When This Blows Over

The typical critique of politics today is that the ruling class
has been corrupted by
There's too much money
in politics; there's too much of a cult of access; the tropes
go on and on. Trump's not saying that. Instead, he's saying,
the ruling class has been corrupted by
The
problem isn't that "the politicians" have vanished behind
the velvet rope. It's that they've vanished up their own rear
ends. Obsessed with themselves, they have forgotten who
they are. They have lost their way — and ours.
Hard as it is to stomach or say, that is a kind of wisdom so
deep, so populist, and so potent that many conservatives
can't help but flutter toward it. Then again, neither can
many moderate or liberal Republicans, which is why Trump
performs well across all groups.
To be sure, in some ways Trump is a dreadful messenger for
this dreadful message. Then again, watching him at work up
there like a Soviet wrestler, it's clear this man is not riding a
fad or indulging a fantasy. An immense physical and mental
strain is involved in hitting his fellow candidates — hungry,
disciplined men — on issue after issue. He is delivering an
intense message that no one else has proven capable of
delivering with the requisite intensity: a shocking insight,
when you pause to think about it, but for the fact that in
this election year, nothing can shock anymore. - James Poulos