Premium

Did Trump's 'One Rough Hour' Comment Go Too Far?

AP Photo/Evan Vucci

Yesterday, I wrote a couple of articles about Donald Trump's "one rough hour" comment during a rally on Sunday. The moment was in relation to the ongoing crime sprees happening across the nation, especially in blue cities. 

It was a moment that caused a good deal of controversy, and of course no one was surprised at how the left reacted. They did what they typically do, blowing the moment up to compare it to Kristallnacht, or the night Nazi Germany rounded up and murdered a lot of Jewish people. Why the left is comparing policing to Nazis rounding up the Jewish people for murder says a lot more about them than it does Trump, but I digress. 

(READ: Trump's Suggestion On How to Curb Crime Has Leftists Fuming)

But there were plenty of people on the right who didn't like his suggestion either. To be clear, Trump wasn't actually being serious, simply stating that a lot of our crime could be reduced very quickly if it happened. He's not wrong, though as I wrote later that day, the "one rough hour" wouldn't be necessary as it would probably create more problems than it would ultimately solve, and what we really need is just for the police forces around the country to be able to function normally with adequate funds and city officials that have their backs. 

(READ: Trump's Fun Suggestion to Bring Crime Down Would Probably Work, but There's One Big Issue)

People on the right were concerned about the fact that Trump saying such a thing was effectively giving the left ammo, but I think we need to realize two things. 

The left will find any excuse to come after Trump. If they can't find something, they'll make something up. Trump's comment might be something they truly think they can get him with, but it's hard for a comment like that to truly be disagreed with, especially if you're one of those people who live in areas where you're seeing an increase in crime. If you've had your car broken into, been assaulted, or are just tired of seeing homeless drug addicts plague your streets, harassing people, standing in roads, and trashing the area, one rough hour of policing is something you likely fantasize about. 

Sadly, that's the state of our country that the Biden-Harris administration has created. 

But there are two things to keep in mind here. 

Firstly, Trump wasn't being serious, merely voicing a fantasy that many Americans are having out loud, and to be honest that only endeared him to more people. It makes him appear more connected to the people suffering from the crime we're being subjected to. 

Moreover, it's not going to matter too much. This election season is more about the state of our country economically and the security of our borders. The people currently looking at higher bills than they should aren't going to be swayed by Trump saying something that they probably thought themselves anyway. 

Secondly, and most importantly, who cares what the left thinks? 

I think we spend an inordinate amount of time trying to watch what we say for fear that the left will use it against us. Yeah... they will. It's what they do, and have done for eons now. We've watched them take the most innocuous things we say and turn them into overtly horrible statements that wholly depart from their real meaning. 

You're damned if you do and damned if you don't, so why not just do? 

I understand that some people are upset that Trump suggested extra aggression in policing and that does rub the libertarian a little more raw, but in this context I understand what he means. Perhaps it's because I've had things stolen from me, and attempts at taking my things in broad daylight happen while my back was turned, that I get the sentiment. 

Do I actually want the police to become more aggressive? No, I just want them to be able to do their jobs without fear of backlash. That would be sufficient to bring crime down to manageable levels. 

But I do think we need to relax and worry less about what we say. The left certainly doesn't watch what they say, so why should we? We're busy playing a defensive, reserved game while they're entirely aggressive and free to say what they please. That's a disadvantage for our side that we're willingly accepting, and I think it's severely weakened us in the past. 

Moreover, I think we fuel the left whenever we fear their backlash. Like a bully, flinching at the threat only makes them want to bully people more... so simply don't flinch. Take what's said in the context it's given, and whenever the left starts making a big deal of it... laugh at them. Disprove their claim and lean into what was said in the context it was given. 

Disarm the left by not caring what they think. 

Recommended

Trending on RedState Videos