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There is a great deal of talk about a "crack up" in the Republican Party, but what really seems to be at issue in the party is the question of "who we are." From a policy standpoint, the Trump accomplishments were fairly standard GOP stuff. And even where Trump stood out ...
in 2016, it seems that some of these issues aren't likely to divide the GOP much down the line. The party is now staunchly anti-illegal immigration/pro-heavy border security. There isn't much appetite for real interventionism, and those most inclined to it are the folks ...
that have actually left the party. There's no real dissension about whether the GOP views China as the primary US enemy - it simply does. The only major divide between Trumpy factions and less Trumpy ones is probably trade (where my personal bet is that the traditional Rs ...
hold the upper hand). That said, there's a massive divide on how to approach politics. We saw it, the forces of Trump - to an extent inspired by him but not entirely - see politics as war. And a war where no quarter should be given.
The less Trumpy folks (which are most elected officials but less than there were in 2016) see politics as politics, involving some combination of political fight, public relations, and compromise. It is incumbent on those Rs to make the case that the party's future ...
is not one of war but of traditional standards of political engagement and discourse, where the target audience balances the base versus the independent/middle of the road voter that wins elections. If you lose that battle, the alternate option is liberal governance ...
until those animated by Trump realize their style doesn't work, which could result in a lot of what I'd call "bad policy" in the interim.
