Regardless of whether President Donald Trump will win a second term or not, he will leave behind a massive legacy on which the Republican Party can build – if it so chooses. After all the ballots are counted, Trump may land 75 million votes, more than any previous president in American history. He did better in every demographic other than white men. What is Trumpism? Can Trump’s success be duplicated in the future without Trump?
Fight, Fight, Fight
In 2016, many Middle Americans were tired of losing: their industries and jobs to China and their economic growth to illegal aliens. They were tired of being called racists, bigots, sexists, homophobes, Islamophobes, and misogynists. Many Republican candidates had vowed to be their voice in Washington, but those GOPers seemed more concerned with losing politely than keeping their promises.
Then a pitbull from Queens came along. Candidate Trump did something no Republican had done in a long time: He fought. He was crude, impolite, hyperbolic, but he fought. Even today, he continues to fight. That’s why he was elected. Trump has something few other Republicans have: a spine.
First Blood
Trump is much like John Rambo in the 1982 classic First Blood. Rambo did not want to start a fight, but he promised to finish it. Trump is never rude to anyone first. He always approaches people politely as friends, giving them the benefit of the doubt, even dictators like China’s General Secretary Xi Jinping. But he ruthlessly retaliates if people attack him. However, he does not hold grudges. The moment adversaries improve their behavior, Trump immediately praises them and returns to civil discourse. Trump mirrors his opponents.
Fair Play
Trump has said that he loves free trade, but it must be fair play. The same rules must apply to everyone. The Paris Climate Agreement gives enormous advantages to China while placing America in chains. China can cheat, steal, and ban Americans from the competition, and the United States is expected to take it. Trump says there should be a level playing field.
And why should everyone else be allowed to control immigration except the United States? America has every right to protect its borders from illegal aliens who drive down wages for low-earning Americans. And why should America allow socialists into the country? To the list of fair play, we also can now add fair elections that everyone can trust.
Helping others is laudable but not at the expense of one’s citizens. Trump recognized that globalists and international socialists were railroading most Americans. He ran on the same platform by which every other country operates: your own country first.
The Party of Lincoln
Under Trump, the Republican Party has returned to the ideals of President Abraham Lincoln, who emancipated the black slaves. Trump has done more to reach out respectfully to African Americans and other minorities than any other Republican president in a century. He hasn’t promised them breadcrumbs on the inner-city voter plantations but jobs, security, and self-respect. Or in the words of the Party of Lincoln: “Free soil, free labor, free men.”
If Republicans grow a spine, fight back, stop backstabbing their voters, and stand up proudly for America and all its citizens, they will have replicated the essence of Trumpism. If they can do it believably, they can also duplicate Trump’s success at the ballot box.
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