Not a Single Lead Role among the Ensemble of Democrats
It doesn't matter how many Democrats are thrown onto the stage for the 2020 presidential candidacy; they are just spending a lot more money than is necessary on many more defeats. The DNC is hoping that the larger the cast, at least one will become the crowd favorite, much as President Trump did for the RNC in the 2015-16 elections.
So far, they have all failed. And although I don't really want to risk the enemy discovering the battle plans, there is a tactical reason why none of these candidates will ever be able to reproduce President Trump's charisma that helped win him the highest office in the nation.
Trump has a fundamental understanding that the world's greatest leaders are not known for their warm dispositions. Heads of nations should never be held to the standards you would ask for from your priest or a kindergarten teacher. They are brash and merciless, and oftentimes, when they on the global stage, they are needed to be ruthless. That is what makes them great leaders. History reflects this as often as it has been written. Margaret Thatcher was downright hated by the labor unions for privatizing, and President Monroe was notoriously profane. He once chased a secretary with a pair of fire tongs right out of the Oval Office! Winston Churchill, Charles de Gaulle, the great General Patton, Wu Zhao, and Andrew Jackson did not have friendly or agreeable reputations. Popularity has no correlation to leadership.
Democrats do not understand this, and we witnessed that already through Hillary Clinton's long and painful presidential bids. Celebrity endorsements and anecdotes about children saved from despair by her good graces only revealed her perceivable need to be liked and admired.
So far, every single Democratic candidate has revealed this fatal flaw as well. On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, when Kamala Harris announced her run to a huge crowd, she addressed her past as a criminal prosecutor and how that might be seen to conflict with Democrats' platform issue of criminal justice reform.
Julián Castro has taken it upon himself to spend the first month of his presidential campaign personally defending Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's certifiably psychotic tax hikes on the rich while disavowing PAC funding to get ahead of the sketchy fundraising that went into his 2009 mayoral campaign.
"Presidential aspirant" Tulsi Gabbard had critics meet her announcements with questions about her 2017 meeting with the possibly genocidal Syrian president Assad. She performed quite a dance defending it, saying it was necessary "if we are serious about the pursuit of peace and securing our country."
Days after announcing her run for the Oval Office, Kirsten Gillibrand had to defend herself for ousting Senator Al Franken for sexual misconduct allegations, which ruffled the feathers of giant DNC donor George Soros and sent shockwaves throughout the party.
Next, Elizabeth Warren, pause for effect, actually took a DNA test after the president taunted her Indian heritage, which turned out to be hysterically embarrassing. Results showed that a 200-lb man who eats a quarter-pounder from McDonald's is more "hamburger" than she is American Indian. Friday afternoon, she apologized for degrading herself to the Cherokee Tribe she had once claimed as her own to get preferential treatment during her higher education.
Finally, New Jersey's Senator Cory Booker announced his bid. He gave a press conference in front of two barrier fences, where he took questions from the press. One reporter toward the end asked about his hypocrisy in calling for "less judgment" as part of his first stump speech by asking plainly if he believed that Trump is a racist. Senator Booker nearly lost his footing, saying at first he would leave the answer "up to the Lord," but after a long pause, he said Trump emboldens white supremacists and uses "bigoted language."
NPR is predicting that as many as 29 candidates will be competing for the DNC spotlight and final dance-off with President Trump. All so far are catching themselves defending their actions or statements in a way that is obviously contrived. Responses are well rehearsed, as if coached after focus groups' inputs, to appeal to the widest array of voters.
The president, even while campaigning, never fell into this trap. The very first Republican debate, when Megyn Kelly asked about his disparaging comments against women, and Donald Trump wittedly replied, "Only Rosie O'Donnell," the stage was set, and Trump instantly rose like a star against the rest of the GOP hopefuls.
A lot of people dislike President Trump. The difference between him and the new cast of Clinton-DNC prototypes is that Trump never cares. He never attempted to transform himself into an easily digestible character – in fact, he embraces being indigestible to some. His total indifference to being well liked is the very factor that fuels his charisma. That is something that cannot be replicated in the Democratic troupe of contenders because they've been taught only how to posture for votes and what a fundraising voice should sound like, believing that popularity is what makes a politician.
Connect with Taylor Day on Twitter @TABYTCHI.