Politics worldwide have seen massive global shifts over the past decade. With the current rise of populism, a political approach used to appeal to the common people, countries such as Italy and Poland have embraced this form of politics through the election of populist leaders. No country has been more verbose than the US with our Republican party or Grand Old Party (GOP). The GOP found its roots in anti-slavery movements in the 1850s and was soon widespread throughout the country as one of the major political parties. Nearly 200 years later, the GOP has seen a significant shift as they have begun to embrace a new slogan: Make America Great Again (MAGA), commonly used by Donald Trump and his supporters. The Republican party of today is not representative of traditional GOP values, instead pushing a form of conservative extremism that does not reflect the morals of many who have historically voted for GOP candidates and the GOP itself. The Republican party needs a rebrand, or, at the very least, MAGA needs to be separated from the Republican party to preserve the values it was built on.

MAGA strays heavily from the ideals of republican government, and this is clear in their treatment of Russia. A 2025 CBS poll found that 37 percent of Republican respondents view Russia as “friendly” to the U.S., and 4 percent view it as an “ally.” This is an interesting shift when one considers that Cold War-era Republicans were proponents of anti-communist rhetoric and were generally vocal opponents of Russia and its communist society. Yet in recent years, Republican President Donald Trump has stated multiple times that he has been in friendly contact with current Russian leader Vladimir Putin. While some of this more recent contact is likely due to the ongoing Ukrainian War, he has engaged in this behavior since his first term. In a news conference in 2017, he said, “I would love to be able to get along with Russia. Now, you’ve had a lot of presidents that haven’t taken that track. Look where we are now.” Trump had only been sworn in for a few weeks and made his intentions clear quickly: he was shaking up the norm. Trump and his supporters have pushed against the setup and long-held ideals of the GOP. MAGA has changed the party to a form that isn’t reflective of past beliefs.

More so than foreign bodies, some innate strongly held ideals such as Republicans’ free-trade “orthodoxy,” have been lost. Recently, Trump imposed tariffs on countries the US has historically been allied with, such as Canada, pushing them to impose reactionary tariffs. Before the era of MAGA, the Republican party largely supported free trade, showing a dramatic shift during Trump’s presidency.
The Republican idea of being the “party of law and order” has also been disregarded. On Jan. 6, 2021, when militants broke through the gates of the US capitol, 1,270 rioters were arrested and convicted for their crimes at the capitol, the political bastion of the United States. Recently, Trump reversed their convictions by issuing pardons for almost all of the 1,270 convicted rioters, only withholding pardons from 14 members of notorious far-right extremist groups.

While many may see the GOP shift as a negative, at a fundamental level, political parties are indeed supposed to change. However, the GOP still claims to maintain the same values that they do not. This contrast is more evident than on the Republican National Committee website, which greets visitors with the statement that they fight for an America where “everyone has the opportunity to achieve the American dream.” This message exists on the heels of tax cuts for the rich and deportations of many whose children are “dreamers.” The GOP should at least acknowledge that they are not reflective of old Republican values, something that may prove difficult for them with their knack for glorifying the past.

The Republican party has seen immense growth as an entity in past years. And its beliefs should reflect that growth. The Republican party needs a rebrand or to reinvent itself entirely. It currently markets itself to the people as a return to the old, especially considering its conservative belief systems. However, that GOP has stayed in the past, and the one replacing it does not hold the same core values. There is a place within the American political system for a strong Conservative party. Still, the modern Republican Party does not fill that role, and as a result, our democracy suffers.