I met Jack Kemp when the other three Republicans at Princeton and I visited Capitol Hill during the spring of my junior year. Kemp was a hot ticket among a strong group of young GOP rising stars at the time. Nevertheless, he was quite gracious with his time and advice on behalf of four college kids who did not even live in his district.
Twenty-four years later, former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Jack Kemp was the featured speaker at my inauguration as governor of Maryland. He was, and remains, an inspiration to me and so many others who came to political maturity during the 1980s.
I met Donald Trump and his family on the eve of the Miss USA pageant in Baltimore in 2006. This was the second such time the pageant was presented in Baltimore — a big deal for a city desperately looking to improve its national image. The dinner began a friendship that culminated in my joining his campaign after the old House-Budget-Chairman-turned-Gov. John Kasich of Ohio withdrew from the GOP primary race in May 2016, leaving Trump as the presumptive GOP nominee.
And so I’m left to imagine what the two GOP heavyweights of startling different backgrounds and styles would say to one another. Perhaps the conversation would unfold as follows:
Trump: Jack, did you catch my first State of the Union Speech? It presented a strong and inclusive message. I give myself an A+ for that one.
Kemp: You were strong and presidential. Such appearances strengthen your approval with independents and soft Republicans — and does nothing to diminish the enthusiasm of your base. Maintaining this tone will help lower the temperature during what promises to be a hot midterm cycle.
Trump: Nobody could preach the gospel of growth, freedom, and opportunity like you. So … you gotta like my tax bill, right?
Kemp: I do. Your initial deregulatory moves generated credibility and momentum throughout the employer community. The tax bill will spur the economy and markets to historic heights. Lowering the corporate rate, bracket relief for the middle class, immediate expensing for business, and repatriation are all big winners for growth. I could have done without the child tax credits, but understand social conservatives wanted a bite at the apple, too.
Trump: It is a beautiful bill and people are starting to appreciate it!
Kemp: But not because of you. During the tax debate, two-thirds of the country opposed a bill that would put more money in their pockets. You need to continue to talk tax reform every day, just like I did when pushing my popular tax cuts. Ironically, many of the CEOs who so oppose you helped bail you out. Their well-publicized announcements about employee bonuses and business expansion means more jobs and economic growth. And, you got a twofer. Every new announcement makes the progressives look economically incoherent, and small. Armageddon? More like Dow 30,000!
Trump: What about my Reaganesque media strategy? He successfully went around the mainstream media in order to talk with middle America. My Twitter account is simply an updated model of how to communicate with my base in flyover country.
Kemp: Yes … and no. I understand the need to talk to your base, but why all the gratuitous quarrels? A war of words … with Joe Scarborough? Coming out on top of that one is like winning the Hall of Fame Game. Nobody remembers; nobody cares. Churchill reminds us that “progress is difficult when you stop to throw stones at every dog that barks.” In other words, choose your battles. Don’t get lost in the weeds. Prioritize your goals. I was known as a talker — but everybody knew my central message.
Trump: But it’s my nature to fight. My father instilled a competitiveness that burns brightly to this day. It defines me. My base loves it. Why can’t I just be myself? It’s worked so far, you know.
Kemp: I understand it is your nature to always respond to criticisms large and small with overwhelming force, sort of like Schwarzkopf in Iraq. But the fight is not only about you.
Trump: What do you mean? I’m the most powerful person in the world.
Kemp: You are indeed. But that title carries responsibilities — to your country and to your party. You didn’t play team sports so it’s a bit more difficult to grasp. You must come to understand how much is riding on your ability to sustain a Republican majority. A new generation of conservative judges only gets appointed if Mitch McConnell is Senate Majority Leader. Additional opportunities at Obamacare reform only exist if Paul Ryan is House Speaker. Your legislative programs go nowhere if the “resistance” controls even one chamber. One more disquieting thought here as you contemplate future unvetted tweets: Losing the House means all of your remaining two years will be taken up with defending against weekly impeachment votes. It will not be pretty — for anyone.
Trump: What about race? It was a brilliant campaign move to go to the inner cities and ask how much worse it could all get. And it worked. African Americans did not turn out for Hillary Clinton in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Did I tell you that black unemployment is at its lowest point in decades?
Kemp: First of all — don’t tell me, tell the country. Tell black churches. Convene a “Save the Cities” forum and tell the attendees. A rising tide does indeed lift all boats. But that’s the easy part. For some reason, you tend to make the easy stuff difficult. You know enough about David Duke to condemn his views. You know enough about the white supremacist nut jobs in Charlottesville to eliminate any thoughts of equivocation. Caveats offered in the immediate aftermath of such incidents send the wrong message — and will be exploited by the Left. There are plenty of opportunities to condemn Antifa and lefty nut jobs some other day. Why give your enemies such a gift? Such missed “hanging curveballs” do you far more harm than good.
Trump: You have to be happy with my appointment of Ben Carson for your old job at HUD. He is the embodiment of the self-made man — from the mean streets of Detroit to world-famous brain surgeon. And still the Left hates him. What’s the deal?
Kemp: The Left hates him precisely because he is self-made. He has always rejected the victim card. He is also black, a conservative Republican, a man of deep faith, and person of principle unafraid of racial taunts. He is a tangible symbol of hope, and disruptive to the race hustlers of this world. He needs a higher profile in your administration. Use him.
Author’s parting observation: A healthy dose of Jack Kemp will go a long way to making politics great again.
Gov. Robert Ehrlich is a Washington Examiner columnist, partner at King & Spalding, and author of three books, including the recently released Turning Point. He was governor of Maryland from 2003-2007.
