1. There was a crucial moment in the weeks after Jan. 6th, when some elected Republicans mistakenly thought the insurrection would be the party's breaking point with Trumpism. Many said the right things. Then, reality set in. Much of the base supported or condoned Jan. 6th.
2. What happened next shows how the creeping authoritarianism of Trumpism grew like a weed over the last 4+ years, and has now completely ensnared the entire party. Only a few - Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, etc - decided it was worth risking their seat to protect our democracy.
3. This dynamic is crucial to understanding modern GOP politics, because Trump is gone but his authoritarianism now defines the party he took over. In fact, there's a dangerous ratcheting effect that is making the party increasingly extreme - and will likely get worse over time.
4. It's an all-or-nothing dynamic in which questioning even one part of the GOP gospel can immediately kill your career in Trumpian politics (see Cheney, Liz). Meanwhile, those who "out-Trump Trump" with insanity like Marjorie Taylore Greene, instantly become GOP rockstars.
5. Every incentive in GOP politics is to go more extreme, to openly embrace authoritarianism, to state what was previously only hinted at, or to make increasingly unhinged comparisons between public health measures and Nazism, or to peddle the most ludicrous conspiracy theories.
6. There is no force in GOP politics that is bringing the party back from the brink. Which more moderate politician is a rising star in the party? The moderates were already purged. So now, spineless ambitious politicians who were moderates at heart have chosen to become zealots.
7. The only way to defeat a fundamentally authoritarian party is a) wield the power you have to block obvious attempts to subvert democracy (voter suppression, gerrymandering, brazen attempts to overturn election results when Republicans lose); and then b) beat them in elections.
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