President Trump’s attack on Nordstrom undermined his false image as a president for the people and confirmed the perception that Trump is using the platform of the presidency to make money.
Trump tweeted an attack on the retailer for being “unfair” to his daughter:
My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by @Nordstrom. She is a great person — always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 8, 2017
It has been reported that Nordstrom stopped carrying Ivanka Trump’s clothing line because it wasn’t selling well, and given her father’s dismal presidential job approval ratings, it is easy to see how that might be the case.
Trump had been selling himself as a president of the people by taking credit for saving manufacturing jobs that he didn’t really save. It was a smoke and mirrors gimmick that was good PR.
The mistake that the president made when he attacked Nordstrom was that he wasn’t using the bully pulpit to pretend to fight for manufacturing jobs. He used his platform as president to bully a company that he thought was mean to his daughter.
The President’s tweet confirmed the perception among voters that he is not honest, doesn’t care about people like them and doesn’t share their values. A new Quinnipiac University poll revealed that by a margin of 54%-42% respondents thought Trump was dishonest. By a margin of 52%-45%, respondents said Trump doesn’t care about average Americans, and 58% of those polled believed that President Trump does not share their values.
Trump and corporate America had a good scam going. Trump bellows about jobs, companies dredge up existing plans for expansion, and the President takes credit for saving the jobs.
TJ Maxx and Marshalls were already distancing themselves from Ivanka Trump, so the President’s attack won’t work. Trump proved that everything the American people believed about his character is true. He is a dishonest president who doesn’t share their values and is most interested in using the White House to make money for himself and his family.
Actions turn perceptions into reality, which is why Trump’s attack on Nordstrom was a big league mistake.
