Never Again
It's time to for Republicans and conservatives to reject Donald Trump once and for all.
We've seen this before, the spectacle, the media outrage, the absurdity, and the ravings of a dedicated base; none of it is new. However, something was missing from Trump's 2024 announcement; excitement.
The speech was not without the 45th's usual flare and boisterousness, most notably his desire to execute drug dealers and respect for China's oppressive criminal justice system. Still, where there would have been hot takes, a media circus, and moral posturing in years past, there was only the collective sigh of an electorate that has made it apparent they are ready to leave Donald Trump and his antics behind.
Whether Republicans are ready to heed the lessons of 2020 and 2022 remains to be seen, but they will not get a better chance to oust Trump.
The king was cut, Trump endorsed candidates failed, and the American people at the polls soundly rejected them. Democratic governance has been responsible for a crime spike, record inflation, and a border disaster. Despite all of this, Republicans failed to take the Senate and turned what should have been massive gains in the House into a meager 9-10 seat lead.
The blame does not rest with McConnel or universal ballots. While those may account for losses at the margins, they cannot explain the success of Republicans in Florida and New York.
The reason those two states outperformed Republicans nationally is because of sound leadership. Lee Zeldin and Ron DeSantis understand what Trump and his supporters never have. Voters where not turned off by conservative governance. Winning both the suburbs and the working class is not a binary choice. They understand how to fight the culture wars in a way that does not rely on calling Americans pedophiles or attacking football, a sport enjoyed by millions of Americans, because it "numbs the mind" or some such nonsense.
They were turned off by Donald Trump and the political chaos he represents.
Politics has taken an outsized role in our lives since 2016. When Trump came down that escalator, he captivated the nation's attention. To some, he offered an alternative to a Republican establishment that had embraced the soft conservatism of George W. Bush. To others, he was a beautiful disaster. Eyes were glued to the TV, wondering what aggrandized claim he would make or whose career he would end on the debate stage. This attracted both a spectacle and a crowd attracted to Trumpism for Trumpism's sake.
That time has passed for better or worse (likely the former). In an ironic twist, Trump's unpredictability has become predictable; the unexpected has become the norm. You may not know what exactly Trump will do in each situation, but whatever it is, it will be exhausting. To put it bluntly, Trump is boring. He is the monkey riding a unicycle while blowing on a trumpet outside your house. It was interesting at first, but now you're tired of the headache caused by the unceasing noise and worried he will ride over your flower bed.
The road ahead could not be clearer. Republicans can allow themselves to be at the beck and call of Donald Trump and continue to lose the support of the American electorate, or they can reject the insanity, reject the politics of victimhood and grievance, and embrace the rising talent looking to replace Trump as the head of the party. The "time for choosing" is now.
Great piece!