--- title: Donald Trump Could Save the Republican Party From Itself description: For better or worse, he's forcing members of the GOP to confront the party’s futue canonical: https://time.com/4131281/donald-trump-republican-party/ author: Darlena Cunha article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-12-02T14:47:58.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T13:00:29.935Z article:section: Ideas og:title: Donald Trump Could Save the Republican Party og:description: For better or worse, he's forcing members of the GOP to confront the party’s futue og:url: https://time.com/4131281/donald-trump-republican-party/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt896e2226a94e9345/698872f8f887dc16f5e9380b/trump1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump watches as a member of the audience is removed from his rally in Sarasota, Florida og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Donald Trump Could Save the Republican Party twitter:description: For better or worse, he's forcing members of the GOP to confront the party’s futue twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt896e2226a94e9345/698872f8f887dc16f5e9380b/trump1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Donald Trump Could Save the Republican Party > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Inside TIME: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Inside TIME is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories. Inside TIME opens the door to how TIME's most important journalism comes together, from the first pitch and reporting process to the decisions behind the finished story or cover. Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs takes readers inside the newsroom, revealing the journalists, ideas and editorial choices behind the stories shaping the global conversation. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=4d4c6b5b-558e-495f-b776-e598fb307a62&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Wednesday and Saturday (2x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Sam Jacobs, Editor-in-Chief | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership Globally minded knowledge seekers. Readers who turn to journalism to understand the world, with meaningful concentrations among educators, students, media professionals, civic institutions and knowledge workers. ### TIME Inside TIME: key statements * Inside TIME is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * Inside TIME is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=4d4c6b5b-558e-495f-b776-e598fb307a62&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/subscribe?i=4d4c6b5b-558e-495f-b776-e598fb307a62&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is Inside TIME? Inside TIME is a twice-weekly newsletter written by TIME Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs. It explains how TIME's journalism is made, from the first pitch through the editorial decisions behind a finished story or cover. #### How can I read about how TIME chooses its covers? Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=4d4c6b5b-558e-495f-b776-e598fb307a62&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1) by [Darlena Cunha](https://time.com/author/darlena-cunha/) ## Darlena Cunha Dec 2, 2015 2:47 PM UTC  U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump watches as a member of the audience is removed from his rally in Sarasota, FL Nov. 28, 2015. U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump watches as a member of the audience is removed from his rally in Sarasota, FL Nov. 28, 2015. Scott Audette—Reuters by [Darlena Cunha](https://time.com/author/darlena-cunha/) ## Darlena Cunha Dec 2, 2015 2:47 PM UTC Donald Trump is a [breath of fresh air](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/11/27/donald-trumps-various-rude-and-offensive-comments-havent-hurt-him-at-all/) in a Republican primary filled with tired political rhetoric. The real-estate mogul uses direct, no-nonsense language, concocts fast, brazen solutions to the nation’s problems, and channels the us-versus-them mentality that appeals to many Americans. Trump recently said Muslims “[went wild](http://www.politico.com/story/2015/11/trump-muslims-911-216252)” in celebration after 9/11, [mocked](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-fires-back-at-disabled-reporter-as-mocking-controversy-heats-up/) a disabled reporter, and seemed to suggest that those who disrupt his rallies deserve to be [“roughed up.”](http://www.vox.com/2015/11/22/9778330/trump-protester-rally-violent) Republican leadership has, up until this point, side-eyed his plans, laughed at his buffoonish antics and scoffed at his campaign. They’ve all but ignored him for anything other than the joke he should be. But he’s not a joke. And he may just be exactly what the Republican Party needs. Some Republican leaders are beginning to realize that they’re to blame for Trump’s success, and they’re the ones who have to fix the mess they’ve made. For that, Donald Trump is a hero. Last week, Republican presidential hopeful, [John Kasich](http://www.dailynewsbin.com/opinion/republicans-implode-as-john-kasich-runs-tv-ad-comparing-donald-trump-directly-to-adolf-hitler/23103/), finally called Trump’s spade a spade. He came out fists-first to put an end to any political alignment between the two, and he compared The Don to The Fuhrer. The break with Trump is long-past due. Republicans, come collect your cousin. Republicans have been priming their voter base for a Trump-style campaign for years, without necessarily realizing where they were headed. As the Tea Party started vying for power, more moderate Republicans [shifted](http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/trump-supporters-race-religion) their views ever so slightly from conservative values of fiscal responsibility and small government to fear mongering and isolationist appeals. Afraid of losing their base, many Republicans never came down hard on those spewing hatred and fear. Instead, they shook hands and looked the other way. And in doing so, they accidentally endorsed that extremism. The rest of the party voters have in turn shifted their values. After all, if the leaders feel dumping millions of people across the border and building a wall is a legitimate solution to an ongoing systemic problem, it’s a lot easier for the common voter to make that jump as well. Whether or not anyone other than Trump actually sold that line is irrelevant. The Republican Party now finds itself between a rock and a hard place. But by forcing members within the party to really examine the hidden baseline of their rhetoric, Trump offers hope. The candidate’s flood of racist, elitist comments is forcing Republicans to see where the party is headed. By making them confront the possible future as a present reality, Trump may encourage former Tea-party-bound Republicans to re-examine their stances and head back toward moderate ideas. In this backward way, he may be save the party (and perhaps the nation) from itself. Perhaps he’s finally gone far enough. He recently [dropped 12 points](http://www.slate.com/blogs/the%5Fslatest/2015/11/28/support%5Ffor%5Fdonald%5Ftrump%5Fplunges%5F12%5Fpoints.html) in the polls. Then again, a [new poll](http://time.com/4132141/donald-trump-ben-carson-poll-quinnipiac/) finds him back on top. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4131281/donald-trump-republican-party/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4131281/donald-trump-republican-party/"},"headline":"Donald Trump Could Save the Republican Party","datePublished":"2015-12-02T14:47:58.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T13:00:29.935Z","description":"For better or worse, he's forcing members of the GOP to confront the party’s futue","url":"https://time.com/4131281/donald-trump-republican-party/","keywords":["politics"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt896e2226a94e9345/698872f8f887dc16f5e9380b/trump1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Darlena Cunha","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/darlena-cunha/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt896e2226a94e9345/698872f8f887dc16f5e9380b/trump1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump watches as a member of the audience is removed from his rally in Sarasota, Florida","caption":"U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump watches as a member of the audience is removed from his rally in Sarasota, Florida","creditText":"Scott Audette—Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/politics/","name":"politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4131281/donald-trump-republican-party/","name":"Donald Trump Could Save the Republican Party"}}]}] ```