A few nice lines from Ross Douthat:

"I had thought that the G.O.P. was run by true believers in a dated catechism. But really it was run by people for whom the Reaganite catechism only mattered because they controlled the inquisition, and once Trump’s army of heretics refused to disperse they had no stomach for a fight."

Read the column here.

Contemporary Machiavellianism: Control the inquisition until you discover that it is better to side with the enemies of the inquisition. Then start a new inquisition.