Donald Trump needs to tone down his rhetoric to win the general election, even if it means alienating many of his core supporters. That’s the advice of one political observer in California, where Trump capped his astonishing rise with a strong showing in the state’s primary election.
“His style that worked so well in the primaries is absolutely going to hit a wall when it goes to a wider electorate,” warned Dr. Raphael Sonershein, Executive Director of the Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs. “That’s why he’s had a bad couple of weeks. I mean, these couple of weeks wouldn’t have been a problem when he was running for the nomination.”
Trump’s insistence that a judge with a Hispanic surname is inherently biased against in him in a suit against the now defunct Trump University has started to seriously backfire.
His prepared speech Tuesday night, read from two teleprompters, indicated that he was willing to turn over a new leaf, as he adopted the measured speaking style and reasonable-sounding phrases Americans expect to hear from their presidential candidates.
“I thought it was a very effective speech … and I couldn’t figure out who was giving it,” Sonenshein quipped.
But, by bucking his trademark bellicosity to convince the wider electorate of his plausibility as the world’s most powerful leader, Soneshein says Trump is taking a calculated risk.
“It may kind of lose a lot of his base supporters, but it’s probably the only real shot he probably has. I don’t think he’s going to ‘wild’ his way to a national majority. I really don’t.”
Sonenshein was a guest on 790 KABC’s McIntyre in the Morning Show with Doug McIntyre and Teri-Rae Elmer.
By Sandy Wells
KABC News
