The FBI raid on former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home puts him at the center of the debate over the next two years.
The FBI raid is being used by Republican and right-wing groups to raise money, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy pledged to investigate the Justice Department if Republicans take back the house.
Democrats say the FBI's reported search for classified materials that Trump allegedly brought to his home from the White House will remind voters of his scandals and massive legal problems.
Jesse Ferguson, a Democratic strategist, said that this raises the stakes in the upcoming elections. "This isn't about political advantage for one party or the other, it's a reminder of what happens if a lawless president is allowed to take power, aided and abetted byMAGA Republicans in Congress."
Bill Hoagland is a senior vice president at the Bipartisan Policy Center and a former Senate Republican leadership aide.
He said that the raid will strengthen Trump's control over that part of the party.
With the hearings over Trump's role in the January 6 insurrection and now this, Republicans who were on the fence with him now have another reminder of his inappropriate behavior.
The Republicans seem to think that the raid will make people vote.
The RNC chairwoman said the only way to stop the raid was to get Republicans elected. If the FBI can do this to Trump, they can do it to you.
Ron Bonjean is a former spokesman for Republican leaders in the House and Senate.
"It's highly unlikely the raid will deter suburban voter enthusiasm choosing the GOP because they are more motivated by inflation and the high cost of living than what's happening with Trump," he said.
Eric Shultz was a deputy White House press secretary during the Obama administration.
He said that part of Biden's victory was due to the electorate's exhaustion with Trump.
"I don't think most people want to go back to a time when the country was on edge at all times because of his no-holds-barred approach to being in office," he said. Voters are getting a vivid reminder of what it would be like to vote for Republicans.
Josh is a former spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and Hillary Clinton. "It serves as a reminder to the millions of people who wanted to be done with Trump's scandals that the Republican Party is in lockstep behind him and the country will continue to be dragged through his chaotic messes," he said.
If it could happen to Trump it could happen to you, is a load of political crap. If you commit a crime, it will occur to you.
He mocked McCarthy by writing "Remember, November is not about governing, it's about revenge".
—Michael Steele (@MichaelSteele) August 9, 2022
The GOP's far-right wing called for the FBI to be destroyed and defunded after House Republicans tried to fight a bill that would have defunded the police.
The party that was once about law and order has been taken over by criminals.
Douglas Heye, former RNC communications director, said that Republicans should be concerned that "defund the police" comments from the "more extreme Republican members takes away from the anti-crime message that had benefited them and also threatens to distract from inflation."
The answers are emerging even before the cause of the search is known. There needs to be more transparency into why the FBI moved.
He said that the raid allowed Trump and his allies to frame it as a hit job by the Biden Administration to keep him from running again.
Jim Manley is an aide to the late Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid.
He said he didn't know what was going on. They've decided to go all in with Trump, and that doesn't bode well for Congress over the next two years.
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