SALT LAKE CITY — This morning I was reading an interview The Bulwark’s Sarah Longwell gave to Politico and something she said about Donald Trump and voters really struck me.
It’s this: “When he’s kind of out of the picture … people forget all the chaos that he brings.”
For months I have been thinking along these same lines. And even came up with a radical proposal I want to share with you.
Imagine that in the final 25 days of the campaign, Trump never does another campaign rally. Or a media interview. Or a Truth Social post.
Instead, once a day, his campaign issues a statement highlighting the fact that Kamala Harris has been vice president for the past 4 years and the economy and immigration remain problems.
That’s it. One release a day. No public appearances.
Yes, there’s no doubt that there would be — rightly — a whole bunch of stories about Trump’s absence from the campaign trail. And questions raised about whether he was sick. Or hiding something.
But I still think that radical strategy might give him a better chance to be elected president.
Here’s why: People don’t like Trump. Even undecided voters find him arrogant, rude, bullying — all the things he is. Every time he does another rally or another interview, he reinforces those traits to people. He puts it right smack dab in front of their faces.
If he disappeared from the campaign trail, there would be less coverage of his personality. It would allow some of these undecided voters to remember that they actually liked (and like) Trump’s policies on immigration and the economy more than they like Harris’. The race would become less about him and his noxious personality and more about what he would do in office.
To be clear: This will NEVER happen. Trump is Trump — he wants to always be the center of attention and believes, contra evidence, that he is the best salesman of himself.
But what if it did….
The Morning is always a free post but I need your support to keep doing this sort of work. Consider becoming a paid subscriber today! It’s $6 a month or $60 for the year!
The Morning: A radical proposal for Donald Trump