Stepping up in a do-or-die Oct. 9 debate at Washington University in St. Louis with 68-year-old Democratic nominee Hillary Rodham Clinton, GOP nominee real estate tycoon Donald Trump said the “shackles” were off between now and the election. Trump tried to jump through GOP hoops, only to watch House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) stab him in the back less than one month before the election. Restraining himself before Hillary’s last dirty trick, releasing an 11-year-old Access Hollywood secret tape hearing Trump in “locker-room” banter with show host Billy Bush, Ryan said he could no longer back Trump. Sen. John McCain (R-Ax.) and other sanctimonious Trump-bashing Republicans piled on, circulating rumors that Trump would drop out. After blindsided by Hillary in the Oct. 26 debate, Trump finally got it, he’s at war with Hillary but, more sadly, his own Party.
When Trump talks about taking off the shackles, he’s no longer restrained to pull his punches with Hillary and other disloyal Republicans, using any manufactured Hillary campaign story as proof of Trump’s lack of fitness for duty. Once the Access Hollywood Story dominated the headlines, Trump opened up the Bill Clinton’s can of worms regarding his alleged past abuse of various women. Holding a press conference before the Oct. 9 debate with Bill Clinton accusers Kathleen Willey, Juanita Broaddrick, Paula Corbin Jones and Kathy Shelton, Trump served notice that two could play the game. Whatever Trump said in private, he’s not accused by various women of rape or sexual abuse. Shelton was demonized by Hillary when she defended a child rapist against her as a 12-year-old rape victim in 1975. After demonized by the Hillary campaign, Trump stopped pulling his punches.
Trump learned quickly after the Oct. 26 debate that all’s fair in love and war, now in the battle of his life for the presidency. Hillary got the best of Trump in the first debate, rebounding Oct. 9 making his case against her. Rejected by conservatives in the GOP, Trump’s truly on his own fighting to expand his base before the Nov. 8 election. Behind in the polls by nearly 7 points according to Real Clear Politics polling averages, the race might be much tighter than described. Real Clear Politics excludes more conservative polls to counterbalance outliers from extreme left wing polling organizations. With NBC contributing two left-leaning polls with Hillary up by 14% and !2%, it skews the average to favor of Hillary. Because most media groups have joined the Democrats and Republicans to oppose Trump, there’s no way to get a clear read on the polls before Election Day.
Fighting a three front war with the media, Republicans and Democrats, Trump has nothing to lose unloading his arsenal between now and the election. “Our very weak and ineffective leader, Paul Ryan, had a bad conference call where his members went wild with disloyalty,” Trump Tweeted Oct. 11. Ryan got headlines telling the press after Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tx.) and Gov. John Kasich (R-Ohio) dropped out May 3, he’s “not there yet” when asked if he would endorse Trump. Ryan’s played both sides against the middle, concerned about down ballot issues, while, trying to figure out Trump’s chances of winning. When the Access Hollywood story broke, Ryan tossed Trump under the bus. Republicans jumping off the Trump bandwagon pretend he actually did something, rather than spewing nonsense with Billy Bush. Trump’s started to focus the GOP on the economy and war-and-peace issues.
Instead of thinking only about winning races in the House or governorships, Ryan should look at the real stakes if Hillary becomes president. Following President Barack Obama’s Russian-bashing foreign policy, Hillary promises to push the anti-Russian rhetoric to the brink. Her talk of Russian war crimes in Aleppo mirrors that of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, who called on Obama to start shooting down Syrian and Russian jets. Ryan should be concerned about Hillary’s 100% backing of Saudi’s proxy war in Syria. While no one can justify any national security significance to Syria, Hillary and McCain are ready to start as shooting war with Russia, potentially leading to WWIII. Trump pointed out in the Oct. 9 debate Hillary’s tough talk about Russia, knowing it could start WWIII, leading to a once unthinkable nuclear exchange.
Ryan and other Republicans have a responsibility to more than their own self-interest heading in November. Trump talked in the debate about going three-on-one with CNN ‘s Anderson Cooper and ABC’s Martha Radditz going after Trump. Trump finds himself battling the Democratic and Republican Parties with the mainstream media rooting against him. Trump won the GOP primaries because enough GOP voters were disgusted with Washington Party elites determined to deny Trump the White House. Washington party elites, and special interests tied to them, want to stay on the gravy train status quo. While there’s no evidence that Trump could change Washington’s entrenched interests, there’s growing evidence that Hillary could get the U.S. into WWIII. Hillary wants to build bridges, just not with the Russians, the world’s most powerful and dangerous nuclear state.
