ROCK BOTTOM

For years we’ve wondered if there was a bottom to the Republican party’s corruption. Until now, the answer seemed to be NO. But then the Trump campaign and the RNC held a Nazi rally at Madison Square Garden reminiscent of the 1939 Nazi rally at the same venue.

The self-proclaimed Nazi rally started with 29 MAGA Republicans onstage including race baiting speakers Stephen Miller, Tony Hinchcliffe, and Tucker Carlson, and ended with an unhinged Trump repeating his attack on his opponents as America’s “enemy within.”

The problem is the optics were too good. For months Trump has held poorly attended rallies at low rent venues, often skipping out on the tab, leaving his MAGA cult stranded in deadly heat and cold, and attracting little press. But this packed event was a flashy big-budget production, widely aired, that very effectively re-branded of the GOP as the Nazi party.

This move will not only cost Republicans voters. It could also spark criminal investigations. Trump never pays for anything, yet MSG owner James Dolan rented the venue to his campaign. Although Dolan is a registered Democrat, he is a long-time friend of Trump, even having his wedding at Mar-A-Lago.

Speaking of suspected campaign finance fraud, the fake polls are causing a run-up of the Truth Social DJT “meme stock” price, despite dismal financial fundamentals, potentially exposing market makers to securities fraud or even money laundering charges. Peripherally related, the Philadelphia DA just filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk for election interference.

But I digress. The backlash against the Trump Nazi rally has been swift and sustained. Trump’s advisor Peter Navarro called the event a disaster, because it immediately alienated millions of voters. So, why did the GOP go through with it?

The GOP was already crippled by association with Trump and Russia, starting in July 2016, when it eliminated protections of Ukraine from its platform in favor of Russia. Then they nominated Trump as their candidate, and he has caused the party to continue a downward spiral.

My theory remains that the GOP considers their current plight as an opportunity to push the party further right for field positioning if they regain power. It’s a long game, but so was their scheme to take control of SCOTUS. And it’s all they have left.

A landslide for Democrats on November 5th looks possible. Reports that 200,000 WaPo readers have cancelled their subscriptions since broligarch owner Jeff Bezos refused to endorse Kamala Harris is just the latest indicator of how the election is going, in addition to record Democratic fundraising and early voter turn-out.

A landslide could give Democrats the House, the senate, and the presidency and at least two years to put more protections in place to bolster our democracy, such as reforming SCOTUS, federal abortion rights, and ending gerrymandering and Citizens United. The GOP has officially hit rock bottom. The bottom line is VOTE BLUE.