I have to say Trump puts on a really good show. He manages to capture everyone's attention even in the agony of defeat. Who else can generate media buzz over a 12,000-man march on Washington or the loony attempts to stop the certification of vote counts in states with the help of his intrepid lawyer Rudolph Giuliani? He's managed to pull most of the Republican leadership in Washington behind him as he tries to stave off the inevitable conclusion to this election that he will have step down on January 20, 2021, whether he likes it or not.
Some have tried to argue that this is all part of some strategy to energize Georgia conservative voters in the Senate run-off elections in January, but Trump never thinks about anyone other than himself. More likely he imagines there is still some way he can hold onto the reins of power, desperately trying to avoid his return to civilian life where he faces a mountain of lawsuits and criminal charges being filed against him. In the end, he will probably step down before January 20 so that interim President Pence can pardon him for any potential federal charges brought against him.
It's not like he is doing anything now other than firing those he didn't think were loyal to him during this time of need. His latest firing was the head of cyber-security, who had the audacity to call this the most secure general election in history, nullifying Trump's claims of rampant voter fraud including tampering with poll machines.
Trump has also flushed out his Defense department, determined to pull out as many troops as he can from Afghanistan and Iraq over the next two months, although it will be interesting to see if the Pentagon complies with his orders or chooses to defer them until Biden's administration is sworn in. Like so many of his actions, this makes little sense beyond a big "fuck you" to establishment Republicans who he didn't think went to bat for him during the election.
Trump essentially found himself a man alone with few vocal endorsements, relying on his telegenic ability to captivate audiences with his rambling monologues punctuated by moments where he shucked and jived to the rhythm of Village People's YMCA. To watch him on the campaign trail was to see the height of absurdity or depth of depravity, depending on how you viewed him. He made no sense whatsoever in his speeches. His campaign was an absolute mess. He bombed in his televised town halls and debates. To watch him in the closing weeks of the election was to witness a slow motion train wreck. Yet, he still managed to garner 73 million votes and counting.
It really makes you wonder what kind of hold he has over the American imagination, which is why he remains dangerous, even in defeat. We don't know what last minute executive orders he will issue. He apparently considered bombing Iran's nuclear reactor in anger over the election but was talked out of it. I guess he was told it didn't fit with his vision of removing US troops from Central Asia, and we were spared what would have been a very ugly incident. However, he still has more than 60 days to change his mind.
For the most part, he has been playing golf and watching television. All his favorite Fox friends continue to stand behind him. Lou Dobbs perhaps the most vociferous in demanding Republican state legislatures nullify election results in Georgia, Arizona and Michigan. A sentiment echoed by his little gnome Lindsey Graham, who tried to pressure the Georgia secretary of state into throwing out votes in heavily Democratic districts. Graham is the chairman of the Senate judiciary committee no less. Most US Republican legislators remain mum, not wanting to put themselves out on a limb they can't climb back from, but have chosen to give their president space by not extending congratulations to President-elect Biden until all the state elections are certified.
That is beginning to take shape. There was some tension in the Detroit area when Wayne County canvassers deadlocked over certifying the results, but eventually the Republican representatives gave way to the will of the people, much to Donald Trump's chagrin. Mind you, Biden won Michigan by more than 150,000 votes. It wasn't even close.
Georgia was much tighter and all kinds of speculation emerged when more than 2400 uncounted votes were reported in Fox County. In then end, Trump gained about 1000 votes but is still well short of Biden and it is likely Georgia will soon certify its results as well, formally declaring Biden the winner.
The Trump campaign has been trying to drum up $8 million from its faithful to pay for a recount in Wisconsin. His campaign is apparently wallowing in so much debt that 60 cents of every dollar goes toward paying it down. I guess this is why Team Trump couldn't pay for buses to take people home after his rallies in the final week of the election. Even if his campaign is able to come up with the money by the end of today, it is highly unlikely he will find 20,000 votes buried in the tallies to turn the election in his favor. Even if he did, Wisconsin only represents 10 electoral votes.
Math is working against Trump. He has to turn at least three states in his favor to overturn the results. Not any three states mind you, but three states that would yield at least 37 electoral votes. The biggest prize is Pennsylvania but all his court pleas have been rejected and the state will soon be certifying its results provided the Republican state legislature doesn't attempt to block the process.
At some point, Trump will be forced to accept reality. Many worry that the delay hinders Biden's transition to the Oval Office, but there really isn't much this administration has done that Biden will want to carry forward, and it is not like Joe can't gain important information through secondary sources. There are any number of back channels. The Biden campaign planned for this contingency, setting aside money to cover the costs, which the Trump administration is currently blocking federal funding. Joe Biden is also an old hand in Washington so he will be able to hit the ground running whether or not the Trump administration chooses to cooperate with him.
The only thing Trump is effectively doing is eroding what little is left of his reputation, not that he had much of one to begin with. GOP operatives are beginning to worry that all these denials may hurt their Senate prospects in Georgia, especially when his toadies try to pressure state officials. No one likes the intrusion of the federal government into state affairs, which the Georgia secretary of state made very clear when calling out Lindsey Antebellum. This has started to make Mitch McTurtle squirm a little bit, as he needs both those senators to retain a Republican majority in the US Senate, otherwise Kamala Harris will lord of the chamber as the deciding 51st vote. Wouldn't that be grand!
Yep, it is time for this reality show to draw to an end and let Republicans salvage what little they can from four years of Trumpism. We know he will still hang around like a bad hangover, but he will no longer have the influence he had in the White House. He will once again be reduced to the margins and Americans can return to some measure of normalcy with the hope these coronavirus vaccines will soon be widely available. The only question left is whether Trump will leave the White House peacefully or if he will need to be escorted out. I'm kinda of looking forward to the latter given this has been perhaps the most criminal administration in history.
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