While there appears to be some uncertainty between President Donald Trump and Democrats over an alleged deal to tie protections for recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) into a larger border security package, there was no such uncertainty among Trump’s base as the news broke: He’s breaking promises.
Conservative media and some of Trump’s most ardent supporters exploded on Wednesday night and Thursday morning over news of Trump meeting with Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) over a Chinese food dinner where they (at least according to Democrats) hammered out a deal to protect DACA recipients.
It didn’t appear that conservatives felt any better about Trump’s denial of any deal being struck, either, with one prominent Trump supporter saying that a DACA deal would cause Trump’s base of supporters to be “blown up, destroyed, irreparable, and disillusioned beyond repair.”
In other words, Trump’s most fervent supporters online have finally figured out why Democrats don’t trust Trump.
“AMNESTY DON” was the headline on the front page of Breitbart, a far-right news outlet run by former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon. Farther down, the website wrote: “TRUMP CAVES ON DACA.”
Following Bannon’s exit in August, it was reported that Breitbart was preparing to got to “war” with members of the White House staff, and was expected to go “thermonuclear” against so-called “globalists” they see in Trump’s administration.
Meanwhile, Sean Hannity, the Fox News pundit who has defended Trump on nearly every single issue, wasn’t keen on Trump making any DACA deals.
“Weak R’s have betrayed voters. @POTUS needs to stay the course and keep his promises or it’s over! Pelosi and Schumer can never be trusted,” Hannity tweeted on Thursday morning. “Politicians are supposed to keep their word. R’s failed on Healthcare, broke their word They have failed! @POTUS needs to keep his promises.”
Similarly, Fox Business host Lou Dobbs said the news made it seem like Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton were president, not Trump.
“Who stole White House? Morning tweets sound like Obama, maybe Clinton, not #MAGA, not #AmericaFirst not @realDonaldTrump #TrumpTrain #DTS,” Dobbs wrote on Twitter.
Rep. Steve King (R-I.A.), another ardent Trump supporter, called the president’s possible deal with Democrats “unbelievable.” The lawmaker added that, if true, the deal would have irreversible effects on Trump’s base.
“@RealDonaldTrump If AP is correct, Trump base is blown up, destroyed, irreparable, and disillusioned beyond repair. No promise is credible.,” King tweeted.
@RealDonaldTrump If AP is correct, Trump base is blown up, destroyed, irreparable, and disillusioned beyond repair. No promise is credible. https://t.co/uJjxk6uX5g
— Steve King (@SteveKingIA) September 14, 2017
Jack Posobiec, an unabashed Trump supporter called the announcement by the two highest ranking Democrats “fake news,” but he seemed to agree with King that Trump’s base would immediately reject any border security deal that does not include Trump’s border wall.
“Pelosi and Schumer statement was fake news Trump did not agree to ‘no Wall’ – deal about DACA only Trump knows base would leave if no Wall,” he wrote.
Bill Kristol, the editor at large for the conservative outlet the Weekly Standard, summed up his feelings more concisely.
“Donald Trump: From #MAGA to #DACA in less than a year,” he wrote.
Ann Coulter, the notorious far-right provocateur, went as far to say that Trump’s DACA deal would be grounds for impeachment.
“At this point, who DOESN’T want Trump impeached?” she wrote, retweeting Trump’s tweets about having compassion for DACA recipients.
However, not every conservative media outlet was as apocalyptic. The Daily Caller, a conservative news outlet, simply pointed out that Trump providing “amnesty” to DACA recipients would be directly contradicting what he said on the campaign trail.
Of course, some might say they should have all seen this coming, like international trade attorney Scott Lincicome did back in February 2016:
I'm telling you, the Trump/Schumer/Pelosi Amnesty Act of 2017 is going to be so amazing you won't believe it. https://t.co/j4rRbOFG2u
— Scott Lincicome (@scottlincicome) February 11, 2016