OPINION:
The Republicans now have a presumptive presidential nominee: businessman Donald Trump.
Last summer, pundits, journalists and the professional political class never saw this coming. But the voters have spoken, and they overwhelmingly opted to elect a brash outsider who has vowed to shake things up, rather than a predictable, next-in-line establishment choice, a la GOP nominees from George H.W. Bush to Mitt Romney.
It’s a choice that will undoubtedly leave some conservatives in Washington whining. It’s been a tough and competitive primary season, starting with 17 GOP candidates, multiple debates, stump speeches and much controversy. Trump supporters should give the establishment time to lick their wounds, because no matter what happens in November, Mr. Trump has already given them a shellacking.
He’s expanded the Republican Party, but not in the ways the establishment wanted. Instead of focusing on Hispanic and minority voters, Mr. Trump has energized another base: The blue-collar working class. He essentially took the Republican National Committee’s 2016 playbook and blew it up.
Instead of comprehensive immigration reform, there will be a wall at the border. Free trade? Nope, tariffs must be paid — China and Mexico are ripping us off. Neocons must recalibrate. Instead of the U.S. spreading and defending democracies around the world, it will be “America First.”
Mr. Trump is betting he can bring in more disenfranchised, older, working-class white voters to propel him to a victory in November than he repels among minorities and those within the Washington establishment.
Part of this strategy will be to attract Democrats disillusioned with Hillary Clinton’s candidacy and independents — some of whom haven’t voted in decades. It’s a risky bet, but one the Republican Party must now get on board with.
For Mr. Trump has proven to the establishment that the blue-collar voter and others in middle America aren’t apathetic, they’re just boiling over with anger. And it’s anger directed squarely at them — the leadership.
In Indiana — much like elsewhere in the nation — more than half of GOP voters, 53 percent, said they felt “betrayed” by the Republican Party. Among their top concerns? The economy.
Mr. Trump speaks directly to these two issues. First, he can cut through and correct Washington’s dysfunction by making deals — by being a businessman. Secondly, he can pad everyday Americans’ pocketbooks through his trade and immigration policies — he can improve their economic plight.
The average U.S. citizen hasn’t seen a pay increase since Bill Clinton’s administration. And while their household incomes are going nowhere, they see the leadership in Washington attending galas and preaching from their podiums, all the while getting nothing done and blaming the other party.
Mr. Trump’s populist, outsider message is one the American public wants to hear — you see it in the Democratic race with the promise of Vermont Sen. Bernard Sanders. People want an outsider who can improve upon their everyday lives.
This want, however, is also not an ideologist one. Once tapped, as it’s been by both Mr. Trump and Mr. Sanders, its solutions can be shaped and molded.
That’s where — after the Republican establishment is done mourning Mr. Trump’s arrival — they can have influence. They can help Mr. Trump marry his economic messaging with their conservative solutions. They can have a hand in crafting policy, to guide Mr. Trump’s thinking, to warn of potential downfalls — to become advisers.
For with Mr. Trump, they can have a seat at the table. That’s more than they’ll get with Mrs. Clinton.
The future of the Republican Party is now in Mr. Trump’s hands. It’s now up to him, and the establishment, to make it work.
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