Trump for President in 2012? Maybe. Trump for Trump? Without Question.

By JEREMY W. PETERS and BRIAN STELTER
NYT

Something predictable happens to the ratings of Donald J. Trump’s “Celebrity Apprentice” on NBC when he hints at running for president: They rise.

And when he talks about President Obama’s birth certificate, they really rise.

Proving cause and effect is impossible, of course. But the coincidence is not lost on Mr. Trump, a man who has erected a real estate and media empire on immodesty and indiscretion.

“Did you get the info I sent you?” Mr. Trump asked in a phone interview with The New York Times late last week. “I told the girls to send you the ratings.” He was referring to a 10-page packet of press releases with headlines like “Donald Trump Is Ratings Gold” and news articles from Politico and CNN that described his strength in recent polls. A day later, he re-sent the clips.

(More here.)