With just a few hours before the polls closed, President Trump recorded a robocall for the Republican candidate in the Virginia governor race. “With your help, Ed Gillespie will help make America great again, a phrase that I like a lot,” the president says over the phone. “Vote Ed Gillespie.”
And while it’s not unusual for presidents to dabble in the Virginia race, this move seems remarkably generous, even selfless, considering the fact that Gillespie refuses to acknowledge Trump. Throughout the race, the Republican has kept Trump at more than arms-length while the president does everything in his power to get Gillespie elected. Everybody sees it.
“Can we go off the record?” Gillespie asked the Washington Post when pressed about Trump’s endorsement. “I’m not going to talk about this.” It’s a remarkable and telling confession. Other candidates would gush about catching the president’s eye. Gillespie is too ashamed to talk about it.
Obviously, that’s for good reason. Trump isn’t the prom king in Virginia that he is the midwest. The president lost the state by more than 5 percentage points. Still, Gillespie needs the president to deliver his base. He has managed this by avoiding Trump’s embrace and adopting his talking points on immigration instead.
So far that’s worked well for the candidate, but it’s got to sting. Gillespie is having a good time with Chamber of Commerce-types out at establishment parties while the president spends late and lonely nights in his office refreshing his Twitter account. But Trump has shown a different side this election — a long-suffering side.
Despite the public snubs and the subsequent heartbreak, the president has done everything for the Republican that won’t have him. He recorded the robocall. He told all his friends to support Gillespie. And he sent his vice president to Virginia to stump for the candidate who keeps brushing him off. So why has the president gone to such lengths for a publicly-ungrateful candidate?
Because, and quite simply, Trump is the side-chick.
All of that changes tonight. Either Gillespie loses and Trump loses interest, or Gillespie wins and moves into the governor’s mansion. That’s when the real drama begins. After all, every side-chick wants to make it official, and Trump won’t endure anymore sneaking around.
