Editorial: Trump’s mouth will be his own undoing

Donald Trump has never met a headline that he didn’t like. In fact, it is almost like he is addicted to saying something outrageous to guarantee himself another headline.
Sounds a lot like former Minnesota congresswoman Michelle Bachmann.
Trump made headlines over the weekend at the Iowa Family Leadership Summit when he said Sen. John McCain was not a hero “because he was captured” and “I like people who weren’t captured.”
McCain was shot down over North Vietnam in 1967 and was held as a prisoner of war for five and a half years.
Trump is blaming the media for his comment problem. He said Monday “nothing was said wrong and that’s the way we are and it became a story.”
Such comments insult every U.S. prisoner of war - from the Revolutionary War to the recent Afghanistan and Iraq Wars.
Many - including nearly every Republican candidate for president - have disowned Trump’s comments and called upon him to apologize. Others have called upon him to quit the Republican presidential race.
McCain said that Trump does not owe him an apology, but should apologize to all other prisoners of wars and their families. McCain further said he served with many heroes in Vietnam and their service should not be denigrated, according to a USA Today report.
We agree.
Trump is likely at the high point of his 2016 presidential campaign. He is leading or among the leaders of most 2016 Republican presidential political polls. All, however, were taken before Trump’s latest McCain insults.
Funding is not an issue for Trump, who claims to be one of the richest people in America. The billionaire is funding his own political campaign and does not have to depend upon political donors.
Trump has the wherewithal to continue running for the Republican nomination. He could even run as a third-party candidate and fund it himself, much like Ross Perot did in 1992.
Trump also has the First Amendment right to say whatever he wants. And he likely will. And we defend his right to free speech. However, his mouth ultimately will be his own undoing.
Historically, Bachmann was also known as a candidate more prone to outlandish statements than any significant legislative accomplishments. At this time in 2012, she was leading or among the leaders in most Republican presidential candidates. She peaked after winning the Iowa Straw Poll.
Then her candidacy flamed out. The same may happen to Trump.
The problem with Trump is he often says what he is thinking without much forethought and that is the scary part.
The question for American voters is this: Is a bombastic egomaniac the type of person Americans want as their president and commander in chief?
The American political process will eventually answer that.
In the meantime, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham said it best Tuesday when he simply said Trump should just “stop being a jackass.”