Scott Tibbs
Donald Trump cannot be trusted to define RINO
By Scott Tibbs, March 18, 2024
Donald Trump recently
boasted that Republicans are "getting rid of" people like Mitt Romney. Here's the problem: Republicans cannot win if we get rid of all of the moderate Republicans. This is a path to Democrats winning. We should have learned this when Republicans openly derided and alienated supporters of John McCain in Arizona in 2020 and 2022, despite the late senator's popularity in his state. Trump and then Kari Lake lost the state, in part because of this behavior.
Pushing moderate Republicans out of the party, when they are willing to stay and vote for Republican candidates, is a foolish move. Should Republicans stand for conservative principles? Absolutely. We should do that for the good of the party and, more importantly, the good of the country. But we do need those voters and we should not tell anyone their votes are not wanted.
With that said, Donald Trump is the last person I would ever trust to determine who is or is not a RINO. Trump's definition of "RINO" is anyone who criticizes him, even from the right. It is based on his ego and personal feelings, not based on principle. Trump has repeatedly endorsed more moderate candidates over conservative alternatives because the moderate praised Trump more.
Remember, Trump assailed a number of Republicans as "RINOs" for pursuing policies that would cut spending and reform the entitlement programs that are driving the growth of government. That is not the definition
anyone would have used as recently as ten years ago. Fiscal conservatism defined the Republican Party's opposition to Bill Clinton in the 1990's and energized the Tea Party movement from 2009 to 2014. Trump's abandonment of fiscal conservatism and his attacks on fiscally conservative Republicans shows once again that he cares only about personal "loyalty" and who praises him most. It is all about ego.
Politics is the art of the possible. With Trump, politics is about his personal ego and who praises him most. He is a very brittle man who cannot handle any criticism, especially from fellow Republicans. He lashes out anytime his feelings are hurt. We need to stop judging Republicans on whether they like Donald Trump or not, or whether he feels they are "loyal" enough to him personally. We need to base our judgments on character, policy, and record.
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