The Trump phenomenon

Donald Trump is a curious figure, but then the world of politics is full of curious figures.

As I write, the USA is looking towards its next presidential elections, and the propect of Donald Trump being the Republican candidate cannot be ruled out.  Neither can the prospect of him becoming president.

I have just read an essay in a national newspaper by the veteran columnist and obnoxious idiot Max Hastings, in which he examines the Trump phenomenon.  He refers to Trump the racist, Trump the liar, Trump the opportunist, and I have three questions.

First, what is his definition of the word racist?  Second, in what sense is Trump any more of a liar than hundreds of other American politicians?  Third, in what sense is Trump any more of an opportunist than hundreds of other American politicians?

Hastings also refers to moderate, rational Americans, but fails to make clear who these people actually are.  So far as I am aware, I have used the word moderate in only two of my previous blog posts, and in both cases I asked what the word means.  I have used the word rational in only one previous blog post, and in a context which I think made my meaning clear.

I am not a fan of Donald Trump, but he comes across as a man who speaks bluntly about issues that matter to ordinary Americans, and I am not surprised that many ordinary Americans warm to him.  Hastings does not warm to him, however, and claims that:

The policies of Donald Trump, if they can be dignified as such, include building a wall across the U.S. border with Mexico to keep out illegal immigrants, and making South Koreans pay cash for the presence of American troops to defend them from the North.

While I accept that building a wall along the frontier with Mexico would be very expensive, and also that it might not prove very effective, I am not prepared to dismiss it as a bad idea.  If nothing else, it suggests that Trump is at least taking the immigration debate seriously.

As for making South Korea pay for American troops, I would prefer to see American troops removed from South Korea altogether.  If North Korea with its struggling economy can afford to maintain a threatening stance towards South Korea, then surely the far more prosperous South Korea can afford to maintain a more terrifying stance.

Perhaps the most revolting assertion made by Hastings is that millions of whites hate him [Obama] — for not being white.  If white people hate Obama, then it is perhaps more likely because they hate what he has achieved - or not achieved - during his two terms in office.