What if some Republicans WISH Trump doesn’t win?
A couple of days ago, conservative commentator Erick Erickson raised a few eyebrows in GOP circles when he spilled quite a dirty little secret: Some Republicans seem to be more than fine with the idea of Trump losing on Election Day.
However, there’s another part to this “secret”. As it turns out, it’s not only the Never Trumpers. Some of the Republicans root for a Trump loss, including long-standing GOP figures throughout the nation, especially those who bleed red and wouldn’t even dare to say this in a crowded room.
But in reality, these people are more than ready to move on from the Trump era. These Republicans get their perspective aired thanks to Jonathan Martin, journalist at Politico.com, who didn’t hold back from arguing in a new column that one of the best possible outcomes in November for the future of the Republican Party would be Donald Trump losing soundly. Naturally, there’s a big disclaimer coming with that: “GOP leaders will never tell you that on the record.” he added. I mean, why would they?
Moreover, he feared that his column would turn out to be a bit provocative, and could have even stirred the pot. However, what he discovered was more than surprising: as he was making calls left and right in the Republican field, he found many of them agreeing with him.
While at first, it might seem a bit counterintuitive, a sliver of elected Republicans and GOP thinkers deeply fear that a second Trump term might potentially take the party, and the entire country for that matter, in a completely wrong direction. Here are a couple of examples:
- Free-market cheerleaders can’t stop fretting over the fact that Trump’s new populist-infused policy platform embraces tariffs and holds back from tough conversation when it comes to entitlements.
- Opponents of abortion rights seem to be deeply upset over the fact that his verbal flip-flops on abortion and impromptu suggestions are too much; he still thinks the government should pay for in vitro fertilization treatments.
- Defense hawks keep on worrying whether or not Trump will abandon his U.S. allies and upend the world order once he gets a second term.
Anxiety and dread
Another conservative leader showed his concern about the never-ending wave of anxiety about what Trump does to the overall Republican ability to win in the next elections. On top of that, more and more conservatives worry about what he might do to the party in terms of long-term policy.
As he explained, if the party goes in a certain direction where Trump would lead, then can we even say the conservatives have a place to look forward to?
But not every worry is about long-term effects. As some Republicans explained, there’s also a series of short-term concerns that need to be addressed. While Republicans are still confident they might flip the Senate, if they won’t, and they also lose the House on top of everything, then the Democrats will get a minimum of two more years to pass progressive priorities and even codify Roe v. Wade. However, if hypothetically, Republicans do win the upper chamber and provide a check on a future Kamala Harris administration, some won’t think twice about whether they will want Trump in the White House or not.
They also have congressional majorities on their minds. For example, if Harris wins, the 2026 election cycle would automatically come as the same party that held the presidency for six years, “always a promising midterm for the opposition.”
Then Republicans would have a fair shot at recruiting popular governors such as Virginia’s Glenn Youngkin, Georgia’s Brian Kemp, and New Hampshire’s Chris Sununu to run for Senate. “A Democratic House majority would also be much easier for Republicans to reverse under Harris than Trump.” as Jonathan Martin explained.
He concluded that the GOP would definitely find more success in the 36 governors’ races that will take place that year if they run against the so-called six-year-itch.
What if it’s just a dream?
Naturally, it’s worth mentioning that turning the page on Trump won’t be easy, even if he does lose. After all, it’s worth remembering that this is not our first rodeo. Trump ALREADY lost in 2020, and many of us, including Republican insiders, were 100% positive he would be toast after January 6.
Yet, here we are, years later, less than nine weeks from Election Day 2024, and he is still in a tight race for another term as president. As it turns out, the party didn’t turn the page. If he loses this time too, there’s no certainty that the MAGA king will be stopped from meddling in 2026 from Mar-a-Lago, or even run again in 2028.
And no, I don’t think it would matter he’d be 82 by that time. As a matter of fact, some Republicans concluded to Politico.com that maybe it would be better if Trump wins in November, so he can serve now his final term and just get done with it.
The size of a loss really matters.
There’s also increasing concerns that Trump if he loses in November, might stoke, once again, election lies that cast doubt on his defeat. That’s why in some Republican minds, the best-case scenario is a Democratic win.
Many believe that if Vice President Kamala Harris wins both the popular vote and the Electoral College, then Trump won’t have as much political oxygen to reprise his 2020 antics. More importantly, the faster Republicans can start building a post-Trump party, the better.
But that’s not all.
There’s yet another complication in the picture: Trump’s dramatic exit might hardly mend the rift that has become quite evident in the GOP over the past few years, as a battle between more the traditional conservatism of old and nowadays’ MAGA populist wing really comes to a head. Many assume that Republicans have a top-of-the-ticket issue. They don’t take into consideration a vote-base problem. In fact, it’s not like our leaders have been purposely leading the voters to the wilderness against the voters’ judgment.
In all fairness, Trump’s campaign is very aware of where the base truly stands. According to Trump spokesperson Brian Hughes, “President Trump managed to unify the GOP like never before and expanded his coalition of support all over partisan lines to Democrats and Independents.”
He also added that their campaign and down-ballot Republicans are definitely poised for a better result in November, even if a few hand-wringing, anonymous sources aren’t bold enough to attach their names to their statements.
Yet, some party members have their fingers crossed, and this is definitely not something to ignore. In fact, there are so many old-school conservatives who truly hope that when he loses, there might be a chance for the past eight years to be completely forgotten. This battle’s coming in the party no matter the outcome.
Since there’s still plenty of time to research and look back in history for a well-grounded take on what’s to come, we decided it might be helpful to share with you the book written by Lewis L. Gould called “The Republicans: A History fo the Grand Old Party.”
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