Earlier this week, Maggie Haberman at the NY Times broke a story on her Twitter feed: according to her Trump-insider sources, Donald Trump was telling multiple people that he believes he will be reinstated to the White House by August. I guess people were dunking on Haberman for her scoop, but I took her tweets seriously and so did other people. The basic gist of this lunatic delusion is that Trump believes that his unhinged lawsuits in various states (Arizona, Wisconsin, Georgia) will somehow magically reverse the election results, he’ll be declared “winner” of the 2020 presidential election and he’ll get to move back into the White House. Now, according to Charles C. W. Cooke at the g–damn National Review (a right-wing publication for intellectual fascists), Haberman’s reporting was completely true. Cooke has sources inside the Trump camp and it’s even worse than Haberman let on:
Two days ago, the New York Times’s Maggie Haberman reported that Donald Trump “has been telling a number of people he’s in contact with that he expects he will get reinstated by August.” In response, many figures on the right inserted their fingers into their ears and started screaming about fake news.
Instead, they should have listened — because Haberman’s reporting was correct. I can attest, from speaking to an array of different sources, that Donald Trump does indeed believe quite genuinely that he — along with former senators David Perdue and Martha McSally — will be “reinstated” to office this summer after “audits” of the 2020 elections in Arizona, Georgia, and a handful of other states have been completed. I can attest, too, that Trump is trying hard to recruit journalists, politicians, and other influential figures to promulgate this belief — not as a fundraising tool or an infantile bit of trolling or a trial balloon, but as a fact.
It will be tempting for weary conservatives to dismiss this information as “old news” or as “an irrelevance.” It will be tempting, too, to downplay the enormity of what is being claimed, or to change the subject, or to attack the messengers by implying that they must “hate” Trump and his voters. But such temptations should be assiduously avoided. We are not talking here about a fringe figure within the Republican tent, but about a man who hopes to make support for his outlandish claims “a litmus test of sorts as he decides whom to endorse for state and federal contests in 2022 and 2024.”
The scale of Trump’s delusion is quite startling. This is not merely an eccentric interpretation of the facts or an interesting foible, nor is it an irrelevant example of anguished post-presidency chatter. It is a rejection of reality, a rejection of law, and, ultimately, a rejection of the entire system of American government. There is no Reinstatement Clause within the United States Constitution. Hell, there is nothing even approximating a Reinstatement Clause within the United States Constitution. The election has been certified, Joe Biden is the president, and, until 2024, that is all there is to it. It does not matter what one’s view of Trump is. It does not matter whether one voted for or against Trump. It does not matter whether one views Trump’s role within the Republican Party favorably or unfavorably. We are talking here about cold, hard, neutral facts that obtain irrespective of one’s preferences; it is not too much to ask that the former head of the executive branch should understand them.
Pleasure to see all of the cancel-culture-promoting woke warriors over at *checks notes* the National Review showing a real sense of terror that Donald Trump is still out in the world, spreading his delusions like a highly contagious virus. The rest of Cooke’s piece is just a red, pulsating siren for the Republican Party and conservatives writ large: do not cozy up to Donald Trump. Trump’s delusions, according to Cooke, are “otherworldly and obscene” and “There is nothing to be gained for conservatism by pretending otherwise.” As in, dear GOP, you don’t have to play along with this one. You don’t have to go on Fox News and pretend that you also believe that Donald Trump will be reinstated in August. Now, do I still expect Republicans to do just that? I’m sure Matt Gaetz is already organizing his talking points for why Trump will be allowed to retake the oath of office at Mar-a-Lago.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid.
Just came here to say his picture makes me wanna throw up
Before Trump I had never realized of how much hate I am capable of. Pure, undiluted, throbbing hate. Sometimes I forget about it, and then I see his picture and it’s there again, undiminished.
Same here. I used to be such a tolerant “let’s hear both sides” type person. I can’t even stand to be around anyone who supports/supported this loser.
SAME!!!!! I always thought, “sure lets hear both sides”. Not with this asshat. I walk away from anyone who supports him and his delusional come back.
100% same here too.
Yes, so much. And also a tiny, inconsequential, but nevertheless burning question: WHY IS HE WEARING BLACK SOCKS??? FFS, the socks should match the PANTS, not the SHOES, you cretin.
He’s like Pennywise the Clown, who never truly goes away. He’s always reminded me of Pennywise anyway.
That’s a good, yet scary (!), analogy.
this is scarely accurate.
too true
So now this particular delusion becomes the litmus test. If a politician or Republican official does not subscribe to it in all its fevered insanity, then woe to that person.
They’re all going to buy into this one.
yeah, I don’t understand why they’re surprised at this delusion. The GOP has, at the state and national level, been pushing the big lie to the point they punished a dedicated extreme RW voted w/Trump proven track record Liz Cheney while refusing to take any action against the likes of Marjorie Traitor Greene/Matt Gaetz/Nicole Boebert. They’re also not disavowing the craziness of who’s handling the recounts so one can only surmise that the GOP is, by & large, on board with feeding into Trump’s delusions and seeing if they can make it come true
The fact that Trump just came out with his endorsement of Greg Abbott makes me ill. Texas Republicans have really gone cuckoo in the past few years.
More like, now they feel free to let their racism and cuckooness fly free and be celebrated.
Well Lara Trump apparently disavowed this yesterday on Fox. I thought she was one of his most reliable mouthpieces. In any case, I’m less worried about Trump than I am of the millions of people who are still all in on this garbage. I wish I could see a way out of this madness.
In the short clip I saw it was more like a denial with a wink. She said she hadn’t heard that but she also hasn’t heard everything. It felt to me like she was being purposely vague.
Ugh. I didn’t watch so I didn’t catch that. Of course she can’t outright dismiss it. Sowing confusion and doubt is what has gotten this wretched family so far.
Any time anything crazy comes out from the trump swamp, there’s always someone sent to half-heartedly deny it so they can play to both sides.
There are not many people out there that I despise as much as I despise Maggie Haberman. She is a parasite mascarading as a reporter, who has lived off scraps that were fed to her by her bestie Ivanka and this whole wretched family for decides. For four years she was allowed to amplify their voices in return for visibility and oh boy, how is she missing these good ol’ times. if there is one person in the world, who’d be happy to see him reinstalled, it’s Maggie.
As for Trump – i am not even sure he really believes in the possibility of coming back to the White House, but he is certainly afraid of being indicted and , thus, trying to incite violence again.
His personality disorders prevent him from believing he lost fairly. He believes he was cheated and must reclaim what he believes is his. He is definitely putting out a call to arms to his crazy base. I’m really worried about what’s coming this summer.
He’s insane but also why is this a surprise. He’s been saying crazy stuff for years and has told us the election was rigged over and over. He’s also using this as a continued way to grift off the moronic gullible base.
A man who’s never lost or been told no is going to react badly, insanely, to 80M people telling him to f$ck off. Of course, he’s convinced himself he’s so special as to defy election laws. And if he believes he’ll be president again, he doesn’t have to worry about being indicted in NY. He’s delusional but this delusion also keeps the donor money rolling in.
He has actually lost quite a bit. He loses more than he wins. He is a delusional con artist.
His blog went down in flames in 29 days. His presidency is a national embarrassment & the lowest point for ethics in American history. I enjoy knowing that he moves faster & faster into obscurity. Yes, he has his fanatics but their fox-news-trained short attention span will wander off eventually. I just hope America can recover, learn something from this disaster and stuff all those POS racists back into their underground bunker.
I am sorry, but if you really believe any of this, you are dellusional. Trump might be gone (and he is not) but his legacy lives on and Democrats are completely and utterly unable to do anything about it. Republican Party is in full-blown fashist mode and once they come back into power in two years, they will finish his work and USA as we know it.
Well, I wouldn’t call someone delusional, not least because I myself am delusional and I really think that’s how I made it this far…but…he did get millions MORE votes in 2020 than he did in 2016, after that 4 year horror show, so…
He is not living in obscurity, that’s for sure.
that’s exactly what I mean, Darla. “Dellusional” is not necessarily an insult, but one shouldn’t ignore the facts: Trump might be gone, but, seriously, long live Trump. If Democrats don’t nuke the fillibuster, they will lose both the congress and the senate and USA will vote for DeSantis in 2024.
Unfortunately I agree with you Tang.
This isn’t even about Trump anymore – his ego and bloviating serves to sow more discord, distrust, and division to further destroy democracy in America and move it closer to Gilead. He’s a tool, literally and figuratively. But he’s also a narcissist who wants to have his name echo through the ages and he’s unfortunately achieving that.
Exactly. It’s not about Trump, Republicans don’t even need him anymore. He basically paved the way for Abbots and DeSantises, and Cruzes, und the new generation of Bushes, who, thanks to him, learned that you can do it out in the open and still get away with any atrocity you want.
I’ve been thinking a lot about the possibility of the GOP conducting a successful coup or the idea of Trump being re-instated.
I may be wrong but I don’t think it will happen or at least not in a “Myanmar” fashion anyway. Why do I say this? The biggest businesses and wealthiest movers and shakers reside in and conduct business from the US. A genuine coup or civil war would have dire consequences on not just the US economy but the global economy as well. It’s in everyone’s best interest if things remain stable.
The Trumpers who love to rebel-rouse are mostly doing so from comfortable lives and are in no hurry to give that up. Yes, thousands did storm the Capitol but the circumstances allowed them to be as successful as they were. It highlighted significant weaknesses in our system for sure but a lot had to happen to make it possible. Now, the insurrectionists are being rounded up and while many of the perpetrators who were just posting pictures on SM may receive light sentences, but the masterminds and groups who orchestrated the assault are going to be dismantled.
Had they been successful in murdering Congresspeople and Senators as well as severing the line of succession, do you know how much that would have disrupted business for the biggest influences on the economy? Yes, dark money from Russia did and continues to fund these efforts but Bezos, Gates,etc have their own fingers in the pie as well.
I could see them pressuring the politicians and orgs they donate to to shut this down asap if a full government over-throw were to happen. Again, they’d do this not out of a sense of altruism but business interests.
I’m also not saying we shouldn’t take these threats seriously. We should. The instigators need to be sought out and investigated/arrested or at least placed on a watch list. That goes not just for Trump but anyone who associates with the domestic terrorist groups. That being said, I just don’t see a genuine coup being tolerated by big business.
I could be wrong and I may have explained it poorly but that’s how I see it.
I understand your argument but i remember all great men kneeling from 2016-2020. Terrified of a tweet that would send their stock prices tumbling.
And I use “great men” in the way Lizzo asks “why men great till they gotta be great”, because there were NO great men during those years. They fell to their knees and stayed put. Including Robert Mueller.
It is women who fought.
Absolutely. The scariest thing that happened in the past few years is not just the realization of how fragile american democracy is, but also that it happened out in the open, for everyone to see. Hence the brazenness of Johnson in UK, Putin in Russia, Urban in Hungary, even Kurz in Austria, just to name a few.
I hear you Darla, and you have a valid point. It was women and particularly women of color who played the biggest role in taking back the White House and the Senate.
The “great men” who trembled at tweets or cowered were mostly politicians. And you’re right, none of them were “great”. Including The much admired Mueller who pushed evidence of major crimes onto others because they didn’t fit the “scope” of his investigation and didn’t put up a fight when are shut it down. But when it comes to big business, did Trump do anything to majorly hurt the economy? I think initially big business liked his policies due to the tax breaks. His disastrous response to Covid actually helped Amazon, etc because everyone was stuck home and stress buying.
I feel a genuine attempt at a coup or major government upheaval would receive a far different response.
Sean, believe me I pray you are right. I knew Biden was only a short reprieve, and I’m not just saying that, I really knew it. I figured it gave me some time to prepare, but the truth is I’ve done nothing about it.
+1000, @Darla
@Darla I’m hoping against hope that Biden or Harris can win re-election in 2024…but I also don’t know how likely that is. Also preparing mentally and financially.
From what I’ve seen, many of the biggest US companies are pro-Trump. None of them have stopped donating to pro-Trump, pro-Conspiracy Republican super PACs and politicians. They personally make more money when Republicans are in charge, ergo they are fully on board with the coup. Half of the elected officials in the US Congress publicly support the idea that the election was stolen. They’re raking in donations from the wealthy Republicans as well as poorest ones.
Other of the biggest and wealthiest, who might have an inkling of a sense of ethics? They’ll pull up stakes and move to Canada.
I see what you’re saying and while true, they were pro-Trump during a stable economy and receiving massive tax breaks. Not to mention the PPE “loans” during the pandemic.
A coup though? Totally changes things. You don’t eff with the money!
They’re still making money hand over fist, and would continue to do so post-coup with a president who wants to destroy unions, a living wage, and affordable health care.
One of the biggest US grocery chains saw a 14 % increase in their profits last year due to pandemic shopping. They bought back stock, gave board members huge bonuses. Turned around and laid off staff, threatened to close stores – because the new administration believes in a living wage.
I agree Darla, I pray I’m right as well. I fear that Biden winning was a reprieve as well. As much as support the Democrats, I often find myself disappointed because they have no teeth like the Republicans do. They just suck at fighting for their agendas. Most of them do it seems.
I’m also worried that many of the insurrectionists won’t face any real consequences. Black man walking down the street with a joint in his pocket? Arrest him and throw him in prison for years. White trash carry out an act of sedition? Well… it’s not like most of them killed anyone. They were mostly just Facebooking. So how about a fine or two and some probation.
Smdh.
^^ Yes, all true Sean.
I generally agree with you, Sean, though I think big businesses underestimate the risk of GOP fascism (a mistake many German business leaders made in supporting Hitler). But I think there are a few things that make the US different currently. First, it is much larger & (for better or worse) less centrally governed than Myanmar or 1930s Germany. Second, no coup can overthrow the government without military backing. US military governance & culture are different from that of Myanmar or other places that have launched successful coups. Third, our judicial system remains a significant check on many of the attempts to challenge election results.
The real danger isn’t Trump, who will at some point succumb to decades of drug abuse, fast food & diet Coke (with a capital c, lol). The danger is in attempts to weaken the safety measures mentioned above. So, decades-long efforts to infiltrate the military, unaccountable & corrupt police departments, Federalist Society-backed judges, etc. Trump is just the result of right-wing campaigns that started working in reaction to the civil rights movement. We’re at an inflection point in the US. State & local politics have never been more important.
Let’s be real here. The fourth branch of the US Government is Capitalism.
We saw what corporations really thought after January 6th. They are NOT all in for Republicans, tax breaks aside, if it means destabilization and violence. Many of them withdrew their $$$ to Republican groups/ candidates and some are making it clear that they do not want certain laws to be passed in some states.
I feel like people who care (many of us on here) need to keep stepping up the pressure on the only forces with any true influences right now: the corporations.
It became clear under the Trump administration that we could call our reps, write letters, march, but Congress only bows to their masters.
Social media pressure, letters to companies and boycotts must continue. Capitalism, for better or worse, can save America from Trump right now but time will run out.
And let’s also be honest. The military had a choice in January to back Trump. They did not. Instead, they sent troops to sleep in the basement of the Capital. So people can feel some comfort in that.
A lot of the corporations that withdrew donations after Jan. 6 ….have quietly reinstated them since.
It’s a nice hope that they will stand between the GOP and madness but I sadly don’t think so. I also had hope at the start of the pandemic that American businesses would be vocal about prevention and the need to control the spread of the virus and that sure didn’t happen and we ended up one of the worst affected countries in the world and still have thousands dying of covid each week.
Agree, Tourmaline. They’re quietly, some openly, all-in with the Trumpers.
How far-gone is he? Could they just tell him the election results were overturned, that White Trash Versailles is the new official presidential residence, and beam a special news network just for him to his TV, and he would just THINK he was in back in charge? His followers will probably buy it, too (I mean, these are people who sincerely believed that Wayfair was shipping child sex slaves in their cabinets, FFS).
Being a loser is unacceptable in his eyes. He CANNOT be a loser. He especially cannot be a loser with the whole world seeing him as such. UNACCEPTABLE!!!!
So the only way forward is for him to either have a psychotic break or to create this fantasy world for himself where he can swathe his fragile ego in sparkly wool specially woven from nose hairs plucked from equally deluded MAGAs and sinister Republican politicians. Sparkles are provided courtesy of Q anon.
When my husband’s uncle who had severe dementia would ask for his wife he would become grief stricken if told she had been dead for years. So they would just tell him she was at the store and would be back later. He was completely happy with that answer no matter how many times he asked. I think it could work with trump.
Why is that so far fetched? The fact that he got elected the first time blew me away!!! But if they elected him once, he absolutely can be back again…sadly
@Angie and that is what I’m still struggling to understand, the first time. . . . .😰😱😵💫
You and me, both….you and me, both!!
This truly terrifies me. He is a dangerous, delusional man with followers and crazy supporters in positions of power and money. He really needs to be politically neutralized, to end this insanity of “reinstatement” and conspiracy lunacy. How, I don’t know. But his craziness feeds others and puts us all in danger.
I’m sure Trump does believe he can be reinstated he lost it long ago. The whole lot of Republicans are a danger to democracy as well as he & MAGA/QAnon is look at all the states they’ve Jim Crow’ed voters rights I think now a total of 18 states & I just heard the GOP is starting it in Michigan now too by hook or crook they will make sure they win. Look at how they continue the Big Lie backstabbed the Capitol Police to save their seats if their own lives do not matter to them do you honestly think they care about Democracy. If they keep having General Flynn to Trump at these rallies January 6th will look like a practice moment it didn’t make them scared when over 200-300 were jailed it’s empowered them look at Pence who they were going to hang yesterday licking Trumps boots. Kevin McCarthy bows down to Marjorie Traitor Greene and Matt Venmo Gaetz for what? To be the Speaker. The world sees us as less now because of them. We are no longer a beacon of light more like how long until we fall. If you’re not scared or worried we all should be. It’s sad that they can do what they want with no consequences unless Trump is jailed he’s a danger to democracy as is the Republicans.
Fuck 45. It ain’t happening. There will be a civil war. He needs to be locked up by August.
He is truly sincerely delusional
They won’t even let him on FB.
You’re forgetting the percentages of the military, veterans, police, and Trump supporters who have the majority of the weapons in the US.
I saw Pence’s ridiculous speech about him and Trump differing on January 6. The thing I find incomprehensible is that nobody talks about the fact that Trump actively directed his “troops” at Pence and his family. It’s my opinion that when Trump and his innermost minions, including Flynn and Giuliani were discussing their coup ideas, the thought must have come up that if the vice president was executed, Trump would have every excuse he needed to declare Marshall Law!!!
I really wonder about this with Pence. The mob came within minutes of catching him *and his family.* And they clearly planned to murder Pence. God knows what they would have done to his wife & their daughter. Apparently yesterday, Pence said he & Trump will “never see eye to eye” about January 6th, but then he also praised Trump.
I think Pence is a power-hungy coward at heart. Karen Pence was famously furious when Trump won. On election night, she said something like, “Well, Mike, you got what you wanted.” I’m very curious about what conversations they’ve had while couch surfing after almost being murdered by the Trump mob.
Pence has sold his soul for power. Given he’s a right-wing faux-Christian nuthead, he probably figures God is protecting him and will continue to do so.
By reinstated, I hope that they are not going to do a repeat of January 6 since many of the insurrectionists and republicans who assisted in the attack have not faced any consequences for their actions. Many of the people who were involved in the January 6 attack are participating in the AZ audit. I don’t understand why those republicans who assisted in the attack were even allowed to vote on the January 6 commission or remain in Congress.
Ron Desantis is literally turning Florida into a mini Russia, while his ties to Matt Gaetz’s trafficking of teens is completely ignored. Nothing is getting resolved because there are still Trump leftovers in Biden’s administration (Christopher Wray at the FBI, Dejoy at the Post office, Horowitz is tasked with “investigating” Matt Geatz). Matt Geatz and his QA friend are allowed to threaten and harass other members of Congress without any consequences. Manchin and Sinema have been allowed to hijack the party, making it difficult to get anything passed. When Manchin demanded that VP Harris get his approval before giving interviews in his state, that should have been a wake up call. Biden and some democrats are still going on about bipartisanship, which results in compromising(removing huge parts of the bills) to appease republicans only for republicans to vote against the bill. Russia is still hacking(the press has stopped covering Russia’s attempt to attack Ukraine and the imprisonment of Alexei); states like AZ, GA, PA have been given access to voter ballots and voting machines without any oversight; republican governors are creating very restrictive voting laws and laws against protesting. Republicans are putting everything in place to ensure that they win in 2024 and no one is stopping them.
They aren’t being held accountable for January 6th. Nothing to stop them from trying it again in August. Clearly the entire GOP would support the coup.
So MerlinsDad (who voted for trump in 16) got this long unhinged email from “someone” in the trump organization BEGGING and I mean begging for money. Something along the lines of “…starting at $1,000.00” and a promise of attending his “reinstatement” in late August and a photo opportunity with the President.
He replied and said he voted for Biden because trump is a train wreck and he was sorry he ever voted for him in the first place so that’s a hard no.
Grifters gotta keep gifting.
If anything, he is playing off the ignorance of his “there’s a sucker born every minute” followers and putting them in debt which I find hilarious.
The new voting laws that were recently passed in multiple states to restrict the people’s voices is further proof that others are aiding and abetting these delusions. It’s absolutely sickening!
They really need to start making civics and/or political science important in schools again.
There’s no reason why grown adults should think that a US presidency is like a reality tv show. There are rules and guidelines that the founders set down for a good reason, they were trying to avoid another autocracy. The GOP wants an autocracy, ruled by one family while fueling ignorance and hate. I figure that would have been our fate if the election had gone their way.
It’s time for the U.S. government to get its ducks in a row. Weed out white supremacists, Qanon and other extremists NOW from the military. The generals are not exempt (Flynn is a former general). Get a plan: get the FBI on this, listen to chatter, etc. Get Wray out of office. He lasted throughout the former guy’s deranged reign and that wasn’t easy to do unless you were his bitch. Get NATO ready to fly in. DO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO PREVENT A SECOND COUP ATTEMPT.
Ever notice how no one mentions that Trump is Putins’ biggest asset? He has done more to destroy democracy in your country (I’m Canadian) in the last 4 years than anything or anyone else in the entire history of America.
If anything Drumpf said was true, we’d have tossed his worthless bee-hind out in favor of Hillary, but it isn’t, so that loser gets to have his tantrums at home. What does worry me is that his worshippers might actually try to do something about it in August. We need to be on our guard.
Let August pass in peace and Drumpf can stew still further in his impotent failure.
The Recluse, I agree with you. The “reinstatement in August” is obvious code for “start organizing the insurrection, boys.” He knows these “audits” are bullshit and a cover for the machinations of the Proud Boys, Faith Keepers and QAnon. The good part is these loonies are so brazen, the FBI, Justice Department and other government agencies can investigate, listen to the chatter and prevent this travesty from happening (hopefully). Clearly there are people on the inside of government (Senate, House of Reps, imbedded Trumpists in military/intelligence departments) who can help the miscreants plan and then arrange minimal help when they strike (just like on January 6th). In fact, Trump has started his lunatic rallies (one in NC yesterday) and wore his pants backwards and there’s no zipper in the front. This detail alone points to the unraveling mind of the demented former guy. What are we going to do with him? It’s like Saddam Hussein were alive, here, and terrorizing the country. Jesus Christ.