(CNN) Republican campaign strategist turned independent MSNBC commentator Steve Schmidt believes it is Democrats who could help save the Republican Party.

"One of the institutions that the Democratic Party may wind up saving in its defeat of Trumpism is the Republican Party itself," Schmidt told David Axelrod on the "Axe Files," a podcast from The University of Chicago Institute of Politics and CNN.

Schmidt said he finds himself "optimistic about our future," looks forward to the 2020 election and expects to be part of a campaign in some capacity, "more likely as a volunteer than a principal architect, but being involved in an effort to renew the promise, the idea and the ideals of the country."

The "outspoken Never Trumper," as Axelrod put it, has made a major shift in his political ideologies since running the late Sen. John McCain's campaign as the Republican presidential nominee in 2008.

Here are key moments from Schmidt's involvement in politics:

Read More