Steve Bartin January Flashback: Republican voters should not dismiss Donald Trump

We repost this one we wrote for The American Thinker in January of 2016:

Trump is at the top of the Republican field because he is, by far, the best at running a campaign. He knows how to win. He knows that the candidate who controls the news cycle will win.

The Republican establishment candidates failed in the last two Presidential campaigns. In 2008, John McCain was a loser from the get-go. He wanted to be outspent by Barack Obama to prove some bizarre theory about public financing OF Presidential elections. In 2012, the Republicans elected another loser, Mitt Romney. Not only was Romney outspent, BUT he had to deny he was the inspiration for Obamacare. Had McCain and Romney been nearly as good at campaigning as Trump, they would have won.

If Trump wins the Republican nomination, he will defeat Hillary. He doesn’t do things halfway. He means what he says, and he says what he means. Trump understands that making Hillary the issue will get out the Republican vote that McCain and Romney were unable to attract.

Here’s what you can expect from Trump in the general election as he asks: Why do Hillary and Bill pretend to be married when they have been separated since January 20, 2001? Does Hillary really think she can fool white suburban married women who want to believe that Hillary and Bill have a real marriage? Did NBC News pay $600,000 to Chelsea as a bribe? Is Hillary a tool of Goldman Sachs, having taken money from Goldman for a speech, and considering that her son-in-law worked at Goldman? When did Hillary learn that her husband was a sexual predator?

Trump will force these questions, and others, into the news cycle, whether the liberal establishment wants to entertain them or not.

Donald Trump cannot be denied or destroyed. The public already knows him. They know him from reality television. They know him from WWE wrestling. The low-information voter knows who Trump is. Trump doesn’t pretend to be anything other than what he is: a successful businessman.

Sorry to gloat.