What Will Happen to the Republican Party Post-Trump? (with Chris Vance, Barbara Comstock & Charlie Dent)

·53 min·5 clips

Michael Steele reveals how MAGA's weakness is its dependence on one man who won't lead in two years.

The episode begins with Michael Steele introducing the topic of the Republican Party's future after Trump, highlighting the guests' roles in ORL. Chris Vance, a former state party chairman, explains ORL's mission to restore traditional Republican principles like fiscal responsibility and peace through strength. Charlie Dent, a former congressman, defines MAGA as protectionism, isolationism, nativism, nihilism, and populism, contrasting it with ORL's values. Barbara Comstock, a former congresswoman, discusses how Republicans have lost swing states by focusing on culture wars instead of practical issues like infrastructure and education. Vance details ORL's grassroots efforts, including recruiting 17 state chairmen to build a shadow Republican National Committee. The panel explores the party's shift to a working-class base under Trump but criticizes its anti-intellectual and grievance-driven tendencies. They address specific policies, such as Trump's tariffs and attacks on NIH funding, which they argue harm innovation and the economy. Comstock and Dent emphasize the importance of state-level campaigns that prioritize problem-solving over divisive social issues. The conversation touches on demographic changes, with Comstock noting Trump's contradictory stance on immigration alienating Latino supporters. Dent reflects on Pennsylvania's political realignment from Democratic to Republican in some areas, while Steele probes the use of presidential power in protests. The episode concludes with optimism about a post-Trump era where ORL can offer alternative leadership, and Steele announces the podcast's hiatus as he moves to a new MSNBC show.

As heard by us

A blunt Republican conversation about what comes next when Trump is no longer the center.

Michael Steele brings together Chris Vance, Barbara Comstock, and Charlie Dent for a blunt look at where Republicans go after Trump. The hour keeps circling the same question: if the party has been built around one man, what happens when he is gone?

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Why you'd press play

If Trump is the whole frame, you get the party asking what comes after him.

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