Bill Press: Riding to the rescue: Republicans may save us from Trump

President Donald Trump holds up a Bible outside of St John’s Episcopal church across Lafayette Park in Washington, D.C., on June 1, 2020.

You can’t make this stuff up. Donald Trump, who’s tried unsuccessfully to sell everything from steaks to sneakers … Donald Trump, who’s already been found liable of sexual abuse and will soon start trial on charges of paying hush money to a porn star to keep their sexual romp secret from voters … That same Donald Trump is now hawking Bibles!

This week Trump announced his latest business venture: a partnership with country singer Lee Greenwood to sell the “God Bless the USA Bible” – the King James version of the Bible interspersed with copies of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Pledge of Allegiance – for only $59.99, plus shipping. It’s just what every MAGA warrior needs in his pocket as he storms the steps of the U.S. Capitol to kill members of Congress, starting with Vice President Pence.

“All Americans need a Bible in their home, and I have many,” Trump declared on Truth Social. “It’s my favorite book.” Which, you must admit, is LOL. It may be Trump’s “favorite book,” but it’s doubtful he’s ever read it. As former Congresswoman Liz Cheney posted on X: “Happy Holy Week, Donald. Instead of selling Bibles, you should probably buy one. And read it, including Exodus 20:14, which commands ‘Thou shalt not commit adultery.’”

But, of course, watching the Orange Huckster con people into buying his steaks, vodka, playing cards, sneakers, or Bibles is one thing. Conning enough people into voting him back to the White House is a far more dangerous matter. And now it turns out that the key players in preventing Trump from getting re- elected, as strange as it seems, may end up being not Democrats, but Republicans.

One of the newest players on the 2024 scene are “Republican Voters Against Trump.” Who are just what they profess to be: Republicans. Who once voted for Trump. And whose mission now is to convince fellow former Trump voters never to vote for him again – and, hopefully, to vote for Joe Biden.

Significantly, their ranks include many former members of Trump’s White House, starting with Vice President Mike Pence. But also: Chiefs of Staff John Kelly and Mick Mulvaney; National Security Advisers HR McManus and John Bolton; Defense Secretaries James Mattis and Mike Esper; Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Mark Milley; Deputy White House Press Secretary Sarah Matthews; and Executive Assistant Cassidy Hutchinson, among others. Their message is: We served close to Donald Trump. We know him well. And to know him is to loathe him.

Bill Press

That’s powerful. But even more powerful are the hundreds of testimonials featured on their website, rvat.org. These are not the voices of politicians or paid political consultants. These are videos posted by average voters: nurses, teachers, construction workers, lawyers, doctors, clerks, and police officers. Most of them are from red states. And, in their own way, they issue the same warning: We voted for him once. But he betrayed us. He betrayed his country. And we’ll never vote for him again.

Here’s Hank, a retired Air Force officer from Nashville: “I could never vote for him again … I don’t think the man has the moral character required to function in the Oval Office.” And Elizabeth from Texas: “I would vote for Mickey Mouse before I voted for Trump. He definitely wants to be a dictator.” Or Rhonda from North Carolina: “I think that we could lose our democracy if he is president.”

Now here’s why this Republican-led effort against Trump is so important. First, because many studies have shown that personal, neighbor-to-neighbor testimonials are much more effective in persuading undecided voters than slick, polished TV ads. Plus, they’re a lot cheaper to produce and can reach millions of people on social media.

Second, because of their potential impact. In 2020, only a razor-thin margin of 40,000 votes in Georgia, Wisconsin, and Arizona separated Biden from Trump and prevented a tie that would have thrown the election to the House of Representatives. This year, if Republican Voters Against Trump can persuade only half of 1 percent of Trump’s 74 million voters not to vote for him again, they alone could decide this election. That’s not an impossible goal.

And who knows? Then Trump might even stop lying about it. After all, “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord.” And “You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; and you shall not lie to one another.” Trump must have read that. It’s in the Bible.

(Bill Press is host of The BillPressPod, and author of 10 books, including: “From the Left: My Life in the Crossfire.” His email address is: [email protected]. Readers may also follow him on Twitter @billpresspod.)

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