Let’s be clear: Adam Kinzinger is not leading a principled rebellion — he’s waging a personal vendetta dressed up in the tired garb of “saving democracy.” The former Illinois congressman, now a CNN talking head, insists he’s still a Republican while spending every ounce of his political energy trying to tear down the leader of the party: President Donald J. Trump. What Kinzinger is doing isn’t courageous — it’s delusional, tone-deaf, and reeks of a desperate attempt to stay relevant in a political movement he abandoned long ago.
Kinzinger’s recent “Principles First” appearance in Chicago — where he grinned and laughed with fellow Trump detractors — reveals the real Adam: a man more interested in media clout and fundraising emails than real solutions for working Americans. His email blast, which claims “the American Dream is slipping away,” is laughably hypocritical. The dream isn’t slipping because of Trump or the America First agenda — it’s slipping because of weak-kneed “Republicans” like Kinzinger who sold out their base to curry favor with liberal elites and cable news bookers.
Let’s not forget, this is the same Adam Kinzinger who cried crocodile tears during the January 6 Committee hearings, positioning himself as a martyr of moral clarity. But now he’s back on stage, not crying — smirking — as he undermines the very movement that revived conservative populism, rebuilt the economy, and brought peace through strength.
And what exactly is Kinzinger’s “Principles First” platform offering? A few hundred people at hotel ballrooms, 734 views on a YouTube video, and a string of empty slogans. His “Day of Action” campaign is less a grassroots uprising and more a sad attempt to manufacture relevance through hashtags, email lists, and selfies with left-of-center influencers like @LtGovStratton and @SykesCharlie.
Meanwhile, the America First movement continues to dominate because it actually stands for something: border security, economic sovereignty, peace over endless wars, and putting American citizens before global bureaucracies. That’s why Trump leads the GOP by a historic margin. It’s why working-class voters of all races continue to rally behind him in places like Wisconsin, Ohio, and Arizona. They want their jobs back. They want safe communities. They want to raise families without being lectured by a donor-class puppet like Kinzinger.
This is not about “democracy.” It’s about Adam Kinzinger’s ego — and it always has been. He bet against Trump, bet against MAGA, and now that the receipts are in, he’s hoping a few viral clips and donor emails will bail him out. But you can’t fake momentum, and you certainly can’t fake a movement. America First has millions of voices behind it. Kinzinger has…Heath Mayo.
If Kinzinger truly cared about the American people, he’d stop dividing the party and start fighting the real threats: inflation, border chaos, and global instability. But that would require humility, not hubris — and Adam Kinzinger hasn’t shown an ounce of that in years.