Misconstruing Donald Trump

For nine years we have tended to think of Donald Trump as a real estate mogul turned politician, and as chief executive of a business empire and then of the country.  Perhaps that's part of why the Democrats lost last week. We saw him at his rallies as he tried out new nicknames for his opponents; much of the media coverage was dismissive and condescending.  But rather than thinking of his rambling speeches as policy proposals and position statements, perhaps they are better viewed as comedy routines that he was refining in real time in much the same way that stand-up comics refine their material on the comedy circuit.  Moreover, while the Democrats use consultants to test their messaging with small focus groups, Donald Trump gets feedback from a much bigger group (albeit with a selection bias) and gets paid by his rally attendees for the privilege.