Hi james,
At the risk of sounding like a starry-eyed optimist, America might just make it. Sure, fascism is on the rise under the MAGA banner and Donald Trump seems determined to crown himself president or destroy our democracy trying, but there is an increasingly strong chance that the good guys will triumph in November.
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A battery of new polls including eight national surveys show Joe Biden’s numbers ticking up against Trump. At least one shows the president gaining ground in six swing states, tying with Trump in Pennsylvania and Michigan while leading him in Wisconsin. At the same time, and perhaps even more importantly, the Democratic incumbent has been absolutely crushing his disgraced predecessor in fundraising.
Just last week, Biden held a fundraiser with Barack Obama and Bill Clinton that raked in a historic $25 million in reelection donations. To put that number into context, Donald Trump only managed to raise $20 million in the entire month of February (compared to Biden’s $53 million for that month). That fundraising gap would be a problem for Trump under the best of circumstances but under current circumstances — which is to say, drowning as he is in legal fees and outstanding courtroom damages — it could very well prove insurmountable.
Tell RFK Jr. to drop his MAGA-fueled presidential campaign!
On top of that, Trump’s supposedly iron grip on the Republican Party itself is looking more and more like a wet noodle clasp. He emerged from the GOP primary far from unscathed, with only 49% of Nikki Haley supporters stating that they’d support him in the election. 37% said that they’d rather cast their vote for Biden. It should go without saying, but if Trump can’t manage to unite the base of his own party he stands little to no chance of putting together an electorally viable coalition.
And Biden continues to seize the initiative. Operating with an advertising dexterity that continues to elude the battered and directionless Trump campaign, Biden’s people have already begun cutting spots targeting Haley voters with reminders that Trump repeatedly called her a “birdbrain” and bluntly stated that he doesn’t want the support of her supporters.
From here out, things are only going to get worse for Trump. His hush money trial is slated to begin April 15th and that will bring with it a crushing wave of bad PR. Americans will be reminded on a daily basis about his sordid efforts to bribe a pornstar to help him win in 2016 and those reminders will be accompanied by what are sure to be near-daily deranged outbursts from Trump.
Most Americans have been able to tune Trump out over the past few years, insulated as they are by the competent leadership currently ensconced in the White House, but as the election draws closer they’ll be forced to once again consider the idea of handing the keys of their country to this vile ogre of a man. Given the choice between Biden’s calm, level-headed leadership and Trump’s incoherent, criminally-minded schemes, I’m confident that we’ll make the right decision.
Stay focused, stay energized.
Brian
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