Trump's 'trap' for MAGA has a 'humiliation' cost — and it's adding up: ex-GOP lawmaker

A former Republican Party House of Representatives member sounded a warning for Trump's MAGA movement heading into the 2026 midterms.

Adam Kinzinger, who represented Illinois in the House from 2011 to 2023, claimed that Donald Trump's pattern for keeping his most dedicated followers in check will face its biggest test to date later this year. Writing in his Substack, the outspoken Trump critic suggested that the swing Trump's team may see in voting intention is enough to undo years of MAGA progress.

He wrote, "I don’t think MAGA is breaking. I don’t think there’s some dramatic rupture coming where the movement looks in the mirror and decides enough is enough. That’s not how this works and anyone telling you otherwise is selling something. What I think is happening is more subtle and ultimately more significant.

"Trump has spent a decade training his movement to accept humiliation as proof of loyalty. The more outrageous the thing he asks them to believe, the more committed they become — because disbelief now would mean admitting everything they’ve already accepted was wrong.

"It’s a trap that gets harder to escape the longer you’re in it. But the trap has a cost. And the cost is accumulating.

"But the people at the edges — the ones who voted for him without becoming true believers, the ones who wanted cheaper gas and no foreign wars, the ones who are watching their grocery bills and their energy costs and wondering what they actually got — those people don’t owe Trump their humiliation. And that’s where November 2026 gets decided."

Kinzinger served on the House Select Committee investigating the January 6 Capitol riot and has expressed deep concerns about Trump's authoritarianism and threat to democracy. He has criticized Trump's chaotic governance, stating that Trump prioritizes personal loyalty over competence and constitutional principles.

Kinzinger has called for accountability and warned that Trump represents an existential threat to American democracy. He has also mocked Trump's erratic behavior on social media, using satirical posts to highlight what he views as Trump's unfitness for office and dangerous disregard for democratic norms.