Commentary: Will Donald Trump be the last Republican president?

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Since President Donald Trump won the Republican presidential nomination a question hangs over the right: Should the GOP survive or is it morally corrupted and politically deformed to such an extent that those of good conscience on the center-right must start anew? Having engaged in the original sin, if you will, of supporting Trump and then defending his aberrant presidency and helping thereby to define political deviancy down (as the late Daniel Patrick Moynihan described the decline of social and behavioral norms in his lifetime), has the GOP in essence forfeited political legitimacy permanently? There are several aspects to the question that deserve attention.

First, keep in mind the distinction between "should" (normative) vs. can (capacity). The former (should the GOP survive) goes to the moral culpability of those who lifted Trump to power and kept him there. They elevated a very dangerous man who has done and continues to do great damage to our country. They've in essence lost legitimacy as a constructive force; the center-right cannot fully purge the stain of Trump unless it sheds (or shreds) the skin of the GOP. Given the enormity of the GOP's malfeasance, a new party may in fact be required.

Then there is the more practical question (can the GOP survive). Given how toxic the GOP brand has become, the time and cost of rehabilitating the brand may not be worth it. Alternatively, anti-Trump Republicans might conclude that the financial, legal and organizational burden of creating a new party with new state parties may be crippling.

We think a middle ground makes sense. An accountability project (maybe not quite at the level of reconciliation processes in the wake of fallen regimes in South Africa or Chile) certainly is needed; a turnover in leadership is essential. The party must repudiate Trump and the Trump era to go forward. Those intent on turning away from the Trump era will require visible symbols underscoring the party's repudiation of Trumpism, including perhaps a name change. (The New Republican Party? The Modern Republican Party?)

Second, is such a dramatic break really needed? Yes, if, as #NeverTrump and #NoLongerTrump Republicans believe, the Trump problem is of an entirely different magnitude than, say, Watergate, and has resulted in much more serious, permanent damage to our democracy, then it is not enough to simply shuffle the presidential candidates, make some speeches and keep the platform and leadership essentially unchanged. And yes, most of the Republicans currently in the House and Senate need to go. They've put party over country, not lived up to their oaths of office and contributed to the polarization of our politics and erosion of our democratic norms. A clean, dramatic break is mandatory.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/commentary/ct-republican-party-end-trump-20170731-story.html

[rzemanfl]

1. K&R. n/t

[guillaumeb]

2. The Tribune recommended what they called a "principled vote" for Gary Johnson.

The GOP has been the party of racism since 1968 and money since 1980. And the GOP has done very well, even if much of the success is due to gerrymandering and vote suppression and enjoying a huge monetary and media advantage.

So why would Trump mark the end of what has been a series of successes?

It is all about power to the real leaders of the GOP. And the real leaders are not the current faces in Washington, they are the 3 Koch brothers and the other assorted billionaires who actually set policy.

[DavidDvorkin]

3. If only.

[ThoughtCriminal]

4. If they think this is just a "branding" problem

nothing on the political right wing is going to learn from this. In fact, not learning is a major component of their ideology.