“Former president Donald Trump is moving to handpick members of the House GOP leadership team – relentlessly attacking Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, the No. 3 House Republican, and endorsing Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York to replace her. He is plotting to take down Republican lawmakers who voted to impeach him for inciting the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection on the U.S. Capitol, while continuing to stoke the false claims of a stolen election that has become a dangerous rallying cry for the party. And he is playing host to a burbling stream of Republican well-wishers – including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Sen. Ted Cruz – who travel to his private Mar-a-Lago retreat in Florida to pay their respects and post a photo of their ring-kissing on social media.”
“Six months removed from his Election Day loss, Trump has emerged from his West Palm Beach hibernation – refashioning himself as the president of the Republican States of America and reshaping the party in ways both micro and macro. He has also privately revived his claims that he plans to run for president again in 2024, decrying what he views as the ‘low ratings’ of the Biden administration, said one person who has spoken with Trump recently. He rails that President Biden is ‘a disaster’ and argues that ‘Joe isn’t in charge, everybody knows it’s Kamala’ – a preview of his likely message portraying Biden as an unwitting stooge of Vice President Harris, this person said.”
“Nonetheless, Trump is not expected to make an official decision or announcement under after the midterm elections, an adviser said. Trump’s reappearance is fueled by an ego-driven desire to remain at the center of national attention, said former advisers and allies who are in touch with Trump. The defeated ex-president is propelled primarily by a thirst for retribution, an insatiable quest for the spotlight and a desire to establish and maintain total dominance and control over the Republican base, said several former senior White House advisers. He has boasted to some in his orbit that he expects a book deal at some point, though there is no known offer, two advisers said. He is pushing the party to the right, attacking transgender female athletes and criticizing the ‘spiraling tsunami at the border’ under Biden; he is influencing Republican Party personnel, political, and fundraising decisions; and he is prompting a roiling, existential intraparty debate about what it means to be a Republican in the post-Trump-presidency era” – Washington Post.