A word about Trump’s poll numbers. They’re dipping at the moment, especially among those blue collar workers who helped get him elected. It’s important to step back from this news and gain greater perspective.

Last week, in a choreographed dance that even Baryshnikov would admire, Mitch McConnell and John McCain frittered away any hope of Obamacare repeal after Paul Ryan put the ball in their court (for once — usually it’s McConnell sticking the House leadership with the bad optics and choices while he remains unscathed). In short, the Republicans betrayed their voters, betrayed the process, betrayed their own party, and helped the Democrats while being in charge. This last part is important because usually this heinous behavior is under the cover of Democratic rule. The Republicans shrug like drunk teenagers, “but we couldn’t help it, they spiked the punch, Mom!” Presiding over the House, Senate, and presidency makes this excuse weak.

Let’s be clear, here: The Republican base hates their groveling, smarmy leadership. They view them as pathetic, gutless losers and so they picked Donald Trump as the presidential nominee because they knew that 1) the press would be against him 2) the Democrats would be against him, and 3) his own party would be against him. How did they know that the GOP would be against the Republican in the White House, especially someone pushing conservative ideas? Because Republicans are against them, the voter, and have been since George Bush the First. The Republican leaders hate their base as much as the base hates them.

There’s a club and the Republican voter who actually believes the party planks is not in it. The club is full of People Who Know Better. These “moderates” are liberals in Republican clothing who don’t like their power boat rocked. They like the prestige, the offices, the trappings of power and they don’t like inconvenient things like principles. So they fight the naive rabble.

Where do the Club Members fight? They fight in special elections, throwing around their liberal weight against potential Senators who actually believe the rhetoric the Republican leadership claims. Legal Insurrection has a good sum up of what lengths Mitch McConnell will go to continue to ignore the Tea Party revolution that thrust him into the majority and the Trump revolution that helped keep him there. They fight by not giving worthy, fresh young Senators leadership positions and reward traitors to the cause like Senator Murkowski. They tank solid legislation in favor of big government solutions that empower their ostensible political enemies.

The loathsomeness of the Republican leadership didn’t magically appear when Donald Trump became president. It goes back years, which is why Donald Trump was elected. The fecklessness of Republicans caused the “burn it down” mutinous behavior on the part of Republican base and independent voters.

Just because these voters are growing irritated with Trump’s shenanigans doesn’t mean that they don’t still hate the Republican leadership more. That leadership is a drag on him.

They don’t much like Democrats, either. Lest Democrats grow smug and hopeful, they need to look around at who’s representing them these days: murderers and psychotically entitled college students.  That’s right, even liberal professors aren’t spared by these over-indulged cretins. Meanwhile, the truly committed leftists are either killing or attempting to kill Republicans.

Jeff Flake, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, and other Republican fat cats have decided that President Trump is weak and they’re going all-in on destroying him and limiting his power. That’s all fine and good. In fact, it’s been irritating how Congress has been derelict in its duty regarding their power. For years, they ceded nearly unlimited power to the executive branch to avoid the electoral difficulties of actually standing for something. They let President Obama run roughshod — letting him legislate from the executive branch unopposed and abuse the legal system to cement his gains (which often failed because his actions were unconstitutional). Now, the Republicans have a pang of conscience when a Republican is in office.

The GOP is “resisting” Trump’s conservative-libertarian impulses. John McCain is enjoying high approval numbers — from Democrats, his core constituency.

The Republicans have decided to thwart Trump at every turn. They figure they’ll outlast him and then can lose the House,  the Senate, and the White House so they’ll be comfortable again. When I noted on Twitter that Republicans would rather be in the minority than have the majority, lead, and give President Trump a win, only one person out of the 50,000+ followers protested that assessment. One.

Republicans like losing. They like having a Democrat to blame. The Democrats, meanwhile, have become rabid, reactionary nutjobs. The media is frothing at the mouth and not just combative but actively opposing the President rather than objectively reporting. They’re fed stories by disgruntled or spiteful Obama bureaucrats or self-seeking White House staffers.

The Republicans, Democrats, the Media, and the bureaucracy believe if they beat Donald Trump enough that their favored candidate or idea will win and Donald Trump will be nothing more than a painful historical anomaly.

What they’re actually doing is making a mockery of American governance itself and unmasking their contempt for the people they’re ostensibly meant to serve. There are consequences for this sneering disregard. Hearts harden. Voters retreat to outraged corners. Keep it up, everyone. You’ll be welcoming Senator Kid Rock, soon.

Show contempt for voters and surely that contempt will come back to you.