Steve Corbin is emeritus professor of marketing at the University of Northern Iowa and a freelance writer who receives no remuneration, funding, or endorsement from any for-profit business, nonprofit organization, political action committee, or political party.
Political futures markets throughout the world strongly predict President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will be the 2024 presidential election contenders for the Democratic and Republican parties.
One would think card-carrying Democrats would be all in to support Biden’s re-election campaign and die-hard Republicans would earnestly wager the former president to return to the White House. But, hold on.
One group of Democrats opposes Biden’s re-election bid, and some other Democrats are uneasy about the prospect. Meanwhile, at least five well-funded groups normally aligned with the GOP, plus 74 prominent Republicans, are vehemently opposed to Trump’s candidacy.
David Siders reported for Politico in July, “A left-wing group that worked in 2020 to persuade progressives to support President Joe Biden is now preparing to turn on him.” That organization, RootsAction, plans to email 1.2 million Americans on a “#DontRunJoe” campaign, urging the president to step aside.
Sorry RootsAction, but two idioms come to mind: that ship has sailed, and the horse has left the barn. Joe Biden will be the Democratic nominee next year.
On the other side of the aisle, there is much more public discontent with the front-runner. While Trump leads all polls gauging the GOP presidential race, the title of The Hill’s May 19 article says a lot: “Anti-Trump Republicans increasingly desperate to shake up race.”
The conservative advocacy group Americans For Prosperity, founded by the billionaire industrialists Koch brothers and comprised of 4 million activists, support anyone but Trump in the GOP primary race.
Video testimonials of 901 registered GOP voters throughout America stating why they oppose Trump for the 2024 election can be viewed on Republican Voters Against Trump’s website.
Former U.S. Reprepresentative David McIntosh (Indiana), president of the influential Club For Growth megadonor group, invited a half-dozen Republican candidates—but not Trump—to its Win It Back PAC summit in March.
A fourth anti-Trump group, the Republican Accountability Project, launched a $500,000 ad campaign on Fox News’ Hannity and Fox & Friends talk shows. The spot depicts clips of Trump on January 6, 2021 and states, “Trump did this. He’ll do it again, unless he faces consequences.”
People who served in the George W. Bush’s administration have banded together as 43 Alumni for America. They have proclaimed, “Our democracy, fragile as it is, cannot endure another Trump presidency. 43 Alumni for America stands strongly in opposition to Donald Trump’s candidacy.”
A Wikipedia page listing “Republicans who oppose the Donald Trump 2024 presidential campaign” reveals 74 prominent individuals, with 113 reference citations. The list includes one former U.S. president, two former vice presidents, eight cabinet-level officials, five current and four former U.S. Senators, seven current and thirteen former U.S. Representatives, five current and eight former Governors, one former and three current statewide officials, one former federal judge and 16 other public figures—all Republicans.
For America’s democracy to survive, we need two viable political parties, each with a credible and trustworthy presidential candidate. The editorial page of The Kansas City Star pleaded in a recent column, “Republicans, our democracy depends on your willingness to read the Trump indictment.”
For the MAGA Republicans who feel the respective New York, Georgia, and federal justice departments are weaponized against Mr. Trump, Bill Tubbs drove home an important point in a column for the North Scott Press earlier this month: “… 100% of the supporting evidence [of the indictments] comes not from Democrats, but from Republicans who were close to the president and had much to gain by his re-election.” If anyone is weaponized, it’s Republicans against their like-kin, Donald Trump.
The five indictments (91 felony charges) in four different jurisdictions against criminal defendant Donald John Trump span the pre-2016 election, his presidency, and the post-2020 election time period. That reinforces why so many GOP-aligned groups and influential Republicans oppose his re-election bid.
If this anti-Trump endeavor does shake up the race, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin might be a worthy candidate to save-the-day for the Grand Old Party. Barak Ravid and Alex Thompson of Axios reported on August 19 that some “panicked” major GOP donors are looking at Youngkin, or Georgia Governor Brian Kemp.
Speaking of “old,” the irony is obvious of a Biden vs. Youngkin matchup on November 5, 2024 . . . just saying.
Top illustration by Victor Moussa is available via Shutterstock.