You said, “Never has a party so quickly abandoned its principles as [the Republican Party] did in the campaign of 2016.” Where does that take the party?

Well, this is the topic that’s discussed a lot. Not publicly. [Laughs.] But privately, certainly. I don’t know anyone who thinks that this is the future of the party. This is a demographic cul-de-sac we’re in, if nothing else. Anger and resentment only go so far; you have to have a governing philosophy. I don’t know of any of my colleagues who really believe this is it. I just couldn’t support [Donald Trump] long before he started to run. The birtherism thing was just too much for me. And then it piled on. So, for me, it would have been just a complete 180-degree turn. And I’m not saying that hasn’t been the case for many of my colleagues.

Has that surprised you?

It has. I’ve been puzzled by the trade-off some have made. There are some who think: Well, we’re getting some good conservative policy, good conservative judges, tax and regulatory reform. But I know that everyone worries about what this does to the standing of the party, long term. For the most part, it’s just trying to just stay in office, so you can fight another day. Maybe outlast the president. And stay in his good graces, knowing full well that at any time the president can pick up a phone and generate a primary.