4 ms·

Trump is a world-class salesman. And this skill is more about instinct than cerebral/deep thinking, which is why nerds “just don’t get it”. Check Scott Adams’

Trump is a world-class salesman. And this skill is more about instinct than cerebral/deep thinking, which is why nerds “just don’t get it”. Check Scott Adams’ writing on Trump’s persuasion abilities.

ggm 6y ago
But he has conspicuously failed to sell to 50% of his nation. Obama was a consummate salesman too and occupied the middle. Do you really think a rich entitled Trump who inherited his millions out-sold the first black president of the USA? Trump sold to his own. Obama sold worldwide. Tony Blair is a consummate lier and fraud and he sold better than Trump. He has a post prime ministerial income based on selling. Once Trump leaves office, like Bibi the lawsuits are a mile thick in paperwork. He won't sell nearly as many books as Blair or Obama, except critiques which may not pay him royalties. I doubt if the miss universe comp wants him back either.
- koheripbal 6y ago
  No one is making the argument that he's the best president ever, or even a good one. The point is that he became the President of the USA - he played the game very very well. It becomes more apparent when you see his videos on the subject from the 1980s - he was planning this move for decades.
  - ojnabieoot 6y ago
    A huge part of the problem with Donald Trump is how many Americans have decided that he’s good at “playing the game” of winning is elections. But the 2016 presidential election was flagrantly stolen, and the entire national GOP was complicit. Even if you’re not willing to admit it was stolen it obviously had huge legitimacy problems because Trump significantly lost the popular vote. But instead of facing this reality of democratic backsliding, people who otherwise know better have decided that the wily salesman Donald Trump once again pulled a fast one on us. (c.f. Bill Gates being seen as a tech genius rather than the reality that he’s just a vicious thug)
  - ggm 6y ago
    perhaps the point I missed, is that because he is so visibly un-sellable, yet successfully sold himself, he wins, because Blair and Obama had underlying competencies. Trump is the best salesman, because he is selling.. nothing. And its being bought.
krapp 6y ago
>Trump is a world-class salesman. When did Mexico agree to pay for the wall?
- lucozade 6y ago
  He's not world class at selling walls. He's world class at selling Donald Trump.
  - krapp 6y ago
    Unfortunately, selling "walls" (policy) is his actual job. He's like a vacuum cleaner salesman who can always get his foot in the door, but can never manage to sell a unit.
    - lucozade 6y ago
      Not quite. He's like a vacuum salesman who promises to give his customers dishwashers and toasters for free if they buy a vacuum cleaner. When they buy the vacuum cleaner, it turns out he lied about the other goods but they still ended up with the vacuum cleaner. But what a lot of people really wanted was the dishwasher. I may have pushed the analogy a little too far...
  - WJW 6y ago
    Indeed. He's not getting paid (in both actual dollars and in attention) for having walls built. Whether the wall gets built or not is entirely irrelevant as long as he gets votes.
- rubidium 6y ago
  That’s part of the pitch. He’s not selling to Mexico.
  - wmeredith 6y ago
    This is what a lot of people don’t get. All the stupid shit he says is for his base. He doesn’t care about Mexico.
mcv 6y ago
Scott Adams claimed that Trump uses methods from hypnosis. I have no idea if that's true, but it's the best explanation I've seen for the irrational support he still gets.

ggm 6y ago

But he has conspicuously failed to sell to 50% of his nation. Obama was a consummate salesman too and occupied the middle. Do you really think a rich entitled Trump who inherited his millions out-sold the first black president of the USA? Trump sold to his own. Obama sold worldwide. Tony Blair is a consummate lier and fraud and he sold better than Trump. He has a post prime ministerial income based on selling. Once Trump leaves office, like Bibi the lawsuits are a mile thick in paperwork. He won't sell nearly as many books as Blair or Obama, except critiques which may not pay him royalties. I doubt if the miss universe comp wants him back either.

koheripbal 6y ago
No one is making the argument that he's the best president ever, or even a good one. The point is that he became the President of the USA - he played the game very very well. It becomes more apparent when you see his videos on the subject from the 1980s - he was planning this move for decades.
- ojnabieoot 6y ago
  A huge part of the problem with Donald Trump is how many Americans have decided that he’s good at “playing the game” of winning is elections. But the 2016 presidential election was flagrantly stolen, and the entire national GOP was complicit. Even if you’re not willing to admit it was stolen it obviously had huge legitimacy problems because Trump significantly lost the popular vote. But instead of facing this reality of democratic backsliding, people who otherwise know better have decided that the wily salesman Donald Trump once again pulled a fast one on us. (c.f. Bill Gates being seen as a tech genius rather than the reality that he’s just a vicious thug)
- ggm 6y ago
  perhaps the point I missed, is that because he is so visibly un-sellable, yet successfully sold himself, he wins, because Blair and Obama had underlying competencies. Trump is the best salesman, because he is selling.. nothing. And its being bought.

krapp 6y ago

>Trump is a world-class salesman. When did Mexico agree to pay for the wall?

lucozade 6y ago
He's not world class at selling walls. He's world class at selling Donald Trump.
- krapp 6y ago
  Unfortunately, selling "walls" (policy) is his actual job. He's like a vacuum cleaner salesman who can always get his foot in the door, but can never manage to sell a unit.
  - lucozade 6y ago
    Not quite. He's like a vacuum salesman who promises to give his customers dishwashers and toasters for free if they buy a vacuum cleaner. When they buy the vacuum cleaner, it turns out he lied about the other goods but they still ended up with the vacuum cleaner. But what a lot of people really wanted was the dishwasher. I may have pushed the analogy a little too far...
- WJW 6y ago
  Indeed. He's not getting paid (in both actual dollars and in attention) for having walls built. Whether the wall gets built or not is entirely irrelevant as long as he gets votes.
rubidium 6y ago
That’s part of the pitch. He’s not selling to Mexico.
- wmeredith 6y ago
  This is what a lot of people don’t get. All the stupid shit he says is for his base. He doesn’t care about Mexico.

mcv 6y ago

Scott Adams claimed that Trump uses methods from hypnosis. I have no idea if that's true, but it's the best explanation I've seen for the irrational support he still gets.