Why Do Republicans Continue To Defend Trump

Democrats Think Many Republicans Sincere And Point To Policy

Democrats, however, were somewhat more generous in their answers.;;More than four in ten Democratic voters ; felt that most Republican voters had the countrys best interests at heart . ;And many tried their best to answer from the others perspective. A 45-year-old male voter from Ohio imagined that as a Republican, he was motivated by Republicans harsh stance on immigration; standing up for the 2nd Amendment; promised tax cuts.;;A 30-year-old woman from Colorado felt that Republican votes reflected the desires to stop abortion stop gay marriage from ruining our country and give us our coal jobs back.

Other Democrats felt that their opponents were mostly motivated by the GOPs opposition to Obamacare, lower taxes and to support a party that reduced unemployment.;

Why So Many Republicans Cling To Trump

Ben Shapiro got part of it right. A toxic mix of status anxiety, persecution fears, and echoes of the Civil War helps explain why they follow Trump into the abyss.

On September 17, 1862, over 10,000 Confederate soldiers were killed, wounded, or went missing in a single day at the Battle of Antietam. Very few of them came from slave-owning families, so why did they agree to give their lives in defense of human bondage?

I was reminded of this question when I noticed that Politico Playbook had recruited conservative celebrity and author Ben Shapiro;to explain why the vast majority of House Republicans voted not to impeach President Trump on Wednesday for sending a murderous mob after them on January 6. Politico was slammed by liberals for opening its best-known section to a conservative whos been charged with being bigoted and intolerant. But Shapiros explanation of the rallying around Trump during his final days wasnt totally off base. He was on to something about how Republicans see the world.

With Trump leaving office within a week, defending his incitement of an insurrection doesnt seem to be in the long-term self-interest of Republican officeholders.;But the Civil War example helps explain why people sometimes do very self-destructive things out of spite or insecurity.

White supremacy was such a consensus view at the time that Lincoln felt compelled to defend it.

Like the rebels at Antietam, no one wants to die for nothing.

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Republicans And Their Declared Positions On Donald Trump

In a typical general election year, elected officials readily line up behind their party’s presidential nominee. In 2012, for example, The Hill reported that only four Republican members of Congress had declined to endorse Mitt Romney by mid-September of that year. “All other House and Senate Republicans” had already endorsed the Republican nominee.

But 2016 was not a typical general election year.

Controversial comments from the GOP’s 2016 nominee, Donald Trump, about women, Muslims, Hispanics, and veterans who were prisoners of war caused some Republican lawmakers to distance themselves from the businessman, while others outright denounced him.

This page tracked the stances of Republican lawmakers on Trump throughout the 2016 presidential election: Did they support him? Did they oppose him? Or were they somewhere in between? The focus of this page is on Republican members of Congress and Republican governors, but we also have included some information on influential Republicans who have served in Republican presidential administrations.

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The Whistleblower Only Had Secondhand Knowledge

Republicans have also repeatedly argued that the whistleblowers complaint is not credible because he only had secondhand knowledge of the phone call between Trump and Zelensky.

Rep. Kevin McCarthy tweeted on September 29 that one of the most important facts was that the whistleblower wasnt on the call.

Sen. Lindsey Graham told CBS that the whistleblower complaint was all hearsay, arguing that because the whistleblower didnt hear the phone call then the complaint is a sham.

The intelligence communitys inspector general, Michael Atkinson, debunked the notion that the allegations against Trump were all based on hearsay, writing in a September 30 letter that the whistleblower did have direct knowledge of certain alleged conduct and this information significantly helped the IG in reaching a credible determinate.

Dispatches From Nbcs Embeds

Joe Biden answered reporters questions after a speech in West Point, Iowa where he responded to reports of other Democrats considering a late run for president. This response comes on the heels of Biden surging in the latest national poll released Wednesday, per NBCs Maura Barrett.

Question: “Mr. Vice President, there are some reports that some other prominent Democrats like Hillary Clinton might jump into the race over concerns about the ability to beat Donald Trump. Do you have any thoughts about someone else jumping in like Hillary Clinton? Any concerns there?”

Biden: “Look, I didn’t enter this race based on polling data. I didn’t enter this race based on what my percentages were. I entered this race knowing exactly what I want to do. And that was I wasn’t joking about it to restore the soul and decency of this country and to rebuild the middle class.”

Andrew Yang said yesterday in New Hampshire that his campaign has to demonstrate a ton of strength in the early primaries for it to stay relevant. My campaign has to demonstrate a ton of strength in one of the first three states, realistically probably one of the first two states in order to successfully catch fire. And so to me if New Hampshire doesn’t get behind the campaign, the odds of it, making it the whole way to the White House go down a lot, he said, per NBCs Julia Jester.

Republicans’ defense of Trump is growing less organized, the Washington Post writes.

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Why Senate Republicans Are Still Playing Defense For Donald Trump

Donald Trump; Mitch McConnell Getty/Mark Wilson/Drew Angerer

I believe;all the reports;that say Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., loathes former president Donald Trump with every fiber of his being. Apparently, he hasn’t spoken to him since the election and has made it clear to everyone who knows him that he would love to see Trump just retire to Mar-a-Lago never to be heard from again. He’s anything but a Trump true believer.

But Mitch McConnell believes in power. As he cast about trying to get a sense of where Republicans are in the wake of Trump’s disastrous performance since the election and the incitement of a violent insurrection on January 6th, he;floated trial balloons about supporting impeachment and made some critical speeches. But he never had any intention of allowing Donald Trump to be convicted in a Senate trial, even if it were possible. How do we know this? As The Atlantic’s James Fallows;tweeted:

-On January 13, when House voted for impeachment, McConnell said Senate could not consider it *until* Trump had left office. -From Jan 20 onward, McConnell has said Senate should not consider it *because* Trump has left office.

Similarly, McConnell’s lugubrious paean to Senatorial comity as;he held the Senate hostage;demanding that Democrats agree not to eliminate the filibuster is a monument to shameless hypocrisy, as Fallows also demonstrates:

Take for instance;Rand Paul’s speech;on Tuesday, a tour de force of brazen bad faith.

Trump Has Never Put Party First But Breaking Up Wont Be Easy

ANALYSIS If I didnt write about the future of the Republican Party within the next 12 hours, my political analyst card would have been revoked. I dont make the rules, Im just trying to abide by them. So here are some thoughts on the state of the union between Republicans and President Donald Trump.;

Just a couple of weeks ago, the thought of 10 GOP House members voting to impeach Trump would have been unfathomable. Now some Republicans, including outgoing Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, appear eager to begin the next chapter of the GOP without him. Unsurprisingly, that is not going to be that easy.;

Even before the invasion of the U.S. Capitol, the GOPs messy transition from Trump looked inevitable. I wrote about it nearly two years ago in CQ Roll Call, Republicans have a post-Trump identity crisis on the horizon. I didnt, however, let my normally optimistic mind wander to what happened last week.;

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They Can’t Avoid The Trump Stench And They Know It

In the past, presidents have told big lies mostly for one of two reasons. In the midst of scandal or failure, they told lies to protect themselves and deny that they had done wrong: I am not a crook, we did not trade arms for hostages, I did not have sexual relations with that woman. Or they lied to convince the public to go along with a policy initiative, whether a war or a tax cut or a new program, when the truth was insufficiently persuasive.

Unlike his predecessors, President Trump lies for any reason at all.

I imagine the sinking feeling his aides get when he blurts out another whopper. “Now I’m going to have to go out and defend this,” they say with a sigh, then huddle together to arrive at the least laughable spin they can come up with, so they can rationalize the lie which Trump will of course be unwilling to retreat from.

White House staff have little choice but to reinforce, justify, and repeat their boss’ lies, though I suppose they could retain some shred of dignity and integrity by quitting. But what about Trump’s fellow Republicans, particularly the ones in Congress? They’re in an uncomfortable position, knowing that he’s still popular with the GOP base and so not having his back could have electoral costs. Being a “maverick” might sound appealing, but not when it’s going to cost you lots of votes or hinder your ability to work with the rest of the party on your legislative priorities.

Questions About Trump’s Second Impeachment Trial

Our reporters will answer a selection of your questions in a live chat this week.

Sen. Chris Coons , perhaps Bidens closest confidant in the Senate, said that during his hour-long meeting with the president last week, We did not talk about impeachment. Biden, Coons said, is relentlessly focused on delivering coronavirus relief to Americans, as well as countering China and Russia.

Coons was one of a few Democratic senators who balked at the idea of the House impeachment managers seeking to call Trump in as a witness for the trial, calling it a terrible idea. The Delaware Democrat, like many others in the party, is eager to get the trial in the Senates rear-view mirror.

Republicans, too, want to get through the trial as quickly and painlessly as possible. Apart from arguing that the proceedings are unconstitutional, they have not mounted a substantive defense of Trumps actions. Many of them have already publicly said they believe Trumps rhetoric was reckless and irresponsible.

Focusing on a procedural defense, though, allows Republicans to defend the most popular figure in their party without having to justify the alleged conduct at the heart of the Houses impeachment case.

I think most of the focus is going to be on the constitutionality and the precedent set by trying a former officeholder, Sen. John Cornyn said.

By BEN LEONARD

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Vision: Make It Nine For Novembers Debate

A new national Quinnipiac poll released this morning has Amy Klobuchar at 3 percent support which means she appears to have qualified for Novembers debate by hitting 3 percent or more in at least four qualifying polls.

The nine who have qualified: Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Pete Buttigieg, Kamala Harris, Andrew Yang, Cory Booker, Tom Steyer and now Klobuchar.

After Bidens sunny polling forecast from yesterdays CNN poll, todays forecast for him is cloudy and rainy.

Republican Acquittal Of Trump Is A Pivotal Moment For The Party

The vote, signaling how thoroughly the party has come to be defined by the personality of one man, is likely to leave a blemish on the historical record.

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By Alexander Burns

During the first trial of Donald J. Trump, 13 months ago, the former president commanded near-total fealty from his party. His conservative defenders were ardent and numerous, and Republican votes to convict him for pressuring Ukraine to help him smear Joseph R. Biden Jr. were virtually nonexistent.

In his second trial, Mr. Trump, no longer president, received less ferocious Republican support. His apologists were sparser in number and seemed to lack enthusiasm. Far fewer conservatives defended the substance of his actions, instead dwelling on technical complaints while skirting the issue of his guilt on the charge of inciting the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol.

And this time, seven Republican senators voted with Democrats to convict Mr. Trump the most bipartisan rebuke ever delivered in an impeachment process. Several others, including Mitch McConnell, the minority leader, intimated that Mr. Trump might deserve to face criminal prosecution.

Mr. McConnell, speaking from the Senate floor after the vote, denounced Mr. Trumps unconscionable behavior and held himresponsible for having given inspiration to lawlessness and violence.

Indeed, in a statement celebrating the Senate vote on Saturday, Mr. Trump declared that his political movement has only just begun.

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What We Covered Here

• The Senate voted that the second impeachment trial of former President Trump is constitutional despite calls from his lawyers and some Republicans to dismiss proceedings.
• The House impeachment managers showed footage of the Capitol riot during todays debate and charged that Trump is culpable for inciting them.
• The Democrats will have up to 16 hours spread over the next two days to make their case in the Senate to convict the former President.;

Our live coverage has ended for the night. See how the day unfolded in the posts below.

Republican Senator: Trump’s Legal Team Was Not Very Well Prepared

From CNN’s Josiah Ryan

Republican Sen. Kevin Cramer said former President Trump’s legal team seemed disorganized and ill-prepared in their presentation on the first day of proceedings in the impeachment trial.;

“My first thought was that I don’t think they were very well prepared for what was something other than a discussion about the jurisdictional question,” said Cramer when asked by CNN’s Erin Burnett about what he thought of the defense team’s performance today.;

Cramer said Trump’s lawyers seemed to be thrown off by the arguments presented by the House impeachment managers.

The Republican pointed out that managers realized they likely had secured enough to settle the question of whether the trial should go on, and had begun to argue their case in favor of the former President’s guilt, deploying a 13-minute emotional video along with a personal appeal.

“I think that threw Mr. Castor off a little bit, quite honestly,” Cramer told Burnett, referring to Bruce Castor, an attorney for Trump.

The Senate voted 56-44 that the impeachment trial is constitutional.

“And then of course it wasn’t until about the 90th minute that Mr. Schoen got to the actual text of the Constitution which dealt with the question of jurisdiction,” he continued, referring to David Schoen, another of the former President’s attorneys. “…I think they were thrown off frankly, I think they were unprepared.”

Cramer said he believe both sides “made relevant points to;what’s next.”

Watch here:

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Republicans Cant Understand Democrats

Only one in four Republican voters felt that most or almost all Democratic voters sincerely believed they were;voting in the best interests of the country.;;Rather, many Republicans told us that Democratic voters were brainwashed by the propaganda of the mainstream media, or voting solely in their self-interest to preserve undeserved welfare and food stamp benefits.

We asked every Republican in the sample to do their best to imagine that they were a Democrat and sincerely believed that the Democratic Party was best for the country.;;We asked them to explain their support for the Democratic Party as an actual Democratic voter might.;;For example, a 64-year-old strong Republican man from Illinois surmised that Democrats want to help the poor, save Social Security, and tax the rich.;;;

But most had trouble looking at the world through Democratic eyes. Typical was a a 59-year-old Floridian who wrote I dont want to work and I want cradle to grave assistance. In other words, Mommy!;Indeed, roughly one in six Republican voters answered in the persona of a Democratic voter who is motivated free college, free health care, free welfare, and so on.;;They see Democrats as voting in order to get free stuff without having to work for it was extremely common roughly one in six Republican voters used the word free in the their answers, whereas no real Democratic voters in our sample answered this way.;

Hes Just Investigating Corruption

Republicans also tend to argue that Trump is simply trying to uncover corruption by asking other countries to investigate the Bidens.

House Minority Whip Steve Scalise said on MSNBC September 29 that in their conversation and President Trump are talking aboutthings that both of them are doing to clean up corruption and drain the swamp.

On October 4, Sen. Ron Johnson told reporters that Trump is concerned about corruption and that he takes what President Trump is saying at face value.

Given Trumps past statements and actions, there is reason to be suspicious of his claims that this has nothing to do with politics, and that his sole motivation is to clean up corruption.

In the transcript of his phone call with Zelensky, Trump never mentions corruption and only focuses on conspiracy theories around the DNC server, a US cybersecurity firm, and the Bidens. Theres no evidence to support any of the theories mentioned by Trump.

Trump has also defended and expressed sympathy for his former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, who spent years working for the corrupt former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.

Manafort is currently in prison for tax fraud.

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