Politics is at the combination of values, theory, and application. Ideas are inert, they need people to examine or act on them. Parties do that.
I have seen enough crime to value safety. I have seen enough poverty to value economic freedom. I have seen enough ignorance to value learning. I have seen enough excuses to value honesty.
In theory, one could be a Democrat and approve of all that. In practice, the disastrous criminal justice reform efforts and riots were spearheaded by people within the Democratic Party who crushed all internal opposition.
I know a lot of people can find things they don't like about the Republican Party (including all Republicans) but politics is about what is possible. It is more possible to protect the vulnerable and to give them a chance at prosperity within the cluster of ideas and expertise of the Republican Party.
In the Republican Party, I see Social Conservatives concerned about the difficult process of raising the next generation to be wise and productive people, I see Libertarians dedicated to maximizing individual autonomy in the face of coercion, and I see technocratic minded people who just want things to work. Usually, their values and assumptions are in conflict. Quite often, disagreements are vocal but informative. There is a real passion and intellectual dedication to examining what would make people's lives better.
When I look at the Democratic Party, I see much less of the intellectual engagement and more coercion and groupthink. The recent rise of the Democratic Socialists of America (really just Marxists pretending to value Democracy) was enabled by the weakened culture of Debate within the Democratic coalition. There are many things the Democrats of 10 years ago would be horrified by (and I know former Democrats who are horrified).
If DC's problems are to be fixed, you can no longer get good help from the national Democratic Party culture, you have to seek ideas elsewhere. Some sane Democrats search the principles of the past. Others appeal to more moderate voters (such as how San Francisco voters pushed back against DSA madness), and others join Republicans in their hope for a better world.
Remember, you don't have to love everyone in a political coalition, you just have to choose the side that offers more good than the alternative.
I think the Republican Party is better than the Democratic Party at this current time.