Josh Marshall: Was the Debate Dodge Trumps Undoing?

[salin]

Interesting editor's note on TPM. Too short to give an excerpt - but discusses how the Trump move last January to stick it to foxnews by dodging the debate and instead do a fund raiser "for vets" may have set the ball rolling - from a reporting standpoint that led to the Trump implosion.

Worth taking a look: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/was-the-debate-dodge-trump-s-undoing

Sound plausible to me. Wonder what others think.

[shraby]

1. I think the donald's undoing was the hate and dissension, antipathy toward women,

minorities, poor people and about every demographic except those named trump.

All he did was have to keep spouting his divisiveness and constant lies every time he had a chance and that led to his undoing.

[salin]

3. I don't disagree... but just before the first debate... it was getting really close.

I was unnerved by how the gap was shrinking despite how ugly, offensive, and frankly venal he was.

But Fahrenthold's reporting - constant and steady gave an additional ick factor - and then the tape got leaked to him. Everything that spun out after that - seems to have pushed a lot of 'hold my nose and vote for the R' folks away from the R lever.

[yeoman6987]

2. Trumps his worst enemy

He literally has nobody but himself to blame for the presidential loss. Even if you leave out the video and women he assaulted, he still had a ton of self inflicted wounds.

[salin]

4. It is 100% self inflicted - no question.

I just thought the sequence Marshall points to was an interesting set of connections - all of which were ultimately self inflicted.

[relayerbob]

5. Minor speed bump ...

The Trump train wreck didn't need any outside help. The other GOP candidates were far too weak and ineefective to stand in his way, and now he has run up against Battleship Clinton

[salin]

9. I remember Jeb! in a debate scolding Trump

that one can't just insult one's way into the presidency. Jeb! wasn't a great candidate - but he sure got that point right.

[relayerbob]

12. They all tried to score debate points

Last edited Mon Oct 24, 2016, 04:13 PM - Edit history (1)

Hillary is forcing him into obviously self-destructive behavior and then cutting Trump into tiny little pieces. We are talking the difference between little league and World Series here

[salin]

14. Both good images.

Inspired me to try one out: It is as if he cut his teeth by kicking back beagle puppies that were attempting to nip his ankle, and used that preparation to prepare to do battle with a great white shark.

[relayerbob]

17. Pretty much. Yeah

[benld74]

6. How anyone could think running for POTUS woud NOT

expose ALL their lives, their truths, their lies for ALL to see and REPORT

is beyond comprehension.

But Trump being who he is, perhaps he thought he was above it all

[salin]

7. Arrogant idiot prevented his campaign from running oppo on him.

Because.. as you say "Trump being who he is".

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

25. Even limiting coverage to what he has said and done during the campaign

is enough to reveal the character of the man. He complains (among other things) about the vicious ads that are being run against him when all they do is show him speaking at a rally or during an interview.

I'll be glad when Nov. 8 comes and any chance of this POS becoming POTUS is over.

[TreasonousBastard]

8. Makes sense, but remember that New York is still the media capital, and the New York media had...

been dealing with Trump's nonsense for over 30 years already. He had been a filler for a slow news day, thanks to his daily phone calls and releases about his "exploits". Nobody in the business was fooled. Very few NY citizens were fooled, either, since he lost Manhattan in the primary.

It no doubt took a while for them to actually take him seriously this time and gear up for treating him as anything but a clown pretending to run, like the other times he did it for PR.

Anyhow, the question is how to deal with this guy they had been giving free publicity to for all those years. Boring actual news articles about his inability to run a business didn't seem to catch on, and it is embarrassing to do a quick about face and say the guy you've been pandering to for years is a chucklenut after all.

The Fox thing helped, and the Tic-Tacs may have been the last straw. Something quick, sharp and deadly that appeals to the women who may be on the fence, and gives Hillary fans real ammunition.

The last shark was jumped with the "nasty woman" comment that the news can't stop mentioning. Even shorter and more deadly, without objectionable words that can't be repeated in some places, and something he can't possibly deny or back out of.

I think he finally cut his own throat with that one.

[salin]

11. That comment does seem to have pulled a final cork out

and in the backdrop to the video, Trump's responses to it that fed the image captured on the video rather than defused it, the comment became an even bigger deal.

[trotsky]

10. I think it was the snowflake that started the avalanche.

However something else would have started it eventually, it's just Drumpf's nature to be a vengeful asswipe.

[salin]

13. You are probably right. He can't seem to help himself.

I am still amazed at some of the reporting that has come out that hasn't blown up all over Donald - such as the Eichenwald piece raising all of the business conflicts of interest Trump would have when conducting foreign policy were he President Trump. Well researched - big issue - but in such a wild and unpredictable race, it only created ripples rather than a tidal wave.

[Control-Z]

15. I came close to skipping your link

altogether because you made it sound like it was only a sentence or two. I found it was well worth an excerpt.

[salin]

16. I wrestled with that

I used to be an LBN poster, and was used to excerpting a couple of short paragraphs. I should have done a teaser - even if it was short. I thought Marshall's point was worth reading/thinking about and hope a few more folks have seen it who may not be regular TPM readers.

Thanks for the feedback. Next time I'll add a bit - even if it is for a short piece.

[Egnever]

18. I would actually put it at the event for his hotel opening.

The media as a whole was pissed about that and though all of the stories about Trumps foundation were out there before that the media pounced on them after that.

[salin]

21. its not the foundation reporting that does it

its that Fahrenthold had done so much reporting on it - that the source of the leaked p___y video sent it directly to Fahrenthold - and that video starts the fast downhill slide. Its not a direct cause and effect, but an interesting chain of events.

But certainly, any last kitt gloves came off by reporters after that event.

[icymist]

19. His undoing was that unrestricted flow coming from his mouth.

Unlike Oompa Loompas that talk in riddles and rhyme.

[salin]

22. This made me laugh!

thanks

[icymist]

26. Anytime.

[malaise]

20. Good read

Rec

[salin]

23. Hi there!

[malaise]

24. Back at you

Should have 500 recs

[Agnosticsherbet]

27. Trump turned on the media, and they turned on him.

I don't think the debate dodge had anything to do with it. He was covered 24/7 be the entire media. His rallies are still covered more than Clinton.

[Mc Mike]

28. Looks like David's editor

is the same man who ran things up at the Boston Globe, when the Spotlight feature people did their investigation into the Catholic heirarchy's child predation and cover up.

Print media needs more editors like him. And more reporters like Dave Farenthold.

[salin]

29. great comparison

indeed we do need more journalists like these.