OPINION:
As Washington and New York City political pundits and politicians salivate over the Jan. 6 show trial and speculate whether former President Donald Trump still has a hold on the Republican Party, they’re missing one key point: The majority of the American electorate hates them.
So much so, that many are willing to turn to Mr. Trump in 2024 no matter what because he’s a proven streetfighter who is unafraid to take on bureaucratic thugs and return the government to the people.
According to a recent University of Chicago poll, 56% believe the government is corrupt and rigged. In a Quinnipiac poll, less than a third of the country approves of the jobs President Biden and Congress are doing. And Americans’ confidence in the news media has fallen to an all-time low, Gallup reported this month.
The American public simply doesn’t believe what they’re being fed from the political elites, and why would they?
On Sunday, former Vice President Al Gore compared so-called “climate-deniers” to police inactivity during the Uvalde, Texas, shooting.
This man, whose net worth is estimated to be $300 million, once said the Arctic would be ice-free in the summer of 2013 and New York City and Miami would be underwater by 2015.
Just 1% of Americans named “climate change” as the most important problem facing the U.S. in a recent New York Times poll. The vast majority agree economic issues are their top concern.
Yet, according to the Biden administration, the economy is strong.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who last year explained inflation was merely “transitory,” is now working to change the definition of the word “recession” — which most economists acknowledge is two-quarters of GDP contraction.
“This is not an economy that’s in recession,” Ms. Yellen assured the American public on Sunday. “A recession is a broad-based contraction that affects many sectors of the economy. We just don’t have that.”
Tell that to the single mother who has to decide between filling up her gas tank or putting food on the table.
And the economy isn’t the only thing about which the Washington establishment is wildly out of touch.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg tweets about the value of owning electric vehicles, ignoring the fact most Americans can’t afford them. The first lady brags about Hispanics being diverse as “breakfast tacos,” as the Democratic Party renames the demographic Latinx, a term no one had heard of.
The southern border is wide open, fentanyl is flowing in from Mexico, and crime is ravaging our major cities, yet DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas assures us “the border is secure.”
While “Squad” members fake being handcuffed to advocate for killing babies, and other members of Congress and the media wastes their time demonizing Mr. Trump, the American public is hurting — and is mad as hell at Washington elites.
Political pundits would like you to believe Mr. Trump’s comeback is dead in the water — that the Jan. 6 commission and its findings all but guarantee he can’t win in 2024.
They couldn’t be more wrong.
Last week, it was reported by Axios that, if reelected, Mr. Trump plans on gutting the federal bureaucracy. The elites in Washington shuddered.
“How could unelected bureaucrats possibly lose their jobs?” they practically muttered out loud, fearing for their own futures.
Yet, personnel is policy.
A promise to reform a bloated administrative state that acts like unaccountable autocrats (look no further than Dr. Anthony Fauci) would be welcomed by many Americans who want the government to work for them, not the other way around.
This week, Mr. Trump delivered a keynote address at his Washington-based think- ank, the America First Policy Institute. Unleashing American energy? Check. Lowering taxes and cutting regulatory red tape? Check. Securing our southern border? Check. Fighting for free, reciprocal trade deals and bringing back U.S.-based manufacturing. Check.
All these policies worked during Mr. Trump’s first administration and delivered results for the American people.
Does Mr. Trump have baggage? Absolutely. That’s why many within the GOP are clamoring for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to run — all the Trump policies without the Trump personality.
But here’s the thing: Democrats have proven they will tar and feather whomever their opponent is in 2024 — justly or unjustly.
Mr. Trump — who has overcome two impeachments, a special counsel investigation, and now the House Jan. 6 commission — is still standing and wants back in the game.
He won’t cower. He won’t change course if The New York Times or The Washington Post attacks him. He’ll call out RINOs for what they are and challenge the Washington establishment to do better.
He has proven he will fight for the American people in the face of unparalleled swamp adversity. No other Republican politician who is considering running in 2024 has been tested like that, which partially accounts for why Mr. Trump continues to lead every primary poll.
So let the political elites underestimate the anger of the American public. Let them refuse to change course or admit failure.
They made the same mistake in 2016. Let them do it again in 2024.
• Kelly Sadler is the commentary editor at The Washington Times.
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