A clear signal from the RNC to Trump
The RNC resolution condemned Cheney of Wyoming and Kin zinger of Illinois for participating in a "Democrat-led persecution" of ordinary citizens engaged in "legitimate political discourse" as they serve on the House select committee that is investigating events during and before the January 6 insurrection. After the passage of the measure, RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel insisted to CNN that the committee drew a distinction between those who did not commit violence on January 6 and rioters who stormed the US Capitol.
But the resolution, watered down from a previous version that demanded the stripping of party backing from Cheney and Kin zinger, contained no such caveat. The RNC might have a reputation as a haven for the most dedicated of the party's activists, and may not represent it as a whole. But the symbolism of the entire exercise defied the spin seeking to contain political damage and sent an unmistakable endorsement to Trump over his staunch denial of what really happened on that day. But appeasing Trump's culture of violence is not limited to the RNC. In a continuing attempt to ignore the violent scenes, multiple Capitol Hill Republicans have whitewashed the truth of January 6. Many others have tried to obstruct the committee or mislead about its purpose. Trump critics like Utah Sen. Mitt Romney are ostracized by the ex-President's partisans. Some who voted to impeach him are being drummed out of the party. Trump clearly incited violence before the mob scene -- telling his supporters to "fight like hell" to convince Pence to block President Joe Biden's election victory. His rallies and rhetoric have long had an undercurrent of menace. And his political speech is only getting more extreme -- for example, with his recent threats against Black prosecutors probing his business empire and investigating his attempts to steal Biden's election win in Georgia. Trump's capacity to intimidate is also underscored by the fact that even a frequent Republican critic of his behavior -- Sen. Susan Collins of Maine -- said that while it's "not likely" she will support him if he's the nominee in 2024, she cannot say for sure. Pence's thunderclap Some Republicans are, however, now willing to call Trump out. Pence's speech to the Federalist Society on Friday represented a political thunderclap. It may finally have destroyed the delicate balance he was trying to strike between loyalty to Trump and his own presidential aspirations following his determination that he had no powers as vice president, to certify the election in favor of the ex-President despite his delusional demands.
Pence's declarations that Trump's demands were "un-American" and "wrong" and that he did his personal duty got most of the attention on Friday. But his comment about the implications of Trump's continued anti-democratic behavior may have laid the battle lines for a future struggle inside the Republican Party itself. "The truth is there's more at stake than our party or our political fortunes," he said. "If we lose faith in the Constitution, we won't just lose elections -- we'll lose our country.
" Is Trump's grip slipping?
Still, there are at least signs of tentative resistance to Trump, albeit from Republican grandees rather than a new standard-bearer with a future in the party who is willing to risk political apostasy. Arkansas Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson, for example, said he doesn't think Trump should lead the country again. Cheney has said he's not fit "for future office." There are other signs around the nation that the ex-President's grip may not be what it once was. Some of the candidates he has endorsed in the midterm elections have struggled. Some polling suggests a growing number of Republican voters would prefer another candidate in 2024. And potential presidential hopefuls like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis are raising the possibility of Trumpism without Trump with hard-line "Make America Great Again" policies on pandemic restrictions, abortion, transgender issues, and other base-pleasing culture war clashes. But the ex-President still draws massive crowds. Any lessening of influence at the margins could be down to his comparative invisibility outside the bubble of conservative media. The fact that there is still such resistance to the truth about Trump's coup attempt -- fueled by aggressive GOP efforts to rewrite history -- suggests that Trump's power is enduring inside the party as he eyes a possible comeback. Millions of Trump voters believe he was cheated out of the office and still see him as the antidote to their hatred of government elites and a sense that the country as they know it is being taken away by demographic, social, and economic change.
Ever since he triggered a political earthquake with his campaign launch in 2015, Trump has crushed all resistance in the party -- one reason why so many lawmakers are careful not to cross him now. Primary opponents in 2016 like Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida and Ted Cruz of Texas and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie were squashed and co-opted by Trump. Critics like ex-Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona, who retired, and now Cheney, who's facing a Trump-backed primary challenger, and Kin zinger, who is not running for another term, effectively have had to choose between their democratic principles and their political careers. While Trump's ever more unhinged extremism could still destroy his comeback hopes, especially with a general election audience, events of the last few days show he remains the bedrock of the Republican Party.
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