When Mitch McConnell voted not to convict Donald Trump on impeachment charges for the Capitol attack, Senate Republican leaders excused themselves because Trump was no longer in office. It was an untested legal theory. Mr. McConnell had already tested members' policies, with most of them voting yes.
But the rioters later accused Trump of a “disgraceful dereliction of duty,” saying they “did this because they were fed outrageous falsehoods by the most powerful man on earth.” . . . There is no question that President Trump bears both practical and moral responsibility for the events of that day. ”
After making legal arguments that impeachment is removal from office and that Trump's term in office is over, McConnell said Trump “hasn't gotten away with anything yet.” still. This country has a criminal justice system. We are filing a civil lawsuit. And the former president is not immune from being held accountable by either party. ”
Mr. McConnell clearly expected President Biden's Justice Department to hold Mr. Trump accountable, which he clearly hoped would prevent Mr. Trump from seeking re-election. But Attorney General Merrick Garland (who was kept from the Supreme Court by Mr. McConnell) is dithering, and the only possible case for Mr. Trump now is a New York trial over “hush money.” is. Since he is the presumptive Republican nominee, Mr. McConnell did what he considers the duty of party leadership and endorsed him.
But that support is as lukewarm as support can be, and many of Mr. McConnell's fellow Kentucky Republicans have similar antipathy toward Mr. Trump. Yes, they are certainly in the minority. Kentucky has been one of Trump's strongest states in the past two elections, and McConnell's backlash is unlikely to change that. He remains the most unpopular U.S. senator in his state, according to a first-quarter poll by Morning Consult.
But now that Trump is finally on trial, his weaknesses among Republican voters are even more exposed. As trial testimony began on April 23rd, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who had suspended her campaign, won 16.5% of the vote in the Pennsylvania primary and won the April 2nd election. He received a higher percentage of votes than any of the four primaries held. Even though most of them allowed registered independents to vote. Haley did even better in Indiana's May 7 open primary, winning 22 percent of the vote. And on May 14, he won 20% in Maryland, 9.4% in West Virginia, and 18% in Nebraska (unlike other states, independents were barred from voting).
My gut, heart, and head is that most Republicans who voted or will vote for Nikki Haley can't stand Trump and are unlikely to vote for him in the fall. So I'll be watching Kentucky Republicans closely and hopefully Tuesday night.
Tuesday, May 21, will provide an even better barometer of the Republican Party's long-term antipathy toward Trump, as Trump's trial concludes and Kentucky's primary, open to registered Republicans only, concludes. there is a possibility. Kentucky, which was often a bellwether state in presidential elections until conservative Democrats grew tired of the party's growing social liberalism, remains close to the mainstream. He recently re-elected a Democratic governor and rejected an anti-abortion amendment to the state constitution.
Graphic testimony at porn star Stormy Daniels' trial “highlighted Trump's challenge to women voters, which some Republicans see as his biggest liability heading into November.” ” pointed out Alex Bolton of The Hill. report He quoted several Republican senators. “A troubling sign for Trump is that Republicans who come to vote in the primaries tend to be consistent voters and therefore make up a significant part of the Republican base. The likelihood that they will vote for Biden is Although low, many of them may simply stay home in November.
In Kentucky, some Republicans may think staying home means abandoning the party, but they can still go to the polls and not vote for president. They can justify that they are not abandoning the Party, but that the Party has abandoned them because it does not respect the rule of law and has fallen into a personality cult of lying, self-centered people. . As one such Republican told me, “People shouldn't leave a church just because they don't like the preacher.”
Of course Trump is no preacher. His latest “sermonSpeech at the Jersey Shore rally was vulgar, profane, and at times unstable. He turned to journalists and said, “You guys are the worst. F-Fake News. Go — you guys too.”
Many Kentuckians are offended by such words, but not by such sentiments. President Trump's anti-elite, populist message has led many to believe that they want simple solutions to complex problems and that the political system is so corrupt that it doesn't matter what corruption he inflicts on it. remains attractive to many people. Nothing is wrong with him and them.
I hope this doesn't describe the majority of my partisan Republican ancestors, but I fear it does. As for the rest, my gut, heart, and head are telling me that most Republicans who voted for Nikki Haley or will vote for them cannot follow Trump and are unlikely to vote for him in the fall. There is. So I'll be watching Kentucky Republicans closely and hopefully Tuesday night.
This column is Northern Kentucky Courte, a nonprofit publication of the Kentucky Center for Public Service Journalism.
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