I’ll never forgot Donald Trump’s entry into the 2016 Republican presidential primary. At long last, we were nearing the end of two painful terms under the charlatan Barack Obama – who’d been our most radical president despite his fraudulent veneer of moderation – and the likely Democrat nominee, Hillary Clinton, was campaigning to push our country even further left. She had to be defeated. I thought Republicans should nominate a thoughtful, articulate conservative – perhaps Carly Fiorina (remember her?) . . . or Marco Rubio . . . or Ted Cruz (my own sequential favorites).
Yet here was this bombastic Manhattan real estate tycoon / reality TV host with no apparent conservative bona fides thinking he could waltz into the fray – by way of his own escalator, no less – and upset the entire Republican apple cart. I was furious.
Of course, Trump immediately dominated the Republican field. Primary voters across the country loved him. As a still-believing neoconservative I just didn’t get it. Why was this seemingly shallow and sometimes outright obnoxious guy resonating with so many people? What was his appeal? Even my beloved relatives in New Jersey (where I now live) adored Trump; they had his life-size standee in the family room.
Trump quickly ran away with the nomination. It was unsettling and confusing.
By November 2016 – after much angst and soul-searching – I was emotionally and intellectually prepared to vote for Trump. I wasn’t entirely sure what we’d be getting but I agreed with most of what he said and, compared to the corrupt and mendacious Hillary Clinton, it really wasn’t a tough choice. In any event, like most Americans I still believed Democrat-biased polls so was convinced Trump would lose to Clinton (and he certainly would be trounced in my then home state of California).
Then the impossible happened: Trump won. I was ecstatic! And deeply grateful. Hillary Clinton would not be President after all; Donald Trump had saved our country from the abyss. God bless him.
Over the ensuing months and years of his presidency, even as Trump struggled with some early questionable personnel choices and a venal Deep State cabal determined to take him down – an actual “insurrectionist” conspiracy in contrast with the political riot on January 6, 2021 – I began to appreciate Trump’s populist, patriotic, and anti-globalist appeal, and I admired his phenomenally effective presidency. No doubt, his personality is not always my preferred cup of tea. But Donald Trump was a great president.
Now, looking back over the debacle of Joe Biden’s presidency – and, with it, the ugly rise of a triumphant hard Left – the 45th president’s primary historical significance has become clear: Trump has exposed the true state of our politics. He’s like a prism that separates blinding light into its constituent colors. Call him the Great Clarifier. Whether this was Trump’s intention we owe him a deep debt of gratitude for it.
For one thing, Trump has unmasked the true colors of America’s Left. Reaction to Trump has revealed a shockingly radical Left in this country – including the apparatchiks running the Biden administration – that has succeeded in cramming much of its neo Marxist political and cultural agenda down our throats. No senscient American should ever again wonder what the modern Left is about.
Of equal significance, Trump has revealed an elitist power structure dominated by unrestrained Deep State bureaucrats, global corporate behemoths including media and high-tech giants that abuse their unprecedented power to manipulate and propagandize Americans, Marxist academics and teachers unions, most elected Democrats, and “establishment” Republicans who are so reliant on the status quo (or fearful of change) as to align themselves with Democrats against the dominant conservative populism within their own party – the “Uniparty” – while most Americans of all backgrounds, means, faiths, geography, and political affiliation feel (and are) increasingly subordinate and powerless. Indeed, this expanding elitist oligarchy does much to explain Trump’s populist appeal within the Republican Party – and his singlehanded creation of an excitingly dynamic and diverse new Republican coalition that offers the potential for real generational change.
Thankfully, Trump has clarified for us these realities of our political, social, and cultural life. Now, as we approach 2024, the necessity for his reelection also has become clear. We certainly face many important election year issues including inflation, a migrant invasion, climate hysteria, violent crime, school choice and parental rights, and a looming nuclear war with Russia. But nothing will be more important for the next president than to uproot and destroy the fascistic Deep State bureaucracy that threatens our republic; to confront the globalist corporate power structure that threatens our liberty; to find and remove millions of unvetted and ineligible migrants who unlawfully have trespassed into our country – with Biden’s explicit encouragement and participation – destroying our sovereignty and threatening our security; and to preach a revival of true American values including family, faith, and country.
In my view, no Republican candidate other than Donald Trump has demonstrated the determination, commitment, independence, experience, ability, and sheer stamina to accomplish these utterly critical but extraordinarily challenging tasks. And I’m confident Trump will choose an outstanding running mate whose elevation in 2028 would be facilitated by a successful second Trump term.
Current polling indicates that Trump remains the preferred candidate of a large and growing majority of Republicans – and also that, were the general election held today, the race would be very competitive. The latter data reflect the deep unpopularity of the hard Left that manifestly is destroying our country. To be clear: Joe Biden’s reelection – or the election of virtually any Democrat – poses a true existential threat to our sacred Constitutional republic. We’ve certainly heard (and uttered) these words before but they are not hollow in the face of today’s frighteningly dangerous and volatile political reality.
So let’s Republicans and conservatives – all of us – muster up some badly-needed political wisdom and rally together around Trump, starting right now and continuing through our resounding victory over the Left in November 2024. Love him or hate him personally, the stakes for our beloved country are far too profound to do otherwise at this precarious moment.