After losing the Presidential election, many Republicans feared what would happen to the momentum that was built up over the last four years and what would happen to their values under a government run by Democrats.
After the “insurrection” on January 6th, the negative stigma toward Trump and his supporters is still fresh in the minds of many across the country. This negative stigma is still associated with the end of the Trump administration, born out of the way the media spun the story of that day against Trump, painting him as a President that incited and encouraged violence.
The events of January 6th are pivotal in the future of the Republican Party as they gave way to a rising divide in the establishment of the Republican Party, a part of which maintains that Trump was in the wrong, and continues to lambast him and his policies. Otherwise known as “The Swamp”, this faction of the Republican Party tends to work more with the Biden Administration on controversial issues that principled Conservatives would oppose. One example is the resolution that opposed Trump pulling troops out of Syria where some, such as Liz Cheney and Mitt Romney, voted against Trump’s cause.
The side in opposition to “The Swamp” is a decentralized group of ordinary Americans that believe what Trump was doing during his administration, while flamboyant, was done in the interests of the people and of America. Specifically, they argue his policies can be categorized as America First, as Trump deemed it.
America First ideals argue that for too long, the international order has been heavily reliant on an American system that was set up to defend against the likes of the Soviet Union. With the rise of powers like China, these systems, such as completely free and protected trade, do not benefit the United States, but actively work against us on the international stage as we help China domestically.
America First is not isolationism, but rather the prioritization of American interests over foreign ones. This includes heightened restrictions on who can come into the country and live as a citizen based on what they bring for the betterment of the country. The America First mentality is not just limited to the “cookie cutter conservativism” free market ideals, but is also about helping American citizens through not only the free market but also social safety nets. What America First intends to do is simply in the name, which means putting Americans first through whatever means possible, and not being limited to arbitrary party-line principles.
This sort of policy-making is what the Republican Party needs to embrace to preserve the momentum that the Trump Era created, especially going into the next two election cycles that will be essential for the party to make up for lost ground from 2020. In order to regain favor with the American public, it will be necessary for the establishment to get rid of the likes of the Liz Cheneys and Mitt Romneys of the party, and to instead embrace those like Ted Cruz and Ron Desantis, and most definitely Donald Trump.