Portman’s exit highlights Republican identity crisis

Sen’s surprise retirement. Rob portmanRobert (Rob) Jones PortmanTrump, Allies step up pressure on Senate GOP ahead of impeachment Portman’s planned exit sparks Ohio free-for-all Tim Ryan says he’s ‘seriously considering’ running for office Portman Senate seat MORE (R-Ohio), a high-level moderate close to the Bush family and the Republican Senate leader Mitch mcconnellAddison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnell Schumer: Impeachment trial will be quick, doesn’t need a lot of witnesses McConnell: Power-sharing deal can continue after Manchin, Sinema back filibuster Budowsky: Summit on l state of emergency Biden-McConnell MORE (Ky.), Is the latest sign of unrest in the Republican Party as it grapples with its identity in the post-Trump era.

The day Democrats presented an impeachment article to the Senate and Republicans grappled with questions about the former President TrumpDonald TrumpSchumer: Impeachment trial will be swift, doesn’t need many witnesses Nurse bugged by Biden as acting surgeon general: Schumer report calls on Biden to declare climate emergency MOREThe trial and the future of their party, Portman admitted feeling out of step with the current political climate.

“Our country is polarized right now. It’s kind of shirts and skins, isn’t it? This makes it more difficult to find this common ground because elected officials are not rewarded for it, ”he said at a press conference announcing that he would leave the Senate at the end of 2022.

“What they’re rewarded for is throwing red meat on a talk show. It does not solve the serious issues we face as a country, ”said Portman, a Bush White House veteran whose brand of pro-business and pro-business republicanism was at times at odds with the Trump’s “America First” nationalism.

Portman has generally played down the influence of today’s politics when discussing his retirement, but his move has been interpreted across Washington as another sign of a rapidly evolving GOP fighting to be a Trump party or a party more similar to the one that existed before Trump’s rise.

Jeff Sadosky, Portman’s former senior aide, said his former boss seems to feel less comfortable in a Republican Party that is increasingly shaped by the extreme rhetoric and murderous style of the Trump era.

“I think it’s a sign that the party is focusing on those with the biggest mouths, not on those with the best plans,” he said.

The Senate will vote in February on whether to convict Trump over the House impeachment article accusing him of inciting a mob that attacked the Capitol on January 6.

A conviction would require 67 votes, which means at least 17 Republicans would have to join each Democrat. This is seen as highly unlikely in an environment where anyone who crosses Trump is likely to cross paths with his supporters and face a difficult main challenge.

Republican strategists and political watchers speculated Monday that Portman may have wanted to avoid the odds of facing a more pro-Trump Republican main challenger, such as Firebrand Rep. Jim jordanJames (Jim) Daniel Jordan’s planned exit Portman sparks Portman’s retirement to Ohio, Portman’s free retirement sparks calls for LeBron James Senate candidacy for Biden’s inauguration marked by a conflict of hope and fear MORE (Ohio).

“It seemed to me that he was worried about the coming cross currents in 2022. He knows that Trump still has a strong grip on the Republican Party and that Portman would likely face a major challenge and he might not want to. ‘aggravation,’ said Darrell West, director of governance studies at the Brookings Institution.

Portman admitted to feeling pressure from both sides as the Senate prepares for Trump’s second impeachment trial, with some voters questioning why he wasn’t speaking more openly in his criticism of Trump and others demanding to know why he was not doing more to defend the former president. .

“I get it from both sides. As you know, I have always spoken when I disagree with Donald Trump and have always spoken when I agree with him on politics, for example, what I have spoken of in terms of tax reform . , regulatory relief, energy policy, ”he said.

“There have been times when I’ve been very supportive politically, but substance is one thing and tone and style is another,” he added. “I think we have to soften it. And I always said it.

Other Republicans in the Senate have expressed concerns about the party’s leadership under Trump and demanded that it rebuild its identity on the basis of the principles that defined it during the Reagan-Bush era.

“Where’s the Republican Party? Who really illustrates the heart of the party right now? … I think in a lot of ways we’re a party that really struggles to identify with, ”Sen. Lisa MurkowskiLisa Ann Murkowski Moderates vows to be ‘a force’ under Biden Senators split over validity of Trump impeachment trial Trump impeachment trial set to start week of February 8 MORE (R-Alaska) told reporters on Friday.

“We have some who have strongly identified with Trump and will probably continue to identify with for years to come, but you have a lot of other people who haven’t really been sold on Trump but have absolutely bought into the policy,” she declared.

Murkowski said she wanted the GOP to return to the “big tent” approach of the politics of the Reagan years.

Sadosky noted that Portman still embraces the concepts of lower taxes, more efficient government, less regulation and free trade that have been hallmarks of the GOP.

He said Portman’s retirement was a sign “there are too many in the party judging everything through the prism of” How is this affecting Trump? “not” How does this affect the American economy and American families? “”

Portman’s decision comes after the Republican Senator. Pat ToomeyPatrick (Pat) Joseph Toomey Government used Patriot Act to collect logs of website visitors in 2019 Appeals court says NSA bulk phone data collection illegal Dunford steps down as committee chair coronavirus surveillance READ MORE (Pa.), Another laser-focused political expert who enjoys working behind the scenes, announced in October that he would step down from politics at the end of 2022.

Toomey, like Portman, is known for his political acumen and pragmatism and is a close ally and advisor to McConnell.

His. Richard burrRichard Mauze Planned BurrPortman Release Triggers Ohio Freedom. Shares hit record highs on Biden’s first day as president | Justice Department closes insider trading case against Burr MORE (RN.C.), another longtime McConnell ally, announced in 2016 that this would be his last term and that he is also expected to step down from Congress at the end of next year.

The three retirements in Ohio, Pennsylvania and North Carolina give Senate Democrats a chance to add to their tiny majority in the midterm election.

Now that he’s not running for re-election, more eyes will be on Portman as a potential GOP vote for compromise legislation on coronavirus relief and other measures.

Portman was one of more than a dozen senators who took part in a Sunday phone call with the director of the White House National Economic Council Brian DeeseBrian DeeseCollins: Minimum wage hike should be separate from COVID-19 relief program The Hill’s Morning Report – Biden: Focus on vaccine, virus, travel Moderates swear to be ‘a force’ under Biden MORE to discuss Biden’s proposed $ 1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package.

“I still have two years left in my term and I plan to use that time to do a lot of things,” said Portman, who will become the top Republican on the Senate Homeland Security and Business Committee. government, in a press release.