The Jordan Rules of Politics
Ben Shapiro had an interesting article at the Daily Wire, asking this question:
When It Comes To Investigating Corruption, Should Republicans Simply Act Like Democrats And Protect Their Own?
This is a very interesting question. Shapiro argues that the GOP should be above such malfeasance and on an ideological level, I agree with him - but if you play a basketball game against a team that wins by constantly cheating the referees always swallow their whistles and the announcers are obviously biased - unless you have a Dream Team, chances are you are going to lose at least 8 out of 10 times - and the remaining two are going into overtime.
Talent can't overcome overwhelming bias every time.
Of course, if you play the game in front of a crowd that is fair enough to see what was done to your team, you may still lose that particular game but over the course of a season, people will turn on the offending team and the officials. Only the most rabid of fans will be loyal to a team that cheats - because to them, winning is everything.
Shapiro notes, "There are those on the Right who say yes [the GOP should fight dirty]. They argue that the Democrats haven’t played by the rules — why should the Republicans? This sort of logic is often used to justify President Trump’s excesses and absurdities, and as a quasi-loyalty test for conservatives who refuse to play along. 'What are you,' the question goes, 'some coward afraid to fight fire with fire?'"”
He seems to be saying that Trump's proclivity for taking to Twitter to assail friend and foe alike is a symptom of this malady - that the GOP should match the Democrats, dirty stroke for dirty stroke.
I don't see it that way. I think Trump's tweetology is his protest to the refs and the crowd of the Democrat version of the "Jordan Rules". The Jordan Rules were created by Chuck Daly, the legendary coach of the Detroit pistons to corral the greatest basketball player of all time, Michael Jordan. Jordan was famous for getting calls other, less famous players didn't get, especially late in the game, so Daly invented a defensive scheme of double teaming and getting a body on Jordan. If you lost him, Chuck Daly said, "The other rule was anytime he went by you, you had to nail him."
Trump is getting the Jordan Rules treatment from the media, the Democrats, and the NeverTrump crowd. He is willing to play out the season getting hammered on every drive to the rack just to demonstrate to the crowd, the American people, how the Democrats cheat, how corrupt the refs in the DOJ truly are and how much of a bunch of homers the media are.
Jordan's mastery was partly based on the fact that no matter what was thrown at him, he never backed down from a challenge (even from my beloved Utah Jazz). When he got the crap knocked out of him, he got back up.
President Trump exhibits the same characteristics. I think he believes in the inherent fairness of the American people. I do think he is in it to win it.
It's going to be an interesting season.
And we aren't even to the All Star break yet.