John Krull: Donald Trump and the art of losing – Terre Haute Tribune Star

It was one of Vince Lombardis most famous sayings.

"Show me a good loser, the famous Green Bay Packers coach said, and I will show you a loser.

By that, Lombardi meant that a person who faced defeat with grace really couldnt want to win. The thought of losing should burn so hot and so much that the competitor wouldnt be able to stand it, much less after a handshake and congratulations to the victor.

The problem with Lombardis thinking is that it ignores the discipline and determination required to demonstrate graciousness in defeat. Being able to summon the will to offer the person who defeated you in a contest that matters to you means you also will be able to find the resolve to learn from the experience and come back stronger and more formidable the next time.

Being a gracious loser isnt just a question of manners.

Its also a measure of character.

Its an indicator that a person has mastered his or her emotions and impulses enough to be successful. The person who can do the hard things when it is most difficult to do so is the one who wants to win the most.

This brings us to the political train wreck down in Georgia.

Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, should have been close to a lock for re-election in 2022. He is an incumbent in a state that has been reliably red for nearly three decades.

Now, his return to office is in doubt because of two bits of bad news he received in recent days.

The first bit was that Stacy Abrams planned to run against him again. Abrams is the Democrat who almost beat him in 2018. She is a prodigious fundraiser and an electrifying campaign presence.

She took Kemp to the wall four years ago. If he hadnt engaged in some creative and unscrupulous voter-suppression efforts, she likely would have beat him.

Now, shes solidified her position as one of her partys brightest stars and will have even more money and resources at her disposal to do battle this time.

Thats bad for Kemp.

The other bit of news was even worse.

Former U.S. Sen. David Perdue, R-Georgia, will challenge Kemp in the primary. That means Georgias Republican gubernatorial candidate whether it ends up being Kemp or Perdue will have to undergo a brutal intraparty brawl before he even gets to square off against Abrams.

The question is: Why?

In terms of political philosophy, there isnt a sliver of difference between Kemp and Perdue. They are both rock-ribbed conservatives, adherents to all the same ideological beliefs.

Only one thing separates them.

Kemp was unwilling to lie about who won the 2020 presidential election. Perdue had no such qualms.

Perdue has been enthusiastic about embracing former President Donald Trumps prevarications about the 2020 campaign and he has yielded to the former presidents pleas to challenge Kemp in the primary.

Trumps aim here isnt to aid Republicans. Its to punish Kemp for disloyalty.

Thats because the former president cant stand to admit that he lost in 2020.

His refusal already has cost his party a great deal.

If Trump hadnt engaged in a prolonged pout about the 2020 results, Perdue and his fellow Republican Kelly Loeffler would have won the special election races in January. The GOP would control the U.S. Senate and that chamber would be the place where all President Joe Bidens plans died.

But Trump hasnt been able to summon the willpower to accept defeat with even a minimum of grace.

That means he hasnt been able to learn anything from the experience.

Because of that, Republicans lost the U.S. Senate at the beginning of this year. Now hes managed to toss the Georgia governors race into doubt by creating a civil war within the GOP, one that also will imperil the partys chances to hold onto the states U.S. Senate seat that will be on ballot in November, too.

All this is happening because Donald Trump couldnt acknowledge that hed been beaten. His denial of reality is so severe that hes willing to seize defeat from the jaws of victory, again and again.

Vince Lombardi was wrong.

Show me a sore loser and I will show you a loser.

One who finds ways to keep on losing.

John Krull is director of Franklin College's Pulliam School of Journalism and publisher of TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.

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John Krull: Donald Trump and the art of losing - Terre Haute Tribune Star