Is there a strategy behind Trump’s feud with the Khans?

Donald Trump is into the second week of his feud with Khizr and Ghazala Khan, the parents of a Muslim-American soldier killed in combat in Iraq in 2004.

After questioning why Ghazala Khan never spoke during her husband’s speech about their son during the Democratic National Convention on Thursday, Trump pivoted to insisting that he makes lots and lots of sacrifices — equating his hard work and willingness to hire lots of people to losing a son in combat — and now is trying to paint Khizr Khan as simply a partisan.

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“Mr. Khan, who does not know me, viciously attacked me from the stage of the DNC and is now all over T.V. doing the same — Nice!”

For the life of me, I can’t figure out what Trump is doing here — and whether there is absolutely any strategy behind it.

Going back and forth with a family that has lost a son in combat is, on its face, the height of stupidity, politically speaking. Even if you don’t agree with the Khans’ view of Trump, it’s hard to feel anything but sympathy for their loss. Losing a child is every parent’s nightmare — and that is a feeling that transcends politics.

As has been mentioned time and again since this erupted, George W. Bush’s response to Cindy Sheehan, who lost her son in Iraq and then camped in front of Bush’s Texas ranch to protest his policies, seems to be the appropriate one for a politician dealing with such a difficult situation: Express sympathy for the loss. Talk about how unimaginable it is. And how the loss of every American life is personally painful to someone who is either president or running for the office. Then try to move on. Rapidly.

VIDEO: How George W. Bush Responded To Criticism From A Gold Star Parent

Trump has done the polar opposite — and, in the process, provoked the public derision of lots of Republicans, including war hero John McCain.

So, again, why?

My best guess — and it’s only a guess — is that Trump simply believes that he won the Republican primary battle by fighting constantly against political conventional wisdom and/or political correctness. If traditional political advice suggests you play nice with a Gold Star family, Trump goes nasty. It’s that simple. He zigs when everyone else zags — no matter the circumstances.

There are other, darker theories behind Trump’s attacks on the Khans, of course. Why not pick a fight with two Muslim Americans at a time when fear and anxiety about terrorism and national security are high? Sure, not all Muslims are terrorists. And the vast majority of Muslims condemn the actions of Islamist militants. But the Khans are Muslims. And there is a segment of Americans who won’t like them for that reason alone — no matter what they have sacrificed for the country. Those people will regard the Khans as the enemy despite all evidence to the contrary.

Then there is the possibility that Trump simply says and does things without any sort of broader strategy in mind. He doesn’t like when people attack him, so he hits back — no matter the context or the potential political consequences or optics. It’s like an automatic, Pavlovian response: When attacked, he attacks. There isn’t thinking involved.

Simply put: I have no idea what Trump is doing here.

Me not knowing what Trump is doing — in terms of his political calculus or strategy — is not new or, frankly, terribly worrying for Trump. After all, I was convinced that Trump’s campaign would go nowhere — and he has done pretty well so far.

But since my initial miscalculation on Trump, I feel most of the time as though I have been able to see strategy beneath his bluster and bombast. This time, I just don’t get it. At all.

This story was originally published August 2, 2016 at 5:10 PM with the headline "Is there a strategy behind Trump’s feud with the Khans?."