She may well be back, but for now, this is MTG’s political obituary. What did she stand for, and how did this come to pass?
- She has a coherent, if odious, vision for America. I have called it the New Confederacy. The idea behind it is to let red states be as beastly as they want to be relative to racial and religious minorities–most notably, Jews.
- She genuinely believes in her vision, and wants to use the state to help white Christians thrive.
- Until recently, she did not understand that Trumpism isn’t really about that vision; it is about increasing Trump’s powers to behave arbitrarily in order to show the world he is the boss. Usually, but not always, these powers are used to punish people reactionaries hate. That is why the red base supports Trump so passionately.
- To be a true Trumpist, you have to be able to change your positions on a dime, because that is what the man on golf cart does.
- MTG was unable to do this. She finally became aware that her vision was not always compatible with Trumpism. When that happened, she had the wisdom and the integrity to jump ship.