Consider three of the biggest developments in our politics right now: We just learned that the economy lost 92,000 jobs in February, a capstone to a terrible year in terms of job creation. President Trump has fired widely despised Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, a key architect of his mass deportations. And reports are indicating that the killing of scores of Iranian schoolchildren might have been the handiwork of the United States.

What links all these things? In addition to the massive human toll they’re inflicting, they suggest that Trump is about to pull off a unique trifecta. He is squandering the advantage he and Republicans have enjoyed in recent years on three major GOP-friendly issues: The economy, immigration, and national security.

  • lemmy_outta_here@lemmy.world
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    3 days ago

    It’s a strategy to rid the world of Trumpism. Confidence in Trump is like confidence in the stock market: it doesn’t reflect reality, it shapes reality. Trump has strengths and weaknesses. Talking about the fact that Trump is a cruel piece of shit and an autocrat (the truth) actually helps Trump because his supporters wanted a cruel piece of shit in the whitehouse! Talking about the fact that Trump is a stupid, cowardly incompetent (also the truth) hurts Trump more. When Trump polls badly, shout it from the rooftops! It’s true, and it makes him look weak. Same goes for any blunder or chaos in his admin: point it out, celebrate it, and repeat, repeat, repeat. People think the Epstein Files are not hurting Trump because they didn’t immediately topple him: friends, it is eating at his support like acid. As Trump proved, all you have to do to make his supporters believe something is to say it often and loudly.

    • rodneylives@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      I’m not sure your logic works? The cruel POSes voted for this, sure, but there are more non-Trump voters than people who voted for him. If you follow your argument to its logical conclusion you can’t ever say he’s doing an awful thing because terrible people with cheer him on.

      • lemmy_outta_here@lemmy.world
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        1 day ago

        I think they’re strategies for different audiences. i don’t mean to imply that we shouldn’t write about trump’s crimes. we definitely should! what i mean is that an approach based on morals won’t work on people who voted for trump to own the libs. no andrew tate fan will abandon trump just because he did something terrible. for them you need antihype: show people that he is an incompetent whose presidency is in free fall. what looksmaxxing proud boy wants to be associated with a loser? sure, those guys might never swing democrat, but if some of them stay home on election day due to lack of enthusiasm, it could make a difference. trump can be defeated by margins - peel away a bit of support here, a bit of support there, and … down he goes.