'Big ol' red flag': Trump allies reportedly 'stupefied' as president takes heat from GOP
President Donald Trump's latest crises involving Venezuela and suspected war crimes committed in the Caribbean Sea, the Jeffrey Epstein saga and a struggling economy have left his allies stunned, according to new reporting.
Republican lawmakers who have given Trump power — from his unpopular tariff policy to pulling back on Congressionally approved funding — are now aiming to curb his moves, according to New York Times analysis published Thursday by opinion writer Michelle Cottle.
"But this rare pushback is bigger than any one policy disagreement or operational misstep. It reflects the newly precarious situation in which the president finds himself," Cottle wrote. "Through a mix of bad timing and the fallout from his own blunders, Mr. Trump is taking heat from multiple directions: He has let down some of the MAGA faithful at the same moment that his growing unpopularity and lame-duck status are opening the door for his congressional team to start inching away from him."
His loyal following has now started pulling back on their support of the president, who were surprised by his warm welcome to New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
"This stupefied some Trump allies and MAGA commentators, who could not believe their hero had made nice with the enemy. Appalled that the president called Mr. Mamdani 'rational,' Laura Loomer, the right-wing Trump whisperer, groused, 'What’s the purpose of people voting in 2026 if the Democrat policies are ‘rational?’" Cottle wrote.
MAGA appears to have its own rifts now as questions rise over Trump's power on the movement.
"This brewing disenchantment broke loose in last month’s elections, which Democrats dominated. It was a big ol’ red flag for Republicans desperate to keep their slim congressional majority in next year’s midterms," the writer explained.
The fallout has spurred "a new political season" for Trump.
"Like all second-term presidents, Mr. Trump is also at the mercy of the calendar — a lame duck getting lamer by the second. Mr. Trump has a way of driving his voters to the polls when he is on the ballot, but his days as a presidential contender are done. Even under the best of circumstances, other Republicans would be pondering their future without him. But with a leader this unpopular, the need for post-Trump strategizing is all the more urgent," Cottle wrote.