![\"Donald](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dougsbriefcase.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/credit-cbspittsburgh.jpg\")
<\/a>Don\u00adald Trump is lead\u00ading the GOP<\/span> pack head\u00ading into tonight\u2019s debate. Why that\u2019s good news for Democ\u00adrats. [Cred\u00adit: CBS<\/span> Pittsburgh]<\/p><\/div>The mar\u00adi\u00adjua\u00adna dis\u00adpen\u00adsary on Down\u00ading Street is in a cozy Den\u00adver neigh\u00adbor\u00adhood, tucked amid cof\u00adfee shops, bou\u00adtiques and oth\u00ader arti\u00adfacts of gen\u00adtri\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adtion. Enter\u00ading the store on a bright Sun\u00adday morn\u00ading, I\u2019m greet\u00aded by a glassy-eyed young man slumped in a chair with a large bowl of bud on his lap. His job, in addi\u00adtion to rolling ju-jus, is to check IDs, turn away minors and iden\u00adti\u00adfy out-of-staters, whose pur\u00adchas\u00ades are lim\u00adit\u00aded to one-quar\u00adter ounce<\/a> per trans\u00adac\u00adtion. Col\u00adoradans can legal\u00adly buy four times that amount, the state\u2019s law\u00admak\u00aders evi\u00addent\u00adly believ\u00ading that natives can han\u00addle their weed bet\u00adter than non-residents.\n His col\u00adleagues behind the counter are in a sim\u00adi\u00adlar\u00adly ami\u00adca\u00adble stu\u00adpor, but knowl\u00adedge\u00adable about their prod\u00aduct and full of advice to pre\u00advent patrons from pulling a Mau\u00adreen Dowd<\/a>,<\/span> the New York Times<\/em> colum\u00adnist who descend\u00aded into a para\u00adnoid delu\u00adsion\u00adal state after lock\u00ading her\u00adself in a hotel room and wolf\u00ading down a THC<\/span>-laced Sky Bar. The del\u00adi\u00adca\u00adcies at this shop are said to con\u00adtain safe amounts of the active ingre\u00addi\u00adent, enough to pro\u00adduce a man\u00adage\u00adable eupho\u00adria that won\u2019t end in an emer\u00adgency room vis\u00adit or inspire anoth\u00ader loopy New York Times <\/em>col\u00adumn.<\/p>\n There is some\u00adthing vague\u00adly sur\u00adre\u00adal about get\u00adting med\u00adical advice, how\u00adev\u00ader sound, from peo\u00adple in a drug-induced haze at ten o\u2019clock in the morn\u00ading. The \u201cwake and bake\u201d crew at the mar\u00adi\u00adjua\u00adna dis\u00adpen\u00adsary fits the car\u00adi\u00adca\u00adtures that oppo\u00adnents of legal\u00adiza\u00adtion have sketched, mak\u00ading them a bad adver\u00adtise\u00adment for their polit\u00adi\u00adcal cause.<\/p>\n Which brings me to Don\u00adald Trump.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s genius for self-pro\u00admo\u00adtion and rein\u00adven\u00adtion has made him the GOP<\/span>\u2019s improb\u00ada\u00adble front-run\u00adner head\u00ading into tonight\u2019s com\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly crowd\u00aded debate. He is pop\u00adu\u00adlar among con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtives, though he is no con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtive. His self-ref\u00ader\u00aden\u00adtial can\u00addi\u00adda\u00adcy leaves lit\u00adtle space for pol\u00adi\u00adcy, con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtive or oth\u00ader\u00adwise. Data, posi\u00adtion papers and sub\u00adstance are the pre\u00adoc\u00adcu\u00adpa\u00adtions of career politi\u00adcians. Why entan\u00adgle your\u00adself in com\u00adplex\u00adi\u00adty when you know the Don\u00adald can han\u00addle any\u00adthing the pres\u00adi\u00adden\u00adcy can throw at him? How would he con\u00adduct for\u00adeign affairs in an increas\u00ading\u00adly hos\u00adtile and chaot\u00adic world? He\u2019s a good nego\u00adtia\u00adtor<\/a> who will hire good nego\u00adtia\u00adtors to nego\u00adti\u00adate for him. Health care? He\u2019ll repeal Oba\u00admacare and replace it with \u201csome\u00adthing ter\u00adrif\u00adic<\/a>.\u201d Done and done.<\/p>\n His can\u00addi\u00adda\u00adcy is less polit\u00adi\u00adcal than cul\u00adtur\u00adal. Trump is the delin\u00adquent rich kid, van\u00addal\u00adiz\u00ading the cul\u00adtur\u00adal edi\u00adfice erect\u00aded by elites in uni\u00adver\u00adsi\u00adties, gov\u00adern\u00adment, Hol\u00adly\u00adwood, Wall Street and cor\u00adpo\u00adrate C\u2011suites \u2013 erect\u00aded, in oth\u00ader words, by peo\u00adple of his own social milieu. Trump\u2019s bom\u00adbast is a cal\u00adcu\u00adlat\u00aded assault on the sen\u00adsi\u00adbil\u00adi\u00adties of Amer\u00adi\u00adcan elites, espe\u00adcial\u00adly those who are ever sniff\u00ading out \u201cmicroag\u00adgres\u00adsions,\u201d ver\u00adbal mis\u00adcues that are often of inno\u00adcent intent but that are said to have been belched from hate\u00adful souls and to have been hurt\u00adful to one or anoth\u00ader vic\u00adtim group.<\/p>\n That men\u00adtal\u00adi\u00adty per\u00adme\u00adates every crevice of pop\u00adu\u00adlar cul\u00adture. Last month, Col\u00adin Cowherd, an ESPN<\/span> radio celebri\u00adty, launched one of his fre\u00adquent screeds<\/a> against base\u00adball. Cowherd\u2019s intend\u00aded tar\u00adget was a polit\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly safe one: old white guys who like base\u00adball and believe it to be a cere\u00adbral game (me, for exam\u00adple). Base\u00adball, he argued, can\u2019t be intel\u00adlec\u00adtu\u00adal\u00adly com\u00adplex because \u201ca third of the sport is from the Domini\u00adcan Repub\u00adlic,\u201d which, he con\u00adtin\u00adued, \u201chas not been known in my life\u00adtime as hav\u00ading world-class aca\u00add\u00ade\u00adm\u00adic abilities.\u201d<\/p>\n Thus did the shot he fired at white guys inad\u00adver\u00adtent\u00adly wound Lati\u00adnos, an eth\u00adnic group with well-estab\u00adlished vic\u00adtim\u00adhood cred. The out\u00adrage from the griev\u00adance indus\u00adtry was imme\u00addi\u00adate, pro\u00advok\u00ading calls for Cowherd\u2019s scalp.<\/p>\n The next morn\u00ading, Cowherd announced that he was \u201cnot doing a Trump and dou\u00adbling down,\u201d but stopped short of apol\u00ado\u00adgiz\u00ading for his remarks. Instead he tried to clar\u00adi\u00adfy the point of his excur\u00adsus on the Domini\u00adcan edu\u00adca\u00adtion sys\u00adtem: \u201cYou don\u2019t have to be Steven Hawk\u00ading to under\u00adstand base\u00adball.\u201d Hours after the day\u2019s show end\u00aded, he backed down, tweet\u00ading a for\u00admu\u00adla\u00adic apol\u00ado\u00adgy<\/a>: \u201cMy choice of words was poor and not reflec\u00adtive of who I am.\u201d By evening, his employ\u00aders announced<\/a> that \u201cCol\u00adin will no longer appear on ESPN<\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n The famil\u00adiar cycle of statement\/explanation\/apology\/termination played out over a peri\u00adod of rough\u00adly 30 hours. Its hypocrisy was fla\u00adgrant. It had been wide\u00adly report\u00aded for some time that Cowherd was leav\u00ading ESPN<\/span><\/a> to join a rival net\u00adwork. His last ESPN<\/span> broad\u00adcast was to have been a week from the day of his fir\u00ading. A con\u00adve\u00adnient time for the net\u00adwork to sud\u00adden\u00adly dis\u00adcov\u00ader that its long\u00adtime on-air per\u00adson\u00adal\u00adi\u00adty does not \u201creflect the val\u00adues of ESPN<\/span> or our employees.\u201d<\/p>\n The Trump can\u00addi\u00adda\u00adcy<\/a> is less about mak\u00ading Amer\u00adi\u00adca great again than about mak\u00ading a mock\u00adery of elites who engage in such moral preen\u00ading and hyper\u00adsen\u00adsi\u00adtiv\u00adi\u00adty. Trump delib\u00ader\u00adate\u00adly pro\u00advokes inter\u00adest groups that hem\u00ador\u00adrhage out\u00adrage more pro\u00adfuse\u00adly than hemo\u00adphil\u00adi\u00adacs bleed. (To per\u00adsons with hemo\u00adphil\u00adia whom I\u2019ve offend\u00aded: \u201cThe pre\u00adced\u00ading sen\u00adtence is not reflec\u00adtive of who I am.\u201d) Oth\u00aders grov\u00adel and plead for for\u00adgive\u00adness when they inad\u00adver\u00adtent\u00adly nick the cap\u00adil\u00adlar\u00adies of such groups; Trump goes for the carotid. And then won\u2019t say he\u2019s sorry.<\/p>\n Trump lives to give offense. There is an audi\u00adence that thrills to his every out\u00adra\u00adgeous utter\u00adance, and it is most\u00adly on the Right, among those who sim\u00admer over polit\u00adi\u00adcal cor\u00adrect\u00adness and speech codes that have leeched from uni\u00adver\u00adsi\u00adties into the broad\u00ader cul\u00adtur\u00adal water table. Just as Bernie Sanders has tapped into dis\u00adaf\u00adfec\u00adtion on the Left against the Demo\u00adc\u00adra\u00adt\u00adic par\u00adty and its pre\u00adsump\u00adtive 2016 stan\u00addard-bear\u00ader, Trump attracts much of his fol\u00adlow\u00ading from Repub\u00adli\u00adcans dis\u00adil\u00adlu\u00adsioned with polit\u00adi\u00adcal elites, par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly those of their own par\u00adty. Their ranks are grow\u00ading. Only 68 per\u00adcent of Repub\u00adli\u00adcans<\/em> have a favor\u00adable view of their par\u00adty, accord\u00ading to a recent Pew Research poll<\/a>,<\/span> down from 86 per\u00adcent in January.<\/p>\n And that isn\u2019t the GOP<\/span>\u2019s biggest prob\u00adlem. Over\u00adall, twice as many vot\u00aders view the par\u00adty unfa\u00advor\u00adably as view it favor\u00adably, accord\u00ading to the same Pew sur\u00advey. That does\u00adn\u2019t mean the pub\u00adlic dis\u00adagrees with Repub\u00adli\u00adcans on the issues. While Democ\u00adrats have big advan\u00adtages over Repub\u00adli\u00adcans on abor\u00adtion and the envi\u00adron\u00adment, Repub\u00adli\u00adcans are more trust\u00aded to han\u00addle the bud\u00adget, tax\u00ades, gun con\u00adtrol and ter\u00adror\u00adism, and are almost dead even with Democ\u00adrats on immi\u00adgra\u00adtion, for\u00adeign pol\u00adi\u00adcy and the economy.<\/p>\n The party\u2019s biggest deficits have less to do with spe\u00adcif\u00adic issues than with the per\u00adcep\u00adtion that it \u201cisn\u2019t con\u00adcerned with peo\u00adple like me\u201d (53 per\u00adcent say that is true of Repub\u00adli\u00adcans vs. 31 per\u00adcent who say it is true of Democ\u00adrats) and is \u201cmore extreme in its posi\u00adtions\u201d (Repub\u00adli\u00adcans are viewed as more extreme by a 52\u201335 mar\u00adgin). Which would make a bil\u00adlion\u00adaire can\u00addi\u00addate who rev\u00adels in immod\u00ader\u00adate dec\u00adla\u00adra\u00adtions a par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly unfor\u00adtu\u00adnate choice as standard-bearer.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s can\u00addi\u00adda\u00adcy rein\u00adforces the worst car\u00adi\u00adca\u00adtures of Repub\u00adli\u00adcans as angry, abra\u00adsive and far removed from the con\u00adcerns of most Amer\u00adi\u00adcans. Those stereo\u00adtypes are the Demo\u00adc\u00adra\u00adt\u00adic par\u00adty\u2019s great\u00adest asset, an asset that accrued val\u00adue when\u00adev\u00ader Jon Stew\u00adart gri\u00admaced at the men\u00adtion of Ted Cruz or Stephen Col\u00adbert raised an eye\u00adbrow in iron\u00adic defense of Sarah Palin. Such social cues from a broad array of celebri\u00adty icons are enough to con\u00advince many vot\u00aders that they don\u2019t want to be Repub\u00adli\u00adcans, much less con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtives, lest they find them\u00adselves adrift from the cul\u00adtur\u00adal mainstream.<\/p>\n Over\u00adcom\u00ading this bias against Repub\u00adli\u00adcans will be dif\u00adfi\u00adcult enough for a par\u00adty that has won a pop\u00adu\u00adlar vote major\u00adi\u00adty just once in the last six pres\u00adi\u00adden\u00adtial elec\u00adtions. The Trump cam\u00adpaign won\u2019t help the GOP<\/span> regain lost ground, any\u00admore than the staff of ston\u00aders at the Down\u00ading Street mar\u00adi\u00adjua\u00adna dis\u00adpen\u00adsary will boost the cam\u00adpaign for legalization.<\/p>\n But at least they\u2019re a mel\u00adlow, cheer\u00adful and friend\u00adly lot. Trump should take note.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The mar\u00adi\u00adjua\u00adna dis\u00adpen\u00adsary on Down\u00ading Street is in a cozy Den\u00adver neigh\u00adbor\u00adhood, tucked amid cof\u00adfee shops, bou\u00adtiques and oth\u00ader arti\u00adfacts of gen\u00adtri\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adtion. Enter\u00ading the store on a bright Sun\u00adday morn\u00ading, I\u2019m greet\u00aded by a glassy-eyed young man slumped in a \u2026 Con\u00adtin\u00adue read\u00ading