During his “Talking Points Memo” segment of “The O’Reilly Factor” on the Fox News Channel, host Bill O’Reilly evaluated Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump’s strategy to win the GOP nomination.
O’Reilly credited Trump’s strategy, which he said required him not to play the “standard political name.”
Transcript as follows:
As you may know, I have known Mr. Trump for about 25 years and I can tell you he is a unique individual.
When he first started running for president, Trump was about four percent in the polls.
And he had virtually no chance to win if he conducted himself as a standard politician.
But Donald Trump saw the campaign as a mission. He sincerely believes most politicians are phonies who are not looking out for you.
He also thinks the federal government is screwed up beyond belief and only an outsider can correct things quickly.
As far as politics is concerned, Mr. Trump is the ultimate outsider.
So his campaign theme in my humble opinion is that the end justifies the means.
Trump wants to win and he knows he cannot win by playing the standard political game.
So his strategy is to get attention 24-7, starving the other candidates out.
With the media paying so much attention to Trump, you don’t know all that much about John Kasich or Rand Paul or Carly Fiorina.
We see them at the debates and that’s pretty much it.
The simple truth is Trump is playing the electronic media, and the media loves it because he delivers high ratings.
At this point it’s not important to the Trump campaign to discuss things like the nuclear triad or macroeconomics or how to conduct foreign diplomacy.
It’s enough for Trump to say he’s a good deal maker, he’ll make Putin his friend and he’ll kick some serious butt overseas.
Of course some intellectual Americans despise that approach and some pundits here at Fox News are among those folks.
For some reason that rankles Donald Trump and, as I told him last night, I don’t know why.
Trump’s strategy is clearly working. Many of his supporters simply want an avenger, someone to blow up what they consider a corrupt system — policy be damned, at least at this point.
Now let me give you a vivid example of how bad Washington is.
On July 1st, 32-year-old Kate Steinle was killed by a criminal illegal alien in San Francisco.
The man had seven felony convictions in the USA, had been deported five times and returned five times.
That is a disgrace. If the U.S. government can’t keep a thug like that out of this country, none of us have any security.
I felt terrible for the Steinle family, and I made a promise to them that I would spearhead new legislation called Kate’s Law that would mandate a five-year federal prison term for any convicted aggravated felon who defies deportation.
Such a law would give authorities a clear shot at gang members and repeat foreign offenders. It is a law very much needed in America.
But as it stands right now, Congress will not pass Kate’s law.
The despicable Harry Reid blocked it on the Senate floor because the Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell attached Kate’s Law to an anti-sanctuary city bill.
That gave the Democrats cover to vote against Kate’s Law and McConnell knew it.
I have tried on numerous occasions to talk with Senator McConnell, but he refuses to take my calls.
And although there are good senators like Cruz, Grassley and McCain who very much want a standalone vote on Kate’s Law, it is not assured.
Although Mitch McConnell could make that happen.
Now I ask you if Congress cannot pass a simple piece of legislation that would protect every single American, what can Congress do?
Donald Trump knows the system is corrupt, he understands the anger of the American people … he calculates that he can run on emotion and possibly win.
And that is Donald Trump’s strategy.
And that’s the memo.
Follow Jeff Poor on Twitter @jeff_poor
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