We typically think of ideology as a web of policies and the arguments that are used to justify them. But ideologies can also shape tactics. And the fact is that for much of the past generation the GOP has been in the grip of a tactical ideology of willful stubbornness. It goes like this: We believe X will produce a positive outcome of Y. If X fails to produce Y, it must be the fault of some outside force (like the Democrats). Or perhaps it didn’t work out because we didn’t pursue X strongly enough. So we must double-down, triple-down, quadruple-down.

Within the party’s establishment, the unwillingness ever to concede an error, rethink a policy commitment, or adjust an item on the agenda feels like a show of strength, tenacity, and resolution that will always be rewarded by voters who supposedly crave flamboyant displays of toughness. But from the outside, it can look like blind obstinance, rank stupidity, a cowardly denial of reality, and an unwillingness to shoulder a rightful share of the blame.

Which brings us back to Trump.

What voters hear when he rails against the stupidity of the country’s political leadership, the incompetence of George W. Bush, and what he likes to call the complete disaster of American policy in Iraq and the broader Middle East is a man willing both to face the ugly truth that they themselves perceive and to call out those who refuse to acknowledge it. If he gets a little carried away in countenancing some unsavory conspiracy theories, that’s a forgivable offense.