No, you are the one falling into Trump’s trap and resorting to just a little bit of bullshit.
Unfortunately for your argument, Trump is not explicitly saying anything untrue.
What he is saying is BOTH:
a) A reasonable description of what happened. People loyal to Sanders were instructed by organizations loyal to Sanders to disrupt the rally.
and
b) Easily misunderstood to mean that Sanders himself directly ordered the actions (the implausibility of that scenario not withstanding)
If you assert that his message was crafted in such a way that b was included on purpose, and thus that he is being intentionally misleading, I will agree with you. But neither one of us have any proof of this. And it is the kind of plausibly deniable double-speak that people always forgive during political seasons, anyway, as long as it is their horse doing the galloping.
To sum it up, Trump uses simple very effective techniques that are based on how people make decisions. And he does it masterfully. It is a mistake to understand the simplicity and repetition of the message to be due to a lack of intelligence, preparation, or sophistication.
Untrue. It positions anyone but Trump to vote for if you hate him. Personally, I prefer Hillary. And oh do I hate that loudmouth ignorant pathological liar Trump.
EDIT: I forgot racist, sexist, and extremely dangerous to the future history of America.
This is my take on it, for what it’s worth. What Trump said and how he wants it to be interpreted are two different things. Your recap above, correctly, does not specifically state that Sanders himself ordered supporters to disrupt the rally, but Trump is only too happy to be accused of saying it so he can successfully refute it and hold the upper hand. It’s a juvenile game of “Gotcha” that makes him look superior. The way to make him lose at it is to not fall for it.
Fomenting hate against himself among his opponents seems to be as much a part of Trump’s game as fomenting hate among his followers against their perceived enemies. Nothing like a persecution complex to reinforce the hate they already have.
Trump can’t lay claim to being the next Hitler unless he blames a Jew for his problems. His supporters are so stupid they gladly slurp up every bit of bullshit that comes out of his mouth. He gets away with it because it really doesn’t matter what he says.
I don’t think blaming Sanders “because he’s a Jew” has anything to do with it. If Trump points at Bernie only, it keeps the pot a little bit more stirred for the Democrats - and I believe Trump does this consciously.
I would not be surprised if Trump starts calling out Hillary for not being as strong as Bernie or some such drivel…
Trump’s supporters already hate blacks, Mexicans, and Muslims. Certainly Trump gets some points with that crowd by tossing a bit of anti-Semitism in the mix.
Yes, Trump panders to all kinds of hate - by ethnicity, religion, gender, etc.
But if he acts like Bernie is the threat, he can draw attention away from Hillary and/or try to spin her as weaker than Bernie - that Hillary is a less-worthy opponent to Trump himself.
Repositioning the campaign, again, to be about who is willing to take a stronger position about these protests and not about the issues. Trump being Trump - to keep misdirecting attention and keep his supporters roiled and entertained.
I think it’s pretty simple, really. Back in 1968, “Law and Order” wasn’t just about race, it was also about hippie-bashing. And here in this reality show that should be called Son of '68, hippie-bashing still plays quite well to his core demographic.
This is, IMO, completely correct. Trump is smarter than people give him credit for. The guy knows how to persuade (or manipulate, if you will) people and speak in ways that may be able to give him an ‘out’.
That’s an intriguing read. I don’t know if Trump is deliberately using that strategy or if it’s just the way he works by nature, but “40-second Trump” certainly describes his campaign so far.
