Disappointed but not Surprised by Trump’s Debate Performance

Every four years conservatives are offered a rare opportunity to make their case to the American people when voters, who would normally never give them the time of day, tune in for the presidential debates.  Some voters may be tuning in just to cheer on the Democrat nominee; but whatever the reason, they’re there, and the chance to influence the thinking of the close-minded is both rare and priceless.  Republicans essentially pre-squandered this precious opportunity when they chose to nominate yet another non-conservative for the job this time around; consequently I let go of high expectations early on, but there is always the consolation prize to hope for, that being that the Republican nominee will at least deliver an oral ass-whooping to the Democrat.  On Monday I was guardedly hopeful based upon my naïvely held belief that certain truths, no matter how ineloquently spoken, will always triumph over the lies of the Left, but alas on that score I was to be disappointed as well. 

Trump showed himself to be unworthy of the task from the very beginning when he failed to adequately challenge the moderator’s false, opening premise of an improving economy under Barack Obama by pointing out that the numbers have been manipulated to hide the truth about massive under employment, long-term income stagnation and widening income inequality.  That’s an important fact that the average Democrat probably doesn’t hear in his normally limited circle of influence.  This was followed by an abundance of missed opportunities by Trump that many analysts and pundits have already noted.  There was no mention of the fatal failures in Benghazi, pay for play in the Clinton Foundation, our massive illegal immigration crisis, the refugee debate, the rise of Black Lives Matter or Obamacare, to name a few.  Furthermore it would have behooved Trump to take a sharp jab at Clinton for her typical leftwing hypocrisies on things like gun control and climate change, because those hypocrisies expose the lies without Trump having to evoke the word, “liar.” 

Trump scored a few points by calling Clinton out on her empty promises after “30 years” of being in a position of influence, but she managed to soften that blow with the comment that Trump was ready to blame her for everything wrong with the country, and his retort of “Why not?” left many, I’m certain, with the impression that his criticisms were merely gratuitous.

Clinton was able to score points by hitting Trump on his failure to provide tax returns, proving the fairy’s rebuke to Pinocchio that “A lie keeps growing and growing until it's as plain as the nose on your face.” Trump looked foolish by first raising the audit excuse but then immediately offering to provide the supposedly unavailable returns if Clinton provides her emails.  It’s abundantly clear to everyone, even the most stubborn and fanatical Trump fans who are lying if they claim to disagree, that he simply doesn’t want to reveal his tax returns to the public.  Given that the average person doesn’t have a clue how to understand the complicated taxes of a businessman like Trump he’s probably wise not to put them out there, but he would have been far wiser still to come to the debate prepared with a strong, unapologetic answer.  Personally I’ve always thought it a good policy to simply tell the truth, such as: 

Unlike Hillary Clinton I haven’t been running for political office for 30 years and like most sane people I’ve made it my goal to minimize my tax burden, but with our criminally complicated tax system the average person is not going to understand my complex returns and Democrats like Hillary will simply use the information to distract voters and avoid talking about things that matter, such as our 20 trillion dollar debt crisis, our illegal immigration crisis or ISIS.  But since we’re on the subject of finances, how about The Clinton Foundation and Hillary’s pay to play politics?”  

Just a suggestion, Mr. Trump.

Further adding to my frustration was Trump’s inexcusable failure to correct the record when Clinton falsely and astonishingly blamed the economic meltdown of 2008 on wealthy Americans when the truth is that it was Democrat policies, spearheaded by Jimmie Carter and her husband, good old Bill, that set those wheels in motion.  Sure, Wall Street played a role too, but WHO is in the pocket of Wall Street?  That’s right:  Hillary Clinton & Company.  It might have been nice for Trump to mention all that.  Instead his failure to challenge her lies surely helped to cement them further in the minds of the uninformed.

Finally, there was the moment where Trump let pass the opportunity to respond when Clinton criticized his treatment of women.  We’re supposed to believe that Trump just didn’t have the heart to hit back with the obvious retort.  Call me a cynic but I found it glaringly disingenuous, which made it a double failure for Trump.  There’s absolutely nothing wrong with pointing out that the woman who claims to be righteously indignant over Trump’s ill treatment of women has a well-known history of her own in that regard.  Once again, pointing out the hypocrisy would have reminded voters of what a liar she is, but….sigh.  I’ll give Trump credit for getting in a few good points and hits, but I was hoping for that great moment when he would pull a rhetorical bucket of water from under his podium and dump it on Clinton so that we could watch her disappear while screaming, “I’m melting!  I’m melting!” and leaving nothing but a puddle of water with an over-priced red pantsuit lying in it.  It never happened. 

As for Hillary, what a joke.  I know the leftists are happy and/or relieved with her “performance,” but I am reminded of my old joke about the man who laughs as hoodlums destroy his car because, unbeknownst to them, he’s moved from the spot where they told him to stand when they weren’t looking.  If you think a presidential candidate who has to repeatedly lie and practice for days to memorize a few pages of talking points is anything to be proud or happy about, then I’m sad for you (but much more so for the rest of us).  I found Hillary’s non-stop smiling to be utterly phony and grotesquely cartoonish; and her clear attempts to disrespect Trump with faux amusement displayed a childishness and cowardice that no one should applaud.  In other words, SHE’s the one who behaved like a jerk.  Trump may have the misfortune of having aged into the human form of Grumpy Cat, but at least he comes off as genuine.  Given the sad state this nation is in his serious demeanor was far more appropriate and relatable than Hillary’s demented smiling, which reminds me of one last point on Trump with respect to the question of temperament.  Clearly he had rehearsed an answer in the event that the issue of temperament came up, but by throwing it out seemingly out of the blue the words “he doth protest too much” sprung to my mind.  Ironically I agree with him that he has the better temperament of the two, but his incoherent reference to Hillary’s shrill labor union video didn’t convey that.  Perhaps he should have said, “With me, what you see is what you get.  I’m genuine.  With Hillary, the laughing and forced smiling you see on the stage tonight are just a façade that hide the real Hillary Clinton, as has been written about in many books by people who know her well.  I implore you to educate yourself before you vote.”

~CW

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