Hi, this is Josh Marshall, and this is the Josh Marshall podcast.

We are, we're a few days, God, I'm even losing track.

How many days are?

We were a few days off the acquittal of Donald Trump, which I believe was Saturday or Sunday.

Like many things tied to the impeachment trial, the sort of the details don't matter

tremendously since much of it was preordained from the start.

But you know, the big story is that is the Donald Trump owns the Republican Party.

They continue to sustain him even out of office, and we maybe lose track of the fact that

a former president quickly relinquishes sort of all power in a party, even a successful

former president.

They may have, they may sort of loom large in the party in the way that Barack Obama

has, but certainly a president who fails at re-election is kind of dead to the party.

Certainly that happened with Jimmy Carter.

I remember God in 1984, 1988, and finally in 1982, it was this kind of running question

or they can let Jimmy Carter come to the convention, right?

And I think, God, I'm losing track here, but I think that in the American Cates heart right

now, by the way, just went that out.

And in 1992, I think Clinton kind of brought him back for some kind of role, but that just

shows you sort of how totally, you know, you lose and you lose everything in the presidential

game.

And it was similar in many ways to President Bush.

You know, eight years later, his son becomes president.

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