I should never have expected that any one thing would cause his cult-like followers to abandon him. If they could still vote for him following the January 2021 coup attempt, then it would take a lot for them to abandon him. I did think, however, that at some point, Trump would do things that his followers could just not stomach.
I thought that Republicans would revolt over tariffs. After all, Republicans had been the party most in favor of free trade for decades. When Trump advocated and imposed tariffs, the faithful followed.
I thought it might be the mocking of a disabled reporter, or the way he refers to women, or calling people he disagrees with stupid, or other behavior that demeans and dehumanizes people. Nope, Trumpinistas cheered him on.
I thought when his paramilitary thugs murdered two American protestors in broad daylight on the streets of an American city, that his followers would say, "I didn't sign up for this." They didn't. That is what they signed up for.
I thought failing to release the Epstein files and the Epstein cover-up would do it. That was one thing that motivated a part of his base. That is the reason many voted for Trump. That did it for Marjorie Taylor Green, but most just accepted Trump's handling of the Epstein affair and the cover-up.
I thought siding with Putin may do it. No. They don't care.
I thought the war against Iran may do it. Large segments of his supporters supported him because they thought he would avoid war. A few did abandon Trump over the war, but not many. When he threatened war crimes against Iran in a profanity-laden Truth Social post on Easter Sunday and followed that up the next day with a post that said, "A whole civilization will die tonight," that was too much for the likes of Alex Jones, Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson, Joe Rogan, and a few others. Nevertheless, his popularity did not take a nosedive.
Over the years, numerous women have made allegations of sexual assault against Trump and he has boasted about grabbing women by the pussy. There are detailed reports of extra-marital affairs, including those with adult film actress Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal, which involved payments of money to suppress stories. He has a pattern of entering a relationship with a woman who later becomes his wife while he is still married. His supporters will say God uses imperfect men. That don't care that he is immoral. Some will say he has changed, although there is no evidence of that.
Some recent events, however, have caused some of his Christian followers to become disgusted with Trump. The one thing that got a lot of attention was the meme Trump posted to Truth Social that depicted himself as Jesus either healing a man or raising him from the dead.
I have a close friend who has a sibling who is a Trump supporter and an evangelical Christian. She said her sibling was disgusted and called the post sacrilegious. I have heard of other reports like that. This is the one thing that has caused a lot of Christians to turn on Trump, but this didn't happen in isolation. This is part of a pattern of contempt for the Christian faithful. Dropping the F-bomb threat to commit massive war crimes on Easter Sunday offended some of the religious faithful. And then during a White House Easter lunch on April 1, Pastor Paula White, a longtime spiritual advisor to Donald Trump, drew a series of controversial parallels between the President's personal and legal challenges and the suffering of Jesus Christ. Some found that troubling. And then there was the picking of a fight with the Pope. And now, this meme depicting Trump as Jesus.
Many Trump followers will never abandon Trump. In George Orwell's 1984, Oceania constantly shifts its war alliances between Eurasia and Eastasia, changing allies and enemies without admission of change. Trump has that ability to make people support things they would never have previously supported and yet square the circle and justify it. Many Trump supporters are like Jim Jones followers and willingly drink the Kool-Aid. Some, however, do wake up and leave the cult.
President Donald Trump's approval rating has fallen to record lows, with some polls showing approval at 33%–35% and disapproval nearing 60%. This is welcome news. When people leave the cult, they should be welcomed to the pro-democracy side and the side of human decency. The red line is different for different people. Whether it is going to war without building a case for it, or failing to release the Epstein files, or over a sacrilegious meme, those who leave should be welcome.
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