Since announcing yet another bid for the presidency after losing his own race in 2020 and several for the Republicans in 2022, Donald Trump has not led much of a campaign. The twice-impeached ex-president who lost the popular vote twice and tried to stage a coup has held no rallies, no speaking engagements, and no other events. It’s almost as if he’s not actually running with any serious intent and, instead, is just trying to safeguard himself from the onslaught of very serious investigations into his numerous criminal acts before and during his stint in the White House.
Not running at all appears to be the best idea, according to new polls. Not only did Trump’s candidates lose nearly across the board in the 2022 midterms, a USA Today/Suffolk poll shows Trump lagging far behind his most likely rival in the GOP, Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida, he of the banning books and Don’t Say Gay fame. His imminent run is so likely that Trump has already prepared a schoolyard bully nickname for the wanna-be dictator: Ron DeSanctimonious.
It isn’t as if the Republican Party is ready to put the years of Trump’s criminal schemes and autocratic policies behind them, it appears to be Trump himself and not his policies that have put voters off for the next election. While the GOP is still just as rabidly pro-autocrat as ever, they appear to be coming around to the understanding that their former leader is no longer capable of winning any election.
According to USA Today:
‘By 2-1, GOP and GOP-leaning voters now say they want Trump’s policies but a different standard-bearer to carry them. While 31% want the former president to run, 61% prefer some other Republican nominee who would continue the policies Trump has pursued. They have a name in mind: Two-thirds of Republicans and those inclined to vote Republican want Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to run for president. By double digits, 56% to 33%, they prefer DeSantis over Trump.’
Twitter had a lot of thoughts about the results of the latest polls well ahead of the 2024 elections. Read some of their comments below:
