Has Donald Trump ever been happy? Sometimes he seems joyful, but only when he’s trashing his many enemies in front of adoring crowds (or telling them about how magnets don’t work). But has he ever experienced actual, unfettered happiness, the kind that doesn’t involve gloating in the vanquishing of others? It sure doesn’t seem like it. On Tuesday the former president easily beat his last GOP primary rival standing, former employee Nikki Haley. (Or was it Nancy Pelosi?) Alas not even that could tame the savage beast, who went on one of his all caps social media tirades before delivering a decidedly non-celebratory victory speech.
BREAKING: In multiple posts on Truth Social, Trump blasts Haley, calls her delusional, says she just lost the next race also. READ pic.twitter.com/dNWIb6Rs7l
— Simon Ateba (@simonateba) January 24, 2024
Per Mediaite, Trump’s fury began even before the race had been called, with him making baseless conspiracy theories about “all of the Biden Votes going for Haley!!!” (This seems to be part of his claim that registered Democrats are allowed to vote for Republican candidates in the New Hampshire primary. That’s not true.)
As the obvious became clear — that she was going to lose — Trump did some gloating. But as she delivered a concession speech, in which she vowed to still stay in the race, Trump hit the caps lock button and left it on over such succinct posts as “DELUSIONAL!!!”, “SHE CAME IN THIRD LAST WEEK!”, and the slightly confusing “SHE JUST LOST NEVADA, WHICH IS UP NEXT!”
Was Trump just bragging? Maybe something else was sticking in his craw. Trump had been predicting that he’d blow Haley out of the water, perhaps with a distance of 30 percentage points. As of this writing, with 55% of the votes tallied, he’s “only” up by less than 10%, with nearly 45% of voters favoring her. Even famed political analyst Dave Wasserman, a senior editor at Cook Political Report, noted that wasn’t “going to be a total Trump blowout.”
Based on the initial precincts reporting, this isn't going to be a total Trump blowout.
— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) January 24, 2024
Perhaps Trump realized that there do exist wide swaths of the Republican party who are turned off by him, by his 91 criminal charges, by his antics during his last weeks in office, by his general air of being a chaotic vampire America should never have invited into politics. When he took the stage for his victory speech, he was far from humble. Instead he couldn’t shut up about the person he’d just conquered.
"She had a very bad night" — Trump is big mad at Nikki Haley and his fans are yelling "bird brain" pic.twitter.com/GvXEbdSXQk
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 24, 2024
At one point he called Haley an “imposter” for running against him. He then angrily claimed that he wasn’t angry, only to repeat one of his more chilling favorite lines: “I don’t get angry; I get even.”
Later on he made a bizarre detour about what could happen to Haley if she won, which he assured everyone she wouldn’t.
Trump threatens that if Nikki Haley doesn't drop out, she'll end up under investigation for "stuff she doesn't want to talk about" pic.twitter.com/lSPQwCnLMe
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 24, 2024
“But if she did, she would be under investigation by those people within 15 minutes,” he said, signaling to some people in the back. (Reporters? The DOJ?) He then claimed he could tell them “five reasons” Haley could be investigated — “not big reasons, a little stuff she doesn’t want to talk about.” He added that Ron DeSantis would have faced similar scrutiny.
Would they, though? Trump is alleged to have committed some major crimes, some of which he did right out in the open, such as helping foment the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
All this begs the question: Will Trump getting his old job make him happy? Seems like it will only make him angrier, and more unhinged.
(Via Mediaite)