Republicans Unite to FBI March March raid on former President Donald TrumpFlorida Senator Marco Rubio called theraid a “third-world Marxist dictatorship.” compared to the persecution of political opponents under Arizona Congressman Paul Gosserenraged, ``We must destroy the FBI,'' and Georgia Congressman Marjorie Taylor Green similarly ``Protect the FBI.'' tweeted. House Republican leader Kevin McCarthyhas promised to investigateAttorney General Merrick Garland if theRepublicans retake the House.
Florida It is unclear what the FBI was investigating at President Trump's mansion in, or which of many possible criminal activities. This outpouring of ferocious partisanship demonstrates the complexity of Republican lawlessness and persecution.
But I also feel that the performance is high. Many of those who rushed to defend Trump are his rivals for the 2024 Republican nomination. Others have condemned him in the past and have good reason to despise him. They should all know that Trump is a reckless narcissist and a threat to the party on multiple fronts.In fact, many people in the Republican Party want Trump out of the way . They just don't want fingerprints on the knife.
Republicans have long feared that Trump would formally declare his candidacy for president before the midterms, overshadowing candidates for Congress and governors and complicating the election. And they haven't exactly hidden their concerns. The Republican National Committee (RNC) has paid $2 million in legal fees to Trump's law firm to defend him against personal lawsuits and government investigations beginning in October 2021. I came. The committee said he would stop sending money to him in late July if he announced his candidacy.
Ostensibly, this decision was made to comply with his RNC's fairness rules, and prevent the Commission from openly endorsing the primary candidate. But it has the obvious effect of giving Trump, who is notoriously stingy, a strong incentive not to enter the race.
Fox News has also begun to distance itself from Trump. He used to be a constant presence on the network,but hasn't been interviewed in months. Former Vice President Mike Pence — whose life was threatened in the Trump-promoted Jan. 6 coup — has been killedtimes times times Openly opposed Trump in the primaryand endorsed: Replaces Trump-backed candidates.
It's not hard to see why Republicans are nervous about Mr. Trump. Trump is obsessed that he lost to Biden in 2020; all he wants to talk about is how the election was stolen. Constant retroactive complaints could irritate some of the Republican constituency. But most voters tend to be concerned with the present and future, not the past. They don't plan to vote for him in 2020 in 2022 or 2024.
Trump's entry into the Republican primary was also a disaster for the Republican Party. He is drawn to celebrity candidates, candidates with little electoral experience, and those who are willing to declare undying, thoughtless loyalty to him personally. These candidates also have good relationships with Republican primary voters. But they are very poor in the general election.
Currently, Trump-backed candidates in Senate elections in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arizona, and Ohio are very underperformingAll of these states are Republicans in the midterms. An unpopular Democratic presidentlikely to win instead, Trump's pick lags in polls in all four states. In some cases, such as Pennsylvania,it lags far behind
, but even setting these concerns aside, many Republican party officials believe Trump will Florida Governor Ron DeSantis ( issued a statement condemning the Mar-a-Lago attack) openly moving toward the Republican presidential nominationSo are many others: Mike Pence, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Missouri Senator Josh Hawley, Texas Senator Ted Cruz, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, and many others. .
Typically, after a president loses an election, he steps down and lets the next generation wager the money. Trump, by contrast, does not disappear. He has nearly 50% of his support from Republican voters in the polls. Anyone who has ambitions within the party must resent it.
Worse, Trump could be more dangerous to his Republican colleagues if he loses than if he wins. there is It's easy to imagine him losing the nomination race to DeSantis and declaring the election rigged. He can run a third party or have voters write him letters or insist they stay home rather than endorse the Republican candidate. It's an apocalyptic scenario for Even the unpopular Biden could win in nearly every state if Trump campaigns aggressively against the party in 2024. The downvote race is also decimated. Trump[66] attacked Georgia Republicans[67] for handing him the election instead of illegally voiding the popular vote[67],[67] which he helped lose the Senate Republicans.
Republicans are in a double bind. A Trump leadership would likely hurt the Republican Party's electoral chances and damage the careers of his rivals. But if Trump is ousted, he will become a rogue, undermining the Republican Party's electoral chances and damaging the careers of his rivals. Many within the party want to get rid of Trump, but they need to get rid of him in a way that doesn't expose them to his wrath.
The Justice Department could be the Republican savior. If Trump breaks the law, hecould be disqualified from running for public office.If he is actually in prison, he will effectively campaign against someone.
In the meantime, though, Republicans who want to be seen as on the side of the hated administration against their beloved ex-president No. So they are racing against each other, outraged by the Justice Department investigation, hoping they will save them.The Republican Party in the Trump administration is the party of lies and hate. Considering Republicans lie and hate each other, no one should be surprised.