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Welp, turns out more Epstein files are finally getting released!
Apparently there will be a vote coming out to release even more, but the docs released so far have been negative for Trump's claims to be innocent of the whole matter.
This, combined with the ruckus over Trump arguing we need foreign talent, has caused a massive cratering amongst online confidence in MAGA. From my perspective, confidence in MAGA at least online is the lowest it has ever been. Many feel betrayed by Trump when it comes to his America First promises.
Add in the storm over Fuentes and Israel, and I feel I'm seeing the conservative coalition fall apart in real time, extremely quickly.
Is this inevitable, the narcissism of small differences? Or is it just Trump not being a very principled man?
I think it's partly inevitable when you've got a lame duck president, especially one 79 years old like Trump. He's not going to be on the ballot anymore, and his time in power is limited, so there's no reason any individual member of the party should look to him for leadership anymore. Trump is just focused on getting through the next 3 years, but a congressman or young activist still has decades of political career ahead of them.
The only reason I suppose someone would still look to Trump is only for picking up where he left off, and extricating whatever’s valuable from his political playbook from the standpoint of an outsider who bulldozed his way into the presidency.
Trump can still be a starmaker for three years, he can still endorse and attack, he can still appoint to sinecures and fundraise for. Any Republican would-be titan can be easily placed in a position of power by Trump, and that won't entirely evaporate upon his death, Sauron like.
Plus, somebody is going to get his dying endorsement, and that will count for something. I don't think enough that it can win anyone the presidency, but probably enough that it can keep any other Republican from winning it.
Trump is sufficiently popular with the GOP base that anyone he endorses will sail to the nomination in 2028 (with the possible exception of family members). For there to be an effectively open primary, you need one of three things:
In all three of these scenarios the 2028 election should be a walk for the Democrats, although the Democrats have got very good at blowing winnable elections lately.
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