For sake of America, GOP must move on - Ending Trump's influence key for party, democracy
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Will – can – Republicans finally move past a disgraced former president who was twice impeached, who is the subject of multiple criminal investigations, who continues to lie about the 2020 election results, and who fomented a riot at the U.S. Capitol that threatened the tenets of our democracy?
Donald Trump, for more than six years, has dominated the Republican Party – dictating its positions on policy, rewarding his loyalists and punishing dissenters.
Today, more than 20 months after the former president begrudgingly left the White House, the Grand Old Party remains largely under his control.
Trump's leadership has produced mixed results for Republicans and conservatives. The Trump wave, particularly in swing states such as Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, undoubtedly pushed the red tide to new heights in 2016.
In 2017, after President Trump's upset victory over Hillary Clinton the previous November, Republicans held more poweron the federal and state levels combined than at any point in nearly a century.
His political strength waned quickly, however. Republicans lost the House of Representatives in 2018, and two years later, voters rejected the president's bid for a second term and gave Democrats control of the Senate.
In a month, after the midterm elections are complete, America's political landscape could look dramatically different once again. Republicans are favored to gain control of the House and might capture a Senate majority, rendering President Joe Biden the lamest of ducks with more than two years left in his term.
But what would Republicans want to do with all of that power?
How would a Republican legislative agenda confront the nation's biggest challenges? What is the future of conservatism in the United States? What does it even mean to be a conservative in 2022?
There's one other big, unanswered question, and it's the most important. Will – can – Republicans finally move past a disgraced former president who was twice impeached, who is the subject of multiple criminal investigations, who continues to lie about the 2020 election results, and who fomented a riot at the U.S. Capitol that threatened the tenets of our democracy?
How those questions are answered will shape America – not just red America, but the entire nation – in the years ahead.
To help Americans find clarity on the future of the GOP and the conservative movement, three of my colleagues and I – each of us conservative – have in recent months interviewed Republican elected leaders, policy advisers and political analysts to identify where the party appears to be headed and what it hopes to accomplish.
Exploring future of conservatism
In a series of columns this month, we'll explore whether traditional conservatives still have a home in the GOP, the rise of conservative media and why it matters, the dominance of Republicans at the state level and what it means for the nation, the growing strength of conservative women and how they are shaping politics and policy, and the prospects of a Trump alternative capturing the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.
To be clear, this series is not intended just for conservative audiences. In a country with only two major political parties, the health and direction of each party is of vital importance to all citizens, regardless of their ideology.
One statistic shows why that's true: In the eight decades of post-World WarII American politics, Democrats will have held the White House for 40years once Biden completes his first term, and Republicans will have held the White House for 40 years.
Voters have been remarkably consistent in rewarding both parties with chances to lead and to shape the nation's future.
From governors to judges
Even with Democrats now in control of the federal government's executive and legislative branches, the Republican Party remains dominant on the state level, filling significantly more governors' offices and state legislative seats than Democrats.
Trump, in his four years in office, also reshaped the federal courts, appointing more than 200 judges, including three to the conservative-dominated U.S. Supreme Court.
Conservatives' old complaints about a liberal judiciary legislating from the bench are now well out of date.
Yet, the GOP is a party in turmoil – one where solid conservatives such as Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming can be driven from office by Republican primary voters for standing up for the Constitution and standing against Trump.
With him still at the top, the Republican Party's health is at severe risk in next month's elections and beyond.
One example of why: Given the awful state of the economy and the positive history for the party out of power in midterm elections, Republicans should be in a strong position to win control of the Senate in November.
Flawed candidates, gap in voters
Even so, Democrats could maintain their Senate majority in large part because Trump, in Republican primaries, supported inexperienced and flawed candidates like J.D. Vance in Ohio, Herschel Walker in Georgia and Dr. Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania because they are loyal to him. Now, Oz and Walker are struggling in what should have been winnable races as the general election approaches.
Republicans also face a substantial gap among registered voters. In the 31states and territories that allow registered voters to designate their party affiliation, Democrats outnumber Republicans by more than 11 million citizens. Given Trump's low favorability rating and extreme persona, his presence as the party's leader makes it much harder for Republicans to attract new and independent voters.
Trump's continued grip on the Republican Party also is a risk to our democracy. The former president's delusional insistence that the 2020 election was somehow "stolen" from him has poisoned his followers' opinion of our democratic system and led to the rise of Republican candidates, especially on the state level, who threaten to undermine election laws that long had strong bipartisan support.
America needs to purge Donald Trump from our system. But for that to happen, Republicans must first purge Trump from the party's leadership.
The future of the Republican Party and the conservative movement – if they are to have a viable future – depends upon it.
The future of our nation depends upon it even more.
Tim Swarens is deputy opinion editor for USA TODAY.
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The author of this article strikes me as an old time Republican, in other words, in Trumps words a RINO. When Trump called him a RINO the MAGA in the audience would cheer wildly.
In other words the author is engaging in wishful thinking.
It is going to take more than milk toast editorials to get rid of Trump.
"Today, more than 20 months after the former president begrudgingly left the White House, the Grand Old Party remains largely under his control."
No....it does not! He continues to self destruct daily