r/politics • u/PostHeraldTimes ✔ Verified • 1d ago

Ted Cruz Warns Trump Tariffs Could Lead To a 'Bloodbath' For Republicans In Midterm Elections

https://www.latintimes.com/ted-cruz-warns-trump-tariffs-could-lead-bloodbath-republicans-midterm-elections-579998
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u/absentmindedjwc 1d ago

I honestly don't know. The fact that cracks are already starting to form within the GOP itself tells me that they're seeing polling numbers pointing to their supporters knowing full fucking well that this is their fault - especially with them being so damn candid about it.

Republicans - specifically MAGA republicans - have no empathy... but as soon as shit starts seriously impacting them personally, they tend to open their eyes to what is going on. For example, my hardcore MAGA aunt called me this morning because her retirement account has lost like 15 percent and now she doesn't know if she'll be able to retire for another ~decade. She actually commented on how pissed off she was that the news and Trump were telling her that "its for the best"... which is fucked messaging because these people legitimately don't care about "the best for the country", only what's "the best" for themselves.

She's pissed off because, for once, she actually listened to someone telling her what a tariff actually is, and why its fucked her chances of a retirement.

People like Rand Paul and Ted Cruz being so fucking blunt about this tells me that far more than my aunt are starting to ask questions and actually listen. Because the "its going to hurt for a little while" only goes so far.

At least... this is my hope.

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u/ShamrockAPD 1d ago

Hey. My parents are Deep maga

They aren’t complaining at all. For some mine your aunt, I hope it’s the majority.

But sadly I feel the majority will be like my parents - they stick their head in the sand and everything other than Fox News is fake news.

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u/PlanetValmar 23h ago

Yep, a good percentage have no retirement, have no savings, and have no skin in the game that is Wall Street, so really only the inflation part is hitting them. Of course, that’s about to get a lot worse.

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u/ChimcharFireMonkey 17h ago

a good percentage have a lot of retirement, a lot of savings AND no skin in the game that is Wall Street

that's one group smugly supporting this

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u/FargeenBastiges 19h ago

My MAGA cousin last night said "we're the most spoiled country in history" followed by "we're constantly getting bent over" and we deserve this wake up call for our country to become "really" rich.

Wasn't worth it to debunk every sentence said. I just asked how, exactly, he thinks that wealth gets down to him given the benefit of the doubt? His employer just magically decides to pay him more?

Yes. His employer magically decides to pay him more.

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u/mdp300 New Jersey 18h ago

A guy I know posted a long thing about how the experts were wrong about covid, masks, vaccines, various other things where the experts weren't actually wrong, so we should also ignore all the experts saying that this will be a catastrophe and trust Trump.

It's a cult.

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u/FargeenBastiges 18h ago

I know. Put tubes down a lot of these expert ignoring morons in the ICU.

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u/PsyRealize 12h ago

Meanwhile maga trying to remove minimum wage and child labor laws.

Make it make sense

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u/Reading_Gamer 19h ago

My family is currently at the blindly rationalizing state. It'll work itself out. The daytraders aren't panicking, so we are obviously fine (Not sure where they got that source, cause they obviously are). Everybody is panicking because Trump is doing his job. Clearly, they are malicious actors.

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u/Hfksnfgitndskfjridnf 18h ago

Yup, not all selfish, narcissistic delusional morons are ride and die MAGA. They are only MAGA until it fucks them in the ass.

There are millions of people who voted Trump because they’re assholes, but they ultimately only care about themselves, not Trump.

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u/ferthun 17h ago

My dad went to Canada and was talking about how great everything was and the meals were cheap and delicious. All the stuff there was awesome… it will make a great 51st state. Instantly angry

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u/Main-Algae-1064 15h ago

Well, hopefully they like working their whole lives.

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u/cytherian New Jersey 1d ago

May your aunt's epiphany moment ring and replicate across the entire base. They need to realize they've been very badly conned by Trump and his prized influencers (like Rogan, Bongino, Kirk, etc.).

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u/733t_sec 1d ago

It's just because it's Rand Paul and Raphael's turn to play controlled opposition. There have been cracks in the GOP before but they've never amount to more than trivial support for anything that won't pass anyways

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u/HelpfulDescription12 Nebraska 1d ago

I don't think this is Rand just taking his turn as controlled opposition. He's a libertarian style republican and is ideologically opposed to tariffs. This is actually something he really believes in, Cruz on the other hand is probably just reading the tea leaves and knows the tariffs are politically toxic for them right now.

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u/Cerberus_Aus Australia 1d ago

He’s not ideologically opposed to tarrifs. He’s ideologically opposed to losing money, full stop.

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u/MaddyKet 1d ago

Or Cruz won the monthly game of rock paper scissors to see who gets to pretend to be against the agenda. Last month it was McConnell.

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u/Hfksnfgitndskfjridnf 18h ago

Cruz is a bitch. He hates Trump but went along with him because that was the best move politically at the time. There is no real loyalty to Trump except for the cultists. Cruz, whose father killed JFK, will turn on Trump the second it benefits Cruz. Plenty of others in the GOP will do the same.

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u/deedeeing 22h ago

Rand is from Bourbon country and his people are deeply affected with Canada pulling KY Bourbon from the shelves.

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u/733t_sec 15h ago

Rand Paul isn't libertarian and seems to be completely onboard with authoritarianism given his willingness to be an errand boy for Trump and Putin

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/08/08/rand-paul-delivers-letter-to-trump-from-putin-766743

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u/revdon 15h ago

Good on ya for using Raphael’s Birth Certificate Name! I’m sure Addison McConnell and Willard Romney will be thrilled.

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u/Hopeful_Turn2722 1d ago

I agree with you ,the town hall screaming is the rage starting

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u/EaZyMellow 1d ago

But let’s remember, “cracks” were there since Krasnov ran for office. In 2016, he wasn’t part of the establishment, he would ruin the establishment, so they try to undermine him in primaries. Once it became obvious, they fell in line. In 2020, there were debates with how he was managing the pandemic, Republicans also shutting down businesses to prevent the spread. Once it became known that he lost, they fell in line and started pushing his message because that’s who their voter base listens to. In 2024, there were issues with how he undermined and threatened US Democracy, how many people fell behind Harris? Once it became known that she lost, they fell in line and people who were never-trumpers all-of-a-sudden were his biggest fans. The Republican Party has a virus eating inside of itself, and that virus is Trump. The Republican Party as a whole doesn’t want to damage itself, because that admits to itself that it isn’t perfect. That’s why they defend pedo’s like Gaetz in public. That’s why catering to the virus gives them “better” protection from the virus. There are no cracks, there is a seismic shift. Some pieces will fall, but it isn’t going to splinter like we’ve been told for almost a decade now.

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u/OfficeSalamander 23h ago

Yeah, I think the rapidity at the onset of these changes make it pretty clear it’s Trump’s doing, even to hardcore MAGAs. Like it’s pretty hard to blame it on Biden when they literally announce massive tariffs and you see two days of absolute market free fall with no end in sight immediately after. Trump voters may have disliked the inflation that happened under Biden (which they incorrectly attributed to him, rather than post covid inflation that affected the whole world) but this is a whole different beast - this seems like it’s leading to a full on economic collapse, with massive tariffs all over the globe.

We went from a period of mostly stability to absolutely chaos, with a pretty clear demarcation line that is so stark and so quick it’s hard to deny, even for the diehards

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u/oVnPage 17h ago

My mom is losing her fucking mind that all of their retirement money is vanishing and is PISSED at Trump. My dad is still full MAGA.

I tell them both they got what they deserve when they try to bring it up. None of what he's doing was kept a secret, they knew full well this was what he was gonna do and voted for it anyways.

I have sympathy for my fellow liberals, and even for republicans that didn't vote Trump. I have ZERO sympathy for the morons that voted for this clown knowing full well who he is and what he was planning. They've destroyed the country.

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u/absentmindedjwc 9h ago

My parents are good friends with a dual citizen American/Mexican who fucking love(d) Trump. Dude is suddenly pissed off at him because his southern florida construction company is collapsing because he's not able to find workers.

Like.. dude.. he literally said he was going to do this, you're just getting what you voted for.

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u/elizabethptp 18h ago

I hoped this too but my mom who can’t stand Meghan Markle says she’s sure he has a plan with these tariffs even though it “might seem bad”

I had to ask her to please stop. She’s entitled to her wrong opinion but I plan on caring for her until she’s dead & not hearing it will make that easier for me. I’m allowed to be a little selfish here & there & ask an absolute loon to stop talking nonsense.

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u/Kendertas 15h ago

It's going to be a tough spin when you ran on "economy is going to boom on day one" and then when in power say "things are going to have to get bad before they get better". I think they are vastly underestimating how stretched the average American is already.

But weirdly I think TV/phone/computer prices going through the roof might have one of the biggest impacts politically. A lot of people are only holding it together mentally through the dopamine hit modern entertainment gives you. Especially in the rural heartland that is going to be hit the hardest by these tariffs. Going to be a lot of unemployed, highly armed people with no real source of entertainment.

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u/absentmindedjwc 9h ago

"Before they get better" means "when someone else comes in and fixes his mess"