On January 6, 2021, a group of about 2000 demonstrators from around the country marched to the U.S. Capitol building, where Congress was debating the confirmation of the electoral college’s decision to name Joe Biden the president-elect, in an attempt to reiterate their assertion to lawmakers that the voting process had been rigged against the sitting president, Donald Trump. By 1:50 that afternoon, the ensuing protest had been declared a riot by the Capitol Police. Just over 10 minutes later, rioters were breaking in the windows of the building, triggering a lockdown and subsequent evacuation of both chambers of the building. Reports published a few days later by both the Associated Press and New York Times claimed the mob was egged on by then-President Trump’s language at a rally he hosted in front of the White House prior to the demonstration. More recently, the House of Representatives voted in favor of impeaching the president a second time for his role in stirring up the crowd.

And while these events may have been what made the evening news, what I would argue is equally important is the actual language the pro-Trump demonstrators used during the riot. As Business Insider details, chants of “Hang Mike Pence” could be heard throughout the crowd and a makeshift gallows was constructed just outside the Capitol Building, presumably to execute the Vice President. Additionally, USA Today reported on a group of hecklers on a plane flight bound for Washington, D.C. who labeled Mitt Romney a “traitor” and, similar to the protesters at the Capitol, spoke of a fraudulent election. It is also certainly worth mentioning that both of these people are long-time conservatives and Romey even ran against Barack Obama as a Republican in the 2012 presidential election.

Why this is a noteworthy subject of interest has less to do with what was said, but instead the fact that it was said, or in these cases, shouted. You see, in a previous article of mine, I discussed how the 2020 election would decide the future of the Republican party and now I believe some of what I mentioned may actually be coming to fruition, as the various voters and politicians of the GOP are forced to decide whether they are an anti-Trump Republican or pro-Trump Republican. Mitt Romney, it seems, may have become the first of many of the GOP dissenters, after he became the only Republican senator to vote in favor of impeaching the president in his first impeachment case. And his unwillingness to vote against the certification of the electoral college vote only served to further diminish his standing amongst Trump supporters. According to a CNN article, following the capitol riot, another high-profile Republican, Colin Powell (Secretary of State under George W. Bush), renounced his membership of the party, citing their actions surrounding the demonstrations.

Despite bipartisan support in the House, the second impeachment of ex-President Trump seems unlikely to succeed in the Senate, which may signal the GOP’s willingness to continue to maintain his membership and influence in the party and amongst its members. Of the 10 Republican representatives who voted to impeach him, the most notable of which being Liz Cheney of Wyoming (daughter of Dick Cheney), it’s unlikely any of them would leave the party like Powell, however, the increasing number of politicians unwilling to tow the party line does present a unique challenge for GOP leadership. Donald Trump has also expressed interest in founding his own political party surrounding his ideologies, according to a piece by the Washington Post, but this could just be as a form of leverage over Republican senators pondering whether or not to impeach him.

All in all, no one knows what the future of the GOP is, not even Trump. If the proposed “Patriot Party” is formed, it would be reasonable to assume that a vast majority of its members would be former Republicans, all but crushing the GOP’s chances of winning any future presidential elections. It is important to remember that all this is pure speculation and the formation of a third party is nowhere near definite. But, what is definite, is the fact that the quickly expanding rift within the Republican party could be entirely traced back to Donald J. Trump.