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Wannabe (and Desperate) Dictator Trump Resorts to Threatening Republicans to Get Pledges of Support [1]

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Date: 2022-11-18

Last week the American people resolutely rejected the MAGA movement led by former reality TV game show host, Donald Trump. And despite his dishonest claims to the contrary, almost every candidate that Trump endorsed in a contested race was defeated.

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Undeterred by the nation's resounding repudiation, Trump went forward with his prescheduled declaration of candidacy for the 2024 presidential nomination of the Republican Party. His speech was roundly criticized as boring, even though it was heavily steeped in apocalyptic imagery. It drew dreadful Nielsen ratings, indicating a lack of interest by the public. And with the exception of some Fox News hacks, it was received with abject indifference by most observers.

RELATED: Fox News Lauds Trump as ‘Unbeatable in 2024’ Following His Dystopian Campaign Announcement

This may explain why Trump has had to issue direct threats in order to secure endorsements from his prior army of acolytes and apostles. According to reports...

"In the days running up to the election, Trump made a series of phone calls to GOP lawmakers and other elected officials, demanding that they endorse him before he announced he’s running — or at least right after, according to two sources with knowledge of the conversations. The president said he was tracking who endorsed him early, adding that 'those who waited too long' were 'not gonna like' what happens when he wins."

First of all, most of the American people would not like what happens if Trump should manage to win in 2024. But more to the point, these threats are evidence that Trump's support is weaker than ever, and that he is desperate to force his straying flock back into their pens. However, the reports go on to note that...

"Trump’s efforts to extort Republicans into supporting his third presidential campaign are not going well. He’s secured endorsements from diehard loyalists, but the party’s heavy hitters - even some who have previously been quick to stand behind him - have been hesitant to hop on board."

Indeed, many former stalwart StormTrumpers have been briskly backing away, including Mike Pence, Chris Christie, Mike Pompeo, and Rupert Murdoch. In fact, Murdoch's newspapers have published stinging rebukes. The Wall Street Journal called Trump the GOP’s "biggest loser," and the New York Post's front page pictured him as "Trumpty Dumpty." Another staunchly conservative outlet, the National Review, featured a Trump photo and just the word "NO!"

What's worse for Trump is is that some of his biggest, wealthiest donors have declared that they won't be backing him in 2024. That led Trump to rage that they are "owned by China." Even once devoted evangelicals are turning away. They accuse him of using them to get elected, and acting "like a little elementary schoolchild" who should keep his mouth shut.

To be sure, there are still worshipful Trump cultists, and he has been posting their endorsements on his floundering Twitter ripoff, Truth Social. They include such MAGA luminaries as Matt Gaetz, Elise Stefanik, Ken Paxton, Kari Lake, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Ronny Jackson, Paul Gosar, and Diamond and Silk. There were at least 18 such posts, many mimicking Trump's own phrasing that they were giving their "complete and total" support. Because that's how cult members behave.

The fact that Trump has to coerce his constituents into committing to him is a clear indication of his political impotence. He is at the weakest point of his public stature at the moment that he needs strength. And that weakness extends to the general public as well. Recent polls show that majorities of the American people don't even want him to run.

SEE THIS: As Trump Prepares to Lose Another Presidential Race, Most Americans Say He Shouldn’t Run

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[1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2022/11/18/2137125/-Wannabe-and-Desperate-Dictator-Trump-Resorts-to-Threatening-Republicans-to-Get-Pledges-of-Support

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