Story highlights David Gergen: This is my 20th political convention and I cannot remember one with such a raucous, rocky start

Trump and campaign are mirroring Nixon's 1968 presidential run and that could be a big mistake, says Gergen

David Gergen is a senior political analyst for CNN and has been a White House adviser to four presidents. A graduate of Harvard Law School, he is a professor of public service and co-director of the Center for Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School. Follow him on Twitter: @david_gergen. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his.

(CNN) Donald Trump is rightly "furious" about the controversy enveloping his wife, Melania, after her speech on GOP opening night -- but he should be angry at a lot more than that and ought to be kicking himself the hardest.

David Gergen

This is my 20th political convention and I cannot remember one that has gotten off to such a raucous, rocky start. Apparently, the Trump staff is so lean -- and mean -- that since conventioneers started to arrive, they have been continually misplaying one of the most important moments of the campaign. And if recent reports play out about their affinity for Richard Nixon, they are careening toward more trouble.

To be sure, as the Trump camp believes, the press is blowing some of the early mishaps out of proportion and is focusing too little on barn burning speeches like that of Rudy Giuliani on opening night. But pros understand that is the nature of the game and they know how to handle it. Welcome to the NFL!

JUST WATCHED Rudy Giuliani: It's time make America one again Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Rudy Giuliani: It's time make America one again 01:16

The trouble started right out of the gate on Monday morning when two leading surrogates for Trump launched attacks on the Bush family, Mitt Romney, and Ohio Gov. John Kasich. The most jarring was the criticism that Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort aimed at Kasich. It is by now axiomatic that Trump must win Ohio to win the White House, that the race here is a dead heat, and that Kasich -- the most popular political leader in the state -- may hold the keys to victory. Knocking him on day one was a blunder, and an omen of things to come.

That very afternoon, the Trump team compounded its problems as anti-Trump forces demanded an open, roll-call vote. When Trump's allies squelched the protesters, all hell broke loose on the convention floor. "Chaos," the press called it, casting a shadow over the entire first day. And bitter tastes lingered: delegates on the losing side claimed they had been "strong armed." One put it this way to me: "The Trump people would have won the roll call; they had plenty of votes. If they want to unify the party, why weren't they smart enough to give us something we could take home?" Why not, indeed?

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