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Who Gets Run Over First? I say not Musk. [1]

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Date: 2025-02-21

Who will he turn on first?

The pressure on Trump and his goose-stepping minions in the Administration and Congress is increasing each day. On February 10, CNN’s Harry Enten was astonished at how high Trump’s approval ratings were. He said, “Every single day of Trump’s second term so far, he has been on the positive side of the ledger. Twenty-one days, all three weeks. That’s already 10 more days than it was in his entire first term!” Ten days later, according to him, the polls “tell a consistent story. And that is Trump is on the negative side of the ledger. His net approval is negative. He is underwater like The Little Mermaid.” Thanks to its great staff and community, DK provides daily stories highlighting affected Trump voters expressing regret.

I no longer believe polls are particularly good at telling us much more than a general direction of where something is headed. Polls, like the Democratic messaging machine, have not kept up with changing times. (Zing! You know it’s true when Dems agree with Jesse Waters - Chris Murphy Agrees with Jesse Waters). Stories about Trump voters complaining about their votes do about the same thing as polls. They capture a person’s feelings about a topic at a given moment. These views, especially when dealing with an uninformed electorate, can change quickly. I think about how people’s attitudes change if Trump pays them off with “savings” or when he “listens” by giving them exceptions. However, viewing the polls and stories in the aggregate tells us where things are headed. I am more excited about the town hall meeting clips. In my opinion, these are the things that stick because its raw, people see and hear the effect it has on people like themselves. (Historically, you can point to certain news footage playing a turning point for some of the biggest societal changes in the US.)

Because things are going south for the GOP and Trump fast, who is he going to throw under the bus first? If I recall, last time, it was people in the White House, then Congress. He’s lost (or is quickly losing) his ability to blame Biden and the Dems by making outlandish promises. (As cynical as I am about voters sometimes, I am still astounded by how many people didn’t see this coming. You think I would have learned my lesson by now. It’s the problem with being an optimist.).

For some reason, this time around, it’s harder for me to decide who goes first. I don’t think it’s Musk because Trump and the rest of his spineless mob are afraid of him. I know he seems the obvious choice, but I just don’t see it. Musk has already humiliated Trump in the Oval Office. Even Musk’s kid is in on the act. Don’t get me started on the whole Co-President thing. With Trump’s malignant narcissism, you’d think he would have already done something. The one thing we do know is that the man doesn’t like sharing the spotlight. This makes me suspicious.

Give me a second while, I put on my conspiracy hat before I move to my next point. I think, with no evidence whatsoever, Trump’s lack of response is indicative of cognitive decline. It was clear during the election Trump was declining. Others with future ambitions see this. With no GOP heir apparent, the next person will need Musk’s money and influence over Twitter.

As politicians, the best thing they know how to do is save their own skin. They heard Musk say he’d fund primary challengers for those who don’t fall in line. I think these guys (I use the male term intentionally about GOP congressional politicians) are more scared of Muck than they are of their constituents. And, why shouldn’t they, given how tribal and gerrymandered the House is? I’m not yet convinced the disaffected Trump voters (even those on the edge) will vote Dem until Dems can work out how to communicate effectively with these groups. This is the only reason I can think of why the GOP hasn’t revolted yet. Yes, I do know these guys (again purposefully) believe in destroying the government. However, as much of a desire they have to destroy, they have a much bigger desire to save themselves and ensure they can stay in power. Fear of losing their place is the only thing keeping them in their seats.

So, give me your thoughts. Will it be Hegseth, when the military cuts start coming? Or, the border Czar when they find out they can’t deport people? Maybe it’ll be Noam, just because of her silly photo ops. Who gets fed to the grist mill first?

Thanks for reading.

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