Trump: The presumptive GOP nominee

Donald Trump has enough delegates to be the Republican candidate for president. That makes it official, sort of. I still don’t believe the GOP establishment will let him get the nomination without at least some attempt to oust him. Sorry, but the GOP track record in that regard is not stellar.

That said, for all intents and purposes, Trump is the presumptive GOP nominee. This realization prompted a spate of ”never-Trump” people who for whatever reason seem to hate him and who are vocal in their ire over his success.

It is true that Trump is not a conservative. I am not sure what that really means any more, since there are so few conservative politicians left. If definitions are important to you, he seems to be more of a populist leaning toward a nationalist. Nonetheless, his message has connected with the voters.

His theme is basic. “Make America Great Again.” Close and protect our borders. Get government out of the way of job creation. That is not necessarily a conservative agenda, but it seems to mirror many conservative principles. Maybe that is why he resonates with so many Americans.

Sure, he has some flaws. He doesn’t talk like a politician. Oops, maybe that isn’t such a flaw unless you are the media used to listening to professional liars. He has no government experience. He doesn’t have any foreign relations experience either, unless you consider negotiating business transactions. He has moved from center to right of center, but so did Reagan. Can’t people change?

Oh, and he isn’t Presidential. Although who gets to decide what Presidential is? The media? Career politicians? Maybe we are ready for a plain-spoken candidate for a change.

Trump’s has some strong points. I would support him for no other reason than he has managed to turn the mainstream media on its ear. No longer are they able to pick the candidates and take out anyone not meeting their approval. This has them in a tizzy and I am laughing daily. He appeals to a broad base of people of all races and both sexes. He is gaining in overseas appeal as well.

Until now, he has run a campaign on a shoestring. He flies his own jet. He buys ball caps with catchy slogans. His staff has been four to six people. He hasn’t had a speech writer, and campaign consultants were not to be seen. I suspect he will need to ramp up his staff for the general election, but if his campaign is any sign of his administration, there might be a lot of unemployed government folks.

It is worth listening to his speech at the NRA Convention upon accepting NRA’s endorsement. He is aware of the Supreme Court issue. He says this is why he released a list of possible justice candidates, so there is no question about his position on nominees.

Extremely important is the fact that there will most likely be at least two and possibly five Supreme Court nominations coming up in the next eight years. That assumes GOP leadership doesn’t cave again and allow Obama to appoint someone to the current opening. Do you really want either Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders to make these appointments?

Clinton is especially dangerous as she has made clear that she wants the Second Amendment to disappear as well as to expand the government’s nose in your business.

The anti-Trump crowd who would rather vote for Clinton or not at all perplex me. There is simply too much riding on this election. Do you really want a criminal, at least in my opinion, in the White House? Aside from her email security issue, there are still questions about Hillary’s role in Benghazi, her consistent lies to the people and serious questions about her role in selling much of our uranium supply to Russia for personal gain.

Let me be clear, Trump was not my first choice or even my second. Nonetheless, he is the presumed candidate. As Representative Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., said, “My guy lost. When the jury speaks, I’m going to support the jury.”

Remember, staying home on Election Day is the same as a vote for Hillary Clinton. That means four more years of Obamacare, record low labor participation rate, more crony capitalism, porous borders, off-the-charts government assistance, and more deficit spending. Would you sacrifice your grandkids’ future for your ideals?

Wake up. We could do much, much worse than Donald Trump for president. Be pragmatic, not idealistic. And don’t forget to vote.

Tom Riggins’ column appears every other Friday. He may be reached at news@lahontanvalleynews.com.