The following article, The RINO Rebrand: How Trump’s Bombs Blew Their Cover, was first published on The Black Sphere.
When Jeb Bush offers praise to Donald Trump, you know something seismic just shifted—possibly tectonic.
Maybe it was the Iran bombing. Maybe it was Jeb realizing that “low energy” might’ve been a career diagnosis. Either way, the Bush family scion—once the poster boy for polite Republican resistance—just went full MAGA (well, at least MAGA-curious).
In an eyebrow-raising moment of GOP history, Jeb Bush—the man who tried to out-dignify Trump in 2016 and got politically trounced for it—offered unqualified support for Trump’s bombing of Iran’s nuclear sites.
Let that sink in. The same Jeb who used to act like Trump was the sweaty guy at the country club buffet just handed him a cold beer and said, “Well played.” NewsBreak reported,
“President Trump’s decision to neutralize Iran’s regime’s nuclear program is a watershed moment. It reasserts U.S. strength, restores deterrence, and sends an unmistakable message to rogue regimes: the era of impunity is over.” — Jeb Bush
Trump responded with his usual sly generosity:
“Thank you to Jeb Bush — Very much appreciated!” — Donald Trump, Truth Social
In politics, that’s the equivalent of a mafia don saying, “You did good, kid.” Yes, Jeb’s finally has learned who the real alpha is.
But Jeb isn’t alone. In a twist that even Hollywood writers would’ve tossed for being “too unrealistic,” the RINO brigade is slinking back to the Trump tent.
Former VP Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, and even John “Mustache of War” Bolton have applauded Trump’s Operation Midnight Hammer—the precision strike that lit up Fordow and effectively knocked Iran’s nuclear ambitions back into the Stone Age.
These People Hated Trump… Until They Didn’t Let’s rewind.
Jeb Bush:
He was the presumed heir to the GOP throne in 2016 until Trump walked into the ring, insulted his entire DNA chain, and kept asking the crowd why Jeb always looked like someone had just stolen his lunch. Bush tried policy talk. Trump brought memes. The rest is history. Jeb crawled out of that primary like a kid after a dodgeball game where he was the ball.
Mike Pence:
Pence spent four years publicly nodding at everything Trump did while privately sweating like a man handcuffed to a ticking clock. After January 6, he distanced himself harder than a church lady from a casino. But now he’s back applauding Trump’s military resolve like nothing happened. Pence, ever the choir boy, knows revival when he sees it—and Trump’s the tent preacher with the biggest crowd.
Nikki Haley:
She was the “principled alternative” to Donald Trump for a hot minute. But after catching a whiff of the 2024 primary polls, she decided principles were overrated. Once calling Trump “everything a governor doesn’t want in a president,” she’s now praising his foreign policy like a beauty queen at a veterans’ parade.
John Bolton:
This one’s rich. The guy who once called Trump a “danger to the republic” is now praising Trump’s strategic brilliance in Iran. Bolton spent more time undermining Trump than supporting him when he was in the White House. But hey—credit where credit is due, especially when your war-hawk credentials are at stake.
What Changed?
Spoiler: nothing about Trump.
He didn’t bend. He didn’t pander. He didn’t pivot. He’s still calling people idiots, tanking elite cocktail parties, and doing exactly what Washington swore couldn’t be done—winning. These former critics didn’t evolve. They capitulated.
Because they know the game. Trump is the Republican Party. The GOP without Trump is just a sad cocktail of donor dinners and think tank panel discussions that no one watches. He doesn’t need them. But they desperately need him.
Bush admitted as much without realizing it when he added:
“Where others delayed and wavered, President Trump acted… Today the world is safer as Fordow is gone.” — Jeb Bush
You can almost hear the begrudging respect in that sentence—like a dad admitting his son’s weird YouTube career actually paid off.
Media Still Doesn’t Get It
The media keeps asking Republicans to denounce Trump—as if there’s a Pulitzer for political masochism. They’re hoping for a mutiny that never comes. And when they do manage to corner a Never Trumper, that person’s name usually trends for 48 hours before falling off the map.
Meanwhile, Trump’s worst enemies are now speaking at his victory lap. That’s not just political dominance—that’s psychological warfare.
The Bottom Line
These RINOs didn’t grow spines. They grew calculators. The math is simple: back Trump or be politically unemployed. You can either criticize him and sell 4 books at a Hudson News—or applaud him and possibly land a gig in the next administration.
The irony is so rich it should be taxed. Trump, the man they tried to cancel, now controls their future endorsements, campaign oxygen, and speaking invitations. And in true Trump fashion, he welcomes them back with a smile and a wink—because nothing says power like turning your enemies into footnotes.
And footnotes don’t win elections.
Trump does.
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