Trump’s “intramural kampf” goes national
Mongol General : Conan! What is best in life?
Conan : To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentations of their women.
In his first unexpected term, JV Last explains, Trump discovered to his disappointment that, while his party superficially supported him, there were pockets of energy-sucking resistance that needed purging before he could fully work his will. Plus, there were “two other spheres in which structures prevented a president from acting as emperor”: the federal government and the broader culture of decency and honesty upon which he’d long preyed. Now with the Republican Party fully subjugated, “he’s going to war against America.”
Last outlines a strategy I’ve watched North Carolina’s Republican-controlled legislature pursue for over a decade. Take actions that starve blue cities of revenue to induce budget crises. Force cities to raise taxes, cut services, or both, generating popular discontent. By the time the crises bite, voters have forgotten whose actions precpitated them. Then Republicans run candidates (and perhaps finally win) against Democrats’ “failed policies.”
Trump’s first immigrant raids target Boston, New York and Chicago, Last explains, “Democratic cities in Democratic states.” He means to produce a drag on their economies:
It’s a twofer. Trump can hurt businesses and make life more expensive for consumers in New York and Illinois—and then attack blue state mayors and governors for these problems and maybe even help Republican candidates win in those states. Meanwhile, Fox will run B-roll from the raids on a loop, satisfying Trump voters in Texas and Arizona—whose economies will continue to benefit from immigrant workers.
Trump understands that blue states are the last bastions of meaningful popular opposition to his rule, so he will use the federal government to subdue them. That’s what deportations—and tariffs—are for. These are executive powers which can be used in highly-targeted ways to hurt on local economies.
You are the enemy. Prepare for war.