A man I really respect and like, Bobby Jindal, has decided to become the next to try and take on Donald Trump.

If you’re going to take on Donald Trump, you have to understand first and foremost why he has been successful. There are at least nine reasons:

1) People are beyond fed up with the Republican Party, and want a paradigm change. Even if that paradigm change is “burn it down.”

2) People are tired of wimpy public figures.

3) If you spend even five minutes on social media where most Americans live and interact these days, you will see the crudity with which Trump communicates at times is commonplace. Name calling and personal attacks abound. If someone disagrees with you they are an “idiot, moron, loser.” Personal appearance put-downs are abundant. So while serious Christians and the genteel may be offended by his bombast, these are a distinct minority of Americans. Trump’s persona is actually a closer fit with the American mindset at the moment. Let’s face it: We’re living in an era when most Americans spend far more time watching reality television than studying their Bibles.

4) Many Americans believe America is exceptional, but don’t know why. They want America to win for winning’s sake. Again, you’re dealing with a culture that has seen its history and legacy hijacked and abandoned in the last few decades. For them a sentiment remains, even if its foundation has crumbled. Trump appeals to that sentiment practically every time he opens his mouth on the campaign stump.

5) Trump’s moral failings and ability to successfully rise above them in a worldly sense resonate with a people that have been plagued by a systemic moral breakdown. Especially attractive is the way his children have become success stories and managed to stay out of the tabloids despite his divorces, which many Americans have suffered through, too. As a result, Trump has a civil testimony they don’t despise but aspire to.

6) Beyond the bombastic public persona Trump actually connects very well with people individually. He is warm, remembers who you are, and is empathetic. I can personally attest to this as one who knows him a little.

7) Trump also earnestly cares about the future of the country. I can personally attest to that as well.

8) People are tired of working to pay for government handouts for others in general, but illegal aliens in particular. For example, they’re tired of governors who sign Dream Acts for illegals to get free or cheaper college tuition when they can’t afford it for their own kids.

9) Conservatives, particularly evangelicals, have yet to coalesce behind a candidate. At this point their support is split among several similar candidates, with only one obvious outlier: Trump.

So all those who attempted to take Trump down have only gone down themselves. This is because they failed to acknowledge these nine factors. Those who continue to ignore these factors of the Trump phenomenon do so at their own peril, because they will be seen as attacking not Trump a sizable chunk of the primary electorate.

The voters want to see the candidates top Trump, not topple him.

I am not saying whether that’s good or bad. I’m saying it is what it is. I’m a meteorologist here giving you a forecast. I am not responsible for the weather itself.

These are the reasons you haven’t seen Ted Cruz attack Trump, and you won’t unless race ends up between the two of them for the nomination. Cruz understands these realities.

Eventually many of Trump’s supporters can become voters of true Christian conviction if we welcome them instead of driving them away, because they’ve already demonstrated they have the right instincts to take on the system. Which, frankly, the vast majority of Christian conservative leaders and organizations who are now criticizing Trump for his peccadilloes failed to do for a generation. Thus, they played a role in landing us in the very deep ditch where we currently reside.

That doesn’t mean Trump shouldn’t be vetted or that he should be excused for boorish behavior. But it does mean that it will take discernment to take on Trump. He is tapping into a spirit of the age, and that spirit is one of discontentment. Candidates who don’t understand that are going to have a very hard time succeeding in this election cycle.