Campaigns Are for Children

Fantasy.

The GOP’s presumptive nominee, instead of moderating his views and positioning himself to attract non-Republican voters, is actually becoming more conservative on certain issues. Case in point, on Wednesday Trump’s chief policy adviser, Sam Clovis, said for the first time a President Trump would be willing to “take a look at all of the programs, including entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare,” while whittling down the federal budget.

A spokesperson later clarified to the Wall Street Journal that Clovis was talking about the “need to examine budgetary discipline,” and not necessarily calling for outright entitlement cuts. But it was still a stark shift from Trump’s earlier pledge to leave benefit programs like Social Security untouched.

The reversal was particularly odd because most polling shows that bipartisan majorities are opposed to raiding programs like Social Security and Medicare for savings.

  IBTimes

So, why's he doing it?

Wealthy Americans, and wealthy Republican donors in particular, are much likelier to want cuts than the population at large. And while Trump made it through primary season largely without the support of the wealthiest 1 percent, he needs their money to compete in the general election.

[...]

[T]he billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch — who together run the most influential conservative donor network in the United States — have poured hundreds of millions into think tanks and advocacy groups that prioritize shrinking the safety net.

[...]

The Kochs are also enthusiastic patrons of House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis.

[...]

Trump has publicly taunted both Ryan and the Koch brothers in the past, but raising $1.5 billion could be tough without their imprimatur. At the moment, he doesn’t have it. Ryan said last week he was “not ready” to endorse Trump and was waiting to see whether the GOP’s presumptive nominee could successfully unite the party.

Charles G. Koch, the billionaire industrialist, suggested in an interview Sunday that he was open to supporting Hillary Clinton for president and said it was possible she would make a better president than her Republican rivals.

  NYT

Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and House Speaker Paul D. Ryan struck a conciliatory tone after meeting in Washington Thursday, seeking to ease tensions that flared last week when Ryan said he is not ready to endorse the business mogul in his bid for the White House.

“While we were honest about our few differences, we recognize that there are also many important areas of common ground,” Trump and Ryan (R-Wis.) said in a joint statement shortly after their meeting at the Republican National Committee headquarters on Capitol Hill. “We will be having additional discussions, but remain confident there’s a great opportunity to unify our party and win this fall, and we are totally committed to working together to achieve that goal.”

  WaPo

Perhaps Ryan will even be Trump's VP choice.

So, apparently, the Koch Brothers run this country.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.