President Donald Trump has made a stellar appointment in naming Dan Scavino his new Deputy Director of Communications. The promotion is a reflection of the great work Scavino has done in his most recent role as the president’s director of social media.
The appointment is sure to draw criticism from the MSM and from all of the usual suspects on social media. That’s good. I’m all for learning from your critics, and what they’ve taught me in the era of Trump Derangement Syndrome is this: Any time the president makes a decision that triggers them, it’s probably the right one to make.
I have written about Scavino in the past, voicing my support for his demeanor, his tone, and his tactics. He is an original member of Trump’s inner circle and knows — in fact, has always known — how to communicate with Trump’s political base. Scavino’s innate understanding of what animates the president’s supporters comes from his shared belief in Trump’s most deeply held ideological tenets, which have shaped his presidency. In other words, he never has to make an argument in which he does not believe.
That last point is important. At this moment in time, with the nation more divided and frightened than it has perhaps ever been, the last thing we need from the top office in the land is a communication strategy of equivocation and hesitancy.
There is no possible hope for this president to please everyone. That is not a realistic or effective communication goal. The objective needs to be to rally his supporters, not to appease his detractors. Scavino will be clear and relentless in carrying the right message while avoiding the common pitfall of trying to win those who will never support the president.
The press has had a field day over the past three-plus years covering the turnover that has taken place within the Trump administration. Their spin on it has always been that the president can’t pick the right people and that he is an incredibly difficult person for whom to work. Both of these conclusions are wrong and intellectually lazy.
The real problem is the pool of talent from which the president has been able to draw. The typical “experts” appointed to administration positions are usually part-globalist, part-ruling class, and part-bureaucratic “lifers.” These usual suspects on the headhunters’ speed dial for White House jobs do not share President Trump’s “America First” ideals. Dan Scavino shares them and expresses them better than anyone in the country, save for the president himself.
Simply put, Scavino speaks the movement’s language. It is my belief with him stepping into this position it will be far more difficult for those who would like to “handle” the president, and how he crafts his messages to the country, to hold any sway over what is said.
Inevitably there will be endless speculation surrounding what’s driving the president’s recent string of hires and promotions. I suspect that as we approach his original April 30 end date for voluntarily locking down of the country, and as he gets ready to promote a responsible America-back-to-work policy, he knows he will need someone who does not shrink in the face of harsh criticisms from the MSM and the collectivists who want to see America remain shut down and weakened.
In times like these, any sort of communication that sounds like political doublespeak is dangerous not only for the president, but, more importantly, for the nation’s citizens. Lack of clarity leads to confusion and confusion leads to panic.
When Dan Scavino says “let me make one thing perfectly clear,” he means it. So does our president. Get ready to listen, America. They will have plenty to say. The best news? We won’t have to try to figure out what they mean.
Charlie Kirk is the author of the New York Times bestseller The MAGA Doctrine: The Only Ideas That Will Win the Future and host of The Charlie Kirk Show.
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