The GOP needs to move on from Trump. That’s easier said than done.

For the past 11 years, Republican leaders have talked — sometimes loudly, sometimes softly — about divorcing themselves and their party from Donald Trump.

Some publicly urged voters in 2016 not to back their party’s nominee. Others voted to impeach him after his lies about a stolen election inspired a mob to attack the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. A few tried to run against him in the 2024 GOP presidential primary. Through all those episodes, Trump’s control of and personal identification with the party only grew stronger.