# Was it a mistake for Trump to run? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [September 29, 2016, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250 "2016-09-29T23:00:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4

**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2016, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/62 "2016-10-01T16:33:04Z")

Here is what I don’t get about the whole Donald campaign. He knows what skeletons are in his closet. After all, he stuffed them in there (or had people do it for him). So what could have been in his head when he said yep, gonna run? He knows that the candidates have released returns for the last 40 years. He knows that his foundation is run with …shall we say…some degree of _irregularity_. He knows his foundation’s money has been spent on portraits of himself, and the portrait hangs in one of his resorts. He knows his wife posed topless. He knows he called a woman Miss Housekeeping. He knows he cheated on his wives. He knows he has stiffed so many contractors that it’s not even funny. He knows he put out feelers on business in Cuba while we were under embargo. And so, so much more. So what was he thinking? Im smarter than everyone so no one will find out? Or just “no one will care - make america great!” ---

**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:** [October 1, 2016, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/63 "2016-10-01T16:54:15Z")

I’m not surprised he thought he could do it. His ego is whopping. What surprises me is that Ivanka wasn’t able to talk him down. She seems more level-headed than the rest of the 80s movie villainry in that family, and she has to know that at his core, on a good day, her old man’s a cheating, lying scumbag, and that a presidential run would only expose that (and taint her family’s brand). ---

**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2016, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/64 "2016-10-01T17:12:51Z")

> [@Quartz](#): > > Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s First Minister, is going to be severely embarrassed if he gets elected. The thought of seeing her having to crawl and grovel in abject apology to him is delicious. Why should she have to do any such thing? If he becomes President of the US, there won’t be that many occasions for any contact between them, and most of those would most likely be formally dealt with through the Ambassador. She’s still entitled to her opinions, and I doubt very much if she would resile from them. ---

**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2016, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/65 "2016-10-01T17:13:56Z")

> [@MacCat](#): > > Their “worst” can sink even lower than many can imagine. Their appeal to the racists and other deplorables, with Tea Bagger influence shows who they are.? Yes, it’s going to get ugly – no question about it. But a lot of people who are voting Trump, voting Republican, voting third party, and voting against Hillary (and Obama’s legacy) don’t realize that right now. In time, I have faith that they will, but that realization won’t come from people like you and me. Sometimes, people have to experience things and observe things for themselves. It’s unfortunate, and I wish it weren’t the case, but I’m afraid that’s where we’re headed. ---

**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2016, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/66 "2016-10-01T17:48:55Z")

> [@asahi](#): > > Yes, it’s going to get ugly – no question about it. But a lot of people who are voting Trump, voting Republican, voting third party, and voting against Hillary (and Obama’s legacy) don’t realize that right now. In time, I have faith that they will, but that realization won’t come from people like you and me. Sometimes, people have to experience things and observe things for themselves. It’s unfortunate, and I wish it weren’t the case, but I’m afraid that’s where we’re headed. I am getting a bit concerned about how election day itself will play out. Trump’s “observers” are not a new thing. He has been priming a certain segment of the population that the elections will be rigged. How ugly will election day get? [http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/24/opinion/why-donald-trumps-election-observers-are-a-bad-idea.html?\_r=0](http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/24/opinion/why-donald-trumps-election-observers-are-a-bad-idea.html?_r=0) ---

**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2016, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/67 "2016-10-01T17:56:24Z")

Abut Nicola Sturgeon: I wondered if she had publicly promised to apologize to him in the even that he was elected, so I googled nicola sturgeon; donald trump; apologize. It seems that last December she stripped him of his role as business ambassador to Scotland, after he called for his ban on Muslims entering the U.S. Evidently **Quartz** and **Steophan** have their own reasons for disliking her. ---

**Author:** ![Hector\_St\_Clare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5ac83/32.png) [@Hector\_St\_Clare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hector_St_Clare)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2016, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/68 "2016-10-01T19:19:48Z")

> [@coremelt](#): > > Trump is a useful patsy to Putin, while he’s in the US causing havok in the US political system. Trump in Russia wouldn’t be particularly useful to Putin anymore. When Trump loses Putin will lose all interest in him. However maybe the Trump brand will still be valuable in Russia, its the kind of tacky bling that appeals to the thuggish new money elites of Russia. So yeah maybe he’ll just do a lot of Trump branding projects on condos in Russia. > > One thing is for certain, he’s severely diminished the value of his brand in the Middle East and China, both of which would have been massive potential markets for Trump branded condos or hotels. Too bad, so sad. Trump is not _popular_ in Russia, it’s more that Clinton is _extremely hated_. I would guess some of this is because of the close ties between Boris Yeltsin and the first Clinton Administration. (Russia has been trying to court Jill Stein as well, with some success). When they polled Russians about who they wanted to win the election, the results were like 34% Trump, 9% Clinton. ---

**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2016, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/69 "2016-10-01T19:35:22Z")

> [@enipla](#): > > It’s funny. Before he got the nomination, I didn’t know much about Trump. I suspected he was an asshole. Now I know for sure. > > Never been to a Trump casino, golf course, hotel, or anything else he is involved in as far as I know. > > Now, I will actively avoid them/him/and anything his family comes up with like the plague. I agree. Before the election, I also didn’t know or care much about him. He was kind of a cartoon character in my head. Like Scrooge McDuck maybe. Instead of a batshit insane POS. ---

**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2016, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/70 "2016-10-02T12:30:18Z")

> [@raventhief](#): > > I am getting a bit concerned about how election day itself will play out. Trump’s “observers” are not a new thing. He has been priming a certain segment of the population that the elections will be rigged. How ugly will election day get? > [http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/24/opinion/why-donald-trumps-election-observers-are-a-bad-idea.html?\_r=0](http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/24/opinion/why-donald-trumps-election-observers-are-a-bad-idea.html?_r=0) It’s going to get possibly quite ugly. And now he’s hinting that he might not concede the race, too. > **[Trump says he may not accept result if Clinton wins, in reversal from debate](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/sep/30/trump-clinton-support-election-winner-debate-interview)** > > GOP nominee also spoke at length with the New York Times about the marital infidelities of former president Bill Clinton, insisting ‘Hillary was an enabler’ ---

**Author:** ![computergeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e56c9b/32.png) [@computergeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/computergeek)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2016, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/71 "2016-10-02T12:37:41Z")

> [@Stratocaster](#): > > I agree. Before the election, I also didn’t know or care much about him. He was kind of a cartoon character in my head. Like Scrooge McDuck maybe. Instead of a batshit insane POS. I knew of him mostly from The Apprentice series and him courting publicity in the 80s. He mainly seemed like an egotistical braggart at the time and someone who would occasionally announce he would run but never did. I didn’t realize he would turn into this racist blowhard It’s been suggested he ran this time to get back at Obama for humiliating him at the White House Correspondents Dinner a few years back and to show all the rich folks who poo-pooed him that he could win the presidency. I’m not sure he really had any pure thoughts of service in running. I think it was all about revenge and payback, so his potential skeletons were probably just an afterthought. The guy has the biggest ego in the world, and that’s been obvious since the beginning of The Apprentice ---

**Author:** ![coremelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2016, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/72 "2016-10-02T12:39:38Z")

Young and Rubicam (massive ad agency) does Brand research and they have reported a drastic decline in positives for the Trump brand since he started his campaign: [http://www.riskeye.com/612/](http://www.riskeye.com/612/) ---

**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2016, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/73 "2016-10-02T15:15:24Z")

> [@raventhief](#): > > Here is what I don’t get about the whole Donald campaign. > … > And so, so much more. So what was he thinking? Im smarter than everyone so no one will find out? Or just “no one will care - make america great!” He’s doing bog-standard psychopathic thinking. The world according to Donald: “I’m the only real human; everybody else is a stupid automaton who will think whatever thoughts I plant in their heads.” Their world really is that simple. Somebody with enough money (or power) can surround themselves with enough employees who act the role for a paycheck that pretty soon whatever small connection with reality the psychopathy permits will fade away completely. ---

**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2016, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/74 "2016-10-02T15:39:19Z")

> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Abut Nicola Sturgeon: I wondered if she had publicly promised to apologize to him in the even that he was elected, so I googled nicola sturgeon; donald trump; apologize. It seems that last December she stripped him of his role as business ambassador to Scotland, after he called for his ban on Muslims entering the U.S. > > Evidently **Quartz** and **Steophan** have their own reasons for disliking her. Yeah, I don’t specifically dislike her because of anything she’s said to Trump - in fact, she’s probably right about him. But in general her, and all the Scottish separatists, are trading on the same fearmongering crap that led to Trump getting the nomination, Sanders almost getting it, Brexit and Corbyn being voted for, and all the other events in current politics that are attempting to replace perceived corruption and stagnation with demonstrable incompetence. ---

**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2016, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/75 "2016-10-02T16:08:49Z")

For Trump and the Republican party it was a mistake. For Hillary and the Democrats, and maybe everyone it was a godsend. I wish he’d done it 4 or 8 years ago since it has destroyed the foundation of the Republican party. ---

**Author:** ![MacCat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maccat/32/216_2.png) [@MacCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacCat)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2016, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/76 "2016-10-02T16:41:13Z")

> [@TriPolar](#): > > For Trump and the Republican party it was a mistake. For Hillary and the Democrats, and maybe everyone it was a godsend. I wish he’d done it 4 or 8 years ago since it has destroyed the foundation of the Republican party. Could not agree more. As someone who has always despised braggarts and bullies, Trump likely the most visible of that ilk, I was very happy to see him become the nominee. I believed he would be soundly defeated in the general, and as a bonus, virtually destroy the Republican Party. I see no reason to change my beliefs despite the press attacking Hillary every time his numbers start their trip down to the 27% that will vote for him no matter what. Now that the press is insulted, and some outlets are truly going after the truth of what he actually is, I only see him going down, down, down. Once that loser momentum is established, I don’t see any chance of his numbers turning around, with the exception of an October/November surprise. ---

**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2016, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/77 "2016-10-02T19:12:03Z")

Agree that Trump is all-but doomed. But I do not see Trumpism as fatal or even very harmful to Republicanism. Especially not to Republican Presidential hopes in 2020. After the voting is over and Trump has lost decisively, Stein & Johnson are footnotes with \<3% popular vote each, and the Rs do pretty well in Congress and state-level races this is what will happen: The R party hierarchy will say “Wow; we sure let a goof hijack our primary process. Our bad. Never again!” They’ll amend the rules and the pre-primary skullduggery a bit to make good on their promise. The Alt-right will continue voting Republican because in their opinion right is better than left. The Tea party will continue voting Republican because in their opinion right is better than left. The Country Club set will continue voting Republican because in their opinion right is better than left. The Evangelicals will continue voting Republican because in their opinion right is better than left. The mainstream cultural conservative white collar class will continue voting Republican because in their opinion right is better than left. The right wing media will continue the fact-free echo chamber to keep all five of these groups happy. We may see three, four, or even five different Faux News equivalents emerge; one to cater to each worldview. They’ll be singing harmony in unison in their permanent strident denunciation of the left and all their evil America-destroying works even as they sing different melody lines to tune their individual favorable-to-our/R-side message to their individual audiences. Bottom line: the lesson of this event for ordinary Republicans of almost all stripes is not that Republicanism is wrong and so they must join the Democrats. The lesson is that Trump’s a goof and some of the alt-right are not nice people. OK. On to 2020 and victory for our/R side! ---

**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2016, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/78 "2016-10-02T20:23:25Z")

> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Bottom line: the lesson of this event for ordinary Republicans of almost all stripes is not that Republicanism is wrong and so they must join the Democrats. The lesson is that Trump’s a goof and some of the alt-right are not nice people. OK. On to 2020 and victory for our/R side! Sure, but the lesson for everyone who is not already a 27%-er is, “Damn - these Republicans are a total embarrassment.” The Republicans are not going to escape the stench of Donal Trump for the next ten years. Not with the fervor with which they’ve embraced him. It’s not just the Trump brand which is taking toxic damage-over-time. Fox News has given up all pretense of objectivity. The Tea Party is ready to start lynching people. Donald Trump himself is not going to go quietly into the night on November 9th. He’s going to be giving speeches, calling Sean Hannity and Bill O’Reilly, and tweeting endlessly about how he was robbed and how Hillary is an illegitimate leader. The Republican Party is not going to suddenly grow a pair and rebuke him. The media is not going to stop promoting Donald because he drives ratings. Republican politicians are not going to risk pissing off the feral Trump fan club - or more to the point - they’re not going to risk primary challenges by cooperating with President Clinton. This is not over on election day. ---

**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2016, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/79 "2016-10-02T20:43:23Z")

**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:** [October 2, 2016, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/80 "2016-10-02T20:57:07Z")

If his goal was to make it into the history books, this campaign is an unqualified success. ---

**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2016, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250/81 "2016-10-02T21:49:02Z")

> [@Merneith](#): > > The Republicans are not going to escape the stench of Donald Trump for the next ten years. Don’t be so sure. There’s some collective amnesia when it comes to who ran the country during the GWB years. If Hillary wins Trump will be yesterday’s news inside a couple months. There will be spicy new narratives to cover. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-it-a-mistake-for-trump-to-run/767250.md?page=5)