Sorry, but NO WAY. An open convention means that the GOPe is free to PICK THEIR CANDIDATE.
...and we both know that it won’t be Trump or Cruz.
“An open convention means that the GOPe is free to PICK THEIR CANDIDATE... and we both know that it won’t be Trump or Cruz.”
That’s absolutely false. The GOPe does not get to vote. The delegates do. And while the GOPe wrote the rules, they do not get to make them up as they go along. They have to follow their own rules.
This means that delegates will still pick the nominee. It would be brokered, which means Trump will do what he does best - negotiate and make deals. In a brokered convention, Trump will almost certainly get the nomination. In fact, that is when he would probably threaten to run third party if he does not get the rightful nomination.
Unless Trump is just a very small number shy of 50% of the delegates, A brokered convention would mean Trump-Cruz or Trump-Rubio. Cruz-Rubio is not going to happen. And A Trump-Rubio could happen but would be a big mistake. Trump would gain nothing and would lose a lot.
He and Cruz are the two candidates that are non-establishment. (Carson is not going to get the VP spot even though he is also not establishment.) Trump said he wants someone who knows the ropes. That’s Cruz. Trump, to my knowledge has only suggested one possible VP pick, and that is Cruz.
Now I know there has been a lot of bad blood, but their partnership is the chance to bury the hatchet and consolidate the base.
Think about it, the anti-establishment vote is so large that the top two candidates are anti-establishment.
Trump needs Cruz supporters, more than any other group, going into the general.
My vote for Cruz in the Texas primary is not a vote against Trump. I prefer Cruz. But I can live with Trump-Cruz.