Trumpworld was bracing to take some hits this month. But they weren’t planning on it coming so soon — or looking this ugly.
Charles Herbster, Trump’s endorsed candidate for Nebraska governor, was running for an open seat, not challenging an entrenched incumbent, as is the case for some of Trump’s favored candidates competing in primaries later this month. Candidates don’t get any more MAGA than Herbster, a Trump megadonor who all but stapled himself to the former president during the primary.
Trump repaid the favor by traveling to Nebraska last week to campaign for his longtime ally, even after eight women accused Herbster of sexual assault.
It was a risk that looks foolish now.
Herbster lost to Jim Pillen, a more establishment-oriented Republican, in the primary…
Trump didn’t listen, and instead, Tuesday served as a reminder that as powerful as Trump is, there are other political machines — in Nebraska’s case, Ricketts’ — that are willing to feud with him. In some situations, they can win. Ricketts and his father, billionaire Joe Ricketts, contributed heavily to anti-Herbster efforts in the state.
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