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The Trump Prisoner’s Dilemma
Alexandra Petri at the Washington Post sums it up. “If Candidate A and Candidate B are really in it to win it,” she writes, “Congratulations, Nominee Donald!”
After Marco’s comparatively poor showing, it seems to me he’s the one who should drop out. This pains me, because I like him more than Cruz. Heavy stress on “like,” I don’t necessarily have exceedingly good arguments for preferring him. I just find his a much more appealing personality. But I thought he’d do better in the general, and after today, it looks as if I may have been, again, wrong. Numbers are numbers. Cruz has excelled him in delivering the delegates.
That said, Texas is his home state, leaving just enough uncertainty that Marco may be able to convince himself not to believe the numbers yet.
I reckon one of these men must drop out now, because if they wait until more data comes in, they’ll be waiting too long. I hate to say it, but looks like it should be Marco.
Anyone disagree?
Published in General
Trump is a Rockefeller Republican, he’s against entitlement reform, supports universal health care, thinks the federal government should fund Planned Parenthood because of all the essential women’s health services they provide, and blames Bush for 9/11.
Remember that poll that said Trump was at 49%? Funny that.
He is beatable.
It might take them all, but if they all stay in long enough, and he doesn’t become inevitable, they have time to do the work they should have done months ago and educate the voters.
He is beatable!
We don’t have to have a dangerous, Con Artist in the Whitehouse.
We have a choice!
I’m arguing in good faith. Are you?
I lean Cruz slightly over Rubio, but actually think Rubio has a better shot in the general. I base my initial statement on the notion that Rubio’s amnesty stance would rule out his picking up much from Cruz’s fans. Many of Rubio’s supporters dislike Cruz, but they hate Trump.
You can’t get through brain washing.
Even with the KKK vote in the South, Trump(Drumf) barely squeaked it out.
He is fading.
[Editors’ Note: Please see our comment here. Specific to this comment, though, it strikes us as a stretch to say that Trump’s victory implies the existence of a “KKK vote.”]
A fair point.
Things change. Until that debate, I hated Cruz, and thought I could live with Trump. But when the lunatic came out again… that was it for me. Then I finally googled Trump University! And I’ll vote for Hillary to stop Trump.
Mondale only won his home state of Minnesota. No way Trump wins New York.
I’m not saying Trump wins 0 electoral votes, but if there’s a strong 3rd party candidate in the race…
Mispost
Not huge, but YYYYYYUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think that Cruz and Rubio should closely ally themselves not only to beat Trump but also to smash Hillary and to bring reform to Washington D.C.
That way there could be glorious 16 years ahead instead of 4 more years of misery. Go Cruz/Rubio 2016!
I’m sorry. I’m a bit snarky tonight. I actually feel really good, Rubio outdid the polling! I didn’t expect a win, even one. But Trump did worse and Rubio did better, and this is as good as it gets for Cruz, this was supposed to be the night his southern strategy kicked in.
I had dinner with my sister-in-law tonight and she likes Cruz. But she had never even heard about his reputation in the Senate. So I assume many of his supporters don’t really bother figuring out Cruz’s faults.
She also said her daughter hates Cruz’s voice… she couldn’t see why. I was so surprised she hadn’t noticed it. It grates on me like crazy. And I predict his “sincere” voice, it’s coming, in 3, 2, 1…. yep there it is…
So I assume you don’t see his faults either.
Wow the more I think about it, I really hope Marco stays in. Ug, if I have to vote for Cruz. But I will.
Was that too negative, I am really feeling good about tonight. Strange he didn’t win. It just wasn’t as bad as it could have been.
I have not admired some of Cruz’s plays for Trump supporters or some of his “anti-establishment” posturing. Telling us we’d better vote for Cruz lest his voters go to Trump is the best way to remind us of all the things we most mistrust about Cruz.
Yes, I would vote for Cruz over Trump in a heartbeat. But I don’t necessarily appreciate my principled conviction being used as a club against my candidate. People like me didn’t vote for Rubio as a compromise or because he’s a “golden boy.” I truly believe he is the most principled conviction conservative in the field. No regrets.
If Team Rubio is #NeverTrump while Team Cruz is willing to deal with the would-be strongman, I am Team Rubio from the bottom of my heart to the convention and beyond.
I follow politics a lot more closely than the average American, and I had never heard of Trump University until the recent debate, and didn’t actually google it until a few days ago.
Most Americans only know Trump as that guy with the funny hair, tall buildings, and gig on The Apprentice. The MSM will ensure all the skeletons in his closet make headlines between now and November and drive down his poll numbers — and he already trails Clinton by 3 points.
I would really like a Rubio/Cruz ticket, but I’d settle for Cruz/Rubio… but not going to happen if they can’t show people the real Donald Trump.
Do you think people would vote for two Cubans? I would in a heart beat, they are exactly what I am looking for, a little short on experience, but a good chief of staff… and that’s fixed.
He’ll win most of the southern states and perhaps a North Dakota or Wyoming, or two. I gave him Texas to get him up around 80.
That’s what I think, it is just going to take a while before it sinks in.
Also did you see he sued some reporter for saying he was only worth like 150 million, and tried to prove he was worth 5 billion and Trump lost! He couldn’t prove his claims of wealth!
That is so complicated to get people to understand because the numbers are so big, but I think that should stop his support completely. If he can’t even tell how much wealth he has, how can he handle the budget?
Just don’t know how to get that through people’s heads.
OK, I get it.
Going by Ricochet, I’d think that too. I’m just not seeing it in exit polls or in my non-Ricochet voter interactions. There just aren’t that many people who are immigration-first voters. There can’t be that many more that aren’t already with Trump.
The thing is, most Republicans actually agree with Rubio.
Don’t you mean a Cuban national and a Canadian?
Don’t take it personally it’s your candidate not you.
Um, who pandered to the KKK? Nobody forced him to do that. That is actually the definition of racist.
I did not believe that racism was alive and well in America until I saw that.
Now I’m sort of rethinking the BLM thing, not that they should go after the police, but racism is real, I saw it myself.
According to polling yes.
So why are the few making life so miserable for the rest of us?
What heresy!?!?!?!?! Doth thou not knoweth that Rubio is an establishment hack and that 128% of all Republican voters think immigration is the number one issue and that only protectionism and nativism can solve it! I was told so by Ann Coulter just the other day.
My thoughts as well. Trump has admittedly been defying expectations for quite a while, but I think the true Trump-believers are going to be in for a rude awakening come the Election season if Trump is the candidate. Last election cycle the media did damage to Romney with the “47%” comment. Trump will provide them an unending stream of far more compelling and frightening anecdotes to highlight, and, unlike past GOP candidates, all I’ll be able to say in response is, “Okay, yes, that’s all true, he’s a crap-weasel, but Hillary would be worse…I think.”
No, I’m aware of these. Leigh’s later explanation was what I was looking for.
Anyone who thinks a Trump nomination means a Trump presidency needs to take a look at how Jeremy Corbyn is doing in the UK these days. Just because the rules seem to break in the primary doesn’t mean they’re broken in the general election.
Here here.
Cruz doesn’t hold a candle to Rubio’s optimistic view of the American Dream.
Before he had to defend the nation against the bully, I was inspired by his rallies and how different they were from the constant nagging and complaining of Cruz and the rest.
No things, are not too great, but they can get better, and a little inspiration helps that happen.
Because there is a narrative out there, a populist narrative, that asserts that somehow an all powerful, all seeing, and malevolent establishment conspiracy has been controlling Republican Politics since Reagan (ignore Gingrich) and has been repressing the GOP base without mercy. The solution to the perpetrators of this narrative was to get a truly “conservative” candidate, one who was for the people (base) and not the elites (establishment).
It just so happens that trump (the “hero”) comes along and they are no longer powerful but are effeminate and weak and cannot do anything right. How convenient for the plot of a story, that the “hero” show up and be invulnerable all of a sudden? With his divine intervention he moves in and sweeps the field before him and its because of his stance on PC culture and immigration (what the people want).
Never mind that those issues are not actually polling well (and these are the same polls that indicate he is leading all the time) and usually 5th or 6th place.
The point is that these perpetrators are attempting to manipulate reality to suite their narrative of how the GOP works. That or they assume they are actually “the people” (all 10 percent of them) while rest of us are establishment hacks (the other 90 percent or so).
What I meant was, which candidate’s dropping out of the race better benefits the anti-Trump vote.
I think people should vote on conviction as long as their candidate is a viable option. For my part, I’m willing to vote for either Cruz or Rubio in California based on what I see in the polling the week before.
What. is. with. her?
My goodness she has just gone off the deep end. Nothing is left of her conservatism at all! She used to hate liberals, now she is pushing one.
I think she is drawn to strong wife beating men.