I highlighted ‘discontent’ because I read it as ‘disconnect’ at first, and it still works. The party establishment had been playing this game for a long time, and not even noticing that their voters didn’t believe in it anymore. Both parties have been using the same strategy, “You have to vote for us because you hate them”. This time the “us” on each side was divided. Both Bernie and Donald gave voters an actual choice within their own parties and they responded. Reasonable expectations are the trap here, of course the most reasonable expectations will be the lowest.
This would require self-awareness. Something the Republican party has failed to demonstrate in many years.
Palin is now actively fighting Ryan (on Trump’s behalf)
She is going on and on about “the will of the people”. Right. 40% of the people, that is. Of course that’s math, and math is hard. And also math on a plane might be the work of terrists, right?
Let the Great Schism begin! Choose sides!
There is not enough daylight between the two.
Did Ryan just call Trump’s bluff?
Or is Ryan just happy to get the hell away from the Trump Republican Party before it burns to the ground with no survivors?
And we know that both sides will be well-armed ! :eek:
Why am I thinking of The Band’s Evangeline?
A young woman is watching the riverboat (US, 19th Century, Steam boilers, Paddle Wheel(s)) as it is bringing her love home.
It explodes as she is watching.*
Cleveland is going to be interesting…
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- a clever person could re-write the lyrics to that one.
what I don’t get is why the hell is palin even thought about by anyone… she lost…
n the old days you’d never hear from the losers they’d just fade in the background maybe on a slow news day a reporter would ask them what they thought of the current situation…
She was elected governor of Alaska and defied the will of the people by quitting, so I guess she’s quite the expert and can identify such when she sees it.
The question that ultimately has to be addressed is: where will Moderate Republicans go?
Democrats? Never
Libertarian? They have done nothing to court the schimatics
Form a third party? In the US? Yeah right. Where is the Bull-Moose Party today?
As a boy in Wisconsin, in the 1970s, I met a man running for State Senate, on the Bull Moose ticket.
Don’t remember anything beyond that.
The utter, utter failure of Jeb, despite infinite sums granted him, should be brought up here.
Goldwater was a takeover, and while he was extreme he was within the system. I believe Eisenhower endorsed him, if reluctantly, and the Convention ran smoothly.
I was around back then, and it is nothing like this. Both ex-presidents refusing an endorsement is unprecedented, the last two candidates skipping the convention is unprecedented. Lots of other Republicans are deciding they need to wash their hair that week also.
The real question is what the Trump masses will do after he gets clobbered. Swear off the party which stabbed him in the back? Come back as if nothing ever happened? This isn’t a split of Republican officeholders, it is a split between them and a lot of their base.
I know. Italy. :eek:
PJ O’Rourke is endorsing Clinton. With great reluctance:
Conservative Author P.J. O'Rourke Reluctantly Backs Clinton : NPR
"“I am endorsing Hillary, and all her lies and all her empty promises,” O’Rourke continued. “It’s the second-worst thing that can happen to this country, but she’s way behind in second place. She’s wrong about absolutely everything, but she’s wrong within normal parameters.”
As near as I can tell, every Republican saw Marco Rubio as the biggest potential threat.
While obviously Democrats will assume he was a mad right-winger, he was conservative enough to appeal to the base, but not locked into it and could also appeal to centrists. He was also young, energetic, charismatic, and had a good team. So, realizing that this was a man who could reasonably carry the party to the White House, they utterly destroyed him in public. Jeb Bush soaked up all the establishment donors, who for reasons I can’t quite fathom gave him a hundred million dollars. Jeb then pent that accomplishing nothing whatsoever, but made sure to slam Rubio as hard as possible. This itself is telling, as Rubio knew he didn’t have the direct connections, name recognition, or money; he had to really build up support from the grassroots.
Then of course, Christie happened and Trump happened and Kasich happened. I’m not sure what Kasich is thinking. He has the personality of soggy cereal, and apparently the same level of self-awareness. One supposes he’s still a sensible centrist, but he seems to have no idea what he’s doing and all he managed to do was push Trumpy to center stage, and the odds that Trump would bring Kasich on board are trivial.
Caveat Elector: Remember Nixon.
My opinion is that AFTER the Republican convention, if Trump comes through as the nominee, that Ryan and Graham and almost every other Republican currently holding a Federal office, will line up to kiss publicly Trump’s ass with an endorsement.
I further predict that this will so disgust the Republican voters that they will stay home in droves on election day, and the Democrats will get control of both the House and Senate, and the Presidency of course.
Well, it helps if the unreasonable man isn’t also an idiot.
Even when he isn’t he will be called one.