Ben Sasse was wrong: all of the polls indicate that reactionary politics are, in fact, about the weird worship of one dude. Fortunately for us, he’s old and fat, so he won’t be around much longer. But what happens after that? Who carries the torch of Trumpism after Trump? Is it DeSantis, Ramaswamy, or someone else?
Here are my predictions:
- DeSantis has offended too many members of the base by his presumption in running to be the heir apparent.
- The base is never going to accept an overcaffeinated Hindu tech bro as the next Trump.
- The most plausible alternatives in the foreseeable future are two senators who were sensible enough not to run in this cycle. They offer something different: Josh Hawley is an economic populist; while Tom Cotton is a grim authoritarian conservative. Who is the most likely choice? My money’s on Cotton, but it’s too early to tell.