Trump is still The One

Donald “I’m Really Rich” Trump has broken just about every rule of presidential politics, including the one sacred to Republicans, and yet he continues to be the No. 1 choice of likely voters for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016.

What’s the sacred rule? It’s commonly referred to as the Eleventh Commandment (made famous by Ronald Reagan during his 1966 campaign for governor of California) and reads: Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republicans.

But not only has Trump been speaking ill of his fellow Republicans vying for the party nomination, he has been downright crude at times.

However, it doesn’t matter what Trump says or does, or just how extreme his views on the important issues of the day, such as immigration, are. His legions of supporters – reflected in the huge crowds that have been showing up for his campaign events – continue to be as enthusiastic as ever.

It turns out that reports of his political demise since he formally entered the GOP nomination sweepstakes in June have been greatly exaggerated.

To be sure, the obituary writers come from the ranks of Republican Party insiders or political pundits who can’t fathom the idea that a self-aggrandizing, chauvinistic, disrespectful billionaire real-estate developer who has never run for political office can maintain the momentum that has been building since he rode down the escalator to announce that he was running for president and that he was “really rich.”

So, as his poll numbers kept rising, these pundits and party elders said Trump was a novelty who had struck a chord with some voters.

Then, as his lead over the 16 other candidates – now 15 with the departure of former Texas Gov. Rick Perry – kept growing, they said it was because of all the media attention he was getting. They chalked up the coverage to his willingness to say and do anything to grab the headlines.

INTIMIDATED RIVALS

Finally, when Trump took the first televised debate on FOX last month by storm, the opinion was that the other candidates were intimidated by his bullying tactics and, therefore, let him ride roughshod over them.

Wait until the next debate, they said.

And so, on Wednesday, Trump and the 10 other top contenders shared the stage for the debate hosted by CNN. There was every expectation that The Donald was going to be the political pi ±ata with just about all of them taking a whack at him.

But while it was a more subdued Trump who showed up and got as good as he gave, the public reaction to the gabfest was a mirror image of the reaction last month.

The conservative-leaning Drudge Report readers’ poll showed that support for the former host of the highly rated “The Apprentice” television show had not diminished – despite the talking heads declaring that Carly Fiorina, the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, had emerged victorious.

In the Drudge poll, Trump was declared the winner by 58.73 percent of the respondents (167,904 votes), to 15.9 percent (45,454 votes) for Fiorina. The rest of the participants were in the single digits.

What does this all mean? Simply that the billionaire New Yorker has tossed aside the traditional political playbook and is writing a new one as he goes along.

Here are some of the new rules of engagement:

If you think Carly Fiorina is ugly, say so – subtly of course.

If you think other candidates are stupid – say so, directly.

If you think 11 million illegal aliens should be driven out (literally) of the United States, say so – without giving any details on how such a deportation exercise would be performed and how much it would cost.

If you believe that all the other candidates are whores for taking campaign contributions, say so – subtly, of course. Say they will be owned lock, stock and barrel by the special interests, but that you won’t because you’re spending some of your billions of dollars to finance your campaign.

But here’s the most important rule in Trump’s playbook: Nothing is sacred.

And here’s the second most important rule: Don’t burden your followers with facts, figures and detailed explanations about the positions you’ve taken. They just want to hear you say things like, “America is the most powerful nation in the world and if any other country looks at us crossways, we’ll kick its ass.”

Trump has tapped into the frustrations and anger of many Americans who believe that Washington is broken and that there’s scant difference between Republicans and Democrats. Thus, they’re willing to take a gamble with a former casino owner.

Trump has sucked the air out of the race for the Republican nomination for president.

To understand what this means, Ohioans need only look at Gov. John R. Kasich, who on paper, at least, is one of the most qualified candidates in the race.

Kasich, a second-term governor, former member of Congress where he served as chairman of the House budget committee and a Lehman Brothers executive, isn’t getting any traction with his thoughtful, steady approach to the presidency. Without a doubt, he’s the adult in the GOP sandbox, and yet Republican voters are ignoring him.

Why?

Consider his response Wednesday night to the question of which woman he would choose to put on the $10 bill alongside Alexander Hamilton.

“Mother Teresa,” replied the governor.

A wonderful selection that is a reflection of Kasich’s core beliefs, and yet he was largely ignored in the post-debate analyses.

At any other time, Kasich would be getting a great deal of attention, but in Trump World, serious discourse is viewed as a sign of weakness.

Incidentally, Trump named his daughter, Ivanka, as the woman he would put on the $10 bill.

And so it goes, the dumbing down of politics in America.

How long will Trump stay in the race? As long as Republican voters keep telling him that they will follow him to the promised land – wherever that is.