Vox: Some elite Trump supporters are having regrets. We asked them why.

[Dennis Donovan]

Vox - Some elite Trump supporters are having regrets. We asked them why.

After the tariffs, they’re worried they made a MAGA mistake.

by Zack Beauchamp
Apr 9, 2025, 7:00 AM EDT

/snip/

Trump supporters ranging from mega-investor Bill Ackman to anti-vax influencer Alex Berenson have expressed remorse about their decision to support Trump in November. Some have been harsh: Razib Khan, a geneticist and influential science writer on the right, called himself “r*****ed and wrong” for discounting the risk that Trump would actually do the tariffs.

Richard Hanania, a pundit prominent enough to occasionally swap DMs with Elon Musk on X, has gone the furthest. Last week, he published a lengthy Substack essay explaining why he now believes his reasons for voting Trump were mistaken.

“I was expecting something of a repeat of the first administration, with Trump restrained by traditional conservative ideas, personnel, and institutions. As it turned out, the old Reagan coalition was becoming increasingly hollow, replaced by Trump worship, online edgelordism, and late arriving scammers like crypto bros and MAHA,” he concluded.

To liberals, this kind of thing might seem maddening. Trump loudly, explicitly, and repeatedly signaled that he would impose large tariffs on all foreign imports if he returned to power. Many observers, including me, warned that the guardrails that restrained his first presidency had come off — and that universal tariffs were all-but-certain to be enacted this year. Why couldn’t these well-connected, highly-educated Trump supporters see it?

/snip

[Raven123]

1. Hadn't heard of the word edgelordism before

Edgelord: someone who makes wildly dark and exaggerated statements with the intent of shocking others.

Yes, Trump is that, but MAGAs and the media normalized it, so there is no excuse for them to be surprised at the outcome. They made his demented dreams a reality.

[Baitball Blogger]

2. r*****ed? Not enough asterisks for ratfucked.

[InstantGratification]

6. deragatory slur for mental disabilities

[yardwork]

8. Figures.

A lot of these people voted for Trump because they like how mean and ugly he is to other people. They cheer as he punches down. Now they're sorry he's doing all the things he said he'd do.

They came for the circus. They're surprised the chaos is affecting them.

[JT45242]

9. They didn't realize that to a megalomaniac he punches down in his head at everyone -- including them

The first tiem was a disaster that killed a million over necessary because of mismanging a pandemic because he didn't want his makeup messed up wearing a mask. The geneticist of all people has ZERO excuses.

They wanted hate and suffering for people who are "less than" -- brown, women, poor and forgot taht to Putin, Musk, and Mango Mussolini everyone is less than them.

Plus it was all in Project 2025 -- take time to read asshats.

[Emrys]

25. He couldn't have made it clearer over the years that he has utter contempt for anyone who adulates him.

He knows damn well he's a jumped-up carnival barker, he's made a whole career out of it. Why would he respect any rubes who fall for it?

He has hatred aplenty for many many others, but for his fans, his contempt is overwhelming.

[vapor2]

31. Don't think supporters read period

[Baitball Blogger]

21. Wow! Pretty harsh.

[Permanut]

3. Mistaken?

Gosh, wait until they discover that water is wet; then I guess they'll really be shocked.

[MadameButterfly]

13. i'm shocked, shocked, that Trump has actually imposed tarriffs.

Sorry, just watched Casablanca this weekend, couldn't resist.
(A good movie it turns out for these times.)

[dalton99a]

4. Yep. The asshole PROMISED retribution and tariffs at every campaign rally

[MadameButterfly]

14. and impoundment and that we wouldn't have to vote again

[peggysue2]

5. So . . .

The Very Smart People aren't very smart or good at paying attention.

I daresay those of us on DU knew exactly how reckless and moronic Agent Orange was and would be with no guardrails. Kamala Harris warned the public, as did Joe Biden, repeatedly. Back in the day, Hillary Clinton beat the same, prescient drum.

Turns out the very rich, the very pompous, the very verys had their heads as far up their asses as the ordinary MAGA voter. Even the right-wing influencers are sobbing.

Everything Trump Touches Dies. ETTD

Elon Musk didn't believe it. Bill Ackman didn't believe it, nor did Koch Industries or Walmart or Home Depot, etc. Now all the CEO's are wailing about:

WHAT THEY VOTED FOR AND FUNDED.

Welcome to the Liquidation Party. Your greed and hubris just slashed your own throats.

[Cosmocat]

16. Democrats and liberals had him pegged a decade ago

when he came down the escalator.

Cause, we deal in reality, facts and decency.

But, to all of these people who bought into half a century of right wing demonizing the libs and dems, to allow themselves to buy into the mindset that we are wrong about everything and basically subhuman POS, the more we pointing to things that we said would happen and did, the more in validated that they had to support him.

[Shipwack]

19. So did anyone in the Tri-statr area...

All the stories about him were out in the open.

It's almost as if they didn't want to do due diligence... 🤔

[ShazzieB]

7. There are none so blind as those who will not see.

We all saw this coming! Maybe not every detail, but we knew the guard rails with going to be nonexistent, and we sure as hell knew about his tarriff plans. There's no reason these "elite Trump supporters" couldn't have seen what we did. They just didn't WANT to believe their boy could be THIS bad.

[mwmisses4289]

33. They had the mistaken belief they could control him

[Coventina]

10. Nom nom nom

went the leopards....

[Javaman]

11. the leopards are enjoying their never ending buffet. nt

[Martin Eden]

12. Jan 6 2021 should have been a deal breaker for every citizen

I have zero respect or sympathy for anyone willing to overlook that violent coup attempt out of greed or culture war bigotry.

[Fil1957]

15. They supported him despite strong evidence that

he was gonna do what he's doing now, because they wanted to believe he wouldn't. Con artists know that they can get the mark to believe almost anything if the victim wants to believe the lie.

Still, it boggles the mind how so many people can be so rich and yet so selfish and stupid.

[Midnight Writer]

17. I won't call anyone "r*****ed", but I will point out that these people are dumbasses.

Some folks are born mentally deficient. Some people have to work for it.

[ECL213]

18. F#CK ALL OF THOSE F#CKING F#CKS

How the f#ck was he "restrained" the first time around. Those "traditional conservatives" couldn't bend over far enough, or fast enough, or apply enough lube to let the f#ckhead have his way with them. You dumbf#cks are getting exactly what you voted for, so f#ck you!

[pandr32]

20. The Felon lies so regularly and changes direction like wind.

There are video clips of him contradicting himself in droves. He then denies what he formally said. He talks tough at rallies, interviews, and ahead of elections and often doesn't stick to his guns as the wind changes.
These rich donors never thought he "would actually do" what they thought was his tough shtick.

[llmart]

22. I didn't know there was such a thing as an "elite Trump supporter".

These people were just thrilled that they would get a tax cut but had no idea that his tariffs would affect them also.

As we say over and over again here on DU, Republicans only care if it hurts them. Then they get up in arms about the guy they've been propping up as their "leader" when he does something that affects them.

[WinstonSmith4740]

23. Occam's Razor

The most obvious answer is usually the right one. They didn't WANT to see it. Plausible deniability.
The leopard wasn't supposed to eat THEIR face. Oops.

[MadameButterfly]

24. Maddening is an understatement

He's been pro-tarriff his whole life
He said he was going to be a dictator
Did they think they were going to be able to control a dictator?
They're making me want to re-institute literacy tests for voters. This time they should have to pass a history test.

[yourout]

26. Hate Trump's everything with Republicans

What little common sense they had is easily bypassed when you can rile up the hate in them.

[WarGamer]

27. Elite Trump supporters?

Isn't that like elite dog poop picker uppers?

[Bread and Circuses]

28. Bull Crap! They're trying to Cover their arses

The first term was a shite and they knew he was a felon, liar, traitor and vengeful.


Don’t believe any of the Republican voters

[Crunchy Frog]

29. They thought he was only going to harm the "little people"

while they benefited. And they failed to pay attention to what he's been saying and doing for the past nine years, or the warnings of sane people who served in his 1st admin.

I thought these people were supposed to be smart.

[obamanut2012]

30. Bill Ackerman was praising him earlier

[Meowmee]

32. They knew what he was... a murderer, psycho criminal who wants to be a dictator/king etc.

That alone should have been enough.

[Whiskeytide]

34. Most of these people are simply ...

… disappointed that Тяцмp has not been able to find ways to hurt those “other” people without also hurting them in the process.

[Paladin]

35. Fuck 'em.

Fuck them, and their way-too-late boo-hoo's. I don't even want to hear their whining, at this point. It's not as if they're smart enough to learn from their mistakes.