Friday, October 14, 2016

They Never Cringed: Republicans, PussyGate & the October Non-Surprise



With just 25 days left before the presidential election, it appears that the candidacy of Republican nominee Donald Trump is in utter freefall...driven off a cliff in no small part by the "Access Hollywood" bus. But why did it take so long for Republicans to be "outraged?"

They didn't cringe when Trump delegitimized President Obama w/birtherism.

They didn't cringe when Trump called Mexicans Rapists.

They didn't cringe when Trump said Sen. John McCain wasn't a war hero.

They didn't cringe when Trump mocked a disabled reporter.

They didn't cringe when Trump said he'd ban Muslims from America.

They didn't cringe when Trump said Megyn Kelly was bleeding "from wherever..."

They didn't cringe when Trump attacked Carly Fiorina's looks.

They didn't cringe when Trump attacked Heidi Cruz's wife.

They didn't cringe when Trump called women "pigs," "dogs," "slobs," "disgusting."

They didn't cringe when Trump said flat-chested women can't be "`10's."

They didn't cringe when Trump said he'd date Ivanka if she wasn't his daughter.

They didn't cringe when he bragged about his penis size.

They didn't cringe when Trump agreed that Ivanka is a "piece of ass."

They didn't cringe when Trump was previously accused of rape(s) and sexual assaults.

They didn't cringe when Trump said women should be punished for abortions.

They didn't cringe when Trump re-Tweeted white supremacy groups.

They didn't cringe when Trump re-Tweeted anti-Semitic symbols. 

They didn't cringe when Trump said he was a 'good negotiator' like Jews.

They didn't cringe when Trump refused to disavow David Duke & the KKK.

They didn't cringe when Trump said "Look at my African American over here!"

They didn't cringe when Trump said blacks are "living in poverty, your schools are no good, you have no jobs, 58 percent of your youth is unemployed. What the hell do you have to lose?"

They didn't cringe when Trump linked Ted Cruz's father to JFK's assassination. 

They didn't cringe when Trump called for killing terrorists' families.

They didn't cringe when Trump defended and praised Vladimir Putin.

They didn't cringe when Trump asked Russia to hack our State Department.

They didn't cringe when Trump attacked the Pope.

They didn't cringe when Trump incited violence at his rallies.

They didn't cringe when Trump said enemies like N. Korea should get nukes.

They didn't cringe when Trump attacked the judge with Mexican heritage.

They didn't cringe when Trump attacked the Gold Star Khan family.

They didn't cringe when Trump stiffed veterans out of the $5-million he promised.

They didn't cringe when Trump said he knows "more about ISIS than the generals."

They didn't cringe when Trump suggested gun owners assassinate Hillary Clinton.

They didn't cringe when Trump called Obama/Hillary Clinton "the founders of ISIS."

They didn't cringe when Trump reneged on the Mexican wall.

They didn't cringe when Trump reneged on the Muslim ban.

They didn't cringe when Trump reneged on his "self-funding" promise.

They didn't cringe at all the lies.

And then that now-infamous 2005 video tape burst onto the public stage last Friday in which Trump bragged to the most pathetic Bush since George W--Billy, a former "Access Hollywood" host--that he uses his celebrity and power to sexually assault women. That he could even "grab them by the pussy"  and they let him because he was a "star."

And suddenly everyone cringed.  The "October surprise" had arrived, right on schedule.

But was it really a surprise? Had the last 40+ years of Donald Trump's behavior really caught anyone off-guard?

So why is PussyGate the tipping point? Why is this particular offense the one that appears to finally be bringing down the most controversial, most reprehensible candidate in American presidential history? It's a question that political science professors will be studying for the next 1000 years.

And so they finally cringed. But they still supported.

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