The GOP Tried Loyalty, Then Rebellion. Both Failed.

For Republicans, November was bookended by two ominous developments: Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene's resignation and the party's resounding defeats in the New Jersey and Virginia gubernatorial races.

The Republican candidates in those races — Jack Ciattarelli in New Jersey and Winsome Earle-Sears in Virginia — tried one strategy for dealing with President Donald Trump: appeasing him at all costs. Greene tried the other: showing some independence from the president. That both roads ended in disaster underscores how narrow a path is available next year to Republicans in competitive states and congressional districts.