That would result in a litany of conspiracy theories, folks trying to capture trumps hold on the electorate and frankly, I think the movement would persist in the worst directions. Some of the Trump followers would try and push the envelope in ways that they don't/can't now, and it would be calamitous. He runs, he loses, he loses the legal battles (some of them, anyway), he's pardoned. He has to be neutralized, not eliminated.
You say that, but I give it approximately .02 seconds after he's declared dead that all the QTards claim it was a Soros funded DEMON-crat conspiracy to kill him with those Jew space lasers using Hunter Biden's laptop to control the satellite.
Fine... but what would come of it? Some noise. There's nobody there to pick up the reins from him after he's gone. There's no way that anywhere near the people who voted for him would do anything other than beak off and be vocal about it, no different than they already are, but he's gone from a potential leadership or shit-disturbing position. His followers get loud, a bunch of wanabes try to fill his shoes, they don't, and it becomes your normal batshit crazy GOP party again without the orange-haired lunatic out to fuck up the world.
It's times like these that I am reminded that George W. Bush almost choked to death on a pretzel. We nearly lived in a timeline where Snyder's of Hanover was a more successful assassin than John Hinckley.
I hope you're right, but I have to believe these bat-shit crazies like MTG are there waiting in the wings to fill his elevator shoes. As for him dying, the day is coming, but while I don't wish for someone to die ( karma is a bitch after all ) I've caught myself thinking it. It'll truly be his one and best contribution to our country.
The next wave looks like Cruz and DeSantis, and it's scary because they are ruthlessly effective and intelligent. I don't welcome what comes after Trump, because if the movement is derailed before being neutralized, it becomes MORE dangerous, not less. He dies, the movement changes. He loses, the movement fragments.
Fortunately those two have the charisma of an alley rape. They reliably lose support the more people become familiar with them.
I'm also optimistic that The Mouse™ will destroy DeSantis in short order. You know it's bad when he says, "Hey, Disney, I've changed my mind, we're all good now... you can stop the lawsuit any time", he's fucked.
Those two are the current iteration, but not successors. The next person or people to assume the head of this movement will be far more effective and that's what scares me. DeSantis is done and Cruz would have a hell of a time getting reelected if his seat was up. Trump V2 is genuinely scary, because it won't have his laziness, or lack of vision.
Probably cheaper than Stormy, all things considered. Mind you, what's the over/under that they actually get paid?
Either too much or not nearly enough, depending on the...ahem, case. Oh, they are getting paid. I'd be willing to bet they have a financial hold on a whole damned PAC fund, or a massive fund in escrow.
You mean it fragments if he dies and becomes more radical and insane if he loses? His die hard supporters are not moving on until he dies. Any losses will play out just like 2020. He’ll blame fraud and the deep state and that will be his supporters reality. Once he is gone I don’t think we are going back to the Bush neocon GOP. As much as the establishment might want it the rabid section of his base that is able to hijack nominations are all in on MAGA populism. On a purely electoral level it’s the gift that keeps giving for the democrats. His supporters also do all the work for them tearing down his competitors.
Yeah, it's one of those "if you could go back in time" moments. The country would have been in such a better place if they had just let nature take its course. None of the bullshit about the election and none of the January 6 fiasco.
No, it fragments if he loses and becomes more radical and insane if he dies AND it stays more consolidated. To the point that I'm not entirely sure it matters what he actually dies from. If he dies, the IMMEDIATE reaction is to blame the Democrats and galvanize the base to shore up losses. I think whoever that person is may look like a mix of MTG, Kari Lake, and Nikki Haley: new face, demographically confounding, legit enough for the GOP machine, and yet keeps the crazies riled up. I don't know who could do this successfully, but I know a bunch of fuckers will try and anyone with any sort of skill in converting hatred and fear into legislation (DeSantis/Cruz) scares me. If he loses, and blames corruption, fraud, etc....so? We've seen that, and unless he produces evidence, it does not matter in the slightest. He can piss and moan all he likes. Remember, by and large his base is shrinking. He's doing well in primaries and polls, compared to DeSantis or Biden, but in the general: zero chance. He is very easy to beat in a general election based on 3 things: 1. He has not added to his base, which is shrinking. 2. He's actively disrupting the election process with all the claims of fraud, and that makes anyone down-ticket leery of supporting him too hard. 3. He doesn't have actual GOP machine support (yet). 3.5...I think people are tired of the shit show. People will vote for Biden again as an "anyone but Trump" measure, but Trump voters in 2016 and 2020 may just say fuck it and stay home. If the election is fraudulent, or if you're just sick of his shit, or January 6th, or if his social media ranting is now too incoherent, or any of the investigations breaks the deal for you, etc. etc. 3.5.2....the legal proceedings have to be a factor. DOJ may be under strict order to keep it apolitical and quiet, but the state of GA is not. Not to mention that the vast voting blocks of Gen Z and Millennials fucking hate him, and the GOP writ large. The middle aged folks should be turning more conservative, but they are not. He loses, the GOP fragments HARD. The donors are already in a bind here, the down-ticket races all have to navigate around Trump and he owes no loyalty to party or donor. If the donations don't roll in, the down-ticket races simply are stuck with this tremendous disadvantage. Also, you have the McConnell-esque factions that point to a two-time loser and say "movement's over, we reset and re-strategize". This is what happened in the 90's back when most of Texas was Democrat. The GOP coalition of business, religion and libertarian interests would fall apart, because the money came from the business interests, the grassroots organization stuff came from the religious groups and the ideology/messaging came from the libertarian folks. If he loses, he's bad for business (not to mention the toxicity of his brand means you cannot be associated with him). He can't deliver on deregulation and tax cuts, and increasingly he won't listen to their policy ideas/needs to make that real. The religious folk's influence is waning, for a lot of reasons, but chief among them is they don't have the unification behind a wedge issue (abortion) any more. Some of them want a total ban, which...I think some of the Jewish, Muslim and atheist suits will start to impact. Some of them want a more reasonable one, and some of them want a ban with exceptions. They've tried to attack LGBT issues instead, with...mixed results (checking children's genitals before they play sports is an outcome of a bunch of politicians with a mouth full of car bumper). The libertarian ideology may remain, but when it's hijacked by folks like Charlie Kirk, instead of Tucker Carlson....it's not exactly a great source of messaging to the broader electorate.
You can't get an abortion, because your uterus is just a zoo for doctors, and they'll be sad if the exhibit is closed. Just an absolutely batshit decision out of the Fifth Circuit.
I remember when "Judge" was something noble and aspirational, like if you couldn't be an astronaut you instead be the living embodiment of law and justice. I was a child then.
Yes the PARTY might fracture. His die hard fans are going down with the ship. The rest of the GOP is helpless with so much of the base is ride or die with Trump. The donor class isn't going to outspend how this part of the base votes. These are the people who will never abandon him no matter how many losses. I just don't see his base supporters fracturing unless he literally dies. Trump does not have to worry about a Trump Lite usurping him. It would be chaos if he died or was incapacitated. His supporters are not going back to the Mitch McConnell wing and will demand a Trump Lite then. He's ego maniac enough to run from a jail cell and his supporters would guarantee he's on the ticket. There really is no sane way this ends. It's all chaos all the way down.