Don’t Run On Trump's Playbook: Develop Your Own

“Trump encouraged violence on [the] campaign trail, used negative “code words” and “dog whistles” to cater to worst interests of many. Several Republicans are running now using same “playbook”. Not good!” This quote is from a recent Twitter Post.  If Trump were to endorse a candidate, he would most likely endorse the candidate that that uses the “Trump playbook” as a guide.  We know that this playbook is largely anti-immigration, anti-minority (in a kind of veiled way), and anti-liberal.

You will recall that Republican, Roy Moore (the 27^th and 31^st Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court) ran in a recent Alabama Republican primary against Luther Strange, who was endorsed by President Trump. After Moore won the primary, Trump shifted his support to him. He is a Republican who supposedly espouses old southern values. His ads and press coverage’s showed him with a holster at his side brandishing a handgun. He even rode horses to events and campaigned using Trump-like tactics and strategies.  The General Election winner would occupy the U.S. Senate seat left vacant by Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

After winning the Republican Primary, Mr. Moore (amidst an exploding history of inappropriate behavior involving under aged girls) lost the General Election to Democrat Doug Jones, a former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama (1997-2001). Mr. Jones garnered widespread support from Alabama’s black population and it is said that the Black vote was very instrumental in securing his election win.  This was a case of a new-age Democrat winning over a Republican whose archaic social and political values would have taken us back to the 1950’s. However, the Democrat win was a great win for Alabamians of good conscience, and a loss for the divisive Trump camp. In an age of inclusion, that accepts minorities, gays, etc. as equals, this was an enlightened 21st century win.

Recently, in a win that was acclaimed by Nancy Pelosi and Hilary Clinton, a 44 year old Black lawyer, politician, author, and businesswoman, named Stacey Abrams, won the Democratic Primary over a 41 year old Caucasian lawyer named Stacey Evans. Ms. Abrams is a graduate of renowned HBCU- Spelman College. Ms Evans is a former member of the Georgia House of Representatives, and graduate of the University of Georgia.

Some see Georgia as a Red State (Republican), and some see it trending Purple, soon resulting in 50% Republican, and 50% Democrat.  However, Georgia has been Red for a long time.

Trump’s politically incorrect and divisive political style has spawned a Trump-age group of Republican political hopefuls who mirror Trump’s values, or lack thereof. Very evident in this Trump style of politician is a Georgia candidate for Governor named Brian Kemp.

Brian Kemp, a graduate of the University of Georgia, campaigned brandishing a shotgun and mirrored Trump values to the hilt. His old time southern drawl is part of his character.  The 54 year old Kemp is Georgia’s 27^th Secretary of State, and has been in office since 2010. He was recently endorsed by Donald Trump, and believes Trump’s endorsement helped put him over the top.

So, Brian Kemp is a Trump Conservative Republican, while Abrams appears to be a Hilary Clinton type Democrat. The two cannot be more different, and they will go head-to-head in Georgia’s Gubernatorial Election, 2018.

Trump’s tendency to divide the nation, especially in terms or race, has not gone unnoticed. There seems to be an increase in the instances of whites calling the police on innocent blacks. For example, Cops were called on an 8 year old black girl selling kool-aid without a license. Cops were called on a black boy mowing his neighbor’s lawn. Cops were called on a young black man in San Francisco as he was opening and entering a store-his own store!  Cops were called on a black woman campaigning for office in her neighborhood.

The Donald Trump era has given racists and others the liberty to treat those different from themselves without the proper respect. Trump started this on his campaign rallies. In my article entitled “Donald J. Trump: Dean of Division”, I said:

“Some of the most blatant attempts of division along racial lines became apparent at many of Trump’s campaign rallies where he encouraged supporters to literally assault dissenters [mostly Black], and promised that he’ll pay their legal bills! He said it wasn’t like this in “the old days”-a semi veiled attempt to have supporters recall the abominable “brighter days” of long ago when white privilege reigned supreme. Again, this constant rhetoric of division must stop. Whenever necessary, we must challenge Trump to explain what he means-explicitly, rather than through code words, coded messages, and brainwashed emissaries. 

Mr. Trump, America has grown tired of you.  Each day we seem to be embroiled in another avoidable Trump-inspired mess! Stop trying to divide us at every opportunity! Please recall that the majority of Americans did not vote for you. Will you change now, or will you remain America’s Dean of Division?”

I have cited the above examples to show that we don’t need new candidates with old values that are inspired by Mr. Trump. If Americans continue to be divided from the presidential level, on down, a serious national division reminiscent of the pre-Civil War era may well ensue. In his quest for self fulfillment, to satisfy Putin, or whatever, Trump must remember that Americans did not sign up to be his sacrificial lambs. In my article entitled “On Trump and Putin”, said the following:

“This is not the time for American citizens to be quiet and submissive. It is a time for action at the ballot box!  American history and American values mean something. You can’t tear down the very underpinning of American society and predict success for all Americans in the end. If Trump’s grand political experiment does not work out, Americans will be left “high and dry”, while those of means can purchase a secluded island in the South Pacific somewhere, and live carefree for the rest of their lives.”

So where am I going with all of this? I’ll tell you.  Aspiring politicians must not get on the Trump train and engage in retro-politics that take us back to the George Wallace era. They must continually evolve and take the “high road” and dedicate themselves to insuring that every law abiding citizen enjoys the fruits of America. Blacks helped to build America. Hispanics came across the southern border and did America’s tedious and backbreaking work for peanuts. Lesbians and gays helped make our military great. America has always been great. We don’t have to make it great again. Is Trump’s MAGA slogan really meant to suggest that a great America is an America absent of those pesky minorities and others that he doesn’t like?

Going forward, I pray that those seeking political office develop enough internal fortitude to find a better way to success than brandishing weapons and swearing allegiance to the Dean of Division, Donald J. Trump.

We’ll see where the Georgia gubernatorial election goes. Hopefully a unifying, non-gun toting, new-era person of high integrity will win. And when she does win, many people of “good will” will be happy that the citizens of Georgia have elected to go forward, not backward.