I think it's all internal. The GOP establishment wants to marginalize the 30-35% of the party that is demanding real changes. I believe the goal is to be so moderate/liberal that they gain the middle and left of center. If they can do this they don't need the right.
In retrospect it looks like this started almost immediately after the 2010 elections when they began down playing the role obamacare had and said it was all about financial concerns. We will see how this plays out. I know my wife and I are starting to believe we don't have a party to represent us, exactly what the Rats want.
The problem with marginalizing the 30-35% conservatives is that that is a ruling plurality in a 3 way race. If the liberals and the mini-liberals split the lib and moderate vote, then that does two things.
1. It opens up a real possibility that the conservatives win. 32, 32, and 35 is a win for conservatism. Wouldn’t that be cool.
2. Someone will say, “But they’ll just coalesce their forces to defeat the conservatives.” That, too, would be a victory, for that would mean the TWO main parties would then be one of the two liberal parties and the conservative party. If stealing from one of the two is the way to victory, then that would mean 42, 23, 35. It changes the number 2 party and announces the birth of a new dominant party. A victory for conservatism.
The math favors the creation of a new, REASONABLE conservative party.