The result of the U.S. presidential election is almost a certainty if Joe Biden remains in the race, especially after last weekend’s assassination attempt on the Republican nominee.
Throughout history, there have been many individuals who rose to prominence who have polarized intense feelings of passion in the population. One figure could elicit diametrically opposed emotions — hatred from one person, yet adoring admiration from that person’s neighbour or family member.
Even though Trump was unable to coherently answer a question or articulate policy initiatives during the debate, the optics — which is what most people focus on — had him looking much more vigorous and imposing. His subsequent escape from death, defiantly pumping his fist and chanting “fight, fight, fight,” just accentuated the physical contrast between the two men.
Many now believe Trump is unbeatable. If Biden remains in the race, that assumption is almost a certainty.
It’s not that Trump truly empathizes with the average American or champions the working class. Nor has he carved out sound policy directions, or even seemed to care about developing solutions to the many problems Americans face. In politics today, if you’re not the incumbent government and can embody the in-your-face movement of “screw you” to the current establishment, you could become a lightning rod for a frustrated electorate’s demand for change.
If a telegenic, slick-talking Democratic candidate can emerge — California Gov. Gavin Newsom, for example — who could distance themselves from the current administration and could show up Trump in future debates, it may halt Trump’s momentum by the November election.
The same Democratic faces vaunting accomplishments or policy initiatives won’t wash. Right now, it’s style over substance, rhetoric over policy — and anything but what’s been in office for the past several years.