Famed GOP polster explains why Americans could 'rally around' Trump

Former U.S. President Donald Trump leaves after addressing members of the media following the verdict in his hush-money trial at Trump Tower on May 31, 2024 in New York City. (Getty Images)

Earlier this week, Politico reported that a new poll suggests that Donald Trump's recent criminal conviction "should be worrying" for the former president.

However, Democrats like Carson Markley recently shared with The Washington Post that he's not convinced the MAGA hopeful should fret just yet.

"I’ve read the news, I’ve seen the polls, I’ve talked to guys at the bar who said they were once Trump supporters but that they can no longer support him," Markley told the Post. "Logically, everything I see makes it seem like the convictions weaken his chance of winning. But I can’t help think: What if it helps him?"

READ MORE: Appeals court shoots down Trump’s request to lift gag order after felony conviction

The Post reports, "Markley suffers from what he called a sort of 'PTSD' from years of scandals that have failed to remove Trump from public life. The affliction presents with an unusual symptom: It makes some critics of the former president believe that anything bad that happens to Trump may end up being good for Trump."

"I think it probably martyrs Trump even more," former First Lady Jill Biden spokesperson Michael LaRosa told the newspaper.

Political consultant and Trump critic Frank Luntz added that Trump is "running as the world’s biggest victim. And Americans rally around victims."

Former President Barack Obama's ex-adviser Dan Pfeiffer suggested to the Post that "mythologizing Trump as some kind of invincible monster who can absorb all attacks and only become stronger — that might be the thing that helps Trump and his Republican allies.

READ MORE: Trump has lost more than $2 billion in net worth from Truth Social’s post-conviction plunge

Pheiffer added, "When we pretend like he can survive anything, it imbues him with strength and gives him political advantage with a lot of people. But the reality is, how bad a criminal do you have to be to be one of the most politically connected and richest guys around, and still be convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records? The truth is he’s kind of a clown."

"It’s only natural that people would become catastrophizers about Trump," the ex-Obama staffer emphasized. "But it’s actually not true that he hasn’t faced accountability. Every time he has been on the ballot since 2016, literally and figuratively, he has lost."

The Washington Post's full report is available at this link (subscription required).

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