It is Going to Get Worse Before It Gets Better

The Grifter in Chief’s (GC) shredding of the Constitution in his drive to fake the deportation of millions of immigrants is going to get worse before it gets better. The GF is a man who cannot bear to see himself as a loser or to admit that he is wrong. It has always been obvious that he could not deport practically the entire agricultural work force along with a large share of the construction workers without generating enormous opposition including opposition in red states. Now, his tariff program may also be at risk because people are beginning to realize that the tariffs are hurting them. Although it has been reported that most truck drivers voted for Trump, they are realizing that their industry will be disproportionately hurt by tariffs, and their job security may be at risk. Support for the GC is dwindling.

The GC Diverts Attention

With both his signature programs at risk, the GC will work to keep public attention focused on his fight with the courts over the extent of his authority to deport people. He will insist on his power to deport and imprison people at will, and as he loses that fight, he will work to build the myth that if only the courts had not overstepped their authority, he would have been able to do all that he promised. He and his supporters will do everything they can to limit the freedom of the press, as we can see in the latest move by Pam Bondi.

This approach is the similar to the approach he used in his response to the assault on the Capital on January 6, 2021.  He and his supporters propagated the myth that the election had been stolen and that the people who attacked were patriots who were only trying to prevent the certification of a fraudulent election. That strategy worked very well for him. So, I predict that he will use it again.

He will commit more egregious breaches of The Bill of Rights, and many lawsuits will be filed against those breaches. The Supreme Court will have no choice but to declare the breaches unconstitutional, and he will declare the attacks on him to be a witch hunt. He will throw doubt on the the question of whether people really have or deserve constitutionally protected rights. The news media will be full of that controversy and will lack space to cover the harm that his tariff policies are causing to ordinary Americans.

'Not My Fault'

In addition, his struggle will form the basis of a political strategy based on the idea that the harm was not really caused by his policies. It was caused by the resistance to them. If only he had been allowed to do what he wanted to do, everything would have turned out well. His diehard supporters will enthusiastically support Trump's story which fits well with the attitude described by David French and Damon Winter in their photo essay  in the New York Times. 

[Trump's] supporters see virtually every significant American institution opposed to his rise. The mainstream media, the universities, Hollywood: They’re all united in opposition to Trump.

As a consequence, supporting Trump is an act of defiance in and of itself. This is one reason you see Trump supporters wearing clothing that says things like “Lions, not sheep.” Trump is a lion, and his supporters are lions for standing beside him.

He Will Lose in the End

The GC's breaches of the Constitution will appear to some of his supporters as courageous acts aimed at saving our country, and they will continue to support him. However, not all members of his party will see things that way. Already, his support is dwindling, and members of Congress are finding the courage to oppose him. He may well fail even to pass his proposed budget. In the end he will lose, but not immediately. It is going to get worse before it gets better.