One of the more interesting stories I have read lately about Donald Trump and his quest for the Republican presidential nomination has not seen wide play. The story, which I first read on March 28, was on the online magazine Slate. It concerned a supposed high-ranking Trump Super Pac strategist who contends the boisterous candidate never intended to succeed in his campaign.
“The Trump camp would have been satisfied to see him polling at 12% and taking second place to a candidate who might hold 50%, Cegielski said. “His candidacy was a protest candidacy.”
But the momentum shifted in favor of Trump because of the “angry” American voters. As The Donald passed far beyond what the candidate allegedly hoped for, the narcissistic Trump changed his expectations much like his quick change of issues. Cegielski said that was too scary.
“He certainly was never prepared or equipped to go all the way to the White House, but his ego has now taken over the driver’s seat, and nothing else matters,” she said. “The Donald does not fail. The Donald does not have any weakness. The Donald is his own biggest enemy.”
Not surprisingly, the main Trump-ette pushed back on the letter and its writer. Hope Hicks, the campaign spokeswoman, responded:
“This person was never employed by the Trump campaign. Evidently she worked for a Super PAC which Mr. Trump disavowed and requested the closure of via the FEC. She knows nothing about Mr. Trump or the campaign and her disingenuous and factually inaccurate statements in no way resemble any shred of truth. This is yet another desperate person looking for their fifteen minutes.”
The rumor-rebuking site, Snopes.com, pointed out some claims as to the position Cegielski held in the “Make America Great Again” Super PAC were hyperbolized.
Having spent some of my years as a firefighter and and later as journalist has given me some wisdom as to what most would call a cliche, that where there’s smoke there is fire. Well, at least where there is smoke means that there is a good chance of a fire. Arguably, human actions can be a bit more complex than the fire tetrahedron — the combination of fuel, heat, air and chemical reaction. Such thinking may lead to stereotypes but that is not what I am saying here.
The thought that Trump has an ulterior motive for a presidential bid is likely a more difficult scenario to knock down. From the time that the businessman Trump decided to run as a Republican, I fully expected him to reach a certain point saying that he quits because everything is just as he intended.
That there are exaggerations in Cegielski’s resume does not seem far-fetched for anyone at any level of a political campaign. Or perhaps that may be said in most instances in which a resume is used. Well, maybe that is not so good if you are in some portion of the theological field. But even there …
Whether the essay written by Cegielski has truths, half-truths or even next-to-no truths, there is no doubt that Donald Trump in his latest attention-grabbing stunt — although a huge one — is capable of doing or saying anything. That is a consummate action of a flake, and I sometimes adore flakes, though certainly not this flake and not this time.