"FROM REAL TO BIZARRE":

Representative Mark Sanford, Republican of South Carolina, noted Mr. Trump had thrived on presenting himself as "real" to the public.

"I think you can move from real to bizarre if you don't watch out," said Mr. Sanford, who was his state's governor when he famously disappeared to Argentina to pursue an extramarital affair. "And some of what he's done in tweet-world and others certainly fit that mold." [...]

Mr. Sanford recalled a recent conversation with a colleague in his party about the president's false statements on voter fraud.

"A fellow member turned to me and pointed to it and said, 'That's what third-world dictators do,'" Mr. Sanford said. "They just repeat the same misinformation over and over and over again until it sinks in."

Mr. Sanford was asked if he shared his peer's concerns that Mr. Trump had displayed authoritarian tendencies. He paused for a beat.

"I'm going to give anybody the benefit of the doubt," he said, "over the first three days."

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