The Trumpification of the GOP

[Amadeus]

Regardless of my opinion of Trump, he defeated the Democrats and the Republicans (thanks in help to Hillary Clinton). He did this by exploiting a leaderless and ideologically disintegrating coalition. People complain about RINOs, but Trump is in fact the ultimate RINO. Before I get into that, I should point out that the Republican party had been collapsing since the end of the Bush era. The GOP was (since at least Reagan) a hodgepodge of differing and often conflicting political ideologies. There were neocons, neoliberals, libertarians, social conservatives, and maybe one or two others. A traditional Republican would give lip service to bits of and pieces of theses factions. They'd be 'strong' on foreign policy, be pro-corporation, small government, and wear Christian (often Evangelical) religion on their sleeve. Thus satisfying everyone.

Post-Bush, the neocon faction lost power. The Tea Party came along, and even though they were largely supportive of Bush in 2004, they did a 180 on ideology and became libertarians (the polar opposite of neocons). How is it possible that Bush era Republicans became libertarian? I would attribute it the ideological coalition having no leader to hold it together, and the libertarian sect being the strongest method of opposing Obama.

Trump came in, and while in another era would have been laughed off the stage, masterfully exploited the disarray and took over the Republican party. He knocked over the remaining, wobbling pillars of the GOP and planted a flag. It is now a big government, big spending party of moral relativism with strong elements of nationalism and nativist populism. Trump himself has no true ideology (lets stop pretending that he does), which is why the last person who whispers in his ear has enormous influence. He won, but beyond that the Republican platform is a moving target. The fight for the 'soul' and 'direction' of the Republican party continues, but I fear that it will continue to move in a direction analogous to Marine Le Pen.

[Chris]

I think you left out the Trumpification of the Democratic Party. If you look at his agenda, laid out plainly by Bannon, you will see it is liberal progressive in every aspect from protectionism to infrastructure. He is stealing their thunder, making it populist, and if he succeeds this new "party" will be in control for the next 50 years, or so bannon predicts. It is strange to see Republicans root for this and Democrats hoot about it.

[Cigar]

I think you left out the Trumpification of the Democratic Party. If you look at his agenda, laid out plainly by Bannon, you will see it is liberal progressive in every aspect from protectionism to infrastructure. He is stealing their thunder, making it populist, and if he succeeds this new "party" will be in control for the next 50 years, or so bannon predicts. It is strange to see Republicans root for this and Democrats hoot about it.

Really ... when did you start speaking for Democrats?

[Amadeus]

The Trumpification of the Democrats is certainly a threat. I fear that Tulsi Gabbard, who at one time I championed and considered a 2020 hopeful, will be a pipeline into the Bernie wing of the Democratic party.

[Common]

I think you left out alot of points, first of all teaparty type conservatism will never win a US election again. The far right and their of the rich for the rich mentality of corportations cant have regulations and must have lower taxs is DEAD.

Im going to cut this short, no matter how many special interests the democrats have that they think will pull them through or how many rich donors the gop has to pull them through. This is what I believe.

To eat americans must work, to get ahead and make a better life they must work. To make a life better for their children then they had they must work, etc etc

Which ever party decides to champion those americans will win and continue to win. Relying on tax USERS instead of tax payers will be a loser going forward.

We must get jobs back in this country that pay alot more than min wage. People have to WORK, we cant sustain a suck it up for free society of FREE COLLEGE FREE HEALTHCARE and unlimited illegal immigrants to suck us dry so democrats can try to win elections. ENOUGH its over

[Chris]

Really ... when did you start speaking for Democrats?

I wasn't. Read more carefully. I said Trump has stole their thunder.

[Cigar]

I wasn't. Read more carefully. I said Trump has stole their thunder.

Who's they?

I'm a Democrat and I have the same Thunder today as I had November 8th

[Amadeus]

Trump is doing what other populists have done in previous decades/eras. He is attributing the 'decline' of America to immigration and other factors that have little or nothing to do with anyone's problems. It's a low-hanging fruit that does nothing but win votes.

[Chris]

Who's they?

I'm a Democrat and I have the same Thunder today as I had November 8th

Hate to keep posting the same things over and over but...

Bannon, Steve Bannon: 'Darkness is good':

..."I'm a nationalist. I'm an economic nationalist," he said in the interview. "The globalists gutted the American working class and created a middle class in Asia. The issue now is about Americans looking to not get f---ed over. If (the Trump White House delivers), we'll get 60 percent of the white vote, and 40 percent of the black and Hispanic vote and we'll govern for 50 years. That's what the Democrats missed. They were talking to these people with companies with a $9 billion market cap employing nine people. It's not reality. They lost sight of what the world is about."

..."Like (Andrew) Jackson's populism, we're going to build an entirely new political movement," he said. "It's everything related to jobs. The conservatives are going to go crazy. I'm the guy pushing a trillion-dollar infrastructure plan. With negative interest rates throughout the world, it's the greatest opportunity to rebuild everything. Shipyards, iron works, get them all jacked up. We're just going to throw it up against the wall and see if it sticks. It will be as exciting as the 1930s, greater than the Reagan revolution -- conservatives, plus populists, in an economic nationalist movement."

That's a liberal progressive agenda.

Warren sees common ground:

Elizabeth Warren fills the Democratic void

In the days since Hillary Clinton’s stunning electoral defeat to Donald Trump, the vacuum she left atop the Democratic Party hasn’t gone unfilled.

Elizabeth Warren has moved aggressively to occupy the space, a timely reminder to the party and its most ambitious members that all roads to 2020 — not to mention 2018 — go through her.

...Warren is making clear that she intends to use her brand of no-holds-barred liberalism to illuminate the party’s path ahead while it embarks on a protracted period of soul-searching.

“This is a moment that cries out for Senator Warren’s fiery leadership and she is bringing the fire,” said Ben Wikler, the Washington director of MoveOn.org. "Progressives are beleaguered, they need a call to action, and she’s delivering it."

Her message: While Democrats can try to find common ground with Trump on certain issues, it’s more important than ever for the party to assert itself against the president-elect every step of the way, from loudly holding him accountable for his “drain the swamp” rhetoric to vigorously opposing his appointment of “a bigot beloved by white supremacists."

...

Other Dems agree and seek to align with Trump:

Senate Democrats’ Surprising Strategy: Trying to Align With Trump

Congressional Democrats, divided and struggling for a path from the electoral wilderness, are constructing an agenda to align with many proposals of President-elect Donald J. Trump that put him at odds with his own party.

On infrastructure spending, child tax credits, paid maternity leave and dismantling trade agreements, Democrats are looking for ways they can work with Mr. Trump and force Republican leaders to choose between their new president and their small-government, free-market principles....

Democrats, who lost the White House and made only nominal gains in the House and Senate, face a profound decision after last week’s stunning defeat: Make common cause where they can with Mr. Trump to try to win back the white, working-class voters he took from them, or resist at every turn, trying to rally their disparate coalition in hopes that discontent with an ineffectual new president will benefit them in 2018.

Mr. Trump campaigned on some issues that Democrats have long championed and Republicans resisted: spending more on roads, bridges and rail, punishing American companies that move jobs overseas, ending a lucrative tax break for hedge fund and private equity titans, and making paid maternity leave mandatory.

...

I think your thunder is out on the golf course.

[Chris]

Trump is doing what other populists have done in previous decades/eras. He is attributing the 'decline' of America to immigration and other factors that have little or nothing to do with anyone's problems. It's a low-hanging fruit that does nothing but win votes.

Exactly. It succeeds as you say but also because most Dems and even Reps, who keep fighting the old fights, don't understand how populism is sweeping the rug from under them.