US: Trump and the State of the Union
US President Donald Trump vaunted his own track record in his State of the Union address. He had several reasons to celebrate: the primaries for the US presidential election began with a vote-counting debacle for the Democrats, and he was acquitted in the impeachment proceedings against him. What can the Democrats do to gain ground, apart from tearing up the manuscript of Trump's speech?
Dems need to get their hands dirty
De Morgen focuses above all on the spectacle at the end of Trump's speech:
“In the US, you only win elections if you translate bare figures into gut feeling. Tearing up the manuscript of Trump's speech on TV is a sensational attempt in this respect, but if Pelosi and her party really want to defeat this president, they will have to get their white dresses dirty. Only those who are willing to brave the oil-smeared ruins of the 'Rust Belt' factories to win the hearts and votes of the workers can lay claim to the White House. An election campaign will not be enough to overcome the polarisation between the bickering older generation. A new generation is needed.”
Trump's rivals should behave like adults
The Democrats must not try to beat Trump at his own game, the Süddeutsche Zeitung warns:
“Anyone who tries to be more theatrical, bombastic or emotional than Trump is bound to lose. Showing off and brazen lying are Trump's speciality. Stooping to his level means falling into a trap. There's only one way to get rid of Trump: defeating him in the November elections. And the Democrats can only do that if they behave like adults and talk about the things that are important to voters. A tip: Ukraine is not one of them.”
The president's reality show
Gazeta Wyborcza derisively compares the drama of Trump's speech with reality TV:
“Nothing can beat the scene in which Amy Williams, the wife of Sergeant Townsend Williams who had been doing military service for seven months in Afghanistan, and her two children suddenly learn from Trump that her husband and father have returned to the US and are right there in the Hall of Congress with them. After this tender family reunion, how can we not be satisfied with Trump's efforts to withdraw American troops from the various conflict areas around the world? At that point, the State of the Union address turned into a full-blown reality show.”
President has an ace up his sleeve
Právo wonders whether there is anything that can stop Trump after the failed impeachment and the Iowa debacle:
“The Democrats are currently holding the short end of the stick. And Trump has another ace up his sleeve: the economic situation. In his State of the Union speech he made it clear that he was willing to continue surfing the wave of economic growth and claim it as his own success. Despite the fact that this growth, which is now at a record level, had already begun after the financial crisis ten years ago.”