Helsinki--the Tipping Point?

[Dill]

(07-17-2018, 06:32 PM)hollodero Wrote: His base won't turn, so politicians won't turn, so FOX won't turn, so his base won't turn.

After more than one year, this pattern will remain.

Now about the Trump tolerators, Conservatives ant anti-Liberals, that aren't really supporters... one shall see. Those are usually outraged for a day or so, before Maxine Waters or some college campus becomes the more urgent issue again.

So you are saying no tipping point?

Remember, Trump hit bottom at Helsinki like never before; no president has ever stood beside an adversary who attacked the US and sided with him against our own intel services; no one can equivocate this with a "whataboutObama?", who never sank that low or appeared so plainly out of his element. And on the issue of national security no less, after ignoring his own staff and advisors. His credibility as deal maker and "strong" politician has been irreparably damaged, and the gaslighting today finally looked like just that to some supporters.  The bullying will continue when opportunity presents itself, but only a Churchill style wartime performance could repair the tough man rep now.  You don't think this incident might peel away a significant percentage of his base--say 10%?

Trump toleraters and anti-liberals might see how close they come to getting burned/embarassed for defending someone who has been throwing up red flags for three years as others called it right.  I expect them to withhold support, or share it more grudgingly now, and even to voice some criticism.

People who might have been genuinely on the fence or unsure if all the negative comments about Trump's competence were spot on or just Hillary butthurt will now likely be off the fence. Some may realize a bad president is bad for them and the country and the world, even if tomorrow nothing has changed in their lives.

I want to throw in one more factor here. If I am right about Trump, this humiliation will de-stabilize his personality further. His behavior will become more erratic, making it easier for supporters to disavow the resulting unforced errors, but harder to endorse the man making them. Any of the other candidates from either party would respond to an unforced error of this magnitude by becoming more cautious and disciplined; Trump will not. Cannot.

I see an effort to repair Trumpworld, stitching back together all that Congressional support, disparaging the press, leading supporters in "build the wall" chants; but it will be weaker, even on Fox, whose commentators have had a glimpse now of what could go wrong for the party, how things could get worse, with no one but Trump himself to blame--and those remembered as his enablers.

Note Bene--just watching Thomas Friedman on CNN, after reading Amanda Carpenter's book on Trump's gaslighting. His method is becoming an explicit theme, which I think will inhibit its effectiveness, especially after Helsinki. Friedman is highlighting the frequent deployment of contradictory statements. Trump said in an interview that May handled Brexit badly. NO he did not say anything like that. Fake news etc.