Cal Thomas, the dean of American conservative journalists, has some interesting things to say about the future of the Republican Party.

“At the 1980 Democratic National Convention in New York, Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., delivered a speech following his defeat by Jimmy Carter for the presidential nomination. The speech was boilerplate liberalism. Kennedy criticized Republicans and Ronald Reagan for their ideas, which he said were from the past (today the past is looking a lot better than the immediate future under Joe Biden and the Democrats).

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A part of his closing line would be good for today’s Republicans to consider following the abbreviated Trump era. Kennedy said that ‘the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die.’

Trump has contributed mightily to the GOP, giving the party a backbone it seemed to have misplaced following the Reagan years. He also has reminded people that conservative ideas work, including tax cuts, a reduction in regulations and constitutional judges.

Add to these significant accomplishments the Trump administration’s brokering of four peace deals in the Middle East no one thought possible, much less achievable, and the development of a coronavirus vaccine various ‘experts’ said was not possible by the end of the year. As Trump leaves office, where will Republicans go in 2024?”

He speaks well. Where indeed? Trump? Trumpism? A new direction? Could you have almost Trump and Trumpism without Trump? Thomas thinks you can. But first, it will require acknowledging some hard truths about the president.

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“Last August, Trump was questioned at a White House press briefing about polls showing his popularity was declining. Asked to explain, he responded: ‘Nobody likes me. It can only be my personality. That’s all.’ It was a rare moment of transparency for him. There is still a remnant of old-fashioned values my grandparents’ generation embraced and tried to instill in their descendants. One was not to belittle, demean, talk down to, or call other people names. Trump has consistently ignored that advice. While a large number of Americans still support him and the number who voted for him far outpaced any other Republican presidential candidate, or incumbent president, it wasn’t enough. The reason can only be his personality.”

There are some, no pals of Trump, who are also thinking of January 6th and 2024.

In the absence of SCOTUS opinions, VP Pence as President of the Senate is the person with the most individualized Constitutional Authority & the absolute most discretionary power to decide the fate of the Presidential & VP election. States/Congress have powers as institutions. https://t.co/gQ5cE3UZkt

— “Activate Emergency Alert System!” Ivan Raiklin (@Raiklin) December 26, 2020

Thomas concludes, “Republicans can continue to embrace Trump’s policies while getting behind someone without his baggage. Who might that be? My view of the perfect candidate is Vice President Mike Pence, who has been loyal to the president without the name-calling, while preserving his own personality, dignity, Christian faith and kindness. Republicans could do a lot worse than Pence, but not much better.” Cal Thomas has a very good point.