Reacting to Donald Trump's attempts to rally his supporters to take to the streets now that he has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, one the former president's biographers suggested Trump should not hold his breath if he thinks another Jan. 6 is in the offing.
In a column for the Daily Beast, investigative journalist and author David Cay Johnston claimed the former president doesn't have the hold on his fans that he used to have and -- having watched a substantial number of participants who took part in the Capitol insurrection arrested and jailed -- they may not want to put their necks on the line for him.
That, in turn, could lead to low protest turnout that would diminish the former president's standing as an invincible figure just as he is hitting the road to tout his third presidential run.
Posing the question, "Can Trump repeat his success in persuading thousands of his followers to storm the Capitol? Will masses of MAGAs fill the streets in New York and other cities, break into more government buildings, and use force to prevent any prosecutions of their hero?" the journalist poured cold water on Trump's hopes.
"I think not. And such a failure would show that his once powerful hold on the disaffected has waned, relentlessly shriveling towards impotence," before recalling, "Many of the insurrectionists Trump sent to the Capitol on Jan. 6 to stop the certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory expressed surprise, shock, and anger that they were identified, located, arrested, prosecuted, convicted (or offered plea deals too good to refuse), and in some cases given years-long prison sentences. "
Asking, "How many Trump die-hards will engage in violence for his benefit knowing that the Justice Department is relentlessly pursuing the wrongdoers and winning convictions?" he claimed, "How many will risk their freedom for the man who promised that he alone could save them from what they regard as cultural, political, racial, and economic devastation—and then failed to deliver?"
Johnston also suggested that the type of people Trump is counting on to risk jail over his indictment is vocal -- but small, writing: "This isn’t to deny that tens of millions of Americans are disaffected. Many of them would throw away our Constitution and the liberties it ensures in favor of a wannabe dictator whose promises resonate with their circumstances. They are angry. They are also a minority, even among Republicans."
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