If social media did anything to popular culture, it made branding as essential as oxygen. Just being doesn’t cut it anymore. One must represent now, too. Ah, but it’s harder than just saying who you (think you) are. These days, we have few secrets from each other. Any one of us can dive deeply into anyone else’s life from our desk chairs. We don’t have to battle any wicked witches to see Oz standing behind his curtain. Hell, Donald Trump is as naked an emperor as could ever be. And the GOP chose to co-brand with him. This will end badly for the Republicans. But, far worse? It will end badly for the Republican brand.

For the record, Trump didn’t re-direct the GOP away from some other destiny. He didn’t convert them or pervert them. He gave them permission to be who they are. Who they really are. And to brand accordingly. What is Trump if not criminality-branded rich, white audacity?

Getting Away With It

America (and the world) continue to assume that Trump will get away with everything because, so far, he always has. His corruption is indeed shockingly pervasive. Everyone who gets into bed with Trump gets corrupted by him – as automatic as the sunrise. But, Trump’s criminality has achieved critical mass.

There are now so many charges pending against him – with more coming. And the pending charges are truly dire. When they drop, they won’t just take down Donald Trump.

The GOP knew even before they nominated Trump in 2016 that he was corrupt, a traitor and a grave national security threat. Leaders like Kevin McCarthy and Paul Ryan agreed that Putin was paying Trump. They also agreed to keep that fact a secret! We could talk at length about WHY the GOP decided that Putin was a better ally than democracy. But, the instant they sided with a foreign enemy over America, they ruined their own brand forever.

No Coming Back From Treason

There simply is no coming back from treason. There’s no coming back from Trumpism either.

Our democracy rests upon a constitution. But it also rests upon a mutual trust we all must maintain in order to function. Trump camp follower Kellyanne Conway famously defended Trump by claiming he lived by “alternative facts”. Our news media carried that water for miles. There are no “alternative facts”. But there’s plenty of bullshit!

The news media may have been shocked when Trump (finally) got indicted. Their audience wasn’t. Most Americans have been ready for this for eons.

Charge Away!

So far, the GOP can abide a payoff to a porno star in its presidential contenders. Will they still stand with Trump after Fanni Willis washes the floor with him? How about after Jack Smith begins charging Trump with a thousand different obstructive acts?

Open, meet shut.

These will be easy convictions to win because the questions being asked aren’t hard. Did Trump do this thing? Yes, he did; there’s hard proof. Did he intend to? Yes, he did; there’s proof. Is it a violation of the law?

Yes, it is. End of story.

Juries have to follow the law. That’s why juries scare the crap out of Trump. They all see right through him and he knows it.

G-Uh-Oh-P!

Once you’ve got Trump’s attention – and his nuts in your hand – you can twist them however you much you like. Think Trump is going to go down all by himself? He’ll take every single Republican with him. They’re too late to realize it. By the time they all try making deals to stay out of prison, all the good deals will be gone. They’ll be negotiating length of sentence. And even those deals are going to start to suck.

There are Republicans who think they can wrestle the party back from Trump. They’re foolish. Oh, they may wrestle back control of the party, but they’ll never wrestle back control of the Party’s broken brand. The first question everyone will have to ask: are you a republican Republican or a Trumpublican? That is not a good way to brand.

History’s Graveyard Awaits The GOP

The GOP gave up on democracy about the time the electorate gave up on them. We simply don’t want the same things. And, if, like the Republican Party you work tirelessly to circumvent our will, in the end, you will pay for that.

The real question is this: how many more voting cycles will it take before the Republican Party joins the Whigs in the American political party graveyard? The GOP will join the Whigs sooner rather than later.

Justice and Karma have just started pulling threads on the vile Donald Trump Christmas sweater. The sleeves are already coming apart. Before long, it will crumple back into unwoven threads. And then we’ll see not only the emperor naked – but his whole stinking, rotten, treasonous political party, too.