The Surrenderers: Trump’s Cadre of Black Supporters Gave Up Everything And Got Nothing in Return

Six years and a million memes ago, Americans watched as Thanos, the big villain of the Avengers movies, faced a cold reality. He’d successfully managed to erase half the galaxy (it sounds sillier and sillier the further we get away from the movie), but the cost was incredibly high. He had given up everything to get there and it begged the question, was it worth it? And the obvious answer was no. Not just because Thanos sacrificed his own daughter’s life, but because in the end, not only was his half a universe’s dream undone, but he got an axe to the head from some angry Avengers. A lot of sacrifice, no payoff. 

Throughout the 2024 presidential campaign, we saw a lot of Black and Brown people make the Thanos choice; they sacrificed everything to associate themselves with Trump, but in the end, it got them nothing. In fact, in many cases, they’re worse off than before they dared associate themselves with the now 47th president of the United States. They all went out to battle for Trump and ended up losers. They sacrificed everything and ended up with an empty hand. They’re like the opposite of the Avengers. In fact, let’s call them the Surrenderers because they certainly gave up any scraps of dignity, integrity and cultural loyalty a long time ago. 

And now let’s look at who they are: 

Source: Justin Sullivan / Getty

Byron Donald, aka Heimdall – Much as I love Idris Alba, I always thought that his character Heimdall was basically a Godly version of an interstellar doorman, standing around in a big yellow suit holding the rainbow bridge door for whenever Thor shows up. So after Congressman (R-FL) Byron Donald spent a year being the GOP mascot and defending Jim Crow, it came as no surprise that he’d cement himself as the Republican’s top black doorman and referred to Trump’s second term in office as “Daddy’s Back”.  After all of that dancing and sweating, did Donalds get a VP nod? No. Did Donalds get a cabinet position? No. His ‘reward’ is the chance to run for governor of Florida and lose to alleged child trafficker and former Congressman (R-FL) Matt Gaetz. Not a real strong return on the investment of your soul. 

Source: Chip Somodevilla / Getty

Tim Scott, aka Can’t Man – Tim Scott can’t do anything right. He defended every racist, corrupt and violent action of Trump, came up with a whole fiancé and a wedding conveniently orchestrated around the Republican national convention, ran up over 12 million dollars in campaign debt, and still didn’t get the nod for Trump’s Vice President. In fact, he couldn’t muster a better speaking spot than the undercard at the Republican National convention. The self-proclaimed 57-year-old adult virgin has shrunk from the Republican stage ever since, and we’ve barely heard a peep since the election. 

Source: Jason Miller / Getty

Vivek Ramaswamy, aka Phony Stark – Vivek was convinced that if he just portrayed himself as a model minority tech genius, ignored repeated racist insults by fellow Republicans like Ann Coulter, and made himself the MAGA version of Andrew Yang, he’d definitely get himself into the White House. His campaign for President / Trump’s love and attention lasted about as long as Taylor Swift’s Eras tour but was 50% less diverse. That was good enough to get him picked to work with Elon Musk to run the infamous “DOGE” office on government efficiency. But then Vivek revealed his own racist sentiments about most white Americans and MAGA condemned him to cosplay as a Dollar Store Bobby Jindal and run for governor in Ohio. Being an angry nerd is no pathway to Trump’s inner circle Vivek. 

Source: Fulton County Jail / Fulton County Sheriff’s Office

Trevian Kutti, aka Black Widow – Kutti has a resume of dead careers and reputations the likes of which would take most people decades to accomplish. After stints with R. Kelly and Kanye West, she allied herself with the Trump campaign, even going so far as to beg witnesses to give false testimony during the election fraud hearings in Georgia. She’s not slick enough to be a spy because she got caught. While I’m sure she thought she’d be the next Omarosa, or at least the next Lynne Patton, her only reward for Trump loyalty has been getting on stage during Nelly’s inauguration concert. An event so steeped in the Sunken Place that Kelly Rowland wouldn’t allow “Dilemma” to be played because she wanted no association with Trump. By the way, Kutti still has an ongoing Georgia case against her and has no pardon from Trump. Whew, it’s definitely getting hot in here.  

Source: Pool / Getty

Harrison Floyd, aka the Incredible Sulk – Harrison Floyd also spent a good part of the last four years trying to make America great again and it didn’t quite turn out too well. In case you missed him, Floyd was part of the vote-stealing conspiracy in Georgia, but somehow ended up being the only person who spent significant time sulking away in jail. He also got absolutely no direct support from the Trump campaign for his legal bills, no offers to join the new administration or prominent think tanks, and when he tried to run for office, he got called a “nigger” by Marjorie Taylor Greene. But this man still proclaims himself as a loud, proud Trump-supporting Republican.

And in the end, none of them, not one of them, got anything to show for their undying loyalty except a reminder that cozying up to an oligarch doesn’t mean you will be spared or saved or even remembered.  

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