While President Joe Biden is trying to appeal to a broad coalition by reaching out to everyone from liberals and progressives to independents, Never Trumpers and conservative Nikki Haley voters, presumptive 2024 GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump has been making a concerted effort to fire up his MAGA base as much as possible.
But at the same time, GOP strategists and members of Trump's campaign realize that he will also need some independents if he hopes to win in November.
The Daily Beast's Jake Lahut, in article published on April 26, cites examples of things Trump has recently done that irritated his base — for example, some comments on abortion that anti-abortion activists complained about.
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Lahut observes, "In wishy-washy remarks, Trump took credit for ending Roe (v. Wade) but also declined to endorse a national abortion ban — fully infuriating anti-abortion conservatives, who make up a key portion of the Trump base."
Trump, Lahut adds, also "invited backlash" from MAGA Republicans on Ukraine.
"It's highly unusual for Trump to break with his base like this, especially when his campaign is strapped for cash and in dire need of an uptick in small-donor enthusiasm," Lahut reports. "And while MAGA-minded Republicans aren't showing signs of mass revolt over abortion or Ukraine just yet, there's still the question of why he's taking such risks in the first place."
Lahut continues, "The Trump campaign, however, doesn't see these moves as risks. They're spinning it as all part of a plan to broaden his 2024 appeal as much as possible."
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A Trump campaign source, interviewed on condition of anonymity, told the Beast, "Politics will always be about addition, not subtraction. We understand that."
Another Trump-associated source told the Beast, "I don't want to use the word pivot, but it's sort of broadened the tent."
However, Democrat James Singer, a spokesman for Biden's reelection campaign, believes that these efforts to make Trump appear more moderate are disingenuous.
Singer told the Beast, "Trump isn't campaigning. They have no battleground infrastructure, no money, are driving away moderate voters, and their candidate is obsessed with his own revenge and retribution. How do they expect to win?"
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Read the Daily Beast's full report at this link (subscription required).
