Re-shaping the GOP into a voice for America's forgotten people

NOTWITHSTANDING the outcome of the 2016 US presidential election, one thing is clear: Donald Trump has changed the ideological direction and the electoral base of the Republican Party and as a result, may have transformed American politics in a very dramatic way.

And if the real estate tycoon - who was nominated as his party's presidential candidate during the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Cleveland, Ohio, last week - defeats his Democratic opponent and wins the race to the White House in November, he would also be in a position to change the global role of the United States in a way that runs contrary to the current consensus in Washington and that could have a major impact on the international system and the global economy.

Mr Trump's fiery acceptance speech on Thursday made it clear that he and the voters who elected him were intent on remaking the GOP into an anti-elitist political movement that gives voice to the concerns of white blue-collar workers, as opposed to those of the wealthy donors and powerful lobbyists who have been guiding the party until recently. Most of them opposed Mr Trump's nomination and supported the other 16 presidential candidates he had beaten during the Republican primaries by successfully promoting a nationalist and populist political message.