McCain and Romney received far fewer votes in the primaries. The independents voted for them. The Democrat controlled media and the GOPe worked to get them the nomination.
The media was very supportive of both Romney and McCain and was very critical of the other Republican candidates.
Do you remember all the lies about Santorum in the media in 2012? Do you remember the attacks on Rick Perry being a racist? Do you remember the vicious attacks on Michelle Bachmann?
I remember a crew of trolls here all saying that they would NEVER hold their nose and vote for McCain...while Democrats busily crossed over and voted for him in their states’ open primaries. I do remember Bachman being savaged in the media, along with Palin in 2008.
Have you checked out Trump’s unfavorable rating lately? It has gone up, not down.