.
https://youtu.be/tvUi5yGjJbY?si=PAgh7fEhbxh_NlSd
https://youtu.be/CVxUBncNRFo?si=alSCUDwF5ckoltM6
Donald Trump is highly unusual in that he is both a great creator and a great craftsman.
John Henry
I don't see the fight and the first pumping as political anymore than gwb yelling at the terrorists was political. He wanted to reassure the crowd and he was freaking angry that he had almost died!
"This tragedy might not only give Trump, but his "deplorable", a reason to think twice about attending a Trump rally in the future. We'll see."
That's a take. Yeah, we're going to run and hide.
Also, Yancy is right. The attempt to portray Trump's reaction as political staging is just a way to deflect from the obvious display of courage under fire.
Trump could turn into Mr. Nice Guy and completely change everything. Can he do it? I don't know. But that's the question in my mind.
utility of big men over small women
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Dr Ruth Was trained Israeli sniper!
bring the Confederate and Union veterans together
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because there were good men on both sides.
now ....?????
to compare ...
just imagine only if R congress critters from shananigan states had come out to talk with 'insurrectionists' and denied VP Pence quorum on J6
Keyword is instinct. Definition: “Innate propensity to certain seemingly rational acts performed without conscious intention; innate, usually fixed pattern of behavior, especially in response to certain simple stimuli. Innate impulse, intuition, unconscious skill.” OED it’s not a rational considered choice. Instinct is how you automatically respond to stress.
We saw Trump displaying his instinctive nature in an extraordinary circumstance. But we’ve seen all along that when he gets in front of a crowd he always acts instinctively. That’s why people love him. He’s genuine and he loves this country and that includes ordinary American people including himself. Trump obviously has a strong sense of self love.
He’s not trying to manipulate people to like him. You either like him or you don't and that’s OK. Obviously, a lot of people don’t like him but I’ve never understood the hatred so many liberals have towards him. Or perhaps, having been a liberal all my life, why I don’t hate him.
Beethoven was deaf, John Henry, not Mozart, but I see the point.
Narayanan, a small woman like Dr. Ruth might make a good sniper, but bodyguards need to be tall and burly.
This is late and will probably go unseen but I have to say it. Enigma said "Hillary was supposed to be the Great Woman who ended they myth that females cannot be "Great Men." I say Elizabeth the First, Catherine the Great, and Margaret Thatcher all got there first.
Joe Smith said...
There were cool clips of him getting out golfing yesterday.
But what he needs to do ASAP, and what I assume he will do, is visit the people in the hospital and visit the family of the many who was killed.
His 'protective' team probably wouldn't let him the day of the incident, but he should try to do it this week...
He better be at that funeral. Unless the family requests him not to which is possible.
And there will be moments of silence at the convention.
One of the things that really sticks with you in things like this is that someone else died instead of you. It lingers and is impossible for me to shake.
And if Trump has not hired a personal security team or at least started interviewing them yet then I will be upset. The last people in the world he should be taking advice from are his SS provided protection team.
"There were cool clips of him getting out golfing yesterday."
I was dismayed to see that, after one of his supporters was murdered, practically in front of him. I'm sure some respect will be paid at the convention for the man and his family however.
Confederate and Union veterans were meeting together before the election of 1896. The two groups of former soldiers had a lot in common. There were no post-war meetings between Confederate and Union politicians.
Trump's task to create a reconciliation between two sides is more akin to Lincoln's attempt to compromise with the Confederate states to keep in the Union- including those whose legislatures had already voted to secede. A Herclean if not downright impossible task.
But let's look at a simple comparison between the newly formed Republican party of 1860 and today, and the preexisting Democrat party of 1860 and today.
Republican- the party of individual rights.
Democrat- the party of group rights.
Neither party gas switched on this since 1860. The Democrats have become a coalition of different groups with different goals and purposes. A coalition that's starting to fray.
The two beliefs are completely incompatible. And only one of them is embedded in all our founding documents.
The images of Trump alive and defiant will be erased from media. They do not support the narrative of Trump as destroyer of democracy. An attempt at presenting Joe Biden as Uniter in Chief was attempted with his bumbling TV speech and with Lester Holt's interview, and will succeed as well as would Joe trying to stand on his head, horrifying and with bad results.
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