So Pence is an insurance policy? 
I don’t see Trump resigning unless he works out some sort of promise with Pence to have himself pardoned (not withstanding the possibility he might at least try to pardon himself).
I don’t see Trump resigning, though, for the simple fact that doing so means he is at the mercy of the law, and he doesn’t want that. He wants to shut down the investigation, which represents a clear and present danger to him and his family. Right now would be a terrible time to do that obviously, but let’s say he can negotiate and work out a deal with NK. Let’s say he can get tax reform passed. Let’s say Fox News bullies McConnell into submission and does away with the filibuster and he can get other legislation passed too. Or let’s say things get quiet for a while. Maybe then he shuts it down.
But if nothing works, if Trump is regarded as a failure by his own party, especially the House, then I think he works out a deal with Pence and gets a pardon. A pardon would be popular with Trump’s base, which he’d need to have a chance at reelection.
I’m not going to put money on it for this current shitstorm, but it’s getting close. And when he feels cornered, it’s going to be all bets off. I agree, resignation just isn’t in the buffoon’s character. It will be a Paranoiac(thanks Mooch)meltdown of mind-blowing proportions, throwing blame and accusations, real and delusional, in an airing of grievances that will scorch earth and burn bridges unlike anything someone looking from a rational perspective can imagine.
When he goes there will be no gentleman’s agreement.
A chalice of poison would suffice.
He is too egotistical to resign.
Looks like your prophesy is already starting to become true:
I don’t think the Secret Service would let them leave a pistol with one bullet on his desk.
Count me in with the people who say he’s not going to resign. I see the following outcomes, from most likely to least likely.
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He serves his 4 years but loses in 2020.
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He serves 2 full terms.
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He is impeached and convicted.
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He has a major health event (physical, not psychological) and is removed via the 25th amendment process.
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He dies in office.
Resigning? No chance. His ego is to big for that.
The end may come sooner than we think. I don’t always agree with Cenk Uyger, but I sure hope he’s right. Objectively, you can’t deny that Dumb Donald has no friends in Washington. Privately, Republicans say that he’s an embarrassment and completely unqualified for office. Corporate heads are a little freer than elected officials, they’ve already jumped ship. Uyger is correct- he has no allies left. It will happen, and soon.
ROTFLMAO. Cuz Cenk Uygur has such a great track record in his predictions.
He was one of the few that said Orangeanus might win.
Trump’s biographer agrees.
I’ve been among the most anxiety-stricken posters here when it comes to the odds of Trump’s being driven from office, but I don’t think he’s ever been lower in terms of support. And it’s to the point know where, increasingly, there is absolutely no middle ground. Trump is leaving less and less room for the voters who thought “Yeah he’s an asshole but let’s just give this guy a chance to pleasantly surprise us.”
I think we can credit the Mueller investigation for this. He’s being driven into a corner and no longer trusts any part of the system to be fair to him and his family, so like a true dictator, he’s trying to destroy the system. But that’s an extreme step that even many Republicans don’t seem to be on board with. This is especially true in the Senate, where Republicans represent not just crazies but also more moderate voting blocs as well. So dialing up the crazy won’t work there like it could in the House.
So the question is, what gives? It’s a matter now of whether Trump’s grassroots ‘fuck the system’ support in the House can withstand the forces against him. And if that’s going to happen, Trump needs to start racking up some legislative and/or foreign policy wins fast.
2 is a LOT lower than 3 4 & 5. I have no idea why people keep thinking this, unless they simply think voter supression en masse will carry the day for him. If he does run, it will be the worst landslide loss (for him) probably in the history of the country.
He will resign before he gives his enemies the satisfaction of impeaching him - just like he dissolved his business advisory counsels once everyone started to quit. Resigning would be a humiliation he could spin into a victory, but impeachment would be harder.
He’d resign, blame Democrats and RINOs and the Washington swamp, and go back to enjoy all the money he made as President on the back of taxpayers.
I think what will precipitate his downfall will not be his incompetence but a revelation of shady financial dealings when his tax returns are finally exposed and examined as part of the Russia collusion investigation. But that wont be until at least next spring, so I’d say July 2018.
That’s the second most likely scenario. The most likely, sadly, is that he’ll be in office until noon on 1/20/21.
I think the one thing that would make him resign is if he knew he was going to go to prison, and that there was no escape and no wiggle room. That’s the one loss and humiliation that he could not spin into a win. Even if he blames everyone else (and he surely will), the old familiar picture of a tycoon/wheeler-dealer being bundled off in handcuffs is not something he would allow to happen. And once that picture is snapped, shared, and seared onto the internet it would be there forever.
I don’t think he’ll resign, though if he does it will be a completely impulsive decision, announced via tweet, that catches everyone off guard. (And of course it will be everyone else’s fault, never his.) While I find it hard to believe he’ll serve one full term, much less two, I think stroking out or impeachment are more likely.
But there is a remote chance he’ll resign, I suppose. So put me down for October 22, 2018.
“Inarguably the best State Of The Union address ever.”
Being president is the best protection he has, there is zero chance he quits. They will have to drag him kicking and screaming even if he loses in 2020.
A presidential resignation is as public an admission of failure as one can get. That does not seem in character for Trump.
Impeachment and conviction seem unlikely as well with Republicans in charge of Congress. It certainly is possible that some lower level aides will face legal difficulties stemming from all the investigations. I would assume that if any of their last names or spouses’ last names are “Trump,” the President will pardon them. This in turn will generate more controversy and accusations (but no legal charges) of obstructing justice.
I see Trump finishing out his first term; nevertheless - and despite all current appearances to the contrary - I do not think he will run for re-election. This will allow him to leave on his own terms, while declaring he has made America great again. He will of course continue to troll both parties via Twitter and the media will continue to give his tweets attention they do not merit. More incompetence and attempted maneuverings of dubious legality/morality/ethics will come to light in the aftermath of Trump’s departure. With Trump effectively forced out of politics, pundits will congratulate the country for “working.”
Trump voters will continue to lack essential critical thinking skills inclining them to choose poorly in future national and state elections.
NOTE: All of this assumes no one will succeed in assassinating Trump before mid-2019.