"The GOP consternation that they could still end up with a nominee who has been convicted of federal crimes came through on a call Tuesday among roughly 15 seasoned Republican operatives (none of whom are on a presidential campaign currently)," said the report. "The concern was widespread: Trump’s latest indictment could cause further pain for Republicans at the ballot box."
It's against that backdrop the Steele appeared on MSNBC and mocked former Vice President Mike Pence, who Steele said appears so "pained" to have to answer questions about his former running mate.
"There's more that's going to come," he warned. "Mike Pence and Marco Rubio and Tim Scott are going to have to account for here. Spare me this sort of pained expression of how difficult this is for you, boo. This is on the man. You back the man up. So this question about a movement is just reductive. It has always been about Trump. The party has doubled down, tripled down, and quadrupled down on Trump. Now all of y'all — all of us, because I'm a member of the party — we're going to court today. We're going to have to work through this as the country watches and decides whether or not they want to give any of us a bite at the White House apple."
At another point in the NBC piece, it cites a major donor to Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) urging the candidate to be brave enough to attack Trump. DeSantis is refusing. The donor said that those he talks to want actual policy discussions, not petty battles and name-calling.
Steele said it makes sense because Republicans are now in a place where they have to extricate themselves from the world they've created.
"You look around and go, you know, this is too much," he said. "But apparently, it's not. I think that's the part that — I don't know if everyone appreciates, that this is where Republicans want to be. They want someone who is crass and crude and rude. He is their retribution. They don't want the Morning In America that Tim Scott is offering. And I know in the establishment, everybody is rallying around the idea of, this could be the breakaway. No! Ron DeSantis is talking about we want to have a civil discourse about policy — small policy differences. That ain't happening. Do you know who Donald Trump is? When have you ever heard Donald Trump engage in any civil discourse about anything?"
He said that he legitimately wonders what the Republican officials expect to happen when all Trump has done is deliver what the GOP base wants.
"I really want to disabuse of the American people, and especially the media, of this idea that this is somehow we're going to return to normal here and that somehow Donald Trump is going to behave now that he is under indictment," Steele cautioned. "This guy went to a fundraiser after he was arraigned, for heaven's sakes! People were like, lining up, kicking out people who were asking questions about, how do you feel about going to jail? We need to be realistic about the danger that is in front of us."
It's part of the problem that the GOP continues to refuse to acknowledge, he said. At such a late date he thinks the idea of trying to remove Trump from the conversation is absurd. It isn't as if Trump will help Tim Scott win or give his lists to DeSantis."
"In what world does that happen?" Steele asked.
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Former GOP chair: There will not be any 'return to normal' now that Trump has been indicted
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