By Ben Solis
Staff Writer
Posted: May 28, 2020 4:17 PM

If you're a current or former Republican who has left the party or is considering voting for Joe Biden in the fall, several conservative anti-President Donald Trump groups want you to know that you're not alone.

That was the message shared this week during a virtual teleconference hosted by The Lincoln Project, one notable and novel group hoping to convert and court wayward conservatives away from Mr. Trump in November.

The group met with supporters Tuesday over Zoom to discuss strategy and the road ahead, with a slight focus on Mr. Trump's impending battle to keep Michigan red. And while the group showed it was organizationally ready for the fight ahead, much of the meeting acted as a vent for frustrations and concerns, especially for the conversation's panelists (See Gongwer Michigan Report, May 26, 2020)

In many ways, the Tuesday call felt more like group therapy for the disaffected, and maybe that's part of the strategy. Project co-founder George Conway – a stalwart Trump contrarian and husband to the president's advisor, Kellyanne Conway – said the only way to defeat the president at the ballot box was to constantly remind his fellow conservatives of Mr. Trump's various missteps.

Jeff Timmer, the former executive director of the Michigan Republican Party and lifelong GOP strategist, has been castigating Mr. Trump for the better part of the last four years. Mr. Timmer clearly abhors Mr. Trump, but he is equally disappointed with his party for accepting what he called "buffoonery" on behalf of the Trump administration.

In many ways, Republicans like Mr. Timmer offer a visible challenge to Mr. Trump's prospects in places like Michigan, but how effective they will be on a national scale remains a mystery. By all accounts Mr. Trump is massively popular among voters who identify as Republicans and the Conways and Timmers of the world are isolated.

Beating Mr. Trump, as Mr. Conway and Mr. Timmer noted, will rely on constant reminders to the lapsed that they aren't alone in their misgivings about the president. It may also rely on more high-profile Republicans standing up to the president, an occurrence that has been few and far between over the last four years of the Trump presidency.

Mr. Timmer addressed that during the call. While most want to avoid "the daily shitshow," he said, they may feel trapped into cajoling the president to protect their election prospects. Mr. Timmer contended that it was an unfortunate situation for those who behind closed doors say they despise Mr. Trump but go on to defend and support him when politically convenient.

While Mr. Trump may act erratically and not know better, Mr. Timmer contends that the GOP does and was once better than what he said they've become in the age of Trump – another key part of the Lincoln Project's core message.