A recent controversial move by Donald Trump will make things difficult down the road for congressional Republicans, an ex-GOP lawmaker said on Sunday.
Former Republican Rep. Carlos Curbelo (FL) appeared on MSNBC over the weekend, and was asked about Trump's so-called crypto dinner.
The host asked Curbelo, "What message does it send?"
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He replied, "Obviously it doesn't send a good message."
"It kind of sends a message of lawlessness," he said, noting that the "big risk... is not legal for the Trump administration, but more political."
He continued:
"Democrats have been trying to build this narrative since the beginning of the administration, when Trump was building his cabinet, that this is a government formed by billionaires, and it's for wealthy people, and it's for people who want to enrich themselves. If that narrative gains traction, then you could see Republicans, not Trump, because he won't be on the ballot anymore, but you could see congressional Republicans pay a price for all of this in next year's elections."
The host said, "But let's look even beyond that," and asked about when Trump is more clearly a "lame duck."
"Do you think some Republicans then begin to stand up to him?" host Alex Witt asked.
"I think you'll hear some Republicans raise objections, concerns ahead of the '26 midterms, especially if they are in closely contested races. We know that in 2018, the first Trump midterm, Republicans lost," he said. "So there's a lot of Republicans in the House who are looking back at that and figuring out how they can avoid that kind of scenario, and then as Trump moves and becomes more and more of a lame duck, sure, you'll see more and more Republicans creating some distance and trying to distinguish themselves, but we'll have to wait a little bit of time for that."
