Lawrence O’Donnell on Tuesday highlighted how Donald Trump hasn’t been so helpful to the GOP ahead of the midterms after his pick for Florida’s 7th Congressional District, embattled Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.), lost the GOP primary.
Mills, the subject of probes by the House Ethics Committee and Justice Department, has been accused of domestic violence and campaign finance law violations. Trump backed Mills in February, but last week he left the congressman off an endorsement list shared on social media.
“Donald Trump has lost his magical powers with Republican voters,” said the MS NOW host, who turned his attention to the concerns of Florida residents.
After rolling a clip of a Trump voter in Orlando declaring that people are “suffering” due to rising costs, O’Donnell noted that Trump will “never apologize” for his war of choice in Iran and pointed to how Trump believes he “did the right thing” with a move that sent gas prices soaring.
But voters don’t think Trump “did the right thing,” the host argued, as a new Reuters poll delivered a 33% job approval rating, the lowest level of his second term.
The same poll found 80% of participants, including 71% of Republicans, indicate they believe the deadly conflict will go on for an extended period of time.
O’Donnell flagged how Trump “confirmed that those voters are right” on Monday when he told Fox News he has “no time schedule” for the war, adding that “the midterms have nothing to do with my thinking.”
Trump, according to O’Donnell, delivered an “obvious and stupid lie” in the interview.
“We have every right to believe that what we are hearing there… is that Donald Trump feels helpless, Donald Trump feels lost, Donald Trump feels weak,” he said. “Donald Trump feels there’s nothing he can do to stop the Democrats from winning in November, and there’s nothing he can do to stop his war.”
O’Donnell wondered aloud whether Trump’s endorsements have simply lost “value.”
“JD Vance and Marco Rubio have been betting their entire political futures on the idea that Donald Trump will be the kingmaker in the next presidential election. What if he isn’t?” he asked.