I have to say that Mitt Romney’s recent remarks feel like the political equivalent of a reluctant tip of the hat. In his farewell tour, he admitted what’s been obvious for years: Donald Trump isn’t just in the Republican Party—he is the Republican Party. MAGA has planted its flag, and the rest of the GOP has either fallen in line or packed their bags.
Romney didn’t stop there. In his CNN interview, he predicted that the party’s 2028 nominee will be JD Vance—a polished MAGA prodigy—and credited Trump with reshaping the GOP into the party of working- and middle-class voters. Quite the turnaround for a party once synonymous with boardrooms and country clubs. But let’s be honest, Trump didn’t so much win over these voters as the Democrats fumbled them away. Romney called out “defund the police” and debates over transgender athletes as wedge issues that pushed voters toward the GOP like a self-inflicted turnover.
The Democrat Party is the one in trouble…I mean, I don’t know how they recover. And, you know, I’m not going to tell them what to do, because I wouldn’t begin to have the capacity to do so. But they’ve lost their base.
Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah
Here in Houston, where the diversity of our communities is our greatest strength, this shift lands differently. The GOP’s rebranding as the party of the working class conveniently skips over the fact that their policies often still miss the mark for Black and Brown families. Meanwhile, Democrats are stuck in an identity crisis, trying to balance their progressive wing with a message that connects to the everyday struggles of voters they’ve lost.
Romney’s parting words—essentially a GOP victory lap with a side-eye at the Democrats—are a reminder that both parties have work to do. The Republican Party might be riding the MAGA wave now, but whether that tide lifts all boats remains to be seen. And for Democrats, this is a wake-up call to figure out who they’re fighting for before they lose even more ground.
As someone who’s seen Houston’s resilience firsthand, I’d argue the future of politics isn’t just about winning the next election. It’s about which party can truly address the needs of communities that look like mine—not just with catchy slogans, but with real solutions. Until then, I guess we’ll keep watching this political tug-of-war, hoping someone remembers the rope is fraying.”