# Trump's Republican primary campaign **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [September 3, 2015, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828 "2015-09-03T18:00:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 60
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1183 "2015-12-18T03:51:11Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > The following just showed up in my Facebook Newsfeed: I get what he’s going for, but we are _not_ all Muslim. That’s not the _point_. The _point_ is that it doesn’t matter. The _point_ is that we’re all human, and as such, have certain rights that all civilized governments respect. I’m no more Muslim than I am Zoroastrian, but that doesn’t prevent me from treating Muslims and Zoroastrians and everyone else as individuals. I don’t need to see myself as Islamic or anything else in order to do that. Equality isn’t about applying every label to yourself. That’s presumptive and, to the extent it’s taken seriously, it renders the labels meaningless. Equality is about seeing past labels to whatever facets of the individual actually _matter_ in a given context. And, and I mean this in the nicest way possible, _Islam usually doesn’t matter_. It doesn’t matter in immigration, it usually doesn’t matter in the workplace, and so on. It’s evidence of a complete lack of understanding of conditional probability to try and use it as a proxy for terroristic leanings. Equality is focusing on what matters. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1184 "2015-12-18T15:02:33Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > And yes, seriously electoral tactics-minded liberals should not underestimate Trump or his followers. Except in terms of numbers, it is impossible to underestimate his followers. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1185 "2015-12-18T15:28:07Z")
Will Putin’s endorsement help or hurt Trump’s popularity. (I’ll guess it helps.) ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1186 "2015-12-18T15:32:12Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > Why the fuck would I as an American nationalist want to weaken the American state and nation by intentionally dividing it when there’s no serious secessionist movement around? Please realize that by separating you are pretty much screwing over the blacks, the poor, the gays, and others in “Jesusland”… Cursor down on [this page](http://www.patheos.com/blogs/camelswithhammers/2012/11/coloring-the-electoral-map-by-district-population-density-and-partisan-split/) to see a map that accurately reflects political leanings across the USA. The Electoral College grouping of Red States vs Blue States is relevant to the Presidential election but simplistic when considering real voting patterns. Look at all those Dark Blue cities, surrounded by Angry Red suburbs. Our Border counties are Light Blue–reflecting the sparse population & mostly _Tejano_ population. Also note the Blue Swath through the Deep South–that’s the Black Belt, left over from slavery days. Do the Northern Secession Advocates\* really\* want to abandon the Democrats with darker skin? And all the Urban Southerners of whatever color? (We’ve got some nutso Texans but Secessionists are a very tiny fringe group.) (I left off your whimsical link. But even a blind pig (not _you_) can find an occasional acorn.) ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1187 "2015-12-18T16:08:17Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > I get what he’s going for, but we are _not_ all Muslim. That’s not the _point_. The _point_ is that it doesn’t matter. The _point_ is that we’re all human, … > > Equality isn’t about applying every label to yourself. … I took his statement in the spirit of ‘I Am Charlie Hebdo’ or the story of King Christian X of Denmark promising to wear a Yellow Star if the Jews of Denmark were forced to do so. [QUOTE=Martin Niemöller] When the Nazis came for the communists, I remained silent; I was not a communist. When they locked up the social democrats, I remained silent; I was not a social democrat. When they came for the trade unionists, I did not speak out; I was not a trade unionist. When they came for the Jews, I remained silent; I wasn’t a Jew. When they came for me, there was no one left to speak out. [/QUOTE] ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1188 "2015-12-18T18:05:27Z")
I am definitely not a Muslim, thank cartoon Mohammed. > [@marshmallow](#): > > I don’t know if polling shows this, but my feeling is Trump has pretty good crossover appeal. Maybe second only to Paul. Cruz is the one who would scare libs into voting. You don’t think Trump would rile up women and Latinos? ---
**Author:** ![Kron](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kron/32/12444_2.png) [@Kron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kron)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1189 "2015-12-18T18:12:41Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > … land-locked Jesus-loving Wyoming … Wyoming is definitely not part of the Bible-belt. While there are many True Believers here, the nearly libertarian individualist spirit makes it not nearly as in-your-face as it is in the South. Frothing-at-the-mouth anti-Islamic bigotry isn’t hard to find, but I am not assaulted daily by messages that Jesus is my true and only savior. It’s not an easy place to harbor even remotely liberal social values, but thankfully a fairly easy place to be an atheist. Just wanted to share! ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1190 "2015-12-18T18:23:48Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > I took his statement in the spirit of ‘I Am Charlie Hebdo’ or the story of King Christian X of Denmark promising to wear a Yellow Star if the Jews of Denmark were forced to do so. Did anyone see this NY Daily News cover from a few weeks ago? > **[Donald Trump Beheads Statue Of Liberty On NY Daily News Cover](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/donald-trump-daily-news_n_5667acafe4b080eddf562575)** > > "When he came for the Muslims, I did not speak out as I was not a Muslim." ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1191 "2015-12-18T18:26:23Z")
They’ve been on a roll lately. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1192 "2015-12-18T21:05:04Z")
> [@Little\_Pig](#): > > You gotta be shit’in me. [Putin praises ‘bright and talented’ Trump.](http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/17/politics/russia-putin-trump/) Nothing strange about that except that Putin is even more ruthless than I had thought. If, hypothetically, the US were to elect as its president a completely incompetent blowhard, who benefits? If the US were to elect as its president a comical orange-maned marmoset who it made it the laughingstock of the world, who benefits? I can just imagine the scene in the Kremlin. “I told them Trump was obviously brilliant and talented,” says Putin, almost falling out of his chair with laughter. “But then you said, only the wise American voters can make the final decision about this most excellent man,” one of his aides reminds him, at which point Putin actually does fall out of his chair, rolling on the floor with laughter and kicking his little legs. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1193 "2015-12-18T23:57:51Z")
Is Putin so different, with his barechested horseback pics and so on? I mean, Trump is way savvier, more of a business success, etc., than Dubya f’rinstance… ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1194 "2015-12-19T00:19:44Z")
> [@standingwave](#): > > Or… Come out to the coast. We’ll get together, have a few laughs… I caught the _Die Hard_ reference. 😉 > [@SlackerInc](#): > > Is Putin so different, with his barechested horseback pics and so on? We can only hope Trump doesn’t follow suit. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1195 "2015-12-19T00:41:20Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > Is Putin so different, with his barechested horseback pics and so on? I mean, Trump is way savvier, more of a business success, etc., than Dubya f’rinstance… Putin is similar in his macho aspects, and he’s also similar in appealing to nationalism for his own purposes, in his case to promote an imperialist agenda harking back to the glory days of the USSR – his motto might as well be “Make Russia great again”. But there the similarities end. He differs from Trump in being a political master strategist both at home and internationally, instead of an embarrassing buffoon. One might picture Putin as the archetypical evil villain stroking a white cat, but it’s hard to picture Trump as anything other than an orange monkey shrieking in the background and throwing feces. As for Dubya, my dog is savvier than Dubya. Trump is a lot like Sarah Palin – really dumb when it comes to processing ideas, but with an instinctive fox-like cunning when it comes to self-promotion. Dubya didn’t even have that much, but it doesn’t equate to intelligence. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1196 "2015-12-19T01:13:07Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > Nothing strange about that except that Putin is even more ruthless than I had thought. If, hypothetically, the US were to elect as its president a completely incompetent blowhard, who benefits? If the US were to elect as its president a comical orange-maned marmoset who it made it the laughingstock of the world, who benefits? > > I can just imagine the scene in the Kremlin. “I told them Trump was obviously brilliant and talented,” says Putin, almost falling out of his chair with laughter. > > “But then you said, only the wise American voters can make the final decision about this most excellent man,” one of his aides reminds him, at which point Putin actually does fall out of his chair, rolling on the floor with laughter and kicking his little legs. This is pretty good. I may have to steal it. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1197 "2015-12-19T06:24:55Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > Trump is a lot like Sarah Palin – really dumb when it comes to processing ideas, but with an instinctive fox-like cunning when it comes to self-promotion. Trump is cringe-inducingly insecure and gauche, but he strikes me as far more intelligent and knowledgeable than Palin. He started as a garden variety millionaire, made himself a billionaire, then maintained and grew a celebrity status for decades. And he did graduate from an Ivy, while Palin bounced around at some third-rate colleges. ---
**Author:** ![Reyemile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/46a35a/32.png) [@Reyemile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reyemile)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1198 "2015-12-19T07:11:28Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > He started as a garden variety millionaire, made himself a billionaire Depending on how you calculate Trump’s net worth, This is probably not the case. If you accept Forbes’ valuation of his net worth and not his own, the net effect of decades of Trump’s business ventures is to make himself about _half_ as rich as he would have been if he’d handed his cash to a private wealth manager and taken up underwater basket-weaving. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1199 "2015-12-19T09:30:58Z")
Cite? ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1200 "2015-12-19T13:02:56Z")
[How To Beat Donald Trump At Making Money](http://www.forbes.com/sites/financialfinesse/2015/08/06/how-to-beat-donald-trump-at-making-money/) > [@](#): > > Donald Trump has been in the news quite a bit lately and regardless of what you may think of him, one thing that many people take for granted is that Trump’s good at making money. As this article points out, his self-described net worth jumped from $500 million in 1982 to the $8.7 billion he estimated his net worth to be today. Even if you use the lower Forbes 400 estimate of $4.1 billion, it still seems quite impressive. > > However, the article also shows that if Trump had merely invested that $500 million in the S&P 500 (500 of the largest companies in the US), he would have averaged an 11.86% annual return and ended up with $20 billion. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1201 "2015-12-19T14:01:54Z")
[QUOTE=Forbes] However, the article also shows that if Trump had merely invested that $500 million in the S&P 500 (500 of the largest companies in the US), he would have averaged an 11.86% annual return and ended up with $20 billion. [/QUOTE] … or even more if you include earned revenue from underwater basket weaving. I guess most of the S&P 500 had the advantage that they didn’t have to endure a string of bankruptcies. So I suppose this means that the average S&P 500 executive – basically a crowd of venial dumbasses who regularly get kicked out the door on golden parachutes – is about five times smarter than The Donald in the one and only area in which The Donald claims expertise. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828/1202 "2015-12-19T18:12:43Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > I took his statement in the spirit of ‘I Am Charlie Hebdo’ or the story of King Christian X of Denmark promising to wear a Yellow Star if the Jews of Denmark were forced to do so. He’s taking the wrong message from the poem you quoted, even so: The point of the poem isn’t that we should self-apply every label, it’s that we shouldn’t need people to be wearing any label at all in order to empathize with them. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828.md?page=59) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-republican-primary-campaign/729828.md?page=61)