CNN’s Jim Acosta invited the network’s senior data reporter, Harry Enten, on to address a burning question: does Trump’s base really care if he’s been indicted for a fourth time? Enten was quick to reply: “Not really, no.”
Enten continued, “It’s like deja vu all over again. I feel like Yogi Berra, right? I mean, we’ve now had four indictments. You look at the polling amongst the GOP base, do they think Trump should have been indicted? Look at the consistency here.”
While Enten was speaking, the screen showed the percentage of GOP voters who believe the indictments were justified. The percentage has consistently hovered between 14% and 16% since the first indictment was handed down — and those percentages might represent “never Trumpers,” Acosta said.
The data reporter also made it clear that he believes Trump’s voter base is unlikely to shift. He added, “The GOP base has made up its mind when it comes to these indictments. They don’t believe that Trump should have been charged with a crime.”
In addition, Enten thinks that the Republican nomination is Trump’s to lose. He concluded, “But at this particular point, it is Donald Trump against the field. He has the majority of Republicans in his camp and it doesn’t seem like there’s any stopping him at this particular point, Jim.”
As for how this could all play out in November 2024, Enten isn’t completely confident that President Joe Biden will be reelected. When compared to the 2020 election, Trump is already faring much better this time around.
Enten concluded, “The polling indicates that Trump is, in fact, in a stronger position at this point than he was during the entire 2020 campaign, according to the national polls. If we had state-level polling, I wouldn’t even be surprised if Trump were ahead in the swing states that are most important.”
