Trump famously said, “I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose voters,” And as the election results showed, he was right. None of his howlers or offenses kept him from winning.
But now he takes office with slightly more than 50% of the electorate opposed, sometimes as viscerally as his voters support him. I’m ready to believe the worst of Frump; how about you?
A great headline in New York Magazine: “Trump’s Pretend Time Is Almost Over.” Soon he’ll be President. Soon he’ll have to act rather than, or as well as, tweet.
I suppose the Fifth Avenue Effect could continue:
- Millions lose their health care, but his supporters remain unmoved.
- Trump cozies up to Putin, signs a new Détente, and his supporters remain both unperturbed, and dismissive of his opponents’ efforts to paint this decision as an unpatriotic betrayal.
- Markets crash on fears of a trade war, and his supporters are still unmoved (not clear that they own much stock anyway).
- North Korea nukes Los Angeles, and… Trump’s supporters are still unmoved? (well … lotta abortions in LA; gays too.)
Or is there somewhere a bridge too far?
And then what happens, once that bridge fails to be crossed?
Trumps starts his Presidency down, at 49-51 at least. If he drops to 35-65 approval, can he climb back?
Or does the Fifth Avenue effect become, “He walked down that street carrying two babies, Melania and Ivanka on either arm, each holding a cute puppy on a leash, and the crowd still screamed imprecations and threw ordure. Covering fire laid down by security troops in support of Trump’s extraction from Fifth Avenue killed 27, injured 154, and produced $79 million dollars in damage claims.”
We shall see.
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