Donald Trump’s biggest problem now

Now that everyone else has dropped out of the race and endorsed Trump, he’s hoping to force Nikki Haley out. He has already publicly said that Haley will drop out, but she responded: “I don’t do what he tells me to do.” We’ve seen evidence of that, but she also doesn’t know the Civil War was about slavery, so there’s that. She’s also in a lonely group (of one), since the others continue to stand behind Trump even though he is a criminal who has been charged with 91 counts. Even with those charges pending, Trump acts like it’s just another day, but what else can he do? He’s probably hoping those charges will magically go away (like Covid) or he’s just in stunning disbelief that anyone would have the nerve to indict him. If you listen to Andrew Weissman, a former Mueller prosecutor, he’s scared shitless.

One of the writers at Salon watched as Weissman spoke with former RNC chair Michael Steele. Discussing the impending cases, Weissman speculated that the trials could derail Trump’s campaign. It’s hard to believe he’s running again, not only because of everything that’s hanging over his head, but he’s incompetent. He knows it too. He also seems to be declining cognitively during some of his speeches, confusing Nikki Haley with Nancy Pelosi, and mispronouncing people’s names. Weissman told Michael Steele: “I think one of the reasons that Donald Trump is so desperately trying to pull all of these trials off is because you cannot be sure that two-thirds is so solid.” In other words, Trump is hoping for his former Republican colleagues (and current enablers) to get him off the hook. Jordan has attempted to interfere in the investigations but has had zero success.

Trump can continue to limp along to the Republican nomination, and that might turn out to be a good thing for President Biden. According to Politico, another former federal prosecutor, Ankush Khardori, discussed how the pending criminal charges will impact Trump. While Trump experienced a big win in Iowa, Khadori opined: “Nearly a third of Republican caucus-goers told pollsters that Trump would not be fit for the presidency if he is convicted of a crime – a sizable defection that, if it held, would likely doom Trump’s general election chances.” Good. All Republicans should be thinking long and hard about continuing their support of Donald Trump. Khardori believes (and I agree) that the most important is Smith’s trial for Trump’s criminal attempts to overturn the 2020 election. The Court of Appeals needs to make their ruling on Trump’s (ridiculous) immunity claims so that this case can move forward on the projected trial date of March 4. The (very few) smart Republicans are betting on Nikki Haley, who is better suited for a general election. New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu has gone on record to say that Trump is a hindrance, and he is backing Haley. If 2022 didn’t shake Republicans awake, there’s no hope, which is good for the rest of us. We prefer they all just go away and take their problem child with them.