The Fundamental Question of 2023: Does Trump Fade or Not?

We’ll know in the first six months, and maybe earlier.

I covered the 2016 President Election for Bloomberg Politics, and, because I came from the world of sports and entertainment, when the race first got going, I was put on Trump duty. It made sense: Put the reporter who has spent the most time dealing with horseraces and piffle on the guy who obsesses over only those two things — the gimmick candidate. I will confess, at first, it was undeniably fun: No one, certainly not me, realized the depths of his racism and depravity and, besides, no one thought he had a chance of winning anyway. So how could you not goof on the guy who was so publicly angry about the women Ghostbusters? How little we knew.

There was a moment, though, a definitive moment, when we thought it was all over. It was July 19, 2015, when Trump, pushed on why he didn’t consider John McCain a hero, said, “I like people who weren’t captured.” It sure felt like he was toast when that happened. Politico said Trump “finally crossed the line,” and I can tell you…