LF: How Trump’s Twitter Tantrum Against Conservatives Backfired

Title: How Trump’s Twitter Tantrum Against Conservatives Backfired
Source: U.S. News & World Report
URL Source: https://www.usnews.com/news/politic ... gainst-conservatives-backfired
Published: Apr 4, 2017
Author: David Catanese
Post Date: 2017-04-04 17:29:37 by Hondo68
Keywords: Trump is weakening, any power that he has, made a miscalculation
Views: 1013
Comments: 7

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Rep. Mark Meadows was hailed in his home district in western North Carolina for taking on President Donald Trump. Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Donald Trump's Twitter account was among his most potent political weapons during the presidential campaign. He used it to bully opponents, browbeat the media and bend public opinion.

But when he took to his favorite medium to castigate a trio of conservative lawmakers who opposed his health care approach, a funny thing happened on the way to 140 characters. It backfired.

Reps. Mark Meadows of North Carolina, Jim Jordan of Ohio and Raul Labrador of Idaho – the Freedom Caucus members who Trump targeted via Twitter out of frustration due to the legislative malaise that has encumbered his administration – each found themselves buoyed back in their home districts as high-principled heroes. Meanwhile, the episode made Trump look petty and out of touch, even to some of those who consider themselves supporters of the president.

"The Trump tweets raise the question, what does Donald Trump know about the law? Has he even looked at the law?" says Glen Englram, a former Henderson County, North Carolina, GOP chairman who is close to Meadows. "Mark Meadows is doing what the people of the 11th Congressional District of North Carolina expected him to do. They championed the notion they would repeal Obamacare root and branch. That's what Mark's been about."

In his first weekend back in his western North Carolina district since Trump's salvo, Meadows – chairman of the Freedom Caucus that rebelled against the House Republican health care plan – was received warmly at a UPS station, a high school and a luncheon of conservative business owners. His deputy chief of staff described support for the third-term congressman as "overwhelming." Even one of his former opponents praised his conviction.

"He is voting the conscience of the people he represents," says Chris Petrella, a moderate Republican who ran against Meadows in the 2012 GOP primary. "The numbers don't lie. There are more far-right voters than any other bloc. The seat is his as long as he wants it."

The reaction raises fresh doubts about Trump's persuasive powers from the bully pulpit and whether he poses the political threat to elected officials that many assumed. Bands of hardened loyalists will stick with Trump over Democrats and the mainstream media, which they view with visceral contempt. But for ideological conservatives who always viewed Trump with a wary eye, his first legislative venture did little to convince them he is motivated by anything other than being able to claim victory.

"Someone needs to get Trump a 7th grade civics book," Petrella says. "He has no idea how the branches of government work. I wonder how Trump would score on the citizenship test? I think that by attacking Mark, Trump is weakening any power that he has in the district. He is attacking a local boy and that may work against him."

"If Trump thinks he's winning friends by attacking conservatives, the very people who elected him, he will be sadly mistaken. It will backfire. Jordan represents this area very well. Most people I know who are paying attention know the real agenda in D.C. and it's not good. Somehow Trump got sucked into the black hole with the [Paul] Ryan establishment," she says. "I don't like to hear Trump criticizing the very people who worked tirelessly to elect him on the promise of repealing [Obamacare]."

After Trump's social media director, Dan Scavino, targeted yet another Freedom Caucus member with a tweet over the weekend, Jordan rushed to his defense.

"Justin Amash is a good friend and one of the most principled members of Congress," Jordan said on CNN. "Frankly, if he is primaried, I'm going to do everything I can to help him."

Labrador, who won his fourth term in November with 68 percent of the vote, also came to Amash's defense over the weekend, asking if Scavino's attack was an April Fool's joke. "U can't think this strategy is working," he warned, adding the hashtag #draintheswamp.

The conservative free-market outfit FreedomWorks just announced it was honoring Labrador as its member of the month in part for his consistency in fighting for full repeal of Obamacare as well as his opposition to the Trump-backed American Health Care Act, which failed to make it to a vote last month.

Having been burned by his own party, Trump is now contemplating whether negotiating with Democrats will prove more fruitful in helping to pass any of his key priorities. But his own personal unpopularity, especially with the opposition party, may make that a fool's errand. Trump may have more impact pressuring senators who represent an entire state. But House members, occupying gerrymandered districts, have little incentive to heed his demands and even less so when he threatens them.

Attacking conservatives is what NYC progressives do. Trump is just being himself.
He's in sync with his homeboys, Bernie Sanders and Schmuck Schumer.

"High-principled heroes"? We'll see. The AHCA isn't over. They may end up looking like low-principled sellouts.

Well, I am here to tell you that the Congressman from my district, David Schweikert (R-Ariz) was recognized as a hero back in his home district….he openly stated that he would have voted FOR the ACHA.

There are other FC member who would have voted for the ACHA….there are heroes to people also.

So...congresscritters might actually represent a majority of voters in their district? Who knew? This democracy thing is so complicated!

I guess he's better than Hillary would have been - that's the nicest thing I can say about him.

Speaking of Hillary - when is Trump going to make good on his promise to prosecute her? My guess is NEVER - it was just another piece of red-meat fed to the unthinking rubes who voted for him.

I say ~~let~~ force those districts keep Obamacare while the rest of us move on.

Dave Schweikert was featured with House leadership on their press conference today, as a beancounting conservative trying to make a deal come about. GOP leadership was definitely warn toward him and praising his role as a dealmaker with his fellow-Freedom Caucus members.

“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul

Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.