Analysis: Donald Trump is in full attack mode as Joe Biden’s victory celebration puts him in hiding

news7g11/15/2021

3 6 minutes read

White House formally rejects Trump's request to protect specific documents from being given to January 6 investigators

It often feels like the 45th President never leaves the stage, given the corrosive and complex impact of his tainted legacy on Washington. The traumatic aftermath of his tenure will take a new turn on Monday when his political expert Steve Bannon is expected to surrender after a federal grand jury indicted him last week for ignoring subpoenas from the House of Representatives about Trump’s coup plot. In the latest jarring flashback of that horrible day on January 6, Trump defended the rioters chant “Mike Pence Cave” after his vice president refused to drop the election, in the sound of a Interview done for a new book by Jonathan Karl published by ABC News.

Trump, as he relentlessly solidifies his plans for a likely 2024 presidential run, while stepping up efforts to increase his dominance over the Republican Party, vows to overthrow him. legislators support Biden’s $1 trillion infrastructure package. The sitting president will hold a high-capacity signing ceremony for the measure at the White House on Monday, including at least two Republican senators who will appear to oppose Trump. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a constant target of the former President who also voted for the bill, will, however, not be part of Biden’s victory. The event will serve as a reminder that Trump’s futile efforts to pass such infrastructure reform have become an object of ridicule.

If a winning President is needed, it’s Biden, who’s had a rough summer. When he signs the measure that he hopes will give a boost to his presidency, the President will give Mitch Landrieu, the former Democratic mayor of New Orleans, was in charge of implementing the vast new law. But it’s unlikely that a rare bipartisan spending program, needed to repair America’s roads, railroads, bridges and airports, would be the magic trick to a growing presidency. fell into turmoil.

Biden, whose approval rating dropped to 41% in one Washington Post / ABC News poll on Sunday, is facing accusations that he isn’t focused enough on the issues Americans care most about. A CNN/SSRS Poll Released last week found that 58% of Americans believe Biden has failed to pay attention to the nation’s most important issues. More than a third of respondents said the economy was the most pressing issue.

The alarming spike in inflation and high gasoline prices are creating a perfect economic storm that is felt by everyone in the country and which builds political discontent. While elements of the yet-to-be-adopted infrastructure plan and social spending plan can create jobs and ease the burden on working Americans, they will take months. and many years to take effect. The high cost of living, largely due to the pandemic and supply chain-related issues, is keeping Republicans open wide when the midterm elections take place a year from now. With Thanksgiving turkey costs and travel rising due to supply chain contingencies and high energy prices, a legislative victory should ease Biden’s predicament in the short term. The White House may also have another political battle to quell this week follow a CNN story that revealed mutual frustration between the West Wing and Vice President Kamala Harris over her performance so far in the administration.

Trump deflects democracy while Biden tries to save it

In many ways, Trump and Biden are continuing the battle the former President lost in the 2020 election. The blocking of Trump and his allies on the committee on January 6 represents an extension of the battle. Attack on democracy was born when he could not accept the truth of his defeat a year ago.

Trump and his volcanic ego are now trying to turn the 2022 midterm elections – and potentially the 2024 elections – into a referendum on his lies that the election The president was ultimately stolen, a story that millions of GOP voters have accepted. It also helps explain why he and his allies are trying to cover up the truth about an attempt to destabilize democracy.

While Trump’s challenge to the rule of law is embedded in his political project, Biden’s infrastructure bill is also deeply rooted in the DNA of his presidency. He intends the bipartisan bill to demonstrate that Americans can achieve great things when they are united and not torn apart by spoilers like Trump. His use of government to create jobs and improve the lives of working Americans has another purpose. The infrastructure bill and the spending bill, which still faces an uncertain fate amid internal clashes on Capitol Hill, are intended to show that democracy works and dissipates. populist indignation that is so often provoked by Trump.

Bannon's indictment could mark a turning point

News that the architect of that populist movement was indicted by a federal grand jury on Friday was a major development in the confrontation between Trump and the House select committee investigating the uprising. which he provoked on January 6.

Bannon, a former White House official and jockey, is said to have played a key role behind the scenes in a “war room” dedicated to Trump’s attempt to steal the election. by disrupting the peaceful transfer of power to Biden. His claim that his conversations with Trump were protected by executive privilege appear to have no legal validity as he did not even serve as an official at the time of the uprising. And the committee wants to discuss his conversations with other Trump supporters that don’t involve the former President.

If convicted, Bannon, 67, could face up to a year in prison and a fine of up to $1,000 for each count against him. The Justice Department’s decision to handle the case follows a formal indictment of contempt by Congress that was approved by the House of Representatives. The indictment made an important statement for now and for the future about Congress’s ability to enforce subpoenas in significant investigations. But it is likely to be honored by Bannon as a badge of honor and spurred claims that once again a state-level political establishment is trying to crack down on Trump – a core story for the former’s appeal. The president among many grassroots supporters.

Bannon’s indictment could be a sign that the House Select Committee, in a race against time in the event the GOP takes back the chamber next year and shuts it down, is ready to take a tough line against the Republicans. The witness refused to testify. This includes former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, who did not show up on Friday.

“When the witnesses finally decided, as Meadows said, that they wouldn’t even bother showing up, that they despised the law to the point of it, it forced us to suffer a lot, and we did. I’ll move quickly,” Democratic committee member Representative Adam Schiff of California said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” program.

‘Cold, hard truth’

One of 10 Republicans in the House who voted to impeach Trump over the uprising, Representative Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio, issue an unusual warning on Sunday about Trump’s hold on the party and his influence.

“The hard truth is that Donald Trump led us into a trench on January 6. The former President lied to us. He lied to every one of us and in so doing, he lied to us. That cost (Republicans) for the House, Senate and White House,” Gonzalez told Jake Tapper on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

“I see, basically, a person who can’t be in office again because of what he did around January 6. But I also see some people being a huge political loser. And I I don’t know why anyone who wants to win the upcoming elections would follow that. I simply don’t understand morally. I certainly don’t understand politically. Neither do I. meaningful. “

Trump has targeted members like Gonzalez with their impeachment votes, supporting a key challenger, the Ohio congressman, who has said he will not run for re-election. But now the former President is targeting 13 Republicans in the House and 19 in the Senate who voted for the infrastructure bill, angry that they produced a victory. to the sitting President on an issue on which Trump has clearly made no progress.

“Saving America begins with saving the GOP from RINO, ticket sales, and known losers!” Trump wrote in one of several weekend statements filled with outrage and full of lies. This person called on pro-Trump forces to launch preliminary campaigns against lawmakers who support the infrastructure bill, as the former President tries to transform his party into his own anti-democratic image. me.

Trump’s power within the party and the impact of his campaigning against Republicans overtaking him was re-imagined on Sunday by the failure of a staunch Republican senator to refute his ideological claims. Wyoming Senator John Barrasso was asked repeatedly on ABC News “This Week” about Trump’s failure to stand with his then-vice president, who refused to bow to his pressure to hijack the election from Biden while following constitutional requirements to certify the results of the January election.

“President Trump brings a lot of energy to the party. He’s an enduring force,” Barrasso said. “I don’t agree with President Trump on everything,” he added. “I agree with him on the policies that have delivered the best economy of my life and I will continue to support those policies.”

But as Trump turned radical, the essential position of the Republican Party – making it easy for him to gain power – remained unchanged.

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