Politics –
Brokered Convention For Republicans?
With the racist/misogynistic Donald Trump still leading the pack and no single contender breaking out as a viable second option, Republican leaders have started considering what was once the unthinkable: a brokered convention.
Politics
Despite Tuesday night’s umpteenth GOP debate from Las Vegas, poll numbers remain unchanged and have not seemed to move one iota. Donald Trump is still the runaway frontrunner, which scares the Republican establishment into the realization that Trump can’t beat Hillary Clinton in the general election.  What’s even scarier to them is that Trump’s closest contender is Ted Cruz, who is almost as much of a liability as “The Donald.”
A “brokered convention” happens when no single candidate has a sufficient number of nominating delegates at the convention to become the party’s choice for president, forcing a brokered deal in a smoke-filled back room to settle on a nominee. This would be a huge deal for the Republican Party, since there has not been a brokered convention in more than 60 years.
The possibility that the Republican battle for a nominee will extend to the July 18-21 convention in Cleveland has become very real. Â This probability (and what to do about Donald Trump) was discussed at a private dinner on Monday of top party operatives hosted by Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus. One anonymous official compared the meeting to “planning for a hurricane.”
Trump’s rise to the top of the field of 14 candidates has perplexed establishment Republicans who’ve been waiting in vain for the New York billionaire’s campaign to collapse.  So far, it hasn’t — and only appears to be growing more energized. Republicans are openly alarmed at his incendiary rhetoric and proposals, including his idiotic plan to ban Muslims from entering the United States.  They realize this rhetoric is a death sentence in the general election and it’s becoming clearer by the day that they are nearly powerless to stop it. Their only hope for making sure an actual contender secures the nomination is a brokered convention.
Various scenarios could play out in the coming months and the GOP is currently weighing all options.  One such plan includes engaging former presidential nominee Mitt Romney and current Speaker of the House Paul Ryan to negotiate an exit plan for a few lower-tier candidates.  By whittling the playing field down from 14 to maybe 3 or 4 candidates, party leaders hope to channel unified support behind a single candidate (other than Trump). The thinking is that if several candidates will drop out and get behind one strong candidate, that person can overtake Trump during a likely convention floor fight.
Still, Republican National Committee (RNC) senior adviser Sean Spicer towed the line that the RNC is neutral in the process.
“Our goal is to ensure a successful nomination and that requires us thinking through every scenario, including a contested convention,” he said.
Stay tuned…
This is all very funny to me. Repubs in such confusion the whole primary might be a waste, if they have to pick somebody at the convention. LOL this is just getting better and better.
What’s even scarier to (the Republican estabshment) is that Trump’s closest contender is Ted Cruz, who is almost as much of a liability as “The Donald.” [….]
Ain't THAT the truth….Lol.
But no worries. According to Repub's whoever they choose, that person WILL "defeat" Hillary!?!…smh.
You really cannot make this stuff up..
Friday. Dec. 18, 2015
Welp, with this latest news, I'd say that Repub brokered convention is looking more and more likely.
Hotair: "Paul Ryan’s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad omnibus bill"
As most of our readers have already noted, the new Omnibus bill was passed and announced during the height of the debate Frenzy Tuesday evening and the details rolled out on Hump Day with one disturbing detail after another.
But in the spirit of eternal optimism which really should define the conservative movement, let’s start by focusing on the good parts, shall we? We got the crude oil export ban lifted!.
I’m not being facetious here… that’s a subject I’ve written on in this space more times than I could count and it’s a good thing for the country.
But as nice as that was to see, was it enough to justify how much our new Speaker gave away in exchange for it?
Let’s be frank here… this isn’t even a Jack and the Beanstalk comparison. We not only gave away the cow, but the magic beans sprouted a giant asparagus stem which shot directly up our collective backsides. In retrospect, the expanded visa provisions weren’t even close to the worst parts of this package.
Still, for reasons which escape me, some of the Freedom Caucus members who you would most often expect to see going to the wall on this sort of thing got right in line. […]
H/T: Politico
Based on a quick drive-by of far-right blogs, right-wing voters feel betrayed and are spittin' mad at the Repub leadership, beginning with Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan.
My guess is, Trump's number will further increase, which is bad news for his supporters (he'll never be President) and Very bade news for the Republican party.
Mon. 12-21-15
"Trump Campaign Lags in Mobilizing Iowa Caucus Voters"
A successful ground game is crucial in Iowa because of the state’s complicated method of caucus voting….
Trump's Iowa director predicted that he would recruit a leader for each of the state’s 1,681 Republican precincts by Thanksgiving. Instead, the first major training session for precinct leaders, heavily promoted in emails and conference calls, drew only about 80 people to West Des Moines last weekend, with about 50 participating online.
Some of Mr. Trump’s Republican rivals have spent months calling and knocking on doors to identify potential supporters to draw them out to caucuses, but Mr. Trump does not appear to have invested in this crucial “voter ID” strategy until recently.
The Trump campaign hopes to attract a surge of independents and disaffected Democrats on caucus night, but the latest data from the Iowa secretary of state show no significant growth in Republican registrations. […]
H/T: NYTImes
I heard about this over the weekend and needless to say, I wasn't the least bit surprised. Last week, I had pointed out that the man has spent literally NO money on his own campaign thus far. And frankly, I don't believe he ever will.
Maybe his supporters are so "sold" on him that he will win Repub primaries with minimal-to-no organizing(?) I don't think so …and I think Donald would be just fine with losing. He would simply blame it on the "LOSERS" who DIDN'T show up to vote for him. He would *ACT* like he's pissed. And then he'd go home.
But I hope it backfires on him. I hope his supporters show up in full force and I hope he wins the nomination. Then he'll have no choice but to start spending his own money.
And Hillary will wipe the floor with his phony azz.
Mon. 12-21-15
"Sen. Lindsey Graham Ends Republican Presidential Bid"
"I am suspending my campaign but never my commitment to achieving security through strength for the American people," he said.
Graham, who first told CNN of his decision in an interview, faced a deadline Monday to be removed from the GOP primary ballot in his home state of South Carolina. Graham has been mired at the bottom of polls – both nationally and in his home state – and could have faced an embarrassing showing in the state's February primary.
In the CNN interview, Graham said it was "the joy of my life" to run for president. He did not disclose which Republican candidate he plans to endorse but noted that Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush "get it" when it comes to foreign policy. [….]
H/T: NBC News
I doubt that either Jeb or Rubio or Christie wins the nomination. Far-right voters can't stand any of them..
Right now it looks more likely to come down to Trump and Cruz, depending on how long Trump stays in it(?)
Here's the rub for Cruz. His supporters who may be White supremacists at heart will NEVER vote for him because he's LATINO.
I don't care what lie they tell themselves or pollsters. They won't do it. They won't vote for Hillary.
But they're not going to vote for Cruz either. Not in meaningful numbers. And certainly NOT for President.