The viral smokescreen of the presidential campaign (Opinion)

Jim Gearhart says the presidential campaign comes down to just one issue in his latest weekly Jim Gearhart podcast and Facebook Live show, presented every Thursday at 10:30 a.m. at Facebook.com/NJ1015.

“The issue itself does not come up as an issue. The Democratic Party has based its entire campaign on what I think is a viral smokescreen and that is using the coronavirus to becloud all the other issues," Jim says.

In last week's vice presidential debate, "you’ll notice in the debate that no matter what happened they got back to this."

The party line, according to Jim, is that President Donald Trump blew the virus and “created the biggest crime in American history," with more than 200,000 Americans dead.

“This of course is something that can’t be proved but they can throw it out there. And it’s the old principle that if you tell a lie long enough and loud enough everybody will start believing it,” Jim says.

Jim says the strategy shows what he believes is the Democrats contempt for Americans, thinking they will fall for it.

"Smokescreen is a perfect symbol of it. They have covered over the interest in the actual principles involved in the two parties," Jim said.

Jim says that he expected Vice President Mike Pence and Sen. Kamala Harris, who are not known for ranting or screaming, to calmly discuss issues. Instead, Jim says, Harris turned everything into “Donald Trump caused the virus.”

“One thing I did hear the vice president say was that Mrs. Harris pushed that the Democrats have a plan and Trump didn’t have a plan. Their plan is exactly what Trump did,” Jim said.

At this point in the campaign Jim thinks it’s too late to change any minds. You either love Donald Trump or you hate him, Jim says.

The Jim Gearhart show is LIVE on Facebook every Thursday at 10:30 a.m., at Facebook.com/NJ1015. Got an idea for an upcoming installment of Jim's show? Meet Jim at Facebook.com/NJ1015 to suggest it in the comments, or email Jim@nj1015.com.

The Jim Gearhart Show podcast is available every week on New Jersey 101.5 and in the New Jersey 101.5 app. You can also subscribe with your favorite podcasting app for iPhones, Android devices or your computer:

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5's Jim Gearhart. Any opinions expressed are Jim's own.

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