Image 01 Image 03

Trump is the Nominee, What Now? Legal Insurrection Authors Debate

Trump is the Nominee, What Now? Legal Insurrection Authors Debate

#NeverTrump, #FineWithTrump, and everything in between

https://twitter.com/FBNStossel/status/634417166943678465

Donald Trump is the presumptive Republican nominee. Presumably he will face off against Hillary Clinton.

Given the intense feelings and turmoil resulting from Ted Cruz suspending his campaign, I thought it would be useful to solicit views from all of the Legal Insurrection authors. Most of the authors took me up on the offer.

The opinions below, listed in alphabetical order by last name or pseudonym, are the opinions of each individual author.

I think you will be surprised at the breadth of opinion, from someone who was for Trump long before it was cool to be for Trump, to diehard #NeverTrump-ers. And many variations in between.

As for me. Well, you’ll have to find my name in the list. Hopefully I did alphabetical order better than I do math.

Aleister

I am one of those rare people who was never strongly for or against Trump. My thought has always been that I would back the GOP nominee no matter who it was with one exception – Jeb Bush. My thinking was that Jeb would get creamed in a general election and that he was a weak candidate.

Now that Trump is the presumptive nominee, I’m thinking of launching the hashtag #FineWithTrump. I think he has a very good shot at defeating Hillary and I know he’ll bring the fight to her in a way other candidates could or would not do.

A.F. Branco

I’ve never disliked Trump, but I wasn’t all-in for him either. Although I liked a lot of what he said and how he said it in the beginning, I felt Ted Cruz had earned my conservative vote over the past few years.

What I didn’t like, was watching my dear conservative friends, who once were so united against the Obama/Hillary disaster happening to our country, now at each others throats as the though the other side embodied the very essence of evil. (It brought back those awful memories of my parents arguing just prior to their divorce).

Neither Trump nor Cruz caused our county’s major problems, that responsibility belongs to the blame-America- first policies of Obama, Hillary, and the democrats.

So, let us Cruz supporters put put on our big boy panties and fight for #NeverHillary with the same Ferocity we had for each other.

Casey Breznick

What’s been truly saddening about this primary is not so much the rise of Trump, but the caustic in-fighting among conservatives–both the pro-Trump alt-right and the #NeverTrump crowd. I’m actually more disappointed in the latter. Despite carrying the true mantle of ideological conservatism, the haughtiness and crass elitism displayed by many of them has been a sad development. Conservatism does not pander to populist whimsies, true, but it should not ignore and patronize a hurting populace. As a college student, I’ve discussed the primary with a lot of fellow young conservatives, and many of them say cringe-worthy things like “Trump voters must have never gone to college” implying they, the Trump voters, are somehow inferior to us as the supposed intellectual elites. I’ve always seen this type of elitism–a disdain for the non-punditry class and non-east/west coast elites–as a hallmark of the progressive left. If those who are done with the Republican Party want to charter their own new path, I will gladly join, but not if this type of elitist, patrician thinking permeates their ranks.

Mary Chastain

I have no reaction as a libertarian. After 2008 and 2012 I do not know how anyone is shocked or surprised the GOP has ended up with Donald Trump. We have three branches of government, not a dictatorship. A friend once told me no matter what America will remain the shining light in the world. Doesn’t mean we shouldn’t fight, but we’ll remain on top.

Leslie Eastman

There is a meme floating in my Facebook feed depicting Ted Cruz supporters as King Leonidas, whose body is filled with Persian arrows after the Spartan King’s fall at Thermopylae. As an amateur historian, I smiled a bit. But, as a tea party advocate, I would say to those for whom Donald Trump was not their first pick: It’s really not that bad.

Watching the social media meltdown among leading conservatives last night was extremely painful, as several of those disappointed pundits and activists are people I admire. But 186 days is a long time, and as we have already discovered, flocks of black swans are clearly on the horizon. Independent conservatives should keep open minds, open hearts, and open eyes and not make firm decisions about what they are going to do in November quite yet.

I have several observations about my evolving attitude toward Trump that I would like to share with you. First of all, he has already defied the odds, and his unconventional campaign has gotten him the nomination. Why shouldn’t this be true in the General Election? Also, I admire his fighting spirit, and his core message that is focused on this country. I have noted that he has changed his campaign staff and style to achieve a victory he obviously wants. Several people I respect are already in his camp (e.g., Sarah Palin, Jan Brewer). There are many personal acts of loyalty and kindness that demonstrate that despite his big personality, he is a decent man (e.g., Lynne Patton’s video “The Trump Family That I Know” – A Black Female Trump Executive Speaks; Trump sending the Marine jailed in Mexico $25,000 Check).

Is Donald Trump perfect? No. But I think he has the smarts and motivation to enact policies that help the country more than they help him personally…unlike Clinton. This is especially true if he gets solid input from independent conservatives.

Prof. Miriam Elman

Some conservative activists who once vehemently opposed the nomination of Donald Trump now seem to be in the process of “making peace” with backing the Democrats’ eventual nominee. According to a morning poll of Cruz supporters, 13% of Republicans who backed him plan to vote for Clinton. But for those sorely disappointed with the now available grim general-election options, there’s still the choice of submitting a third-party protest vote and voting down-ticket Republican.

As many have argued eloquently and passionately over the last 24 hours, the fundamental problem with Trump’s nomination isn’t just that he’s unfit for the presidency because of his wild, insulting rhetoric, belligerent temperament, and “stripper glitter showmanship”. The problem is that Trump as the Republican nominee brands the GOP—a party founded to abolish slavery—as the party of “alternative rightwhite supremacists and self-declared Holocaust deniers.

Basically, because he doesn’t feel the need to reject the support of far right extremists and bestows on them a degree of legitimacy, under Trump a party of liberty and racial equality will effectively become a xenophobic, nativist, white nationalist party. It will be a party that opposes free trade and legal immigration, “lavishes praise on dictators” and stands for “America first” neo-isolationism (let’s never forget the origins of that ugly term—it was America-firsters who fought against U.S. entry into the war against Nazi Germany).

Bottom line: the GOP under Trump will be a party that no American, much less a conservative, should want any part of. As Eliot A. Cohen, who served in the Defense and State Departments in the George H. Bush and George W. Bush administrations respectively, put it yesterday: “A Trump candidacy is a disgrace”. In fact, it reflects a sickness in the GOP that’s much larger than one charismatic demagogue. The deep schisms within the Republican Party inflamed by Trump’s campaign for the White House may prove to be irreparable.

David Gerstman

I largely agree with what Kemberlee wrote today in Morning Insurrection, Trump doesn’t represent me and I will support down ticket Republicans. I don’t necessarily believe that Trump will lead the Republicans to electoral disaster in November. He will apparently gain the Republican nomination having eschewed traditional campaigning, so I think it’s premature to use conventional standards to judge his viability in November. Once he starts campaigning for the general electorate, I suspect that many of those negative numbers will start to decrease.

What I have no patience for are liberals and Democrats who are crowing that Trump somehow is representative of Republicans or of conservatives. He represents neither. What he represents is a thumb in the eye to our political elites of BOTH PARTIES. On the other side is Bernie Sanders who represents a discredited and immoral political philosophy and who might have been the nominee if not for the Democrats’ anti-democratic institution of superdelegates. I would argue that Sanders is much more representative of the Democratic Party than Trump is of the Republican Party. Trump’s apparent status as the Republican nominee represents a wakeup call for both parties to start listening to voters and not simply dictating to them.

William Jacobson

My overwhelming feeling at the nomination of Trump is one of loss.

Loss of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity truly to change the trajectory of government and entrenched political power. Loss of conservative and conservative media self-respect. Possible loss of years of hard work by thousands of conservative activists who have changed the nation, even if they did not change D.C. Loss of friendships with people I used to respect, but no longer do because they helped perpetrate and project false information and conspiracy theories for Trump.

As for where this goes, I’m not sure where I will go and where I fit in. I’m not as reactive as you might think.

We are faced with a truly horrible choice. I abhor both Donald and Hillary. You’ve read my views for months in the case of Donald, and years in the case of Hillary. They are flip sides of the same coin. The question is which one is more dangerous and will do more damage to the nation and our individual liberties, and advance the march of government power over our lives.

Under no circumstances would I actively support Hillary. The question is whether I actively support Trump, or sit it out and just observe.

I don’t know what I will do, or what we will do as a website. That will change, but right now, I’m still thinking things through.

DK – African American Conservatives

Like baseball fans who wear “My Favorite Team Is Whoever Is Playing The New York Yankees” t-shirts, seeing Hillary and the Dems defeated has become, to many, even more important than by whom or by what means they are so. It matters little to most Trump supporters that he holds or has held positions similar to Hillary’s views on almost every conceivable issue, or that a Trump administration would be surprising similar to a Hillary Clinton administration. What is of paramount importance is that Trump be the winner he has brilliantly marketed himself to be.

Kemberlee Kaye

The presumptive Republican nominee is an anti-vaxer, thinks Ted Cruz’s dad killed JFK, believes 9/11 was an inside job, routinely says awful things to and about women, is pro-choice, will have to testify to fraud charges during the election cycle, and donated to his presumptive general election opponent. Problematic for those who hoped Trump would help burn it all to the ground is that he has the approval of the single most hated establishment figure — John Boehner. The reasons for Trump’s ascension are numerous and no party or faction escapes culpability. The establishments, hucksters, and purity police on both sides of the aisle all share the blame. Ignoring those who’ve suffered under terrible policies in exchange for political capital? Also unwise (and certainly not conservative).

When I said months ago that I would never, under any circumstance, vote for Donald Trump, I actually meant the whole never part. Still do. I will support Republican candidates down ballot, because with Trump at the top of the ticket, they’ll need all the help they can get. Does that mean I’m voting for Hillary? No. I’ll be voting Libertarian. Does that mean I’m ensuring a Clinton White House? Also no. I’m not responsible for the actions of those who voted for Trump. No candidate is entitled to my vote; my vote must be earned and spent as my principles dictate. And my principles do not allow support of either Trump or Clinton. Is this Ross Perot 2.0? Nope. It’s not that either. Perot ran to siphon votes away from Bush 39 and was successful in doing so. But Dole, McCain, and Romney! Granted, they were moderately Republicans. But they were at the very least, Republican. Trump is not. Those who choose not to vote for Trump or Clinton choose to do so because both are horrid candidates. The era of voting for the lesser of two evils is over. For years people have complained about the candidate renderings of a two-party system. Now seems as good a time as any to change that. Our country too valuable to continue yielding to that disaster-wrought status quo.

Am I rudderless, distraught, or incensed because Trump is the Republican presumptive nominee? Never. I still believe America is the best damn country God ever gave to mankind. We were birthed out of loathe for traditional rule and for many of us, that hasn’t changed. We survived a turbulent infancy, realigned out of necessity, withstood a Civil War and dire economic conditions and we’re still standing. I’ve worked on campaigns, organized grassroots coalitions, exposed corruption, and have had the privilege of telling people’s stories. I still believe our best hope of changing course is not in the ballot box, but in our communities, families, and culture. From the day I accidentally ended up in the conservative movement, working to restore dignity to our way of life has been my focus. That has not changed because of our nominee. Politicians are not our leaders, nor are they our rulers. They are employed for one reason — to represent us.

I will not espouse hatred of those who hold opinions contrary to my own, but will always fight with love. My vote is no more important than yours or his or hers. “We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly,” wrote Martin Luther King, Jr. from a jail cell in Birmingham, Alabama. “Let us fight passionately and unrelentingly to the goals of justice. Let’s be sure that our hands are clean. Let us never fight with falsehood an violence and hate and malice, but always fight with love,” he said. The road ahead is rough and rocky, but I remain hopeful that America’s best days lie ahead. There is always hope, even when we struggle to see it. Elections are important and have consequences for supporters and dissenters alike, but our best hope of righting the ship is in how we live.

Jonathan Levin

I have consistently said #​NeverTrump and I meant it. I will not vote for Donald Trump. I will vote down ticket and do whatever I can to ensure the GOP retains the Senate to prevent President Clinton from appointing whichever hard Left judge she chooses (Justice Obama, ladies and gentlemen?), and the House to forestall Clinton and force her to consider the GOP agenda, if there is one.

Trump is utterly unqualified for the job, in experience, knowledge or temperament. Abetted by a media class desperate for ratings or predisposed to Trump’s brand of bluster, he has proffered no consistent policy or plan to implement it. On the issues for which he is most praised by his supporters, he is hopelessly inconsistent (immigration), or flat out wrong (free trade). His economic plan amounts to tariffs and his foreign policy is worse. He boasts of his ability to surround himself with great people, but his senior staff and advisers are laughably poor choices lacking the experience and ability to do their own jobs, let alone steer The Donald to wisdom.

While Trump has expressed positions that sometimes overlap with my own, the reasoning diverges wildly and Trump’s incredible inconsistency renders it moot. Close the borders – yes; because Mexico dumps criminals here – no. Control immigration – yes; ban by religion – no. Push back on China – yes; end free trade – no. Push NATO members to do more – yes; because they don’t matter to us – no. Make America Great Again – absolutely…but he doesn’t have the plan or ability to do it.

I believe in the classical Liberalism of small government and individual freedom. That is not Trump. If he is the GOP, then I’m not, and I will search for a new party.

Neo-Neocon

This year, small government conservatives discovered they are much more of a minority than they ever thought they were. They learned that their old dream of nominating and electing someone who could clearly articulate the conservative cause is more of a pipe dream fantasy. They discovered that a lot of people who call themselves “conservative” on those surveys have their own idiosyncratic definitions of the word. And they may wish they were back in the Big Tent of yesterday, the one that got blown down and ripped apart and can no longer give them shelter and nourish the illusion that they are very strong in number and influence.

This could change. I’m not suggesting that any of us give up. I suggest activism—particularly on college campuses, where the leftist rot is well-advanced. There’s grass roots politics, too. It’s important to keep as many GOP seats in Congress as possible, as well, although it will be quite the challenge. But politics is a long haul.

The MSM has hardly begun to carry Hillary’s water the way it undoubtedly will. The Democrats have not unleashed more than a small percentage of their ammunition against Trump. Nor has Trump started the major attacks on Hillary of which he’s fully capable. I predict we are in for a campaign season so dirty that we’ll end up like Lady Macbeth, doubting if all the water in the ocean can wash us clean.

Taryn O’Neill

The forces against a Trump presidency will be torrential, as the left has only just begun its efforts. As we’ve seen with the Occupy Wall Street, Black Lives Matter, and Obama for America groups, the left is organized. The anti-Trump demonstrations in Chicago were only a taste of what the leftists are capable of. Trump’s nomination breathes life into their cause, their efforts, and their determination. They will out campaign us, out organize us, and may finally take the nation past the point of no return.

Sarah Rumpf

Like many Republicans, I eagerly looked forward to the 2016 presidential race. I’d had the privilege of meeting several of the expected candidates and was excited about what this very deep bench would bring to the table, and how this election cycle would be an excellent opportunity to share successful conservative ideas with the country. I couldn’t wait to see Ted Cruz and Rand Paul debate the limits of liberty vs. national security, hear Marco Rubio share his optimistic vision for America’s future, Bobby Jindal tell how school choice had revolutionized New Orleans’ education system, Rick Perry highlight Texas’ criminal justice reforms, Scott Walker talk about labor union reform, and so on.

Instead, the party I’ve supported since I registered to vote at 18 is going to nominate an outlandish clown who cannot be trusted to support conservative principles on core issues like abortion, taxes, health care, trade, or foreign policy. As a journalist, his antagonistic attitude toward the First Amendment disgusts and terrifies me. I remain steadfastly #NeverTrump. He has proven himself to be a pathological liar, utterly without shame, so it matters not to me who he selects as his running mate or what he promises everyone before November. I won’t vote for Hillary Clinton either and I’m fully aware that the many people withholding their votes from Trump make a Clinton presidency more likely, but I cannot in good conscience cast my vote for Trump. Clinton will be horrible, but at least she’ll be more predictably horrible than Trump, and that’s better for both foreign policy and economic markets.

Fuzzy Slippers

I firmly believe that a Trump presidency would be a disaster for our nation. This is a man who admires Putin, mused that the Chinese government wasn’t tough enough on the Tiananmen Square protesters, and insisted that the U. S. military would obey even his unlawful orders. Add to these questionable stances his childish temperament, a temperament that includes tweeting out insults to everyone from Heidi Klum and Rosie O’Donnell to his political opponents to American businesses he wants his followers to boycott, his apparent lack of any moral or principled mooring, and his support for the sort of big spending, big government that is anathema to Constitutional conservatives like myself, and I can never, in good conscience, cast a vote for Trump as president.

I will support down ticket conservatives, but Trump is not a conservative. At various times over the past couple of years, he has called for restrictions on the First, Second, Fourth, Fifth, and Tenth Amendments, and while it is entirely possible that he didn’t understand that was what he was doing at the time, his ignorance of the United States Constitution makes him, in my opinion, a poor choice for the highest office in the land.

I didn’t become #NeverTrump without thinking about it and without realizing at the time that he could well win the GOP nomination, and when I said “Never Trump,” that’s exactly what I meant. And what I mean today. And will mean in November. If there is a libertarian candidate who makes my state’s ballot, I will consider voting for that person. If not, I will write in my choice for president. Trump is okay with this, though, after all, he said very recently that he doesn’t need my vote or that of others he’s alienated on the right. He’s confident he will make it up by appealing to Democrats and Bernie supporters. And he well may as they are much more open to his brand of big government totalitarianism than I will ever be.

Anne Sorock

As Professor Jacobson knows, I was an early adopter of a Donald Trump candidacy, occupying what I believe has been inaccurately termed the “untenable” intersection of constitutional conservatism and populism. My support stems from how I have defined, and prioritized, the main problem(s) facing America and accompanying solutions. For me, these have been a focus on dismantling the Ruling Class apparatchik and restoring national sovereignty. I remain committed to the rights recognized in the Constitution and appreciate very much the influence Cruz has had on bringing this to the fore this election cycle. Faithful, patriotic, conservative Americans can disagree on my diagnosis.

The Pundit Class instigators of the #NeverTrump movement are incentivized differently than those whose careers and reputations are not dependent on a Trump loss; their counsel is tainted and their calls for Pyrrhic victory self-serving. I fear amidst this self-serving infighting we have lost sight of who the enemy is, and it isn’t just Hillary Clinton. Clinton is but a comparatively familiar veneer on a frothing, violent left that has completely departed from America’s values. Our American culture is now a fractured one, without the unifying appreciation for freedoms that used to connect us across shallower divides. We face coming generations, indoctrinated in the public-school and university systems, who seek radical, destructive revolution and dissolution of our national sovereignty. Reversing their gains begins with leadership that unapologetically declares that our American story is a good one, that our people’s sacrifices for freedom, for others, and for principle make our story different and worth cultivating anew. Any pundits who claim there is little difference between Trump and Clinton are wholly removed from what is occurring in America’s universities and schools, the tenor of what is happening in the protest movements, and the destructive aims of the left.

Senators Cruz, and Rubio, reminded us that it is the Constitution’s unique content that differentiates America’s nationalism from that of any other patriotic nation. We need that influence, that pressure on the GOP to ensure that we can regain a national sovereignty that is rooted in meaningful values. I don’t ask for unity for the sake of party, but rather unity because we need all these elements together in order to make America Great Again. I don’t believe Trump can do it alone, without all conservatives’ support, but I do believe he is the best vehicle for all of us to accomplish this common goal. I bristle at the personal attacks on education, understanding, faith, and character of my fellow Trump supporters; these only betray a cold refusal to acknowledge the true concerns of our fellow Americans. As for myself and other Trump supporters, I am trying my best to ignore the Pundit Class’s calls to continue the rancor; to acknowledge how much we need the pressure of the Constitution warriors on our party, and to be humble about the righteousness of any of our points-of-view in the context of a fight larger than party vs. party.

Marie Stroughter, African-American Conservatives

In Bible class, currently, we are studying the Old Testament, and it’s interesting that we are exactly at the point where Israel cried out for a king in order “to be like all the other nations.”

One of the themes in the Old Testament is how Israel would obey God for a period of time, then fall away, only to come face to face with their need for God to deliver them.

I think this is similar to what is happening today. We want to be like “the cool, popular kids,” with our celebrity President. We don’t care about his moral compass, or the vulgarities spewed daily. Can you imagine “Little Vlad(amir),” or “Lyin’ Kim” (though “Li’l Kim might show him a hipster!).

Sadly, though “un-Presidential” and “not ready for prime time,” it matters little — we have our “King.”

No matter who is President, God is still King. May He bless us, despite giving us what we ask for — and what we deserve!

Mirabelle Ward

Over the past seven years, I have watched with dismay as the Democratic party has become increasingly infected with antisemitism under President Obama’s leadership. Trump’s bigotry, however, seems to know no bounds. It is directed at Jews, at women, at Mexicans, and more.

More than ever before in my lifetime, this country needs principled leadership, committed to the rule of law and the Constitution as well as to a sound national security policy. Unfortunately, it does not seem that either candidate will be able to provide that.

I am so disappointed today in the Republican party. The question that I will be asking between now and November is: which candidate will do less irreversible damage to this country, to our relationships with our allies, and to the world.

[Note: Marie Stroughter’s comment was added at to the post after initial publication.]

DONATE

Donations tax deductible
to the full extent allowed by law.

Comments

rabid wombat | May 4, 2016 at 9:02 pm

I have not been a Trump supporter. Without something stupid coming out of the convention, or something REALLY stupid about Trump (the old Texas dead woman / live boy level of problems), he will get my vote. I would greatly prefer someone else, but not above ANY of the Democrats (Clinton, Sanders, Warren, Biden….). We HAVE to maintain the House and Senate – ideally making them more conserative in the process.

assemblerhead | May 4, 2016 at 9:04 pm

A “Thank You” to all who posted their opinions.

———–

Personal Opinion :
Sometimes there is no lesser of two evils.

Voting Libertarian.

Some Conservatives have lobbied for a Third Party candidate for President… well guys, we have one. What we DON’T have is a Conservative one.

Think about it… we KNOW this game. We are a political minority who’s only path to Victory in this debate is to educate those who disagree with us… NOT because they are unintelligent or uneducated… but because they have fallen for the lies of the Left which have been pushed relentlessly upon our Nation for a hundred years now. America didn’t need a new President overseeing the same bad Government practices… it needs to upset and change those bad practices. Donald and his staff may be able to do that, without the same resistance that Ted Cruz certainly would have gotten from some Republican quarters.

Our “Path to Victory” isn’t in getting somebody elected to office, but by changing that office. This hasn’t changed with the Ascension of Donald; it is still the case. He is unpredictable. Granted. But that means there is still a possibility he might end up doing the right things, if for the wrong reason. Hey, a man can dream.

In the meantime, we have SO many down ticket victories to create, and SO many opportunities to get our message across. One office. It would have been nice… but it’s hardly a historic anomaly… we lost to Obama. Twice. What did we do? We elected local conservatives.

So, MY job will be first, to Pray. Second to do what I can to defend the Constitution, the rule of Law, protect the Flag, and defend our Nation against it’s enemies. That doesn’t end just because Donald will be President.

In the meantime, to make up to all the Cruz Conservatives, I suggest to the Trump campaign that they offer up Ted as a Supreme Court Justice Nominee. That would get my vote…

    donb in reply to MrMichael. | May 4, 2016 at 10:00 pm

    Excellent summary of the work that still needs to be done in this election.

    And your last point coincides with what I have been thinking for a long time: a Justice Cruz would probably have a greater impact, and certainly a longer impact, than a President Cruz (but the confirmation process would make the Bork skirmishes look like child’s play).

      MrMichael in reply to donb. | May 4, 2016 at 10:25 pm

      If anybody could educate the public better than Cruz during a confirmation battle, I’m at a loss to know who it would be. He might not make it… depending on who all we get elected in the Senate this year. But it would make the NEXT nominee glide through. 😀

    mrboxty in reply to MrMichael. | May 4, 2016 at 10:58 pm

    ” We are a political minority who’s only path to Victory in this debate is to educate those who disagree with us…”

    According to Gallup, those who are both social _and_ economic conservatives make up a plurality of the GOP (42%). Liberal Republicans are only 24% of the party. We just need to form coalitions with the less conservative wings to beat the liberal wing of the party.

    http://www.gallup.com/poll/183491/republican-conservative-base-shrinks.aspx

    Matt_SE in reply to MrMichael. | May 5, 2016 at 3:39 am

    I’ve heard this “Cruz for SCOTUS” nonsense from so many Trumpkins, I can’t tell if you’re trolling us. If Dems retake the Senate, that will simply never happen. If the GOP keeps the Senate, which Dems do you imagine will cross the aisle to break the inevitable filibuster? Can anyone here imagine McConnell going to bat for a Cruz nomination?

    This idea is quite simply INSANE.

      MrMichael in reply to Matt_SE. | May 5, 2016 at 7:25 am

      Not trolling, just wishful thinking. I can’t support Mr. Trump. As for insane… I’ve been called worse.

    Oversoul Of Dusk in reply to MrMichael. | May 5, 2016 at 9:32 am

    If Mr. Trump becomes president, I think he’s more likely to appoint Hillary Clinton, Barak Obama, or Chuck Schumer to the supreme court than to appoint Ted Cruz.

    Why would Trump appoint someone, like Cruz, who is his philosophical and moral opposite? He would LOVE the praise the media/leftist complex would heap on him for a “reasonable” appointment of any of his liberal buddies.

I completely disagree with Kemberlee Kaye’s comments and would be happy to point out the incidents of inaccuracies.

Most other comments were pretty good and thought out. I am voting for Trump, I absolutely hate Hillary, and I want this site to be one where I feel comfortable coming. I have not felt that way in months now.

Before I knew this site was all for Cruz, I noted that Ted Cruz said some ridiculous things (and lies) and was never called out on it by the authors of this website, which seemed like a major deviation of what the site seemed to be all about. This, to me, was unacceptable. I had great disdain for this site because of that. A site that I enjoyed had seemingly turned against what I believed it was.

I will be bookmarking this article so that when I read through future articles, I can reference the author, and the lens they are viewing the whole election. Hopefully, that will be a fair assessment of what this article is proving for me.

good enough morgan | May 4, 2016 at 9:24 pm

Thanks for the thoughtful commentary.

If there’s a hashtag campaign #probablynotTrump I’ll sign on.

My fear with Trump is that he becomes Jesse Ventura, or fill in the blank with any non-politician or anti-party movement that somehow wound up with power. (The 19th century had a few of them.) Without much grip on how government works other than making deals to get some specific favor. Trump will get run over by those who do know how government works. The administrative state is a big, complicated, fearful thing that strongly trends liberal.

Even if somehow Trump won, it’s hard to imagine a successful presidency, certainly from a conservative point of view. And again, Trump’s appeal in this election is his lack of attachment to political ideology – a good thing to those sick of listening to politicians yammering, but a bad thing for anyone else who’d like to know something about his core ideas.

Mostly, it’s hard to see much cause for optimism. We no doubt have an economic downturn in store, now having already run interest rates down. We have big chunks of the electorate — Bernie’s young voters and Trump voters — who don’t have much in common except their convictions that they aren’t buying what the major parties have been selling since the 1980s.

You get an A+ in alphabetizing. (Now, can you do it in ‘qwerty’ keyboard order — not, don’t try it — I was just kidding.)

Trump presidency would be such a train wreck that he would displace Obama and Carter as worst presidents of my life time. Thus, NeverTrump. Until this disease is removed from politics, there are no chances of recovery.

I hope and pray that there are enough voters with foresight to see where this is heading, although this hope might be the self-delusion of positive thinking. Between destructiveness of “let it burn” and short term thinking of “she is going to be worse”, there are next to no signs to fight doom and gloom.

I might yet live in America that Reagan warned about, the place where we tell next generation stories about “what it was once like in the United States where men were free”

Donald Douglas | May 4, 2016 at 10:02 pm

Anne Sorock nailed it.

    Not bad, but I’m with the professor.

    Now comes Trump’s autumn: lots of changing colors.

    With all that Trump spews forth, who can believe anything he says, has said or will EVER say?

Trump disgusts me totally. Still cannot understand why a rational being could consider him. Zero policy knowledge, not even basic civics. Low rent character assassination which 100% guarantees Professor Jacobson’s observations that he will use ever governmental agency to destroy all who do not kiss his butt. I became nevertrump pretty early -when he mocked the disabled reporter and lied about it.
Cruz has a brain stuffed with knowledge of all things conservative including economics. He has lived the life, walked the walk, only politician I know to keep his word and keep fighting for us/me!
At this point even Jeb my previous governor I would not have voted for in the primary looks magnificent.
I heard Steve Lonegan say on Monday that we would never elect Hillary with a penis.
#Nevertrump. I am done with the GOP.

    jhkrischel in reply to Libbylu. | May 4, 2016 at 11:22 pm

    Every negative thing you say about Trump could very well be true – and he’d be a better president than Obama, or Clinton.

    Hell, I could randomly pick someone off the street – say *you* – and you’d be a better president than Obama or Clinton.

    I could randomly pick someone out of *jail*, and they’d be a better president than Obama or Clinton.

    The bar is *so low*, that anything with a pulse (and likely some things without), would be better.

    I certainly never saw Trump coming, and thought for sure he’d implode – but given the choice between people who are evil and cunning, and a clown, I’d rather have the clown.

    Here’s my fantasy – Trump gets elected, heads to the white house, and literally, takes a 4 year vacation – doesn’t sign any bills, make any speeches, visit any dignitaries, nothing. If Obama had taken the past 8 years off, and just didn’t perform any duties of the presidency at all, we’d probably be in better shape today.

      Matt_SE in reply to jhkrischel. | May 5, 2016 at 3:48 am

      I’m not sure ISIS or Putin will agree to take a 4-to-8 year hiatus, nor any of America’s other enemies. Oh, and the economy won’t fix itself either, especially since it is government involvement that’s hobbling it.
      America has problems that are actively getting worse, and taking a vacation won’t cut it.

One thought: The Democrats and the Media (sorry, I repeat myself) will do everything they can to block Trump’s actions (should he win the presidency), even when it is policies they might otherwise support, just because he is labeled “Republican”. That might help limit the damage he could do.

On the other hand, they will unquestioningly support anything and everything a Hillary or Bernie might attempt, permitting and abetting unlimited damage.

I will ponder that as I cast my ballot.

Subotai Bahadur | May 4, 2016 at 10:20 pm

Jonathan Levin

I have consistently said #​NeverTrump and I meant it. I will not vote for Donald Trump. I will vote down ticket and do whatever I can to ensure the GOP retains the Senate to prevent President Clinton from appointing whichever hard Left judge she chooses (Justice Obama, ladies and gentlemen?), and the House to forestall Clinton and force her to consider the GOP agenda, if there is one.

A Republican Senate blocking a Leftist Judge? You know and I know that McConnell is going to confirm Garland, Obama’s nominee to replace Scalia, during the lame duck session when they feel they can get away with it and hope that it will be forgotten before any putative 2018 elections. What Republican Senate in what alternate universe? A Republican House forestalling Clinton and pushing a GOP agenda [whatever that might be]? This is the Republican House which has broken its promise to return to regular budget order and which TWICE has given Obama MORE than he wanted in Omnibus resolutions.

Those facts on the ground have an influence on campaigns. I grant you don’t like Trump. But Trump would not be the presumptive nominee if the Republican Party had not made betraying both conservative principles AND their voter base a fine art.

Thank you for all of your thoughts! I have an honest, serious question for all of the authors. If you are absolutely against Trump, what could make you change your mind; conversely, if you are pro-Trump, what could change your mind? Would it be economic, would it be military, etc?

    herm, you wrote: Thank you for all of your thoughts! I have an honest, serious question for all of the authors. If you are absolutely against Trump, what could make you change your mind; conversely, if you are pro-Trump, what could change your mind? Would it be economic, would it be military, etc?

    ______________

    My stance on Trump is rooted in the research I did on him on 2011-12 when he was then toying with a presidential run. Prior to that, I had watched a season or two of the Apprentice, thought his hair utterly ridiculous, and been appalled by his flame war with Rosie O’Donnell.

    Prior to his 2011-12 feeler campaign, I had already ascertained that Trump is a crass, obnoxious bully. Who on earth would care what some nobody has-been like Rosie O’Donnell says about you? Nobody I know, that’s for sure. You know who cared? Trump. He cared so much that he went on talk shows and called into “news” shows to express his thoughts about her bathroom habits and her (if you can believe it, considering the source) crassness. This wasn’t a fame-addled Justin Beiber or a drug-addled Charlie Sheen, this was a supposed success, someone who had it all–from strings of wives and well-publicized lovers to gorgeous homes around the world. This person–so successful, so intelligent, so savvy and wonderful–cared enough about what some bloated big-mouthed New Yorker has-been shrew thought about him that he engaged in a media war for weeks? Sorry. That’s just crazy. And it’s classless, insecure, and delusional.

    That whole thing told me more than I ever wanted to know about Donald Trump. He’s a petty, malicious, mean-spirited, thin-skinned, insecure lunatic.

    When he decided to run for president in 2011ish, I wasn’t that impressed, though it was refreshing to hear him push back against the media and the PC culture. Two minutes on Google convinced me that Trump is no friend of a free and Constitutional America. I wrote about it at the time, and have repeated it all since then.

    So back to your question. No, there is nothing that Trump can do between now and November that will erase his decades long support for the progressive movement, a movement, in case you didn’t know, that is determined to destroy all that is good about America.

    A few weeks ago, Trump stated without hesitation that the federal government has three main responsibilities: national security and defense, health care, and education.

    Sorry, if I had not already thought him a crass and vulgar human being, that would have sealed the deal for me.

    Can he change my mind? Nope. Well, I guess if he is elected and serves a term that is successful and that does not continue to erode the liberties of the American people, that doesn’t pull more power into the executive, and that doesn’t continually embarrass and shame us on the global stage (up to and including his lack of manner or gentility) . . . and he doesn’t cause another war or sacrifice Israel on his altar of neutrality . . . well, maybe then. But I’d have to see it to believe it with this double-talking, two-faced chameleon. I’m not holding my breath on that one.

In answer to Prof. Jacobson’s “What Now”, I earlier posted a link and excerpt from Patterico…

https://legalinsurrection.com/2016/05/conservative-reaction-to-the-trumpublican-party/comment-page-1/#comment-672348

It suggests a positive, constructive, and common-sensical approach that I will take.

I’ve known for years…decades…that the first job of a Constitutional Conservative is education. That is where to start and end up in any effort to bring back out basic charter, the SINGLE thing that makes any law legitimate, to its place as the lodestone in the U.S.

I’ve also known for decades that I am a radical thinker, meaning simply that I think in global terms about problems, and go to their root (“radius” being Latin for “root” and the root of the word “radical”…WHEW!) for answers. Simple, pure, but very difficult answers. That puts me generally out of pretty much any “big tent”, and certainly at odds with the status quo.

But we simply cannot continue down the path we’ve been on for a century or more. There literally isn’t enough money in the world to pay for future commitments, and even Barracula gave lip-service to understanding this and addressing it early on. He never did, of course.

One of many things that told me I could never support DT (I’ll spare everyone my usual word-play) is that he literally blew off this whole issue early in his campaign, saying we’d make so much money, we could fund everything. That, to me, said he’s dishonest, un-serious, and dangerous.

It went downhill from there…

So, returning to “What Now”, I’ll loop back to my fundamental attempt to educate, and support others in educating, all those around me to principles I deeply hold, and which seem so self-evident to me. It may sound simplistic to some, but this is a struggle for liberty against tyranny, and what actually works against what simply does not.

I’ll keep this short. I know what Hillary Clinton will do in the White House, as everybody else who has paid any attention also knows.

I will crawl over broken glass to vote against her.

Damn I love this blog.

    I think I shall make this my official “comment of the day.”

      Best comment phrase:
      ” I admire his fighting spirit, and his core message that is focused on this country. I have noted that he has changed his campaign staff and style to achieve a victory he obviously wants. Several people I respect are already in his camp (e.g., Sarah Palin, Jan Brewer).”

      He, like me, wants to Make America Great Again. Ya, he’s a clown — but it worked to get the nomination. ‘Cause Rep voters are sick of NON-Fighters. I wanted Cruz, the intelligent conservative fighter — but too many Reps were anti-Cruz (… Lucifer… ??? wha? really). I liked his shutdown, but most elected Reps fear the Dem media so much, they seem to be grovelling. Even Romney, (especially?) when he speaks the truth in a debate and the moderator falsely says he’s wrong, failed to fight the Dem media.

      Those who love America, (mom, apple pie, City on The Hill) need to be willing to fight, in the culture, for the ideals. Or, at least against those Democrats who are destroying it. (Democrats are on the ballot, not “leftists” — always complain about how the Dems are causing the problems; internationally it can be their foreign leftist allies).

      The media sh*t storm anti-Trump will only be slightly more than it would have been against Cruz (many were already saying Cruz is worse), but Trump is better willing to dish it out. And, now that he’s survived the elite Right arrows, his supporters will be able to see how Dem media hate speech is so hypocritical. Criticisms against what Trump “might do”, without similar criticism against what Obama & Clinton “have already done”.

      Get the Trump supporters to Register Republican, and vote Rep full ticket. Trump with a Rep Congress won’t be worse than Obama, and will likely be surprisingly better (NOT perfect!)

conservative tarheel | May 4, 2016 at 11:22 pm

I think I have 4 choices
1. stay home and watch everything burn down.
2. leave POTUS blank and vote conservative down ticket
3. vote Libertarian
4. vote t rump and commit seppuku

When 911 happened I was a brain-dead Liberal(thank you David Mamet), living in NYC, who converted to Conservatism; my peers in my former profession ostracized me for expressing my belief in the concept of liberty. Prior to my conversion I had no knowledge of Conservatism-I had fallen under the Progressive spell that Reagan was ‘a right-wing war-mongering nutcase who caused AIDS in America’.

The year following 911 I had to examine my beliefs as I was ostracized from the Progressive tribe. I found solace with a small but wise group of NYC Conservatives (as opposed to the Progressive Republican Liberals who ran NYC Republican politics).

When my eyes were opened I dedicated my time and money to Conservative political activism-it is said the converted are the most devout.

In those years- pre-Tea Party and pre-Obama- while our band of Conservative warriors were protesting the Left, writing the letters, making the calls, investing the money etc etc a majority of Americans were ‘at the mall’, at the football game, lining up to see the newest Hollywood mega hit, voting on American Idol; enjoying all the comforts of living in a Constitutional Republic.

After 15 years, tens of thousands of dollars, and thousands of hours spent fighting against the Progressive movement there arrives a stalwart leader who embodies our Constitutional Republic.

In one reality TV moment, this liberty-loving leader was pushed aside for a NYC Progressive Liberal who spent his life funding and supporting the Progressive movement.

Donald J Trump, during that time when my Conservative activist warrior friends were spending our livelihoods and our time standing against the Progressive tide, gave power and wealth to Progressives whose sole ambition is to dismantle America’s Constitutional Republic.

I do not think those who support and vote for Trump are stupid-that would let them off the hook too easily.

Since 911 I vowed to be a vigilant warrior against the Progressive movement and I will not get on either Trump’s or Clinton’s Train to Progressive madness.

I will continue fighting for America’s Constitutional Republic until the day I die; I will spend my life, my fortune and my sacred honor in pursuit of this cause!

Craziness: I am reading Huff Posts comments about Trump who in many commenters’ minds is on the wrong side of everything. They see him as a conservative who will hurt reproductive rights and get rid of entitlements. They obviously haven’t been reading over here.

So much gloom about what he will do as president, which is an unknown.

The election itself will bring out the worst of the anti-Trump, identity driven, anti-capitalist order. Their intolerance and violent, authoritarian tendencies, exposed in full scope, will push people toward Trump, not away, especially if he speaks to them in their language and about their concerns.

Marie, I suggest you read Daniel next.

4:17 “This sentence is by the decree of the angelic watchers
And the decision is a command of the holy ones,
In order that the living may know
That the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind,
And bestows it on whom He wishes
And sets over it the lowliest of men.”

It helps provide perspective. Perhaps God will do for Donald Trump what he did for King Nebuchadnezzar.

Meanwhile, I think Anne correctly identifies the most important issue: “We face coming generations, indoctrinated in the public-school and university systems, who seek radical, destructive revolution and dissolution of our national sovereignty.”

We complain and threaten to take our marbles (votes) and go home, but here’s the thing: If you are sending your child to a government school or a corrupt college or university, then _you_, not the government school or corrupt college or university, are the problem.

The common thread running through the most destructive aspects of the last 70 years – the sexual revolution, no-fault divorce, abortion, and gay marriage – is adults pursuing their own desires at the expense of children.

We need an education insurrection.

The old adage that anyone can be President was proven true in 2008. Trump and/or Clinton will be an extension of this new pattern. In 2020 no one will give it a second thought when President Kanye West takes office.

MaggotAtBroadAndWall | May 5, 2016 at 12:20 am

I’ve been very disappointed with Republican nominees before, mostly based on ideology. With Trump it is about more than ideology. I don’t want him near the federal bureaucracy or the military. I seriously, honestly think the man is temperamentally unfit to hold the office.

I don’t want to give a man with his personality and temperament the immense power of the presidency. As things stand now I can’t vote for him. Or Hillary. I’ll write in Ted Cruz, William Jacobson, or vote Gary Johnson. Then vote Republican down ballot.

Thanks to the contributors and commenters for sharing your thoughts.

I am excited for what lies ahead. I view what happened as a major positive for the country. Trump says the things I have felt for a while now – since the Romney campaign. He will be great for this country if he wins the Presidency in my view. If he can also move the party itself in his direction, Republicans will be a majority party for years and years.

gulfbreeze | May 5, 2016 at 1:25 am

I appreciate the thoughtful and thought-provoking replies of all the LI authors, as well as the broad acceptance of the diversity of their opinions. Thanks to each of you for taking the time to express yourselves so clearly.

My dream is that someday the LI comment section will be just as thoughtful, and just as accepting of the diversity of all readers’ opinions.

Well, a guy can dream, can’t he?

I’ve been a registered Independent for 12 years, and candidates I might have supported have all been eliminated (not unusual for me). I’m often voting against the worst candidate. I’ll likely be undecided until November when I can evaluate the campaigns fully.

#NeverTrump = #Hillary2016

To everyone who is fine with Trump, you must not have been paying attention during the campaign or you don’t have any principles of right and wrong.
The way Trump conducted himself will live in infamy. Moral relativism in the service of winning is disgusting, and I won’t tolerate it.

Never Trump.

Apparently, Trump did what needed to be done to win. What other explanation can there be? He did so openly, not behind the scenes. He called people names, was offensive in general, took different positions, and made no excuses. Yet, he won. I never understood why GWB haters called him stupid when he twice became President, and I don’t understand now how anyone can believe Trump is stupid. I will pray for him, and if he becomes president, the prayer will be daily.

He has Mexico apologizing to him.

toad trend 2014 | May 5, 2016 at 6:57 am

Note: I am an independent voter, registered locally with the conservative party. As a result, I did not qualify to vote in my state’s primary – I was leaning Cruz.

Trump is a direct result of Republican/GOP failure to represent Main St. USA and provide a firewall against the ideological aims of progressives. Of course, the GOP has their progressives, so, for me, both parties are corrupt in their thinking in terms of what their roles are in governance.

If you had asked me more than a year ago if I saw Trump as the GOP nominee, naturally, I would have laughed. I’m not laughing now. I do not believe Trump to be a ‘progressive’ like we currently have in spades in DC – no, he is an animal of a different nature. He’s not anything that many would like him to be – conservative, etc etc.

What I do believe is that Hillary Clinton must be defeated in the general for the presidency, and by extension, the democrat party. I have resisted the purity plays of many in media and the blogosphere and feel my personal views on if Trump is bad or good are completely secondary to the big picture.

I am an American tired of the division along racial and gender lines perpetrated by the (D) party. I am tired of the arbitrary application of the law by the current administration and the bald politicization of the DOJ. And the whitewashing of the American culture – a result of the global ‘multi-culti’ and ‘diversity’ plays – these are big-picture movements that must be resisted/eliminated.

I’ve read the contributors’ opinions and have just one question: What is more important – your personal feelings, or the future of our country? Given the 2 choices, assuming its Hillary or Trump – why in God’s name would you provide aid/comfort to the (D) party??? The goal is to *defeat democrats* at the national level.

America first. #NeverHillary.

In Slovakia, a Slovak colleague sent me a link to a Milo Y. T-shirt: God Hates Fags, But He Hates Feminists MORE…
(the gay, anti-PC, pro-Trump supporter).

But I want to highlight his key recent quote:
>>The strategy of GOP bigwigs appears to be: “lose badly, but remain virtuous.”<<

Sounds like lots of moral-preening #NeverTrump folk would rather choose their own version of virtue, over victory.

Most Rep voters, not political activists or addicts, want to win. And the elite-Rep TrumpHaters don't seem to mind losing enough ("show me a good loser, and I'll show you … a loser").

We know, from real, actual history, how bad Obama-Clinton have already been: for the Mid East, for Eastern Europe & China; for the economy; for the morality of Americans, for the reduction of Free Speech in America, for the loss of "presumed innocent" for men.

We don't know how bad Tump would be. I hate his style. I am sad that his style works so well. To change reality, Reps need to win — House seats, Senate, Governorships, and President (plus some SCOTUS). I hated losing with McCain, hated losing with (GREAT man, highly virtuous) Romney. I also did get tired of losing, not even close as Libertarian (Lib candidate in '86 & '88 in CA).

Reps will do a lot better if they win, and support winners, even when those winners are vulgar and not your own style. The Dem style is to accept genocide of Christians as OK, but Abu Ghriab illegal prisoner humiliation is totally immoral. The genocide is worse. Dem policy is worse. If virtue doesn't lead to victory, how long before we need to change to something that does work? This is why war is hell, because one must kill in order to win.

We need a better culture before virtuous will more often be victorious.

And we need to get vouchers for gov't education K-12.

    willow in reply to Tigger. | May 5, 2016 at 7:45 am

    I am really liking your comments, Tigger.

    Twanger in reply to Tigger. | May 13, 2016 at 4:39 pm

    Well said Tigger.

    Trump has given the angry silent majority of the Republican party a voice. Like in the 1976 movie Network, he has emboldened millions of people to throw open the window and scream “We’re mad as hell, and we’re not gonna take it any more!”

    The #nevertrump ivory tower types are simply throwing their votes away, and throwing the future of their children and grandchildren away by not voting for him.

    Why?

    There is a huge problem in this country, and it’s is the Federal Budget Deficit that stands at about 20 TRILLION DOLLARS. It’s $65,000 for each man, woman, and child in this country. It was doubled during Obama’s tenure. This deficit will continue to increase if a socialist/Democrat is elected.

    As a businessman Trump should understand the stranglehold this deficit will have on this country far more than any of the current status-quo political elite. As an outsider to the greasy palm crowd, there’s at least a chance that he will tackle the problem that everyone else is kicking down the road to doom.

    Global Warming has nothing on the Federal Budget Deficit. The deficit will be far more destructive if it is allowed to go the way it is currently going.

It’s not rocket science to me at this point. Anyone who is not for Trump, even while holding your nose, is for Hillary.

We all wish it worked out differently but the facts are on the table, Secretary Clinton is surely the most evil candidate I’ve ever seen and I will do everything I can to make sure she’s not elected, Huma is not elected, Bill is not elected.

We can debate all day long and I know many ‘nevertrump’ folks who are struggling right now, but when ‘nevertrump’ means ‘surelyclinton’ I will also put on the big boy pants noted above and go out and work for the man who is not Hillary.

Get Donald to take on some decent advisors, get him to put Ted on the Supreme Court; keep the Senate, the governorships, and we’ll get through for now. I won’t ever support Hillary, not even by staying home.

    No, Conservatives who walk the walk are not responsible for anyone else’s vote – and the Trump Hive Mind elected an unelectable New York Liberal candidate in the name of populism, a candidate who never had 40% of the GOP base in hand. The party is now splintered and and those of us who believe in Liberty and smaller government must find a new home.

    Whoever wins the Presidency will be a disaster waiting to happen – so I am going to the sidelines to sit this one out. It would seem to me that the Big L Libertarians need to get busy because the voters with libertarian leanings now outnumber Liberals, Conservative and Fence-sitting liberals.

We tried an “experiment” with Obama by electing a freshman Senator who was never adequately vetted, who hid behind the shield of racism, who had no notable accomplishments to his name (at least nothing positive and notable), and so forth. That “experiment” has been an unmitigated disaster.
>
Not to be outdone, the desperate Republican voters have decided to repeat this experiment with Donald Trump who will be nothing more than a semi-conservative version of Obama. I weep for our nation for the public is about to suffer the consequences of their decision. With our choice being between Hillary and Trump, I pray God will be merciful.

Joan Of Argghh | May 5, 2016 at 7:46 am

Obama said exactly what he meant, and every pundit tried to make it mean what they thought. They worked hard to not believe that he meant what he said. “Fundamental transformation” was his aim. He spoke in vague terms so that others could project their deepest hopes on him and what we got was exactly what he promised. His “cipher” background was too much trouble for Media to hack. But he has kept his promises. We non-pundits understood him completely back in 2007. We have never once questioned him as an idiot while acknowledging his lack of qualifications.

Trump is the polar opposite sort of real-time campaigner, transparent in his thought processes, fluid in his options. Or perhaps an unconscionable idiot. But I’m not trusting the chattering skulls to enlighten me further.

buckeyeminuteman | May 5, 2016 at 7:50 am

Trumpublicans don’t need my helping losing to Clinton, they were going to do that anyway and it’s been known for some time now. They dug their own grave and now they’ll want my help to pull them out of it. They turned their backs on Constitutional Conservatism and looked to a man with an ego bigger than Trump Tower who would say anything, promise anything, and repeat any tabloid garbage he could to win the nomination. I’m not leaving the Republican Party, they left me and they left Conservatism. Picking one tyrant over a greater tyrant is still siding with a tyrant. As neither of the two parties represent my morals, beliefs and platforms anymore I’ll be working on finding another. Viva la Tea Party!

    spartan in reply to buckeyeminuteman. | May 5, 2016 at 9:20 am

    Well stated!!
    The last few months, they have insulted our intelligence and mocked our positions. Now, they want us to go along with them for fellowship against Hillary.

    I am reminded by this bit of dialogue from A Man For All Seasons:

    The Duke of Norfolk: Oh confound all this. I’m not a scholar, I don’t know whether the marriage was lawful or not but– dammit, Thomas, look at these names! Why can’t you do as I did and come with us, for fellowship!

    More: And when we die, and you are sent to heaven for doing your conscience, and I am sent to hell for not doing mine, will you come with me, for fellowship?

    Totally agree, and I wonder what this all means for the Article V Convention of States initiative. I’ve felt for a long time that Article V is the answer to the problem of an ever-expanding federal government.

I cannot vote for a man who cannot admit that he is bald(ing). Gary Johnson.

    princepsCO in reply to Obie1. | May 5, 2016 at 8:48 am

    I think you mean that you’ll be supporting Gov. Johnson, right? If so, I’m with you on that thought. My vote has to be earned by adhering to liberty, civil rights, private property rights, and small government processes. Since the GOP is giving up on these American values, I’ll be supporting the Libertarian candidate, even if it’s McAfee.

    Yes, Clinton is evil, from the core of her being to the people with which she surrounds herself. And, yes, Trump is ignorant of anything close to Constitutional understanding — he’s Latin American dictator in attitude and values. My vote for anyone is a statement of my values, not a declaration of who I believe to be the best leader. If that were the case, I’d be voting for Peyton Manning. 🙂

Mr Jacobson – I just changed my L-I recurring payment to go to Trump’s website instead, after reading your opinion of Trump’s becoming the presumptive nominee. I agree with Anne Sorock, and while I still support your websites, I just won’t do so with my hard-earned retirement cash until a more realistic view of Trump is observed. Not asking for ‘thought agreement’ with me–merely realistic, objective understanding of the D.C. rot of both parties and that Trump’s supporters mojo is not anger or celebrity, but CONTEMPT. Contempt is a more potent force of energy than anger . . . and is a direct consequence (learned from) of decades of contempt and corruption flowing from D.C. to me. When Trump speaks he is believed–unlike EVERY other politician, especially those running for president. If Trump does not, for example, build the wall then his integrity is in trouble! For now, he IS believed and this is his overarching strength no one can take from him. Reading your Trump screed I sense you have no understanding why Trump is now the Republican Presumptive Nominee.

All Trump has to do is right the economy and the rest of the country’s ills will follow that momentum toward the founding philosophies of individual freedoms–possibly without an Article V convention. Do you REALLY believe Trump will be anywhere near as bad a president or as anti-semitic as obama is, or Hillary would be? Are you perhaps (reflexively) that far ‘in the tank’ for the establishment??
Stingray, BS, MBA, BSN, RN

    Zachary in reply to Stingray. | May 5, 2016 at 8:41 am

    Hey thanks for reminding me, I just cancelled subscriptions to other sites that have been constant Trump apologists and started a recurring account here. It’s been overdue for this site, as I have enjoyed reading it for a long time.

    inspectorudy in reply to Stingray. | May 5, 2016 at 5:39 pm

    I don’t know you, of course, but I am ashamed for you for this comment about LI and Prof. Jacobson. In your condemnation of Prof. Jacobson, you never once gave a reason for voting FOR Trump, only that it was contempt of the RINOs that propelled you to support him. Then you say that if he doesn’t build the wall then his integrity will be in trouble. What integrity? He has lied about and insulted everyone in the original primary. He has insulted many journalist and commentators. He hs uttered the vilest lies about other people’s family and lives. He has changed positions so many times that it is like a ping pong tournament. Where in all of your anger and contempt does Trump fit in? Have you considered for one single moment what he said about Ted Cruz’s father on the night he was going to win big in IN? What? Integrity! BS!

Someone please direct me to the small government, conservative 2016 Republican candidates, because I seem to have missed them.

These delusional, self-righteous, petulant rants, particularly Kimberlee’s juvenile screed, are missing the point.

Everything written about Trump above is true.

Regardless, if Trump does not win this election, it will be the last contested national election. There will be amnesty, there will be tens of millions of leftist voters. There will be no turning back. Your mindless bloviating about grass roots and local government and down-ticket Republicans (Have you not noticed the executive orders? What has a Republican Congress done to stop Obama?) ignores the critical fact that once in power the Left will not leave us alone to freely live our lives. They will continue in the current trajectory, eroding our freedoms and everything we hold dear, and we will be powerless to stop it, except by blood.

Self-righteous fools.

    inspectorudy in reply to Tenbor. | May 5, 2016 at 5:47 pm

    Every thing you say is absolutely true! But what makes you think that Trump will stop any of it? He has no record until last year of even talking about most of these issues. Now he is our savior? I am a little more positive about our future than you and believe if hillary wins that after four years of her and her liberal gang there will truly be a revolution of some sort. Maybe a third party, headed by a leader that steps up out of fear of the loss of our great nation. But maybe it will propel someone who would not normally run for the office to do so out of duty, love and fear. As Thomas Jefferson once said, “The tree of liberty must be nourished from time to time by the blood of patriots”! That time will come if hillary is elected. If Trump is elected and is hillary lite, then what do we do?

Long before Greek philosopher Epicurus taught that God was distant, angry and didn’t care, there were the children of Israel who acted on such projection:

“When the people saw that Moses took a long time to come down the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and told him, “Come here and make us a god who will go before us, because, as for this fellow Moses who led us out of the land of Egypt, we don’t know what has become of him.”

Aaron told them, “Tear off the gold rings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters and bring them to me.”

All the people tore off the gold rings that were in their ears and brought them to him.

He took them from them and, using a tool, fashioned them into a molten calf. The people said, “This, Israel, is your god who brought you out of the land of Egypt.””

-The Golden Calf, Exodus 32

I don’t think this over …

Now is the time to watch, wait, and listen.

Since the capitulation, while everyone has been deciding whether to embrace the Stockholm Syndrome or #NeverTrump, a few funny things are happening on the road to Cleveland.

The first issue to hit the fan is money, as in who is going to pay for Trump’s campaign. The folks who raised $1B for Romney in 2012 are not giving any money to Trump.
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/gop-donors-not-a-dime-for-trump/article/2590313
These donors are committed to saving the Senate; and many others will be concentrating their efforts to save the House. They also have issues with Trump’s policies and his personal smears.
Poor Trump is going to have to pay for this campaign out of his pocket; just as he always promised 🙂
This is high-stakes poker and it is time for the Donald to put up or shut up.

The second issue is the Trump University lawsuits. These will be taking place this summer and fall. They also expose Trump as a con man who screws over the little guy.
http://www.weeklystandard.com/reminder-you-havent-heard-the-last-of-trump-u./article/2002221
Basically, Trump licenses his name to any crook that can send him a check and then run away and pretend he’s as much the victim as the people who got scammed. This time, Trump may have gone a bridge too far.

The last issue is an article that has not gotten nearly the attention that Ted Cruz received from the allegations of having 5 (or was it 8) mistresses. It seems a lawsuit was filed in CA claiming Trump raped a 13-year old girl while in the company of the pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The UK Daily Mail has more of the particulars.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3564767/Donald-Trump-furiously-denies-woman-s-claims-raped-tycoon-billionaire-pedophile-Jeffrey-Epstein-s-sex-parties.html

It should be noted that this matter has been dismissed on a technicality:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/rape-lawsuit-against-donald-trump-7891182
But the allegations are still out there and if the technicality is cured, the lawsuit can be brought back. If you think for one second that Team Hillary would not hesitate to use these allegations to smear Trump and the GOP and the ongoing “GOP War Against Women”.

What I find amusing are the claims from Radar Online that they have seen Epstein’s Black Book held by the FBI as evidence. They claim that the plaintiff’s and Trump’s names do not appear in the black book. The strange part of this claim is the claim they have seen the evidence.

Did they file am FOIA request? That was a pretty quick turnaround. However, I guarantee the standard procedure for the Government is to redact all of the names not used in the government’s case against Epstein. I doubt a judge would order full disclosure of all the names contained in the book for concerns of privacy. Thus, while the statement that the plaintiff’s and Trump’s names do not appear may be accurate based of the redaction, it is certainly not definitive.
I point this out not only for the procedural aspect, but to also call into question the tactic of Radar Online, who did not bother to show any journalistic ethics in their coverage of the Ted Cruz allegations.

At this point, let’s wait, watch, and listen. Be ready for whatever happens. At this point the only thing I know for certain is that the head of the #NeverTrump movement is Trump himself.

Oh, the self-righteous my-socks-don’t-stink purists on this site! Will not taint themselves by voting for anyone but an impossibly perfect candidate–one that thinks just like them, in fact. Election after election, they bemoan the absence of a candidate deserving of their vote. If their preferred candidate hadn’t dropped out by now, he or she would have developed intolerable shortcomings before November anyway.

What can such superior people do in the imperfect real world other than flounce away from or vengefully sabotage the fallen-short alternative to their Platonic dream? Yes, please do stay home. Stay off blogs, too, or at least preface what you write with a warning, e.g., “Not worth reading.”

    Zachary in reply to rambler5. | May 5, 2016 at 11:36 am

    If the world would just preface everything with “not worth your attention” based on your particular preferences, it would be utopia, wouldn’t it. That would be a ‘pure’ place I imagine.oh the irony.

    inspectorudy in reply to rambler5. | May 5, 2016 at 5:53 pm

    Thank you! Every time I think that maybe Trump supporters are more like me and are just passionate, one like you comes along and reminds me why I don’t like Trump. You can’t come on here and discuss his ideas or his vision, probably because he doesn’t have one or any, but you attack us personally. Just like someone else we all now and dislike for it. Can’t you see why we do not want to have you come here? We are expressing our feelings about the election and Trump and then you come along and make it personal and insulting.

filiusdextris | May 5, 2016 at 9:23 am

What now? I’d like to see an LI piece sometime in the next few months examining third parties (their platforms, not their candidates so much) to help my vote in the fall. I always appreciate your insights.

strobachyzoo | May 5, 2016 at 9:23 am

If you want the Clintons making the next 4 or 5 Supreme Court Nominations, and continue with the Leftist Elite agenda, fine stick your head in the sand and sit out the Presidential Election… But I suggest that you join the real world. Think about the consequences of your actions first, every vote will count this November!

a few months ago I would have agreed better DT than HC but honestly, as DT has revealed himself in all his wickedness, I’m #nevertrump (and never means never). I’m all for demanding the delegates (if anti-trump is still a majority after June 7) scrap the binding rules, denying DT the nomination, no matter the consequences – the country is at stake guys, forget your little rules (which incidentally have allowed dem crossovers a large role in selecting DT).

Just wait, November is still six months away.

In that time Trump will either:
Pivot to the left – following his life long tendencies.
Generally maintain his current, if ever shifting, positions.

If he pivots to the left, he’ll stand revealed as just another progressive charlatan – and we can vote accordingly. Of course, his most fervent supporters will be unaffected – but then, at this point, they’re pretty much beyond changing their feelings about Trump.

If he more-or-less maintains his current positions, then maybe there’s a tiny bit of hope.

Another possible consideration might be that Trump, unlike Obama or Clinton, would not be Impeachment-proof.

If the election were today, I would vote third party – or just not vote for President.

In November? Too soon to say…

VaGentleman | May 5, 2016 at 10:31 am

Of the 17 candidates we started with, Trump was the last one I wanted to see standing at the end. I didn’t want Cruz either.
There are those who say they won’t vote or will vote 3rd party, as though that solves the problem. The only problem it solves is their need to be able to say “ain’t my fault” on Nov 9th. But it will be their fault. There are only 2 outcomes for this election – The Dem wins or the Republ wins. Not voting got us Obama 2012. Voting 3rd party got us Clinton in 92 (remember Perot – remember what he stood for? – you forgot the principle already?). In VA it got us McAuliffe in 13 (Sarvis [Libertarian] sucked off enough votes to defeat Cuccinelli). I think any of us can point to real damage to our cause from losing those elections. Can anyone point to any positive result for us from the ‘principled’ stand that helped lose those elections for us? Anyone??

Conservatives wanted a revolution in the republican party. This is what it looks like. Don’t like it – too bad, so sad, get over it. You should have led it, not watched it. This is reality, 2016. The republican party will never be the same. If you are as devoted to the cause as you say, spend the next 4 years working to make a difference. But for the next 6 months, the only choice is defeat the dem or suffer the consequences.

My $.02 – YMMV.

    conservative tarheel in reply to VaGentleman. | May 5, 2016 at 3:49 pm

    well said .. gave it an up vote ..
    you have 2 Dems running ..
    yes the donald is a bloomberg republican
    which is to say not a republican at all …
    still not sure which way I am going to vote
    Libertarian or donald … the SC is pushing me
    toward the donald.
    G_D forgive me.

I would need to know the VP selection of each candidate because it may matter.

For Hillary – she may be indicted after she is in office or she may have another health issue which means she is removed from office. So, who follows her? Is it someone even more left of her or a moderate? If it is Bernie – will we see Warren in as the VP?

For Trump – will he try to bring the more conservative section of the party back in by selecting a small gov’t type or go with another moderate? I suspect that whoever he brings in will be ignored, just like Biden.

I suspect Biden was brought in to be VP, not for his experience in gov’t or foreign affairs, but to be the insurance policy against something happening to Obama. In hindsight, crazy old Uncle Joe as president probably would have been better for the country.

Right now, I am not excited about Trump. But, I will probably vote for him as a “never Hillary/VP”. I will vote for conservative Republicans for Congress,state and city spots. We need to keep the majority in the House & Senate. My political dollars and support will go to the conservative candidates, even some in other states. I hope the Professor & others highlight those candidates for us to help support.

Please don’t do anything to make it easier for the Democrats to have another round of making a bigger mess of our region.
Us alien spectators can’t take much more hope&change meddling in our world.
If the results of another Democrat administration could be constrained to only infect the USA I wouldn’t be so worried.

During the entirety of the last 3rd of the 20th century I voted libertarian. Because of Al Gore I came over & started to vote Republican in 2000. It’s always been reluctantly. With the results of the new Republican majority in the lame duck congress of 2014 it became imperative to me I must do all I could to damage or if possible destroy the Republican party.
It was in no way an opposition party, it was an active collaborator in international government.
I don’t know how so many of you could be in denial of that reality yet you are.
Ted Cruz wouldn’t have changed that. No Republican would.
You that can’t see that can & will do what you’ve always done. My view has never gotten thru to people like you.
Donald Trump is not the problem. Your brand of delusional conservatism is the other side of the coin to delusional progressivism.
Each enables the other.

    Zachary in reply to secondwind. | May 5, 2016 at 11:42 am

    Conservatism isn’t delusional, it would work if accepted by the masses. Expecting the masses to accept it seems to be delusional at this point, though, I’ll give you that. So I ask you, if both ideologies are delusional, what is the true ideology?

I think Trump (the man) is going to surprise a lot of the writer/readers of this website, especially as he staffs his team with Republicans.

His top surrogates, Miller and Cohen are top notch.

I think a lot of the writers here opposed to Trump are really opposed to things they see in Trump’s voters, which have little to do with Trump himself (aside from the fact that they’ll be in control of things if and only if the other Republicans drop out).

And Trump’s williness to attack the left is sorely needed.

More people who simply do not get it.

Look, the President is powerless to do anything that the people, through their elected members of Congress, choose to oppose. The key here is “through their elected members of Congress”. The members of Congress will, largely, remain members of the progressive political machine which dominates the land inside the beltway. The names may change, but the ideology will not. Nothing will change in Washington, unless the politicians heed the message that the electorate is sending. And that message is “listen to us or find another phony-bologna job”. It does not take a rocket scientist to be an elected representative. All a representative has to do is represent the bulk of his constituents. But, the politicians in Washington have been representing special interests and themselves, to the detriment of the bulk of their constituents, for the last 60 years. The majority of the electorate is sending a message that this must stop, now. We’ll see, over the next four years if the elected representatives get that message.

    Zachary in reply to Mac45. | May 5, 2016 at 11:48 am

    You’re right about congress. However, to your first point about the checks on executive power-through regulation and executive orders and the Judicial there’s a lot a president can do without the consent of the governed. It’s expanding every year and I don’t see any reason Trump would slow it down.

    A_Nonny_Mouse in reply to Mac45. | May 5, 2016 at 5:35 pm

    It’s called “corruption and graft”, and it’s been around for … oh, forever. This current batch of craven politicians is no worse than any other batch of craven politicians.

    “Solving the problem” requires that Our Duly-Elected Representatives In Congress must somehow raise themselves above their moral turpitude and end ALL possibility of graft-and-corruption by standing united and voting AGAINST giving Federal Largesse (ie taxpayer dollars) TO ANY ENTITY WHATEVER, FOR ANY REASON WHATEVER. They would also have to CEASE writing legislation that favors their Major Contributors (and/or penalizes the competitors of those same Contributors).

    Do you think that’s going to happen?

    When the Political Class has “insufficient opportunities for graft” (h/t Instapundit), they may –keyword “may”– decide to start acting in the best interests of their constituents. But – WHO is going to vote to change the way Big Modern Government works, in order to strip them of those “opportunities”? THEY are the ones who write the laws that benefit themselves and their cronies and their donors; not to mention increasing their pensions and influence and power.

    I see no way to actually change the “perverse incentives” that each new crop of Duly-Electeds face when they take office, and I see no way to change the Political Class’s apparent Ethos Of Eternal Entitlement.

    Short version:
    Here’s to the Late, Great, USofA!
    Where it went wrong, nobody can say…

      inspectorudy in reply to A_Nonny_Mouse. | May 5, 2016 at 6:05 pm

      There is a way to stop the elite from running DC and the nation. It is for TERM LIMITS for ALL elected and court positions, including SCOTUS. There also must be some form of Congressional redistricting in the states to get a true form of representation. Through hegemony, we have ended up with districts that do not even require the candidate to compete. All they do is recite a mantra that is accepted as the profile of that district and they get elected. If a district is 55/45%, the 45% are not represented. Redistricting is the only way to get back to the founding fathers form of government.

strobachyzoo | May 5, 2016 at 12:33 pm

As Charles Spurgeon said, “prayer is the slender nerve that moves the omnipotent muscle of God.” The Bible commands us to pray for authorities, because all authority has been established by Him to accomplish His purposes. Trump is the presumed Republican Nominee at this point. I suggest we pray for God to Guide and Protect him at this point…

Zachary :
Statism doesn’t work. National or international. That’s been proven time &,again. The only reason it survives is because it serves the purpose of the ruling classes.
The world is in unprecedented transition due to possibilities never before available. Thinking never before thought. It’s why male based Islam is in such turmoil. Male Muslims are in fear they’ll lose female Muslims if those females begin to think formerly unthinkable thoughts.
I suspect the world will increasingly become live & let live. As & if that does become reality, it will increasingly threaten the status quo that now is. That also is why our own ruling institutional classes are increasingly showing strains.
What is to prevent future generations from renouncing all the obligations our generations have put them under? I advocate that. We may well be living thru the death rattles of the 20th century era of progressive & international statism. Both communism & fascism were early attempts at establishing an internationalist vision of a new communal mankind.
Thesis – antithesis – who’s really to determine the outcome? A future of generations not yet born.

I understand this never Trump stuff is very fresh but I believe many of these people will start to warm to him as the team for the convention and for the presidency is built. He is an unconventional candidate and probably will remain so but he is going to have the help of seasoned professionals.

The self funding phase has ended so he will be assembling a world class finance team. There are many wealthy donors that have been waiting for Trump to signal for their help.

The foreign policy advisors will start to come aboard. Most likely, Newt Gingrich and Rudy Giuliani will be helping if not leading the charge.

This is going to look more like a typical run but with the Trump style. I suspect when people see how that takes shape opinions will change.

    inspectorudy in reply to PhillyGuy. | May 6, 2016 at 11:27 am

    “I understand this never Trump stuff is very fresh but I believe many of these people will start to warm to him as the team for the convention and for the presidency is built.”

    Have you seen his latest insults? When do you suppose he will moderate and start acting like a human being? I do not care for Paul Ryan at all but Trump threatened him for saying that he wasn’t onboard the Trump bandwagon yet. I believe just the opposite. I believe that as some of the more principled players in the Republican party, there are a few, are insulted and belittled by Trump, the #never Trump crowd will harden into meaning absolutely Never means Never. If he continues with his obama like arrogance, he will do and say things that will prevent many of us from ever supporting him no matter that hillary is the beneficiary. At this point, I do not think that he and his supporters care if they get the support of conservative or people with principles.

This is a great read – much appreciated. I agree that a once in a lifetime opportunity may have been lost, and perhaps our only opportunity given the financial condition of the US. I was a Cruz supported and Trump has certainly lost my GE vote with the way he has campaigned in the primary, but its not completely impossible that he could win it back. If he doesn’t then I will certainly do what I can to keep my state government & legislature from turning Blue since its on the cusp unfortunately.

Great advice from Mark Levin that I will paraphrase. We are not running for President, donald trump is. I / we do not have an obligation to “unite” with him. He has to earn my /our vote. We will see what evolves over the next 6 months.

As the years pass, it’s become increasingly obvious that my idea of conservatism is far different from that of the general population. It seems even people my age (including some who claim to align themselves with the TEA party) are more interested in reaping taxpayer funded benefits and expecting the government to protect them than they are in seeing the nation prosper and leaving a better life for their descendants. I hold “the Blessings of Liberty” dear, but apparently the concept has become obsolete or as perverted as “general Welfare.” Not surprisingly, the candidate I thought best was finally swept into the dustbin.

At this point, I’m not sure what I’ll do. I left the party many years ago for lack of principles, but allowing Hillary to stack SCOTUS is an idea I find reprehensible. I don’t know that Trump would be any better, since they both act according to what is most beneficial for their personal power and finances at any given moment.

It’s disheartening to see how far we’ve fallen.

    conservative tarheel in reply to AZ_Langer. | May 5, 2016 at 7:31 pm

    IF I vote for the donald … that that is If ….
    it will be because of the SC … that is the only
    reason ….

    I, too, was under the impression that Americans were, at our core, freedom-loving, independent, pull-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps people. A proud people who had cause to be proud because we are not only had the greatest nation on earth, but the greatest nation the earth had ever seen. We Americans, I thought, were resilient, strong, bolstered by an understanding set forth in our nation’s founding documents that we, the people, not only mattered but were integral to our nation’s success and its continued values and principles.

    I was completely delusional, apparently. That America, the one that I love and hold forever in my heart, is no more. It’s probably not been for a few decades, but . . . I didn’t see the creep, or I assumed other Americans were as dedicated to that old vision of America as I.

    I started waking up in 2007-08 when the empty suit Obama caused hysteria and fainting spells unseen in gatherings since the Beatles came to the U. S. in the sixties. I looked around, and I thought, what is going on with these people? Obama talked a lot, but he didn’t say much, and when he did say something meaningful, it was antithetical to American values as I understood them.

    It turns out, though, that I was wrong. American culture and society has changed. We have Americans, in throngs, supporting a self-proclaimed socialist, an Alinsky communist, and a (for want of a better name) fascist. Government is the answer for each, no matter the question. Trump, in recent days, has come out in support of a national minimum wage hike (which he claims he can ordain with executive order on his first day in office. His ignorance of even basic things that an 11-year-old picks up on Schoolhouse Rock is shocking and disturbing), iterated his support to rebuild our nation’s infrastructure as a top priority, and burbled meaninglessly about hiring someone to do the president’s job of working with Congress to push his agenda (an agenda no one, including Trump, can articulate).

    Andrew Breitbart once warned that if conservatives continued to be ineffectual in the culture war, we would lose. We didn’t fight in the culture war, we sat it out or belatedly pushed back when things got too close to home. But it was not enough. An American who thinks that a socialist, a communist, or a fascist would make a great president is not an America I recognize.

      spartan in reply to Fuzzy Slippers. | May 6, 2016 at 8:36 am

      This may be my favorite subthread of all of the LI posts I have read. There is so much gold to mine here.

      I think the biggest problem has been truly defining what is conservatism and what is not. In this manner, we can separate those who really are conservative from those who are not.
      Russell Kirk did a marvelous job of defining the 6 Canons of Conservatism:

      1-A divine intent as well as personal conscience rules society, “forging an eternal chain of right and duty which links great and obscure, living and dead.”

      2-Traditional life, as distinguished from “the narrowing uniformity and egalitarianism … of most radical systems,” is filled with variety and mystery.

      3-Civilized society requires orders and hierarchy—“if a people destroy natural distinctions among men, presently Bonaparte fills the vacuum.”

      4-“Property and freedom are inseparably connected.”

      5-“Man must put a control upon his will and his appetite,” knowing that he is governed more by emotion than reason.

      6-“Society must alter … but Providence is the proper instrument for change.”

      Kirk argued what made a conservative counterrevolution possible was; “the best written constitution in the world, the safest division of powers, the widest diffusion of property, the strongest sense of common interest, the most prosperous economy, an elevated intellectual and moral tradition, and a spirit of self-reliance unequaled in modern times.”

      Kirk laid down an outline for rejuvenating and preserving a conservative social order. First, conservatives, he said, need to revive the classical definition of justice: “to every man the things which are his due.” This, Kirk believed, should be the animating moral principle of a people. Moreover, conservatives need to remind themselves that to love our country, “our country ought to be lovely.” In addition, conservatives need to teach themselves and their nation “humility in the performance” of their duties, to realize that “diversity is better than uniformity” and that the task of the United States “as the greatest of powers” is “the preservation of justice and peace.” The last endeavor, Kirk wrote, may be the most difficult undertaking because “national vanity is as difficult for states to subdue as spiritual pride is rebellious within man.”
      http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2014/10/the-conservative-mind-of-russell-kirk

      I think we have dumbed-down our definitions of what is conservatism and conversely have abdicated such definitions to intellectual tyrants like Ann Coulter and others with bigger megaphones. Thus, we are told that every GOP nominee since Reagan is a conservative; and we believe. I should point out that conservative stalwarts like Phyllis Schlafly of “A Choice, Not An Echo”, endorsed Trump this year despite Trump’s failure to abide by most of Kirk’s Canons. You would have thought #4 alone would be a deal-breaker.

      LI needs to be the beacon of conservatism from the intellectual tyrants who are willing to compromise principles for power. They are willing to compromise our freedoms for power. They conveniently forget the words of Reagan who famously said:

      Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.

      We are getting too close to the precipice ……

      gibbie in reply to Fuzzy Slippers. | May 6, 2016 at 10:21 am

      Yes, the continued integrity of this country depends on personal responsibility. So I hope you don’t mind if I ask some personal questions.

      Do you send your children to government schools?

      What do you do to help parents who want to pull their children out of government schools?

      Disclosure:
      First two children: I was a fool and am still reaping the consequences.
      Third child: I was only half a fool.
      Grandson: So far, so good.

      PhillyGuy in reply to Fuzzy Slippers. | May 10, 2016 at 9:52 am

      Feel better now? Such meaningless drivel. That ship has sailed.

assemblerhead | May 6, 2016 at 9:53 am

This sums up some of what I think :

http://www.redstate.com/jaycaruso/2016/05/03/own-it-if-trump-is-the-nominee-and-loses-trump-supporters-are-to-blame-not-nevertrump/

( That “voter” arguing with Cruz … there is a real / valid reason abusable drugs are called dope. )

Not only do they own it … they can keep it ALL to themselves. Win or Loose, its ALL on them.

I want no part of a political party that has branded itself “cuckservative”. What exactly does that branding say about the I.Q. / emotional maturity of the “proud-to-proclaim”?

The GOPe has committed seppuku. Don’t intervene. Let them die.

Its past time for a real second and/or third party to step up. We only have a one party system right now. ( GOPe & Democrats = same party / different labels )

The Reagan coalition is dead. Whether it was killed by Donald Trump, or new social media (“The medium is the message”–Marshall McLuhan), or just the passage of time–or all three–I don’t know. But I do know that the status quo ante is never coming back.

So the #NeverTrump people are deluding themselves if they think they can just wait it out, or rebuild/rescue the Reagan coalition. They can’t. That is a lost cause. History doesn’t grant mulligans.

I can’t sign up for lost causes. The real choice is between Donald and Hillary. In this world–the real one–I vote for Donald. I do so with the hope that many Reaganesque ideas will gradually infuse his movement.

henrythefirst | May 10, 2016 at 3:08 pm

As a Republican (32 years) I will never vote for Trump because he first of all, not a Republican, and second of all, an immoral man. I won’t vote for Hillary either, who is one level better than Trump, being true to her party affiliation, but immoral nonetheless.

“Authors?” More like pathetic nimrods one and all. Just as it was in 1980, loser mouth-breathing establishment Republicans hate the nominee. Bush I called his plan “voo-doo economics.” He later showed his gratitude for Reagan elevating him by saying he was a “kinder and gentler” conservative when compared to Reagan. This is the excrement sandwich youse guys would shove down our throats. His son, The Jebster. The majority will instead take this year’s Reagan, the great Donald Trump.

The base has spoken.

Trump sits atop a pyramid of GOP voter support, millions and millions strong. The GOPe sits atop and upside-down pyramid of GOP voter support: that is, their base is a handful of rich guys – abd their handful of votes won’t win squat.

Ted Cruz would be a great president, but he simply could not capture the imagination of the base, as Trump did.

The blame for any unhappiness with Trump rests squarely on the heads of boehner, McConnell, Prebus, McCain, Romney, Graham, Ryan, Bush, Rove, ad nauseam. Don’t blame Trump. Blame yourselves for tolerating the likes of these corrupt, cowardly bums.

    To the thumbs-down voter: you might not like the truth, but to run from it promises a repeat of the GOPe disaster that gave you Trump — and Obama’s unfettered trampling of the Constitution.

    Just ask boehner, McConnell, Prebus, McCain, Romney, Graham, Ryan, Bush and Rove.

Ok, deep breath, count to 10, grab the decaf… Trump, regardless of what he said as a businessman 20 years ago, is running as a pro-life, pro-Second-Amendment-Rights, pro-borders, pro-American, anti-Obamacare Republican. He is better than McCain or Romney ever were. https://www.donaldjtrump.com/positions