The votes from the midterm elections continue to be counted in the US this morning (Thursday), but already hours after the polls closed it became clear that the right-wing’s dreams of a “red wave” were shattered. Now, when the lesson-learning phase begins, many in the Republican Party are pointing the finger at the culprit: Donald Trump.
The former president stirred behind the scenes at a very early stage of the campaigns, and was responsible for selecting and strengthening many of the Republican candidates in the current round. The main criterion for him: politicians who supported his claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him by Joe Biden and the Democratic Party. Thus, in Arizona, Pennsylvania, New York, Nevada and many other states, the mainstream Republican candidates lost repeatedly to extreme candidates (and often also lacking any political experience) chosen by the former president, who was also preparing to announce a re-run in the 2024 elections.
However, one by one, the candidates that Trump personally selected, and also supported throughout the election campaign, lost to Democratic candidates who would likely have been easily defeated by those whom Trump rejected. On election night this picture began to clear up, and at this point it seems pretty clear. And now right-wing figures in politics and the media, including former devout supporters of the last president, are pulling knives.
The clearest expression of this trend was published this morning in the form of the cover of the most popular US tabloid, the New York Post. The front page features a grotesque rendering of Trump as Humpty Dumpty, with a caption blaming him for the loss of form and calling on Republicans to nurse the party without him.
“After three consecutive national election rounds in which he, his party, or both were swept by the voters, it’s time for even his most ardent fans to accept the truth: Trump is the political equivalent of K300,” read the column referenced by the cover, written by veteran conservative publicist C Van Podhortz. “Tuesday’s results indicate that Trump may be the biggest turnout factor in modern American history. The surest way to lose this midterm election was to be a Trump-endorsed politician. And that’s no exaggeration.”
It is not clear whether these results will be enough to finally oust Trump from control of the party, but if so, there is one clear candidate to replace him: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who won this week by a margin of almost 20 percent.