As the second impeachment trial of Donald Trump rages on with compelling presentations from Democrats asserting he incited rioters to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, the case for conviction has rapidly become less about the former president than the Republican Party right now. 

According to a new Reuters report, dozens of Republicans met recently to discuss breaking away from the GOP to form a “center-right breakaway party” in direct opposition to Trump.

The report notes that more than 120 people participated in a Zoom call that included former elected Republicans, former officials from past administrations and even an assortment of ex-ambassadors and Republican strategists. 

The group is said to be planning to run their own candidates in some races, but they reportedly also seek to to endorse candidates aligned with their “principled conservatism” beliefs, whether they are registered Republicans, Democrats or Independents.

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Participants in the online video call said they were “dismayed” by the fact that even after the deadly siege at the Capitol Building, more than half of Congressional Republicans still voted to block the certification of Joe Biden’s electoral victory and ascension to the U.S. presidency. 

“Large portions of the Republican Party are radicalizing and threatening American democracy,” said Evan McMullin, a former chief policy director for the House Republican Conference. “The party needs to recommit to truth, reason and founding ideals or there clearly needs to be something new.”

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“Some people at the summit strongly favor starting a new party. They think the GOP is irredeemable,” McMullin, who mounted an unsuccessful presidential campaign in 2016 as an Independent, told The Washington Post.

“They understand how difficult it is to form a new party,” said McMullin, “but they understand that there is no other choice.”

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The report notes that 40% of participants support a new party while others are considering forming a faction within the current one. Names currently being considered are the Integrity Party, the Center Right Party or Center Right Republicans.

One participant in the Zoom session who declined to be identified claimed that since Trump’s rise within the party and the chaos that has ensued, there is a “greater hunger” for another option among conservatives. 

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