Donald Trump (R-NY) is working his way toward the Republican presidential nomination. His opponents may still derail him, of course, but his sustained performance–he has been the front-runner since August–suggests there is a sizable portion of the Republican electorate that sees Trump as not only tolerable, but preferable.

Exit polls reveal several possible explanations. Voters see Trump as someone who can “shake things up” and he “tells it like it is.” Implicit in his promise to “Make America Great Again” is the notion that something is broken and in need of mending. Immigration, more than anything, allows Trump to argue the problem is the political class itself, which is either too disconnected from those who empower them or, more likely, actively undermining them. America becomes great again, for Trump, by starting over with new leadership based on business acumen and problem-solving. Crises foreign and domestic can be remedied by deals that put America, and not parochial or partisan interests, first. Trump preaches a political salvation to his followers, who have invested in him seemingly limitless potential for change.

Putting aside his probabilities for success, and the potential folly of his plans, Trump’s sermons have been far from flowery aphorisms. They have instead been caustic, provocative, and inflammatory. He rails against the unspeakable and aims his most withering fire at traits and flaws that, in his mind, disqualify rivals. Here are just some of his talking points since he jumped into the race. Donald Trump…

• implied that Megyn Kelly’s harsh debate questioning was due to her menstrual cycle
• claimed Carly Fiorina was too unattractive to be taken seriously as a candidate
• repeated a fan’s assertion that Ted Cruz resembles a slang term for a female body part
• called Cruz a “world class liar.”
• said Mexico was sending criminals and rapists across our borders
• ridiculed and mocked a disabled reporter
• derided John McCain’s status as a war hero, arguing real heroes don’t get captured
• repeatedly refers to either his poll numbers or his bank account as evidence of his success and to shame critics and rivals

This list only deals with his rhetoric and says nothing about his past positions or actions, be they seemly or otherwise. Trump has said and tweeted things that would have ended most candidacies, but for Trump, strife seems to burnish, not tarnish, his credentials.

For his supporters, one presumes, Trump’s contrarian nature amplifies his outsider status. His willingness to say the outrageous is not only admirable, but evidence that he will do the outrageous and burn down the system that has frustrated so many. His controversial comments spread like a plague through social media, engender traditional media coverage, and force his opponents to address his insults, and feed the media narrative, or ignore them and seem ineffectual. His pugnacity, if we put it kindly, has been his greatest weapon and has had, so far, seemingly few negative consequences.

We can argue both his motives and those that underpin his following, but we cannot ignore the simple cultural consequences that flow from a Trump campaign, successful or not. Donald Trump has ripped up the consultant’s guide to politics and recreated it in his own image. The apparent path forward for those who wish to emulate him is clear. Be outrageous. Provoke. Attack anything that brings an advantage. Force people to react and prolong the news cycle. Be insulting. Veracity is less important than passion and rage. Promise and believe whatever is needed. Seek the most divisive issues and exploit them. Appear strong.

What is missing? Only honor, truth, grace, humility, steadfastness, loyalty, principle, sacrifice, unity, love, and manners. Perhaps I am an idealist, but I still hope that good and decent people may seek to lead us. I think arguments and ideas matter. I don’t require perfect candidates, but I want mature adults that admit their imperfections and work to minimize them. I want leaders that recognize success is far more than a bank account.

It may be possible that Trump’s playbook only works for Trump. His celebrity is, after all, both an accelerant and a shield. But even if his approach fails, he has rewritten the hymnal so that now any high priest from the cult of celebrity (Kanye West has already threatened a future run) can transfer popularity into political power. Trump, whether he becomes president or not, has lowered the bar of political civility. He has coarsened our politics.

A good and honorable society would shame the man from public life. Instead, we have invested him with an energy that threatens to run away from us. No one, not even his most ardent defenders, knows what Donald Trump might do with authority once it is granted. His followers think they know what “shake up the system” means, but they don’t. “Strong” leaders can be at least as destructive as weak ones. Broken systems are not easily mended and deals can cut many ways. Be careful what you vote for. You just might get it.