do you believe that Richard Nixon would be a big fan of Trump if he was alive today?
Not a chance in hell. And the GOP's supposed ideological Saint -- Ronald Reagan -- would be fucking horrified by Trump. Reagan was the guy who talked about The Eleventh Commandment being "Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican."
What I really wish is that George W. Bush would speak out more openly about how he feels about Trump. From what I've read and the few things that have been publicly stated over the years about Bush's feelings, he is genuinely opposed to Trump and Trumpism. But before leaving office, President Bush said that he would not publicly criticize his successors -- partially because he was pissed over the years about some of the criticisms that Jimmy Carter shared about Bush. I also just think Bush was finished with Washington and didn't want to jump in the fray anymore (in the final months of his term he was clearly desperate to get out of the White House and return to Texas. Bush has kept his word and stays out of current Presidential politics and I think it's unfortunate because I do think it matters. Of course, the Republican Party is no longer the same organization that twice nominated George W. Bush (and his father) for the Presidency, so anything he did say would be ignored or ridiculed by most of the Trump cult that has infected the party. But there are some people who would see it as a powerful message, especially since he hasn't really dipped his toe into electoral politics since January 2009.
Bush has made a few comments and statements about protecting democracy and changing the tone of politics that Trump has poisoned since 2015, but he has not directly criticized him and I think it's a missed opportunity to use whatever political capital he still has. I thought President Bush would have been more direct with his statement condemning the insurrection on January 6th, but he wasn't. Instead of straight up saying Trump's name, he criticized "the reckless behavior of some political leaders since the election." By no means did I ever expect George W. Bush to be the conscience of the nation, but I was disappointed that he didn't do more. I think his father would have had he still been alive on January 6th (and I KNOW his mother would have!). Like I said, it's disappointing. Especially since one of the more insightful (albeit simple) comments a former President has made about Trump was when Bush apparently told people around him at the Capitol "that was some weird shit" immediately after Trump delivered his ominous Inaugural Address in 2017.
