The only person who knows for sure what’s going on inside Donald Trump’s head is Donald Trump. I don’t pretend to be a mind-reader, but I have an idea what Trump is up to and it’s not pretty. Frankly, this is one of those moments when I sincerely hope my analysis is dead wrong. And what you are about to read may strike you as some wild conspiratorial nonsense, but for the sake of argument, bear with me. I saw some rumblings on the Internet in June saying Trump had a nice conversation with Bill Clinton earlier this year. I didn’t think too much about it because, after all, you really can’t believe all the stuff you see on the Internet. Then on Aug. 5, the Washington Post posted a story under the headline, “Donald Trump talked politics with Bill Clinton weeks before launching 2016 bid.” OK, so now it’s real. According to the Post, Former President Bill Clinton had a private telephone conversation in late spring with Donald Trump at the same time that the billionaire investor and reality-television star was nearing a decision to run for the White House, according to associates of both men. Four Trump allies and one Clinton associate familiar with the exchange said that Clinton encouraged Trump’s efforts to play a larger role in the Republican Party and offered his own views of the political landscape. Clinton’s personal office in New York confirmed that the call occurred in late May, but an aide to Clinton said the 2016 race was never specifically discussed and that it was only a casual chat. “Mr. Trump reached out to President Clinton a few times. President Clinton returned his call in late May,” a Clinton employee said. Yeah, sure. You betcha they didn’t talk about the 2016 presidential race Trump was pondering and Hillary was entering. The article goes on to note Trump gave money to Hillary during her U.S. Senate campaign and gave money to the Clinton Foundation. People with knowledge of the call in both camps said it was one of many that Clinton and Trump have had over the years, whether about golf or donations to the Clinton Foundation. But the call in May was considered especially sensitive, coming soon after Hillary Rodham Clinton had declared her own presidential run the month before. So far in the campaign, Hillary and Trump have been tossing barbs at each other. But the Post notes: That’s a long way from the cordial, even cozy, relationship between the two when Clinton was a U.S. senator from New York and Trump was a constituent and supporter. At Trump’s 2005 wedding, Hillary Clinton sat in the front row for the ceremony, and Bill Clinton joined her for festivities later. The Clintons were photographed laughing chummily with Trump and new wife Melania Knauss at the reception, with Bill Clinton clasping Trump’s shoulder. Now, here’s the thing. Trump is many things. He is arrogant. He is egotistical. He is brash. But there is one thing he absolutely is not – stupid. I don’t think Trump believes he will be the GOP nominee for president of the United States. That became clear to me after the first GOP debate. Before the debate, Trump was doing well. He was the frontrunner, outpolling big-time politicos like Jeb Bush. He was polling well for two reasons: First, he had name recognition that any politician would envy. Everyone in the country – whether they follow politics or not – knows the name Trump. How could they not? It’s emblazoned on everything from high-rise condos to casinos to TV shows to clothing to golf courses to men’s cologne. Second, he exudes this pull-no-punches aversion to political correctness. A certain number of people love it when he says inflammatory things like he did about immigration. That certain number of people would vote for Trump no matter what he did or said. The problem for Trump is, that isn’t enough voters to get elected. Trump needs to attract people well beyond those who will vote for him just because of who he is. He and his campaign staff have to know this, don’t they? So when that first debate aired, a serious candidate would have dialed it down a notch. A serious candidate would have acted a little more presidential and at least vaguely outlined some specific policy initiatives. He needed to show voters that he has the temperament for the office – that he can be a thoughtful leader. Not even close. Trump’s policy declarations were “I’ll fix it,” “I will make it better” and “I will bring the jobs back to America.” And he not only doubled down on his inflammatory style, he ratcheted it up a notch or two, calling current government officials “stupid.” Then, after the debate, while talking about a female moderator who asked him some tough questions, he took a jab at her menstrual cycle. "You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes," Trump said on CNN. “Blood coming out of her wherever." What all this tells me is Trump isn’t interested in attracting enough voters to win the nomination. What then, is he interested in? Again, only he knows for sure, but if I had to guess, I‘d say he wants to play the role of king maker – or, in this case, queen maker. Trump makes no secret of – or excuse for – the fact that he “buys politicians.” He’s said it over and over again. He gives them lots of money and when he wants something, he gives them a call. And they take the call. Now, unless Hillary manages to get herself indicted or something, she will undeniably be the Democratic nominee for president. Trump knows he has little or no chance of wining the GOP nomination, so he has positioned himself to quite literally hand the presidency to Hillary Clinton. My prediction: If Trump is not the GOP nominee – which he most assuredly will not be – he will run as an independent. He will siphon away from the GOP nominee the 20-something percent of people who would vote him even if he was the guy who shot Cecil the lion. Hillary will become president and will be dutifully beholden her major benefactor – Donald Trump. If you can’t be president, you might as well own one, right? You know the Clintons are just loving every minute of this, don’t you? I truly hope I am wrong about this and there’s a fair chance I am. But if I’m not, I can tell you this: If Hillary is elected and Trump calls, she’ll answer.
