Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump began his race for president among many other much more qualified candidates, including Florida Governor Jeb Bush, Senator Ted Cruz, and Senator Marco Rubio. Despite his lack of political experience, Trump ended up on top. Many are inquiring about how he was able to do that just that.
One tactic he used was blatant bullying. He bullied candidates to the point where their political positions no longer mattered, but their charisma had to be great to stay in the race. Trump would personally label every candidate, a tactic he’s still using. Some of Trump’s nicknames for candidates include: Little Rubio, Lyin’ Ted, “Low Energy” Jeb Bush and Crooked Hillary. He even went so far as to label a non-candidate, Elizabeth Warren, as Goofy Elizabeth Warren.
This nickname fiasco is a clever move by Trump, but an unfair one. He is labeling each person with an adjective to change the perspective of these highly esteemed politicians in the eyes of his supporters. At his rallies he starts chants, such as “Lyin’ Ted, Lyin’ Ted,” to excite crowds and create an almost mob like mentality that leads to skewed views of very qualified candidates.
Many candidates have tried to fight back, but could not gain the kind of traction that Trump has received. Marco Rubio decided to retaliate against his nickname “Little Rubio” and called Trump “Big Donald,” however, this nickname propped Trump up more than it brought him down.
Trump draws all of these names from one small part of a candidate so they each have a tiny hint of truth to them, in his and his follower’s eyes. The latest “Crooked Hillary” is based on Hillary Clinton’s stigma of being untrustworthy due to her email scandal and issues with Benghazi. This tactic has worked well so far for the Donald, but will it work against much more competent and strong Hillary Clinton in the general election? She has fought through scandal after scandal and is still fighting for the presidency despite her loss in 2008 and her extremely long political career.
