BREAKING RULES BACKFIRES ON PREZ THIS TIME AROUND

The campaign is over. President Trump doesn’t need to pander to his “base” any more. They are with him anyway.

That’s why the president’s move to end the so-called “dreamer” program is a bad decision politically — never mind the merits of the issue. Here are some reasons why — and some rules that Trump is already breaking:

• Never do anything that makes it look like you’re harming kids. That’s rule No. 1. Trump may believe he’s only upholding the law, but that doesn’t matter when it comes to public perception. And any time you‘re on one side and kids are on the other, you lose. Kids win.

• Don’t start a fight you can’t win. That’s rule No. 2. Trump will never win this one in the public arena, whether it’s Congress or the slanted media. Republicans fearing political backlash will either desert Trump or stay silent, and lawmakers are likely to make DACA permanent. That will be viewed as a repudiation of Trump.

• Don’t put your fellow Republicans in a bad position. Trump has violated this rule many times, so what’s one more? Because this time the president has basically tossed a ticking time bomb at the GOP members of Congress, and asked them to

defuse it. Good luck with that.

• Don’t evade responsibility for the decision. Trump violated this one by throwing Attorney General Jeff Sessions into the fray, forcing him to make the announcement. Then he forced poor Sarah Huckabee Sanders to take questions from the indignant media. She was so flustered she called Trump “Obama.” It raises the question of whether the president is fully committed to ending DACA.

• Don’t let your opponent be able to claim victory. By putting in a six-month deadline for Congress to act, Trump is giving Democrats a chance to cobble together votes to pass another “Dreamers” bill — a major accomplishment for a party out of power. Some Democrats are already using Trump’s DACA decision as a fundraising pitch.

• Don’t lose the battle of imagery. This was always a tough one. With many calling them “dreamers,” instead of “undocumented” immigrants, DACA supporters got a leg up on the all-important image war. Now Trump is taking action against “dreamers,” not illegal immigrants. It makes a huge difference in the public relations arena.

By breaking all these rules, Trump has left himself isolated and without much of a defense. He may have pleased some of his staunch supporters and fulfilled a campaign promise, but is it worth all the political damage he’s taking?