Old School Republicans
I’m not a Republican, and I’ve never been one. But my Dad was, as were most of the folks I grew up with. Here’s what their Republican Party believed.
They believed that capitalism was the best economic form, and that while some government regulation was reasonable, less was better than more. But their Republican Party was the Party of Teddy Roosevelt, the original “Trust Buster”. They didn’t want uncontrolled capitalism. And they believed that America was a land of equal opportunity where all should get their chance to achieve the American Dream. They were the Party of Abraham Lincoln.
My father’s Republican Party believed that America had a strong role to play in keeping world peace, and in encouraging democracies throughout the world. Theirs was the Party of Dwight Eisenhower, and Ronald Reagan. And my father’s Party believed that the government had no place in “the bedroom” or the “doctor’s office”. What folks did was their own business.
Soul of the Party
After World War II, the Democratic Party of Roosevelt did not have the monopoly on moderation or even liberalism. The Republican nominee for President in 1944 against Roosevelt and again in 1948 against Truman was New York Governor Tom Dewey. He was a moderate, a “business Republican”. Dewey’s greatest rival within the Party was Ohio Senator Robert Taft Sr., the son of President William Howard Taft and the leader of the true conservative wing of the Party.
Taft thought that 1952 was his year to gain control. But the “Dewey” wing of the Party, led by Dewey himself, persuaded General Dwight Eisenhower to run against Taft in the primaries, and his popularity swept him to the nomination. Eisenhower then chose a young California Senator as his Vice Presidential candidate, Richard Nixon. They were moderates and successful in the general election against the “liberal” Democratic nominee Illinois Governor Adlai Stevenson.
The battle for the “soul” of the Republican Party continued through the 1960’s, with Nixon winning the Presidential candidacy in 1960 and 1968. But in 1964 the conservative wing finally broke through, nominating Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater as the successor to Taft. Goldwater suffered the worst Presidential election defeat in history up to that time. That led to a moderate return with Nixon in 1968 where he eked out a victory over Democrat Hubert Humphrey.
So when did conservatives finally get control of the Republican Party? In 1980 they found their “Eisenhower”, a candidate who had broad national appeal, California Governor Ronald Reagan. Reagan cemented the Republican Party into a conservative philosophy. Even more moderate members like George HW Bush “became” conservatives in order to gain appeal to the majority of the Party.
Party of Trump
So what happened to the “Dewey” Republicans, the moderates? There was no place for them in the Party of Ronald Reagan, and they were squeezed out. While a few still remain in New York and Massachusetts, in general the Republican Party became America’s conservative Party. That is, until Donald Trump.
Trump brought a very different brand of politics to the Party. He created a raw populism, convincing a traditional Democratic base, non-college educated white men, that he best represented them. He used Reagan’s slogan, “Make America Great Again”, to pursue a nationalistic agenda that pulled America back from world leadership. And many of his actions polarized the nation along racial lines.
He found a core constituency of 35 to 40% of the electorate. But more importantly, Donald Trump was supported by close to 90% of Republicans, and an even higher percentage of active Republican primary voters. A word (or a tweet) from Trump could make or break any Republican primary campaign. This forced other Republican candidates to fall in line with Trump, or be primaried out of office.
Party of the Future
And even though Donald Trump will no longer be President in a month, he will maintain that “power” over “his” voters. The battle for the future of the Republican Party will be a battle of inheritance. Which politician will inherit the Trump “core” voters? Whether Trump himself runs again in 2024 (Trump will be 78) only delays the crisis. The maneuvers are already beginning, with figures like Mike Pompeo, Lindsey Graham, Nikki Haley and Josh Hawley all trying to become the “crown prince”. And of course, there is the actual Trump family, with Don Junior surely having political aspirations.
So where do “regular” Republicans go to get “their” party back? They don’t. Steve Schmidt, campaign manager for the 2008 John McCain campaign and founder of the anti-Trump Lincoln Project showed the way yesterday. He stated that he was, “…a single issue voter, and that single issue is democracy”.
He registered as a Democrat.
