Republicans witnessed a massive power struggle over the party reins in 2016. And many are still wrestling with the final result and its implications. Former Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a vocal Trump critic, is one such man. He believes that in the long run, Trump won’t have the final say.
In an interview with the Washington Post, Kasich said, “Members of the Republican Party are in a coma right now.”
“And at some point,” he said, “they’ll wake up and say, ‘What’s happened?’ And then we’re going to tell them, and they’re going to go, ‘Really?’”
Kasich goes on to say that the GOP’s interests and policies have changed to match Trump’s. And he’s right about that. The GOP is a very different party today than it was under former President Ronald Reagan.
“I think that the party is historically concerned about debt. They’re concerned about having free and open trade. They’re concerned about welcoming immigrants into the country. And I think that the Republican Party is stumbling around because there have been no new really exciting ideas coming out of the Republican Party for a number of years,” Kasich explained.
However, this isn’t a “temporary deal,” as Kasich described it. Trump’s election represented a massive shift not just in policy, but also philosophy. It was a blatant rejection of the progressive idea that elites and academics, both Democratic and Republican, should dictate governance. Trump’s victory was a cathartic release for millions of unheard Americans fed up with an out-of-touch establishment. You don’t just wake up from that.
Those views Kasich attributes to “the Republican Party” were really the views of the party’s elites.
Trump has said as much himself. In a new book, American Carnage, Trump said his 2016 victory redefined the Republican Party — and even saved it.
“The Republican Party was in big trouble,” Trump said in an interview for the book, obtained by Axios. “I brought the party back … Nobody gave them hope. I gave them hope.”
Trump’s one condition for saving the party from itself? “They’ve got to remain faithful,” he said. “And loyal.”
And for the most part, Republicans have indeed remained faithful. They have embraced his agenda and will continue to defend it, come hell or high water. They have attached their ship to his.
Because of this realignment, the GOP today looks a lot more like populism and fervent nationalism than classical liberalism. Take that as you will. The GOP isn’t devoid of “new really exciting ideas,” as Kasich said: They just don’t look anything like the old Republican Party’s. Whether this is good or bad is a separate debate. But Kasich is kidding himself if he doesn’t think Trump’s impact will be long-lasting. He might not always sit in the Oval Office, and he might even get booted out in 2020. But he’s here to stay. We can be sure of that.
