This week has seen a concerted, seemingly coordinated, attack by Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and the establishment press on Trump and Trump University. If my theory, that Trump is riding an anti-establishment wave which feeds on attacks from the establishment, is correct, this will lead to an increase in Trump’s numbers. This will show up in next week’s polls.
The anti-establishment wave could, if fed enough energy by the media attacks on Trump, turn into an anti-establishment tsunami. I find it amazing that the NYT, WaPo, LA Times, HuffPo …. have not picked up on the reality that it is their “over the top” attacks on Trump which are energising and feeding his support. The content of their attacks has become irrelevant. It is their contempt which is creating a magnified reaction. The more the establishment seem to be “ganging up” on him, the greater the reaction. I see an analogy with the vibrational collapse of a bridge when troops march across in step and cause a resonance failure. As media attacks on Trump seem more coordinated, the anti-establishment reaction could reach resonance and become an uncontrollable tsunami.
Obama’s stuttering attack was particularly unconvincing and gives some backing to the suggestion that “Barack Obama as your enemy is equivalent to having a thousand friends”.
(ISIS might agree. I note that the Iraqi (with US air support) assault on Fallujah has stalled. Massive advance publicity was released about the assault but it has been somewhat less effective than when Syria (with Russian air support) has taken back ISIS strongholds.)
In the meantime Clinton does not seem able to finally kill off Sanders. In line-ups against Trump, Sanders consistently does much better than Clinton. I take this as being consistent with the angry, anti-establishment wave which transcends “left” or “right”.
Tags: Barack Obama, Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton
The k2p blog 
June 2, 2016 at 8:24 am
One of Trump’s weaknesses is that even though he’s not part of the political establishment, he’s still part of the 1%, which in most ways that count IS STILL “the establishment”. He’s vulnerable if his core narrative of being a self-made, hard working billionaire is proven wrong, and he becomes perceived as just another rich guy profiting unfairly off the sweat of all the little guys supporting him. The Trump (fake) University stuff might hurt him a lot, and he was wounded by reporters forcing him into finally writing the million dollar check to the vets organizations, months after he said he already had.
June 2, 2016 at 8:44 am
Yes. But my gut feeling is that the electorate anger against the “political class” is so strong (and so under-estimated) that even a false perception of Trump won’t matter as long as the reality is that he is not of that class remains. The aura of success matters (which is why Carly Fiorina with her aura of failure could not make any headway).
Sanders is a maverick and sort of anti-establishment but still of that political class.
It is a “mood” election. The time seems to be demanding a non-politician and Trump could be the wrong man, but the right kind of man at the right time.
A Bill Gates like non-politician with the halo of success could easily beat Trump in the present mood of the electorate.