MAGA's 'vengeful pleasure' is 'starting to wear thin' when GOP needs it most: analyst

The "vengeful pleasure" of MAGA members is "starting to wear thin" at a crucial time for the GOP.

Republican Party officials are in the midst of midterm election preparation, but the MAGA sentiment is slipping rapidly, a political analyst believes. Writing in Salon, Amanda Marcotte suggested the strength of the Make America Great Again supporters had been greatly reduced over the last decade.

She wrote, "Trump worked for so long because he made people feel good about being bad. He gave voters permission not to care about equality, the environment or showing basic decency to others. It was fun for a lot of people for a long time. Hopefully, that mirth is starting to wear thin."

But the "decade of Trumpism" has worn thin on the president's most ardent supporters. One-time ally Marjorie Taylor Greene confirmed her resignation and retirement late last year, and has since confirmed she disagrees with Trump on several key points.

Marcotte explained, "After a decade of Trumpism, it does feel that trolling is losing some of its vengeful pleasure, especially as real world problems just keep getting worse on Trump’s watch."

"With him as a leader, the right was able to distract enough voters by propping up liberals as these annoying nerds to whom you really want to give a wedgie. But they still don’t have an answer for their deeper issue, which is that the public really hates right-wing policies."

"Loathing Democrats for perceived sanctimony is all the GOP has. Running candidates who are even more sanctimonious — but about Christian right policies — isn’t going to make Republicans more popular."

Political commentators have already suggested Trump is in a "precarious" position at the start of 2026, with economic woes set to take center stage if the administration cannot improve the economy.

The administration has consistently blamed predecessor Joe Biden for the woeful state of the economy, but as the new year starts, Trump can no longer rely on the excuse of the previous presidency. Political analyst David Goldman, writing in CNN, suggested the administration has no more viable targets to pin economic blame to.

Goldman wrote, "That’s why Trump’s economic message – that the economy is booming and deserves an 'A+++++' grade – has fallen so flat with Americans, many of whom are struggling to make ends meet or who feel like the American Dream has never been further out of reach."