Trumpism in Decline
Trumpism is declining as Trump's influence and hold on the Republican Party weaken.
Many Republicans believe Trump will not run again, prompting the party to look ahead. "Trump Fatigue" is emerging, and without visible improvements in their daily lives, voters will blame those in power. Currently, Republicans control all branches of government, so the political consequences rest with them.
Rent is high, housing and healthcare are increasingly unaffordable, grocery prices keep rising, wages stay flat, and inequality is at its peak. In this new Gilded Age, unless one has substantial investments, the outlook remains grim. Ongoing disclosures from the Epstein Estate fuel further concerns about possible legal consequences for Trump and his cronies. From his grave, Jeffrey Epstein seems hell-bent on tormenting Donald Trump; his victims only yearn for justice.
Given this uncertainty and serious economic and political challenges, Republican leaders who backed Trump for years despite clear risks will struggle to avoid responsibility. Complicity cannot be denied, and shifting blame is not an effective solution.
Where does it leave the Democratic Party? It must propose a positive policy agenda; simply opposing Trump will no longer be sufficient. Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich charts a path forward and emphatically urged Democrats to seize the moment in his weekly podcast, "Trump’s Rats Flee the Ship.”
Along with his regular co-host, Heather Lofthouse, Secretary Reich had two guests from Inequality Media Civic Action, Vishal Shankar and Katie Milne. Below is a portion of the podcast that I have transcribed.
This is a nonpartisan media and civic action organization that uses multimedia storytelling to connect the dots between economic inequality, political power, and public policy.
Why is Trump losing so badly now? Because his polls are plummeting. He refuses to acknowledge how difficult it is for most Americans to make ends meet — calling the affordability crisis a “sham” cooked up by Democrats, while his tariffs continue to jack up prices…
[Addressing Shankar and Milne, both in their 20s around the 32:30 mark of the video] I think this is critical and fairness is bedrock. But I think behind the notion of fairness is also help. I mean I can’t afford a house. I mean, you guys, your generation [Milne says: We’re screwed!”] Do you want me to be more specific about it? I mean, I talk to people who are in their 20s and you are, you guys, how are you ever going to afford a house? How are you really going to afford a family? Seriously, this is the kind of issue that the Democrats have got to talk about.
We have never had so much wealth at the top. We have never had a middle class so squeezed. We have never had a working class that is actually declining and going down the tubes. If the Democrats say that this is what we’re going to do about housing, this is what we’re going to do about healthcare. This is what we’re gooing to be about: paid family leave. Look at the contests around the country where Democrats have won and the Democrats are saying that affordability, affordability, affordability. Look at [Zohran] Mamdani. Here’s what I’m going to do about housing. Here’s what I’m going to do about transportation. Here’s what I’m going to do about child care. He’s talking bread and butter issues. This is what the Democrats need to be doing coming up to the midterms.
The tide has turned against Trump. Public opinion polls project a massive blue wave that will doom the GOP in the 2026 MidTerm Elections. Young people and Latinos are returning to the Democratic Party. Instead of retaining high-priced political consultants — there are dozens of them here in the DC area with fancy houses in McLean, Potomac, Chevy Chase, and the Spring Valley section of NW DC — the party should listen to public intellectuals like Robert Reich, who have served it for decades with dedication and dignity.
Will the Democrats take advantage of this opportunity?
Charlie Sykes: “The House rejected one of his executive orders; another grand jury refused to indict Letitia James; a judge freed Kilmar Abrego Garcia and called out the Administration’s bullshit; Kristi Noem faceplanted in congressional testimony; his concept of a health care plan crashed in the Senate; and his poll numbers continued to crater.”
“But all of this was merely prologue to Trump’s humiliation by the sort of Republicans we are thought were utterly extinct. Despite a vicious pressure campaign, the Republican-dominated Indiana Senate overwhelmingly rejected Trump’s demand that they gerrymander the state’s congressional map to benefit the GOP.”
“What happened yesterday — an outburst of Republican courage — was as rare as a sighting of Bigfoot, Lindsey Graham’s spine, or natural breasts at Mar-a-Lago.”
Read more about Trump’s declining influence in the Republican Party — Trump's power shows signs of fading after mass revolt: analyst
Simply the Truth
For True Believers
For Non-Believers
Those Pesky Supporters
Please Read This
I will post additional editorial cartoons both as manual updates to the diary (scroll down, just above the diary poll) and in the diary comments.
Thanks for supporting this diary series I started in 2009, not long after Barack Obama had been elected President of the United States. I worked for his 2008 Campaign for almost a year.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Grocer
Where is It?
“Farmers Are My Biggest Supporters”
One-Stop Christmas Shopping
The Trump Gold Card — Don’t Leave Home Without It
I Have Never Met “Affordability”
Attribution: Kevin Necessary, @knecessary.bsky.social
Catherine Rampell: “There are many items on President Trump’s agenda that are hurting the U.S. economy: the pointless trade wars, the socialization of the private sector, the mass deportations, and much more.”
“But in the long run, the most damaging policy of all might be one that’s gotten scant attention, at least from non-finance-nerds: Trump’s quest to crush the Federal Reserve. If Trump succeeds, he may doom the United States to high inflation for years, if not decades, to come.”
Jonathan Last: “If Trump succeeds, then he will have created a problem without a solution—because no future administration can force bond markets to reappraise the American central bank.”
“The Rich are Different from You and Me”
Bulls-Eye
Deflecting Blame Won’t Work for Trump — No War for Oil
A Strong Message from Miami
The Crises Never End — 24/7/365 Drama
Join ICE, Find Romance!
I Deserve This Prize
So Much for Culture
The First Family of American Crime
Where There’s Smoke, There’s Fire
A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 70% of Americans said they believe the Trump administration is hiding information about people tied to Jeffrey Epstein’s victimization of young women.
Get Your Eyes Tested, Pal!
It’s All Coming Out, Sooner or Later
Closing In
Barely Hanging On
Oh, Man!
Diary Poll
When all special elections are held in the next few months to fill vacancies, the breakdown in the US House of Representatives and US Senate is expected to be as follows.
- The Republican Party controls the US House of Representatives — 220-215 seats.
- The GOP has the edge in the US Senate — 53-47 seats.
MANUAL UPDATES POSTED HERE
We Wish You a Merry Christmas, We Wish…
Just Doing His Job
The Melting Pot
The Never-Ending Cycle
Almost as Good as the Nobel Peace Prize
Do They Look Like Winners?
Faster Than a Speeding Bullet? Nah!
Why, Indeed!
