This has not been a good week for Trump in the PR department, and it just got a bit worse.
Trump just unleashed on a Republican governor whom he endorsed not once, but twice.
After Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt decided to cancel the White House event for the National Governors Association (NGA), Trump made nice with Democrats, then he unloaded on Stitt.
Trump had endorsed Stitt during his first run in 2018, and he endorsed Stitt again when he ran for re-election in 2022.
At the time, Trump stated, "Kevin was a very successful businessman in 2018 when I first endorsed him.”
He continued, "Now, he is a fighter for the incredible people of Oklahoma. Kevin Stitt has my Complete and Total Endorsement!"
Remember those words because that is not how Trump portrayed this after the White House snub. And I bring this up because this is a horrific fault of Trump’s that he really needs to address.
Trump invited most of the Democrat governors to the event, but there were a few snubs, and only Republicans were reportedly invited to the strategy session that was to follow.
One of the governors who was snubbed was Democrat Maryland Governor Wes Moore, who is black. I only brought that up because Moore played the race card as soon as he found out he was not invited.
Stitt was in a difficult position because after Moore made the snub public, the entire contingent of Democrat governors boycotted the event. Rather than it being a partisan meeting, Stitt decided it was best not to have the meeting associated with the NGA.
He stated, “Because NGA's mission is to represent all 55 governors, the Association is no longer serving as the facilitator for that event, and it is no longer included in our official program.”
I have said it before, and I am going to say it again… Trump needs to stop taking everything so personally and lashing out at his fellow Republicans. It’s not a good look, and it is really starting to turn off conservatives.
So, go back to Trump’s 2022 endorsement, and compare that to what Trump just said about Stitt: "Remember, it was RINO Governor Kevin Stitt, of Oklahoma, who was massively behind his Opponent in his previous Election for Governor, who called me to ask for help. I Endorsed him (Barely!), and he won his Race.”
So, if I am covering Trump, I throw that endorsement from 2022 right back at him, and ask him to explain to me how that “complete and total endorsement” is “barely” endorsing Stitt.
This has become very predictable, and when someone becomes predictable, they become quite stale. And when that happens, people start to lose interest because they are sick and tired of the same thing playing out time and time again. Trump could have flipped this into a win with the right response, but he chose venom again.
This approach is not working, and its showing up in polling repeatedly. I really wish someone would get in Trump’s ear about this, but the people around him, such as Stephen Miller and Steven Cheung, relish in this. They may get their giggles, but conservatives are going to pay the price for this. But again, it’s not too late to flip this, but the change has to come soon.
