the mellow tigger's musings

The shooter: The best summary I've seen about the man who shot at Trump is this news article from a local-to-the-event (Pittsburgh, PA USA) public news station. I don't have any observations to add to it.

Well, that's not entirely true. I think the shooter was simply part of a worldwide trend toward increased assassination attempts. The USA has its own history on that problem, so it's definitely not new. I think I understand part of what contributes to the trend in the USA currently, though. Remember when CPAC (the political convention for conservatives in America) had that banner that said, "We are all domestic terrorists"? True story. I'm increasingly convinced that the USA needs to define and outlaw stochastic terrorism. I've mentioned this topic before. Our hate crime legislation only nibbles at the edges of that problem. We need to tackle it head on. Somebody always hears the dog whistles and acts on their impulse. Stating facts is not the same thing as stating characterizations... and letting people assume in their own heads whatever thoughts appeal to them.

The candidate: We already knew that many Americans believe Trump is God's chosen candidate. I and others expect that apotheosis to continue even more strongly, now that he survived a shot at his head during this assassination attempt. It's hard to argue against this interpretation, for more than the usual reasons.

• Disrespected a war prisoner. We all read about it. No real consequences.
• Mocked a disabled man. We all saw the video. No real consequences.
• Impeached. Twice. No real consequences.
• Mocked COVID precautions, got COVID, got hospitalized. No noticeable consequences afterward.
• Convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. No real consequences.
• Accused of illegally keeping classified documents. We all saw the photos of them. Case dismissed today. No real consequences.
• The very long list of crimes. No real consequences.

Did I miss something? I feel like there's more evidence of his political indestructibility. Conservatives liked calling Bill Clinton by the name "Slick Willie" for his ability to talk his way out of anything. Trump's defiance of self-destruction is even more remarkable. Gamers call this quality "plot armor" because a character that is necessary for the story simply cannot be removed from the game by any means, as if the character was wearing indestructible armor. Trump's political career should have ended so very many times already. Trump has now survived an assassination attempt. Real-life plot armor seems indistinguishable from divine favor. That's got to have implications for the upcoming election.

The election: I think this event will provide a large boost to Trump's get-out-the-vote effort. America does like its underdogs (within limits, anyway, as long as they're not a 3rd political party, for example). I think Donald Trump intends to abuse authority the moment he sets foot in the White House again. He's already told us he would. But I can't argue against the appeal of this photo. It's good.

"I don't think you can understand Donald Trump unless you understand that the vast majority of people who voted for Clinton came from counties where the economy is contributing a disproportionate amount to the GDP, and those who voted for Trump came from counties where, where they live is underrepresented in America's economy. They are literally underdogs. They feel underrepresented."
- https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2018/03/28/underdogs-cinderella-stories-history

And there are even 3 of those photos in the election miasma now. How can other presidential candidates compete? I've said repeatedly for several elections that Democrats need to present a populist contender for President. They've failed repeatedly, always choosing "the annointed one" who paid their dues and are now owed their turn at the helm. Democrats seem determined to make the wrong choice this time too.