Win or lose in 2020, Republicans will soon have to contend with one looming reality: life after President Trump. The popular party mindset is that four more years of Trump will somehow permanently stave off cultural and political annihilation at the hands of leftists and their allies. This hope makes no sense.
While discussing his national emergency declaration recently, the president shared his plan to combat future Democratic overreach. Unsurprisingly, this idea only looks into the very near future. In the president’s mind, re-election is the answer to preventing potential power grabs by the opposition. But this strategy has a very short shelf life.
Trump isn’t the only one suggesting that winning a second term will keep bad things from happening. Glenn Beck of the Blaze said as much during an appearance on Sean Hannity’s show on Monday night:
There is no difference between this claim and ones concerning the “inevitable” destruction coming our way within 12 years if climate change isn’t addressed in a timely fashion by the ruling elite. Labeling an election as “the most important of our lifetime” or a catalyst for certain demise depending on who is victorious in the end is to reside outside of the truth.
Yes, elections are significant and do have consequences, but this has always been the case. Placing all hope for our great nation on one individual who will be in office either four or eight years is tenuous at best. Even if there are great political accomplishments during this time, there will eventually be a changing of the guard. No election win is ever permanent.
With Trump, the GOP feels a vigor unlike before. In 2016, they answered eight years of Barack Obama with an unexpected, boundary-breaking candidate whose lack of experience and policy awareness actually made him more attractive to middle America. In the years since, pushback from the Democratic opposition has only increased his popularity among the Republican base. As the divide between Left and Right grows, so do the stalwart attitudes. In fact, Democrats view 2020 with as much eagerness as Republicans.
However, their strong desire to topple Trump and introduce a progressive agenda doesn’t make Beck’s prediction of doom a thoughtful assessment. In fact, we’ve seen Beck go down this exact road before.
In the early days of the Obama administration, Beck questioned the president and his policies at length and inferred that they represented a dire threat to the country. Only a few years later, the same man reflected on his rhetoric and how damaging it was to the nation at large:
The same can be said for his recent statements and our present political state. As divided as we are, sowing more discord is not the answer. Is it possible to discuss the issues facing our nation with people whose ideologies differ from our own without dramatically claiming our very survival is at stake?
If Glenn Beck and others believed us to be fragile in 2014, imagine how frail we are now.
It is true that the current crop of Democratic presidential candidates represents a variety of extreme beliefs. It is also true that President Trump, despite some gains, has made many mistakes that will tarnish conservatism long after he is gone. Introducing apocalyptic hysteria into this mix while discussing possible outcomes is unwise at best.
Regardless of the 2020 outcome, the nation will not remain in the hands of the winner forever. Our imperfect nation will survive long after their time in office is over. It’s time that our dialogue reflects that reality.
Kimberly Ross (@SouthernKeeks) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner‘s Beltway Confidential blog and a columnist at Arc Digital.
