America’s 'sour mood' is fueling a 'MAGA crack-up'
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (not pictured) hold a bilateral meeting at Gimhae International Airport, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, in Busan, South Korea, October 30, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
In MAGA media outlets, one often hears the phrase "promises made, promises kept" in reference to Donald Trump's second presidency. MAGA media figures, from One America News (OAN) and Newsmax to Breitbart News, frequently praise Trump's return to the White House as a period of extraordinary achievements in a short amount of time.
But outside the MAGA media bubble, the second Trump Administration is drawing widespread criticism — from The Bulwark (a conservative website with a strong Never Trump perspective) to liberal and progressive outlets like Salon, Mother Jones, The Nation and The New Republic.
In a biting article published the day after Thanksgiving 2025, The New Republic's Michael Tomasky argues that the United States' "sour mood" is doing a lot to fuel a "MAGA crack-up."
"Grocery prices are up, and so are energy prices," Tomasky observes. "Donald Trump lies incessantly about both. The American people are onto him. They're pessimistic about the future. The distrust goes way beyond the economy. Over these last few weeks, ever since the government shutdown, it's finally begun to sink in on people that Trump and his entire administration are a bunch of raging ideologues or incompetents or both, peddling a fantasy version of their strength that people no longer buy."
Tomasky adds, "There's no longer any doubt about it: The MAGA crack-up has begun."
The New Republic journalist cites a variety of ways in which the MAGA movement, ten months into Trump's second presidency, is in turmoil.
"Trump tried to sell Ukraine down the river to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin," Tomasky notes. "The howls of outrage were instant, loud, and bipartisan to some extent…. Trump, bumbling around on domestic policy because he knows nothing, desperately said he was considering extending the Obamacare coverage subsidies on Monday. Congressional Republicans were up in arms…. Trump and Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth's push to reinstate Sen. Mark Kelly as an active-duty soldier (he's 61!) so they can court-martial him is quickly turning into one of the leading disasters of this administration."
Tomasky continues, "There is no chance they're going to convince a majority of Americans that a guy who flew 30-something combat missions is a disloyal American…. It was a disastrous week for Attorney General Pam Bondi as she stood there watching a federal judge dismiss the laughable indictments she directed against James Comey and Letitia James…. Everywhere you look, in other words, Trump and his people are wrecking the country."
Michael Tomasky's full article for The New Republic is available at this link.
