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Thread. All these people claiming that b/c I stopped using the term Never Trump, I sold out to, or started cheerleading for, Trump are just showing they don't know what they're talking about. When Rick Perlstein made this mistake in the NYT, the paper corrected and apologized. 1/
I mean go ask MAGA Twitter whether I am onboard the Trump Train, ffs. This is the problem with being neither resistance, nor MAGA. Both have a black-and-white view. If you're not resistance, you're a Trumper. If you're not MAGA you're resistance. It's all so stupid. 2/
I use "Trump-skeptical," in part because I think the cult of personality around Trump is so nuts. He's not a stable genius (Neither stable, nor genius). He's not a great dealmaker. He's not a good person. But he's also not Hitler (Hitler could have repealed Obamacare btw). 3/
There's also a left cult of personality on Trump, too. They veer towards thinking he's an *evil* genius. He's not that either. That's why I never went heavy for the collusion stuff. Not b/c he isn't morally capable of it, but because he's likely managerially incapable of it 4/
But there's a broader reason why I am Trump skeptical. The last two years have shown me that I should be even more skeptical of ALL politicians. Bill Rusher, the longtime publisher of NR used to tell young'ns "politicians will always disappoint you." 5/
The way so many elected GOPers have responded to Trump & Trumpism have helped me realize that skepticism of politicians is vital -- regardless of partisan affiliation/ideology. It's always easy to be skeptical of the other team, I've become skeptical of teams, period. 6/
I think the reason "Trump-skeptical" enrages so many is that it allows for two possibilities: That Trump can do wrong and that Trump can do right. That bugs both tribes of absolutists (particularly on this website). 7/
Last, on my new venture with @stephenfhayes, I don't want to get dragged into defending it against hypotheticals and imaginary b.s. but we don't see this as being about Trump, pro or con. If anything it's more post-Trump than anti-Trump. 8/
We're doing this for the long haul. We think there's a real need and hunger for (more) serious reporting and analysis from a right of center view that isn't about cheap clickbait or fan-service or simply winning the next election for a team. The end. 9/9
