I'm starting to worry the GOP leaders will take Trump down

[FLPanhandle]

The next two weeks will be critical. Can Trump survive the all out Republican leadership assault?

As a Democrat, I've been hoping against hope that Trump survives and is the GOP nominee. He would destroy the republican party for at least the next 4 years (which is why the republicans are fighting against him so hard). Also, I think Obama's Supreme Court nominee would go through if the nation saw that the alternative was a Trump nominee.

I fear the republicans will rally around Cruz who is 100 times worse than Trump.

Come on Trump! Survive! Win the nomination!

[Tommy_Carcetti]

1. Meh. If that happens, I'll take our chances with Rubio and Cruz.

Cruz is crazy ideologically and personally a prick and Rubio's an empty suit, but I'd rather take them head on than have to deal with the prospect of a proto-fascist and his herd of white supremacist followers.

[FLPanhandle]

3. Cruz is much scarier and dangerous than Trump

Trumps a snake oil salesman. Cruz really believe the shit he says.

Cruz would actually push the button to hasten the end times.

[fleur-de-lisa]

7. Yeah, Cruz scares me much more than Drumpf.

Rubio is just a puppet and will do whatever his handlers demand of him.

[CrispyQ]

8. Supremacists vs fundamentalists.

Trump/Cruz
Little Ticket of Horrors

[Tommy_Carcetti]

17. Cruz is the true believer Trump isn't, but he's pissed off so many people, he won't get much done.

I foresee a lot of whining and moaning from him, but not much action.

Trump, on the other hand, is so narcissistically wrapped up and yet so entirely incompetent at anything he does (other than his own shameless self-promotion) that he's just a Nero like disaster waiting to happen. Forget ideology for the time being....we're talking about a Cluster B lunatic in the White House who can't take even the most modest criticism without flying off the handle.

[kennetha]

2. If the GOP takes Trump down

they will have a broken and shattered party. That's a good thing for our side.

If they don't take him down, but die trying. They will have a broken and shattered party.

if they don't try to take him down, they will have a broken and shattered party, but one remade in the imagine of a xenophobic racist demagogue.

Can't see anyway we lose.

[FLPanhandle]

4. I think the GOP recovery time for #3 is much longer

We would dominate in the long term which is why the GOP leadership is panicking.

[eissa]

22. Yes, they are screwed whether he gets the nom or not

He can't win the general when he's underwater with minorities -- particularly Latinos -- and women.

And the alternative, Cruz, is a theocrat with all the charm of Joseph McCarthy. Rubio could be a possible threat because he looks so harmless, but the guy is an empty suit without a single accomplishment.

This election is ours to lose.

I've tried to refrain from posting anti-Trump threads on social media. I don't want to discourage the idiots from actually making him their nominee.

"Never interfere when your enemy is destroying himself."

[SDJay]

24. We Lose

if King Orange the Fascist wins the election. I'd much rather see the dominionist or the robot on the ticket than this guy. Everyone has underestimated him for a long time. Look where that has gotten us.

That said, I am enjoying the implosion of that entire hateful party. No one deserves it more.

The only cherry on top is if a new, semi-sane repuke party emerges and realizes that the scum at Faux Noise and dirtbags like Limbaugh were as responsible as anyone for taking them down this rabbit hole.

[arcane1]

28. The downside is the possibility of a few repubs crossing over and becoming Dems.

That's the LAST thing we need.

[GulfCoast66]

39. So I should go back to voting R?

I recently switched my registration to the Democratic Party from the Republican Party and will be voting for the Democratic candidate this fall.

The last 8 years made me see my old party in a new light and I realized that I was fooled 30 years ago when I registered to vote. DU helped with my change.

Would you have me go back to voting republican?

Or am I too new at this to read your sarcasm?

[arcane1]

42. Definitely not vote R! But as the R's get more and more crazy, the 'sane' ones will want a new home.

Following in the footsteps of Arlen Specter. Or Ben Stein, for example, who says he'd go to the Dems if Trump is the nominee.

I don't want right-wingers joining the Dems

[CrispyQ]

5. They courted these loons on the right,

& now that they are out of control, leadership is all in a snit.

[sharp_stick]

6. If they do

I don't see that narcissistic whacko holding to any pledge not to run an independent bid.

That would be hilarious to watch.

[Hortensis]

14. Oh, yes!

[CoffeeCat]

9. These Republican "leaders" are a complete joke

Instead of listening to their constituency and understanding that the Republican side is done with the bullshit and lies--the Republicans roll out their daddy-Romney to lecture the bad, bad Trump supporters.

The Republican party should have seen this revolt coming. They're very unprepared and very stupid. If they had seen this coming, they could have offered a reasonable, authentic person in their party who truly represents change. Instead they fucked off for so long and did nothing and now Trump stepped in to fill the vacuum.

These Republican establishment blowhards are utterly laughable. The Republican voters have gone feral--en mass--and their answer is to lecture and fear monger.

It's not going to work. The Republican base doesn't trust any of them anymore. I've never seen such ignorance!

The Republicans thought they were too clever by half--by commandeering the radio waves with hate radio and by starting Fox News. They thought they could convince their constituency of anything and that they would behave like a well-controlled group of kids that they could call up when they needed votes or rallies against Obamacare.

Well, the endless, steady diet of rabid, vitriolic hate and fear mongering has turned these people into a political Godzilla. Now, the Creation has turned on the Creator.

You can't propagandize your entire party on a steady diet of psychotic hate for two decades and not create shit on a shingle.

It's just infuriating--that the Republican "leaders" did this to their party and that they're trying to solve it in laughable, pathetic ways.

[sufrommich]

10. If they do,he'l run third party. They're screwed either way.nt

[FLPanhandle]

15. Is it too late to run as a third party?

Maybe they kept him in the fold until it's too late for a 3rd party run.

[sufrommich]

16. I don't really know. Good question.nt

[Wednesdays]

20. As long as he does it early enough to get on the GE ballot, sure he can.

TR did it in 1912...he walked out of the GOP convention and formed the Progressive (Bull Moose) Party.

Maybe the rules about forming new parties have changed since then, but even then I saw on another thread that Trump could still run if he suddenly switched parties...like to the Libertarian Party or something.

[Hortensis]

11. Me, too. I agree we'd just have to take out Rubio

or Cruz, but having them this close to the presidency is truly frightening

[exboyfil]

12. Short term tactic

Cruz and Kasich pull out of Florida, and Rubio and Cruz pull out of Ohio. Denying these winner take all delegates from Trump would be a start to a brokered convention.

No way they get a nominee over the finish line before the convention.

Surrogate favorite son used to be a tactic in primaries (see 1968 for example with Humphrey).

Cruz and Rubio are young men. They may go for it.

Romney - Pres
Kasich - Vice Pres.
Cruz - AG or SCOTUS
Rubio - SecDef or SecState

It would be better for the Republicans to have Trump go 3rd party than lead their party into the general election.

[Frank Cannon]

13. Fear not, my friend

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

18. If they take him down, his supporters will not vote

They will abandon the GOP forever. Let them do it.

[Myrina]

19. No! Let them take him out. He'll run Indie.

He'll take his cast of crazies, and the GOP proper will be left with about 18% of eligible voters supporting their candidate.
The Dems will win no matter what, in that case.

[Capt. Obvious]

23. State requirements for 3rd party runs means he needs to get moving

if he were to go that route.

[Myrina]

25. Write in. For the supporters who know how to spell.

[IsItJustMe]

34. Not only that, but if Trump did decide to run as an Independent,

he would not be able to run in states where he already ran on the Republican ticket. It's called sore-loser laws. This would make it much more difficult for a path to winning.

[randome]

21. 'Leaders'.

[hr][font color="blue"][center]Everything is a satellite to some other thing.[/center][/font][hr]

[thereismore]

26. To me as a Bernie supporter this is a non-issue. Bernie beats them all. nt

[davidn3600]

27. I've always been weary of picking who would be better to go up against

Too many unknown variables.

The thing about Trump is he's going to be difficult to gauge because he's not the typical Republican. So it's a bit scary because some of the polling models could be off. A Rubio, Cruz, or Kasich would provide a more predicable election outcome.

I'd say at this point, the GOP will implode if Trump DOESN'T get the nomination. Their voters are in a full scale revolt with their establishment.

[Trajan]

29. What? ... Me worry?

Listen ... Trump voters are a ... Um ... Strange bunch ... They will NOT support another GOP offering if they think Trump was bamboozled ....

You should WELCOME their disarray ...

[DrewFlorida]

30. Why would you worry about that? If they take Trump down, he'll run as 3rd party.

As a 3rd party candidate, he will assure beyond any doubt that a Democrat will be elected. I hope the republican leadership takes Trump down, the party will be splintered even more than it is now!

[0rganism]

31. they can't "take Trump down" without shattering their party

Trump is the hero of the racist voters, the ones Nixon brought into the Republican fold in 1968. the Republican establishment has used them mercilessly, promising them all kinds of shit that will never materialize, while transferring their wealth to the top along with the rest of the nation's.

the GOP can't win without them, and now that they have actual representation, the GOP can't win with them.

if the establishment takes Trump down through any means other than having their primary voters give a true majority of delegates to one of the other candidates, they will completely unravel Nixon's groundwork that has served them well for over 40 years.

this is the most amazing political double-bind i've seen in my life. it is a thing of great majesty and beauty, this train wreck occurring before our eyes. i had no idea i would live to see the end of the Republican party. this is a great day.

[madinmaryland]

36. Interesting point you allude to. tRump is actually pulling the "Southern Strategy" on the

repubican party. What goes around, comes around.

I find it amazing how many racist and "i got mine, fuck everyone else" people there are.

[IsItJustMe]

32. From your post, I can safely assume that

you are not black
you are not Hispanic
and that you are not Muslim.

You assume that a Cruz presidency would be much worse than a Trump presidency.

My question to you is, For whom?

[Albertoo]

38. Cruz would be certainly worse for Muslims than Trump

For all his other nonsense, Trump has disavowed the GW-style wars in the ME.
While I could see Cruz waging war to defend the Christians of Lebanon or Syria.

[Glamrock]

33. It's going to be a 3 way....

Trump is going to run as an.independant for revenge. Been saying it for awhile now...

[B Calm]

35. If the GOP leadership continue their attack on Trump, I look for him to run on a 3rd party

ticket.

[Albertoo]

37. The GOP has boxed itself in a corner

Both Trump and Cruz are unelectable

[MillennialDem]

40. I hope they do. I think he would go third party.

[Warren DeMontague]

41. His ego will never stand for it. He will run as 3rd party candidate.