A Trump GOP Takeover? LOL!
Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, a hard-right Republican, whose state senator nephew just quit the GOP, was on State of the Union yesterday, who came down firmly as a Republican who feels the GOP has to disassociate itself from Trump. Asked by Dana Bash if he would support a Trump run for president in 2024, he said he wouldn't. Unlike his nephew though, he thinks Republicans should fight against a Trump takeover.
Other Republicans-- the Gang-Greene/QAnon types-- are on the exact same page as Trump and want nothing to do with resisting him.
And, of course, that brings us to the USA Today poll by Suffolk University that was released yesterday and shows that an overwhelming number of Republicans are sticking with Trump. In fact, if Trump starts a new MAGA party, as he's been threatening, just 27% of self-identified Republican voters woukd stick with the GOP, while 46% would join the new Trumpist party. That's got to be pretty scary for McConnell-- not to mention the Republican elected officials who have come out strongly against Trump-- like Adam Kinzinger, Peter Meijer, Tom Rice, Liz Cheney, David Valadao, Lisa Murkowski-- who have primary battles coming up next year.
Reporters Susan Page and Sarah Elbeshbishi wrote that "Half of those polled say the GOP should become 'more loyal to Trump,' even at the cost of losing support among establishment Republicans. One in five, 19%, say the party should become less loyal to Trump and more aligned with establishment Republicans... They express stronger loyalty to Trump the person (54%) than they did to the Republican Party that twice nominated him for the White House (34%)... Trump voters are prepared to punish those who crossed him. Eight in 10 say they would be less likely to vote for a Republican candidate who supported Trump's impeachment, as 10 representatives did in the House. An equal portion, 80%, say the seven Republican senators who voted to convict Trump were motivated by political calculations, not their consciences."
Most Trump voters embrace a version of events on Jan. 6 that has been debunked by independent fact checkers and law enforcement agencies.
Asked to describe what happened during the assault on the Capitol, 58% of Trump voters call it "mostly an antifa-inspired attack that only involved a few Trump supporters." That's more than double the 28% who call it "a rally of Trump supporters, some of whom attacked the Capitol." Four percent call it "an attempted coup inspired by President Trump."
Law enforcement investigations found no evidence of a role by antifa, a loose alliance of leftist, anti-fascist groups that have staged demonstrations in some cities, particularly on the West Coast. Most of those arrested in the assault Jan. 6 identified themselves as Trump supporters.
"It looked horrendous, but how are we to know who was actually taking part?" asks Christine Rodriguez, 79, a Republican from Galveston, Texas, who was among those surveyed. "You could have somebody planted there from the left ... pretending to be a real Trump supporter."
"There were a variety of people who were there," says William Case, 40, an electrician and independent voter from Vacaville, California. "I mean, outside there was a bunch of Trump supporters that didn't go in, but there's video proof of other groups that did, antifa being one of them. There were also reporters that broke in and followed everybody."
Though credentialed journalists covered the attack, some after being trapped in the Capitol, none has been charged with wrongdoing. No one known to be affiliated with antifa has been among those arrested.
In the poll, more than nine of 10 Trump voters say the former president isn't guilty of inciting an insurrection. Almost 8 in 10 say the crowd would have stormed the Capitol even if Trump hadn't urged them to "fight like hell" at a rally outside the White House that day.
Calling Trump responsible for the attack is "insane," protests Jane Wiles, 76, a retired insurance manager from Treasure Island, Florida. "Was he there? No. Unless he was there leading the pack, he is not responsible."
By 2-1, 59%-29%, Trump voters say they want him to run for president again in 2024. If he ran, three of four, 76%, would support him for the nomination; 85% would vote for him in a general election.
...Trump voters aren't ready to acknowledge Joe Biden as president despite his margin of victory of 7 million votes nationwide.
Three of four, 73%, say Biden wasn't legitimately elected. Most don't want their representatives to cooperate with him, even if that means gridlock in Washington.
Six in 10, 62%, say congressional Republicans "should do their best to stand up to Biden on major policies, even if it means little gets passed." That's more than double the 26% who say congressional Republicans "should do their best to work with Biden on major policies, even if it means making compromises."
Unity? With these freaks and morons?
