A Populist Madman: Donald Trump.

The rise of Donald Trump is something remarkable. His appeal to the sector of this country that felt forgotten, ignored, and disrespected by the previous politicians was something only a person with immense charisma could achieve. In the eyes of his base, he fought against the “establishment,” the “swamp,” that had wronged them for so many years. This, as we all know, led him to a presidential victory in 2016 that most people considered almost impossible. However, political pundits and news networks should have seen his win coming, because Donald Trump is nothing but a self-interested populist that perfectly appealed to the struggles of his base. His ability to divide the country and unite his base with his rhetoric of “the Patriots against the Socialists” and “the Us vs. Them” is the reason why he is such a dangerous politician.

Now, as that base continues becoming a political minority after suburbanites abandoned Donald Trump, they feel betrayed once more. This time, the politicians weren’t what caused their demise, it was fraud (even if there wasn’t any). Even when Donald Trump stops being President, everyone, from Democrat to Republican, knows that he is not going anywhere. 

A Thirst for Power: Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz

Once the 2020 election was called for Joe Biden, it was clear that if Donald Trump were to succeed in his efforts to overturn the election, he would need support from Senators and House members. In came Josh Hawley, Ted Cruz, and many more Republican congressmen and women that were incredibly willing to help Trump succeed. However, according to Republican Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse, “When we talk in private, I haven’t heard a single Congressional Republican allege that the election results were fraudulent — not one.” Make no mistake, these Senators, specifically Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz, are not objecting to the results because they believe that fraud occurred, instead, they are doing it in order to tap into that all desired MAGA base to potentially run as the Republican nominee in 2024. 

Regarding what happened on January 6th, it is probable that history will remember Hawley and Cruz as major perpetrators of the riots. Ironically, the fraud allegations that were supposed to give them an easy ride to the White House almost certainly destroyed both of these Senators’ chances at the Presidency.

A Destroyed Political Party: The Republican Party.

The GOP, the party of Abraham Lincoln, sees itself at its most challenging period in recent years. It’s faced with two different potential futures: one led by the Donald Trumps, another led by the Mitt Romneys and the Paul Ryans. However, it is obvious that it is steadily heading in the path of the “Trumps”. Its most influential and high-profile members are now ones like Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, and of course, Donald Trump. People like Mitt Romney and Lisa Murkowksi now constitute the minority of the GOP. The fact that 126 GOP House members supported the false allegations of fraud in order to avoid a primary challenge or being called a RINO (Republican In Name Only) in one of Trump’s tweets exemplifies the flaws of the party. 

Even more outstanding is the fact that it is clear that blindly following Trump is losing them support with Suburban voters (as seen in the Georgia runoff elections both won by Democrats). If the party does not immediately abandon Trump and his family, it will most likely lose a lot of the support it had with level-headed, conservative voters, which constitute a huge portion of the U.S electorate.

As I am writing this article, enthusiastic Trump rioters are storming the U.S Capitol in Washington D.C due to their belief that the election was stolen from them. We, as the generation who will soon become the politicians, the journalists, and the law-enforcement, should be observing what is happening and learning. Learning what occurs when we give a narcissist a following so passionate that they are willing to disrespect everything they supposedly stood for. Observing what happens when we place power on cowards who only care about their own political futures. Let us not become a Banana Republic.