In case there were lingering doubts that Donald Trump’s presidential flirtation has something to do with television ratings: Tune in to the May 15 season finale of The Celebrity Apprentice to hear a big announcement.
(CHARLIE COOK: Trump's a Joke)
Except he won't announce whether he's running for president on his popular reality television show. He'll announce the date, time, and location of a press conference in which he will announce whether he's running for president, said Trump adviser Michael Cohen.
"It’s like one of those nail-biters,'' said Cohen, who created the website shouldtrumprun.com.
Trump's strategy of drawing out the announcement process to boost the number of news cycles he can hit is no different than those of other potential candidates who start "testing the waters'' or "exploratory" committees before launching official bids, Cohen argued.
"If he responds in the affirmative, he will go straight into campaign mode,'' promised Cohen. "Mr. Trump is using his live appearance at the finale of The Apprentice to the same extent as he will be using Facebook, Twitter, media alerts, and other forms of social networking.''
Despite widespread skepticism about whether he’s a serious contender, polls have shown Trump near the top of the Republican pack. A recent CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll found him tied for first place among likely Republican voters with former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who ran in 2008.
Trump has been flogging the false claim that President Obama was not born in the United States. He’s slated to headline a tea party rally in South Florida on Saturday.
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