Summary
Republicans face rising fears of a 2026 midterms backlash after defeats in key races, with some blaming Trump’s tariffs and Elon Musk’s influence.
Trump announced sweeping new trade levies Wednesday, alarming GOP strategists who warn of higher prices and economic risks.
Vulnerable Republicans urge a return to economic messaging, citing concerns the party is overreaching. Democrats are leveraging Musk’s unpopularity, linking him to GOP policies.
The GOP remains divided over how to respond.
"There’s a lot of support in these communities for getting tough on trade, for cutting government spending, but if tariffs spin out of control, and there’s no results on trade deals, then rural communities are really going to be hit by that.”
There aren’t going to be any “results” from “trade deals” that will help rural communities. They’re just going to have to suck up what they voted for.
While many of the president’s allies are sympathetic to his argument that the tariffs will encourage companies to invest in domestic manufacturing and production
Uhh, with what money will they invest? They’ve given most of their money back to investors. Also, you only invest big money in countries where you have faith in their futures. Trump has irrevocably damaged the US’ image and relationships. No one is going to trust us any more, and they’re right in doing that.
I’ve been hoping for a MAGoo/GOP war since 2015.
otoh, if DOGE really manages to mess up Social Security payments, there’s no way the GOP can recover.
People used to say Reagan and his courting of the ‘moral majority’ were going to fracture the party and cause it to destroy itself with the embrace of a massively divisive religious rhetoric. It’s wishful thinking at best.
there’s no way the GOP can recover.
I want this to be true, but it just isn’t. A third of the country will follow along with whatever mental gymnastics are required to blame democrats. Another third are just not paying enough attention and vote on pure vibes, if at all. If dems try to run an unlikable, centrist candidate with a mixed at best record it will end up a toss up. And the electorate at large will forget everything that is happening now within eight years.
Im not so sure it’d be that easy. The conservative media cesspool is closed loop. They will lie and blame the Dems for not making it break proof or some other BS and the sheep will eat it up.
We will need Dems to go onto the shows and blast the message day and night that it’s broken bc GOP allowed I lt it be broken by an illegal imagrant.
I wouldn’t go that far. The maga Republicans are obviously so easily manipulated without a shred of critical thought left that they will do whatever their overlords want of them.
If they’re willing to brazenly attack Social Security, maybe they don’t care about elections anymore.
otoh, if DOGE really manages to mess up Social Security payments, there’s no way the GOP can recover.
Republicans straight up nuked the economy in 2008 and they were back in the Congressional Majority two years later. Same thing happened in 2020.
Gerrymandering makes many of these maps mathematically unwinnable for Democrats
I get what you’re saying, but I am also extremely aware of how fucking stupid the American electorate is, up to and including having all government support taken away and responding with “thank you sir, may I have another”. American conservatives are deeply stupid.
Didn’t forget the Democrats strong suit is striking out at tee ball. It should be easy to capitalize on this, but I just know they’ll totally fuck it up.
And on purpose. They aren’t a leftist party.
Oh yeah, absolutely.
Also, I’m totally stealing “striking out at tee ball” lmao
Well, you greedy fucks thought you could control a “celebrity,” and push your Neo Feudalist agenda.
You didn’t count on him being the most psycho narcissist you’d ever met, did you?
If I believed that, they’d stop doing stupid shit.
Since they aren’t, I don’t believe they are worried in thetvemidhdjdm
Never seen someone give up on the last sentence they were writing like that
Honestly, I think he just stroked out
Actually I was dosing off. I had thought I wrote “in the slightest” but I remember it being real blurry before I hit enter.
I’m leaving it because I’m laughing my ass off about how it turned out
Been there, my friend!
Drink a covfefe.
I do all the time on phone keyboards
No they aren’t. They have cheated and gerrymandered their way into tenured positions, the only way out is them dying or retiring.
They should be concerned about being hung for treason if they keep supporting a coup.
Point to a second Republican that has actually been punished for their criminal misconduct.
Is Matt Gaetz in jail yet? Did Dick Cheney spend any time behind bars? What about Richard Nixon?
I don’t think the justice system will do anything.
3 months in and they are worried about 2y down the road. Oof
You say 2 years, but the election is 19 months away and early campaigns will start in 8. Shit, we’ll probably see the first early messaging by the end of summer. So it’s no stretch to believe that some candidates for target races are being vetted already. And that means anger now makes a difference.
There’s elections every year so 7 months not 19 before we may start to see effects. Heck Florida has special elections June 10.
Campaign ads have already started for the Senate race in my state.
Oof.
Best of luck staying sane.
They should be more worried about trump making being a congressman or judge a powerless position. There are so many executive actions going against law and it keeps increasing.
Illegal Executive Orders are still illegal, and obeying them is illegal.
They should be worried, everything is stacking up to be a classic mid-term bloodbath, just like 2010.
And that is exactly why there will either be a heavily and obviously rigged election, or HitlerPig will impose Martial Law over some False Flag operation (probably ferocious violence against peaceful protesters), and suspend all elections until peace is restored, which will never happen because he controls the peace.
Until Republican lawmakers change their voting patterns, these articles mean nothing and IMO are poor journalism. Lawmakers can say anything about their reelection worries and polls almost always show swings in the opposite direction after elections.
this is all song and dance. trust nothing that is said that remotely sounds good for their opposition.
Exactly.
I remember Mitch saying that the reason he voted against the second impeachment was that he felt Trump’s Jan 6 crimes would be better adjucated in criminal court. And before that, I remember Linsday saying that if Trump wins the GOP nomination in 2016, the GOP will get “destroyed… and we’ll deserve it”.
Never underestimate the ability of Republican voters to enthusiastically vote against their interests…
Trump’s Jan 6 crimes would be better adjucated in criminal court
As soon as he said that, I knew they’d never hold him accountable. Because I knew they’d immediately move to “Congress didn’t convict him so there’s nothing to see here”, “if we have to go to court, let’s bring in every stalling tactic possible” followed by “why are you investigating such an old event”. I hate the Republicans.
Yeah, I don’t buy anything about how the public is leaning anymore. I assume everyone is conservative and will continue to vote conservative in every election until I see any evidence otherwise.
After the 2024 election, the public can’t be trusted and the media absolutely cannot be, in regards to elections especially.
I’ll celebrate once it comes to past.
I’ll celebrate (1) once it’s come to pass, (b) the Democrats have actually started standing up to … well, anybody, © the resistance has started to have irrevocable wins, and (d) all the people and institutions that have actively enabled this situation are gone.
Piece of cake. Just make it a illegal to vote for anyone but Republicans.
I’m reading that in a positive light: abolish political parties (i.e. no more magic ‘R’ for the mouth-breathers to look for).
Everyone (sane, insane, benevolent, evil, corrupt, etc) runs as Republican. Nice little loophole.
I’ve been saying this for years now, but in the opposite direction… everyone register Republican. If everyone is a “Republican,” who do they purge? Not their voters!
You mad bastard, that’s twisted genius!
Turnabout’s fair play 🤷♂️ My state-level politicians have been running as Democrats and then switching parties after they’re elected. 😠
What are they afraid of? Trump has fucked the trans gendered, illegal aliens, brown Americans and residents, old Americans, poor Americans and now he really taking it to the penguins of uninhabited islands. Thats what I call winning baby!
If they actually cared they do have the power to stop Trump.
Don’t worry though, if people are even allowed to vote in 2016 Republican voters wil have long forgotten by then what it was like to have rights and be able to afford groceries, and will be happy to vote to let the leopards eat the faces of the next outgroup in line.
