# Donald Trump's 2016 General Election Campaign **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [May 4, 2016, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901 "2016-05-04T02:37:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 73
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1441 "2016-06-16T19:14:15Z")
The hits keep comin’ for Trump. Illinois Republican Senator Mark Kirk, who had already announced he wouldn’t support Trump, today said that Trump was “too bigoted and racist” for Illinois (via [TPM](http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/kirk-trump-bigoted-racist)). Richard Armitage, the deputy secretary of state under George W. Bush, said he will vote for Hillary Clinton (via [Politico](http://www.politico.com/story/2016/06/richard-armitage-endorses-clinton-224431)). And, Politico [reports](http://www.politico.com/story/2016/06/donald-trump-republican-national-committee-224403) that Trump’s relationship with the RNC is strained and mutually distrustful, and his fundraising efforts are lackadaisical. > [@Politico](#): > > While Trump had promised Priebus that he would call two dozen top GOP donors, when RNC chief of staff Katie Walsh recently presented Trump with a list of more than 20 donors, he called only three before stopping, according to two sources familiar with the situation. It’s unclear whether he resumed the donor ca"lls later. Josh Marshall at TPM [says](http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/trump-isn-t-doing-poorly-he-s-not-even-running), “Trump’s not doing poorly; he’s not even running.” Marshall says Trump has done almost none of the actual work he needs to do to mount an effective campaign. Instead: > [@Josh Marshall](#): > > Almost every day since he clinched the nomination almost six weeks ago has been a surreal tour through Trump’s damaged psyche - the insecurities, silly feuds, the mix of self-serving lies and attacks on people he’s supposed to be courting or justifying a supposed refusal to do things he finds himself actually unable to do (raise a billion dollars). More than anything he’s attacking almost everyone but the person he’s running against - and that, not terribly effectively. A few weeks ago, I really thought Trump had a real shot at winning. I was bracing myself for him to capitalize on some terror attack and vault into the presidency. But then he opened his mouth after the Orlando shooting, and he sounded like, well, an unhinged bigot. I know, I know, a lot can happen in five months. But, my general feeling of despair is starting to lift slightly. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1442 "2016-06-16T19:16:22Z")
> [@DonLogan](#): > > It’s going to be worse than that. > > Trump may pick Sessions as his VP candidate. The Sessions who drunkenly introduced Trump at a football stadium in Alabama as white America’s last chance. > > What do you think the hangover from 4 months of that kind of talk is going to be like? Well, if we’re lucky, the polling will remain so incredibly bad that people never really get more invested. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1443 "2016-06-16T19:27:21Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > A lot of bitching and whining. > > There’s a huge psychological difference between “My guy lost” and “My guy lost because he was cheated out of it” and “My guy lost because he colluded with the other side to throw it.” The latter two are dangerous each in their own ways. Oh, Trump will say he was cheated out of it. He’ll blame the media, he’ll blame the Republicans who stabbed him in the back, he’ll blame the Mexicans. I’d be surprised if he didn’t say lots of non-citizen Latinos illegally voted against him. And many of his supporters will eat it up, because they are stupid - pretty much by definition. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1444 "2016-06-16T19:32:24Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > Oh, Trump will say he was cheated out of it. He’ll blame the media, he’ll blame the Republicans who stabbed him in the back, he’ll blame the Mexicans. I’d be surprised if he didn’t say lots of non-citizen Latinos illegally voted against him. > And many of his supporters will eat it up, because they are stupid - pretty much by definition. He’ll say it. But if we have 5 months of him just being useless and way behind, even freepers might not get too invested. And at some point, he starts to look incredibly lazy, even to people who might otherwise support him. ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1445 "2016-06-16T21:08:00Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > The hits keep comin’ for Trump. > > Illinois Republican Senator Mark Kirk, who had already announced he wouldn’t support Trump, today said that Trump was “too bigoted and racist” for Illinois (via [TPM](http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/kirk-trump-bigoted-racist)). According to [this](http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/283749-gop-senator-trump-too-bigoted-and-racist-for-illinois): > [@](#): > > The Illinois senator said instead of voting for either Trump or Clinton, he plans to write in former CIA Director David Petraeus. Two problems with this: 1. According to Illinois law, unless Petraeus files a declaration of candidacy in Lake County IL (where Kirk lives), a write-in vote for him will not be counted. So if Kirk is trying to make a statement, nobody will ever know he voted for Petraeus. It will not be included in any official tallies. 2. Isn’t this the same guy who disclosed classified material to his biographer who was also his mistress? ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2016, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1446 "2016-06-16T21:46:25Z")
I’m just worried he’ll flame out like a gas-soaked pile of gun powder in the next two weeks, and the GOP will have a chance to mount an actual campaign with an actual candidate. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1447 "2016-06-17T01:06:24Z")
Clinton is rolling out an ad campaign in multiple swing states today. She’s running three different ads in Florida, Virginia, North Carolina, Iowa, New Hampshire, Ohio, Colorado and Nevada. The cost of the campaign is estimated at between 7 and 17 million dollars. Meanwhile, Trump has $2.4 million on hand and can’t spend more till after the convention. So Clinton gets a few weeks to deliver a one-sided beat down, while Trump can apparently no longer rely on an unlimited supply of positive free media coverage. > **[Clinton’s first general-election ad buy targets swing states](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/06/15/clintons-first-general-election-ad-buy-targets-swing-states/)** > > The ad buy is a signal that Clinton sees an advantage in waging a frontal attack on Trump's qualifications. > **[Clinton to unleash TV hell on Trump](https://www.politico.com/story/2016/06/clinton-to-unleash-tv-hell-on-trump-224399)** > > Her campaign ads will begin running Thursday in battleground states. > **[Hillary Clinton Is Outspending Trump's Broke Ass Campaign $17 Million To $0...](https://www.politicususa.com/2016/06/16/hillary-clinton-outspending-trumps-broke-ass-campaign-17-million-0-tv-ads.html)** > > While Donald Trump is begging Republican donors for cash because his campaign is broke, Hillary Clinton will be spending $17 million on television campaign ads in swing states. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1448 "2016-06-17T01:14:16Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > So Clinton gets a few weeks to deliver a one-sided beat down, while Trump can apparently no longer rely on an unlimited supply of positive free media coverage. Trump has trashed the media (while simultaneously saying that they’ll do what he tells them), and has also told the Republican Party to shut up and hand him their wallets. This is going to go well. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1449 "2016-06-17T01:25:57Z")
Rick Wilson, GOP presidential consultant and active member of the Never Trump movement, [calls the presumptive Republican nominee “Cheeto Jesus.”](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/gop-operative-lashes-out-at-party-calls-trump-cheeto-jesus-in-epic-tweetstorm_us_57626d13e4b05e4be860ec59?section=) ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1450 "2016-06-17T01:55:25Z")
What a time to be alive. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1451 "2016-06-17T01:58:11Z")
Can you imagine if GWB or Ralph Nader or Ross Perot had had Twitter accounts? ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1452 "2016-06-17T02:14:24Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > I’m just worried he’ll flame out like a gas-soaked pile of gun powder in the next two weeks, and the GOP will have a chance to mount an actual campaign with an actual candidate. Even then, wouldn’t that candidate need some serious catch up time to make up for all Trump for so long? And how would Trump fans feel about it? Hmmmm. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1453 "2016-06-17T03:05:17Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > Clinton is rolling out an ad campaign in multiple swing states today. She’s running three different ads in Florida, Virginia, North Carolina, Iowa,New Hampshire,Ohio,Colorado and Nevada. The cost of the campaign is estimated at between 7 and 17 million dollars. > > Meanwhile, Trump has $2.4 million on hand and can’t spend more till after the convention. So Clinton gets a few weeks to deliver a one-sided beat down, while Trump can apparently no longer rely on an unlimited supply of positive free media coverage. > > [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/06/15/clintons-first-general-election-ad-buy-targets-swing-states/](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/06/15/clintons-first-general-election-ad-buy-targets-swing-states/) > > [http://www.politico.com/story/2016/06/clinton-to-unleash-tv-hell-on-trump-224399](http://www.politico.com/story/2016/06/clinton-to-unleash-tv-hell-on-trump-224399) > > [Hillary Clinton Is Outspending Trump's Broke Ass Campaign $17 Million To $0 On TV Ads](http://www.politicususa.com/2016/06/16/hillary-clinton-outspending-trumps-broke-ass-campaign-17-million-0-tv-ads.html) Not quite. I’ve seen several repeats of the “Rebuild America Now” ad (apparently a Trump super PAC) with Bubba denying the Lewinsky scandal interspersed with Hillary denying the email thing. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1454 "2016-06-17T03:18:58Z")
> [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > Not quite. I’ve seen several repeats of the “Rebuild America Now” ad (apparently a Trump super PAC) with Bubba denying the Lewinsky scandal interspersed with Hillary denying the email thing. Interesting, thanks. What state are you in? I actually didn’t think there were any pro-Trump PACs. But, yeah, that’s a good point – even if the Trump campaign is running on fumes, the PACs still have some money. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1455 "2016-06-17T03:21:19Z")
Saw the Lewinski ad here in Texas. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1456 "2016-06-17T03:24:25Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Saw the Lewinski ad here in Texas. Uh, is Texas a swing state or does Trump knows that he should be concerned about Texas? ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1457 "2016-06-17T03:50:54Z")
The “Americans Against Insecure Billionaires with Tiny Hands PAC” released an anti-Trump video demanding he release the measurements of his hands. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/5LhNjWoBZck/maxresdefault.jpg ""Release The Measurements"") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LhNjWoBZck) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1458 "2016-06-17T04:19:10Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > Interesting, thanks. What state are you in? I actually didn’t think there were any pro-Trump PACs. But, yeah, that’s a good point – even if the Trump campaign is running on fumes, the PACs still have some money. I live in L.A. One of the biggest TV markets, so not overly surprising. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1459 "2016-06-17T05:02:33Z")
> [@Merneith](#): > > Can you imagine if GWB or Ralph Nader or Ross Perot had had Twitter accounts? Dubya would have let His People run his Twitter feed for him. He was a loyal party member and wouldn’t have gone off-script in public. Nader is like Sanders: An idealistic man who isn’t given to irrational tirades like Trump is. His feed wouldn’t necessarily have been as managed as Dubya’s would have been, but it would have been just as policy-focused and appropriate. I’d pay money to see what Perot would have done with Twitter. And YouTube. And Facebook. And Instagram. And Reddit. ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901/1460 "2016-06-17T06:18:25Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > Dubya would have let His People run his Twitter feed for him. He was a loyal party member and wouldn’t have gone off-script in public. > > Nader is like Sanders: An idealistic man who isn’t given to irrational tirades like Trump is. His feed wouldn’t necessarily have been as managed as Dubya’s would have been, but it would have been just as policy-focused and appropriate. > > I’d pay money to see what Perot would have done with Twitter. And YouTube. And Facebook. And Instagram. And Reddit. And Redtube. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901.md?page=72) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-2016-general-election-campaign/753901.md?page=74)