The circus has arrived. There’s no telling what happens to former President Trump’s poll numbers now that he’s been indicted and arraigned; we’re in uncharted territory. There are, however, some fairly remarkable clues emerging. …
It’s all just a new iteration of the same pattern we’ve seen since 2015: Trump says or does something, and everyone except the Trump base reacts with “this will take him down.” But it doesn’t. …
It’s clear, though, that once party elites turned to team Trump in the name of winning the 2016 election and staying in the president’s good graces once he was in office, they led the charge on disseminating the team Trump message—that he can do wrong, but he can’t be held accountable for it. The Republican electorate has overwhelmingly and unshakingly supported Trump since his nomination. The only difference this time is that the legal system gets to have its say, and the legal system is not bound to public opinion. CONTINUED
Natalie Jackson, National Journal
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