Sarah Posner: Washington Post has more on the story first in Politico the other day about the clashes between the Christian right and the Trump campaign/RNC on platform drafting. It's getting heated, but what will it amount to? 🧵1/x www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

Washington Post has more on the story first in Politico the other day about the clashes between the Christian right and the Trump campaign/RNC on platform drafting. It's getting heated, but what will it amount to? 🧵1/x www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

Tempers flare as Trump team revises abortion plank for Republican platformwww.washingtonpost.com The former president wants the platform to endorse leaving the issue to the states rather than a federal ban in the wake of Roe v. Wade’s demise.

The piece pretends (i.e., gives Trump a giant benefit of the doubt) that Trump has settled on abortion policy that conflicts with his base. Trump, according to the piece, wants to "leave it to the states" and the Christian right/anti-abortion groups want national ban + personhood amendment. 2/x

Trump has only hinted at this, and has otherwise given a mishmash of answers when asked about this. At the debate, for example, he lied that the Biden/Dem position includes murdering newborns and that he would somehow have a policy to prevent that. 3/x

Let's return to the visible anger among heavyweights on the Christian right -- people like Marjorie Dannefelser, Tony Perkins, and more. They're mad that the platform (at least from 2016, since there wasn't one in 2020) will be "watered down." 4/x

Perkins has been talking about this for weeks, including on his radio show, and has been urging followers to pressure their RNC delegates. Trump's RNC has now blocked media from the platform committee meetings, something Perkins called "un-American." Yes, I know, leopard eating face, etc. 5/x

Trump's RNC, as Politico reported earlier in the week, purged a few people from the platform committee who were seeking strict anti-abortion language, including one who is a longtime Republican operative deeply embedded in the evangelical community (Chad Connelly). bsky.app/profile/sara... 6/x

This could turn into a BFD Also: Republicans in disarray (over abortion) www.politico.com/news/2024/07...

Trump campaign blocks pair of anti-abortion activists from RNC platform committeewww.politico.com The shakeup, which has not been previously reported, comes as anti-abortion groups petition Trump, his campaign advisers and members of the RNC not to make significant changes to the party’s platform ...

The public outrage from the Christian right is a huge gift to Trump, actually. It makes a rift between him and his extremist base visible to the public, giving him more ammunition to claim he's more moderate on abortion even than his own party and has power to transform the party itself. 7/x

Dems need to scream, "If a national abortion ban hits trump's desk, he WILL SIGN IT! Joe WILL NOT! America, you know this is a fact."

He is posturing. He knows his base wants a total ban, brags about it to them, and he knows that loses elections.

Ok so reading the thread maybe not such a great thing but I’ll take signs of dysfunction where I can get them.

📌

You’re right - Trump IS the party. They’ll back down - anything for Dear Leader.