Donald Trump is a much lampooned character – he could also be harpooned but that’s a story for another day.

We know that during his campaign he has surrounded himself with yes men, but what is clear is that he didn’t just decide to run on a whim. He has actually been playing the long game, a report suggesting that he declined the chance to run for Mayor of New York two years ago in favour of giving a run at president a real bash.

He has even alluded to it at Republican meetings as far back as 2013, telling a room full of rednecks right-wingers that he would harness the power of the mass audience to win. Anyone who has followed his attention-seeking antics knows that’s just what he’s been doing with this below from Salon:

Trump’s amorality coupled with his gift for self-promotion has turned the Republican presidential race on its head. He’s made the race about him, and anytime he isn’t the main story, he lurches back into the headlines with an outrageous comment about women or Muslims or Mexicans or disabled people – anything to win the news cycle.

The biggest takeaway from the report is that Trump is indeed a professional huckster. And whatever else he is, he’s not stupid. He doesn’t believe half the absurdities he utters on the campaign trail either. As the report makes clear, everything he’s done and said was designed to dupe the media into funding his marketing strategy.

I’m not so sure about that last bit – I still believe the man is an imbecile but that helps him understand the majority of his voters so I guess he has that going for him.

Trump’s strategy is nearly perfect. On the one hand, he’s tapped into a vein of resentment in the country, and in a way no serious politician could. And on the other hand, he’s free to say whatever he wants, no matter how controversial, because doing so breathes more oxygen into his campaign. Even more advantageous, he’s entered the race at an ideal time. The public — for good reasons — no longer trusts Washington. Trump is a hack who can’t fix anything, but people make bad decisions when they’re anxious or angry, and Trump is offering them an alternative to the status quo. This is what demagogues do, and it usually works.

It’s true really, most uninformed Americans have grown tired with the usual political rhetoric and Trump doesn’t play by those rules. The fact that he offers absolutely no feasible solution to anything doesn’t matter, the bluster and bravado is enough to win many over. Let’s wrap this up:

Everything Trump does has to be seen in the broader context of his media-centric strategy. No one should ask if Trump believes what he says; it’s impossible to know. If he does believe something he says, it’s a happy coincidence, because his campaign is an experiment in modern marketing, not an expression of his political worldview.

If all of this has you freaked out you’re not alone, but we can take solace from the fact that Trump took a beating in the first Iowa caucus results from rival Ted Cruz. Here’s CNN:

Claiming victory, Cruz fired immediate shots at both Trump and the party elites he has so infuriated by waging an anti-establishment crusade that has nevertheless endeared him to the GOP’s rank and file.

“Iowa has sent notice that the Republican nominee and the next President of the United States will not be chosen by the media, will not be chosen by the Washington establishment,” Cruz said.

With about 99% of the GOP vote in, Cruz was ahead of Trump 28% to 24%. Rubio was at 23%.

This promises to be a long and rocky road, although some are suggesting this could be the beginning of Trump’s stuffing being knocked out.

The speech I would most like to see this year would be Trump conceding defeat at the polls – please America, yes we can.

I leave you with the official Donald Trump jam. This is not a joke.

[sources:salon&cnn]