Katherine Gregg took a look at the current state of the race for leadership of the Rhode Island GOP, and the question that comes to my mind is whether it really matters.  On a surface level, the uncertain proposition is that even a functioning GOP could make a difference, which I’m not sure the Rhode Island system would allow anymore.

More deeply, to the extent the RIGOP could make a difference, I’m not sure any of the candidates or commentators — in or out of Gregg’s piece — say anything that indicates they understand the problem.  There’s a lot about messaging.  Some maligning of Donald Trump as the heart of the problem, and (most usefully) encouragement of the basics of electoral mechanics, such as recruiting and training candidates.

But none of that is adequate.  Even great candidates with the right message will be rolled by aggression and deliberately fostered chaos.  Those who oppose the establishment in Rhode Island need coherence and the mutual support it fosters.  What we need is social, advancing cultural change.  The RIGOP can help or hurt in that project, but the real fix isn’t, strictly speaking, political.