For decades, the Republicans have been working hard to build a constituency consisting of the wealthy, who are relatively few, plus those Americans most easily manipulated, who sadly are many. The latter fall roughly into three camps -- the less than bright, the bigots, and the members of various conservative Christian sects. And, of course, there are plenty who are some combination of the three.
The success of this strategy is undeniable, though the results are have been far less than good for the country. The coalition they've cobbled together has given a vastly disproportionate voice in government to the wealthy at the expense of everyone else. The fact that they've been able to do this, which presumably was the goal all along, is due to the evil genius inherent in their approach – manipulating huge numbers of the gullible in the middle and lower classes so they vote against their own interests.
Today, the Republican establishment is suffering from its own success. They've built the perfect angry mob and are losing control of it. There's a large contingent of angry middle and lower class people in their base who aren't doing so well economically and have been well trained to blame the wrong people and policies for their woes. So they support the most extreme right-wing candidates in the mistaken belief that doing so will somehow make their lives better. That's how you end up with someone like Donald Trump as a front runner for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016. Or a Ben Carson.
Let us hope the wealthy elites who have been calling the shots in the Republican Party for so many years will see that it's time for reform. America needs the GOP to turn back into something more closely resembling the party of Lincoln.
It's long past time for the Republican establishment to start disbanding their angry mob and return to responsible governing on behalf of all Americans, not just the wealthy few.