The GOP will survive Trump. But in what kind of shape?

It's not a pretty picture ...

President Donald Trump.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

When Barack Obama left office, his final approval rating in Gallup's poll was 59 percent — positively splendid in this hyperpartisan age. Obama passed some significant legislation and avoided the kind of major scandals that befell many of his predecessors. And despite Democrats getting thumped in the 2016 election, Obama could say fairly that his party's positions on important issues were popular and getting more so. Majorities of Americans support a strong government role in health care, oppose trickle-down economics, and believe in marriage equality.

Of course, it wasn't all roses. During Obama's time as president, the Democratic Party lost huge ground at the state and local level. They held 968 fewer state legislative seats than they had when Obama took office, nearly three times as many as Republicans lost under George W. Bush, and almost twice as many as Democrats lost under Bill Clinton. They gave up the Senate and the House, as well as almost two dozen governorships. By almost any measure, the party had been drastically weakened over Obama's eight years.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Paul Waldman

Paul Waldman is a senior writer with The American Prospect magazine and a blogger for The Washington Post. His writing has appeared in dozens of newspapers, magazines, and web sites, and he is the author or co-author of four books on media and politics.