'This is not a contest that asks Republicans to abandon Trump in order to support Marco Rubio or democratic norms. DeSantis is a vehicle tailored precisely to supply the qualities Trump promised.' jonathanchait writes
This ignores a crucial difference. In both 2016, and the aftermath of the insurrection, there was no unified Republican alternative. The non-Trump candidates in 2016 infamously failed to coordinate, and even devoted most of their energy to attacking each other in the belief that the last non-Trump standing would automatically prevail. “Jeb, Rubio, Christie, Kasich, Walker… every one of these guys was as hyped as DeSantis is now.
After the insurrection, a brief window opened to move on, but the party lacked any obvious figure to rally around. And in between these events, Trump was president. What this meant is that abandoning Trump required siding with the Democrats. In 2016, remaining anti-Trump meant supporting Hillary Clinton’s election, and in 2021, it meant accepting the legitimacy of Joe Biden’s presidency. Now, however, it means standing with DeSantis. And while circa-2016 Trump’s opponents had appeal in the mainstream of their party, DeSantis draws support from its entirety, very much including the far right.are predictable.
“Republican loyalty to the unpredictable Trump could fade,” which “will empower DeSantis,” writes the arch-right-winger
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