As the number of Republican presidential candidates proliferates, the front-runner seems to be strengthening, not weakening. Many of former President Trump’s greatest strengths are also his greatest weaknesses.
For example: Trump’s greatest strength might be his past performance in the White House. After all, before COVID-19, the Trump economy was as strong as any in history.
We weren’t getting in any new wars. He had tremendous success with the Supreme Court. He fundamentally reformed the tax code. He imposed tariffs on China. He successfully stemmed the flow of illegal immigrants. He appointed pro-business leaders to the Environmental Protection Agency and the Departments of Labor and Energy, which helped to juice the economy even more.
And yet, as president, he also presided over the most catastrophic public policy decision since the Iraq War, the COVID-19 shutdowns. Because of his desperation to end the shutdowns, he presided over the rapid development of a new, untested vaccine. It was his administration that allowed the full-scale introduction of ineffective and damaging mask mandates. It was under his presidency that schools were shut down. He presided over the destruction of major cities, like Seattle, Portland, Chicago and Washington, D.C. during the 2020 Black Lives Matter riots. That all happened on his watch. Were they his fault or just the left’s reaction to his presidency? It doesn’t matter. It’s part of his legacy.
Another strength for Trump. He is hilarious and totally authentic. He is the funniest president since Ronald Reagan. Some of his humor is even self-deprecating. Some of it, of course, is not. His attacks on his political opponents can be withering. His name calling is juvenile, but at times it can be very effective.
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush “low-energy”? Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) “Pocahontas”? “Crooked Hillary”? Ron DeSanctimonious? These nicknames are ridiculous but effective because they may have an element of truth.
The juvenile nature of these attacks makes Trump seem unserious and juvenile too. And ultimately, presidents must be taken seriously because the job requires a lot of adulting.
Trump was perhaps the most accessible president in history. He would talk to the media all the time, at all hours of the day and night. He didn’t really need a press secretary because he was his own spokesman. But Trump was also undisciplined. He would often step on his own story. And he would say things to the media that would get him in trouble with both his friends and his enemies. Not every thought should be expressed. But for Trump, the daily domination of the news cycle was his No. 1 objective. He was certainly good for the news business.
A Trump weakness: He is not really a conservative, not in any traditional sense, at least. Conservatives don’t like tariffs; Trump does. Conservatives like a stronger military presence for the U.S.; Trump is reflexively an isolationist and a peacenik. Trump distrusts the FBI and the CIA; conservatives usually are supportive of intelligence agencies. Trump is pro-gay rights and thinks Republicans are going overboard on the anti-abortion stuff; those are not conservative positions, to say the least. Trump has no interest in cutting entitlement spending and doesn’t seem that concerned with our national debt; conservatives obsess over the debt.
But the traditional conservative positions on many of these things aren’t nearly as important with the new voters that Trump has attracted to the Republican Party. The new Trump voters (and many swing voters too) worry about the power of the military-industrial complex and are tired of the countless wars. While some of these voters are worried about the trans movement, most are accepting of gay people. Polls show that banning all abortions is not a politically popular position. And most voters don’t want politicians screwing around with their Social Security benefits.
Trump certainly loves all the competition that comes from a now-crowded Republican primary. Will all of these candidates focus on Trump’s weaknesses or will they spend all of their time attacking one another, playing to Trump’s strengths? We’ll soon find out.
John Feehery, a partner at EFB Advocacy, blogs at thefeeherytheory.com. He served as spokesman to former House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), as communications director to former House Majority Whip Tom DeLay (R-Texas) and as a speechwriter to former House Minority Leader Bob Michel (R-Ill.).