Trump’s sound and fury

Since July's party conventions in the U.S., the campaign of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has had a series of wobbles in contrast to the steady, if baffling, surge that it witnessed through the first half of this year. First, Mr. Trump engaged in a verbal battle with Khizr Khan and his wife Ghazala, parents of a fallen U.S. soldier and a Muslim. Their denigration by the property magnate prompted disdain even from senior Republicans such as House Speaker Paul Ryan. Second, observers on both sides of the aisle squirmed in discomfort as Mr. Trump's apparent affinity for Russia and its President Vladimir Putin increasingly came to the fore. That revelation first came as Mr. Trump called upon Russia to hack the e-mails of his rival and Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton. Although he later claimed it was a joke, few in the bipartisan spectrum were laughing, given that days before his comment WikiLeaks released nearly 19,000 e-mails stolen from the servers of the Democratic National Committee by hackers allegedly linked to the Russian state. Pouring vodka on the wound, this week an investigation by The New York Times laid bare the connections between a shadowy network of political fixers and dubious pro-Russian financiers in Ukraine and Mr. Trump's campaign chairman, Paul Manafort. According to secret ledgers obtained in the investigation, Mr. Manafort had $12.7 million in allegedly illegal, off-the-books, cash payments earmarked in his name by the political party of former Ukraine President and Russian ally, Viktor Yanukovych.

The delirium of the scorching American summer seemed to push ever-growing numbers of voters into the arms of the Trump campaign, notwithstanding his offensive politics. Yet, in the softer hues of this post-convention twilight, a sense of realism may be creeping in at long last. RealClearPolitics, which averages out the major nationwide polls, placed Ms. Clinton ahead of Mr. Trump by an average of 6.7 per cent on August 15. The battleground surveys by NBC News found that Ms. Clinton has surged past the 270 electoral votes required to secure the presidency, suggesting that the gap between the two candidates has widened since the conventions. While Ms. Clinton has yet to ignite her campaign with any earth-shaking flamboyance, in the way Barack Obama did in 2008 and 2012, she appears to be comfortable with the strategy of sitting back and letting Mr. Trump be the architect of his own political setbacks. So far, it's paying off.

campaign (series of actions to reach a goal)
nominee person (who is trying to win an election)
baffling confusing
surge sudden rush
witnessed saw
engaged in started/working at
battle fight
denigration insult
magnate leader
prompted caused/brought about/reminded
disdain strong dislike
observers (people who are watching something)
aisle (long walkway between seats)
squirmed (twisted around from fear or boredom)
apparent seen/obvious
affinity attraction
increasingly more and more
to the fore to the front
revelation (thing that is suddenly shown or understood)
bipartisan two-party
hackers computer criminals
allegedly (claimed to be)
investigation (act of asking questions and trying to find the truth about something)
shadowy dark/sneaky
dubious doubtful
financiers rich money-giving people
obtained received/got
earmarked set aside
ally friend
delirium insanity
scorching burning
voters people (who vote)
notwithstanding not prevented by/not part of the issue
post- after-
twilight (the soft light just before sunrise or after sunset)
realism interest in what's lifelike and real
surged suddenly rushed/increased
required needed/demanded
presidency (time when someone is president/being a president)
ignite (start a fire/catch on fire)
flamboyance showiness
strategy (success plan(s)/way(s) of reaching goals)
architect designer/builder