*FannyCornforth, I totally agree. Of course Trump has always known who and what his supporters were, but Trump does not deal in loyalty. Everyone is expendable once they cease to be useful.
Trump is now a cornered rat, and even the coolest head can act uncharacteristically when caught in a trap, as Trump now is.
He is anyway a man with several psychological problems, that he is a narcissist is undeniable, one from a privileged background, who until recently has always been able to talk or bully himself out of any situation and never admit he is wrong or has lost. His contempt for 'losers', knows no bounds. But that is just what he now is
Trump has just lost the biggest and most important election in the world. Everyone everywhere knows he is a loser, he will now stop at nothing to reverse the result. He knew well in advance that he might lose, which is why he was peddling rumours about unsafe postal votes early last summer. Now as every attempt to reverse the result fails, he has taken to encouraging force - and there the cornered rat miscalculated.
The biggest democracy in the world with a leader who if he cannot stay in power legally, tries to use force - and there he went too far. When he realised he tried to back pedal, junking those who had responded to his rabble rousing.
A leader who urges his troops to battle, and then runs away leaving them to fight and fall alone can never lead again because no one will fight for him. Every step Trump now takes alienates more of his fervent supporters.
He is now a busted flush, every step he takes makes him more of a loser. He is a very dangerous man at present and for the next nine days we can only hold our breath.