republicants --which foot....

[Baja boy]

do we shoot first ?

Phyllis Schlafly:

GOP Establishment Scrambling For New Plan B


The Republican establishment designed the process to deliver the 2016 presidential nomination to a business-friendly moderate who avoids so-called social issues. The consultants who rewrote the party rules after 2012 are now trying to explain to their patrons what went wrong and how to fix it.

Plan A, of course, was to assure the nomination of Jeb Bush, whose views are the perfect reflection of the Republican donor class.

But despite many months of campaigning, $114 million of political funds raised through June 30, and two presidential debates watched by a record-setting average of 24 million people, Jeb Bush has dropped to sixth place, registering only 4% in the latest Pew poll.

One reason for Jeb's poor performance is that he never learned from Ronald Reagan's example of how to prepare for a presidential campaign after his narrow defeat at the 1976 convention in Kansas City. Reagan then traveled the country speaking to small audiences of grass rooters and fielding their questions.

The immigration issue, and the way it has grabbed the attention of the grass roots, made it difficult for Bush to secure the Republican Party nomination in the usual way. Bush will continue to try, of course, and may be able to play insider politics to line up more endorsements and donors with wads of political money.

But the kingmakers always have a Plan B if their first choice stumbles. In 1964, for example, Pennsylvania Gov. William Scranton was carefully groomed as a second-choice alternative who could jump in the race after Nelson Rockefeller failed to stop the conservative Barry Goldwater.

Speculation has been in the media that Marco Rubio, Scott Walker or Chris Christie is the Plan B for the establishment in case Jeb Bush fails to gain popular support. But Rubio is tied for only fifth in Iowa and fourth in New Hampshire, Christie has failed to gain any real support, and Walker has dropped out completely.

The abrupt withdrawal of Walker is the clearest indication of the establishment trying to regain its control of the process. Walker admitted that his early withdrawal is part of a donor-driven strategy to "clear the field in this race" to pave the way for an "alternative to the current front-runner" (Donald Trump) — and, he said, "I encourage other Republican presidential candidates to consider doing the same."

Walker insisted that candidates should have a "positive" message and that only "candidates who can offer a positive conservative alternative to the current front-runner" should be considered. He stressed, "Ronald Reagan was good for America because he was an optimist" and complained, "The debate taking place in the Republican Party today is not focused on that optimistic view of America."

Contrary to Walker, who may not have realized that the words "positive" and "optimistic" are consultant code for "business as usual," every poll shows that the voters, by a margin of nearly 3-to-1, say that the country is on the "wrong track" or headed in the "wrong direction." Those voters don't need happy talk; they're looking for a candidate who's willing and able to turn the country around and "make America great again."

When Bush and some of these other candidates tried criticizing Trump, polls showed that any loss in support for Trump simply went to another outside-the-establishment candidate, such as Ben Carson or Carly Fiorina. So Plan B is striking out as badly as Plan A did.

It may be that the only alternative left for these Republican would-be kingmakers is the late entry of a new candidate to enter the race. We are already hearing rumblings about resurrecting Mitt Romney.

On the Democratic side, Vice President Joe Biden has been considering whether or not to enter the race, so it is obviously not too late for a new candidate to emerge. Indeed, an entirely new candidate could be nominated as late as the Republican National Convention next summer in Cleveland, as occurred at the famous Republican convention of 1880.

The grass roots must be vigilant to anticipate and counter the attempts by Republican insiders to impose an unwanted candidate on the American people. When we fought for and nominated Goldwater in 1964, we did not win the general election that year, but we built the conservative movement and laid the foundation to win five out of the next six presidential elections.

When the establishment is allowed to pick the Republican nominee, a candidate unable to win the support of the all-important middle-class America is the result. Establishment candidates have been unable to win the popular vote in five out of the last six elections, and that outcome is not something any Republican should want to repeat.

[PawPaw]

THE GOP establishment doesn't know what is going on. Trump is till in the lead, Carly is barking at his heels, and Marco seems to be the one to watch for the long haul. Pore ol' Jeb is polling below the margin of error. He's a 4% and the margin is 5%, which means that he may be at zero, or below. It's time for Jeb to pull the plug, before the donors do it for him.

This election cycle has come as a huge surprise to the GOP establishment.

[Jered]

Fucking Fuck JEB! the fucking useless fucking cocksucker fuck.

Do I make my feelings clear?

[Kommander]

I recall that on this forum in late 2011, early 2012 someone posted an article saying that the money men had already decided that Romney was going to be the Republican candidate and that the rest of the primary was just for show. I have to wonder if that will happen again here.

[Jered]

If Jeb! is the nominee, I'll probably vote for [strike]Mephistopheles[/strike]Billary. Jeb! is a eunuch.

[Aesop]

Jeb is toast.
Grahamnesty is polling at a solid 0%.
And Rubio will last about as long as it takes any three other contenders to point out that Amnesty! Yes We Can! flag tied to his ass since 2013.

Trump isn't dropping out, ever.
He has thus far shown no predilection for flaming out either.
But I doubt he ever cracks 30% support, within the party.
So barring somesuch catastrophe for his own campaign, frankly, he'd balance a conservative ticket as a solid veep choice, because
a) he is, in fact, far more a Reagan Democrat than a conservative Republican, which isn't a bad thing for NY, and the Northeast's voters
b) there is no danger of him being tied to the RNC/GOP Establishment status quo
c) he's exactly the type of guy you want to be the veep: loudmouthed, fearless, and over-the-top, especially
if you put forward a calmer, wiser, actually conservative candidate for the top of the ticket, from, say...Texas.
One who puts the Hispanic vote into play across the Southwest in the same way Hopey Dopey garnered 108% of the black vote in 2008, minus the polling shenanigans.

So Cruz/Trump?
45 states.

As for the GOP Establishment, and their precious hand-picked [strike]toadies[/strike] candidates:
Fuck them sideways, with a chainsaw, in the crotch, and they too get Trump's choice:
pledge unfailing vocal support for the nominee, or get banished to political Siberia until Hell freezes over.
And sentenced to death by bufu.

And Shrillary is in a full-court media press, and trying to use the Polish Two-Handed Heart Attack Maneuver to wrestle the discussion away from her pending appearance in front of Trey Gowdy, Grand Inquisitor, regarding Benghazi and State Department e-mails.
I still say she has a short time to bow out before the option for a presidential pardon is withdrawn, and she's suddenly looking at orange as the new black.

'scuse me, I need more butter for the popcorn.

[Baja boy]

Heh, heh Aesop, we're definitely on the same page.

[First Shirt]

If Jeb gets the nomination, I'm writing in Cthulhu. I'm tired of settling for the lesser evil.

[Mike OTDP]

Sounds like you're all ready for the Mike of the Duelling Pistols For President campaign.

[Captain Wheelgun]

Sounds like you're all ready for the Mike of the Duelling Pistols For President campaign.

We were ready for that back in 2008. How do you feel about Aesop as a running mate?