Donald Trump’s campaign has always rung a faint bell for me, and finally it dawned on me why: he’s turning the presidential race into an episode of the Jerry Springer Show.
We’ve known for a while that Trump brings out the worst kind of supporters. If making fun of people with disabilities, POWs, women, etc. is your thing, Trump is your guy in November. Or maybe you’re so sick of the GOP establishment that you’ve convinced yourself he’s not an unhinged, misogynistic nut. Whatever. You’re guest number one, you’re on stage and pissed off, and you’re ready for a fight.
Backstage are the special snowflakes: masters of indignation, participation trophy millennials. The micro-aggrieved. You think it’s “concerning” that someone on campus supports Trump. Violations like this invade your safe space. Maybe you’re one of the 40% of millennials who think it would be a nice idea to regulate speech the government says is “offensive” to minorities. Maybe you’re a coddled, rich white kid ready to tackle “white privilege” (assuming it doesn’t involve forking it over), and you think MoveOn.org and #blacklivesmatter are as hip as your $3.75 mini caramel Frappuccino. You may even still #FeeltheBern. You want to work less and vacation more, just like Europe.
Imagine letting a handful of these people loose on the set of the Jerry Springer Show. Needless to say, a few people would be throwing chairs, pulling hair, spitting, whatever.
It’s vintage Jerry Springer.
Now imagine these people unleashed on a national scale.
Then again, you don’t have to imagine it: a few weeks ago it was Chicago; this week is was an angry Trump protestor punching someone, then getting maced. The beat goes on, and boy is it going to get worse.
Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!