Look, I have no love of Trump or his policies, but I wish the commentariat would leave him alone. For one, he isn't going to be President nor even likely to substantially alter the other candidates' positions. For another, the nation owes him a debt of gratitude for the thoroughly amusing spectacle of watching him and Jesse "the Body" Ventura and others descend like a flock of vultures and pick Ross Perot's dreams clean.

I don't know... I'm the kind of voter Obama needs to win in 2012 (hispanic, college educated in a scientific field, from a swing state), and indeed I voted for him in 2008.

I'd vote for Trump over Barack Obama though. I'd vote for a sock puppet over Barack Obama. If Obama can't appeal to me more than Trump, Obama is in a lot of trouble.

But here is the truth... when Trump says the US isn't respected, I think what he is saying is the US isn't a little feared along with that respect. And he's right about this. This open palm, Mr. Rogers foreign policy is a disaster. The world over we see new stories of countries enhancing themselves, typically at our expense. It would be nice to slam our first and push back. I think that is what Trump is talking about.

If that's a disaster for the world economy, well, my gut tells me even the threat of it would impact China far more than it would the US.

But I think the basis of Trumps argument has some validity and shouldn't be dismissed as populism. The world over, countries are really engaging in economic self interests, and even more than that, zero-sum foreign policy. We really haven't done that. Rather we've played the evanglist for free trade, which in some respects is economic self interest, but also has eviscerated large sections of our manufacturing base.

Throwing our weight around and scaring the world a bit, I think, is something that is a long time coming. And that's the crux of Trumps message: two can play this game. If China and other countries are going to play like that, then imagine what we can do if we played under similar, less idealistic rules.

Bring on President Trump!

The Donald has, no doubt, been observing the rise of Sarah Palin carefully, and has realized that looking like a Presidential candidate is good for businees. And, since The Donald has seen that Miss. Sarah has achieved her position by saying the most outrageous things, while at the same time, participating in reality shows, writing books, and having a colorful family life, he figures he can do the candidate thing better. I mean, after all, the Apprentice got far larger ratings than Sarah Palin's Alaska.

Plus, look at the future TV opportunities. Next year, NBC can put on "The Campaign Manager's Apprentice", where a group of wierdos gets to go on TV and plan a primary campaign in on of the unimportant states. In 2013, NBC can follow up with "Celeberity Czar", where a group of treacherous wierdo's who have become famous for no good reason compete to be the President Donald's "Celeberity Czar".

And, any good millionaire/entrpeneur has to realize that folks who have been President get very, very, very rich, without doing very much.

The Donald should explain his how brilliant foreign policy pronouncements would ever work in reality...he sounds like an ignoramus who speaks before he thinks.
The Donald should tell how if he is such a successful businessman his casinos in Atlantic City went bankrupt.

With his litany of failed enterpises and bankruptcies, I don't even think I'd take a personal check from Donald Trump, much less vote for him to be my President.

I'd LOVE for a business minded person to take the reigns of the country. I can see by the comments here I'm in the minority but that's OK. The country used to be built off of hard working folks and now it's just politicians. It'd be a nice change to get someone in office who is 'of the people' so to speak. Is that the Donald? Maybe. I know, I know, Donald isn't 'of the people' necessarily but the concept, 'non politicians in Washington' still holds.

No, I am not content with the kind of 'half a**' job American Media is doing here.

Let us take few simple questions, which American Media should have asked Donald Trump, but they are not doing it:

1. How do America take control of Iraq's Oil? Presume he would order Marines or Division 3 to cordon off Iraqi fields. Then what happens? Would Exxon go there to pump there risking lives of their own people or Airborne 82 'pump' the oil? Meanwhile what would happen to waves and waves of suicide attacks which would come on these production well sites? Next, how to transport that oil? Pipeline? Is he going to keep American Infantry ever 10 fee to guard that or his he going to engage Military Transportation & Logistics Corp to get into the business of spending billions to transport securely this oil to Basra? Will Kurds simply get frightened and hand over keys of their production wells to Donald? And what happens meanwhile at UN where USA is brought back to the corner once occupied by John Bolton with more serious consequences?

2. So then is Donald ready to station tens of thousands of American soldiers in Libya to 'steal' Libyan Oil?

3. So when Donald says he wants to levy 25% customs on China made things, does it mean we are going to get Apple iPhone at 25% more price? What about iPad? Else which products he would let go through? Chamber of Commerce, will he talk to them?

I guess Media is simply allowing this entertainment for us in otherwise 'scary politics' of this country.

Donald Trump is beyond a laughable proposition.

Please do not forget that DT was Grand Marshall of the von Steuben Day Parade. That certainly counts for something!

Don Bacon's comments on oil nail the both of you. Oil prices are driven by speculation, principally by our Wall St. Banks and the free money Bernake's giving away at the discount window. Dr. Drezner, your ignorance here needs to be studiously resolved, lest you sound like Mr Trump.

However, Mr Trump is correct about us needing some "protectionism." His strategy is laughable, but your laughing at his charge is off base. You seem to be a bit enamored with and by the US. In fact the Arab Spring is a direct result of NATO's weakened state thanks to the Western Recession. We aren't respected as we were. Our pathetic double standard, colonial project is evident to the world. Perhaps you are too ensconced in the trapping of power, these "think tankers" and the rest of the senseless and blind in the halls of power. You've apparently lost the ability to discern sophistic advocates from earnest reporters.

I agree that Trump is hopefully pandering to the basest instincts in people, I hope, or he is laughable. But, your commentary and critiques aren't much better.

In my younger years, I used to play Bridge quite a bit.

Shortly after I read this article, the thought came to mind and I began to wonder if Donald Trump's Presidential bid is going to be a doubled 1-No Trump and a lost hand or are we looking at the beginnings of a successful 7-Spades Grand Slam doubled and redoubled?

I've never posted here before but as I read the article and the other comments, I felt that I needed to put in my 2-cents about Mr. Trump.

I saw the interview with Donald Trump on MSNBC this morning and I was extremely interested in what Mr. Trump had to say... I usually don't watch this sort of thing but the interview caught my attention.

I thought it was an excellent interview, by the way. The young lady who was interviewing him got him to reveal exactly what he thinks... Maybe not such a great accomplishment since Donald seems to be quite anxious to put his message out there, anyway ... And that is refreshing to me as a register voter in and of itself...

... Why?

Because Mr. Trump has what I believe is a fresh, no nonsense outlook and perspective which opposes the "Politics as Usual" approach of the current administration... which I believe to be "lies, lies and, if they still don't believe you, more lies.

Ever since President Regan left office the United States has been gradually losing face in the eyes of the rest of the world.

Why?

Because, the world's leaders know that they can't trust our leaders... because a steady stream of lies, lies and more lies that have flowed like a river from Congressional Hill and the White House since President Regan left office.

When Mr. Regan was President, the world knew that you didn't mess with him and the power and prestige of the United States of America skyrocketed as a result ... which wasn't hard because he followed Mr. Carter's Presidency... Are you old enough to remember that fiasco? I am... Yuk!

Mr. Regan was in your face with the truth and if he said something was so, it was. And, if he said that he was going to do something, you knew that it was going to happen.

Let me give you an example from my own life that I think has great bearing on this subject ... I'm a professional internet marketer and one of the internet properties that I manage is http://pennystockprophetsucccess.com ... As you can surmise from the URL, it's about penny stocks.

In case you don't know, penny stocks are fairly controversial... Just like Mr. Trump and his bid for the Presidency.

Along that line, I talked to a professional financial advisor about the alert service this morning and almost the first thing out of his mouth was that it's a "Pump and Dump" (a very disparaging remark, in professional terms) penny stock alert service.

He had no evidence that he cited, it seemed to me that he went with his gut and made what was a very bad assumption based upon his emotional response to a subject that he probably knows very little about... He didn't know that the facts with respect to the service were quite contrary to the generally accepted legal definition of the term... And, he put closure on the conversation when I tried to explain what I know to him.

I think that is what most of the commentators, both media and private commentators, are doing in response to this article and Mr. Trump's apparent bid for the Presidency, is exactly what that financial advisor did to me about the penny stock alert service. They are jumping to emotionally-based conclusions without weighting the facts of what he's saying.

Personally, I don't think I like the man. He seems arrogant and out/misspoken to me but I continually hear him saying that I privately think and I want to hear more. What about you?

Before I close I'd like to point out that from the end of Mr. Regan's Presidency through this year in Mr. Obama's term in office we haven't heard much of anything out of Omar Khaddafi in Libya... This year he began to attack and brutalize his own people... openly. And, I'd like to ask a question...

... Is there a connection?

You tell me, but, I think I know the answer!

Is the fate of Celebrity Apprentice, that show is outstanding. Before we talk about the fate of our nation as it relates to Donald Trump, this key question must be resolved - will the show go on, and if so how?

While I admit, I'm not a staunch Trump supporter, I have also been very frustrated lately with the current administrations decisions (in particular with foreign policy).

I'm not convinced either party has the best solution yet, but I will say one thing. It's going to be a very interesting campaign come election time. If the boxing gloves are coming off this early, imagine what will be happening as election day nears.

After "The God Inspired" and "Student of History" foreign policy, not just foreign economic policy, what's wrong with " A Bull in the China Shop " foreign policy?
Donald got it right : " We are not a respected nation anymore and the world is laughing at us", only he doesn't know the half of it.
The stupidity of the worst majority of ignorant masses is equalled in volume by the stupidity of the best minority of privileged elites.
Let Donald have a stab at it, the farce of American foreign policy, and let the electorate get what they deserve. Who knows what can happen?

The notion of having a business-oriented leader for president doesn't seem too horrible. Politics is messy, but when you have someone in charge who isn't "politically correct", is always on the offensive, and is only concerned about how we can make money, you have to wonder how the outcome would turn out. People looked at Obama as this great beacon of hope and change, and now those same people are feeling a little empty handed. One of Obama's first executive orders was the closure of Guantanamo. Guantanamo is still a running facility and I wouldn't be surprised if the detainees will spend the rest of their lives their. We envisioned a universal healthcare program, we envisioned our troops home by now, we envisioned our deficit to look reasonable, and we envisioned this super movement of alternative energy which would end our dependency on foreign oil. With Obama I envisioned the future being now, but the reality of it is that not much has changed and thats politics. Donald Trump...isn't politics, and people may look at his interviews and think "this guy is a joke" but I see this guy as a nightmare for other countries. He calls himself a "hawk" and maybe we need someone hawk-like to stir some things up. He's the kind of personality that won't take no for an answer and I respect that. We want change, Obama may have done some great things during his presidency, but it wasn't the drastic change America was looking for. So when I go to vote I'll be asking myself this question: Am I content enough to give Obama 4 more years to prove himself, or am I crazy enough to vote for someone that will undoubtedly shake things up for better or worst?