Dem
51
GOP
49
We have consistently been skeptical that the people who form Donald Trump's base could ever line up, en masse, behind a brown woman who used to be a Sikh. The majority, maybe, but to win presidential elections on the Trump plan, you need every MAGA man and woman on deck.
Looks like we're not crazy. Or, if we are, our suppositions about Haley are not the proof of it. We say that because there has been a significant anti-Haley backlash in the last couple of weeks, along exactly the lines you would expect. There is, of course, the sexism, which has been on display during the Republican candidates' debates, and which has ratcheted up since. There is, of course, the racism, with model citizen Charlie Kirk taking the lead in demeaning Haley's racial and cultural background. And Tucker Carlson, who is both a sexist and a racist, has made clear that if Haley is on the Republican ticket, he will support a third-party candidate.
There are two clear signals coming through there, courtesy of the base and the far-right media establishment: (1) If Trump is unable to run, the RNC better not choose Haley as his replacement, and (2) If Trump is able to run, he better not choose Haley as his running mate. Trump follows more than he leads, particularly when it comes to the Tucker Carlsons and Charlie Kirks of the world, so we assume this ends any chance of her being tapped for the #2 slot. Meanwhile, do you think the GOP base and its media heroes will evolve substantially, in terms of tolerance, by 2028? We don't. (Z)