Beyond the Bubble: War brews between Trump Republicans and Bush Republicans

On this week’s episode of Beyond the Bubble, establishment Republicans have their told-ya-so moment, the Tea Party brand gets a makeover and President Donald Trump’s team starts thinking about coalitions that include moderates who didn’t vote for him.

Joining Kristin Roberts to share battleground-state reporting on how voters are reacting to Trump’s Washington are Pati Mazzei of the Miami Herald and Bud Kennedy of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, as well as White House Correspondent Anita Kumar and Senior Political Correspondent Katie Glueck.

In this episode:

• In Texas, eight years of the “Tea Party” brand seems to have been enough, as the South Texas Tea Party changes its name to the South Texas “Freedom Network.”

• Florida Republicans sound the alarm over a GOP so divided it cannot get its signature effort — the repeal of the Affordable Care Act — done. One lawmaker, however, suggests the anti-Obamacare effort isn’t dead.

• Republican strategists working on congressional elections across the country say the healthcare debacle dealt a perhaps fatal blow to party unity, and the establishment-minded Republicans who were silenced last year argue the White House mismanaged shepherding the bill across the finish line.

• And in the aftermath, Trump’s aides are consulting increasingly with more moderate, Bush-era Republicans to understand how to run the White House as they try to steer the administration toward a policy win.

Subscribe to the show on iTunes here or Sticher here and please send questions and suggestions for upcoming shows to btb@mcclatchy.com.

This story was originally published March 28, 2017 at 10:37 AM with the headline "Beyond the Bubble: War brews between Trump Republicans and Bush Republicans."