1. Why aren't more Republican lawmakers speaking out against Trump? In fact, why are most protecting him? Some history might help. Compare Ronald Reagan & Howard Baker during Watergate.
-
Show this thread
-
2. During Watergate, many Republicans distinguished themselves by standing up to Nixon. Senator Howard Baker famously asked, "what did the President know and when did he know it?"
8 replies 22 retweets 108 likesShow this thread -
3. Reagan took a different task. Interestingly, prior to Watergate, Reagan had been quite critical of Nixon (for going to China & other liberal measures). But once Nixon was emerged as lawless president, Reagan loved him.
7 replies 34 retweets 114 likesShow this thread -
4. Reagan in 1973/1974: Watergate was "lynching" & "witch hunt" comparable to KKK: "to watch the ‘night riders’ ignore the harm they are doing to our nation in these troubled times makes me a little sick.”
3 replies 39 retweets 106 likesShow this thread -
5. Reagan continued to support Nixon even after White House tapes came out where Nixon said Reagan was “pretty shallow” and of “limited mental capacity.”
4 replies 27 retweets 119 likesShow this thread -
6. Political analysts at the time & Reagan's own staff thought he was nuts. Why stick up for president mired in scandal. But Reagan's instincts were, in fact, right.
2 replies 16 retweets 85 likesShow this thread -
7. What Reagan understood was that partisan Republicans (who he would need to win the primaries if running for president) would love his loyalty to Nixon, while less partisan voters would forget it.
5 replies 35 retweets 146 likesShow this thread -
8. After Watergate, Reagan's star rose, while Howard Baker's more moderate version of Republicanism faded. Reagan had made the right bet: sticking to a sinking president makes sense in polarized, tribalist polity.
6 replies 37 retweets 156 likesShow this thread -
9. Drawing on
@rickperlstein's excellent book Invisible Bridge &@MikeKoncewicz's fascinating forthcoming book They Said No to Nixon, I argue that we can't expect much GOP resistance to Trump:https://newrepublic.com/article/147558/trumps-loyalists-following-reagans-footsteps …14 replies 45 retweets 130 likesShow this thread -
Replying to @HeerJeet @MikeKoncewicz
Good stuff, friend. But Baker is actually a more complicated case. Stan Kutler always argued he sought to subvert the Ervin probe from within. I suspect he might v have started that way then changed his mind.
4 replies 1 retweet 10 likes
Interesting --
-
-
as Rick tells us some on the right "didn't like him until Watergate."
0 replies 0 retweets 0 likesThanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.