Presidential politics can sometimes be a dirty business, but this year we have finally reached the depths of salacious debauchery. Personally, I could care less about who said what about who’s wife or who is sleeping with whom. But that is where the dominant media is focusing because they just love scandal.
This past week started with an ‘anti-Trump’ political action committee used an ad with a picture of Melania Trump from an old GQ photo shoot. Trump then Tweeted Ted Cruz by threatening to ‘spill the beans on his wife.’ Ted Cruz immediately Tweeted a denial that the picture was from his campaign and called Trump a coward if he went after his wife.
The feud hit a new low when Trump posted a candid picture of Heidi Cruz along side a ‘star quality’ picture of Melania Trump with the caption ‘no need to spill the beans, the images are worth a thousand words.’ This prompted Cruz to Tweet back, ‘Donald, real men don’t attack women. Your wife is lovely, and Heidi is the love of my life.’
This exchange sucked up at least 48 hours of the week’s news cycle, but, if that were not bad enough, the National Enquirer then went forward with a story about some alleged affairs by Ted Cruz. That’s right, the National Enquirer, hardly a credible news source but the media is all over this ‘breaking’ news. The media is complicit because they are adding fuel to the fire.
I argue that most of us have always believed that spouses were off limits unless they were activists, but a rogue PAC went there anyway.
Donald Trump is the front-runner and with that comes a lot of undesired attention. He needs to stop reacting to every little thing, especially when it looks like it’s not even his opponent doing it. He always has to have the last word and has to take it to a level never before seen in American politics.
As for Ted Cruz, like it or not, politics is a hostile game. He is letting Trump get under his skin and that concerns me. How will he handle the pressure once the Democrats start in on him. He knows his stuff, but kills his own credibility when he get’s in the trenches with Trump.
The fact I even have to waste time writing about this is a sad tribute to our brazen, self-indulgent times. You would never know they were running for President because they are acting like teenagers trying to one-up each other on the playground.
We need to stop this childish nonsense. We have a unique opportunity here to finally beat the Republican establishment, instead this useless fighting will hand it right back to an Establishment candidate. Let’s not forget that we still need to beat the Democrats in November or none of this will matter. How can we win when our candidates are badly damaged in the primaries?
All this useless bickering is taking focus away from some really important things. Shame on the PAC’s for going into the gutter, and shame on the candidates and media for keeping it in the gutter.
We should be focused on our floundering economy or the fact that Brussels was just attacked by ISIS. Yes, lives are at stake. What’s more, there is SOLID evidence that ISIS was planning to blow up a nuclear power plant, and the media is focused on who’s wife is prettier? Are you kidding me?
These two men are running to become the President of the United States, along with that comes an immense responsibility. Running for the office needs to be treated with the same reverence and respect as actually holding the office.
Focus on what really matters, lives quite literally depend on it.