Republicans who mildly opposed Trump
Standard-issue GOPers in the mold of Marco Rubio looking to recover their established roles at the center of the party will have a field day in Trump’s wake. Some will even take one last stab at convincing Americans they can go back to the days of Reagan — for real this time. But even more importantly, they can — and will — present themselves as having learned from the Trump debacle, retooling their candidates and their message for an “America First Lite” era.
Republicans who devotedly supported Trump
Yes, they’ll get stronger too, even with their champion out of the picture. Nothing could be easier or more satisfying — or, honestly, more plausible — than pinning the failures of “Trumpism,” whatever that was, on Trump’s personal foibles. Always a transitional figure anyway, Trump’s departure would clear the path for a younger, sharper, and more digitally canny leader — one who knows how to advocate burly-government nationalism that works more for working families than for unemployed Nazis.
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