Friday, April 19, 2019

PETE BUTTIGIEG: NAÏF, OR THE WORLD'S SUBTLEST TROLL?

Today, while he was spending time with striking Massachusetts supermarket workers, Pete Buttigieg was asked whether he believes that President Trump should be impeached. He said:
I think that Congress needs to make that decision. I think he may well deserve it. But my focus, since I’m not part of Congress but I am part of 2020, is to give him a decisive defeat at the ballot box, if he is the Republican nominee in 2020.
Watch -- it's at the end of this clip:



There are several possibilities. Buttigieg may believe that Trump will give up in disgust and not run for reelection. That's obviously not going to happen -- getting reelected seems to be the central focus of Trump's life. Buttigieg may believe Trump will be too unhealthy to run. That also seems unlikely -- nothing Trump does seems good for his health, but he remains vigorous.

Buttigieg may be one of the naive people who still think Trump might be brought down by a primary opponent. Let me point out that Trump's one declared challenger, former Massachusetts governor William Weld, is, according to a recent Emerson poll, trailing Trump by 70 points.

Or Buttigieg may just have been hoping to get under Trump's skin by questioning whether he'll really be the nominee. It might work -- Breitbart reported Buttigieg's remarks under the headline "Pete Buttigieg Questions If Donald Trump Will Run in 2020 After Mueller Report."

That's not what Buttigieg said, but it doesn't matter. He might inspire an angry tweet -- hell, he might even get an infantile nickname. Clever way to get yourself noticed in a crowded field.

If Buttigieg plays his cards right, he might actually force Trump to try to pronounce his surname. That ought to be hilarious.

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