The “establishment” leaders of the Republican Party have taken a lot of missile fire from Donald Trump, Ted Cruz and other conservatives the past few months. They’ve complained the establishment has run the party into the ground. But is that really true?
As I point out in my book Front Row Seat at the Circus Republicans currently control both chambers of Congress, a huge majority of governorships, along with a vast majority of state legislatures. For a party that always seems so angry, Republicans actually control a lot of the political machinery in America.
The bottom line is that Barack Obama has driven many conservatives mad. He won first in 2008 at the end of the disastrous Bush era, and when he held on to beat Mitt Romney and win reelection in 2012, the crazies went crazier. After spending years questioning his birth certificate, suggesting he was a dictator about to invade Texas, a guy who was about to take everybody’s guns or declare martial law and remain president for life, Obama has held on – without any reason for impeachment – for eight years.
For those with crazy hate, that’s eight years of pure agony. Thus, conservatives argue, the establishment must be replaced.
So enter Donald Trump. The reality TV host billionaire who had flirted with a run four years ago. He has spent every minute on the campaign trail making a mockery of Reince Pribus, the Republican National Committee, Mitt Romney, John McCain and about every leader in the GOP who has been in the arena fighting the fight.
He pretends that someone with absolutely no political experience, other than making large financial contributions to everyone on both sides of the aisle, is what America needs. As Trump has grown his army he has managed to flood early primaries and caucuses his new WWE coalition. These voters aren’t necessarily Republican, some may never vote for another candidate again, but the thirty percent strategy has worked brilliantly.
But the establishment, along with a growing number of conservatives, have looked at data and reached the same conclusion: Donald Trump is unelectable as President of the United States.
How do they know?
This Fox News exit poll, as just one example, tells the story:
If Trump is the nominee against Hilary Clinton this fall, one in four Republican primary voters – keep in mind these are the Republicans most likely to vote come November – say they would consider voting for a third party option.
The number is 44 percent in Ohio. As in Battleground Ohio. As in no Republican can lose it and become president.
With some conservatives already organizing to find such a candidate to run, it almost ensures Trump will lose in the battlegrounds and thus, once again, the presidency will be lost by Republicans. To another Clinton no less.
The establishment in the GOP can exercise its good judgement before it’s too late. If Trump does go off the cliff he endangers every other Republican candidate on the ballot. With Democrats just five seats away from running the U.S. senate again, the establishment must make a decision: The reality TV billionaire or the rest of the team?
My guess is to the establishment the answer is fairly easy.