The Official 2028 Republican Presidential Tier List

An analysis of the most likely successors of The Washington Regime.

Three years from now, the American conservative movement will be required to do something it has not done in quite a long time. It will need to make a decision for itself. Thanks to the 22nd Amendment, right wingers will very likely need to find a non-Trump presidential nominee for the first time since 2012, and they will not be doing so under good circumstances. Since Donald Trump did not serve his two terms consecutively, his presidencies have not produced the experienced and credible figures that make for worthy successors. There is no Trumpist George H.W. Bush, Al Gore, or even Joe Biden. Even the party’s sitting Vice President is less experienced than almost every opponent he could realistically face.

I wrote recently about how this unenviable state of affairs should lend itself to more creative thinking than just zombie-like support of whoever’s “turn” is next—i.e., JD Vance. The full scope of the party’s problems, however, go far beyond just one defective frontrunner. Of the hopefuls seeking out lanes as alternatives to Vance, few represent positive change for the party. At a pure talent level, the bench is well and truly gutted, an inevitable consequence of a political culture that prioritizes loyalty over merit. The result is a “field” weak enough to make even the biggest acts of desperation worthy of some consideration—up to and including the illegal.

F Tier

President Donald Trump

Since he won’t shut the fuck up about it, here we are.

(Yes, this might technically be possible.)