In 2015-16, candidate Donald Trump pretty much destroyed the candidacy of Jeb Bush with one phrase. Jeb was "low energy". It was a moniker that stuck because it was how Bush acted. Sure, Bush may well have had energy of a sort, but watching him, especially after what Trump said, still left the impression that he was indeed "low energy".
Trump did it again with Crooked Hillary. Sure, Hillary Clinton had already established herself as a known liar and cheat and, perhaps, criminal. Still, each time Trump called her "Crooked" all those faults were dredged up for prospective voters. It was dislike of Hillary for those reasons (among other things) that won him the election.
Yesterday, Trump was doing it again, this time with regard to the 2020 Democrat candidates. For the first time, he really went after Pete Buttigieg. All Trump said was to ask the crowd if they could imagine Mayor Pete (as he is known) representing the USA in a meeting with Chinese president Xi. Then Trump said sarcastically that he'd like to see that. It was a transformational moment. Sure, anyone looking at the Democrat candidates would quickly see that Mayor Pete is quite young and looks even younger. Translating that into the kid meets the great and powerful leader of China who would eat his lunch is Trump's genius for condensing one of an opponent's main flaws into a few words. Mayor Pete has no experience; he's just been the mayor of a tiny city in Indiana. He's not up to representing the USA on the world stage. As Trump said this Mayor Pete was reduced for those who heard this to a teenager running for president of the high school senior class instead of a politician running for president. It's a hard image to shake, and it's going to dog Mayor Pete from now on. Indeed, if Mayor Pete has any success in the Democrat primaries, you can bet that many of his opponents will adopt Trump's description of Mayor Pete as an inexperienced little kid and it will be a lead weight hanging around his neck.
Trump also used some of his old favorites. He talked about Sleepy Joe. Biden really does seem half asleep sometimes. He talked about Crazy Bernie. To be fair, Bernie Sanders does a better job branding himself as crazy than the President does. Still, these very short attacks are incredibly effective. Even the true believers on the left who hate Trump are not immune to these attacks. They won't suddenly move to support Trump, but it will be hard for them to un-remember the image that Trump painted of their candidates. It's amazing how he well does this.
Trump did it again with Crooked Hillary. Sure, Hillary Clinton had already established herself as a known liar and cheat and, perhaps, criminal. Still, each time Trump called her "Crooked" all those faults were dredged up for prospective voters. It was dislike of Hillary for those reasons (among other things) that won him the election.
Yesterday, Trump was doing it again, this time with regard to the 2020 Democrat candidates. For the first time, he really went after Pete Buttigieg. All Trump said was to ask the crowd if they could imagine Mayor Pete (as he is known) representing the USA in a meeting with Chinese president Xi. Then Trump said sarcastically that he'd like to see that. It was a transformational moment. Sure, anyone looking at the Democrat candidates would quickly see that Mayor Pete is quite young and looks even younger. Translating that into the kid meets the great and powerful leader of China who would eat his lunch is Trump's genius for condensing one of an opponent's main flaws into a few words. Mayor Pete has no experience; he's just been the mayor of a tiny city in Indiana. He's not up to representing the USA on the world stage. As Trump said this Mayor Pete was reduced for those who heard this to a teenager running for president of the high school senior class instead of a politician running for president. It's a hard image to shake, and it's going to dog Mayor Pete from now on. Indeed, if Mayor Pete has any success in the Democrat primaries, you can bet that many of his opponents will adopt Trump's description of Mayor Pete as an inexperienced little kid and it will be a lead weight hanging around his neck.
Trump also used some of his old favorites. He talked about Sleepy Joe. Biden really does seem half asleep sometimes. He talked about Crazy Bernie. To be fair, Bernie Sanders does a better job branding himself as crazy than the President does. Still, these very short attacks are incredibly effective. Even the true believers on the left who hate Trump are not immune to these attacks. They won't suddenly move to support Trump, but it will be hard for them to un-remember the image that Trump painted of their candidates. It's amazing how he well does this.
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