Trump did become President by ignoring the advice of political hacks and doing whatever his gut told him to. But nearly a decade later, what he presents as acts of untamed spontaneity are often actually quite deliberate. It’s all part of the routine by now. And yet, this ability to convey that he is doing or saying something daring or novel even when he is not remains part of his appeal with some voters.
The Wisconsin rally wasn’t even the first time he acted out that particular bit. Two nights earlier, he was in Atlanta, pretending to go off the same script: “I think it’s fine to say I will protect the women of this country,” he said. “They said, ‘Please, sir. Please don’t say that.’”
Earlier this month, in the middle of a well-worn riff about Vice-President Kamala Harris’ intellect, he said: “Somebody said to me, one of my people, a nice person, staff person, said, ‘Sir, please don’t call her dumb. The women won’t like it.’” On Thursday, in New Mexico, he called Harris “dumb as a rock” and said “I shouldn’t say this about an opponent, but I have to”.
He has done impressions of his staff begging him not to insult people’s looks, before insulting their looks. He regularly performs an imitation of pastor Franklin Graham advising him not to use foul language, before using foul language. During the Republican primaries, he bragged, apparently against the wishes of his staff, about how beloved he was in Iowa, while he was in Iowa: “My guys say, ‘Please, sir, don’t take it for granted that you’re going to win Iowa. It doesn’t sound good.’”
Rehearsed transgressions. They serve all kinds of purposes. His adversaries and the news media often take the bait he lays out for them, reliably erupting in outrage right on cue. Which only amplifies the pleasure his audiences get out of such remarks. The “I’m not supposed to say this” shtick also reinforces the bond between Trump and his audience by making them feel as though there’s nothing he won’t share with them about the wild ride they’re on together.
He told the people of New Mexico that his very presence before them on Thursday afternoon was itself an act of defiance. He said people told him not to come, that he couldn’t win there. And yet, there he was.
Lately, he has been firing up his crowds with a new bit of practised rebellion. He says he’s not supposed to boast about early voting numbers, but then says it’s looking really good. “I’m not supposed to say this,” he said in Michigan the other day before saying “we’re sort of way up”. (The data suggests a race that is historically close; Trump has already begun to foment doubts that the results can be trusted.)
Two days earlier, he was onstage in Las Vegas. “Look, I’m not supposed to say it,” he said, “but we are leading by so much.”
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
Written by: Shawn McCreesh
Photographs by: Doug Mills
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