Trump’s Threat to Jail Enemies Darkens amid Brutal New Poll Slide

THE DAILY BLAST with Greg Sargent

The New Republic

News, Politics

4.4 • 800 Ratings

🗓️ 14 July 2025

⏱️ 16 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

President Trump’s Justice Department is now criminally investigating James Comey and John Brennan, apparently in retaliation for their role in the Russia probe. Trump vowed that they may “pay a price”—a direct threat to try to jail them on no basis whatsoever. Meanwhile, Trump is ramping up the paramilitary presence in Los Angeles. All this comes as Trump’s approval is at a low point in polling averages and a striking new Gallup survey finds him plummeting fast on immigration, a remarkable indication of deep underlying weakness. We think all this is related: Trump’s displays are meant to scam us into thinking he’s fearsome and strong—making political resistance appear futile—yet all the authoritarianism is causing public backlash, weakening him in polls further. We talked to Talking Points Memo editor-at-large David Kurtz, who’s been sharply dissecting Trump’s threats. He explains how deep the abuses are running at DOJ, how Trump’s authoritarianism is meant to mask political weakness, and why this toxic downward spiral portends worsening lawlessness to come. Listen to this episode here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:43.0	Thank you. This is the Daily Blast from the New Republic, produced and presented by the DSR Network.
1:04.0	I'm your host, Greg Sargent.
1:16.6	We're in the middle of a split-screen moment right now. On one screen, Trump's bullying threats of retribution and use of law enforcement against immigrants
1:22.6	are ramping up in every way.
1:25.6	This is supposed to make Trump look fearsome and strong, and indeed,
1:30.0	his top allies are going full North Korea with the obsequious praise of him right now.
1:35.9	But on the other screen, Trump's poll numbers are as bad as they've ever been. A new Gallup poll shows
1:41.6	Trump in shockingly terrible shape on immigration, which is a sign of serious underlying weakness.
1:47.0	And in the polling averages, Trump's general approval rating is at a low point.
1:52.0	We think these things are related. All the authoritarian moves, all the fawning treatment of him as a North Korean dictator,
1:59.0	it's all meant to psych us out, to trick us into thinking
2:02.0	he's more formidable than he is. Yet the reality is that the authoritarianism itself is
2:07.6	sparking political backlash and weakening his public standing. We're trying to make sense of all
	...

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