Is MAGA still electable?

America, Actually with Astead Herndon

This episode of 'America Actually' explores whether the Republican Party, particularly under Donald Trump's leadership, faces an electabilit

Key takeaways

• Trump's approval ratings have declined despite claims of delivering on campaign promises.
• Republicans struggle to defend Trump's record on inflation, tariffs, and the Iran conflict, especially when he publicly dismisses concerns about Americans' financial well-being.

Main topics

• Republican electability in midterm elections
• Donald Trump's post-2024 record and broken promises

Notable quotes

"I love the inflation." – Donald Trump on economic hardship.

"I don't think about anybody." – Trump on American financial situation.

Conclusion

While Republicans attempt to frame the midterms as a battle between 'common sense' and 'crazy,' their ability to win hinges on

Transcript preview

Speaker 3 (0:00) Do Republicans have an electability problem? We've heard a lot about the E-word when it comes to Democrats, not so much when it comes to Republicans. But we should ask that question. Donald Trump is an unpopular president leading an unpopular war. Gas prices are sky high, and Republicans have nominated a bunch of scandal-plagued candidates, like Ken Paxton in Texas or Max Miller in Ohio. They've even nominated candidates who supported Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Here's Tom Tiffany, the Republican gubernatorial candidate in Wisconsin. He voted not to certify Joe Biden's 2020 win. Do Speaker 4 (0:40) you regret your vote, though? I'm looking forward, not backwards. So Speaker 3 (0:44) have Speaker 4 (0:44) Republicans set the stage for a backlash in the midterms? This is going to be an election between common sense versus crazy. Do you want to run a candidate that hates Thanksgiving? And are they the ones? Speaker 3 (0:54) with an electability issue. That's this week on America Actually, where we talk to CJ Pearson. Let's dig in. Speaker 1 (1:10) I'm pretty confident talking into a mic. Hey, I'm doing it right now. But home projects, I second guess everything. Is that noise normal? Is that water damage? And who should I even call? That's where Thumbtack comes in. Upload a photo or voice note and their AI-powered search helps diagnose the issue and match you with the right top-rated local pro. Instead of second guessing or searching for hours, you get clarity and can hire the right pro with confidence. For your next home project, try Thumbtack. They know homes. Hire the right pro today. Speaker 5 (1:48) Support for this show comes from Odoo. Running a business is hard enough, so why make it harder with a dozen different apps that don't talk to each other? Introducing Odoo. It's the only business software you'll ever need. It's an all-in-one, fully integrated platform that makes your work easier. CRM, accounting, inventory, e-commerce, and more. And the best part? Odoo replaces multiple expensive platforms for a fraction of the cost. That's why over thousands of businesses have made the switch. So why not you? Try Odoo for free at odoo.com. That's O-D-O-O dot com. Speaker 3 (2:29) C.J. Pearson is only 24 years old. He first went viral as just a 12-year-old who was willing to criticize President Obama, and in conservative circles, it was a hit. President Obama, you don't love America. Since then, he's bounced around Republican politics and masked thousands of followers in the process. He's been a political commentator on places like Fox News and Newsmax, one of the most prominent young Black voices in the MAGA movement. Pearson wasn't always a Trump guy, but he's recently reinvented himself as one of the president's most vocal fans. He even teamed up with Trump's favorite election lawyer, Sidney Powell, to sue Georgia Governor Brian Kemp over Trump's false claims of a rigged 2020 election. Since 2024, Pearson has found some influence in Washington as a social media creator and a liaison for young Republicans looking to make the GOP cool again. In fact, much of his work reminds me of what Jack Posobiec told me when we were at the UFC fight in Washington, that Donald Trump drives a lot of his connection with younger voters through things like sports and culture. You Speaker 2 (3:39) go Speaker 5 (3:39) and look at the places that pro wrestling goes and holds their events, and then you go and cross-section that, cross-reference that. with MAGA rallies. It's one of the Speaker 3 (3:50) same group of people, the same sort of culture that speaks to each other. But the other thing Jack told me was that none of that matters unless Donald Trump focuses on the issues that matter most in the midterm elections, like affordability and the Iran war. And of course, we have not seen that from the president so far. Republicans love pointing the finger at Democrats, but are they willing to defend Trump's record in this midterm elections? Let's ask Pearson and find out. Speaker 4 (4:19) T.J. Pearson, thank you for joining us on America Actually. How are you? Thank you for having me. It's great to be here. I Speaker 3 (4:24) first want to just ask a broader question because we wanted to talk to you about kind of Republicans and the midterms and their own electability questions. That E-word's been thrown around a lot about Democrats, but we want to think about how Republicans are on their own. If you could rate Donald Trump's second term, one through ten, what would you Speaker 4 (4:42) give it? Speaker 3 (4:43) I Speaker 4 (4:43) think the president's doing incredibly well for the American people. Promises made, promises kept in many ways. I think if you look at this president who ran on securing our southern border, he's done it. You look at this president who's talked about bringing down costs. He's brought down the cost of dairy, eggs. He's achieved that. And I think also this president is only just getting started. He ran on no tax on tips. He did that. He ran on no tax on overtime. He did that. Oftentimes I tell people the challenge of this administration is keeping up the messaging. to the same pace as the accomplishments of this president. And so I think that there's a lot more work to do. Thankfully, we have two more years to do it. Can Speaker 3 (5:16) I get a number? I think he's doing well. You know, I will say I grew up in a place where there's always room for improvement. So I'll give him an eight. You're giving him an eight. I wanted to just start there because Trump's approval rating has fallen, as I'm sure you have seen. Why do you think the country isn't maybe on the same page as Speaker 4 (5:32) you? You know, I think a lot of people are focused on their pocketbooks, right? They're focused on domestic issues. And I think that, you know, we have been very nationally focused over the course of the past few months as we've navigated and dealt with the Iran conflict. But I think that as we get ready to get through this last wave of primaries, I think you're going to see a change in this messaging and a reset at the midterm convention in Dallas later this month or next month in September. And I think you're going to hear this president talking about how he's made America more affordable, how he's, you know, kept Americans safe, far more safe than they were. President Joe Biden. I think that you'll see those numbers start to change. And reminder, the only poll that matters is on Election Day. There Speaker 3 (6:08) are Speaker 4 (6:08) many polls that had Kamala Harris beating President Trump in 2024, and that didn't happen. Speaker 3 (6:13) Yeah, I don't want to be overly polar reliant, but we've heard some of this directly from Republicans. Even we were at Donald Trump's UFC event in D.C. talking to young men. And even there, we heard people really come to be critical on three issues specifically tariffs, the Iran war and the handling of the Epstein files. Just because he's not living Speaker 4 (6:32) up to what he said he was going to do. You know, he said he was anti-war. You know, he said he was going to lower prices. And we're just not like that result is just Speaker 3 (6:39) not happening. You know, we're not seeing it. I mean, you mentioned the kind of question of affordability. Donald Trump has said, quote, I love the inflation. And when asked by reporters about the public strain that has come from the conflicts with Iran, he said, I don't think about Speaker 1 (6:53) American Speaker 3 (6:54) financial situation. I don't think about anybody. How can you say the Republicans are going to run on affordability if the president's saying he doesn't care if Americans' lives are unaffordable? Speaker 4 (7:04) Well, I've often said that we can't see this entire affordability debate to the Democrats. You know, the reason that I think a lot of young people are giving a little bit, even a flirtatious nod to the DSA and their socialist communist candidates is because they're talking about an issue that's top of mind for them in the same way that when President Trump won in 2024, he was talking about issues that were top of mind to the American voter, which was the cost of living. And so I think that we need to get back to that messaging. I think that this president has continued to deliver on that front. You know, costs are coming down. The economy is resurging. We're seeing, you know, economic and global investment in this country. Like anything we've seen before in Oklahoma, we're bringing back manufacturing with aluminum smelting plant. But Speaker 3 (7:41) the president's not saying this. The president said, I love the inflation and I don't think about America's