There is a ferment among Republicans. Is their support for Trump not crumbling faster than expected? His party members blocked an important initiative of the American president and dealt him a rare defeat.
Republicans began to show dissatisfaction. American President Donald Trump wanted to distribute billions of taxpayer money, including for the creation of a fund through which participants in the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021 would be compensated. However, the Senate postponed the vote - Trump's party members blocked the initiative. Does he still have control over his own party, asks ZDF.
Political scientist Julian Müller-Kahler tells the German public broadcaster that Trump's power base remains solid. He is convinced that Trump has his party firmly under control, and the defeat in the Senate is more of a "warning" to the president.
Trump's approval rating is falling
The American expert assumes that the president and his party colleagues will find a compromise because the president has provided the Republicans with new groups of voters. But Trump's approval rating is constantly falling.
A "Reuters" survey shows that only about 35% of Americans are satisfied with the president's job performance. This is due to rising fuel prices, but above all to the war in Iran, Mueller-Kahler believes, recalling Trump's promise to end wars, not start new ones. "Because of this, many of his supporters feel rather cheated."
"However, the fact is that the approval rating for the Democratic Party is also falling," the political scientist adds. The declining popularity of both Democrats and Republicans is a symptom of voters losing trust in institutions.
If Trump ends the war in Iran, his approval rating may increase again - and accordingly his chances in the congressional elections in the fall. He can count on the support of the party, Mueller-Kahler points out, noting that even during the internal party primaries, it became clear how great Trump's influence is: Republican candidates who criticized the president lost in the vote.
Republicans are worried about the midterm elections
According to Mueller-Kahler, there is nervousness among Republicans in connection with the midterm elections for Congress in the fall. The party tried to secure advantages by redistricting before the vote.
Despite these measures, however, Democrats can win in the House of Representatives, while the situation in the Senate is different, the expert believes. Why aren't Democrats taking full advantage of the negative headlines Trump has generated?
"If people in America were asked what the most important thing about the Democratic Party is, the only answer would be that it is against Trump", Müller-Kahler told ZDF. And Trump, for his part, raised issues before his election victories that voters had not previously paid attention to. This stimulated their “deep-rooted yearning for change".
What are the lessons for Democrats
By focusing on unemployment and high drug-related mortality, Trump "revealed" the Republican Party to the working class. Thanks to him, voters in more distant states gained "a voice to express their anger", Müller-Kahler commented. While the Democrats are betting only on the complete rejection of the president.
Therefore, the Democrats should focus more on content, instead of dealing with Trump, the expert recommends. And he warns against a new impeachment procedure for the president. "I think that would be a big mistake for the Democrats." If it comes to that, Trump will be able to take advantage of the chance to present himself again as an opponent of the status quo.
Unstable infrastructure, a large gap between the rich and the poor in the US - there will be no shortage of topics for the upcoming congressional elections, Müller-Kahler is convinced, quoted by ZDF.