Yesterday, I noted that desperate Trump advisers were planning to send the Keystone Cops of the Trump Administration—a.k.a. the “Cabinet”—on the campaign trail for the 2026 midterms. Democrats are gleeful over the prospect of billionaires, creeps, and white supremacists explaining why Trump’s Ponzi-scheme-RICO-enterprise-long-con of an administration is helping Americans struggling to buy groceries as they fear that AI will replace their jobs. But the one thing Trump cannot abide is someone else getting attention that could be diverted to him. So, on Thursday, Trump went back on the campaign trail by visiting Georgia to explain that his administration had delivered on its promise to “lower prices on day one.” Or that was the plan. To no one’s surprise, Trump was unable to stick to his scripted lies and immediately began the political equivalent of Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride of a campaign speech. It was a classic frat-boy moment: he asked his friends to “hold my beer” while he tried to show them how to dive from a third-floor balcony into the shallow end of a swimming pool. See NYTimes, Trump Has a Head-Spinning Day, but Republicans Want Him to Focus. Trump had one job: to prove that he had made life “more affordable” for Americans. While he has failed to do so, a skillful orator could have twisted recent economic reports into the mirage of economic improvement for working families. That was too heavy a lift for Trump. Instead, he made affordability about himself. He said,
What Trump proved is that he does not understand what “affordability” means. You don’t “win” affordability. His statement is the equivalent of saying, “What word have you not. heard in two weeks? Lemons. Because I have won lemons.” It was downhill from there. Trump’s “campaign” speech was, as usual, largely a list of grievances. But he did mix it up by saying that the male president of the steel company hosting his appearance “wanted to kiss me violently.” Uh, okay. The NYTimes sums up the debacle as follows:
But to the extent that Trump talked about the economy, he celebrated his illegal tariffs, which are highly unpopular, even among Republicans. See Pew Research Center (2/4/26), Americans largely disapprove of Trump’s tariff increases. (60% of all Americans disapprove of Trump’s tariffs, including 28% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents). Trump praised tariffs, saying,
Although Trump didn’t address prices directly, some prices are coming down, just not the ones that matter. The issue of inflation is complicated because prices of goods change at different rates (and even in different directions). So, while some goods are cheaper—like televisions and electronics—others are more expensive, including food, tuition, healthcare, housing, childcare, and autos. See What I’m Watching So You Don’t Have To - by Ron Insana Why does this matter? It matters because Trump is a millstone around the necks of congressional Republicans, who dare not contradict his Through the Looking Glass claims that tariffs reduce prices and that groceries are more affordable. Moreover, Trump’s obsession with billionaires and CEOs is finally souring MAGA faithful on Trump’s agenda. Two stories on Thursday illustrate issues where Trump is stumbling, and Democrats can seize the initiative. This week, the Trump administration invoked the Defense Production Act to increase glyphosate production—a common ingredient in herbicides. The most recognized glyphosate-based herbicide is Roundup. Bayer voluntarily removed glyphosate from its consumer Roundup products to limit litigation exposure from plaintiffs who claim the herbicide causes cancer. By increasing the production of glyphosate, Trump has lost the so-called “MAHA Moms.” See NYTimes, MAHA Moms Turn Against Trump: ‘Women Feel Like They Were Lied To’. Per the Times,
The safety of glyphosate in herbicides is hotly debated, but the MAHA Moms see it as a red-line betrayal by Trump. By signing the executive order invoking the Defense Production Act, Trump bowed to big business rather than his base’s concerns. A similar dynamic is playing out with respect to artificial intelligence (AI). The AI model companies — flush with investor capital — are burning through billions annually to build large language models that have yet to generate profit, and to invest in the incredibly costly infrastructure to sustain their enormous power and water needs. As managers at AI companies tell white-collar workers their jobs will disappear, small towns across America are rebelling at the prospect of hosting massive data centers needed to power AI models’ processing needs. See Financial Times, Donald Trump’s AI push fuels revolt in MAGA heartlands. (Gift article, accessible to all.) The Financial Times article is worth ten minutes of your time. MAGA is highly suspicious of AI. Trump, on the other hand, is giving free rein to AI billionaires who are using their Trump connections (through campaign donations) to help quash the MAGA resistance to AI’s blitzkrieg attack on the American workforce. In particular, the AI overlords are attempting to prohibit state regulation of AI—thereby running headlong into the “states’ rights” tenet of MAGA orthodoxy. Per the Financial Times article, clergy and local officials in red states are pushing back against the expansion of AI. The MAGA resistance is so vehement in its anti-AI stance that some of Trump’s advisers believe the “anti-AI” movement may be another tipping-point issue in the 2026 midterms. But Trump is once again favoring his billionaire backers and buddies over his base. So, here’s my point: Heading into a difficult election season, Republicans are doubling down on the issues that have soured the base on Trump. That creates an opportunity for Democrats to create large margins in flipping the House and (possibly) the Senate. We can effectively end the Trump presidency in November 2026. We will need to work harder than ever and can take nothing for granted. But for everyone experiencing anxiety and dread over the upcoming elections because of voter suppression efforts by Trump, I am urging you to flip the script and become more aggressive, more confident, more invested in ensuring a historic victory. We can do that. It won’t be easy, but we can do it. And the more that Trump tells the clowns in his Cabinet to “hold my beer,” the clearer our path to victory. Federal statute prohibiting armed forces and troops at polling locations.In yesterday’s newsletter, I noted that Trump administration officials were grappling with a federal law that prohibits armed troops at polling stations. A reader posted a comment asking for a citation to a federal statute. Good idea! I should have included the citation yesterday. 18 USC § 592 contains the prohibition. I have broken up the text of the section to make it easier to parse. Here is what Section 592 says:
The statute is clear on its face. It imposes criminal penalties on any officer who posts “troops or armed men” at any place where an election is being held. Trump could attempt to subvert the statute’s clear intent. For example, Trump could order ICE to set up “checkpoints” several blocks away from polling locations and argue that the troops are not “at” the place where an election is being held. Courts would likely be expansive in interpreting the word “at” to give effect to the statute’s protections. But the cold legal analysis leaves out the “X” factor: Us. If Trump were to attempt such an obvious end run around the protections of Section 592, we, the people, would have something to say about such blatantly unlawful tactics. But the most effective revenge of all would be to increase voter turnout by massive margins. Concluding Thoughts.The UK is moving quickly to charge men whose connection to Epstein was revealed in the latest release of Epstein emails. The arrest of former Prince Andrew is a historic event made moreso by the comment by King Charles that the “law should be allowed to run its course.” But for the shameful ruling by John Roberts, Trump would likely be behind bars rather than serving his second term as president. The more that other nations hold their citizens and leaders to account for their ties to Epstein, the more pressure will build in the US to do the same. As always, the point is justice for the victims. But we cannot ignore the fact that for Trump and Republicans, the political consequences of their continuing coverup is part of the process of accountability. The slow, steady progress in creating a political backlash against Trump gets a boost every time another nation proves that its rich and powerful men are not above the law. |