In one moment at this week's Republican National Convention, Trumpism felt less like a passing phase and more like a long-term passing of the torch, toward a more nationalist party.Republican vice-presidential candidate, Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, appears on stage during the second day of the Republican National Convention on Tuesday in Milwaukee.
Trump's selection of running mate seems intended to entrench this worldview for years to come. It may be shamefully premature to speculate about the 2028 Republican presidential nomination, but Vance may well lead the party into the 2030s. "He's still with the old guard," said Garrett Weldin of Delaware, referring to McConnell. "Sort of a Reaganite is what I would refer to him as."
The choice of running mate divided Trump's circle across ideological lines. There was a vicious power-struggle between nationalists like Tucker Carlson who favoured Vance, versus internationalists who favoured Sen. Marco Rubio or North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum. "I think Donald Trump changed our party. It's more – you can call it populism, it is. I think Vance is a great transition to this younger generation."
"A lot of Republican voters and delegates get too much of their political information from tweets and angry speeches," he said.