Will Spite Cost GOP in 2024?

It is undeniable that the Mar-a-Lago raid has played into Donald Trump's hands: He is a specialist at playing victim, and a significant number of Republican voters lap it up when he does.

But an interesting analysis argues that Trump's legal problems may not help him long term even within the GOP and will definitely harm his chances in the general election:

Image by Jack Boucher, via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

...Yes, it's true that Trump is more likely today to be nominated than he was before the FBI search for the simple reason that this party now runs almost entirely on spite. And crowning a guy who's under federal investigation king of the GOP for the third straight cycle is the most spiteful thing Republican voters could do to show their contempt for the political establishment and the "deep state." The search boosted Trump's populist appeal as the candidate of spite.

The wrinkle is that it also strengthened DeSantis's argument as the electable choice in the field by comparison. The more baggage Trump has to carry, the more even some otherwise loyal MAGA voters will begin to think hard about whether he can win a general election. [bold added]

I like the term spite here: It is a near-perfect characterization of the naive emotionalism/blind rebellion against the Democrats that seems to have swallowed the GOP since Trump arrived on the scene to "own the libs" (but not defeat them).

Will the GOP merely be content to "own the libs" (by nominating Trump) -- or will it get past the childish, second-handed desire to get a reaction from the left. Will the GOP wake up in time to find someone who cares enough to understand what America is actually about, and methodically approach the problem of bringing back liberty and prosperity? Ron DeSantis may or may not be that man, but Donald Trump clearly isn't.

Only time will tell.

-- CAV