President Trump’s success as a political candidate can be attributed to his understanding of politics and the political process as “essentially a marketing problem,” as David Reid wrote in his 1988 journal, Marketing the Political Product. In doing so, Trump has been extremely effective at continuously changing the media narrative to his advantage by preying on a rapid news cycle that isn’t geared toward robust reporting as so much as it’s geared toward an audience that increasingly prefers less information in shorter packages.
It can best be characterized by Trump’s ability to always be on the offense, which further benefits him as he’s been able to survive every significant scandal since his time in office. And he’s done so mostly unscathed, which is a part of what makes Trump such a unique political character. In the traditional political sense, the scandals he’s experienced would have destroyed the political careers of other politicians. But for Trump, they have only increased intrigue and curiosity, even among his detractors, leaving many to wonder with bewilderment what he’ll do or say next.
Having the ability to constantly rearrange the media landscape how he sees fit to benefit his interest is a strategic advantage unseen from any politician in the past. As with any good brand with a marketing problem, Trump understands the consumer. He’s able to dictate the narrative, tone, and pace like a good puppet master pulling the strings, the media and a large part of the public quickly follows suit.
Love him or hate him; it’s a part of Trump’s genius.
There’s no greater recent example than the president’s nearly one-hour press conference in the White House on Wednesday. In a remarkable display that was reminiscent of his political rallies (though drastically toned down), every major news channel was captivated by Trump airing his grievances. All of the attention was on Trump, and he would have it no other way.
Before you knew it, the story about impeachment began to quickly change to stories about the speech, with many pundits and hosts opining how unbelievable it was and the news headlines and breaking news banners quickly followed. Just like that, Trump changed the narrative to what he wanted it to be.
While opinions on Trump’s performance as president are rich and varied, it cannot be underscored just how effective his unique style of operating in the political space has been to his benefit. Trump is the purest example of what it means to be a political phenomenon. The theoretical traditions about how candidates should behave and what will or will not affect them aren’t relevant to Trump. Despite three years of criticism, it’s Trump who holds all the cards.
Trump has been proven to be so successful in his approach that Gallup now has his approval at 49%, which is the highest it has ever been since he took office and is higher than President Barack Obama at this point in his presidency. The same polls found Trump’s approval rating among Republicans at 94%, showcasing not only the commitment rank-and-file voters have to the president but a heightened level of enthusiasm and excitement among Republican voters — exactly the type of metrics you want when running for reelection.
In the end, we’re in an election year where more people are more confident about the economy than the last two decades. From where things stand, it is nearly all but certain Trump is on his way to being reelected.
Shermichael Singleton (@Shermichael_) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog. He is a Republican strategist and political analyst regularly appearing on MSNBC.
