Some commentators responded to the Trump shakeup with amusement; others with despair. On Sunday, before the news broke, the Wall Street Journal issued a warning for Trump’s greatest champions, including Chris Christie, Rudy Giuliani, and various talk radio hosts: “Those who sold Mr. Trump to GOP voters as the man who could defeat Hillary Clinton now face a moment of truth.”
This is true—but so do Republican-leaning voters. There should be no more squirming, or excuses, or delusions. Despite various hopes from certain corners, Trump will not stick to a script prepared for him by Newt Gingrich or Reince Priebus. Heck, he might not even try to pretend that he cares about the GOP. At the prospect of losing, in fact, he seems rather sanguine: “At the end,” he told CNBC last week, “it’s either going to work or I’m going to, you know—I’m going to have a very, very nice, long vacation.”
Trump will be Trump, and voters should be thankful for this: Finally, perhaps the usual suspects in the Republican Party will finally stop attempting to sell us an imaginary proto-Trump. Voters, meanwhile, can pay attention, do their research, and then take or leave the real version. Unlike the various machinations of the pro-Trump forces inside the GOP, it’s the honest thing to do.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member