From the moment Donald Trump came down the escalator to announce his first run for president, he has had conservative groups fighting him from within.
One of those groups, Club for Growth, just flipped, however.
And in what is certainly good news for Republicans, the group has very deep pockets.
Historically, midterm elections after a change of party in the White House are disastrous for the president.
In the 1800s, Democrats once lost more than 100 seats during the midterm election cycle.
One of the more recent such beatdowns occurred during Barack Obama's presidency, when he lost 63 seats, followed closely by Bill Clinton, who lost 52 seats.
In an effort to minimize potentially impending damage in 2026, Trump has been attempting to persuade GOP governors to gerrymander their maps to gain seats. However, Democrats have responded in kind, most notably with California redrawing its maps to offset the seats garnered by the GOP in Texas (if the maps are upheld in court).
During the 2024 election cycle, the Club for Growth was completely anti-Trump, even launching a massive PAC, Win It Back, to fight against his candidacy.
Club for Growth’s president, David McIntosh, openly criticized Trump, and during the primary, he clearly wanted to see a different Republican candidate get the nod to sit atop the ticket.
At the time, Trump campaign senior consultant Chris LaCivita stated, “It’s no surprise that David McIntosh, a pro-China, America last, failed congressman wannabe is organizing another swampy D.C. insider super PAC.”
He continued, “Their goal is to maintain their shady influence over Washington because they know President Trump stands in their way as he protects Americans from these vultures. These swamp dwellers will be crushed -- without mercy and without remorse -- and put back under the bridges where all trolls reside.”
McIntosh has had a change of heart now that the midterms are looming, recently supporting Trump’s effort to gerrymander GOP maps for the 2026 midterm elections.
He stated, "We're all in on helping Republicans do redistricting.” He continued, "Democrats for years have gerrymandered and Republicans have not, and now it's time so we can have Republicans in Congress for states like my home state of Indiana, step up to the plate, draw the district, so Republicans can be represented.”
McIntosh then added, "I was delighted to see President Trump calling them to do it. And you know, he said, we're going to start endorsing against you if you don't do what's right for the Republican Party and for the nation. Club for Growth will be there to back up his endorsements.”
You guys all know my stance on gerrymandering, but the fact of the matter is that virtually every blue state has gerrymandered maps already, especially California and Illinois. For instance, in Illinois, only three of the 17 House members are Republicans (17.6%) in a state where Trump won 43.47% of the vote in 2024. I would love to see district maps created by an independent committee based on these numbers, but we all know that will never happen. So, gerrymandering is perhaps the best and only way to fight back.
