by Richard Skinner
Ambition
is the fuel that makes American politics run: ambition
to win office, ambition to hold onto office, ambition to move up the “ladder”
of office. But
there are other reasons for seeking office.
A candidate may want to promote a set of ideas. She may believe that her party deserves
representation, even if she’s unlikely to win.
She may want to gain notoriety for herself. But there are circumstances in which the
campaign is its own reward, for the candidate, for the media, and for political
consultants.
Why does Donald Trump
run? I don’t know, but it’s
reasonable to rule out some of the standard possibilities. He might believe that he could become
president, but if so, he’s probably deluded.
I cannot imagine anyone appointing Trump to a Cabinet position or (even
less likely) selecting him as vice president.
Trump does not have clear views on most issues, so it’s hard to classify
his campaign as an ideological “crusade.”
When he toyed with being the Reform Party’s nominee in 2000, Trump
espoused views essentially opposite to what he holds now. (By contrast, Steve Forbes, the last
gazillionaire without political experience to seek the presidency, seemed
obsessed with the “flat tax.” Even Ross
Perot had pretty fleshed-out views on the budget deficit, foreign trade, and
political reform). He talks a lot about
immigration, but he’s a newcomer to that issue as well.
Unlike the earlier campaigns of Herman Cain or Mike Huckabee, Trump’s presidential run seems unlikely to help his media “brand.” Instead, he’s lost his television show with NBC and his clothing line with Macy’s. Trump’s long ride as a celebrity was based on an essentially apolitical image as Scrooge McDuck – a fabulously rich man who loved playing into the cartoon. While his presidential campaign may give him a new career as a darling of the conservative-entertainment complex, Trump’s racially incendiary comments probably will make him an untouchable to more controversy-adverse outlets.
The best explanation for Donald Trump’s candidacy is that he enjoys running for president, and the attention that the process gives him. The campaign is its own reward.
The Consultants Who
Work For Trump. Trump has not
received much backing from Republican Party insiders. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) showed up at the Trump
rally in Mobile earlier this month, but did not endorse the Babbling
Billionaire. Sessions, at least, has an
obvious reason to ally himself with Trump: he is perhaps the GOP’s leading
advocate of restricting immigration.
Otherwise, Republican Party actors have been hostile or aloof.
But there has been one exception. Donald Trump has been able to replace his
usual hangers-on with a set of Republican political professionals. Corey Lewandowski, previously of Americans
for Prosperity, now serves as Trump’s campaign manager. Sam Clovis quit as Rick Perry’s Iowa chair to
become national co-chair for Trump.
Chuck Laudner, who ran Rick Santorum’s Iowa campaign in 2012, will serve
as Trump’s state director.
There
are many things that motivate political consultants. They want to advance their careers. They want their party to win. They want their ideology to prevail, both
within the party and outside. They want
to make money. Only one of those
motivations probably applies to Trump’s new friends. Trump seems like a terrible general-election
nominee. While working for Trump might
be a way for some lesser-known consultants to gain attention, it probably would
alienate as many potential employers as it would attract. (In general, Trump’s hires seem distinctly B-team-ish,
especially for someone so famous and so rich).
All three of these new hires are contradicting previously stated
views. A Koch Brothers protégé is
working for an avowed protectionist. A
religious conservative is working for a thrice-married gambling tycoon who loves
to “work blue.” Earlier
this summer, Clovis expressed deep skepticism of Trump’s avowed conservatism
and offense at his disparaging remarks about John McCain. Trump’s
money might best explain their willingness to sign up. From time immemorial, political consultants
have loved self-funders.
The Media. While
Trump loves to feud with the mass media, his rise in polls matches up nicely
with his disproportionate share of press coverage. Why does he occupy so much space on our TV
and computer screens? He gets
clicks! He gets viewers! No wonder why Trump supporters so often sound
more like fans of a reality-show star than like backers of a political
candidate.
The
Conservative-Entertainment Complex. I’ve
commented before on Donald Trump’s relationship with the Republican “partisan
press.” Despite not actually being
all that conservative, Trump feeds them the “affect” they crave. Trump has alienated some elements of the
conservative media: those who care about policy, those
who want a strong Republican nominee, those who shy away from racially
tinged appeals. Instead, his strength
has been with his fellow trash-talkers like Ann
Coulter, the writers at Breitbart,
and the
yakkers of AM radio – broadly speaking, the trashier side of the conservative
“outrage industry.” (Fox News falls
somewhere in between). While this crowd
has always harped on illegal immigration, they probably care less about Trump’s
policy views than his outrageous personality, which drives the clicks and
listeners. Trump’s willingness to push
racial and gender “hot buttons” fits perfectly with the business model of the
Michael Savages and Rush Limbaughs.
What’s Up With Joe? We are seeing another round of speculation
that Vice President Joseph Biden might enter the presidential race. I’m quite skeptical that he will actually
jump in, and
it seems like Democratic insiders feel
the same
way. Biden might be interested in
running as a tribute to his late son, and I imagine many in his inner circle
genuinely think of him as a potential president. But who else wants to talk about Biden? Molly
Ball of The Atlantic probably best
explains Biden-mentum,
“ spun out of thin air by bored reporters and underemployed Democratic operatives in the August dead zone of presidential politics.” Biden speculation is a win-win for these two groups. If he jumps in, the journalists have a great story and the operatives might get jobs. If he doesn’t, the journalists will have already produced the clickbait, and the hacks will have gotten some publicity.
“ spun out of thin air by bored reporters and underemployed Democratic operatives in the August dead zone of presidential politics.” Biden speculation is a win-win for these two groups. If he jumps in, the journalists have a great story and the operatives might get jobs. If he doesn’t, the journalists will have already produced the clickbait, and the hacks will have gotten some publicity.
ReplyDeleteMakes sense to me. For someone who craves the spotlight, what could be better than a presidential campaign? What fun! Actually being president, on the other hand, would be a drag--struggling to accomplish anything for all the opposition in Congress. Never ending criticism from the news media. Yikes! Trump is just having fun being a star.