Trump taps wellspring of dissatisfaction

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To the Editor:

This letter concerns the phenomenal rise in the polls of Donald Trump in the Republican contest for nomination. He now leads by a wide margin the Republican standard bearer, Jeb Bush. One can ask, how did this ever come about? The obvious answer is that “the Donald” is popular. He taps into a wellspring of dissatisfaction about the direction of this country. In many ways Donald Trump is similar to Ronald Reagan in the early 1980s. 

Before that year most believed that he could never win the presidency, but Reagan saw a tremendous unhappiness among people about the direction of the country, he saw this trend and exploited it. Donald Trump is in a similar situation today. Most people are not satisfied with the status quo today and blame the culprit: government. No wonder all the Republican governors and senators running are in single digits.

What Republicans are looking for is someone larger than life, someone that people will be attracted to on an almost messianic level, someone that will use charisma to get things done. In many ways Donald Trump is like Reagan. Both are largely self- made men who made their presence known not in government but in other areas. Reagan first was a radio personality and a B movie actor before he got involved in government, Trump of course the businessman and later television celebrity.

Like Reagan, Trump is given to angry outbursts, outrageous statements and forgetfulness. Reagan talked about welfare queens, the evil Russians and before that the Communist conspirators. Trump talks about criminal immigrants, the evil Iranians and, on his Apprentice show, firing people who did not sell enough lemonade. But both men have or had a love of country that showed through the angry rhetoric.

Reagan beat Carter in 1980 because he loved the country more than Carter loved big government. In six months most of the big primaries will be over. Trump has so much momentum that he very well may win the nomination and the presidency. To do this he needs to watch more of what he says, to be more soothing and unifying in his rhetoric. Much the same way Reagan stressed that Americans and not government were capable of great things. With that kind of attitude, Mr. Trump may indeed create more jobs than any other president.

Kevin Vealey

Warwick

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