Historically, the GOP has been the party of free trade, due to the strong influence of its business constituency. It is now poised to nominate an avowed protectionist as its standard bearer in 2016. What is the likelihood that it will return to its roots after the election?
Jeb Bush was the only candidate that I can remember making any significant attempt to defend free trade during the debates. By the end of the campaign, you would have to say that all of the candidates were on board in differing degrees with Trump’s opposition to trade agreements. As a result, I can only see two scenarios in which the GOP would revert to its previous position in 2020: a catastrophic Trump defeat in 2016; or an even more catastrophic Trump presidency.