President Trump has given a new twist to German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche’s famous line, “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.” In the case of the president, that which hurts him outside his base only makes him stronger within his base.
Someone is going to write a book about the GOP in this first two years under Trump and title it Doubling Down for the big bet that Republicans are placing on his appeals to the base to the exclusion of those outside of it. …
Whether you label this America First or call it isolationism, protectionism, or nativism, the GOP coalition is increasingly centered on rural and small-town America and working-class whites, particularly in the Deep South and heartland. The question is whether the recipe that worked for him in 2016 will work for the entire party in 2018 and 2020. CONT.
Charlie Cook