The Clinton plan of attack against Trump

1 March 2016 Response Action Network

The general opinion among soothsayers, poll watchers and pundits is that Donald Trump will have a very good Super Tuesday. But what of the Democrats?

We think Hillary Clinton has, for now, weathered the Bernie Insugency. And so does her team -- which is why they are turning their gaze, and substantial resources, to how they could beat Trump(link is external) if he becomes the Republican nominee:

The plan has three major thrusts: Portray Mr. Trump as a heartless businessman who has worked against the interests of the working-class voters he now appeals to; broadcast the degrading comments he has made against women in order to sway suburban women, who have been reluctant to support Mrs. Clinton; and highlight his brash, explosive temper to show he is unsuited to be commander in chief.

American Bridge, a pro-Clinton “super PAC(link is external),” has formed a “due diligence unit” of tax and business experts who are poring over Securities and Exchange Commission documents and court records related to Mr. Trump’s business career.

A staff member for an affiliated group, Correct the Record(link is external), which coordinates with Mrs. Clinton’s campaign, has collected footage of comments that have not hurt Mr. Trump’s standing among Republican primary voters, but that could be stitched together in what the group’s founder, David Brock, described as a montage of hateful speech that would appall a general electorate.

“There is something to this idea that nothing has stuck,” Mr. Brock said, but that, he argued, is because the Republicans have been too restrained to avoid offending Mr. Trump’s supporters.

In the coming weeks, Priorities USA Action, a super PAC(link is external) supporting Mrs. Clinton that effectively portrayed Mitt Romney as a cold corporate titan in the 2012 campaign, will begin scripting and testing ads that use a similar approach against Mr. Trump.

As Mrs. Clinton tries to remain above the fray, Mr. Clinton would be unleashed to respond when Mr. Trump lashed out. Mr. Obama has already argued that Mr. Trump should not be trusted with the job and has told allies he will continue that charge. In February, asked about Mr. Trump, he said the president has “the nuclear codes with them and can order 21-year-olds into a firefight.”

In other words, the Clinton machine will throw everything they can find -- plus a few things they may have to invent -- at Trump.

But let's be clear: they would do the same to any Republican nominee. That's not only how the Clinton's roll, it's also how the national Democratic apparatus functions in presidential electionyears.

The Clinton plan of attack against Trump | Response Action Network