Karl Rove 'yelling into the wind' as he nails huge Trump liability: Reich

Set for Tuesday, November 3, the United States' 2026 midterms are less than two months away. President Donald Trump, despite his consistently low approval ratings in polls, is making the midterms all about himself. And according to economist Robert Reich, GOP strategist Karl Rove nailed Trump's biggest liability.

Rove, in a recent op-ed for The Wall Street Journal, wrote, "Trump is never disciplined. He'll have no script, saying whatever comes to mind. His crazy comments will dominate the news, locally and nationally. Republican candidates will constantly have to fend off questions about whether they agree with his latest insult or half-baked idea. The narrative won't be on anything positive about them or the GOP."

Rove, Reich emphasizes in his Guardian column, hit the nail on the head.

"In early August, according to the Atlantic, Trump told advisers that they should follow the same strategy as the Democrats: making the election about him," Reich explains. "But as Karl Rove, who was senior adviser and deputy chief of staff for George W. Bush, notes in the Wall Street Journal, given Trump's unpopularity, making the election even more about him only helps the Democrats. Trump also plans to travel all over the country, holding rallies like he did during his presidential elections. As Rove notes, Fox News' senior White House correspondent, Peter Doocy, reports hearing 'whispers of a ton of Trump travel in October, possibly as much as a Trump rally a day' in competitive states and districts."

Trump, Reich argues, is driven by his "giant, towering, malignant narcissism," not a true desire to help fellow Republicans in the midterms.

"Rove and other Republican functionaries are urging Trump to 'act more presidential' by using his Super PACs' $403m to support Republican candidates rather than support a campaign about himself," Reich writes. "But they're yelling into the wind of Trump's ballroom-sized ego. The truth is, Trump doesn't give a damn about the midterm elections except insofar as Republican losses make him look bad. He probably figures if he backs a candidate with his PAC money and they lose, he'll look even worse. So better to spend it on boosting himself."

The liberal economist adds, "As almost everyone in the world knows by now, Trump cares only about himself. That's been his MO forever."