This is the kind of thing that will make some Repub operatives try to get jobs with Senate/Gov/House/lege campaigns rather than get screwed forever by working for Trump
Also, if he’s polling 5 points behind in May he’ll fire them all https://t.co/JYaGhGVj2E pic.twitter.com/43CAl3xwP9
— Dana Houle (@DanaHoule) January 25, 2024
Maggie Haberman and the FTFNYTimes do their very best to fluff TFG as a dynamic colossus sweeping all before him — “Inside Trump’s Cutthroat Conquest of Iowa and New Hampshire”: [gift link]
… Standing backstage at his victory party in downtown Des Moines, Mr. Trump appeared almost giddy with disbelief as television screens blared the news of an outcome so lopsided it was called while the voting was still underway. He had won more than 50 percent of the vote — and 98 of the state’s 99 counties — and his rivals, Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley, were clustered together far behind. Mr. DeSantis edged just ahead of Ms. Haley, enough to stall her momentum but not enough to save his candidacy.
“Did you think it was going to be like this?” Mr. Trump remarked to an adviser, according to two people who witnessed the interaction…
How Mr. Trump swept the first two states — smoothing his path to the nomination at this early stage — is certainly a tale of cutthroat politics. But that’s only part of the story.
The former president and his allies had luck and a cunning strategy on their side. They put Mr. Trump’s unerring instincts for revving up the Republican base and belittling his opponents to effective use. He benefited from criminal indictments that rallied Republicans around him and a fractured opposition that spent millions of dollars savaging each other instead of him — a replay of the 2016 Republican primaries. Along the way, Mr. Trump consistently evaded ideological labels, along with misguided and mistimed efforts to diminish him.
Thursday Evening Open Thread: <em>You Knew What I Was… </em>Post + Comments (131)