The following is a hypothetical conversation sometime in the future between an ex-presidential candidate and a campaign strategist.
Ex Candidate (EC): I wish I had a campaign manager like this last election
Strategist (S): Last election. Oh yeah. You went all-in on that one, huh? Really swung for the fences, huh?
EC: Thank you. I just did the work. I had to sort of just free myself up to believe it was okay to be him in a weird way.
S: To be Trump
EC: Yeah
S: To be Trumpy
EC: Yeah
S: Like the Trumpiest candidate that ever ran
EC: When I was running for President.
S: Acting like Trump. Trying to come back from that
EC: In a weird way, I had to fool my mind into believing I wasn’t the Donald.
S: But Trump thought he was a good qualified President, so you can’t afford to play Trump being a qualified candidate. Running as a guy who thinks he’s qualified but is so far from qualified, that’s tricky. Hats off for going there especially knowing how the voters are about that now
EC: About what?
S: You’re serious? You don’t know? Everybody knows you never go full Trump
EC: What do you mean?
S: Check it out. Richard Nixon, 37th President, look, Trump, act Trump, not Trump. Established the EPA and OSHA, ended America’s involvement in the Vietnam war, opened diplomatic relations with The Peoples Republic of China. He had Watergate so crooked sho’. Not Trump. You know Jimmy Carter.’ Below average President, yes. Indecisive, maybe. Gas shortages and Iranian hostage crises. But he created the Departments of Energy and Education and negotiated a peace treaty between Israel and Egypt. That ain’t Trump. He was a goddamn Noble Peace Prize winner. Do you know any Trump Noble Prize Winners? You went full, Trump man. Never go full, Trump. You don’t buy that? Ask Donald, 2020, Presidential Election. Remember? Went full Trump, went home empty-handed.