Donald Trump on the Rush Limbaugh Show

On March 1, 2011, I listened to the Rush Limbaugh Show on the local talk radio station WILK. Rush interviewed a fascinating guest -- Donald Trump.

The Republican Party presidential nomination in 2012 is wide open and up for grabs, and there is no clear front runner. As a matter of fact, not a single Republican has formally announced his or her candidacy. As a writer, I believe I should do my part to report on and analyze the major candidates. I got the ball rolling in my last article when I reported that Donald Trump missed the mark in his speech at the Conservative Political Action Committee. Trump failed to demonstrate that he is presidential timber as he used outdated and worn out cliches to describe American foreign policy. So how did Trump do on the famous radio show?

Again, Trump missed the mark and failed to demonstrate that he is presidential timber. Trump fails to understand the economic crisis the United States is in, and how to get out of the Great Recession and put the American eople back to work. Surprisingly, I did find some common ground with Trump and some areas where I can understand his point of view.

Political Realism

While discussing his views about American politics, Trump demonstrated that he is a realist, and does not always abide by the conservative point of view. Conservatives are criticizing Trump for contributing money to Rahm Emmanuel in his successful campaign for Mayor of Chicago. Trump explained that the Republican Party is very weak in Chicago, and is rarely competitive in the local city elections. Trump is involved in the age-old game of pay to play. He has business interests in Chicago and several projects in the city. So he is contributing to the campaign of the future Mayor of Chicago to play a role in the economic future of the city. Supporting the Republicans in Chicago is simply not an option.

I can understand Trump's view of Chicago politics. I live in Wilkes-Barre, Penn., and the Democrats control the town. The Democrats have about a two-to-one advantage in voter registration, and win just about every election. I have first-hand experience in Wilkes-Barre politics. I ran for city council in 2003 and 2007 and was crushed on both occasions. Not a single Republican won in Wilkes-Barre in those two elections. I cannot put a platform together that would convince Democrats to vote Republican, so I am not running in 2011. So I can understand a Republican businessman getting involved in pay to play in a city like Chicago.

Restoring America's Status in the World

In his speech before the Conservative Political Action Committee, Trump said the United States was the laughingstock of the world, and that he was going to restore America's prestige and status in the world. Just about every presidential candidate says they are going to restore America's status in the world, so one wonders why Trump believes the United States is a laughingstock. He revealed his sources during the interview, and his view is frivolous.

Trump routinely does business with Chinese businessmen who are making a lot of money doing business with the United States. These businessmen have a dim view of the United States and that is why Trump believes the United States is the laughingstock of the world. Obviously, these Chinese businessmen are a limited group and not indicative of what the world thinks of the United States.

The Current Economic Crisis

The Great Recession, the current economic crisis with its chronic high unemployment, began decades ago. The United States lost its manufacturing industry as foreign workers were willing to do the same work for a fraction of the cost. Now we have millions of workers with no place to go, and wages are so low that the taxpayers cannot afford to pay the taxes that are required to keep the federal and state governments operating. Trump acknowledged this when he said he signed a contract to build a wall, but he could not hire an American contractor as the price was too high.

Trump seems to believe that we are in this crisis simply because China is manipulating its currency. It is common practice for nations to manipulate their currencies to advance their economic interests. Currency manipulation did not devastate the American economy; low wages in underdeveloped countries did. So how would he fix the problem?. He would put a tax on Chinese products coming into the United States, and try to force the Chinese to increase the value of their currency. This does not seem to solve the problem, as Chinese products could be replaced with cheap products from other foreign countries such as India.

Lobbyists

Trump said that lobbyists have taken control of our politicians and that is why no one is standing up for the United States. He said when he tries to hire a lobbying firm, he cannot, as they are all working for China or OPEC. I was surprised to hear him say this. He is a billionaire. He could form his own lobbying firm, offer a good salary and watch all the best talent come over to his side.

Source: The Rush Limbaugh Show, March 1, 2011.