And I was trying to make the point that it was not a fake and he was hit by something, and the incident certainly could have, and probably did, traumatized him.
No, it wasn’t fake, and yes, it probably did traumatize him. All within the scope of the discussion of this thread. I just wanted folks to drop the minutiae of what precisely hit him, because that isn’t important to the discussion.
Personally and as a poster, not a mod, I do believe the event has changed him.
I notice he’s no longer exhorting his followers to violence. He speaks in general terms, but he’s dialed the calls to violence way back.
He no longer speaks out in the open, only behind bullet proof glass front and back.
He looks disheveled and unkempt. His suits, which never fit, fit even more poorly now.
He seems unable to hold onto a coherent thought.
So he’s deflated after the DNC?
I’m only half joking. I’ve noticed that he’s a lot “quieter” than he was. Gone are the huge rallies in stadiums where he confidently bombasts for an hour, replaced by an interview with Dr. Phil, where he speaks normally. He had a photo op at Arlington National Cemetery, which Arlington didn’t like; but at any rate, he didn’t use it as an opportunity to make a speech, which I’m sure he would have insisted on doing before the DNC.
I think the DNC blindsided him. Lots of speakers, some Republicans among them, musical guests, a fun roll call of the states, and throughout it all, a sense of relief and hope and (okay, I’ll say it), just plain joy.
He was primed and ready to campaign against Crooked Joe, Sleepy Joe, the head of the Biden Crime Family; whatever name he felt like using today. He’d mention Hunter a lot. He’d magnify all of Biden’s missteps and mistakes in speaking. He’d make it personal, but he’d also mention Biden’s alleged mishandling of the economy (“Stock market tanking! Grocery prices! Gas prices!”), and his so-called lack of any action on the southern border, and immigration in general.
But now, he doesn’t know what to do about Harris. She has no track record as the incumbent, because she’s not the incumbent. That right there limits what he can say; in other words, he cannot attack a track record that doesn’t exist. If he makes things personal, he’s likely to stray onto dangerous topics (“She’s a black woman married to a Jew! Oops …”) He’s great at stoking fear of everything, but Harris brings hope and joy, like a breath of fresh air.
I’m sure that he really doesn’t know how to approach this situation. So he’s cut back on rallies and other public appearances while he figures out what to do now that the game has changed drastically. And he doesn’t have much time in which to figure it out.
This is the crux of it, I think. Trump led a dirty campaign against Biden for the past 4 years about the one thing Biden could do nothing about: Getting older. It worked. But what Trump didn’t foresee was that Biden would respond with, “Ok, you win. I’m too old. I’m out. By the way, what does that make you?”
And you’re right: He has no good answer for it. He was traumatized by the assassination attempt, mostly because he couldn’t conceive of a Man With Gun who would actually shoot at him.
At the time most critical for him to respond to the wonderful spectacle and uplifting event put on by Dems, he’s essentially standing there, slack-jawed, pole-axed, deflated, defeated, angry (not new) and endlessly hateful (also not new). People seem tired of it, and his platform (Project 2025), which he is frantically trying to run away from, is horrifying to voters.
Absentee voting starts in some states in about two weeks. Hey, two weeks! That should be enough time for Trump to figure it out, right?
He is only a billionaire if assets and not liabilities are counted. And Truth Social stock price is falling faster than the mercury ahead of a typhoon, and could easily be a penny stock a month from now when the lock up period ends.
Yes. Remember on January 6 he wanted the metal detectors taken down because “they’re not coming to shoot me”.
For four years, she’s been the closest partner to the incumbent.
VP’s traditionally don’t grab the limelight, but they stand firmly alongside the Pres, representing and supporting all the official policies which the President leads. It’s legitimate for a rival politician to assign praise or blame to Harris for everything that Biden did.
It seems this has been a problem for his staff:
As the 2024 presidential race progresses, aides to former President Donald Trump are trying their best to keep him occupied and energized, per a new report from The Washington Post.
The Post, citing several anonymous sources, reported that Trump aides were concerned that he’d spend the days golfing and sulking while Vice President Kamala Harris soaked up the limelight at the Democratic National Convention.
As such, Trump aides have been keeping his schedule jam-packed with events to keep him busy and off the golf course, the sources told The Post. - Trump aides are packing his schedule with events to try to stop him from just golfing and sulking: report
I imagine that coloring books and chunky puzzles are also available.
No, he was traumatized by the assassination attempt because trauma is what happens when someone tries to kill you. Saying Trump was only shaken because of a personal failure of intellect, ego, or imagination reinforces narratives that all mental health issues are the product of weakness.
It’s super reasonable to say his behavior has changed because of the shooting, but it’s not reasonable to imply that a person with more normal viewpoints would have handled it better.
Absolutely this.
Or just standing behind the camera and jingling their keys, if needed.
Thorazine used to be, in the 60’s, the “take down” immediate “stop this shit” drug for pyschotic behaviour, either via oral or intravenous (or even intramuscular) routes.
I fear Mr. Trump may need a large scale enema, via the anal canal in order to reach his brain.
Exactly. It wouldn’t take a genius to start talking about “the failures of the Biden-Harris administration.” (Or even to say “the Harris administration, because now we know Sleepy Joe wasn’t running things.”) But apparently even that basic ploy is beyond Trump’s addled brain.
Oooo, that’s a clever one. You’re right, trump would never think of that on his own.
Quick, mods, delete my post before Trump sees it!
But that’s all in the background, while Biden’s Old Man issues were front-and-center. Hell, one of the biggest concerns about putting Harris at the top of the ticket was just that - after fours years, we hadn’t seen anything of substance from her. There was a theme that she was so bad, she was being hidden from sight.
When Biden was the front man, such guilt by association was enough. But now, Harris is front and center - and we’re seeing that the assumed narrative about her was entirely inaccurate.
And I think that’s part of why we’re seeing Donnie deflate. When it was Trump vs. Biden, Trump could look at Biden and believe, “Okay, I’m old, but would you look at this geezer?”, and figure that he was in the lead. But now? He sees the much younger and more energetic Harris, and sees people embracing her (and Walz) with an enthusiasm that he can’t match. And it’s possible that this is finally sinking in: He isn’t as good as Harris. The contrast is so stark that it even gets through to him.
That’s fair, and I appreciate the clarification. But I think your point and mine can simultaneously be true.
Ads claiming this ran a month ago in AZ A post from July 25:
Haven’t seen it recently, they are currently leaning into the Lyin’ Kamala trope.
Throw everything at the wall and see what sticks.