Moderates of the party, such as Paul Ryan, may share the fate of Eric Cantor and lose their seats to hard-right conservatives, but all of them are giddy with excitement over the reality of controlling the White House, Senate and House. The GOP will be able to push nearly the entirety of their agenda for the next few years (depending on the midterm turnouts and the next presidential election). It will likely be devastating to all minorities, including women, and we could see serious consequences to the economy and the environment. The Supreme Court is likely lost for a generation or more. However, by 2020, minorities will be the majority for Americans under 18, and sometime around 2045 the US will be a minority majority country (meaning Caucasians will no longer be above 50% of the population). It is not possible for a party which has excluded and marginalized all people of color, all non-Christian religions, and women of any sort, to be successful on the national level beyond that point. This short-term success will be a long term catastrophe for the Republican Party.
The people who supported Trump will also be burned. Ryan is already saying he wants to eliminate Medicare (as explained in New York Magazine), a gut-bunch to Baby Boomers who supported Trump more than any other age group. There will be no wall along the Mexican border. Industrial, mining and manufacturing jobs will not increase. The "swamp" will not be drained.
Conservative Strategist Rick Wilson spoke with the Washington Post in October and warned of the consequences: “For years now, Democrats will be able to roll out TV ads and say, ‘When John Smith says today he’s for a brighter future, remember who he stood by: Donald Trump. He stood by Donald Trump’s misogyny, racism, sexism and stupidity.’” The Republican Party will fall to shifting demographics. It had the chance to be more inclusive, and it went the opposite way. That is not a feasible position. No matter how hard they try to stem the tide of immigration, the idea of a Norman Rockwell white protestant America is a dream that will not become a reality. Per the Post once again, from October 22:
The major demographic changes are well known. The United States is becoming more diverse racially and ethnically, better educated overall and with a population that is aging. Pew’s analysis found the following: “The Democratic Party is becoming less white, less religious and better-educated at a faster rate than the country as a whole, while aging at a slower rate. Within the GOP, the pattern is the reverse.”
By putting together the demographic shifts with changes in party allegiance, the Pew study underscored two big changes — one talked about for some years, the other an ongoing issue for Republicans that Trump’s candidacy has highlighted. Both bode poorly for the Republicans if they cannot adjust their appeal rapidly.
I know Trump fans do not see the writing on the wall, even though they are scared of Sharia law in the U.S. and ISIS attacks on American soil, despite the stupidity of same. Somewhere in their brains, Republicans know the end is near for conservatives of today (holdovers of 20th and even 19th century ideals that are incompatible with a modern world). As seen with Brexit and the rise of the far-right in Europe (via Time Magazine), there is a push back from conservatives, but it is nothing more than the thrashing and flailing of the dying, fighting to maintain relevancy and power. They may jack up the system for a while, they may make life difficult for minorities, women and progressives, but the future belongs to us. They can never change that.
By putting together the demographic shifts with changes in party allegiance, the Pew study underscored two big changes — one talked about for some years, the other an ongoing issue for Republicans that Trump’s candidacy has highlighted. Both bode poorly for the Republicans if they cannot adjust their appeal rapidly.
I know Trump fans do not see the writing on the wall, even though they are scared of Sharia law in the U.S. and ISIS attacks on American soil, despite the stupidity of same. Somewhere in their brains, Republicans know the end is near for conservatives of today (holdovers of 20th and even 19th century ideals that are incompatible with a modern world). As seen with Brexit and the rise of the far-right in Europe (via Time Magazine), there is a push back from conservatives, but it is nothing more than the thrashing and flailing of the dying, fighting to maintain relevancy and power. They may jack up the system for a while, they may make life difficult for minorities, women and progressives, but the future belongs to us. They can never change that.
Further Reading -
The Nation: The Republican Party Created This Monster
New York Times: The G.O.P. Created Donald Trump
Washington Post: Donald Trump is the Monster the GOP Created
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