Trump has been showing clear signs of both mental/cognitive and physical deterioration as this year has progressed. In fact many make the case it grows worse by the week. A month ago when it was announced he’d be making a bunch of campaign stops (over 30 as I recall) before Nov. 3 I wondered if he was up to it. I still do. He looks and sounds worse every day and some speculate he’s on the verge of a heart attack or stroke. That’s the last thing anyone should want and when I say anyone I’m including those of us who want to see Trump and the GOP wailing in despair over BBBB – Big Beautiful Blue Wave.
Why do I want Trump to not have something awful to happen to him? Well, if you guess it’s because he’s his own and the GOP’s worst enemy you’d be partially right. Hell, when Ramaswamy put out that vile ad there was already serious blowback and then Trump made that blowback even worse. Yes, when some GOP candidate tries to be ‘Trumpier than Trump’ the Orange Orangutan goes out and makes it clear he’s the big dog – and will take what they said and make it his own. Only louder and worse.
The more Trump bloviates and lies, the more the voters are turned off. More importantly when asked about the top issues influencing their vote in the past week corruption has been at the top of the list of 88% of things mentioned. And Trump is underwater on that issue even with Republicans! Why this matters is that voters don’t just see Trump as corrupt, a significant number of voters are finally making the connection between Trump corruption and Republicans in Congress (and statehouses) enabling it. The more Trump is out there making himself the star (at least the GOP one) of the election the worse he makes it for ALL Republicans.
If they could do so they’d have locked Trump in a room with a giant screens with Natalie Harp who could play videos on one and put up flattering news articles on the other that would stroke Trump’s ego. (Having him stay at the White House and keep a low profile as he worked, actually worked not on ballrooms and arches but policy that would work for Americans who aren’t rich is too much for them to have hoped for) The LAST thing they want or need is Trump out there making an already tough situation worse.
With only a week to go I think the proverbial cake is baked, the hay is in the barn or whatever metaphor floats your boat. Trump has been looking like even worse crap than usual for a couple of weeks now and he’s running on fumes. I don’t want him to keep pressing his luck in his body holding up. I say he’s done himself/the GOP enough harm and Democrats enough good at this point.
That brings me (I know- finally lol!) to my fear which is this: If Trump has a major health event like a stroke or heart attack, or worse one that’s fatal all bets are off. The last thing WE need is discouraged and/or pissed off Republicans and also conservative leaning independents rallying behind Trump in a health crisis!
That Democrats would regain control of the House has been a foregone conclusion for a while now. The only question is by how much. The Senate, thought for much of the year to be too much to hope for is genuinely within reach too. And not just by a single seat either. Earlier today I saw Larry Sabato say he felt like Democrats will wind up with 52 seats. Remember, John Fetterman is being courted by Republicans and may defect so the difference between 51 and 52 could be huge. Yesterday I noticed in an article (wish I’d bookmarked it) Nate Silver talking about wishing he could convince other pollsters of something: That while the polls might be off THIS time if they are it will be in Democrats favor!
In the Trump era we’ve gotten our hopes up in some places, and even with Trump actually on the ballot only to find that conservative/Republican voters were under-represented in the polling models. Or lied to pollsters either about who they’d vote for or how likely they were to actually vote. Silver is saying there are signs pollsters have overcorrected and that there’s a good chance turnout/votes for Democrats isn’t being correctly measured – that there will be stronger Democratic turnout than is being predicted. Let’s hope so.
I’d love for that them to become talked about as the rest of the week unfolds. With early voting up and by a lot, mix that into the narrative and even though MAGAs and conservatives who only drink orange Kool-Aid instead of chug it won’t hear about it on Fox or other RWNJ outlets. However they will still hear about it. At least some of them. If WE are ramped up and motivated to vote and THEY are discouraged (and even pissed off at Trump – why is a longer article) then it will be a tale of two old songs from my youth. The night of Nov. 3 Republicans will have Bad Moon Rising playing in their heads, and on the morning of Nov. 4 Democrats will be not just hearing but singing Here Comes the Sun.
However if Trump is stricken with some major health thing and laid up in the hospital or worse in the ICU or on life support all bets are off. I fear he’ll get a surge of support from people who are now thoroughly discouraged or pissed off. Or both. So let’s all hope Trump’s body holds together for another week.
Friends, I know everyone begs you for money. I promise, among all those asking for spare change, we are the smallest and the hardest working. We’re a group of old, disabled people, except for one writer in his mid-50s. The rest of us are in our sixties and seventies, and this is a labor of love. All we’re asking for is the chance to keep telling the truth about Trump and help ensure democracy survives. If you can help, please do. Thank you. Ursula
He needs to keep saying things like the price of gas is a small thing compared to the millions the oil companies and oligarchs are making. Please continue.