Former Republican strategist Rick Wilson has outlined a strategy for Democrats to exert greater pressure on Donald Trump and his allies, suggesting a shift away from impeachment towards a tactic he described as akin to a "mob prosecution." Wilson, speaking on "The Lincoln Project" podcast, argued that if Democrats win back control of both chambers of Congress in the 2026 midterm elections, they should pursue investigations targeting lower-level administration staffers and work their way up the chain.
Wilson posited that impeachment proceedings are unlikely to succeed due to a lack of sufficient votes in the Senate. Instead, he proposed a method he believes would make the White House more fearful and weaken Trump more effectively. "You want to start rolling these small ball people up first," Wilson said. "First off, Trump can’t pick them out of a lineup generally. They can’t afford to pay for their criminal defense. Is this lawfare? Yes. Yes, it is. But they will start to unravel."
He suggested that these staffers might not receive protection from the White House. Wilson characterized the current atmosphere within the Trump White House as "delicious," "palpable," and "growing by the minute" amid the prospect of Democratic investigations. He urged Democrats to "steamroll" executive privilege claims and to initiate investigations immediately after the election results are known.
According to Wilson, this approach could undermine the "MAGA enabler class in D.C." and force potential 2028 Republican presidential candidates to defend Trump, potentially damaging their own political standing. "That fear needs to build. It needs to grow into raging terror," Wilson stated.