Only the "principle" tenet can do that. The Vice-principle and others are subject to the terms of the leash that binds them to the apartment.
The 68% number I saw was for Reps who thought that the election was rigged in some way. About 52% thought that Trump had won. But that was a Reuters/Ipsos poll on 12/18.
Maybe the USSF can sue CONCACAF claiming the 2018 WCQ competition was a fraud. T&T had about a 1 in 10 chance of beating the US and, if the other results are taken into account, the US chances of failing to qualify were about one in a quadrillion.
There's also the "Victoria Principle" where a female character finds her supposed "dead" husband alive and well in the shower and realizes it was all a dream.
I'm not so sure. I do think that appealing to the fears and resentments of lower-education whites will be at least somewhat viable as a political strategy for a while. But (along with the morally repugnant aspects of it), there are some major political drawbacks to that approach. First, non-college educated whites born before 1980 will continue to decline as a percentage of the population. And mobilizing that group via cultural and racial scaremongering and conspiracy theories will make it very hard for Republicans to make up ground with younger, more diverse, and more educated segments of the population. Along with that, it's important to recognize the recent centrality of the narrative of Trump as a hero that will lead Real Americans to eventual cultural victory, with humiliating defeat for opponents. That narrative is going to be hard to sustain in the coming months. Delusions about fraudulent elections or Trump staying in power indefinitely can only take you so far when the US government is clearly moving on without him. For example - if the Republicans win one or both of Georgia's Senate seats today, the result will be that Mitch McConnell (the sellout establishment Republican who abandoned Trump) will remain as the Republican party's most powerful politician, while Trump himself is cast to the wayside. For much of the Republican party's base, that will not feel like a victory.
The periodic redefinition of who is white has been a hallmark of American culture since the country's founding. So the proportion of non-college educated whites in the population will not decline as much some may think. In fact, it may increase. For the first time in American history, a sitting President has attempted a soft coup. I call it a 'soft coup' in the sense that Trump has attempted to strong arm the election system to over turn the results of an election deemed free and fair. This is something that happens in developing countries. No more. Also, for all that has happened, Trump is not doing so badly in the polls. The average spread on his job approval is only -9.4%. Though Ted Cruz has been stumbling over himself to grab it, there's been no shortage of pols looking to pick up mantle.
I think the run off tonight could be a potential foreshadowing of things to come. As much as some like Cruz are trying everything to pickup the mantle of Trumpism, they all have the same problem. None of them are Trump. This is a cult of personality. I think anyone, bar Trump himself, will struggle to get the vote out, like Trump could. Trumpism will always hold a strong draw in the media spotlight, because it's so damn insane. Like rubber necking a car crash as you drive by. But as a real, genuine political force; it will whither and die when Trump steps away from politics.
The answer to this is, very different than it was 24 hours ago. The Georgia results are going to take time to process.
It fails bigly as it did this cycle. Ruins modern Republican Party as some dunderhead pols will cling to it, but they don't have his star power. The Trump Family is prosecuted. Cheeto has a massive heart attack and Trump & Trumpism die a slow death. Melania marries a 35 year old Argentine polo player and lives in Miami. So some escape it.
And so we now have an attempt at a hard coup. In three things we are fortunate. Firstly, Trump is a coward. He loves to incite the mob, but lacks the courage to actually get out and lead it. Secondly, he is not young. This lessons the possibility of his being able to put in the hard work needed at grassroots level to rebuild to retake power. Thirdly he is quite incompetent. He lacks the cunning and organizational skills possessed of history's top-tier of political villainy. He is a Nicolas Maduro, without the benefit of military support and without having had a grand patron to pave the way to dictatorial power. 13 more days to go, however. What surprises await?!
There's been an assumption that, because the GOP had become Trump's party, that this discussion, about the future of Trumpism, was essentially the future of the GOP. At least for the near term. But I can't see, after yesterday, any way in which the GOP and Trumpism can coexist. What I mean by that is I can't see Trump being the GOP nominee in 2024. Yesterday was a horrific day for our nation, and a disastrous one for Trumpism. Not just because of what happened in DC, but also Georgia. There will be a new Voting Rights Act. There will be smooth sailing for all Biden administration nominees. There will be a Department of Justice that openly identifies alt right, neo-Nazi and white supremacist groups as domestic terrorists and, over time, seeks to decapitate their leadership. 74M people voted for Trump. But the core of the core, it's the insurrectionists we saw yesterday, and in Charlottesville, that really define Trumpism. So, yeah, Trump will be around. His violent mob will remain willing to do his bidding. And, yes, tens of millions of people will be willing to vote for him. Thing is, tens of millions of Americans would vote for any Republican presidential candidate. I really don't know what'll happen to the GOP. But the party has clearly reached a tipping point. For Trump and his Brownshirt followers, the GOP is nearly as hated as the Democrats. But I doubt he can "primary challenge" his way to any more influence than he already has. We saw that on view in Georgia. Trump is now an existential threat to people like McConnell. Something's gotta give. An independent Trumpist party would devastate the GOP, but in the end would probably be the best medicine for it, as it would allow a rump GOP an opportunity to rebuild itself.
Great posts. . It is a tipping point now and I can't see how this current GOP can survive this in its current composition and it that environment. Something's gotta give.
@Minnman most of the Republicans in the House voted to overturn the election. So I think you're being wildly optimistic.
And you know what...I am fine with that. They should not try to hide. Let them show their faces. We need to know who the traitors are....It is important for the present, the future and for history.
I don't think "optimistic" is the right word to use in this situation. Thing is, most of the Senate GOP did not. And a big chunk in the House did not. The Trumpist core isn't satisfied. To them, GOP Reps and Senators who voted for certification are as much of an enemy as are the Democrats. My point, then, isn't that there's no support for Trump. Clearly, he has lots of support. I'm questioning the GOP's ability to remain coherent, to hold itself together as one party. And I'm very much questioning Trump's ability to become the GOP nominee in 2024. For all his influence, he's lost. As was reported recently, he's the first president in 88 years to lose the White House, HoR and Senate in one four year term. I, personally, think he's at the limit of his influence. It's only when he's on the ballot himself that Trumpism seems to be able to guarantee enough electoral results to threaten to take or retain power. Virtually all special elections after 2016, the mid-terms and the GA special election show us what happens when Trump's not on the ballot. So, yeah, he has his supporters. He also has his enemies, many of whom are now - for the first time - on record as opposing him. And they all live under the same GOP banner. I have a hard time seeing how this ends in peaceful coexistence.
Trump dying in the next 2 or so years could be the best thing to happen for Trumpism. Sort of like Peronism lasting long after Peron was dead.
The only one who can control the Trump mob is Trump himself. No other GOP politician can. They will be around for many years yet, but it will become widely accepted as the terrorist organization it is and less of a political movement. Within a few short years, this mob will equally despise both the dems and the GOP. The bigger long term problem will be the terror and violence they will inflict on other groups.
The upside of 01/06 is that the Trump family has gone from being major influencers over the next 4 to 8 years to political toxin.
I'd wager one reason for the discrepancy is that the House did not have an actual Constitutional role to play in counting the EC votes. In the Senate, there was a modicum of responsibility--you couldn't vote in favor of the objection and then turn around and go along with it. In the House? You're free to be a nihilist troll. That does not speak well of the current state of the GOP.