GOP in Panic Over Trump
“Republican establishment are plotting a full-scale attempt to torpedo his candidacy”
Between reports that representatives from major networks (CNN, FOX, NBC, ABC, and CBS) gathered together to discuss how to take down Trump and John Kasich’s bizarre ad, Trump seems to have more people poised to work against him than with him.
The Hill reports that the GOP is in a “panic” over Trump and are finally taking his campaign seriously enough to call him “the clear front-runner” and to wonder how to derail it.
So far, GOP strategists and pundits on both sides have been predicting that Trump’s success will be short-lived, that it’s just like the last presidential election in which each candidate had his or her 15 minutes of fame . . . only to crash, burn, and drop out in a matter of weeks.
That, however, is not the case with Trump thus far; the Hill continues:
“The media has twisted and turned through a number of different positions where they tried to explain that it was just a fad — the summer of Trump,” said Craig Robinson, a former political director of the Republican Party of Iowa. “Well, it’s lasted all fall. There is a realization that you are not going to wake up tomorrow and he’s going to vanish.”
Robinson, who is not affiliated with any candidate, was scathing toward those GOP centrists who assert that Trump will be unable to translate his polling support into votes because of a weak ground game.
“That is the wishful thinking of the establishment,” he said. “That is what they tell themselves so they can sleep at night. The truth is, Trump has one of the better ground operations in Iowa. Will he turn out every single person who shows up at his rallies? No. But if he turns out a fraction, he will roll over the field.”
. . . . Others have cited the 2012 cycle, when several Republican candidates’ stars rose and faded, to suggest that Trump will lose altitude before the first votes are cast.
But this isn’t 2012, and the Hill goes on to note this fact and its implications: “In fact, the consistency of Trump’s polling performance this cycle has more in common with the steady showing of eventual 2012 nominee Mitt Romney than anyone else.”
The Hill notes that “Republican insiders” know “the hour is getting late,” and apparently, these Republican “insiders” aren’t sitting back and hoping that Trump fades away.
According to the Boston Globe, there is a concerted effort among GOP establishment and “Republican groups” to “bring down Donald Trump.” The Globe reports:
Donald Trump has proven to be the GOP’s summer fling gone awry: fun at first, when there was no expectation of a commitment. But he’s stuck around — long after the party establishment wishes he were gone.
Now, concerned about lasting damage to the party’s image, some in the Republican establishment are plotting a full-scale attempt to torpedo his candidacy.
Fergus Cullen, former chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party, on Monday filed a formal complaint with the New Hampshire secretary of state challenging Trump’s place on the first-in-the-nation primary ballot, arguing in vain that the billionaire reality TV star did not provide proof he’s a Republican.
Some Republican consultants are forming a group — Trump Card LLC — with the explicit goal of taking out the brash-talking political neophyte. And the conservative Club for Growth has run anti-Trump ads in Iowa.
That’s right, an actual group whose sole purpose for existing is to “take out” Trump.
Watch Lou Dobbs break it down:
Interestingly, the GOP establishment is quite convinced not only that Trump is the only thing standing between them and a victory in 2016 but also that he is the sole reason that people like Kelly Ayotte are losing support (it couldn’t possibly be her, right?).
The Globe continues:
The concern, party leaders and strategists say, is not just winning the general election and reclaiming the White House. In a year when the GOP is hoping to maintain control of the Senate, party leaders are increasingly worried about the impact Trump’s campaign could have on down-ballot candidates in purple states such as the reelection bids by Senators Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire and Rob Portman of Ohio.
“Kelly Ayotte is losing votes every day because of Donald Trump,” Cullen said. “It’s not like Passover where voters make a distinction between good Republicans and bad Republicans. They will throw them all out. Or they will reasonably ask, ‘Why didn’t you stand up to him? Was your silence consent?’ ”
Asked to comment on the threat Trump presents to Ayotte, her campaign manager, Jon Kohan, said simply, “We’re looking forward to supporting the Republican nominee and are confident that any one of the possible candidates will beat Hillary Clinton.”
It looks like Trump derangment syndrome is in high gear amongst establishment Republicans, and it will be interesting to see the results of their machinations against the current GOP front-runner. I suspect that it won’t go as they intend.
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Comments
Pity they’re not focussing all this time, energy, and money to take Hillary out, instead.
GOPe + Barky = the enemy within.
Maybe ISIS is the JayVee team after all . . .
You don’t GET IT. Hillary, Jeb!, the “democratic socialists” and the GOPe are the SAME TEAM! One reason Jeb! has run such a lackluster campaign is that his “side” wins even if he loses! Him, Hillary, whatever, the MONEY and the POWER stay the same. The ELITES still LINE THEIR POCKETS with “free” tax money, it doesn’t matter what for. That is why they hate Trump so much. Trump is not UNDER THEIR CONTROL! He could break their very expensive RICE BOWL!
The more time and money the establishment spends attacking Trump, the further away they drive his supporters. Are they really stupid enough to believe his supporters will fall in line and vote for a Kasich or a Bush?
They need to dump the pre-1990’s thinking and understand they don’t control the narrative anymore. A lot of voters are tired of the condescension from the establishment on both sides of the aisle. That whole “vote for me and then immediately stop paying attention to what we’re doing” dictate has been failing for years. Ask Boehner how well that worked out for him.
It’s so simple that even someone complacent in their outlook should get it. Principles matter. If we wanted unprincipled or pro-choice (i.e. selective), there is the always reliable Democrat Party. Supposedly, Republicans have a shred of integrity. Perhaps Trump will force you to live up to your party’s calling.
So, who is the GOPe’s real enemy? Could it be us, the little ones, the Hoi Polloi? Cuz, it certainly seems that way.
My bet is that were the GOPe people to get “their” way, the end result will not be simply another GOP loss to a Socialist, but the revolt of the tired and poorly represented masses, upset with rule by Dynasties and other Tyrants!
Our current President seems anxious to overturn US and change it into a EU type oligarchy, with the GOPe types wanting to compromise, assisting him in that effort.
The 2nd Amendment serves to protect the 1st Amendment and the rest of the Constitution, that collection of words written on parchment paper that our national leaders have forgotten, and now ignore. We will remain America or die trying to retain it. Because the US cannot remain so were a Constitutional Conserve not elected in 2016.
Yes.
We could easily see that the Repub Party was Obama’s focus. He could care less about terrorism or oppression. What is now becoming clear is that the chief enemy of the GOP is also Repub voters. Amazing, when you think about it!
I believe it would be a colossal waste of money for the GOP Donor Class, to attempt a Trump takedown.
The backlash will likely be quite severe and very long lasting; backlash Trump has benefited from since he announced.
Trump has yet to spend a dime on TV ads, according to reports, because the media makes it unnecessary to do so.
If Trump loses it will likely be to Cruz who’s running a most brilliant campaign.
Books will be written about the 2016 cycle and I have good reason to believe the Dems realize they are not Hillary-Proof regardless of the GOP primary outcome.
There is a giant KARMA at work. It will not be pleasant for certain people and it will not be over quickly.
Karma with a scythe.
The Republican Party would rather have Hillary as president [or a third Obama term] and lose the Senate rather than win with either Trump or Cruz. They think that they can drop down to a minority position in government and be more comfortable, having all the perks and none of the responsibility. What they do not realize is they they can lost it all. And probably will.
They do not care what policies the government imposes, or about the fact that it is being imposed from above. To cite Colorado Republican Party Chairman Steve House who spoke to our TEA Party group a couple of months ago [he has to, we took over the county party]; the Republican party does not care and does not have any influence over what policies the Republicans in Congress follow. Their sole reason for existing is electing Republicans.
So if they, and their chosen nominees do not care about us, or what we want, or the country they want to govern; why in the name of all that is holy should we care about electing them?
I don’t believe that for a moment. Their first priority is to retain reins of power within the party. If that means supporting a democrat then so be it. They will support the democrat – at least to the point of sabotaging the conservative republican candidate.
If Trump gets the nomination expect the RNC to support the democrat candidate to their best ability.
“…concerned about lasting damage to the party’s image…”
That’s funny.
Perhaps what has the GOPe and the MSM in panic is they can no longer manipulate the elections by selecting the candidates. The voters are selecting the candidates now. Who makes money on THAT deal?
At least it is good to see the GOPe out in the open as they work against the benighted voters.
PS: GOP Establishment/Donor Class has a short time to decide whether to attempt a Trump takedown or start currying his favor. This approaching pivot point will occur even if the GOP does nothing.
Critics are realizing it’s better to be Trump’s friend and everyone knows Trump has a long memory of who did what, when and to whom.
This is the highest level of stakes on the planet and the Tea Party has three of the top four in the running.
I am not a Trump supporter, but the more these kind of stories come out the better it is for Mr. Trump.
The political geniuses that lost the last two elections to the worst president in our history were sure trump would self destruct. Every time Trump spoke the truth (commonly defined as a gaffe) the people loved it. It now looks very nearly like a one man race with the only question left is who will he pick for vice president.
Are we sure that they even intended to win in the first place?
“The political geniuses that lost the last two elections…”
Exactly. Establishment republicans gave us two terms of Barack Obama and as much as they’d love to claim credit, they had precious little to do with the House and Senate flipping republican.
Donald Trump had to have two rallies in Florida today so many people showed up. He did one inside and another one for the people who waited outside. He gave kids waiting outside helicopter rides.
Donald Trump didn’t need to do either of those two extra things, he just did them.
Essex the elephant was a stunning touch.
I about flipped when I saw that.
What a wonderful thing it was to do that for the folks.
I heard all or most of a pro-Kasich PAC anti-Trump ad (on the Rush Limbaugh show I think)
It was terrible! These people have no idea what’s wrong with Dinald Trump and what’s a telling point and what is not.
“Now, concerned about lasting damage to the party’s image,…”
OK, who else laughed out loud on reading that clause? If the GOP’s image wasn’t already tarnished beyond repair in the eyes of their former base, Trump might not even be a factor in this election at all. Instead, Trump is the base’s weapon against the GOPe.
Screw “the party’s image.”
Me, I laughed. They’re concerned about a totally new group replacing them in power, and getting their hands in the cookie jar.
Period.
First the RNC whines about signing a GOP pledge, now they are in full panic mode and have set plans to attack.
While I think Trump is an obnoxious blowhard and perhaps the last person I would every consider ‘presidential’, he does seem to have the RNC peeing their collective diaper.
The GOPe, lead by that flaming ignoramus Karl Rove, are all in for Rubio now, since Jeb has effectively dropped out.
It will be amusing to watch the RNC fall back to the last line of defense: Ted Cruz. How that will stick in their craw!
It will be amusing to watch the RNC fall back to the last line of defense:
Ted CruzHillary Clinton.I fixed your typing error for you Jim.