After he leaves office, will there be a George W. Bush-style rehabilitation of Donald Trump?

[It's Perro Sanxe wot won it]

I personally believe it will happen during the administration of President Marjorie Taylor Greene. (I'm not sure that's a joke)

[Ferguson97]

If we somehow get a President worse than Trump, sure.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

If we somehow get a President worse than Trump, sure.

We already had one. His name was Bush. But its all ok because he's friends with Ellen

But in all seriousness, no, not really. Everyone who voted for him will love him till he dies. Same with the people who hate him - the reaction to Trump's eventual death will be very similar to what we saw in Britain when Thatcher died.

[brucejoel99]

The idea of such a rehabilitation for Trump is fairly weak & confounded by the fact that it was the emergence of Trump himself as a politician that simply buried the needle on the sh*ttiness scale. If Hillary had won, then we'd still be operating on a roughly Obama-era scale for judging Presidents, & so the W. rehabilitation probably would've been less successful because nobody would be able to explicitly compare him to Trump & thus serve to rehabilitate him by casting him as the reasonable "compassionate conservative" alternative to Trump.

So, it could only happen for Trump if somebody even worse than him were to ever take office, but even then, it's not like Trump would actually try & rehabilitate his image, because his ego would never permit to do so: he'll continue to tweet things (assuming Twitter doesn't get around to banning him if he's out of office), piss people off as a result, & be hated by them.

[TiltsAreUnderrated]

Not immediately, but if he calls out a future Republican president, you can bet the worst Democratic hacks will be lamenting the apparent demise of the reasonable^TM Trump Republicans.

[MABA 2020]

Oh god please no, don't think thats likely but oh god just the thought is depressing me

[kcguy]

There's a slight nuance in my opinions of the two.  Bush suffered from allying himself with the Republican Party.  The Republican Party suffers from allying itself with Trump.

Say what you want about GWB, I always felt he meant well and tried his best.  I would never say Trump means well; I think he's a net liability for both American civic culture and the human race, and I think he revels in the sense of importance that gives him.

My gut feeling is that Trump will go down in history as a tragic figure, similar to an Andrew Johnson.   Off the top of my head, I can't think of any rallying point to focus his rehabilitation around.

[Agonized-Statism]

When the next boogeyman comes around, maybe. There always seems to be an "even [hated former president from opposition party] wasn't as far right/left/crazy as [hated current candidate from the opposition]!" attitude, at least in the mainstream. The fringes and the hacks are consistent, at least.

[Chips]

Probably not. Trump was one of the only reasons Bush improved his approval among the public. Of course I still consider him a war criminal who needs to be locked up but Bush would not have super high approvals nowadays if not for Trump.

[Pulaski]

There's a slight nuance in my opinions of the two.  Bush suffered from allying himself with the Republican Party.  The Republican Party suffers from allying itself with Trump.

Say what you want about GWB, I always felt he meant well and tried his best.  

I'm sure 2 million dead Iraqis are consoled knowing that Bush meant well.

I shudder to think what would have happened had he meant worse.

[Mr. Morden]

He'd probably have to die first, since as long as he's alive, he'll continue saying incriminating things in public (rather than taking up painting, like Bush).

I do actually wonder how the MSM, political elites, and world leaders will react when he dies.  Especially that last category.  Most presidents at least give lip service to the US wanting to do good in the world, but Trump talks about seizing other countries' oil, and wanting the rest of the world to pay us more $.

[DINGO Joe]

Well, in theory, rehabilitation has been a goal of the American criminal justice for some time now, so after his multiple convictions, I suppose there will be some effort to make him a functioning member of society upon his release.  Perhaps he could learn to read and get his GED, or learn a skill like carpentry.

[dw93]

If we get President Tom Cotton or President Mike Pompeo in 2024 or 2028, sure. If not, no.

[Former Crackhead Mike Lindell]

He'll get credit for not starting a civil war after losing this year's election. Leaving office so gracefully. Didn't even have to be forced out by the secret service. A real class act.

[Never Made it to Graceland]

If a future Democrats president tries to implement universal single payer healthcare, centrist libs will praise Trump for his non-Communist approach.

[brucejoel99]

If a future Democrats president tries to implement universal single payer healthcare, centrist libs will praise Trump for his non-Communist approach.

[Ferguson97]

If a future Democrats president tries to implement universal single payer healthcare, centrist libs will praise Trump for his non-Communist approach.

This is your brain on Twitter

[Never Made it to Graceland]

If a future Democrats president tries to implement universal single payer healthcare, centrist libs will praise Trump for his non-Communist approach.

This is your brain on Twitter

If a future Democrats president tries to implement universal single payer healthcare, centrist libs will praise Trump for his non-Communist approach.

If a future Democrats president tries to implement universal single payer healthcare, centrist libs will praise Trump for his non-Communist approach.

If a future Democrats president tries to implement universal single payer healthcare, centrist libs will praise Trump for his non-Communist approach.

Joke BUT there is a kernel of truth sprinkled in there.

[Flyersfan232]

If we somehow get a President worse than Trump, sure.

We already had one. His name was Bush. But its all ok because he's friends with Ellen

But in all seriousness, no, not really. Everyone who voted for him will love him till he dies. Same with the people who hate him - the reaction to Trump's eventual death will be very similar to what we saw in Britain when Thatcher died.

It be 100% time worst then thatcher though

[morgieb]

Oh god. I honestly could see it happening.

I guess the difference is Trump is much more of a blowhard than Dubya. He isn't going to go out quietly.

[Sir Mohamed]

If we somehow get a President worse than Trump, sure.

Agree. Many believed we already hit the bottom with W and it really can't get much worse anymore, then Trump came along after the Tea Party, which seemed a new low in itsself. If some Q-Conspiracy theorist were ever to be become prez, Trump's image could actually be rehabilitated to some degree. I could see people saying "Trump was bad, but not that bad. He was mostly tweeting rather than acting" etc.

Another possibility for a "partial" Trump rehabilitation is, and excuse me should I look tasteless here, if he dies within the next few years. This scenario isn't the most unlikely one since he's 74 and not having a healthy lifestyle. If Mr. Trump passes away before his legacy was actually examined in greater depth, the general public might just feel not to speak ill of him any longer and move on.

[Roll Roons]

Another thing to consider - New York's AG, Manhattan's District Attorney and the SDNY have all been investigating him. If he loses, I wouldn't be surprised if they announce indictments of him or his family in 2021. His hardcore cultists will call it a "witch hunt" or proof that the deep state was always out to get him, but if he's prosecuted, that would go a long way into ensuring that his reputation never improves.

[brucejoel99]

Another thing to consider - New York's AG, Manhattan's District Attorney and the SDNY have all been investigating him. If he loses, I wouldn't be surprised if they announce indictments of him or his family in 2021. His hardcore cultists will call it a "witch hunt" or proof that the deep state was always out to get him, but if he's prosecuted, that would go a long way into ensuring that his reputation never improves.

This is a very distinct possibility, especially since Don Jr. was just reported as telling confidantes that he's worried the family will be prosecuted in the event Trump loses the election.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Bush W was only rehabbed due to Bush Sr and his closeness to Nancy Reagan. In Simi Valley, the Reagan Library have Bush Sr and Howard Baker in it.

Trump will be remembered as 2nd coming of Nixon😖😖😖

[Person Man]

If we get President Tom Cotton or President Mike Pompeo in 2024 or 2028, sure. If not, no.

You forgot Hawley.

But Tom Cotton would definitely be W's hawkishness and Trump's racism combined. He's is the ultimate intersectionalist.

Hawley would have the potential to do that, too. I would compare him to Huckabee. He would be more right wing populist than some sort of super fusionist like Cotton promises to be.

I just don't see how either of them would win if Trump wins in 2020. If that's the case, they will basically have to run against fatigue with the absence of Trump's charisma.