Submitted for your consideration and thoughtful responses:

[PCIntern]

I will be blunt: I have spent the last twelve years hearing that the reason Republicans fall in line with Trump unfailingly is that he’s got the “goods” on them via domestic spying or Putin’s KGB or whatever.

Now during these years all the Democrats and a few Republicans have rebelled against this tinhorn Mussolini and I have yet to see any expose of anyone’s peculiarities, perversions, or deviate behavior.

If he is so all-fucking powerful in that sense why haven’t we seen dirty pix of Democrats or turncoat Republicans? If it is threats of physical violence I refuse to believe that a group have not coalesced and revealed this. At least they do in the movies….

I am sincerely interested in what people here have to say in this regard.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. I would guess that fear is a great motivator. Otherwise, I got nuthin'.

[FalloutShelter]

2. Money, Power, Position...

No one wants to lose that. They're not afraid of losing anything but their place on the ladder.

Perfect example is the media stenographers. No one challenges the bullshit, because they will lose access... their power is diminished.

Are some compromat? Sure... but not all of them. Not every fucking Republican in the country with access to a microphone and two functioning brain cells.

What we are seeing is the death of sacrifice.
WE all know what happens to the first man through the wall.... no one wants to be that first person.

JMHO

[Bmoboy]

3. It only takes a few tweets

Being "unfriended" can end re-election chances and make former contributors disappear.

Calling names and using ALL CAPS seems to be working for him. No need for actual facts.

There was no basis in reality for the lists of "commies" that McCarthy got from Roy Cohn. Careers and lives were ruined by the blacklist.

Roy Cohn was Trump's teacher.

[Walleye]

4. Yes, if they publicly crossed Trump, their family gets death threats.

But personally, I think that most of them actually believe in buying what he’s selling, plus they enjoy being inconsiderate bullies. I don’t know if they were brought up wrong or they just became this way but they’re not good or nice people, and they are all scared of being called a dirty name by Trump on social media.

[surfered]

5. They are a willing collection of collaborators seeking various agendas:

White Supremacists, anti - abortionist evangelicals who ignore Christ’s teachings, anti-libtard Fox News viewers, opportunistic politicians hitching a ride on the Trump Train, Crypto Bro’s, and other grifters who want to make easy money.

[Goonch]

6. ;-{) KRAKEN

[ColoringFool]

7. BECAUSE HE STILL NEEDS THE VOTES OF THE BLACKMAILED!

He made Justice Kennedy retire because he, Trump, knew and was involved with the financial criminality of Kennedy's son. Remember the shocked Kennedy when Trump said something to him in the hallway?

Result: TRUMP APPOINTMENT TO THE SCOTUS.

[bucolic_frolic]

8. Kompromat is too specialized a category

Maybe it's money and religion that ties them together. And in sort of machine politics gone Main Street, they know they're vulnerable so they don't dare so anything. If they were ever committed to law and order it was because it kept the masses in line producing money for the wealthy.

The GOP are a political phalanx. Bound together during the Progressive Era (1900-1920 or so), fighting socialism, anarchists, workers, anyone who wanted change. We ignore the Pinkerton Era like it was anomaly. It was ubiquitous, just not extreme everywhere.

The group you speak of is politicians. Democrats know there is dirty work to be done that they couldn't enact themselves. Growth through pollution, for example. So they're content to let the GOPee do the dirty work. When that's all done we'll inherit the wreckage.

[ForgedCrank]

9. Reality shows

something contrary to common opinions on this subject.
The old guard GOP types fall in line because Trump has demonstrated that his visions and policy muster a support base far stronger than they have for decades. It's the voters they are scared of, not Trump himself. We can deny it at our own peril or we can accept that data point and figure out how to leverage it to our advantage. Don't ask me how, there are people far smarter than I when it comes to political strategy.
It's rare these days to see an argument for or against any particular policy on our side as it is almost exclusively focused on finding reasons to criticize and even hate the opponent in as many ways as possible. This isn't a really solid long-term strategy. It's useful for venting frustration and anger, but that's about it. Even suggesting a more logical approach to politics forces one into a defensive stance these days. It's predictable at this point. It's difficult to not get emotional about what is going on, but if we are to ever gain the trust of those voters that we need, we're going to have to drop the outrage bit and start focusing more on what we are going to do that is better; and I don't mean blurbs, I mean in detail. We simply aren't doing that anymore, and it's costing us.

[usonian]

10. I think that legislators and business people feel the threat (usually implicit)

And of course, protect their own interests, in the usual way, kissing ass.



But SO many others vigorously defend the very people robbing them blind, destroying jobs, education, integrity and opportunity.

It's not the immigrants, one of any number of minorities or "libs"

BUT HATE WORKS.
Blaming others is how the majority of people live and project their fears, weaknesses and failures onto others.

It's the fascist playbook.

"We have met the enemy and he is us"



and what do they get?

FAFO!!

MORANS WORK AGAINST THEIR OWN BEST INTEREST.
They just think with their hate glands.

[magicarpet]

11. Most men think tr-HUMP is cool,... rich,.. successful,... a very astute businessman, owns luxurious comercial,...

Properties and mansions all around the world, has nice cars, nice yachts, a few private jets, and a beautiful trophy wife that hangs on his arm. These male worshippers want to be just like him. Loud, rude, offensive, insulting, cheap with his money, a swindler, extortionist, a conman, a Mafioso tough guy, always on the lookout for his next mark to fleece or short change.

These are the attributes American White males really worship about tr-DUMP. Oh,.. did I mention racist, homophobic, misogynistic, Xeno-phobic PIG.

[dave99]

12. Republicans fall in line due to you watching the Clown as they steal EVERYTHING else. Mitch LOVES the Clown.

[Gaugamela]

13. People have talked about the threats. MTG, judges, AOC, Ilhan Omar. I have zero

doubt that anyone who stands up to Trump receives all kinds of threats. I’ve heard statistics on the frequency of these threats.

I expect for most republicans it’s not the fear of kompromat, it’s the fear of Trump turning against them in an election and causing them to lose. For a lot of these mediocrities there’s no other job that would give them anything near the same compensation. But Trump’s influence is waning.

[eppur_se_muova]

14. Yes, we've seen this demonstrated over and over. And while Trmp can pretty much decide GOP primaries, his candidates ...

... have a way of losing big in the general election. As long as he keeps doing this, he's going to give more and more seats to Democrats. And he may have just done this in OH.

"“never interfere with the enemy while he is in the process of making a mistake.” Often attributed to Sun Tzu, apparently in error; the idea seems to have originated with Napoleon and been repeatedly paraphrased, with Theodore White giving it its modern form. See https://quoteinvestigator.com/2010/07/06/never-interfere/

[Vinca]

15. IMO, Trump has somehow established a Jim Jones-like relationship with his diehard base and Republicans are

bright enough to notice it. No diehard base, no job in Washington with good pay and even better perks. Not to mention the never ending opportunity to get insider information and leave a multi-millionaire. They're as self-centered as Trump is.