MEMO
TO: Interested Parties
FROM: Jessica Mackler, President, American Bridge 21st Century
RE: We Already Know Who Trump Is
DATE: September 25, 2016
We’ve had nearly four decades of Donald Trump living (and forcing us to watch) his life in public, so we know exactly who Trump is as he takes the stage at the first presidential debate Monday night.
Trump is a sexist bully with a history of discrimination against African Americans and Latinos. He intentionally appeals to white nationalists and gives a voice to their xenophobia and irrational hate. He admires foreign dictators and is a danger to our economic and national security. Knowing all we know about Donald Trump, he has proven himself completely unfit to be commander in chief.
Trump showed in the primary debates that no matter what he does or says at the debate, Trump is who he is. He has good nights and bad nights but always reverts to the same small man with a nasty temperament, easily baited with a single tweet.
Donald Trump is a master at dodging questions and avoiding his own positions on nearly everything, even when he’s on-screen and on the record. Facts, to Trump, are merely words that get in the way.
Trump constantly tries to wiggle out of his past statements, but there are simple arguments to stop him in his tracks and pin him with his own words. Trump says he was always against the Iraq war, even as he’s on record supporting the war. He talks about his “secret plan” to fight ISIS, but it’s really just asking the generals. He argues “nobody respects women more than I do,” but there are decades of his misogyny to disprove that.
To borrow from Trump supporter Marco Rubio, let’s dispel with this fiction that a “calm” or “composed” Debate Night Trump proves he’s “presidential.” No one should be impressed if Trump manages to get through the evening without lobbing slurs or threats at Hillary Clinton and Lester Holt. A two year old wouldn’t get away with that; Trump is 70 and running for president.
We know the real Donald Trump by now: he’s an erratic and immature, racist bully who’s fundamentally unfit to be commander in chief, and no amount of telepromptered speeches, analytics-driven debate practice sessions, and Trump campaign spin can change that.
Here’s Donald Trump in his own words – American Bridge’s new guide: How to Outfox Donald Trump.
Published: Sep 25, 2016