Trump Scores at CPAC: The Road Back


Donald Trump’s February 28 keynote address to the Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) was an effective attack on Joe Biden’s emerging progressive presidency. The former president contrasted Biden’s actions with Trump’s own accomplishments, including protecting against open borders during Covid, striving to reopen schools, achieving U.S. energy independence, pushing the “Operation Warp Speed” vaccines, supporting open businesses over Blue state lockdowns, screening refugees from failed states like Syria, building peace between Israel and the Gulf States, isolating Iran and taking on China.

But it was Trump’s analysis (at 1:25:58) of the 2020 election that stood out for me:

Thanks to my coattails, Democrats failed to flip a single state legislature. Think of it, or a legislative chamber, because Republicans came out to vote for me.    .   . one [legislator] told me .   .   . “You know, I thought I was going to lose my position, lose my race. And I went out with my wife the night before the election. And I saw all these Trump signs and the American flags and the spirits on the streets.” I said, “You know, darling, I think we’re going to win.” He said, “But you were far, far, far more popular than me.” They do lots of polls. You were way, way ahead of me, sir. And the next day I was right. He said, he won the election by a lot, and you lost the election. And sir.   .   . you were so far ahead of me. You’re the person that brought everybody out to vote.


Trump got 11.2 million more votes in 2020 than in 2016, but lost by 4.5%, a 1.6% wider margin than his popular vote deficit to Clinton in 2016. Yet in the congressional vote, Trump gathered 1.3 million more votes than the GOP House candidates. On the Democrat side, Biden’s anti-Trump voters, by contrast, cast a much higher 3.7 million votes for Joe than votes they delivered for Democrats’ House candidates.

That difference of 2.4 million between Trump and House Republicans on one hand, and Biden and Democratic House candidates on the other explains why the GOP gained 16 House seats from the 2018 midterm House election. Millions of Republicans showed up to back Trump. They also voted “down ballot” for Republicans in lower races, including the Senate, the House, Governors, and State Legislators — as Trump noted. Anti-Trump Biden voters, on the other hand, just smashed Trump and stopped voting, not choosing to help Democrats in lower office races.

Ever saw an angrier, less happy bunch of winners than progressives who now hold the Presidency, Senate, and House? These elite folks have privately figured out the people aren’t with them, though they won’t say so publicly.

Comments

  1. SamMarch 8, 2021 at 10:54 AM

    Great perspective. Trump's personality lost him the election but his policies gained seats in the state races.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. GFoxHawaiiMarch 9, 2021 at 1:54 PM

      I mostly agree. Trump's actions, not his Tweets, account for his popularity. But the folks love his fearless willingness to take on the powerful forces out to destroy him. That spirit helped motivate people to the polls to support "Trump Republican" policies.

      Delete

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