It is a curious situation. President Donald JOHN Trump is alienating fellow businessmen/women.
Of course, that does not really matter. What does matter is Mr. Trump's steady alienation of Republican members of Congress.
It has been said that, if the Russian investigation came up with credible evidence of obstruction of justice by the President, the House (Republican) would never impeach him; and, even if they did, the Senate (Republican) would never convict him.
Yet, there is no doubt that Mr. Trump is rapidly losing Republican support in both chambers. One Republican consultant that I follow on Twitter stated yesterday that he had been told, privately (no names given) by some Republicans in Congress that they now believe that Mr. Trump is not mentally fit to be President.
I doubt it will lead to invocation of the 25th amendment. However, after this weekend, it does slightly raise the probability.
Now, many choose to scoff at the various public opinion polls. Private citizens may do so, of course, with impunity. Nevertheless, members of Congress (and Mr. Trump, as is widely known) do follow the polls closely.
According to Gallop, Mr. Trump's latest 'approval' rating is a rather dismal 34 percent:
Presidential Approval Ratings -- Donald Trump | Gallup
Note that the poll ended Sunday, the 13th. We shall wait and see if yesterdays 'news conference' has any influence on the numbers.
The Republican members of Congress (and especially the House) will also be watching the polls. The November 2018 mid-term elections are steadily creeping nearer, and House members are (even as I type) spending their August recess raising funds, and, one hopes, listening to their constituents.
There will be a point at which the Republicans may determine that it is best to send Mr. Trump home, whether it be the 25th Amendment, or impeachment (if evidence for such exists).
Mr. Trump does have a way of shooting himself in the foot. I had expressed some approval of his rather crazy talk towards North Korea, saying that, finally, said NK Leader realized that he was facing someone as irresponsible as himself, and knowing that Trump did control vast weaponry.
Yet, instead of allowing relief to settle on Americans (how long it will last with NK is another question entirely), Mr. Trump chose to create the furor concerning the events and participants of the Virginia protests. Any goodwill he managed to build up again, has evaporated, whether justly or unjustly.
I will predict this: the turmoil within the White House is not ended, and General Kelly will be departing his position as COS in the next week. His body language yesterday cannot be ignored for what it was: being appalled at what Trump was saying.