I have heaped my share of criticisms on Donald Trump and am still not sure he would be the strongest candidate to run in the general election. However, I am starting to understand why such a wide range of people are supporting him--from secular conservatives and moderates (such as Jesse Ventura, Carl Icahn, Gary Buse) to staunch religious conservatives (such as Sarah Palin, Phyllis Schlafly, Jerry Falwell Jr., and Robert Jeffress)--and why even people like Bob Dole have said that although they are supporting someone else they would gladly back Trump if he gets the nomination because they think he's an intelligent, effective leader who would make a good president.
Most of these people grasp the one key, central, overriding fact about Donald Trump: He is an American first and foremost and a Republican a distant second, and he judges every policy by whether or not it would be best for America, regardless of how some other people or nations might feel about it.
Trump's economic plan is clearly center-right and would be a huge step forward from where we are now. However, overall he is not the most conservative GOP candidate. In fact, were it not for his positions on immigration and internal security, he would be widely regarded as the least conservative GOP candidate and perhaps even as something of a moderate with conservative leanings on some issues. Overall, he is a conservative, but he is not as conservative as Ted Cruz, Jeb Bush, Carly Fiorina, or Marco Rubio, among others.
The key difference with Trump, aside from his centrist and even liberal views on a few issues, and what makes him so appealing to so many people, is that he is a genuine patriot who puts loyalty to country far above loyalty to any political party and who has no qualms about criticizing Republican policies and leaders when he disagrees with them, including the Iraq War, George W, Bush, etc., etc.
Most of these people grasp the one key, central, overriding fact about Donald Trump: He is an American first and foremost and a Republican a distant second, and he judges every policy by whether or not it would be best for America, regardless of how some other people or nations might feel about it.
Trump's economic plan is clearly center-right and would be a huge step forward from where we are now. However, overall he is not the most conservative GOP candidate. In fact, were it not for his positions on immigration and internal security, he would be widely regarded as the least conservative GOP candidate and perhaps even as something of a moderate with conservative leanings on some issues. Overall, he is a conservative, but he is not as conservative as Ted Cruz, Jeb Bush, Carly Fiorina, or Marco Rubio, among others.
The key difference with Trump, aside from his centrist and even liberal views on a few issues, and what makes him so appealing to so many people, is that he is a genuine patriot who puts loyalty to country far above loyalty to any political party and who has no qualms about criticizing Republican policies and leaders when he disagrees with them, including the Iraq War, George W, Bush, etc., etc.
