Monday, April 4, 2016

Trump handlers handle Trump’s worst week

weird donald trump funny face

An internal memo leaked from Donald Trump’s campaign to the national press shows that his cultish campaign team is not dealing well with the campaign’s most recent round of negative press. 

The memo was leaked to the Washington Post from a Republican operative in touch with Trump’s inner circle.

The memo, from senior Trump adviser Barry Bennett, doesn’t look good :

Entitled “Digging through the Bull [expletive],” Bennett’s memo urged Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski — who was charged with battery last week for yanking a reporter — and others to ignore critics who have questioned whether Trump’s campaign for the Republican presidential nomination has waned.
“America is sick of them. Their idiotic attacks just remind voters why they hate the Washington Establishment,” Bennett wrote, citing tracking poll data favorable to Trump.“Donald Trump 1,” Bennett declared, as if he was scoring the past week. “Washington Establishment/Media 0.”
By nature, most campaigns devolve into a bunker mentality, but this document reads more like a personal letter to Donald Trump to buck up after a disastrous week. 

Continue reading to see the entire memo....

trump-internal-memo
Rather than seriously citing any data or giving strategy advice to Trump and his team, the memo follows the candidate’s well-worn pattern of attacking its detractors while pumping up the boss. 

It’s more evidence of the Trump campaign being more like a cult than an operation designed to elect a commander-in-chief.

Trump stumbled badly over a key issue, abortion, this past week. He offered multiple positions on the issue, while also advocating for “punishment” for women who have the procedure – something that would happen if Republicans get their wish in outlawing abortion, but also a topic more skilled Republican politicians know how to avoid.

He’s also in a bad place in Wisconsin, polling behind Senator Ted Cruz ahead of the primary there after being ahead of him by 10 percent a month ago.

In the most recent national polls, Trump is on a path to be a disaster against both Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. Memos divorced from reality don’t help that.

Author Oliver Willis was one of the first political bloggers in the world (since 2000), and was among the first bloggers to interview President Obama at the White House. I am on Twitter @owillis and write at OliverWillis.com