GOP strategist: In wake of Trump’s conviction, here’s what Republicans must do | Opinion

Despite the doomsday rhetoric and wild hyperbole coming from both sides, the reality of the Trump trial and conviction is that it will likely have close to zero impact on the race for president.

This isn’t even the first time a presidential candidate faced trial for using campaign funds to conceal an extramarital affair. That honor goes to former Democratic senator John Edwards who was indicted on felony charges resulting from use of campaign funds to keep his affair secret during his 2008 presidential campaign. Edwards’ case was later dropped after it ended in a mistrial.

Sure, this time was different because it involved a former president. However, Trump’s image with suburban women was solidified long before the hush money trial. Voters already heard the stories of Trump paying off Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal. Voters also heard the Access Hollywood tape and saw the E. Jean Carroll trial. Trump being convicted on all 34 counts of falsifying business records by a jury of 12 New Yorkers does little to change many opinions.

Trump supporters have become more energized, and their cries of election interference have grown louder. However, the hush money trial — like the trials before it — has mainly provided Trump with an unprecedented opportunity to raise millions of dollars.

Without question, the series of indictments early in the campaign cycle had an impact on the election by bolstering Trump’s support with the base and securing his primary victories. But Democrats don’t fear Trump electorally — he is the opponent they wanted. After all, Trump is a deeply flawed candidate that Joe Biden defeated once already. Democrats hoped that making Trump a convicted felon would create an easier path to victory by dislodging law-and-order Republicans and persuading swing voters to vote for Biden.

If it was a different Democrat at the top of the ticket — someone who looked competent — the verdict probably would have done exactly that and effectively ended Trump’s campaign. This election will be decided by traditional issues like the economy, immigration and the ability to do the job.

The real fallout of the verdict might be control of the U.S. House and Senate.

With Senate Republicans in the minority, it’s crazy that a post on X by Maryland’s Republican Senate nominee, Larry Hogan, which called for Americans to “respect the verdict and the legal process,” triggered such intense backlash from Republican leaders.

As a former two-term governor, Hogan has a strong chance of winning the senate race. Trump lost Maryland, securing only 32% of the vote in 2020. In fact, the last time Maryland voted for a Republican presidential nominee was in 1988. In blue states in particular, it’s important for Republicans to get behind the most conservative candidate who can win — even if they don’t always agree with everything Trump does or says.

Republicans have become so obsessed with defending Trump at any cost that we’ve lost sight of what it takes to win other important races. I know that many Republicans think Biden will be easy to beat in November, but what if the electoral math doesn’t work out that way?

If Trump loses and Republicans lose both the House and Senate, Congressional Democrats will work to transform America, starting with increasing the number of Supreme Court justices from nine to 13.

We cannot put the future of America in the hands of just one political race. Instead of attacking Republicans like Hogan, the party should be doing everything to ensure his victory. The Republican Party has historically been a big tent party unified in a shared belief that the greatness of America comes from unlimited opportunities built upon a foundation of our rights, individual liberties and personal freedoms.

Now is our time to reclaim that mantle. If we don’t, we will continue to lose seats and risk relegating ourselves to political insignificance.