Donald Trump took the rules of modern politics, trashed them and became the last man standing for the Republican nomination. A few ways Trump did it his way:
Say Anything: It’s what Trump’s supporters love about him: He blurts out whatever pops into his head. He rejects “political correctness.”
Cheapskate:The billionaire is proud to campaign on the cheap, milking free media in a way that others could only envy. He functioned through most of the primaries with a bare-bones staff. He never set up a traditional fundraising operation.
Xenophobia: With ‘The Donald’ cresting a wave of middle-class White American anger at jobs lost to immigrants, everyone who is not the classical White American Anglo Saxon Protestant, especially the NRIs, will understand what it means to be a minority.
Consistency: Most candidates recoil from the “flip-flopper” label. Trump changes his mind — not just week to week or day to day, but sometimes even within the same speech. “You have to be flexible, because you learn,” he said.
Policy Gaps: Candidates love to trot out five-point plans and lofty position papers. Trump, not so much. His America First policy speech was a broad-brush endeavour. Trump makes a virtue of leaving enemies guessing about US intentions.
Potty Mouth: Trump salts his speeches with vulgarities — although he’s dialled it back a bit after a scolding from Melania. Lots of politicians use profanities, but typically not in public. Trump has publicly lip-synced the F-bomb, blurted out the S-word and hurled an offensive term at rival Ted Cruz.
