The greatest threat to Donald Trump’s hold on the GOP
comes from Ron DeSantis, who may be more MAGA than the MAGA king himself.
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/ron-desantis-trumpism.html
Jonathan Chait:
It is crucial to understand that the critique of Trump that prevails among Republican officials is far narrower than the one proffered by Democrats or Never Trumpers. They don’t object to Trump’s racism, corruption, lying, or contempt for democratic norms, except to the extent that these qualities hurt the party’s brand. What irritates, instead, is Trump’s constant disregard for basic political self-preservation. DeSantis offers them the prospect of a party leader who can harness all the right-wing populist energy generated by Trump without the latter’s childlike inability to focus on what his advisers tell him. One DeSantis ally, confiding to the New York Times, summed up his appeal as “competent Trumpism.”
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/ron-desantis-trumpism.html
Jonathan Chait:
It is crucial to understand that the critique of Trump that prevails among Republican officials is far narrower than the one proffered by Democrats or Never Trumpers. They don’t object to Trump’s racism, corruption, lying, or contempt for democratic norms, except to the extent that these qualities hurt the party’s brand. What irritates, instead, is Trump’s constant disregard for basic political self-preservation. DeSantis offers them the prospect of a party leader who can harness all the right-wing populist energy generated by Trump without the latter’s childlike inability to focus on what his advisers tell him. One DeSantis ally, confiding to the New York Times, summed up his appeal as “competent Trumpism.”