Absolute Proof That Donald Trump is Not a Con Artist who Flip Flops

[searcherman]

There are no absolutes.
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/03/trump-fact-check-errors-exaggerations-falsehoods-213730

[Steve B]

People who think Trump is a flip flopper on his most important positions simply haven't researched everything Trump has said over the years.

Please keep an open mind.  You don't have to vote for Trump, but at least listen to his message for yourself and in his own words.  Yes. Trump likes to exaggerate things.  It's part of who he is.  But see past the exaggerations so that you can decide if you agree with him or not.

For example.  When Cruz says he's going to "carpet bomb ISIS" it's obvious he is exaggerating. All of the candidates do this.  So when you listen to the candidates, search for the intention behind their words.  Because if you don't, the media will chop them up and make them appear to be saying something that they are not (as searcherman just demonstrated in his recent link).

Searcherman's link is a perfect example of how they try to chop up all of the candidates, mind you, not just Trump.  Links such as the one searchman just provided are fundamentally designed to take your attention away from what the candidate is meaning to say. The political season will absolutely stretch your critical thinking skills. I encourage people to dive in because engaging in the civic life is important-- but double check that you have thick skin before you do-- because people love to demonize during the political season.

This has, always, been part of the process.

As another example.  Trump has talked about ILLEGAL immigrants engaging in ILLEGAL activities.  Race-baiters, then, try to twist it into a race issue when actually its a crime issue.  Mexican drug cartels need the American market, because Americans are the largest consumers of illegal drugs in the world. So don't fall for media tricks such as race-baiting.  It's a crime issue, not a race issue.

Of course, I would say the same thing about all of the candidates.  You can't make an informed vote if you don't ever actually listen to the candidates.

Donald Trump in 2011, interviewed by Steve Forbes

https://youtu.be/ZJOv-F4uH28?t=40

[Steve B]

In other words, Trump went before Congress and argued that his industry is crucial to the country and therefore deserving of tax breaks. Yeah, Trump just hates those special interests .. except when they're Trump.

The reason Cruz can take money from Big Oil without compromising his values is because what's good for Big Oil is good for Texas.  And Cruz represent's Texan interests.  He's also taken money from Big Banks. . . and I'm not really comfortable with him doing that.  But I understand you have to finance your campaign somehow-- no getting around it.

Trump is into construction.  What's good for construction companies is always good for the economy no matter where you are from.  Countries fight over construction investments for a reason.  If you start to hurt construction, you cause an over-all economic slowdown.

And New York desperately needs more housing investments.

Trump is a win-win thinker.  His business is, fundamentally, governed by win-win principles.  If construction companies win, everybody wins.  That's the entire reason why they wanted to listen to Trump.  They wanted someone to explain to them how their policies were affecting construction in New York city.

[bdsimon]

All the candidates flip flop on issues. "I was for the war before I was against it". Trump has switched on several issues (including visas where he switched and switched back within a couple of hours). So I am unsure of what you are trying to argue here Steve.

I do believe that he has convinced many that he is "for" them (such as blue collar workers) when there is little evidence outside of his speeches to show that he is actually for them. But then again, I believe most politicians are con men as well as flip floppers.

He has convinced many in the GOP (including you) that he is mostly conservative when he is a populist. He leans left on many issues and not just free trade as you maintain. I believe this is about the third or fourth time I have pointed this out.

I think voting for Trump is a dice roll. You know what you are getting with Clinton but I honestly have no idea with the Donald. Why do you think that is?

[Steve B]

Trade is the only left leaning stance that Trump has.  All of his other stances fall perfectly into right wing theory.

His stance on abortion.

His stance on gay marriage.

His stance on small government.

His stance on taxes.

His stance on medical care.

His stance on education.

His conservative views on reading the US constitution.

All of them fall under right wing modes of thinking.  Trade is, literally, the only left leaning stance that he has.  And, mind you, its the only stance that special interest groups are extremely threatened by.  The pharmaceutical companies, for example, were keen to keep getting paid top dollar. . . till Trump came along.  Pharmaceuticals are extremely threatened by the idea that they might have to bid competitively in the American market place.

To them "small government" really just means controlling the government with their campaign donations.

Special interest groups are playing both the left, and the right, for suckers.

[bdsimon]

Trump says he is in line but he simply isn't. He is for keeping entitlements (watch the last debate). He is for infrastructure spending. He is for universal health care. He is opposed to tax breaks on the rich. He is for campaign finance reform. He also said he thought his sister would be a great SC nominee when she has authored papers in support of partial birth abortion.

As I said before, these are not necessarily bad views but they are not traditional conservative views.

[Steve B]

Trump says he is in line but he simply isn't. He is for keeping entitlements (watch the last debate). He is for infrastructure spending. He is for universal health care. He is opposed to tax breaks on the rich. He is for campaign finance reform. He also said he thought his sister would be a great SC nominee when she has authored papers in support of partial birth abortion.

As I said before, these are not necessarily bad views but they are not traditional conservative views.

If by "entitlements" you are referring to "medicaid" then yes.  Trump wants to keep medicaid.  But right wing theory is about the government being the last resort for help.  And medicaid is a last resort.  Trump does not want to get rid of it.

Infrastructure is the underbelly of any sound economy.  Both left and right wing theorists support the development of infrastructure.

His tax plan is "progressive" (a code word for left-wing)  But its not far left (like Bernie's). 25% tax rate is the highest tax rate under Trump. . . and it only applies to the most affluent (the top 10% of earners in society).  So job creators like Trump can still pay their fair share under that tax plan, without hurting jobs.

It's win-win.  It's not class-warfare.  And there are no tax-loopholes that cause the effective tax rate to be much lower than 25% under Trump's tax plan.

I'm not going to respond to his sister being a SC nominee. . . for obvious reasons.  That would simply be illegal.  Trump was only meaning to speak well of his sister. . . nothing more.

[bdsimon]

Trump says he is in line but he simply isn't. He is for keeping entitlements (watch the last debate). He is for infrastructure spending. He is for universal health care. He is opposed to tax breaks on the rich. He is for campaign finance reform. He also said he thought his sister would be a great SC nominee when she has authored papers in support of partial birth abortion.

As I said before, these are not necessarily bad views but they are not traditional conservative views.

If by "entitlements" you are referring to "medicaid" then yes.  Trump wants to keep medicaid.  But right wing theory is about the government being the last resort for help.  And medicaid is a last resort.  Trump does not want to get rid of it.

Infrastructure is the underbelly of any sound economy.  Both left and right wing theorists support the development of infrastructure.

His tax plan is "progressive" (a code word for left-wing)  But its not far left (like Bernie's). 25% tax rate is the highest tax rate under Trump. . . and it only applies to the most affluent (the top 10% of earners in society).  So job creators like Trump can still pay their fair share under that tax plan, without hurting jobs.

It's win-win.  It's not class-warfare.  And there are no tax-loopholes that cause the effective tax rate to be much lower than 25% under Trump's tax plan.

I'm not going to respond to his sister being a SC nominee. . . for obvious reasons.  That would simply be illegal.  Trump was only meaning to speak well of his sister. . . nothing more.

As I said, I wasn't arguing for whether or not these were sound positions. You don't need to defend his stance for I actually agree with some. GOP does not. They are not conservative positions.

[Steve B]

As I said, I wasn't arguing for whether or not these were sound positions. You don't need to defend his stance for I actually agree with some. GOP does not. They are not conservative positions.

Sure.  My point is to merely make sure that people are given a legitimate opportunity to actually understand his positions.  Disagree with his positions, that's fine, but let's at least accurately identify them, and understand them, before we begin to critique them.  This will help people to make a more informed decision.

That's all I'm trying to do. . . help people see past all of the nasty politics-- and go straight to the actual positions.

Trump in 2013.  Interview With David Letterman

As you can see. . . Trump, over the years, has been speaking a very, very consistent position.  1980, 1988, 1991, 2011, 2013.  He's been saying the same thing for years.  We need to get past the nasty politics. . . vote for Trump based on his positions, or don't vote for Trump if you disagree with his positions.  But lets at least understand his main message before we make a decision.

Again.  My vote for Trump is based purely on the fact that I have full trust in his competence.  It's not based on media hype-- or even Trump's own hype.

Trade is the only left leaning stance that Trump has.  All of his other stances fall, very clearly, into right wing theory.

His stance on abortion.

His stance on gay marriage.

His stance on small government.

His stance on taxes.

His stance on medical care.

His stance on education.

His conservative views on reading the US constitution.

They all fall into right wing theory.