Welcome to the Nightmare Election: Why Clinton vs. Trump [Would Be] About One Thing—Fear

[Rebkeh]

Welcome to the Nightmare Election: Why Clinton vs. Trump Is Going to Be About One Thing—Fear

Far from a productive dialogue about America's future, both campaigns will be appealing to voters' fears.
By Daniel Denvir / Salon
May 11, 2016

And so it begins: Hillary Clinton vaguely entreats voters to cast aside color-coded maps and “get on the American team” as her allies make “a furious round of calls to top Bush family donors to try to convince them that she represents their values better than Donald Trump.” Meanwhile, Trump publicly scarfs down a taco bowl and exclaims that he “loves Hispanics,” insulting Mexican food with the same vigor he has insulted Mexican people. This election is going to be horrible.

November will pit the most unpopular major party presidential candidate in recent history against the second most unpopular one. Eight years after Democrats embraced “hope” and “change,” the presumptive nominees can offer a restless electorate little more than dread. This campaign, of course, will be waged on fear. Trump will tell voters to be afraid of Muslims and Mexicans. Clinton will remind voters that the president has access to the nuclear launch codes, and that Donald Trump is, in fact, terrifying. An experienced hawk versus an unstable isolationist.

Trump’s clownish demagoguery is dangerous. But it also plays to Clinton’s strength by moving the debate away from the neoliberal economic record that harmed her during the primary. She can both embrace multiculturalism while aligning herself with Wall Street and the national security state. Clinton will likely peel off a good chunk of the conservative foreign policy establishment and in March, she raised a majority of Wall Street donations.

More:

http://www.alternet.org/election-2016/welcome-nightmare-election-why-clinton-vs-trump-going-be-about-one-thing-fear

[MiniMe]

1. Fear of Trump vs Fear of Hilary

I'm much more afraid of tRump

[Rebkeh]

2. Then vote Bernie ;)

[MiniMe]

5. I did, but will vote for the Dem nominee in the GE

[Ferd Berfel]

3. Ain't that the truth

Camp Weathervane has been religiously using Fear (among other little nasties) here for many months.

[leveymg]

4. Both of them are terrible, terrifically dreadful, and terrifying.

Domestic political terrorists. We're all their hostages.

[peace13]

6. Why is it that so many fail to see this?

[leveymg]

7. They probably need new prescriptions.

[felix_numinous]

8. Both are stuck in the past

and cannot keep up with climate change--which is upon us. They each are living in a time that does not exist anymore, the old system is obsolete and has run it's course, only a corrupt shell of it remains. Which explains the desperation, obsession about secrecy and militant rhetoric each has. They are each on the defensive, but they are defending a system that needs to profoundly change priorities and it is obvious they do not have any solution but to amass more fortune for themselves. It is truly insane.