Watching President Donald Trump mount the steps of the White House early this week was a surreal experience. Looking remarkably orange, he labored his way up the stairs and turned to face the world as though he was master of the universe.
He has asserted that his COVID-19 was God’s will.
Trump’s appearance on that balcony was as though a drunken driver managed to get home safely, wobbled up the steps to the front porch and declared to the world that anybody can do this. Tell that to the 34 people in Trump’s sphere who, as of this writing, have also been infected. The long list includes loyal staffers, innocent White House personnel, military leaders and a number of close confidants including Hope Hicks, Kellyanne Conway and Stephen Miller.
People who are loyal to Donald Trump have and will continue to pay a price. Perhaps no one will pay a heavier price than Vice President Mike Pence, who has been riding shotgun with the president as he careened through the four years of his term.
Trump supporters over the last few years have employed the phrase “Trump Derangement Syndrome” to describe the liberals and the “fake” news media who are obsessed with unfairly criticizing the president. The tables are turning. If the polls are anywhere near correct, the syndrome is going to hammer all of the people who have stayed loyal to him through wildfire hell and devastating high water.
On Wednesday night, in the vice presidential debate, Pence was his characteristic sanctimonious, condescending and dishonest self. Although Pence doesn’t have some of the more obvious signs of sociopathy, he lies with an ease that even Donald Trump can admire. Many political observers believe his ride in the Trumpmobile was intended as a prelude to his own presidential aspirations in 2024, regardless of the outcome of this year’s election. Not going to happen.
I’m usually reluctant to celebrate others’ suffering, but watching the desperation of Republicans as the end draws nigh is a guilty pleasure. Pence may have believed that hitching his wagon to this reality star would raise him high in the firmament of potential presidential candidates, but that wagon isn’t going to the stars. This joy ride is headed for the ditch.
In 2016, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham declared that Trump was a “race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot,” but ended up supporting every dubious and malicious act of the president. He now finds himself in the fight of his political life against Jaime Harrison. All over the country, Republicans who swallowed their integrity are choking as their political careers implode. It couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of people.
There are plenty of Republicans who had the integrity to get out of that wagon before it crashed. Former Republican National Committee chair Michael Steele, Republican strategist Steve Schmidt and scores of other prominent Republicans who are part of the Lincoln Project still have some political life ahead of them. Those who gambled and stayed with Trump are out of luck.
Political insiders, including Democratic senators and representatives, frequently report that in private conversations most Republican members of Congress know that Trump is dangerous and narcissistic. Were the trade-offs worth it to them? Two or three conservative Supreme Court justices and a slew of conservative federal judges will have an impact long after Trump is out of office and/or in jail. But at what ultimate cost?
Even decent Republicans hold their tongues knowing that any public criticism of Trump will lead to a primary challenge in their home district where the failure to offer fealty to Trump would sound a death knell. It is a magnificent Faustian bargain. Sell your soul to keep your seat.
As Nov. 3 nears, it seems more and more likely that they will have lost their souls and lost their seats. It was a bad bet from the beginning. Taking all of your chips to a Trump casino has always been a very bad idea indeed. Suckers and losers.
Steve Nelson lives in Boulder, Colo., and Sharon. He can be reached at stevehutnelson@gmail.com.