The Top 2024 GOP Candidates Prove The Trump-Fueled Republican Realignment Is Real

Ever since Donald Trump descended the golden escalator in 2015, he has defied political norms in not just his manners and speech, but also the policies he championed. Gone were the days of free trade, when the Republican front-runner vocally supported “bringing back American jobs” through tariffs and incentives for American companies to stay in the country. Trump took a hard line stance against immigration, seemingly unbothered by subsequent accusations of xenophobia or racism lobbed at him. Trump was heavily nationalist, unconcerned with the nation-building establishment on the right thus far. It’s early yet for his challengers, but the current state of the GOP primary field proves one thing for sure — Trump won the long game on the right.