Trump and the violence of the angry American

It has been a long time coming, but the past week witnessed the election campaign of Donald Trump, the property mogul who has baffled pundits to emerge as the surprise frontrunner in the Republican Party nomination, descend into a vortex of violence against protestors and the media, to the point where the candidate had no choice but to cancel a major rally in Chicago.

Those watching Mr. Trump’s campaign closely know that the wave of intolerance that it has generated has for months now been laced with a snarling undertone of aggression towards critical opinion in general, and this was focussed on the media until recently.

Speaking of political journalists earlier on in his bid to win the GOP nomination Mr. Trump said, “I do hate them... Some of them are such lying, disgusting people. … [They’re] among the most dishonest groups of people I’ve ever met.”

In the past week the media continued to face his wrath even though he has arguably been biggest beneficiary of news media coverage of the Republican presidential campaign.

Last Tuesday, Michelle Fields, reporter with the conservative Breitbart website that is friendly towards Mr. Trump, said that her arm was violently pulled by Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski as she was trying to ask Mr. Trump a question.

Although Mr. Trump’s campaign denied the accusation Ms. Fields tweeted a photograph of the bruise on her arm and this week she and one of her colleagues resigned from Breitbart, saying the site should be “ashamed” of the way Ms. Fields was treated.

One week before this a photographer for Time Magazine was subjected to a chokehold by a Secret Service agent in Virginia after he stepped outside a press area to photograph protesters.

While Mr. Trump made no bones of his distaste for the media, increasingly he has turned his ire upon protestors at his swelling rallies, reprising his famous “You’re fired!” punch-line from The Apprentice, the U.S. reality game show that he created, with “Get ‘em out of here!” which was a signal for Secret Service agents to eject protestors from his rallies.

That somewhat jarring but relatively contained spectacle has acquired a menacing edge in the past few months after Mr. Trump has apparently started encouraging his supporters at rallies to hit back.

In early February in Iowa Mr. Trump said, “If you see somebody getting ready to throw a tomato, knock the [expletive] out of them, would you? Seriously. Okay?... I promise you I will pay for the legal fees.”

During a rally in Las Vegas last month he said about protestors, “You know what they used to do to guys like that when they were in a place like this? They’d be carried out in a stretcher, folks... I’d like to punch him in the face, I tell ya.”

Earlier this month he said during a rally in Warren, Michigan, “Get him out! Try not to hurt him. If you do, I’ll defend you in court.”

In the past week he has reprised his promise to pay the legal fees of a man who was arrested after throwing a face-punch at an unsuspecting Black Lives Matter protester at a rally in North Carolina, an attack that was captured on multiple videos and went viral on social media.

“The man got carried away,” Mr. Trump said in media interviews after the assault, adding, “He obviously loves his country, and maybe he doesn’t like seeing what’s happening to the country.”

Perhaps bristling at having to cancel his Chicago rally because he didn't “want to see people hurt or worse” at the venue Mr. Trump attempted to blame Vermont Senator and Democratic Party underdog Bernie Sanders for the protestors.

While both Mr. Sanders and Democratic nomination frontrunner Hillary Clinton blasted Mr. Trump for fuelling violence amidst his supporters, with Mr. Sanders calling Mr. Trump a “pathological liar,” even Mr. Trump’s Republican rivals such as Texas Senator Ted Cruz have come out saying Mr. Trump has created a toxic environment at rallies with a campaign that “affirmatively encourages violence.”

If, at the heart of Mr. Trump’s rhetoric, which is regularly compared to the politics of Nazi Germany, there is a coherent philosophy, it may well rest upon Mr. Trump’s constant allusion to the U.S. having become a “weak” and “scared” nation, indeed the reason why his campaign promises to “Make America Great Again.”

Yet many wonder if this notion of an “angry America,” an essentially pejorative assessment of the grand strides made by the Obama administration after the Great Recession, could ever set the tone for a successful Trump presidency, terrifying as that prospect may seem to many Americans.

Assuming Mr. Trump wins the GOP nomination, as he appears well set to do, it will be up to liberal and progressive Americans use their votes wisely if they wish to keep a dangerous combination of nihilism and narcissism out of the Oval Office.

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Hillary, Sanders debate economy

Democratic presidential aspirants Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders clashed on the debating stage on Sunday night on economy, race relations, global trade, gun control, climate change, criminal justice system and campaign finance, with sharp exchanges and retorts, but there were some agreements too.

The debate took place in Flint, Michigan, an African American neighbourhood that recently discovered that its water distribution system had been poisoned by corroding lead pipes.

Agree their debate is unlike Republicans’

Mr. Sanders and Ms. Clinton were in agreement that their debate was in sharp contrast with the Republican debate last week, in which candidates talked little policy, exchanged insults and fought over their own anatomies.

“We are, if elected president, going to invest a lot of money into mental health. And when you watch these Republican debates, you know why we need to invest in mental health,” Mr. Sanders said, even as Ms. Clinton heartily laughed.

‘Rich in substance’

“We have our differences and we get into vigorous debate about issues. But compare the substance of this debate with what you saw on the Republican stage last week,” she had said earlier.

While Mr. Sanders pressed on with his theme of an economy that works for all, and repeatedly challenged Ms. Clinton on her connections with big corporations, she sought to turn the tables on him by bringing in the question of race relations and gun control, two issues that she hopes could put the senator on the back foot.

Comfortable lead over Sanders

Ms. Clinton maintains a comfortable lead in the nomination race nationally over Mr. Sanders, who pointed out that opinion polls showed him better placed to beat the Republicans than Ms. Clinton. Just as the debate was on, Mr. Sanders won the Democratic caucuses in Maine.

A discussion on climate change led to some heated exchanges between Ms. Clinton and Mr. Sanders.

She will allow fracking, he will not

Responding to a question, Ms. Clinton said she would allow fracking with conditions, but Mr. Sanders said his answer would be much shorter. “No.” He said fossil fuel companies were among the contributors to Ms. Clinton’s campaign fund and these companies were aiming to influence policies.

Seeking to underscore her track record in combating climate change, Ms. Clinton said she had helped President Barack Obama to put pressure on India and China to agree to a global pact.

Religious faith

Mr. Sanders and Ms. Clinton also explained their religious faith in response to questions from the moderator. Mr. Sanders said the essence of all religions was, ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ “I am very proud to be Jewish, and being Jewish is so much of what I am,” he said, rejecting the criticism that he was muted about his religious identity.

Ms. Clinton said she prayed for people she knows and those going through difficult periods in their lives. “I pray for the will of God to be known so that we can know it and to the best of our limited ability try to follow it and fulfill it.”

Sexist Sanders?

Though Ms. Clinton herself found the debate substantive and civil, some amount of social media activity generated by her sympathisers suggested Mr. Sanders was occasionally disrespectful to her. One particular exchange in question related to their respective positions on the federal bailout for the auto industry.

Ms. Clinton said Mr. Sanders had opposed the bailout that would help millions of workers. “If you are talking about the Wall Street bailout, where some of your friends destroyed this economy...” Mr. Sanders said.

Excuse me, I’m talking

When Ms. Clinton started to interject, and Mr. Sanders cut her short, saying, “Excuse me, I’m talking.” Many Clinton supporters accused Mr. Sanders of sexism. “Sanders’ “excuse me I'm talking” may not be sexist but certainly was patronising,” tweeted Neera Tanden, President of the Centre for American Progress and a friend of Ms. Clinton.

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