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Is Trump forgetting his populist message?

Bring back the old DJT. Credit: Getty

August 10, 2024 - 1:00pm

Donald Trump is being Donald Trump and Beltway pundits are convinced it’s killing his campaign. Trump’s problems are real, but they have nothing to do with his rambling press conferences — and it’s rather telling that journalists still don’t know why.

At an hour-long Thursday presser, Trump bragged that he’d drawn a bigger crowd to the “same real estate” as Martin Luther King Jr. on 6 January. He described Gov. Tim Walz as being “heavy into the transgender world.” (That part is at least accurate.) He marvelled at his own rapid healing abilities.

Media observers, though, acted as if Trump hasn’t sounded exactly like this for the last eight years. Politico Playbook‘s headline the next morning was “Trump’s ‘reset’ that wasn’t.” The narrative is almost a carbon copy of what media said after Trump’s appearance at the National Association of Black Journalists conference last week.

If anybody expected a Trump campaign “reset” to involve the candidate suddenly becoming a disciplined messenger, they really do not belong in the industry at this point. (See this hilariously naive editorial from the Wall Street Journal.) Trump’s coalition is people who love him and people who tolerate him. None of those voters expect Trump to start talking like Mitt Romney. They will not be surprised or moved by his rantings and ravings.

It’s true that in a close election, some voters may have a harder time tolerating Trump the more he whines about crowd sizes. But they’re already putting up with everything else in the Trump package — including J6 — so his lack of message discipline on any given Thursday afternoon is hardly a crisis.

Trump is actually making serious errors that have nothing to do with his tangents and grudges. Back in June, Matthew Stoller compared Trump’s speeches in 2016 with his speeches in 2024. “In 2016, he feuded incessantly with corporate America, telling a story about big business as part of the corrupt establishment trying to outsource jobs and replace American workers with cheap labor,” Stoller wrote. “His post-Presidential years have seen a different figure. He just doesn’t talk about corporate America very much anymore.”

On System Update earlier this month, journalists Glenn Greenwald and Lee Fang made a similar observation. “It just seems like Trump is abandoning the framework that he so successfully embraced and gave voice to in 2016, and is returning to this old, stale, archaic, partisan way of talking about politics,” argued Greenwald.

Fang pointed to the influence of senior campaign advisors Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles, the former being a conventional GOP campaign operative and the latter being a high-level lobbyist. All three — Stoller, Greenwald, and Fang — agree that the absence of Steve Bannon is conspicuous. Bannon, of course, is currently serving a brief prison sentence, but Trump’s populist instincts predated his relationship with the former Breitbart chief anyway.

This isn’t to minimise the genuine changes between Romney’s 2012 campaign and today. Trump is a candidate who got the head of the Teamsters to speak at the Republican National Convention. He’s arguing against open borders and a corrupt political system that targets its enemies. He at least doesn’t sound like a neoconservative on Ukraine and Israel. All of this explains why Trump is doing better than most Republicans with, for example, Hispanic voters.

But he lacks focus on the bigger picture. With Kamala Harris at the top of the ticket, Trump’s ability to zero in on elite corruption is even easier. Even with all the media fanfare surrounding Harris, the two are basically tied in the RealClearPolitics polling average. The real “reset” could be a post-labour day blitz on the Vice President’s ties to corrupt corporate powers.


Emily Jashinsky is UnHerd‘s Washington D.C. Correspondent.

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Brad Sealand
Brad Sealand
3 months ago

“The real ‘reset’ could be a post-labour day blitz on the Vice President’s ties to corrupt corporate powers.” You mean to offset Trump’s carte blanche drill offer to oil executives in return for a $1B campaign contribution? At any rate, there will be no “reset” — the reset button is not connected to Trump’s brain.

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
3 months ago
Reply to  Brad Sealand

A $1 billion donation you say. That would be like the biggest donation in history. Why am I just hearing this now? It must be all that media bias covering up for Trump again. CNN, MSNBC, the New York Times, Washington Post, NPR hiding news to help Trump. I’m sick of it I tell ya. Or maybe all these news outlets are being paid off by big oil too. I’m getting sick of all the fawning news coverage of big oil. I’m no rocket surgeon, but I know when they’re all being paid off.

Hugh Bryant
Hugh Bryant
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

No rocket surgeon. Brilliant. I’m stealing that.

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
3 months ago
Reply to  Hugh Bryant

Lol. Thanks man. I probably stole it from someone else.

ChilblainEdwardOlmos
ChilblainEdwardOlmos
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

You did. It’s an oldie but goodie.

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

It’s multiple oil companies who are donating. Being able to drill in Alaska and other locations is worth far more than $1 billion.

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
3 months ago
Reply to  UnHerd Reader

Well, bring the evidence. The thing some people don’t understand is that oil companies can and will go anywhere. If they can’t drill in Alaska, they’ll go to Ghana. If they can’t drill in the North Sea, they’ll go Kenya.

Stephanie Surface
Stephanie Surface
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

“ Drill Baby Drill” best thing Trump can do and we finally get the energy the whole world so desperately needs. Hope this CO2 “Man Made Climate Crisis” will soon be exposed for what it is, a huge Marxist scam. Bit by bit we are now finding out how “follow the science” worked so well during COVID. Once the US has cheap available energy, companies will be flooding in to set up shop, especially from Europe.

Andrew Fisher
Andrew Fisher
3 months ago
Reply to  UnHerd Reader

And exactly what is wrong with the US drilling for its own oil? The progressive/ environmentalist alternative: Saudi, Russia, Nigeria, Venezuela, Indonesia etc etc all do so to their hearts’ content – but not western countries under any circumstances.

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
3 months ago
Reply to  Brad Sealand

Did you read the link? It might not say what you think it does.

Brad Sealand
Brad Sealand
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

Of course I read it. And here’s a direct quote: ‘Trump then suggested he should be compensated for the industry-friendly proposals in the form of a $1 billion donation to his campaign, what he said would be a “deal” compared to the benefits he would bring the industry.’

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
3 months ago
Reply to  Brad Sealand

What it didn’t say is that he received a $1 billion donation. Trump wants many things; as does Harris, as does Biden, as does every politician ever.

Hugh Bryant
Hugh Bryant
3 months ago
Reply to  Brad Sealand

Not half as bad as his pact with the Devil, though!

Alex Lekas
Alex Lekas
3 months ago
Reply to  Brad Sealand

is there a citation for that one billion-dollar donation? Besides, in selecting Vance as his running mate, Trump gained access to billionaires such as Peter Thiel and David Sacks, who also bring along a big tech punch. But even they have not donated that much.

Stephanie Surface
Stephanie Surface
3 months ago
Reply to  Brad Sealand

Who cares about this, Harris gets huge donations from lefty billionaires…

Brad Sealand
Brad Sealand
3 months ago

Nice “whataboutism” Steph that ignores the issue. Alex asked for a citation; I gave it.

Champagne Socialist
Champagne Socialist
3 months ago

Trump is still a moron and a liar.
Idiots and racists still support him. Everybody else laughs at him.
Which side are you on, Jimmy?

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
3 months ago

I’m not required to like Trump. He opposes open borders and net zero. That’s good enough for me. Everything is so emotional for the useful idiots. It’s all about feelings and vibes. I wish I could care about character, but they’re all grifters – Trump, Biden, Harris. I care about policy.

Champagne Socialist
Champagne Socialist
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

Your slobbering devotion to Trump is embarrassing, old boy!
You seem very obsessed by open borders, Jimbo. Who exactly do you think is advocating for these open borders?
This should be funny!

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
3 months ago

Unserious as usual. The political discourse of a junior high school girl.

Champagne Socialist
Champagne Socialist
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

Shall I just assume that you are unable to answer the question, Jimster?

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
3 months ago

At least 10 million illegals in Biden’s term. But ya, the Dems are all about the border, even proposing a policy five minutes ago that will cut illegal immigration to only 1 million a year.

Pequay
Pequay
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

Childish indeed. It’s very boring to read comments targeting the player, not the ball.

Champagne Socialist
Champagne Socialist
3 months ago
Reply to  Pequay

Jimbo doesn’t really have much else to offer other than obsequious fealty to a certain fat orange loser.

Hugh Bryant
Hugh Bryant
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

I imagine a fat sixteen year old with no girlfriend.

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
3 months ago

Harris is leading Trump in three battleground states: Pennsylvania, Wisconsin And Michigan. And it’s not by one percent

Dave Canuck
Dave Canuck
3 months ago

The Trump cult is stalling, no kidding, after all the insults towards women, minorities, cat lovers, rambling and boring and condescending speeches that sound like a broken record and with nothing positive to say, especially for younger people. He is an angry old man who belongs to the dustbin of history. One day in the future, perhaps the Republicans can consider getting a decent leader like Reagan and Bush from the good old days of Republicanism. Enough of the freak show already.

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
3 months ago
Reply to  Dave Canuck

What Harris policy do you like best? Surely, you’re not basing your support on emotion and vibes.

Champagne Socialist
Champagne Socialist
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

How about supporting women’s reproductive rights?
Even Trump is backpedaling on that one, not that anyone believes a word he says.
How about you, Jimmy? Are you one of the swivel eyed loons just wishing for The Handmaids Tale to be implemented?

Andrew Fisher
Andrew Fisher
3 months ago

Another truly ridiculous comment by you, to add to do many others. Yes, implementing some form of Gilead with breeding females. This is just what those people who recognise the biological reality that men and women are different and that you cannot choose your gender have always wanted to do….

Please do try and make the odd discerning comment.

Hugh Bryant
Hugh Bryant
3 months ago

Turn of the telly, bin the newspapers, delete that X account and read some books. Learn a skill. Otherwise the fat middle- aged loser you will inevitably become will curse you for p1ssing away your youth like this.

Kolya Wolf
Kolya Wolf
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

I think Ukraine might be safer in Harris’s hands.

Pequay
Pequay
3 months ago
Reply to  Kolya Wolf

Could you explain the reasons on which you base that belief?

Kolya Wolf
Kolya Wolf
3 months ago
Reply to  Pequay

Trump has repeatedly said he could settle the war between Russia and Ukraine in one day if he’s elected president again. He has no leverage on Putin, but he can threaten to cut all military and economic aid to Ukraine, unless it makes territorial concessions to Russia. What else can he have in mind?

Andrew Fisher
Andrew Fisher
3 months ago
Reply to  Kolya Wolf

He actually has rather a lot of leverage on Putin, not least because he’s not likely to rule “escalation” ie winning the goddam war by facing down Russia, which is much militarily weaker than the US.

At every turn the Biden Harris team have endlessly explained exactly what measures they will never take, under any circumstances. Not a way to win any war.

Hugh Bryant
Hugh Bryant
3 months ago
Reply to  Kolya Wolf

How long would you like this war to go on? A decade? Until there are no young men left on either side?

Kolya Wolf
Kolya Wolf
3 months ago
Reply to  Hugh Bryant

Should Churchill and FDR have set a time limit on how long they would fight against the Axis powers before giving up?

Martin M
Martin M
3 months ago
Reply to  Pequay

I can’t speak for Kolya Wolf, but it seem clear that Harris will continue to support Ukraine, and will encourage other Western nations to do so. Trump on the other hand will sell Ukraine out in an instance, at the best of his buddy Putin.

Dave Canuck
Dave Canuck
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

Surely not, but having said that she is much prettier than sourpus Trump, and more pleasing to listen too. Trump has no policies, it’s just rage. What ever happened to the wall, he had 4 years to build it.

Champagne Socialist
Champagne Socialist
3 months ago
Reply to  Dave Canuck

Uh-oh! Jimmy isn’t going to like his here being laughed at like ths!

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
3 months ago

lol. I’m soooo triggered.

Stephanie Surface
Stephanie Surface
3 months ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

He or she always thinks that she triggers people, but all she does is bore the hell out of everybody. Yawn, so predictable…

Stephanie Surface
Stephanie Surface
3 months ago
Reply to  Dave Canuck

The election has absolutely nothing to do with looks as I don‘t believe the US is ready to vote for a socialist/ Marxist team and hopefully never will. I would have preferred DeSantis, because he already proved in Florida how successful his policies were/are. All Trump has to do is ask the voters, if they prefer a country run like CA, with such a “beauty” like San Fran, going to hell in a hand cart, or turn into a successful country like Florida or Texas.

j watson
j watson
3 months ago

Oh dear, a Trump supporter realising what a pathetic grifter he’s been backing. Own it.
Trump won’t go after Corporate America, because i) he’s part of Corporate America ii) he needs their money. The belief he ever would is one of the poorest judgments his supporters have consistently demonstrated. And on migration, remember he controlled Congress entirely for two years and did virtually nothing. Sat in the Oval office all day tweeting before a round of Golf.
He picked Vance. What a decision (although I reckon he dumps him shortly) And at his age his neurons are only heading one way.
It may well be destiny – Trump gets dumped by a mixed race woman. The good Lord moves in many ways.

Hugh Bryant
Hugh Bryant
3 months ago
Reply to  j watson

I’m afraid this post illustrates better than almost any of yours that I have read just how comprehensively you have failed to understand what is going on in the world.

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
3 months ago

Its all very strange. Trump has been listless these last few weeks. Either 1) he is showing his age or 2) in some kind of talks with the deep state about who will be allowed to win the election ( or stay alive) and just in a holding pattern in public.

Kolya Wolf
Kolya Wolf
3 months ago

Trump against Ukraine:

Maybe the extraordinary nature of the current moment is hard to see from inside the United States, where so many other stories are competing for attention. But from the outside—from Warsaw, where I live part-time; from Munich, where I attended a major annual security conference earlier this month; from London, Berlin, and other allied capitals—nobody doubts that these circumstances are unprecedented. Donald Trump, who is not the president, is using a minority of Republicans to block aid to Ukraine, to undermine the actual president’s foreign policy, and to weaken American power and credibility.

Why Is Trump Trying to Make Ukraine Lose?

Geoff W
Geoff W
3 months ago

Trump is the very embodiment of the corporate corruption against which he rails.