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I'm your host, Greg Sergeant.

Republican members of Congress facing tough races have suddenly decided

having Donald Trump at the top of the ticket

might present them with a little problem. According to new reports they fear having to

answer for Trump's degeneracy and extremism, including his tendency to call immigrants not people,

and his affection for describing January 6th rioters as hostages.

Vulnerable Republicans also worry that Trump has explicitly rejected the support of

GOP voters who backed Mickey Haley in the GOP presidential primaries, voters those members

need for their own re-election. To top all that off,

the GOP's small donor base is not delivering even as Trump is siphoning off large

sums of donor money for legal fees, a problem for the party overall.

So what explains this sudden epiphany about Trump among Republicans, and how likely is it that

these fears will materialize?

Today we're talking to Tim Persico, a Democratic strategist who was executive director of the Democratic

Congressional Campaign Committee in 2022, which was the last time House GOP candidates

dramatically underperformed. We're hoping for some insights into how this Trump effect really works.

...