Why I Skipped a Visit with Donald Trump

I like a fighter who isn't afraid to say what we are all thinking but Trump is the wrong man for the GOP nomination!

Donald Trump made a visit to my area this week. He attracted overflow crowds at a private community here and made news nationwide by giving out the personal phone number of South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham. You can see the full video of the event here.

One woman standing in the long lines to get in was asked what she thought about Trump. She didn't like him but wanted to see him anyway because he is "a celebrity." That may have as much to do with the Trump phenomenon as anything.

I like how Trump isn't afraid to stand up to the media and political establishment and tell them off. We need more of that in potential GOP nominees. Trump isn't worried who he offends and did not back down even when he stepped in it when he suggested John McCain, the GOP's  2008 presidential nominee, wasn't "a war hero because he was captured." Interestingly, the ultra left Guardian newspaper in Britain called this a "new low" in American politics. I bet if we dig back through their archives they've said worse about McCain themselves.

As much as I admire Trump's plain speaking, we've seen this play before. He ran in 2012 and dropped out after the shtick got old. He never offered voters then any kind of comprehensive policy program then and thus far has not done so now. I agree with those who call Trump's bid a "sideshow" but at the same time I continue to hope that the rest of the GOP field will discover that Trump's bold, outspoken willingness to take on all comers is what GOP voters are looking for in a potential nominee.

While the GOP establishment may be happy to "go along to get along" the millions of GOP voters who make up the base are tired of candidates who promise to fight but throw in the towel at the first whiff of criticism from the left and the media (sorry for the redundancy). Trump shows that there is a better way. Now, if we could only find a better candidate than Trump to embrace that hard charging strategy we might find a winner!