The MAGA Party

The Douglas County Republican Party held its regular biennial convention on April 6 to elect members to its central county and state committees, and to choose delegates to the state convention.

As a former Douglas County Republican Party chairman and state party official, I have participated in many of these conventions over the years. What makes this year’s convention different is the wholesale takeover of the party by an organized group. These efforts are not new. When I was chairman we faced similar efforts by other groups including those supporting a single candidate or issue. These groups were able to elect their members to party positions but were unable to accomplish a complete takeover of the committee and party structure as did supporters of former President Donald Trump at this convention.

I believe this is part of a national strategy by certain Trump supporters to take over local parties and to exclude anyone not a Trump supporter. This effort is described in detail in “Finish What we Started,” by Isacc Arnsdorf, describing an organized national effort based on interviews with Trump adviser Steve Bannon and others.

There is of course nothing wrong with organizing to elect party officials; it is what partisan politics is about. The problem in this case is in the result:

1. It defeats the fundamental purpose of a political party, which is to elect its members to political positions. This requires the party to nominate and support candidates who have broad support and have the best chance to win election. The rise of the MAGA movement has resulted in the party endorsing candidates who are challenging the party’s incumbents. We can see this happening now. The county party has rescinded its endorsements of current Republican incumbents: Don Bacon, in the 2^nd Congressional District, and Pete Ricketts in the Senate. The party also voted to censure Don Bacon.

The party’s endorsed candidates have no hope of being elected, which flies in the face of the party’s fundamental purpose.

1. It requires allegiance to a single person to hold a party position, which is undemocratic to say the least. A political party bound to one candidate cannot possibly fulfill its purpose of electing candidates that share a common political philosophy.
2. It disenfranchises many members of the party who have been active over the years and have supported candidates who can actually win and create good public policy.

In my view the Republican Party no longer exists. It is now the MAGA Party.