How Donald Trump became so important for the Republican Party

United States President Donald Trump has had many avatars — from real estate tycoon, to reality TV host, author, guest appearances in the world of cinema and the wrestling ring, and, yes, as US President.

One anomaly is that he has never held public office before his unconventional run in 2016, and against all odds, defeating not one, but two American political dynasties (Bush in the primaries and Clinton in the general) to ascend to the pulpit of power.

As Trump hangs on trying to secure a second term, he could very well join George HW Bush as one-term Republican President. A number of key GOP figureheads have expressed their disenchantment at his eccentricities, mismanagement of the office, poor governance and failure at handling the COVID-19 crisis.

Former GOP governor from New Jersey, Christine Todd Whitman, in a Financial Times article, wrote that for the GOP to survive, it must elect Biden. She stated: “Mr. Trump has never represented this party. Instead, he has fractured it and handed power to its most extreme elements. The president affiliated himself and, by extension, the party, with far-right extremists before belatedly condemning white supremacists”.

In another sharp rebuke, four-star Admiral Bill McRaven writes “truth be told, I am a pro-life…