I suppose that there are still some people waiting for Donald Trump’s bubble to burst – any day now! But it keeps not happening. And it’s becoming increasingly plausible that he will go all the way to the Republican presidential nomination. Why?
One answer – probably the most important – is what Greg Sargent at The Washington Post has been emphasizing lately: The majority of Republican voters actually support Mr. Trump’s policy positions. After all, he’s just saying outright what mainstream candidates
have implied for years through innuendo – how are voters supposed to know that this isn’t what you do?
I would, however, add a casual observation: At this point, Mr. Trump has been the front-runner for long enough that it’s very hard to imagine his supporters suddenly losing faith. That would be too embarrassing.
Bear in mind that embarrassment, and the desire to avoid it, are enormously important sources of motivation. Just consider what has happened to the supposedly smart guys who predicted six or seven years ago that interest rates would soar and that we would
see runaway inflation. Almost none of them have conceded that they were wrong or that they should have done more homework. Instead, many of them – especially the academics – have become ever more obsessed with claiming that they were somehow right, or
they’ve been trying to tear down the reputations of those of us who were right. Nobody likes looking like a chump, and most people will go to great lengths to convince themselves that they aren’t.
Now think about someone who has supported Mr. Trump since the summer. For the Trump bubble to burst, many people like that would have to slap their foreheads and say: “Wow, he’s not a serious person! What was I thinking?”
Very few people ever do that sort of thing. Someone who has spent months supporting Mr. Trump despite establishment denunciations – which is something like a third of Republicans – will go to great lengths to avoid conceding that he has been foolish.
At this point, such people will insist that any negative reports about Mr. Trump are the product of hostile mainstream media. In fact, Mr. Trump’s very durability so far is likely to make him highly resilient in the coming months.
All this suggests that even if Mr. Trump’s candidacy does finally decline, his support is likely to flow not to an establishment candidate, but to another outsider figure. Everyone who knows Senator Ted Cruz well hates him. In this environment, that probably
enhances his appeal.
The general election will, of course, be quite different. But it’s getting really hard to see how the Republican establishment reasserts control.
Help us Prepare for Trump’s Day One
Trump is busy getting ready for Day One of his presidency – but so is Truthout.
Trump has made it no secret that he is planning a demolition-style attack on both specific communities and democracy as a whole, beginning on his first day in office. With over 25 executive orders and directives queued up for January 20, he’s promised to “launch the largest deportation program in American history,” roll back anti-discrimination protections for transgender students, and implement a “drill, drill, drill” approach to ramp up oil and gas extraction.
Organizations like Truthout are also being threatened by legislation like HR 9495, the “nonprofit killer bill” that would allow the Treasury Secretary to declare any nonprofit a “terrorist-supporting organization” and strip its tax-exempt status without due process. Progressive media like Truthout that has courageously focused on reporting on Israel’s genocide in Gaza are in the bill’s crosshairs.
As journalists, we have a responsibility to look at hard realities and communicate them to you. We hope that you, like us, can use this information to prepare for what’s to come.
And if you feel uncertain about what to do in the face of a second Trump administration, we invite you to be an indispensable part of Truthout’s preparations.
In addition to covering the widespread onslaught of draconian policy, we’re shoring up our resources for what might come next for progressive media: bad-faith lawsuits from far-right ghouls, legislation that seeks to strip us of our ability to receive tax-deductible donations, and further throttling of our reach on social media platforms owned by Trump’s sycophants.
We’re preparing right now for Trump’s Day One: building a brave coalition of movement media; reaching out to the activists, academics, and thinkers we trust to shine a light on the inner workings of authoritarianism; and planning to use journalism as a tool to equip movements to protect the people, lands, and principles most vulnerable to Trump’s destruction.
We urgently need your help to prepare. As you know, our December fundraiser is our most important of the year and will determine the scale of work we’ll be able to do in 2025. We’ve set two goals: to raise $125,000 in one-time donations and to add 1400 new monthly donors by midnight on December 31.
Today, we’re asking all of our readers to start a monthly donation or make a one-time donation – as a commitment to stand with us on day one of Trump’s presidency, and every day after that, as we produce journalism that combats authoritarianism, censorship, injustice, and misinformation. You’re an essential part of our future – please join the movement by making a tax-deductible donation today.
If you have the means to make a substantial gift, please dig deep during this critical time!
With gratitude and resolve,
Maya, Negin, Saima, and Ziggy