Inside the Republican Party’s Desperate Mission to Stop Donald Trump

[Torie]

The TP rallies don't sound like my kind of crowd at all. Sounds more like NASCAR. Did you ever go to one?

[IceSpear]

It's interesting how they act as if Trump will be a complete disaster and unelectable, when in reality he'd only start off as a modest underdog. They must be willing to lose and try again in 2020 rather than hand the party over to the Trumpets. Great news for Hillary!

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

The party created this mess. By pandering to Tea Partiers and xenophobes more and more in recent years, they've welcomed the crazies into the party. Well, now the crazies dominate the base. What did you expect? I predicted this (albeit not with Trump as the candidate... nobody really predicted that) years ago when GOP officials kept increasingly giving in to and supporting Tea Partiers' unreasonable demands.

Yeah, but much of the Trump base is not tea partiers at all, who tend to be focused on fiscal issues and the like. It's more about the estranged working and lower middle class concerned about their standard of living and buying into Trump's protectionism, both as to trade, and as to immigration, with a loathing of Muslims mixed in.

That's cute that you think the Tea Party was ever motivated by "fiscal issues."

There are people who are concerned about such things, believe it or not.
The Tea Party developed originally around the bailouts and the stimulus.  Then a whole bunch of other right-wing causes, including some very nasty stuff, where picked up in its orbit.

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

This is a fascinating read, especially the bit about the McConnell and Senate Pub plans to just dump the Trump if he is nominated, and indeed trash him if need be, to save themselves.

The most curious thing stated in the article is that allegedly LePage, the man who just endorsed Trump and said he'd be just great, two weeks ago tried to get the Pub governors together to blast Trump whom he thought then would be a disaster. What the F happened in two weeks to LePage? Or is there more than one LePage out there? Color me confused.

Regarding LaPage, I wouldn't be surprised if he's hoping to be VP.  Trump/Christie is more likely though.

[muon2]

The party created this mess. By pandering to Tea Partiers and xenophobes more and more in recent years, they've welcomed the crazies into the party. Well, now the crarzies dominate the base. What did you expect? I predicted this (albeit not with Trump as the candidate... nobody really predicted that) years ago when GOP officials kept increasingly giving in to and supporting Tea Partiers' unreasonable demands.

Yeah, but much of the Trump base is not tea partiers at all, who tend to be focused on fiscal issues and the like. It's more about the estranged working and lower middle class concerned about their standard of living and buying into Trump's protectionism, both as to trade, and as to immigration, with a loathing of Muslims mixed in.

That's cute that you think the Tea Party was ever motivated by "fiscal issues."

There are people who are concerned about such things, believe it or not.
The Tea Party developed originally around the bailouts and the stimulus.  Then a whole bunch of other right-wing causes, including some very nasty stuff, where picked up in its orbit.

Shua is correct. The Tea Party coalesced after Santellis fiscal rant shortly after the 2009 inauguration. I was invited and attended one of the original rallies on 4/15/09. The themes were personal responsibility, taxes, and particularly the size of government.

[Adam Griffin]

Surprising. Perhaps because he's competition?

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[Sprouts Farmers Market ✘]

The New York Times better add a liability pool to their balance sheet in anticipation of these tougher libel laws. These lies cannot continue.

[ProudModerate2]

He literally endorsed him on Friday.

Exactly.
So now I am really confused.
Has anyone else corroborated this story.
Very strange.

[Sasquatch]

It's almost like Mitch McConnell is asking to be deported.

[Fuzzy Bear Loves Christian Missionaries]

This is a fascinating read, especially the bit about the McConnell and Senate Pub plans to just dump the Trump if he is nominated, and indeed trash him if need be, to save themselves.

The most curious thing stated in the article is that allegedly LePage, the man who just endorsed Trump and said he'd be just great, two weeks ago tried to get the Pub governors together to blast Trump whom he thought then would be a disaster. What the F happened in two weeks to LePage? Or is there more than one LePage out there? Color me confused.

Very interesting read - thanks for posting!

GOP gets a lot of flak for not being able to organize a viable opposition to Trump but IMHO the problem may not be with the party, but with the available candidates themselves! Romney and others are disappointed that others won't coalesce around Rubio, failing to see that Rubio makes Obama in 2008 look experienced. In a normal election year, Rubio would be one of the also-runs, waiting for another 8 years to mount a serious challenge, while proving himself in the business world. Similarly, in a normal election year, Cruz would be a fringe right candidate, ignored by most. I won't even waste time commenting on Carson. And while Kasich is the only viable option and would probably make a decent President, he gets forgotten in this Reality TV election, and is even asked to step aside for a rookie?!

Is it any wonder that the GOP is confused?

I think PeteB gets it right.  The candidates that the GOP would normally have put out as the "next in line" were Jeb! (a Bush) and Kasich (who's limits are well-discussed).

Rubio comes off as a snotty twit next to the more accomplished (and older) Trump.  Cruz comes off like a guy who is at least in his late 40s-early 50s, but he's an ideologue in a party which, surprisingly, does not have the kind of strict ideologues in its base that it thought it had.  And there was Rand Paul; the third first-term Senator, who was a libertarian, trying to change a party that had more people addicted to government in some form then he thought.

Channel your inner Robert Palmer:

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[trickmind]

So uh...I guess Phase I of the establishment master plan is to make dick jokes?

Is Phase II is making fart noises when Trump talks during the debates?

[Sasquatch]

Is Phase II is making fart noises when Trump talks during the debates?

Spitballs.

[Fuzzy Bear Loves Christian Missionaries]

So uh...I guess Phase I of the establishment master plan is to make dick jokes?

Is Phase II is making fart noises when Trump talks during the debates?

What he said, I guess.

[Mr. Morden]

Cornyn publicly echoes McConnell's "We will distance ourselves from Trump" sentiment, albeit being a bit less definitive about it:

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/02/29/politics/cornyn-trump-albatross/index.html

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[Mr. Morden]

Again, following up on the stuff about McConnell...Politico has its own sources indicating that some downballot GOP candidates are looking at how to distance themselves from Trump during the campaign:

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/03/gop-civil-war-2016-republicans-220209

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