Trump’s off-the-wall performance at CNN town hall proves he still has stranglehold on MAGA base no matter what he does

Former President Donald Trump stoked outrage from an array of critics and even some hand-wringing from fellow Republicans with his outrageous performance at CNN’s town hall last week as he rehashed the same tired diatribes about election fraud, Jan. 6 and his myriad legal troubles.

But the event was actually a big success for him, say analysts — and proved yet again the former president still has a stranglehold on his loyal MAGA base no matter what he does or says.

Trump unapologetically hailed his supporters who violently attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, shrugged off defaulting on the nation’s debt and even mocked E. Jean Carroll for winning a sex abuse civil suit against him.

In a 70-minute flurry of bombast, the MAGA leader refused to commit to accepting the results of the 2024 election if he loses and derided moderator Kaitlin Collins as a “nasty person,” echoing his sexist attacks against Hillary Clinton.

Not surprisingly, a parade of pundits and politicians proclaimed the event a flop for Trump, noting that he failed to do anything to appeal to voters outside his committed base of right-wing supporters.

But Trump insiders call it a vintage success story, hailing him for an energetic performance that enthralled the audience of potential New Hampshire Republican primary voters.

And some analysts agree that Trump succeeded in rallying his base, which revels in the apoplectic rage he inspires among the media and establishment political figures in both parties.

“The goal was to create a spectacle and he succeeded in that,” said Jacob Rubashkin, an analyst with Inside Elections. “This is the same Donald Trump we’ve always known.”

“This is exactly what he wants and it’s exactly what his base wants to hear,” said Doug Muzzio, a Baruch College political scientist. “It’s like a messianic religion and he is the messiah.”

Larry Sabato, a University of Virginia political analyst, said Trump only enhances his support among his supporters as he makes ever-more outrageous remarks that dwarf his infamous comment that he could shoot someone on Fifth Ave. without losing a single vote.

“He could go down there now with an AR-15 and shoot 50 people and they’d say he’s doing it to make a point about guns,” said Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at U. Va. “There’s never been anything quite like it.”

For better or worse, Trump’s main political goal right now is consolidating his support among the conservative base of the Republican Party, which amounts to enough voters to secure the GOP nomination.

After a sluggish start, he has built a huge and growing lead in polls of Republican voters.

Recent surveys give the former president more than 50% support among GOP primary voters. He holds an approximately 3-1 lead over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, his closest potential rival.

Trump’s hold on GOP voters has only grown stronger as he fends off legal challenges like the indictment by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on charges related to hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels and a jury’s $5 million judgment this week that Trump sexually abused writer E. Jean Carroll.

Most Trump supporters regard such issues as little more than an establishment plot to sideline Trump with years-old R-rated dirt. That helps explain why voters at the town hall laughed at Trump’s jokes about Carroll that many viewers found sexist and tasteless.

Trump also appeared to have the audience eating out of his hand when he refused to side with Ukraine in its war with Russia and proclaimed Jan. 6 “a beautiful day” even though Democrats and Republicans alike say it was one of the nation’s darkest moments.

He dodged a GOP voter’s question about abortion, declining to support a nationwide ban on abortion and instead taking credit for installing the three Supreme Court judges who tipped the balance to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion.

Other Republican leaders would be subjected to intense questioning if they failed to back the strongest possible restrictions on abortion. DeSantis recently rammed through a ban on abortions after six weeks of pregnancy in part to fend off potential criticism of Florida’s previous looser 15-week ban.

Not Trump.

Trump has built an unshakable bond with supporters that appears to be impervious to attacks based on culture war issues like abortion (Trump has called the issue a “loser” behind closed doors) and guns (he flirted with tougher restrictions after mass shootings when he was president).

They simply trust him to do what they think is right.

“Trump does not win or lose based on issues,” Rubashkin explained.

“The bond doesn’t mean that these people are under mind control,” Sabato said. “They just understand that he can give them what they want.”