Former Trump supporter says he 'fell prey to MAGA' and explains why he walked away

[0:00] Well, let me just preface by apologizing to viewers for my past MAGA activism and my support [0:08] of Donald Trump. When Trump ran, I fell for the lies that he would drain the swamp and would root [0:18] out corruption. And he was correct in pointing out the graft and the fraud and the abuse. But [0:24] what he has done is he has continued to enrich himself and his own family at the expense of [0:34] the American people. I realized that Trump was lying and that I had allowed myself to believe [0:41] these lies, which eventually led to my leaving of MAGA. And I think that there are more than ever [0:49] who are in the MAGA community who right now are having doubts about their support for Donald [0:53] Trump. We have a nationwide billboard campaign and our message is very simple on the campaign. [1:00] It's having doubts. You're not alone. And for those who might be seeing this, who right now [1:06] are starting to question their beliefs, are starting to perhaps feel confused. They're [1:11] they're wondering if the MAGA movement comports with their values anymore. We want them to know [1:16] that they're not alone. And I think the president knows that he is losing support. I believe that [1:23] many in MAGA do have a red line. I think when people reach that line of demarcation, when there [1:29] is one lie or one betrayal too many, it starts to make them wonder and question if this is a movement [1:34] that they can continue to support. And I think that Trump continues to abuse his office and the office [1:42] of the president recklessly. And I think that many in MAGA are starting to recognize that. [1:46] You know, Rich, you touch on a lot of pieces there that really, I think a lot of folks around the country [1:55] wondered, and you've given some light and some answer to that, you know, how is this playing [2:03] in various pockets of the MAGAverse, if you will, and how people who like yourself have said, [2:10] you know what, this is not what I signed up for. And it reminded me a lot of the early days of the [2:17] Tea Party. A lot of those were individuals, were grassroots activists, Republicans who were very [2:22] frustrated with the Republican Party's lack of consistency around the constitutional norms that [2:29] they professed, the idea that they were for a smaller government footprint, that they want to [2:34] keep the expenses to the American people low. And so they were mad about the cost of the Iraq war [2:40] and the impact that was having. And you see those parallel universes in this moment for a lot of [2:47] folks. And it really is, I think, an important inflection point, Sky, to what Trump is trying to [2:58] achieve. Luke and I grew up here in D.C. And what we're seeing happen to the city that we grew up in [3:06] is the Trumpification. Yes. I call it the crapping on the city because he's squatting [3:16] everywhere and he's leaving a very big butt print. Yeah. All right. Just to put it out there, look at [3:23] what he's touching. Look at what he is changing into his own image from the mall to the reflecting [3:32] pool, not the reflection pond, to the skyline of the city, to the White House itself. And now we've [3:42] got this $1.7 billion fund. So here's the thing. While all of that's going on, that's one distraction [3:48] away from the grift, which is the ultimate game. Because while we're fussing about an arch, [3:54] he's having the IRS drop $1.7 billion into his pocket. So stay focused, people. Here's the [4:02] question for you. So what? Who's going to stop him? How do you stop him? Republicans in Congress [4:10] might as well just take the trash bags and the briefcases with the money in it and take it down [4:17] to the Oval Office and put it on his desk because that's all you're worth at this point. That's all [4:22] you're worth. You ain't doing a damn thing about it. You're sitting silent or you're egging it on. [4:27] So how does this change? Well, I think, and we talk about this all the time, [4:32] the people are the ones that are going to stop it. And you already see there are defections [4:37] starting within the MAGA movement. You're already seeing that. And these billboards and people across [4:42] the country in red areas like I grew up in, people understand corruption. They don't like grift. They [4:48] also, by the way, don't like their voting rights being taken away from them. Like regardless of [4:52] political party, people value the right to vote. So that's one piece is the elections in November, [4:58] which is why they're trying to decimate the voice of the people now, because they don't want to be [5:02] held accountable by the people. The other piece is don't, you know, don't rest on the federal courts. [5:08] Now, the federal courts are not able to stop every single thing he does. They're not. And we're not [5:14] going to pretend like they are. But at the end of the day, this is an administration that is facing [5:17] over 750 lawsuits, the largest in history. They're losing all the time. And often in their game of [5:25] whack-a-mole, they actually back off when you confront them. And that's why it's so puzzling [5:30] what members of Congress are doing and what Republican members of Congress are doing or [5:34] people that just don't agree with the president. Like, what are they doing? Because this is a [5:38] president that is not impervious to political and social pressure from the people. We see that all [5:43] the time. He'll change his tune in a minute. But yet, why is Congress sitting there? But the people [5:50] are going to have the voice and the people are going to be the ones that will stop them. [5:53] Rich, I'm sure you heard the sound from the president on Tuesday. He was asked to what extent [5:59] Americans' financial situation is motivating his making a deal with Iran. He had said not even a [6:05] little bit. The only thing that matters when I'm talking about Iran, they can't have a nuclear weapon. [6:09] I don't think about Americans' financial situation. Well, just in the past hour, [6:13] there was an interview with the president and Brett Baier that aired on Fox News. [6:17] Brett Baier asked the president about criticisms of what he had said. And [6:21] here's the president given an opportunity to revise and extend. [6:25] It's very simple. When people hear me say it, everybody agrees. Short-term pain. It's going [6:35] to be short-term pain. But the pain is much less than people thought. [6:40] Rich, does everyone agree? Is the pain less than people thought? [6:44] Well, I think most Americans would disagree with that statement. I think that Americans, [6:51] many of whom voted for the president in 2024 with the hope that costs would be lowered, [6:58] that their groceries, their gas, their health care, their housing costs would be lowered. [7:02] And for many of them, what they're discovering is that not only have costs remained high, but for [7:07] many, the costs are even higher right now than they were in 2024. And with a lot of regret and [7:15] remorse, I talk in my memoir about some of the reasons why I supported the Trump campaign. I did [7:22] believe as an outsider that he would disrupt the status quo. And unfortunately, we did get a disruptor, [7:30] but one who is anathema and antithetical to democracy. And I write in the memoir as well about not only [7:37] reasons that people fell prey to MAGA, but how hard it is for someone to walk away from MAGA. But it is [7:44] possible to do it. And I think that the cracks are showing right now. I think the chasms are going to continue to [7:50] widen because of the fact that the president is not keeping his promises. And I believe that many in [7:56] the base right now are starting to recognize that the president is a dishonest person. I think most [8:03] people in MAGA deep down know that something is amiss in the country. I said at the DNC convention on [8:09] night one, I worked on the Kamala campaign that Trump's toxic superpower is lying. And I think there's no [8:15] issue, small, medium, or large that the president is not willing to lie about.