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Florida, who ran on his record of accomplishment and freedom in the state. Democrats’ “Democracy Dies in Darkness” sloganeering only carries weight when Republicans allow it to do so.
Will Republicans hand the 2024 election to Biden? They very well could. Right now, Trump leads in the Republican primaries, despite attacking his nearest rival, DeSantis, almost entirely from the Left: bashing DeSantis’ record on COVID-19, slamming entitlement reform, criticizing DeSantis’ battle against Disney’s corporate social engineering. Trump has been unfairly targeted by political opponents to be sure — Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg’s case against Trump over a 2016 payoff to former porn star Stormy Daniels is a legal joke. But that doesn’t mean that Republicans are likely to benefit from a campaign revolving around Trump’s legal troubles and his persistent focus on the supposedly “stolen” 2020 election. In fact, Trump has yet to answer the most basic question he himself has raised about his electability: If, as he states, the 2020 election was stolen through voter fraud and falsification, how does he plan to overcome that problem in the 2024 election?
The polls show a consistent pattern: If Trump is the Republican candidate, Biden is more likely to win. It is difficult to imagine millions of Americans switching their 2020 votes in precisely the opposite direction. Indeed, polls currently show Biden beating Trump by an average of 3.1%, while losing to De-Santis by a slim margin. Trump currently trails Biden — a president with an approval rating in the low 40s — in Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Joe Biden wants Trump. His entire campaign is built around Trump. Perhaps, like Hillary Clinton, he’ll get more than he bargained for. But Republicans don’t need to take that gamble. And they’re clearly running a higher risk of a Biden second term if they do.
Ben Shapiro, 39, is a graduate of UCLA and Harvard Law School, host of “The Ben Shapiro Show,” and co-founder of Daily Wire+. He is a three-time New York Times bestselling author; his latest book is “The Authoritarian Moment: How The Left Weaponized America’s Institutions Against Dissent.” To find out more about Ben Shapiro and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators. com. COPYRIGHT 2023 CREATORS. COM.
