Trump may believe otherwise, but he's a huge bore. His followers' unbreakable loyalty is what's so..

[marmar]

(Salon) Are we addicted to Donald Trump? It's a question that's haunting journalists and political commentators, most of whom hate Trump but cannot deny that his name drives traffic and ratings. Even though Trump lost the election and Joe Biden will be the next president, Trump continues to be the big attention draw for political websites and cable news networks.

Part of that is completely understandable. Trump is still big news. He literally spent the past few weeks attempting a coup. While he failed, that doesn't change the history-making fact that he even tried, or that he got so much support. Certainly Biden, whose main activity is finding boring-but-competent people to staff his administration, can't compete with that, and there's no real indication that he wants to. (Unlike Trump, Biden views governing as a job and not just an opportunity to get attention.)

But there is no doubt that the media remains flatly fascinated with Trump, in no small part because, as Salon's Andrew O'Hehir argued Monday, "our readers and viewers have enabled and encouraged us at every step" and stories about Trump "outperform every other category of reporting, commentary or analysis we can possibly offer."

....(snip)....

Bump's own numbers show this. Prior to his presidential campaign, Trump wasn't an object of widespread fascination, no matter how much he hustled for attention. Ratings for his reality show were in the toilet and most people didn't think about him at all. It was only when Trump started to get support from everyday voters that he became the focal point of American politics.

The reason that Trump captures so much attention, year in and year out, is because of his followers. How did this two-bit moron who can barely read manage to attract a loyal following — one that has apparently grown from the 63 million people voted for him in 2016 to the 74 million who turned out in 2020? These people adore him, so much so that a quarter-million Americans dead and millions more unemployed only made them more determined to give it all up for the orange guy in an ill-fitting suit who wants to end democracy as we know it. It's a legitimately fascinating mystery. .............(more)

https://www.salon.com/2020/11/25/trump-isnt-the-reason-we-cant-quit-trump--the-obsession-is-really-about-his-followers/

[SharonClark]

1. Good article by Amanda Marcotte.

She’s one of the few reasons I still go to Salon.

[Shermann]

2. I was bored starting with the birther movement

I actually gave him a pass at first. OK, it's just a schtick to get some media attention and a platform to get out a more substantive message.

So what was that new message to be exactly? How would he leverage this opportunity in the limelight?

More birtherism.

*snore*

[Moostache]

3. In re: Salon's Andrew O'Hehir

FUCK YOU ASSHOLE!!!

"our readers and viewers have enabled and encouraged us at every step" and stories about Trump "outperform every other category of reporting, commentary or analysis we can possibly offer."

Seriously? You greed infected subhuman slime bag?
You're excuse is "well,I WANTED Broccoli, but those damn news consumers DEMANDED sugar highs and candy all day..."

You are the fucking press! Write stories that actually make sense of the insanity of Trump and tell EXACTLY what he has been doing for 4+ years - gaslighting, lying and stealing, period! Members of the press who are trying to justify themselves and their cowardice and sloth at just running with Trump nonsense without context for ratings are scum and the equivalent to Nazis trying to bury their uniforms after the war...

[walkingman]

5. Tell it like it T-I-IS!

[LSFL]

4. His fans love someone to look down on.

In many ways they could look down on him. I hope these voters crawl back into hiding when he is gone. They offer nothing constructive, only destructive antipathy.

[CatMor]

6. That trump is a bore is dead on .... he's the biggest there is ..

I could never listen to him for more than 5 minutes without getting bored. His schtick of braying how great he is brings on the yawns. He is also lacking a sense of humor which usually comes with intelligence. Many of his followers are racist, anti-semitic homophobes and that is why they vote for him. They will never change and I am amazed at how many of them there are. Unfortunately there are many more just like trump in our government at all levels.

[electric_blue68]

7. Besides his vile racism, sexism, and all his other...

anti isms: his greed, constant self important bragging, anti science and his incuriosity make him a bore !

[ms liberty]

8. He's not just a bore, he's a boor as well. He's a boorish bore. n/t