The news is coming in: Republicans are abandoning Trump.
I want to celebrate this complete meltdown of a horrendously offensive campaign and person, but when a Republican friend of mine called to marvel at the horrible things Trump was saying about the Khans — well I couldn’t help myself.
I told him that this can’t possibly be surprising to anyone who has been watching the Republican party over the last 16 years.
So many Republicans are horrified by Trump, but, where have they been and what have they been watching the last 16 years?
When my friend lamented the faults of Trump, I just couldn’t resist pointing out his behavior and his campaign fit perfectly with this party my friend has stood with all this time.
“Donald Trump personally insults and attacks people to win elections”
Oh? Well, 2000 was the first election I could vote in. That was the year that George W. Bush’s campaign beat John McCain in the primary by suggesting to southern voters that he had an illegitimate black child. Rather than a horrifying maneuver that caused the Republican establishment to abandon Bush, it was a brilliant campaign move that launched Karl Rove as the go to political strategist.
“How could Trump attack this gold star family?”
In 2002 a television advertisement started with pictures of terrorists, including Osama Bin Laden, and transitioned to pictures of Max Cleland - a triple amputee Vietnam veteran — saying Max Cleland was a danger because he voted against the Patriot Act.
In 2004 the Republican party actively attacked the patriotism and service of another Vietnam vet. People at the RNC convention wore purple heart bandaids, effectively mocking veterans who were wounded in combat. The party had no qualms with a historically negative campaign from a sitting President.
Trump just doesn’t care about reality or facts — he’d be dangerous as Commander in Chief
Oh yeah? Where were these fact concerned Republicans in 2008 when McCain nominated Sarah Palin as his running mate, and completely unhinged the Republican party from reality. This was the moment when “serious” Republicans had to decide between competence and their party — they chose party.
These Republicans who are jumping ship now were perfectly willing to put Palin a heart beat away from the Oval Office — despite the fact that she wasn’t just historically unqualified, she was unhinged from facts and basic reality. They made their choice.
He won’t even release his tax returns
In 2012 Mitt Romney “released his tax returns” — even though it was far less than past candidates had done these very serious Republicans did not call on him to do more (i.e. what all other candidates have done).
Then when it turned out he paid 14% tax rate? psh, nothing to see here. The Republican party didn’t even skip a beat from the same old message of how the poor are free loaders and the rich are burdened. The reality of their lies was right there, did Meg Whitman say “hey, maybe someone worth 200 million should pay more than 14%” ? Nope.
There’s so much more
This doesn’t even cover the truthers and rampant unchallenged racism within the Republican party during Obama’s Presidency — the catastrophic refusal of Republican officials to even pretend to do their job and actually govern. This was just the most basic timeline of elections off the top of my head.
Donald Trump just says theses things louder and in a bombastic fashion, but he is the Republican Party
My friend just sounded so incredulous that Trump would do these things, and I couldn't let it go with the usual “yeah, he’s a crazy person.”
As these Republicans come scurrying off this sinking ship, we should be pointing out that they are the ones who punched the thing full of holes.