White House’s biggest liability exposed as GOP panic sets in

In swing states and swing districts, some GOP candidates are trying to distance themselves from President Donald Trump — who continues to suffer from low approval ratings in poll after poll. Recent polls show Trump's approval at 33 percent (Quinnipiac University), 35 percent (The Economist/YouGov and CNN/SSRS) or 37 percent (ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos). And according to Salon's Amanda Marcotte, Trump's need to be the center of attention is a major worry for the White House.

"If there's ever been anything Donald Trump loves more than gold," Marcotte explains in Salon, "it's a camera. The former reality TV host has willingly debased himself in a myriad of ways — doing an ad for Pizza Hut, shaving Vince McMahon's head during a wrestling match, painful 'acting' appearances in 'Home Alone 2' and 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air' — all to get a sweet, sweet dose of video proof of his existence. Right now, Trump can't stop begging for attention, even though it's immensely damaging to his party's midterm prospects."

Marcotte continues, "He forced the Republicans to throw him a two-day fake convention so he could give lengthy prime-time speeches. He holds frequent on-camera events in the Oval Office, forgoing the work of actual governance so he can be photographed sitting behind the Resolute Desk. 'Sitting' may be the operative word here, because as much as Trump wants to be on camera, it's increasingly obvious that the White House only wants that to be under controlled conditions, ideally with the president parked behind a desk."

Marcotte points to Trump's feuds with journalists as an example of his need to always be the center of attention. And some of those feuds, she points out, can be over something that is totally "innocuous" — for example, a reporter poking fun at Trump aide Natalie Harp on social media.

"If he must stand up," the Salon journalist observes, "he's placed behind a generously sized podium, robust enough to handle the full body-weight of his lean. This urgent desire to control Trump's image became especially apparent during his recent trip to Ireland … It's about Trump and his immense, world-consuming ego. This is a man who would rather close down the Kennedy Center than accept that he doesn't get to name it after himself. People … who post candid videos and photos that reveal his human weakness, pierce through the increasingly fragile White House efforts to prop up the 80-year-old president as the epitome of strength and masculinity."