Donald Trump is the 47th president of the United States. Many will have misgivings about his fitness for the job – and not only woke liberals. But Trump’s depiction by his opponents, almost the entire establishment, and the mainstream media, both in Britain and America, as a monster, a tyrant, a fascist, a woman-hating neo-Nazi sympathising sociopath (this by David Lammy), the harbinger of a new dark age if elected etc. raises more questions about them than about him.
The bias has been breath-taking. Sky News, for example, presented the choice on the eve of the poll as being between Trump, ‘a convicted felon’ who engaged in ‘horrible rhetoric’ and would divide the nation, and Harris, who would unite it. Presenters and correspondents alike could barely conceal their loathing for the man. Watching the news channels this morning, one was surprised that they did not appear in mourning dress.
The question no-one addressed was this: If Trump is a fascist, racist, misogynous monster, why did the American electorate give him an overwhelming victory? Where were the millions of women, voting in unprecedented numbers, we were told, the blacks and Hispanics, the decent Americans of all races who were supposed to be voting for Harris, the voice of light and reason?
Anyone who watched the rallies of the respective presidential candidates would immediately have seen the difference. True, Trump barely completed a grammatical sentence or expressed a cogent argument. He was forever deviating, repeating himself, as if unable to sustain any line of thought for more than a few seconds. His concern for the facts was strictly limited, sometimes laughable. The insane asylums and mental hospitals of the world were emptying their inmates into America, courtesy of the Democrats open-borders policy, he proclaimed. His were more like variety performances than serious speeches. Yet no-one could have mistaken his message, and the tirade of rhetoric, however outrageous, alternately angry and good humoured, often funny, was highly effective, not to say impressive when sustained for an hour at a time. His skit on Kamala’s name and its pronunciation might have been in poor taste, but it got over a point that resonated with millions of ordinary Americans. She was selected on racial grounds – for the colour of her skin.
Trump’s routine at his Wisconsin rally, in response to Biden’s reported remarks branding Trump supporters ‘garbage’, was hilarious. His advisors had suggested he wear a garbage collector’s reflective vest to the rally. He was reluctant, but when told it would make him look slimmer, he agreed. Then he was confronted with a giant garbage truck to climb into with the ‘fake news’ waiting to declare him ‘cognitively and physically impaired’ if he put a foot wrong. The first stair to climb onto the truck was ‘like up here’, level with his waist, and Trump says to himself ‘shit!’ But ‘I had the adrenaline going and I made it’. The audience cracked up.
Harris invited Hollywood celebrities on stage to parade their endorsement. Trump invited up firemen, border force, wrestlers, and local sports heroes. He paid tribute to America’s sanitation workers. He acknowledged his audience and was at ease with them. His spell serving fries at McDonald’s was carefully staged. But, again, he was at ease and obviously enjoying himself. The first car arrived to be handed their takeaway and Trump greeted them with ‘What a good-looking family!’
The point is that Trump appeals to the ordinary person, and he likes the ordinary person, the average American, whatever their colour. He might be an incorrigible rogue, but his heart is in the right place. His anti-establishment position and down-to-earth values appeal to countless millions who have been abandoned by the liberal elite.
When Trump was president last time round, the world did not enter a new dark age. The Abraham Accords combined with an uncompromising stance on Iran offered hope in the Middle East. Russia and China seemed to be in check. Since then, the world has taken a dramatic turn for the worse.
Let us hope that Trump, the maverick fixer of deals, can change things for the better.
