Rep. Peter Meijer (R-Mich.) gave an interview on why he believes so many Republicans have embraced the extremism of former President Donald Trump. This interview came after Meijer lost the Michigan GOP primary in early August.
In the interview with the New York Times, Meijer began by speaking about the 2020 election, saying that whether one believes they were stolen is not important, the only important thing is them saying they were.
This sentiment is often echoed off-the-record in private dinners in D.C.
GOP senators and House members have also noted that they are not believers in some of the right-wing statements they use in their campaigns and newsletters. Instead, all of these are seen as the price of being accepted in this Trump-era politics. They can also be key to winning right-wing voters.
An example of these lies and statements is the recent belief that an increase in the funding of the Internal Revenue Service could lead to armed federal agents attacking Americans.
These sorts of lies can often ramp up followers during rallies.
However, this extremism could ultimately be hurting voters. In June, the Supreme Court extremist majority voted in favor of overturning Roe v. Wade, a landmark decision that had enabled women to make choices about their pregnancies for almost 50 years.
Pat Ryan, a New York Democrat, who won in a special House election last week, was very clear about his support of abortion rights to swing voters on his size.
Kansas has also similarly had a swing in voters, especially women, turning against the GOP because of the overturning of abortion rights.
These changes have led to many believing that a “red wave” is not coming and that Democrats can hold on to the Senate in the upcoming midterm election.
