Trump can't take the GOP base's support for granted
by Kimberly Ross
| December 14, 2018 01:59 PM
Now that the midterm elections are a thing of the past, the 2020 presidential election is in full swing. Although there remains a fair amount of MAGA momentum, the Republican Party should not take any of its support for granted. If the 2016 election was about answering eight years of former President Barack Obama with a GOP response and beating an "inevitable" Democratic candidate, this round is about fighting to maintain somewhat crumbling control.
At present, President Trump is in the midst of a storm. Among other things, his former lackey and attorney, Michael Cohen, is now a convicted felon facing three years in prison, the Russia investigation continues to swirl, and the new year holds the promise of little more than congressional deadlock. Though his chief concern, tackling illegal immigration, is popular with his adoring electorate, his manner of attack doesn't seem to sit well with some fellow Republicans.
The GOP base that elected him swooned during his White House meeting with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., earlier this week. In a rare display, those three argued, rather embarrassingly, in front of the media and a quiet Vice President Mike Pence. That televised contention is a perfect snapshot of the country's division as we head into 2019. But while the president presented a strong front in the face of the disagreeing Democrats seated next to him, it seems the Republicans on Capitol Hill are much less enthusiastic about immediately addressing the wall, and funding, than those they represent:
House Republicans struggled on Wednesday to come up with a strategy to fulfill Trump’s demand. GOP leaders had not decided how they would fund the wall or whether to even schedule a vote on the matter this week. ... That means the president’s ability to blame ... Democrats for blocking the bill rests on first getting a funding measure through the House — something that is far from a slam dunk.
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https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/trump-cant-take-the-gop-bases-support-for-granted
