
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Trump is kept in play mostly by Democrats and their media allies. ; He is boosted to hyper-relevancy by a very small percentage of GOP leaders (maybe 2 percent) and voters (maybe 15 percent). ; And, of course, by Trump himself.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Democrats spent millions of dollars in Republican primaries to nominate GOP candidates that they claim are unqualified, at best, or dangerous, at worst. ; Ponder that. ; Democrats are so dishonest and cynical that they are literally working to advance candidates THEY coincidentally claim are a clear and present danger to the Republic.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">They are doing the same thing with their messaging strategy. ; It is a two-prong strategy. ; They promote a demonized President Trump and then broad-brush and exaggerate negative attacks access the entire Republican Party. ; To make the messaging more effective, they are falsely branding the entire Republican leadership as either active insurrectionists hell-bent on taking over America by coup or passive players who are allowing it to happen. ; And Republican voters are vilified as insurrectionists, racists, sexists, homophobes – specifically a basket of deplorables.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">If you take a closer look, you will see the Joseph Goebbels’ approach to propaganda. ; Artificially create an utterly despicable and dangerous enemy within that will destroy the progressive utopia – an enemy largely composed of honest and well-meaning citizens. ; Absent the violent extremism of Nazi Germany, you will see the same effort to demonize a segment of the population … efforts to have the targeted people shunned through shamming … and silenced through censorship.  ; Running conservative Republican speakers off campuses … blocking conservative content from social media and so-called news programs … ; harassing Republican leaders on the streets and at their homes.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Two things can be true at the same time. ; Trump is a self-absorbed arrogant jerk of dubious moral and political principles. ; Since the 2020 election, he is at his worst. ; His only saving grace for folks like me is that his all-important policies are far better than the Big Brother governing philosophy of the modern autocratic Democratic Party. ; ;</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The other thing that is true &#8212; at least for folks like me – is that the attacks on Trump – and especially Republican leaders and voters – are dangerously excessive. ; The obvious effort by Democrat leaders and left-wing media to produce a one-party ruling elite is more dangerous than the nonsensical temporary chaos generated by Trump.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Whatever you think of Trump, you must admit that the four-year Russian conspiracy theory being played out every day as fact on the national media was, in fact, fake news … political propaganda … as proven when Special Counsel Robert Mueller stated that the allegations were untrue.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">In that case, rather than challenge the legitimacy of the Democrats’ accusations, much of the mainstream media partnered in advancing the false narratives. ; That fact should scare the hell out of any fair-minded person who believes in honest journalism and legitimate public policy. ; Independent journalism is an essential feature of any democratic Republic. ; Conversely, when it is subverted to a partisan political agenda, it poses an existential threat.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">It is equally true that many of Trump’s actions were inconsistent with traditional small-d democratic norms and traditions. ; He may well have broken laws – civil and criminal – which will be determined in various court cases. But it is equally true that his political adversaries also departed from democratic norms and traditions – and may have even broken some laws. ; Again, future investigations and legal cases will be the determinant – not public opinion based on mendacious political narratives.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">In this political season, however, Democrats see their best opportunity to stifle potential Republican gains by making Trump and their false branding of the Republican Party as a primary focus.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">As a result, the importance of Trump to the 2022 midterm election is far less than Democrats and their media cronies would have us believe. Trump is not on the ballot – and personally, I doubt he will be in 2024. ; Various opinions on the outcome of the 2020 election are essentially immaterial to the issues of the 2022 elections. ; Whether a person believes that the 2020 election was stolen away from Trump or not, has no REAL meaning in terms of who a person votes for in 2022.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Yes, Democrats are trying desperately to create a category of “election deniers” who pose a threat to the Republic. ; That is just another campaign-driven political narrative that lacks validity. ; ;</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Taking all things into consideration – the importance of Trump (good or bad) in the 2022 election is grossly overrated. ; Spreading criticism of Trump all over the Republican brand is a corrupt and dangerous strategy.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">If you look away from the national news reports, you will see a rather traditional election at the grassroots. ; The Democrat&#8217;s efforts to cast Republicans as a cult movement devoted to a coup is not selling among the people. ; </p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The fact that the Republican Party is likely to take control of the House – and possibly the Senate – and will likely make gains across the nation— is more than sufficient evidence that most people in America are not buying those extreme Democrat narratives. ; ;</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">To the great disappointment of the Democrats, the media and Trump, himself, the former President is NOT going to be the issue most on the minds of the voters. ; At least that is how I see it.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">So, there ‘tis.</p>

The Democrat strategy to keep Trump in play ain’t working
