At first blush (of blood to the cheeks, let me be clear), the spat between Donald Trump and Megyn Kelly is all about women. But if you take a closer look, you’ll see that it’s really not: It’s a trap of the Establishment.
Conservatives recognize the threat that Mr. Trump poses to the status quo in Washington, namely the political establishment in both parties and the media that use government to their advantage.
The political class (electeds, consultants and Republican Party chief Reince Priebus) hate the populist energy that Mr. Trump is capturing but at the same time they marvel at it and dream of steering it in the next election. The media elite love the ratings (and love looking down on the followers of Mr. Trump whom they call crazies in public and worse in private.
But (and this is a big BUT!) the issues that the Establishment care about most are not women and equality or even Ms. Kelly. Nope, they care most about keeping illegal immigration and the current trade policy in place. Cheap labor and exploitative trade make lots of money for the Establishment and increase their political power. Therefore, Mr. Trump’s laser beam focus on stopping illegal immigration and taking on China/trade is a threat to them.
So, what is the conservative response to Mr. Trump’s dust up with Ms. Kelly? Don’t step into the trap. Sidestep.
As Mr. Trump said in the debate last week: The issue of immigration would not be discussed at all but for his entry into the race. The conservative choice is to focus on the issues that really matter in the presidential race. Mr. Trump is hitting hard on the issues that impact our country most, and conservatives should not be sidetracked by Establishment Republican’s insubstantial distractions.
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