[See: “If Only The God-Emperor Knew: Using Trumpism Against
The Trump Administration” by James Kirkpatrick]
He must have known what was
coming. Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, a pillar of the cowardly GOP Establishment,
announced he would not be running for re-election on Tuesday [Republican Sen. Corker announces he won’t seek
re-election, by Richard Lardner and Erik Schelzig, Associated
Press, September 26, 2017]. Corker’s departure is widely being interpreted
as a sign of the Establishment’s inability to control the GOP base, as the
election of President Trump, the rise of nationalism and the emergence of
alternative media outlets (such as Breitbart and VDARE.com) make it harder for
cuckservatives to Republican primary voters in line [Sen. Bob Corker’s retirement is notable for when it’s
happening, by Amber Phillips, Washington Post, September
26, 2017]
And now, we have the
ultimate proof in Alabama. Judge Roy Moore, one of the most persistent targets of the Southern Poverty Law
Center, is now the Republican nominee for the Senate. And he defeated incumbent
Senator Luther Strange despite Strange being endorsed
by President Donald J. Trump himself.
Of course, Strange didn’t
just have Trump in his corner. He also had Senate Majority Leader Mitch
McConnell using his PAC to run negative ads against Moore, ads which
conservative websites called “defamatory” and which cost many millions of
dollars [McConnell’s Super PAC accused of ‘defaming ‘ Roy Moore,
by Bob Unruh, WND, August 3, 2017] As a result, Judge Moore openly
campaigned against his party’s own Senate leader during the primary, claiming a
victory for him would mean the end of McConnell’s hapless leadership. [McConnell’s mortal enemy might soon be in his caucus,
by Burgess Everett and Seung Min Kim, Politico, September 18, 2017]
However, and significantly,
Moore never campaigned against President Trump himself. Yet Trump certainly
gave Moore ample cause. He openly campaigned for Luther Strange, speaking with
the incumbent Senator at a major rally, with Strange sporting a red MAGA hat [Alabama rally: Trump campaigns in last-ditch effort for
Senate candidate Luther Strange, by Alex Pappas, Fox
News, September 22, 2017]. Trump also said Moore would have a hard time
beating the Democrats because they would pour in so much money. He even called
Moore by the wrong first name [President Trump admits he doesn’t ‘know that much’ about
Alabama Senate contender Roy Moore, gets his name wrong in interview,
by Jason Silverstein, New York Daily News, September 25, 2017]
And yet, revealingly, Moore
and his allies framed their insurgency against Trump’s wishes as an act of
loyalty.
During a debate with
Strange, Moore suggested President Trump was being “redirected” by Mitch
McConnell and others who “will not support his [Trump’s] agenda” [Alabama Senate debate erupts over whether McConnell is
manipulating Trump, by Alex Isenstadt and Daniel
Strauss, Politico, September 21, 2017]
UKIP’s former leader Nigel
Farage said “absolutely” that “the point is to help the president” by electing
Roy Moore and suggested The Judge would help deliver on President Trump’s
agenda [Brexit Hero Farage in Alabama: Judge Roy Moore ‘Not Going
To Be Sucked Into The Swamp’ by Ian Mason, Breitbart, September
25, 2017]
Sarah Palin channeled Trump’s rhetoric by
saying Moore would take on “DC’s swamp monsters” and “help Make America Great
Again” [Sarah Palin endorses Judge Roy Moore for US Senate,
by Randy DeSoto, Western Journalism, August 24, 2017]
Some of President Trump’s
best-known advisors also backed Moore.
·
Ben Carson, one of President Trump’s own Cabinet secretaries,
essentially endorsed Moore, saying he was “delighted” he was running and that
he “wished him well” [Ben Carson Splits With Trump, Basically Endorses Roy
Moore in Alabama, by Cameron Joseph, Talking
Points Memo, September 22, 2017].
·
Sebastian Gorka endorsed Moore, hinted the
president was pressured into backing Strange, and said it would be a “very
great day” for Trump if Strange was defeated [Gorka: Trump Was Pressured to Endorse ‘Swamp Dweller’
Strange, Fox News, September 23, 2017].
·
And of course, Breitbart’s Steve Bannon endorsed Moore, but said “we
did not come here to defy Donald Trump, we came here to praise and honor him” [The Breitbart Universe Unites For Roy Moore,
by Rosie Gray, The Atlantic, September 26, 2017]
Even before Trump’s
inauguration, when there were troubling signs the new President was surrounding
himself with the Republican Establishment, it was clear that the President’s supporters would need
to rise against Trump in his own name. The victory of Roy Moore
is the best example so far of how this insurgency will play out.
And most importantly, it
shows how the populist and nationalist movement is larger than Trump himself.
Trump’s advisors seem to
know this. In the Fox News interview referenced above, Dr. Gorka claimed
“no one voted for Trump, we voted for his agenda.” And during his speech
in support of Moore, Bannon referenced Jeff Sessions, not Trump, as the “spiritual father of the populist and nationalist
movement.”
But does Trump himself know
this? Already, the Main Stream Media is trying to present this as a devastating
defeat for the president personally. The New York Times kvetched about
Moore’s social views and sneered that his victory “demonstrated in stark terms
the limits of Mr. Trump’s clout” [Roy Moore Wins Senate G.O.P. Runoff in Alabama,
by Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns, September 26, 2017]. Jason Le Miere
at Newsweek suggested Trump had suffered his first major political
defeat at the ballot box and hinted his political weakness could trigger his
impeachment. [How Alabama Senate Election Results Could Trigger Trump’s
Impeachment, September 26, 2017]
This wildly overstates the
case. Trump had hedged his bets, suggesting at one point he made a “mistake” in
endorsing Strange [Trump supports Strange, but says it may be “mistake,”
Washington Post, September 25, 2017]. He also said he would “campaign like
hell” for Moore if Moore won [Roy Moore: ‘I can’t wait’ for Trump to ‘campaign like
hell’ for me, by Sean Langille, Washington
Examiner, September 25, 2017].
It’s hardly a devastating
defeat for President Trump when his supposed enemies are fanatically loyal to
him and his “allies” can’t wait to stab him in the back.
But there is still a lesson
for Trump. The Chamber of Commerce and Republican Establishment picked this fight
to “shut down” Moore and show populists who was in charge. [Chamber of Commerce: ‘Shut Down’ Roy Moore & ‘Remind
Bannon Who’s In Charge’ by Joel Pollak, Breitbart, September
24, 2017] They just got their answer. It’s not them.
Trump should seize on the
narrative of his supposed opponents. He is unquestionably being given
objectively poor political counsel by his aides—not surprising how utterly
incompetent the Republican Establishment is when it comes to political
strategy. [Steve Bannon: We Need A Review After This Alabama Race To
See How Trump Came To Endorse Someone Like Luther Strange,
by Allahpundit, Hot Air, September 26, 2017]
Tellingly, Trump in his
messy intuitive way is already embarking on a movement to shore up his base by
taking on the pro-Black Lives Matter and anti-American antics of the National
Football League [Trump’s N.F.L. Critique a Calculated Attempt to Shore Up
His Base, by Glenn Thrush and Maggie Haberman, New
York Times, September 25, 2017]. But such symbolic fights are meaningless
unless they are coupled with real action on trade and immigration policy.
Today, those who defeated
Trump in the Republican army are still proclaiming their loyalty to their
Commander-in-Chief. But Donald Trump, memes aside, is not a sovereign or just a
symbol. He is a man who created a political movement—and that movement expects
results. The movement he created, and which put him in office, is desperate for
him to lead on an America First agenda.
If Trump does not give it
results, the movement will eventually find a new leader. Roy Moore is almost
certainly not that leader on a national scale. But in Alabama tonight, Moore
proved he is stronger than the president himself.
Trump has given the
Establishment Republicans their chance and they have failed him. It’s time for
him to return to the people who have supported him from the very beginning.
James Kirkpatrick [Email him]
is a Beltway veteran and a refugee from Conservatism Inc.
