Weird (for this area, anyway) reaction to Trump's news conference

I happened to be driving to Novato just as his news conference came on, so I heard most of it. Usually I read more about him than hear/see him (except for very brief clips) and I've also tried to read comments from his supporters. His whole affect has always alienated me - he comes across as insecure, ignorant and incurious, lacking in insight and empathy in both the broad sense and in the particular. GBush was supposed to be personally charming, but I find that hard to believe about Trump. I can't imagine ever having to work with/for someone like that. At the very least, he's the self-absorbed braggart who over-promotes any skills or achievements and inspires great doubt about his ability to accomplish anything. He seems utterly unreliable and more likely to create havoc than to solve problems.

So I've always wondered how his supporters get past that. You can hear a lot of them being interviewed who are clearly desperate, because they see no prospect for jobs, no future for themselves and their families the way things are going. Others may not be desperate, but seem so focused on their negative interaction with regulatory agencies that they can't think in the broader terms of what the danger is to their neighbors, country and the world at large. Didn't they see the same Trump I saw when I was watching, during the campaign? or in the embarrassing (at best) clips that are frequently run?

But today, I think I get it. And the reaction of his supporters to what seems to be to be unassailable criticisms. He was able to control the pacing and tone, he'd done enough prep to have at least some structure, and he clearly believed what he was saying. If I was a Trump supporter who'd enjoyed the Koolaid he'd been pouring throughout the campaign, this would reassure me that he's the real deal. None of his positions make sense if you apply logic and independent knowledge of the world, but if you're not particularly interested in logic or reality, he was great. Jobs, jobs, jobs - he touted a lot of companies who he says are responding to his presidency. Anyone who finds that their biggest issue and believed he could create them probably found it hugely reassuring. His anti-court, anti-immigrant stance we all know is widely popular. His attacks on the media also have a ready audience, I think, and he gave lip-service to the idea that it's all their fault - that he actually likes and respects them in the abstract, but that they're so prejudiced that they spin everything badly.
If you want to hear that you do have a saviour - well, he gladly accepts that role and it'll be tremendous, really soon too.

I checked the msm coverage, and if I was a trumpy I'd find him vindicated. Although personally I found most of the coverage to be fair and what you'd expect, it was all focused on the negatives (lies he tells, etc). If you think he's victimized, this would support it. No source changed their tune and praised him, thus proving his point. Not in the sense of logically proving, but emotionally proving. I did see one mention, I think in Wapo, that this would play well with his supporters. Otherwise, it didn't live up to his prediction that headlines would all be "Trump rants & raves" but it wasn't complimentary, which he predicted! So he must be right about everything!

kind of depressing, actually. I just found my reactions surprised me since I know that the majority, who for good reasons have written him off pretty completely, are going to react as if this was yet another fiasco, demonstrating his incoherence and pettiness. Not that that's incorrect, but I think I understand why bunches of people won't see it that way.

I find the local response to political actions ,reactions of various contenders pretenders to be only ,
mildly entertaining, ,It is 2017 now and time to wake up people .need third party or party of the people by the
people for the people, neither demo,repupican orso called indepenophiles ...let US be perfectley clarified
big corp runs america, Americans need to put away petty infiting and be as one.. land of the free because of
the brave. Ecology,economy,security to prosper in peace. ,,All American value.all else... bullpucky.
political correct,policepolicypersons ,with sense of superiority and piety move to mill valley.or hollywierd

And I might add that the Trumpster is actually ridiculous, entertaining, goofy, and human--especially compared to the carefully scripted, predictable stiffs he ran against in the primary. I can hardly wait to hear the next absurd drivel that comes out of his mouth, as his dark and amateurish political edifice continues to crumble day after day! Sadly, of course, a lot of people are going to be hurt as the Trumpster Dumpster rolls along.

We happen to be alive at a most unique and remarkable time in the course of American history. Imagine how all this is going to look to students in their history classes and textbooks100 or 200 years from now--providing, of course, that humans have not managed to destroy the planet by then!

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Posted in reply to the post by podfish:

I happened to be driving to Novato just as his news conference came on, so I heard most of it. ...

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