Posted on 03/06/2016 4:42:12 AM PST by goldstategop
And then there's Nevada. It, too, was a closed caucus. And Trump won by a wide margin.
It's clear that Cruz has done better in states that are holding closed caucuses, but it's not necessarily clear why.
It is not the case, though, that Trump is leading in the contest for the nomination because he's being pushed there by independents. Trump's claim that he's bolstering the Republican Party may be exaggerated, but it's clear that an awful lot of Republicans want him to be the party's nominee.
As much as other members of the party may not like it.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
... or something.
Louisiana and Kentucky were closed primaries and Trump won both.
Trump has been (and is) widely popular across the spectrum of pretty much all the ways we can slice the demographics. Although, there are variances by state. Cruz had a good night last night, first and perhaps last one. Trump should do very well on the 15th and that will tell us if the American people were swayed by the distortions and lies constantly bombarding them by Cruz, Rubio campaigns, media and both political parties against Trump. I have never in my life seen such despicable behavior against any candidate running for President. The closest I can think of (but not as bad) was Ronald Reagan whom the establishment, media, and opponents were viciously against.
He won big in NV which was a closed caucus state. He also prevailed in KY, another closed caucus state and he won LA, a closed primary state.
There is no support for the notion the bulk of Trump voters are non-Republican. Trump is being truthful when he says he’s bringing new voters into the Republican Party and these newly minted Republicans are voting for him.
If Trump didn’t have Republican support, he wouldn’t be within sight of the nomination.
Cruz has won mostly caucuses. Therefore he was able to win the delegate count Saturday, 64-49. but Trump actually won the “popular vote” by over 2,000. This will be a problem for Cruz going forward, as his “ground game” folks who dominate the caucus locations will no longer be a factor. The caucuses are basically over, except for Wyoming. Trump will do much better as people actually vote.
MA has a GOP governor, so there are a few in the state. Trump has appeal across the political spectrum. That is what is needed to beat Hillary. Cruz can’t even win in the conservative South. Time for him to retire and head on back to Canada
Trump is winning because Rubio is in the race.
“Trump won big in Massachusetts because the state is overflowing with Republicans ...
... or something. “
20,000 people left the dem party so they could vote in that republican party.
What I find interesting is all the people showing up to vote in many of these primaries. Interest is through the roof high with record participation.
Cruz can’t fade the Carson cheating!
I can believe that....
I think the Independents are actually the "Tea Party" folk.... They're just likely to spit in the eye of a republican as they are a dimocrap....
I know there are a whole bunch of republicans I don't like...and I despise ALL of the dimocraps....
Yes. Record numbers, but, as is the case with Iowa, most appear to be those who are already Republicans but who have been inactive in primaries/caucuses.
(Though Trump did not win Iowa, his raw vote totals were amazing compared to past vote totals.)
Trump loses ground in closed caucuses.
He also loses ground immediately before a primary because a huge onslaught swings a huge percentage of the undecided vote away from him.
He contributed to it yesterday by things in had to walk back from that recent debate. I expected Cruz and Kasich to pick up because of the so-called presidential demeanor, and they did. And then there was the onslaught from the media on top of that. He gave them ammunition.
In his favor is that he isn’t a politician, and he gets a bit of leeway on that. They have been practicing political-speak for years, and he’s new to that game. But there’s a limit to what he can get away with. We saw that Thursday night.
The “killing families” line went too far. He can walk it back, but it leaves a bad taste.
ON the other hand, the H1B change was a modification in his position that he acknowledged and explained that you can’t get stuck in a certain lane if it becomes evident it’s not the right lane to be in.
He’ll get a pass on that one, because it doesn’t make people scratch their heads.
It appears that we are at a tipping point for Cruz. He either wins just about every contest, or he has no path to a first round victory at the convention. His strong part of the nation, the southern part, is just about finished, and he’s not carried it by the margin he should have.
Personal observation: there are very few “independents” in the body politic (as opposed to the political parties and politicians) today. Instead there is a large section of the body politic whom I would call “Trumans,” one of four groups of voters, in no particular order.
1) Socialists, aka “progressives” and/or “liberals.” They encompass all Democrats, and most professional-politician Republicans.
2) Conservatives. They encompass much of the Republican base, and very few of the professional-politician Republicans.
3) Dependents. Romney famously called them the “47%,” though as a voting bloc they probably constitute much less. Because they are dependent upon the government for their livelihood, however, they reliably vote Democrat.
4) Trumans. They expect government to fix problems as they occur—which can be anything from filling potholes to making schools better—but otherwise want government to stay out of their lives. They want fair play, don’t care about others’ lifestyles as long as they are not forced to either support or oppose them, and don’t want to be blamed for things they do not see as being their fault. They have nothing against religion in the generic sense, but don’t want to be told what they have to believe.
Here is why Trump is winning, and is likely to become President in November. For all elections since 1992 at least, Democrats have had all the socialists on their side, and most of the dependents. The Republicans have controlled the conservatives, but have then made the mistake of seeing the Trumans as “independents,” as if they were deciding every four years whether they wanted to be socialists or conservatives.
This is where Trump comes in. He is appealing to the Trumans. Conservatives have been spending the better part of 30 years trying to convince Trumans that they really are conservatives at heart, they just don’t know it—Rush Limbaugh says this all the time. But it isn’t true. Trumans know they aren’t liberal knuckleheads, that they have nothing in common with PITA or NARAL or LGBTQ or Occupy or Moveon.org or BLM or CAIR. By the same token, however, Trumans don’t have lofty ambitions, whether personal or political: they don’t want to aim for the perfect conservative government or the perfect Christian life, they just want a decent job, a decent home, a decent neighborhood, a decent school, their own doctor, and to be able to trust most of their fellow citizens most of the time. If you asked a Truman what makes America great, that is what they would tell you. They will never hear it from Hillary or Bernie, because they know both are in with the knucklehead-liberal crowd—but they will never hear it from Ted Cruz or Rand Paul either, because Trumans also know that both are in the perfect-government-perfect-religion crowd, and all they want are decent jobs-homes-neighborhoods-schools-doctors-and-fellow-citizens.
That is what Trump is promising. And as a Cruz supporter, as one who wants to see America both great AND the closest to perfection on earth, I know that is why Trump will be President in January 2017, because he will get enough of the conservatives, and all of the Trumans.
Trump has been (and is) widely popular across the spectrum of pretty much all the ways we can slice the demographics
I agree, wpin. I am disgusted with the candidates’ behavior, as well as the GOP, for allowing the networks to bait them, making a mockery of this campaign.
The battle for control has cost them and may be the death of the Party. One can only hope so.
That's a whole bunch of people. Operation Chaos-dems trying to pick who they run against ( Trump)?
“That’s a whole bunch of people. Operation Chaos-dems trying to pick who they run against ( Trump)? “
Yes, I’m from MA and considered that possibility.
Oftentimes Masshole dem state workers vote in NH republican primaries skewering the results.
Not sure about that this time, because illegal immigration is a BIG issue in this state. And that’s Trump’s signature issue.
It’s funny how no one in the MSM will not report on the 600 pound gorilla in the room. Except for Minnesota which Rubio won and a couple of second place finishes, Trump and Cuz have dominated the nomination.
With a 70+% of the votes going to Trump and Cruz, either one dropping out puts the other over the top. Which really means one thing. A brokered convention either is intended to get Rubio or Kasich on the ticket as Trump’s VP or to offer Cruz a spot on SCOTUS to sell out Trump.
Since Cruz is Canadian and ineligible as most seem to feel, the only reason to keep him in the race is to use him as a foil to Trump. And with Trump happily attacking Cruz, would anyone be surprised if it is Cruz that sticks the knife in Trump’s back, courtesy of the Establishment, as most seem to believe Cruz is a part of?
We had it perfect, Trump as Pres, Cruz as VP and in 8 years Cruz as Pres. But once again we are looking at stealing defeat from the jaws of victory. The 11th commandment was put there for a reason. Yet we all eagerly violated that commandment.
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