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The last election shattered the complacency of the ruling class. For the first time in a long time, the men and women who believed that the future belonged to them, no longer did. The culture war, they began admitting in the post-election moratoriums, had gone against them. They had not just lost an election, they had fallen away from the zeitgeist into their own echo chamber.
And no one wanted what they were selling.
The Democrats and the larger movement around them has stumbled trying to make a comeback. But they have had a consistent strategy beyond the clumsy efforts to revive the BLM riots as the ICE riots or to file endless lawsuits that even liberal Supreme Court justices are growing tired of, and that is to fracture the successful coalition that President Trump built.
Ever since Trump took office, the media, which acts as the ideological attack dog for the movement, has been trying to find wedge issues. Some have been conventional economic ones meant to split away the emerging working class base, but others are ideological wedge issues targeted at dividing MAGA, first around foreign policy, and then around Jeffrey Epstein.
The issues themselves are less important than what they reveal about Democrat tactics.
The Left has closely analyzed the Trump coalition, found weak points and is running information operations to exploit those weaknesses and, when successful, playing divide and conquer. It belatedly figured out that MAGA, unlike past Republican coalitions, was virtually invulnerable to external criticism, shaming and moral blackmail because it was unconcerned with respectability.
Shaming Trump supporters no longer worked because MAGA did not care what the media or anyone outside the movement thought. Or at least that was supposed to be how it worked.
But the Trump coalition was a big tent and was a mass of agendas, some contradictory, quarreling factions, and personalities who were more opposed to things than for them. Once Trump began governing, he would have to pick and choose, make decisions and take sides. The question was how the movement would cope with these internal disagreements.
Early on it became obvious that the ‘leak’ problem that had pervaded the first Trump administration was far from gone. The media enjoyed no shortage of leaks, many of them coming from a Koch libertarian faction that had tried to seize control over foreign policy and has now spent months trying to drive out Secretary of Defense Hegseth after he fired the leakers.
Beyond the anonymous leakers from inside and outside the administration, certain named personalities have taken to texting the media their criticisms of President Trump and his administration. These figures want the mantle of MAGA even as they aid Politico and the New York Times in attacking the administration. Rather than elevating themselves by aiding the media, they’re demonstrating their untrustworthiness to be leading figures in the movement.
Still all of this was small potatoes until a small group of leftists, libertarians and far-righters began vocally claiming that there was a ‘split’ among MAGA on Israel and Iran. Polls pretty clearly showed that there was no split, but as long as the media could keep on quoting influencers like Tucker Carlson and a handful of more obscure figures, along with leftists like Joe Rogan who had briefly glommed on to MAGA, they could manufacture stories about a split.
Epstein was more damaging because it was and is a legitimate split. The sense of anger and betrayal is real, and while it’s misdirected at Trump, it damaged the movement, sabotaged the legislative agenda and depending on the electoral outcome going forward, that may make the difference between national survival and national destruction. And it was also the first time that the losers of 2024 felt like they had won a culture war victory and had a pathway forward.
Democrats, including those who had previously shown no interest in the Epstein saga, embraced it because for the first time they had hit a vulnerable point. They keep calling for the ‘release of the Epstein files’ not because they have any concern about Epstein’s victims, because they care about what’s in the files or because they even know anything about the subject, but because it’s the first line of attack that legitimately hurt President Trump.
And it hurt Trump by splitting the MAGA movement.
That is the larger objective here. And it is important to be aware of that strategy in play because while some of the concerns and debates on various issues are legitimate, some are being advanced by paid influencers and operatives, along with bot armies, to split the movement.
The leftist strategy contains an enormous admission. And the admission is that they have no way forward as a national movement except by splitting the MAGA movement. It’s not a competition, but a zero sum game in which the Left does not have enough room to grow because its message has become fundamentally alienating to even sections of its base.
But at the same time some of the same forces that helped build MAGA threaten its long term survival. The movement embraced controversy and shock tactics, but some influencers were not using shock tactics to achieve something bigger, but to get attention by being contrarian. Stirring up controversy, hurling accusations and sabotaging everything is all they ever do.
Some of those who went MAGA because it was shocking are turning against MAGA because it’s the next ‘shocking’ phase in their attempt to stay relevant. Others saw MAGA as a one-time chance to build their own brand and are splitting off in the hopes of building their own movements. (That is another reason why third parties don’t work. Once you splinter, new splinter groups keep forming. And there’s no longer a good argument against them.)
MAGA naturally attracts individualists and many of them resist larger agendas, but the only way Trump can succeed is if he’s given elbow room to pursue a larger agenda. Previous conservative movements resolved conflicts through inaction and so nothing got done.
President Trump leads MAGA. What he wants to do, right or wrong, becomes the strategy, and he is the reason that things are actually getting done. The House Republicans have already shown us how useless a leaderless or a movement of weak leaders can be. And that’s the alternative. Infighting has never worked for MAGA. It can only work against it. The entire leftist strategy is to create and exploit divisions because they either bring the second term machine to a halt or they force a breach in the movement. And thus far, they are making inroads.
That doesn’t mean that there isn’t room for debate or lobbying for one approach or another. Those who believe President Trump is making the wrong decision on an issue should say. But when leftists hop on their bandwagon, they should get off, and they should never cooperate or coordinate with leftist media operations. That’s no longer an argument: that’s treason.
One odd thing is how fast news travels. Even before radio/TV when newspapers were the main spreader of news, some people became wildly popular, the public moods back then were perhaps even more extreme than today. Even way back in Ancient Rome, some people became wildly popular somehow, apparently Julius Caesar for example before he launched his strategically brilliant Civil War and took over Italy with hardly any casualties.
Face it the Dem-O-Rats don’t like being out of power they want to Control Our Lives and support a Global UN Controlled Government
MAGA will evolve and change but the premise will remain the same.
Exactly – MAGA is the spiritual successor to the Tea Party Movement, may it rest in peacehttps://www.frontpagemag.com/the-only-dem-hope-is-to-divide-maga/#respond
It has bothered me that Mark Levin, whose work I otherwise like, respect, and generally agree with, now calls Steve Bannon and Tucker Carlson anti-Semites. I assume his definition of anti-Semite must have something to do with not wanting to embroil the United States in yet another endless war. I hope the MAGA tent is big enough to support those who are generally friendly and supportive towards Israel and the Israeli people, but don’t want Netanyahu conscripting our military to fight an endless war. (This same MAGA sentiment goes for Zelenskyy and NATO. )
By skillful use of sticks and carrots, peace makers CAN make win/win deals—and then the world moves ahead, and we all live better. Sticks-without-carrots is the road to never-ending hell where power and subjugation have to be maintained because the dynamic is all kill-or-be-killed. And I fully appreciate that a certain “religion of peace” sets up exactly that dynamic as a matter of religious doctrine.
But, that said, I see no benefit to anyone in having MAGA form a circular firing squad that misdirects efforts into internal squabbles that only serve to empower a common enemy.
Cornelia Foster Wood:
In case you’re not aware, Mark Levin is a neocon. There hasn’t been a conflict on this planet that neocons didn’t want to get involved in. They’re all for the US being the world’s police force. I served in the US Navy and can’t support that mentality.
By the way, neocons are the largest holders of stocks in defense related companies. As someone who’s made money on defense industry stocks, I can tell you with 100% certainty that war and rumors of war is very profitable.
But I’m a capitalist, not a neocon. I personally despise neocons. I have never liked Mark Levin and never will no matter what we may agree on.
Tucker Carlson isn’t an antisemite. He’s an apologist for Islam.
Daniel:
Bingo!! It seems rather obvious, to me at least, that Tucker Carlson does not understand Islam and naively equates it to Christianity and Judaism. Moreover, he is also ignorant of Arab culture and history.
I’ve read several books on various aspects of Arab history, culture and Islam. The most comprehensive book I’ve ever read on the subject[s] was written by David Pryce-Jones titled: “The Closed Circle: An Interpretation of the Arabs” published in 1989 (ISBN 0-06-016047-0).
He starts circa 400AD and goes from there up until modern day and covers all aspect of Arab history and culture including the rise of Mohammad and the founding of Islam and its spread (The Christian crusades was an effort to fight back against the violent spread of Islam.) Davis’s father was a British diplomat to several Arabs countries and as a result, he grew up in several Arab countries and speaks and understands Arabic.
Bottom line:
There can be no co-existing with a people who’s religion compels them to kill anyone who does not believe what they believe. It’s an insurmountable fact that Christians and Jews are going to have to confront the Islamic zealots at some point if they wish to continue to survive. Those uncouth Islamic barbarians are serious and can’t be reasoned with nor are they ever going to stop until they’re forcibly removed from among the living.
Cucker KNOWS how to investigate truth, but chose to ignore facts, logic, reason, evidence, He chose not to interview any knowledgeable person (he’s had many offers) w evidence countering his views promoting Jew hatred. He chose to ignore obvious Jewish genocide of Jews. I would say that makes him antisemite. That ‘nun’ (clearly a dude) from the invented Palestine made him a laughingstock by claiming hamas isn’t a threat while he nodded along…
Then perhaps Mr. Carlson needs to do more research on izlam. He – and others – can start with Dr. Bill Warner’s excellent video entitled: “Why We are Afraid: A 1400 Year Secret”.
“those who are generally friendly and supportive towards Israel and the Israeli people, but don’t want Netanyahu conscripting our military to fight an endless war.”
What you describe sounds more like concern trolling than being “supportive towards Israel”.
The prospect of US troops being “conscripted by Netanyahu” “to fight an endless war” was a lurid fantasy painted by Tucker Carlson and others of his mind in the approach to the bombing of Iran’s nuclear weapons facilities.
In reality, Israel began bombing Iran’s nuclear sites on 13 June, continuing through to 21 June – 9 days. Since Israel lacked the capability to destroy some of the targets, Trump finished the attacks on 22 with US bombers – 1 day.
Nor did Netanyahu do any “conscripting” of US forces – this is Protocols-level fantasizing. By what means is he supposed to control the US? He certainly didn’t manage that during the Biden years. Are you (or the people whose opinion you present) suggesting that Trump is a “Zionist puppet”?
In any case, there you have your “endless war” – precisely one day of US involvement. The “endless war” meme was intended to cause panic among Trump’s supporters _before_ the intervention. To breathe new life into it nearly two months _after_ the US one-day action is surely gaslighting – to insinuate to the severely underinformed that US-Iran conflict is still ongoing.
It was a very difficult task for Carlson to sell the idea that America First required Iran to possess nuclear weapons, don’t you think? Or do you agree with him?
Well Netanyahu wants to take over Gaza. The IDF is already burnt out from the last (almost) 2 years of fighting Hamas. Although he actually hasn’t said it, who do you think he would want to help with his takeover of Gaza? To THAT I don’t just say “No”, but Hell NO.
I agree with the overall point, but the Epstein files are the hill to die on for MAGA. They need to be released, regardless of what it will do to “ongoing investigations”, “national security”, or “political stability”.
The truth must come out, regardless of whether it turns out to be nothing significant or causes an upheaval worse than any in a century. And the decision of what to release cannot be left to those who will pause thinking of what it will cost the country.
I’ll just say that if it’s for ongoing investigations that result in appropriate termination of evil then I’m fine with a delay – provided it all comes out in court with only victim names and faces being redacted.
I do NOT understand the big deal about Epstain and his conduct. We KNOW he was in custody apparently awaiting trial for some nasty crimes. Good. While he was awaiting trial he stopped breathing.. We do no know precisely why or how. But he is very DEAD. As he stopped breathing he came face to face wth the /god who made him. I don’t know what transpired in that confrontation, but I am quite certain things went from the hot frying pan of custody and pending trial to the HOTTER fire he had earned.
I also am quite certain he will never again defile any children or even other adults.
We keep hearing conflicing stories regarding some “files” To date I’ve not seen anything airtight or rock solid regarding what is in them, who else is named and involved, or anything else. Some say there is nothing more than flight logs for others travelling on his airplanes.. Others “suggest” or “know” there is much more.
Strange thing: I”ve yet to see any definitive statements that are conclusive.
Whatever, we have some people tasked with addressing such things, let them do their work.. or not. At this point I am far more concerned over a largish kettle of much bigger fish to fry.
Thee developing situation on the “changes” coming into effect in the District of Columbia are much more far reaching and consequential than the dead pervert’s papers. It could even be that so many in the DC area will be implicated if the E files do get opened and examined that Trump is stealthily securing the city against major upheaval that would be highly likely when the “bad news and dirt” start flying.
I’d suggest taking a chill pill and sitting back and relaxing. SOMETHING big is in the wind.
Antisemitism should be a red line. Those in the movement who are antisemites should be called out by name and marginalized.
DemonRots have nothing,, absolutely nothing the majority of hard working, tax paying American Citizens want, or can be offered. DemonRots have become the worst plague on this country. The DemonRots hate the American Workers, especially the blue collar workers, farmers, they have taken up with the BLM’s, and other socialists throughout the country, their plan to keep the illegal aliens and make them voters are vanishing faster than they thought.. The women in America, especially suburban women are joining the movement they enjoy having their children be able to play in the neighborhoods with our thugs and gangsters shooting at them.