The Republican Cult Didn’t START With Trump

“Trump is he is a lifelong, malignant, narcissistic — I used to say sociopath, now I'll say psychopath… What we've seen with Trump, which I think is a little bit different than some of the other lunatics that we might have had, is he doesn't just dance up to the line and see how far he can goes. He jumps over the line and then just keeps jumping.”

Soaring gas prices, Medicaid cuts, war with Iran... Political scientist Norm Ornstein joins Zeteo's John Harwood in this Substack Live to unpack how Trump’s chaotic presidency could haunt Republicans long after he’s gone.

Donald Trump seems to think he can run for president again in 2028, and if the law still stands, he can’t – but that doesn’t mean the White House won’t go to one of his most loyal allies.

That’s why Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, and JD Vance refuse to challenge Trump’s reign, argues Ornstein. In the conversation, he also breaks down how the Republican Party became so deeply tied with Trump. But with prices climbing and Americans struggling to afford healthcare, is standing beside a struggling president really a smart political bet?

Orstein also shares his take on what comes after Trump, how the president keeps Republicans in line, and why he believes Newt Gingrich and Mitch McConnell helped pave the way for the Republican Party’s current crisis.

This live conversation published on August 16, 2026 at zeteo.com. If you want early, exclusive access to this kind of independent, unfiltered journalism subscribe to our Substack here

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