Conservative pundit offers grim look at how chaotic a second Trump presidency could be

A conservative pundit is warning that a second Trump presidency could be far worse than the first. In fact, he believes Americans will remember his first presidency “with a certain sense of nostalgia” if he's elected again in 2024.

On Wednesday, February 2, Charlie Sykes —founder of the conservative news website The Bulwark— wrote a piece highlighting how a second Trump term would differ from the first. Although the former president had a number of loyalists and sycophants in his corner who were willing to distort the rule of law, Sykes noted that even they had boundaries.

"So, this is worth thinking about: Pence, Barr, and Giuliani were not merely Trump loyalists: over the last four years, they had repeatedly shown a willingness to rationalize, lie, cover-up, bully, bluster, and bend the law for Trump’s benefit," Sykes wrote. "But it turned out there were lines they would not cross. There was a Barr-Pence Line — and apparently even a Giuliani Line — beyond which there be dragons."

He pointed to Trump's efforts to overturn the presidential election and former Vice President Mike Pence’s refusal to abandon his Constitutional oath. He also recalled former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr’s decision to dismiss Trump's claims of widespread voter fraud.

“For all their many faults, Pence, Barr, and even Giuliani came from a different era of American politics, with lingering (and rapidly fading) memories of the rule of law and a (more or less) decent respect for the opinions of mankind,” Sykes wrote.

However, a second Trump term would look very different because the types of Republicans who still uphold remnants of Constitutional law will no longer be in office. In multiple battleground states, Republican lawmakers and officials are facing political opponents with one goal in mind: to do Trump's bidding and push his false narrative.

“But in a second Trump term, they won’t be there,” Sykes warned. “It will be all Kayleighs, Bannons, Epshteyns, McEntees, Bonginos, D’Souzas, and Stephen Millers.”

“So consider this: In Trump 2.0, we may look back on Bill Barr, Mike Pence, and — God forgive me — Rudy Giuliani with a certain sense of nostalgia, because where are those lines now?" he asked.

Sykes' piece comes as Trump continues to hold campaign-style rallies to spread more misinformation and dangerous rhetoric that distorts reality for his base. He has also resorted to more extreme rhetoric rooted in racism and opposition to law.