Will A Republican Civil War De-Rail The Red Wave?

Hard to fathom that just 10 years ago, 60,933,504 Republicans and Republican sympathizers voted for Mitt Romney to replace Barack Obama as president. Romney won 24 states. This morning he told CNN that "If [Señor Trumpanzee] were to come back as the U.S. president, I think it would represent a pretty dramatic departure for the world, and they would rethink whether they can count on the United States to lead NATO to lead other nations as they push back against China and against Russia."

Funny thing about the Trumpian GOP-- it's in a constant state of chaos, maybe even a civil war of its own. You probably don't remember, but about a month after Trump lost the election by a massive 7 million votes, 4 percentage points and 74 electoral votes, McConnell had the Senate take up a non-controversial proposal proposal to honor Justices Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the first two female justices of the Supreme Court. It was so non-controversial that even crackpots like Ted Cruz and Rand Paul were ok with it. It passed by unanimous consent. Yesterday 63 far right GOP extremists-- primarily the Gang Greene fascists-- voted against the same proposal. Among those following Marjorie Traitor Greene (Q-GA), were all the usual suspects, like Paul Gosar (R-AZ), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Mary Miller (Q-IL), Beth Van Duyne (R-TX), Lauren Boebert (Q-CO), Louie Gohmert (R-TX), Thomas Massie (R-KY), Mo Brooks (R-AL), Scott Perry (R-PA), Byron Donalds (R-FL), Clay Higgins (R-LA), Andrew Clyde (R-GA), Matt Gaetz (R-FL), Matt Rosendale (R-MT), Michael Cloud (TX), Jody Hice (R-GA), Mike Johnson (R-LA), and Bob Good (R-VA). After his cocaine and orgies remarks got him in hot water, Madison The Talented Mr. Ripley Cawthorn (Nazi-NC) abandoned his team and voted with McCarthy.

But the Trump civil war isn't just roiling the House; it's spread to state legislatures and the U.S. Senate as well. This morning the Nashville Tennessean reported that the legislature is making a major move to knock a Trump backed candidate out of the primary. Melissa Brown wrote that a new residency requirement for congressional candidates is targeting Morgan Ortagus, a former Fox News commentator and Mike Pompeo staffer endorsed by Trump against the other fascist in the race, Robby Starbuck Newsom. Ortagus will be deemed ineligible when Gov. Bill Lee signs the bill. The legislation requires candidates to live in the district they seek to represent for at least three years prior to the election.

Last night, Ortagus, flipping out, issued a statement: "No one questioned my residency when I served our country in the intelligence community, the Trump Administration, nor in the U.S. Navy Reserves, and President Trump certainly didn't question my residency when he endorsed me for this seat. I continue to trust my fellow Tennesseans, the voters in the 5th district, to choose who will best represent them in Congress."

As for the U.S. Senate, Julia Manchester reported this morning that "Republican frustrations are growing as multiple GOP Senate primaries have descended into infighting, threatening the party’s chances of retaking the upper chamber in November. In recent weeks, Senate primaries in Missouri and Ohio have turned volatile. In Missouri, the ex-wife of Senate candidate Eric Greitens (R) has accused him of abusing her and their children during the marriage. Multiple GOP candidates running in that race have since called on Greitens, the state’s former governor, to drop out. Meanwhile, in Ohio, a candidate forum nearly came to blows when former state Treasurer Josh Mandel and businessman Mike Gibbons got into each other’s faces over work experience. Other states like Pennsylvania are also experiencing rocky primaries. The turbulence has raised concerns that the winners of these primaries could come out bruised, giving Democrats an advantage in the general election."

[T]he races in states like Ohio and Pennsylvania cannot be compared to the race in Missouri, given the seriousness of the allegations against Greitens.

“When you’re talking about allegations of abuse against a spouse and children, it calls more into question than your political capabilities and your viability as a candidate. It calls into question who you are as a man,” said one Republican strategist.

While Greitens has denied the allegations against him, his front-runner status in the race is now in jeopardy, with high-profile Republicans in and out of Missouri distancing themselves from him.

Retiring Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO), whom Greitens is running to succeed in the Senate, said last week that the former governor should drop out. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), who has endorsed Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) in the race, also called for Greitens to exit the race.

Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, did not call on Greitens to drop out but called the allegations “pretty disturbing.”

Hartzler, the only woman running in the primary, called on Greitens to drop out and seek “immediate professional help” in a statement last week. She has already gone on the offensive against Greitens, with her first ad of the race including a reference to 2018 allegations that he had an affair with his hairdresser.

Depending on whether Greitens drops out, the allegations stand to have ramifications not only in Missouri but across the country.

“It’s not just a Missouri problem, it’s a national problem because if Greitens were to win, the nominee in Ohio, the nominee in Arizona, the nominee in Pennsylvania for Republicans is going to have answer a lot of questions about him,” the GOP strategist said. “That’s the real danger.”

Regardless, Democrats say the contentious primaries are playing into their hands, providing a contrasting image going into the general election.

“What we have is Democratic candidates and incumbents who are talking to voters about lowering costs, about the issues that voters care about, while the Republican side is having this slug fest,” one Democratic strategist told The Hill. “The longer this infighting happens, the more bruised their candidates will be on the other side.”

The Democrat favored to beat Greitens is anti-corruption, law-and-order populist Lucas Kunce, a straight arrow Marine vet. [You can contribute to his campaign here.] This afternoon Kunce told me that "From day one in this race, I've made my campaign about fundamentally changing who has power in this country. Criminal politicians shouldn't be running for Senate; they should be in jail. Missourians deserve a warrior for working people, someone who stands up to the criminal politicians and corporate elites who have been stripping our communities for parts. I intend to be that warrior. We've narrowed the polling gap from double digits to a virtual tie with our former disgraced Governor. We're not taking a single penny from corporate PACs. I'm running to take this country back for working people."