Trump declares war on the Republican Party four weeks before Election Day
Donald Trump declared war on the Republican establishment Tuesday, lashing out at House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (Wis.), Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) and other GOP elected officials as the extraordinary turbulence within the Republican Party intensified four weeks from Election Day.
One day after Ryan said he would no longer campaign on Trump’s behalf, the GOP nominee said as part of a barrage of tweets that Ryan is “weak and ineffective” and has provided “zero support” for his candidacy. Trump also declared that “the shackles have been taken off” him, freeing him to “fight for America the way I want to.”
Trump called McCain “foul-mouthed” 
and accused him with no evidence of once begging for his support. McCain is no longer backing Trump.[The truth is, it was Reince Priebus who told Trump he had to endorse Ryan and McCain, or face losing the help of the RNC. Trump also tried to take credit for McCain winning his primary when polls showed McCain with a 14 point lead before the last minute half-hearted endorsement]
In perhaps the most piercing insult of all,
Trump said his party is harder to deal with than even Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, whom conservatives loathe.
“Disloyal R’s are far more difficult than Crooked Hillary,” he wrote via Twitter, his preferred platform for igniting rhetorical fights against his foes. “They come at you from all sides. They don’t know how to win — I will teach them!”
The bevy of attacks directed at his fellow Republicans for his more than 12 million Twitter followers highlighted the fierce backlash that Ryan and his allies are bracing for during the final stage of a campaign that already has wreaked havoc on the party.
In backing away from Trump, Ryan and others are hoping to insulate themselves and their majorities on Capitol Hill from the baggage weighing down the nominee’s flagging campaign. For many, the breaking point was a 2005 video reported by The Washington Post on Friday in which Trump is heard making vulgar comments about physically forcing himself on women.
But in doing so, they are already absorbing counterattacks from Trump and his army of supporters.
Many Trump boosters say they have been emboldened by the fight and are determined to exact punishment on the party establishment’s down-ballot candidates.
“I do think he’s going through one of those phases where he’s going to get his rebuttals out there for the circumstances that have unfolded starting yesterday morning. And I understand why he would feel frustrated,” Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) said on CNN speaking of Trump, whom he supports.
Trump dispensed with his Twitter attacks Tuesday during a light day on the campaign trail. He is raising money in Texas in the afternoon and plans to hold a rally in Panama City Beach, Fla., in the evening.
Ryan said Monday that he would no longer defend or campaign with Trump. McCain pulled his support completely on Saturday in the wake of the 2005 video. Dozens of other Republican elected officials have gone even further, calling on Trump to leave the race.
“Paul Ryan is focusing the next month on defeating Democrats, and all Republicans running for office should probably do the same,” Ryan spokesman Brendan Buck said in a statement responding to Trump’s attacks Tuesday.
While Ryan is wagering that turning his attention away from Trump will save many Republican House colleagues, some Trump loyalists are trying to ensure that the plan backfires.
Trump spokeswoman Katrina Pierson tweeted Monday that she could not keep her mobile phone charged “due to the mass volume of texts from people” who plan to vote for Trump but not other Republicans on the ballot.
Diana Orrock, a Republican National Committeewoman from Nevada, said she is not voting for Republicans who don’t support Trump — including Rep. Joe Heck (Nev.), who is running for a seat that is critical in the battle for the Senate majority.
He's right, but now I feel like I need to go take a shower...
