Of course he uses logic like most human beings, and I see no reason to think he is mentally ill. Trump is a choleric individual who bulldozes over everything in his path to gratify himself. That’s his logic. It’s a goal, and for the most part he’s achieved it. Unfair though it may be, when you’re a choleric individual who bulldozes over everything in your path to gratify yourself, the world is your oyster. People either enable you, and get rewarded, or they quarrel with you and get thrown in front of the bulldozer. It has been ever thus.
Pence is one of the people who enables him, and so he will continue to get rewarded.
You don’t need a political science degree to figure this out.
Exactly. This is the answer to the OP in a nutshell, along with Lamoral’s elaboration.
Above all–even above wise political advice–Trump wants someone to lick his ass and never upstage him. After that, he wants someone else to blame for his incompetence. Pence is perfectly suited for this.
It’s really annoying how much the media go on and on with analyses of Trump (and his so called “strategy”), when it’s transparently clear that all he is is just a childish, self-gratifying, bullshit spewing, self-promoting, mentally lazy and incompetent jackass.
Here too, on this message board. The endless speculation is not really necessary.
No reason to assume he’s mentally ill? Which of these things is not true about Trump?
Have an exaggerated sense of self-importance
Have a sense of entitlement and require constant, excessive admiration
Expect to be recognized as superior even without achievements that warrant it
Exaggerate achievements and talents
Be preoccupied with fantasies about success, power, brilliance, beauty or the perfect mate
Believe they are superior and can only associate with equally special people
Monopolize conversations and belittle or look down on people they perceive as inferior
Expect special favors and unquestioning compliance with their expectations
Take advantage of others to get what they want
Have an inability or unwillingness to recognize the needs and feelings of others
Be envious of others and believe others envy them
Behave in an arrogant or haughty manner, coming across as conceited, boastful and pretentious
Insist on having the best of everything — for instance, the best car or office
Right. I mean there’s brown-nosing, and there’s real serious brown-nosing and ass-kissing, but Pence has his head so far up Trump’s ass that it would take a surgical miracle to separate them.
I also happen to believe there’s no way in hell Trump would dump Pence, but for a moment won’t fight the hypothetical.
For the sake of argument, Trump wants a female running mate for. . . I dunno, reasons.
I think it unlikely that any qualified woman Republican with any hope of continuing her career would want to hitch her wagon to what at the time will be seen as a desperation move.
So that leaves unqualified women, and/or those with no hope of a future in politics.
Sarah Palin definitely fits the profile, but Trump would almost certainly want her to repudiate John McCain as her loyalty test. I don’t think the equation works.
Instead, I think Trump will go where he always goes to find unqualified people for his administration: either his family or Fox News.
Ivanka? Laura Ingraham? Harris Faulkner to appeal to the ethnic vote? Who knows, but consider the possibilities!
Pence has been a good soldier for Trump. He rewards loyalty. He won’t be dumping Pence. And for once what he will do is also the smart thing. Dumping him for no reason would be stupid and not help him at all.
That’s been my thought for a while. Haley is in a very good position right now. In my very unscientific study of reading shit on the internet she seems to be well liked by a wide range of Republicans. She was part of the administration but far enough removed from it in the UN to not be covered in the stink. She left before she could be in Trump’s crosshairs so she didn’t piss of the Trump worshipers. She could wipe the floor with Pence if he runs in 4 years. She would be foolish to take the VP spot even if it opens tomorrow. She would have to spend her whole time campaigning making excuses for their administration rather than having basically a clean slate.
This is exactly correct. Purely anecdotal but my Evangelical brother and sister-in-law insist they didn’t vote for Trump in 2016. Rather they voted for Pence. Even their Evangelical kids (who secretly voted for HRC) find this ridiculous. Point being, I suspect there were a significant number of Evangelicals who rationalized it in the same way. This time around I don’t see it working. Just this week my brother acknowledged Biden will get a good number of votes from people who would consider themselves to be Republicans in normal times.
Sorry but no. For too many right-wing Christians she is suspect. Attending Sikh and Methodist services won’t go over well at all.
I believe that he will dump Pence and will do so on the day that Biden accepts the Democratic nomination. He is all about the news cycle of the hour, so to steal some limelight away from Joe Biden he will announce that Pence is being dumped in favor of… somebody. Maybe Kanye West, one of the Kardashians, Kim Guifoyle, Doctor Phil, the list goes on. Qualifications will mean nothing, it will all be about winning the news cycle.
Dumping Pence would be an insane move at this point in the race. It would add a new degree of uncertainty about where Trump’s head is at, and there’s just no good reason to do it. Pence is stable. He’s quiet. He lets Trump have attention and he locks up the Christian vote. He balances out the Trump ticket. I don’t know where people keep getting this idea that it would make any kind of sense to replace Pence.
I doubt Pence helped much at all with the white evangelical Christian vote. These people hate anyone who isn’t a straight white evangelical Christian, they have found a permanent home in the Republican Party since from here on out bigotry and xenophobia are going to absolute requirements for getting the nomination. I don’t think Pence swayed any voters last time and I don’t think dumping Pence will lose any voters this time. As long as a bigot is at the top of the ticket, white evangelical Christians are going to be just as happy punching the R ticket.
I read news at various online sites, not from TV or video feeds, s I don’t receive talking-head messages about who should do what. IMHO Pants is Trimp’s perfect foil, a doer in the background. I almost never see the name of Pants in reports. He is invisible except to evangelicals, exactly what Trimp wants and needs. Other suckers will be thrown under the bus. Which idiot hired a dog breeder to run the virus response? Wasn’t Pants, so he’s home free. Who let the Surgeon General back on the stage? Wasn’t Pants so he’s immune. Pants will ride with Trimp the Chimp till the very end. Then he’ll execute a Hail Mary and escape prosecution. Pants know how to play political games. He will survive.
Nobody does adoring looks like Mike Dense and I can’t see the Don ever receiving enough of those to dispense with one. Many adoring looks. The best looks.
Pence is doing hospital visits, and not wearing a mask. Perhaps Donnie told him not to as part of a plan to get him sick enough to force him off the ticket?