Trump is already acting as a strongman in the Republican Party

(CNN) — Donald Trump is taking steps to fully dominate the Republican Party, following his victories in Iowa and New Hampshire as a harbinger of what he envisions as a strong governing body for his potential second term.

The GOP is trying to intimidate former President Nikki Haley into dropping out of the presidential race. He is warning donors who contribute to the former South Carolina governor that they will be excommunicated. Trump supporters began trying to get the Republican National Committee to anoint the presumptive nominee after just two state races, until Trump backed down amid concerns from allies that it could backfire.

And now the 45th president is pushing Republican members of Congress to kill an immigration deal that would deprive President Joe Biden of victory and allow him to use the border crisis on the campaign trail. Trump is also bullying former Republican Party adversaries and key decision-makers into quick endorsements after he forced the party to kneel before him during his four years in the White House.

Trump’s strong assertion of his growing strength as a potential candidate is typical of overcoming obstacles that echo his behavior in office. In his only term, which ended after he tried to overturn an election in which voters ousted him from office, he was impeached twice. It’s consistent with the persona that Trump has made himself the strongest person in every room, which has sustained him throughout his life in business, reality television, and as a former president of the United States.

Former President Donald Trump after his victory in the New Hampshire Republican primary

Among Trump’s critics, his behavior is raising new concerns that his potential second term could mean the start of autocracy in the Oval Office. And Trump’s desire to force Haley out of the race after just two contests — while leading 32 to 17 delegates of the 1,215 needed for the GOP crown — is consistent with his lack of respect for democratic processes.

The former president does not hide his intentions. He has repeatedly warned, for example, that he will spend another term inflicting “punishment” on his enemies. Almost daily he calls for full criminal immunity for presidents, partly as an effort to avoid prosecution for his attempt to overturn the 2020 election, but also to allow him to do whatever he wants in a possible second term without risk of consequences.

At a rally Saturday night in Manchester, New Hampshire, peppered with offensive imagery, the former president praised Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán as a “great man.” Orbán has systematically eroded political freedoms, stifled the independent press and discredited the electoral system, courts and alternative sources of power. Many “Make America Great Again” supporters consider him a hero and role model. “Some don’t like him because he’s too strong. It’s good to have a strong man leading a country,” Trump reflected. His comments created the impression that Orbán might be a better prototype for an authoritarian leader than the extremist European dictators of the 1930s, to whom his recent rhetoric, particularly towards immigrants, has drawn comparisons.

Trump’s impatience is posing political risks to his campaign

The former president’s autocratic tendencies are one reason why the upcoming election promises to be one of the most fateful in modern American history.

But there are also risks for Trump in his fear-mongering approach. If he pulls out, it could confirm Biden’s arguments that he would endanger democracy if he is elected to a second term in November. And his bullying approach and sexist language toward Haley could alienate some of the more moderate, independent and suburban voters she is wooing in the GOP primaries. This is how Trump alienated voters in his 2020 defeat. If he wants to win a second term, he must at least narrow his deficit to Biden in this group in November.

Former South Carolina Republican Party Chairman Keton Dawson pointed to the potential consequences of Trump’s behavior in an interview Thursday with Casey Hunt on “State of the Race” on CNN International and CNN Max. Dawson, one of the few state party heavyweights who supported Haley, warned that Trump would “polarize” South Carolina women with “insensitive comments about what Nikki wears.” And he added: “Donald Trump is running more like he wants to be president of Cuba instead of president of the United States.”

Haley probably didn’t beat Trump in Iowa or New Hampshire. But she angered him by refusing to quickly fold her campaign and make endorsements like other GOP candidates, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott. Trump’s anger was revealed in a self-deprecating victory speech in New Hampshire on Tuesday night. Haley’s mockery of that performance has further enraged the former president.

“We had our say and said what we had to say and then Donald Trump came out and went ballistic,” Haley said Wednesday in Charleston. “He threw a tantrum. He was abusive. He was doing what he does, but I know that’s what he does when he’s insecure.”

CNN’s Caitlan Collins reported that Trump appeared frustrated that Haley was ignoring his calls to drop out of the race. During her speech in New Hampshire, she mocked the dress she wore on the night of the Iowa caucuses. He called her an “idiot” on social media. Trump has also warned that anyone who makes financial contributions to him will be “excluded from the MAGA camp,” which Haley has turned into a fundraising campaign for her campaign.

It’s not surprising that Haley was called to end her campaign, given the magnitude of her loss to Trump and the fact that New Hampshire, where independents can vote in the GOP primary, was her best chance to win. Parties typically prefer to unify quickly behind a single candidate to look ahead to the general election once the fate of the primary race is clear. But the distaste for Haley from Trump’s world is noticeable.

Gilbert H. on January 21, 2024 in Derry, New Hampshire. Candidate Nikki Haley speaks during a campaign event at Hood High School. (Credit: Joe Radle/Getty Images)

For example, before all polls closed Tuesday night, New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, a top Trump supporter, issued a statement saying Haley’s campaign “must come to an end.” “The good of the Republic” after the former president’s “monumental” victory.” The history of past campaigns suggests that restraint and deference may be more effective in removing Haley from the race than threats. And while her prospects look bleak, the idea that the candidate has a national primary season The campaign should be abandoned after only two contests because the front runner saying so is itself an affront to the democratic process.

Even Trump seems to have convinced himself that some of this has gone too far. The former president spoke out Thursday against a draft RNC resolution that would have declared him a presumptive nominee, a measure that would have allowed him access to RNC data and fundraising operations. In essence, she would have joined forces with Trump while the election involving a rival was still underway.

But Trump wrote in Truth Social that while he admired the RNC’s “respect and devotion,” he wanted to win the polls “the old-fashioned way.” Although the campaign initially approved the resolution and Trump himself was on board, that changed when the backlash came, a source familiar with the matter told Collins. The resolution was withdrawn on Thursday.

Trump wants to end the immigration agreement

The former president, whose business career was mythologized in “The Art of the Deal,” is more concerned these days with the art of killing a deal than Republican and Democratic senators are working hard to address on the southern border crisis. Trump has been pressuring Republicans both in private conversations and in public statements on social media to oppose the deal as he seeks to campaign on the issue this year and ensure that Biden does not secure a legislative victory that could ease pressure on the border and can help His re-election, sources said.

Trump’s maneuver has angered some GOP senators who want to be able to give their constituents the facts at a time when Biden appears willing to roll back some radical Trump-era immigration policies as part of a compromise. Sen. Todd Young, Republican of Indiana, called any attempt to disrupt ongoing negotiations “tragic.” Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, a frequent Trump opponent who is not running for re-election, said it would be “terrible” if Trump sabotaged the deal simply to blame Biden. Trump and his allies on Capitol Hill have also made clear their opposition to Biden’s latest $60 billion aid package for Ukraine, which is running out of bullets and ammunition.

Connecticut’s Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy, who has been heavily involved in debates about both immigration and Ukraine, expressed concern that the shadow hanging over one man — who currently has no government role — could overwhelm a branch of the US government.

“I hope we don’t end up in a world where one person in the Republican Party has enough power to block a bipartisan bill that tries to give the president more authority at the border to give more discretion to our immigration policy,” he said. CNN’s Manu Rajune Murphy.

“I hope that one person in the Republican Party will not have enough power to hand over Ukraine to Vladimir Putin, but we will find the answer.”