Trump Might Be Riding High Now But Faces Massive Legal Problems – Donald Trump’s ridden the wave of 91 criminal charges across four indictments to bolster his support within the Republican Party.
At the start of the year, the former president and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis were tied on around 40 points each. These days, 40 points is the difference between them.
Trump’s rise to GOP dominance is undoubtedly correlated to the legal battles he faces. He’s claimed he’s the victim of a politically motivated “witch hunt” on countless occasions, including throughout the civil fraud trial he’s currently facing in New York. Incorporating his legal challenges into his political campaign has proven to be a key part of his strategy; supporters have not been appalled or enraged at his alleged behavior, but sympathetic to how a candidate with a real possibility of the presidency could be subjected to legal attacks from all angles.
Moderate Supporters Flocking To Trump
The former president has always maintained strong support from his loyalists. No matter the allegations, they would continue to back Trump through thick and thin.
A key difference from the start of the year is that moderate Republicans are increasingly supportive of the party frontrunner, proving harder for opponents to attract their backing. Most voters do not take Trump’s word for gospel, with few believing the electoral system is rigged against him. Instead, the legal dramas, helped by the lack of criticism of his “witch hunt” rhetoric from main opponent Gov. DeSantis, has perhaps convinced many that Trump is being targeted by the federal government.
In a two-party democracy like the U.S., voters can be torn between the lesser of two evils. Some Republicans will undoubtedly despise the former president, but they hate the current one even more. A third-party candidate has not posed any credible challenge for the presidency in over three decades, so if it isn’t Trump, it’ll be Joe Biden instead.
Donald Trump Is Still in Serious Trouble
Of course, we are still in relatively early days when it comes to Donald Trump’s criminal charges. All four indictments – three of which focus on events which have played out in the public eye – are due to be heard next year.
Alleged hush money payments to an adult entertainer, which have been reported for more than five years, are unlikely to swing an election. Revelations of damning criminal behavior, however, just might.
The classified documents case is a key example of this; it was the only indictment where Trump, albeit temporarily, lost support, and it’s the one we know the least about. National security has always remained an important priority for Americans, and evidence during the trial which reveals the extent of how a former president held top secret information at his home could prove damaging, costing the party the support of moderates and independents.
How the trials play out next year will be important; the revelations, and subsequent reaction to them, could just decide the 2024 presidential election.
Shay Bottomley is a British journalist based in Canada. He has written for the Western Standard, Maidenhead Advertiser, Slough Express, Windsor Express, Berkshire Live and Southend Echo, and has covered notable events including the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
