So a common theme I've gotten from the election results is that the country is done with Trump. Trump is poison on the republican party and his January 6th antics have really alienated much of his base and fired up democrats in a way not normally seen in a mid term like this. I don't think Trump is the only reason that the right lost so much, I think abortion was another major blow for them as the country just aint tolerating that crap. But, Trump seems to be one flash point that motivated the democrats. Democrats came out fearing that GOP control meant the end of democracy, and it was hard to argue against that after what we've seen from Trump and the GOP. And of course, many republicans, being the institutionalists that they are, seemed unwilling to take the plunge into authoritarianism, so it seems clear that Trump is toxic to the brand.
As such, I've seen a lot of republicans since the results were underwhelming claim that the party needed to distance themselves from Trump. And now there seems to be a battle looming for the 2024 primary with Trump vs DeSantis. Now, DeSantis is a nutcase in and of himself in my opinion. He seems to be quite heavy handed in his governance of Florida, engaging heavily in voter suppression, and his anti woke and anti LGBT agenda seems way too authoritarian. But, he doesn't seem as egregious as Trump. Trump...he seems to be positioning himself for a 2024 run, implying he will be announcing soon, and already preemptively taking shots at DeSantis, who he sees as a threat.
I'm not sure that Trump's bullying efforts will work. This reminds me of some Hillary 2016 crap, where the party just acted like the nomination was locked up, that Hillary was inevitable, and that we all had to vote blue no matter who. It was "her turn" after all. She did the graceful thing and bowed out in 2008, and now she felt entitled to it. That's what Trump is trying to do here, except that this is way more flagrant and there isn't even the pretense of fairness here. Trump is just puffing out his chest like the wannabe alpha male he is and hurling threats at a potential rival. And I'm not sure republicans will take that crap.
I mean, I guess the republican party does have a "follow the alpha male" mentality, with them backing Trump and being relatively united behind him until now, but if he proves to be a liability, i could see them not taking that lying down. 2022 has shown that he may not be the alpha male that he is, and that enrages him, so he doubles down on his animalistic authoritarian like instincts in a desperate attempt to keep power.
Republicans tend to handle their internal politics differently than democrats, with democrats handling the issue in a more subtle way. They rely a lot more on guilt tripping, peer pressure, and telling people to stfu and bury their grievances for the greater good, tending to dislike direct conflict and defuse it before it happens. And when you do engage in it, like I have a tendency to as an ex conservative, they act like WELL I NEVER and get all huffy and offended that I dare disturb the peace, and act like a "petulant child", after all, adults solve their grievances without fighting, and know when to shut up and not make a scene. But...again, as an ex conservative, i'm the kind of person to tell them to shove it.
Conservatives, they tend to be more prone to conflict. There really is a more alpha male mentality in which disagreements are handled less civilly, and then people end up backing the strongest person. In a lot of ways republicans will subvert their will to their idea of the greater good, but only after they've proven themselves and the voters are willing to consent to be governed by them. Respect is not given, but earned. Trump in 2016 earned his nomination, pointing out his competition weak and making fun of them. But this time, Trump is coming off as the loser. And if he just tells people to show up and vote for him like the democrats do with their voter base, that isn't going to end well. Especially with Daddy DeSantis coming off as the new alpha male. So I expect there to be a conflict, and I expect Trump to lose. Which would be for the best of the country. Let this guy go down in infamy, a name to be shamed and demonized for the next generation.
Honestly, if Trump tries to force himself on a GOP voter base that has moved on, I expect that voter base to very firmly show him the door. Even if it causes immense damage to the party in the short term. GOP voters don't tolerate that crap like democrats do. Keep in mind the reason they got so extreme to begin with was they literally RAN the centrists out of office. At this point, Trump is looking to be Scar at the end of the Lion King, with his followers being the hyenas getting ready to eat him. His days are numbered as a politician. For all of his tough guy persona, there's blood in the water, he's exuding weakness, and he won't be able to control his voter base any more. I honestly expect there to be a brutal primary, which will be a very dirty slugfest full of negative campaigning and insults, with DeSantis coming out on top.And then the country will be run of Trump. Forever.
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