MAGA energy takes over the RNC: Republicans are riled up over Donald Trump's shooting

MAGA energy takes over the RNC: Republicans are riled up over Donald Trump's shooting
Republicans at the convention aren't upset over Donald Trump's shooting — they're giddy

By AMANDA MARCOTTE
Senior Writer
PUBLISHED JULY 17, 2024 6:00AM (EDT)


(Salon) MILWAUKEE — Donald Trump's biggest skill — perhaps his only real skill — is mugging for a camera. His first instinct, upon being nicked by a would-be assassin's bullet, was not to run for safety and certainly not to worry about those in the audience who were seriously injured or killed. No, it was to maximize the photo opp, raising his fist in a reality TV-style imitation of "defiance," as blood streaked through his make-up. The pictures sent a shockwave of fear and dread through the coalition of democracy defenders. Trump is already the cult leader of an increasingly fascist movement. The concern is that the attempt on his life will propel him to new levels of messianic power over his slavish followers.

Trump is leaning into this with all the subtlety of a pro wrestler. In a video that leaked Tuesday, Trump is heard on speakerphone talking to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about his injury, which he described as like being bitten by "the world’s largest mosquito." But when Trump showed up at the Republican National Convention (RNC) on Monday night, he was sporting a comically oversized bandage on his ear. The crowd responded by chanting, "Fight, fight, fight!"

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The reaction from Republican politicians and pundits has been an unnerving competition of who can lavish Trump with the most praise for having the sheer luck that the bullet mostly missed him. (A man died during the attack, but following Trump's lead, most of the GOP leaders barely noticed until Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, one of the final speakers on Tuesday, made a mention.) Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, won that silly contest by tweeting, "Courageous, United, and Defiant," earning the reward of being the next right-hand man Trump will soon pressure to commit felonies. This behavior is insincere, rooted not in any real affection for Trump, so much as in an understanding that hyperbolic flattery is the best way to pry favors from a narcissist. For everyday Republicans who will likely never meet Trump beyond shaking hands at a photo line, the focus was on how this shooting bolsters their hopes for a MAGA victory in November.

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People on the ground at the RNC are eager to use this shooting to deflect the entirely correct accusation that Republicans, by nominating the man who incited the January 6 insurrection, are the ones endorsing political violence. Instead, they used the shooting to level false accusations at President Joe Biden's administration. One delegate from North Carolina claimed, "We don't really have a lot of trust in the agencies that are going to be doing an investigation." She hoped for a private investigation because "there's a lot of questions" about "the FBI and who they really work for." ..............(more)

https://www.salon.com/2024/07/17/maga-energy-takes-over-the-rnc-are-riled-up-over-donald/