The Republican Party are "losing enthusiasm" in Donald Trump as they begin to make their frustrations with the president known, an analyst said.
Trump's recent comments on the death of film director Rob Reiner, as well as administrative failings on healthcare and the economy, have led to fatigue within the GOP. Salon writer Amanda Marcotte suggested there would be no great change externally, but that a breakdown in confidence had already begun within the Republican Party.
Criticism over Trump's response to Reiner's death came from all sides of the political spectrum, and it's a sign the core support for Trump is beginning to turn. Marcotte wrote, "These are promising signs, but it’s not worth holding your breath waiting for GOP politicians to openly turn on a president who demands absolute loyalty."
"Instead of public rebellion, most Republicans seem to be engaged in a form of quiet quitting. They won’t go out of their way to resist Trump, but they are losing enthusiasm for defending him. They’re struggling to hide their frustration or their scheming for a post-Trump world."
Marcotte also considered the soft criticism of Trump and quiet from the GOP is part of restructuring and holding on what seats they can in the midterms next year and election in 2028.
She wrote, "Overall, the posture is one of lying low, waiting for the old man to be gone so they can begin the project of rebuilding the GOP and their own careers in a post-Trump era."
It may not be another three years for the GOP to wait, though, as Marcotte noted a list of troubles facing the president who was described as in "rapid decline."
"Trump has three years of his term remaining," she wrote. "But his poor health, mysterious hand bruises, public fatigue, rambling performances, apparent cognitive issues and unusual medical tests like an MRI are clearly stoking speculation that the president is in rapid decline."
"Trump’s own hand-picked officials are losing patience and increasingly venting in spaces they hope, rightly or wrongly, where it won’t get back to their mercurial boss, especially as reports suggest he’s isolated and consuming very little media outside of flattering propaganda."