Furthermore, even with Trump out of the way, it will not end Trumpism. Quite the contrary, if Republicans suffer a major defeat this November, those lawmakers who remain are likely to be ones in redder states and Congressional districts who were more loyal to Trump. And we’re already starting to see candidates even more fringey than Trump win Republican Congressional primaries. The unrest in the cities, radicalism on campuses, distrust of the national media, and expected Biden-Harris agenda, are all likely to feed into the sort of sentiments on the Right that led to Trump in the first place.

Among the various factions that have developed in the Trump era, one group is known as the “anti-anti-Trumpers.” These folks may dislike Trump, but they tend to focus more of their attention on lampooning the excesses of Trump’s opponents. This group is viewed with particular scorn by NeverTrumpers, who see them as moral cowards for not being more forthright about the dangers of Trump.

However, the anti-anti-Trumpers might be the most likely model for how NeverTrumpers will conduct themselves in a Biden-Harris administration. That is, they’ll focus most of their attention on the recalcitrant Trumpists within the GOP, and on mocking elements of the Right who will no doubt fall deep into conspiracy and extremism in opposition to Biden. They will call out as hypocrites other conservatives who criticize Biden for things that were excused when Trump did them. And they are likely to pay less attention to the damage that they understand to be caused by Biden’s policies.