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Donald Trump may not always chicken out, but his on again/off again, advance-retreat dance does seem to insulate him from lasting blowback. It seems the only way to drag Trump’s popularity down low enough to really hem him in is for his supporters to find out the hard way.

In this episode, Matt and Brian tackle the questions:

* Does the hyperbolic claim that “Trump Always Chickens Out” serve to insulate him from public backlash, while also perversely encouraging him to prove his haters wrong?

* Would we be better off if he stopped chickening out?

* Does defeating Trump (in Congress, the courts, etc.) weaken him, or does it protect him from his own unsustainable policies?

* If we’re all accelerationists now, where would failure (or catastrophic success) undermine Trump most? Economic mismanagement? Medicaid cuts? Mass deportation? War?

Then, behind the paywall, some considered thoughts on how the Trump opposition would respond if Trump didn’t chicken out. What can Democrats as a whole learn from the handful of leaders (most recently Alex Padilla and Tina Smith) who’ve drawn attention to their causes in productive ways? Are Democratic political fortunes best served if Trump’s Medicaid cuts fail, or if they succeed? And how, in this hothouse environment, can progressives and moderates align to help Democrats recruit viable Senate candidate in red states?

Further reading:

* Matt argues you’re not really alarmed about the slide into autocracy if you aren’t willing to make ideological sacrifices to help Democrats win the Senate.

* Brian’s schema for when to try to stop Trump, and when to let him step in it.

* Noah Wyle helps get the word out about looming Medicaid cuts. (Paging George Clooney, Jimmy Kimmel…)