“I take it then, that your answer to my question, is “No” — you wil not support Cruz should he happen to defeat Trump on a 2nd, 3rd or 4th ballot.”
If more Republican voters choose Trump than Cruz, the matter is settled. Trump should be the party’s nominee, despite ‘rules’ and back room arm twisting by the party bosses to the contrary.
If Ted were truly and mathematically even with Trump at this point, I’d say yes, I’d vote for him in the general if he won at the convention. Fact is, he’s already been eliminated, given that he has to win over 80% of the remaining delegates to clinch the nomination.
That’s an improbably high bar for any candidate to overcome at this point in the process, so simple deductive reasoning dictates that Trump will be the nominee.
Excuse me, but that is a very confusing passage.
As I read it, you would vote for Cruz i he won at the convention. But, then, you say he can't win -- even though he can.
I'm not asserting that Cruz can win 80% of the delegates remaining. That's unrealistic. But he can win enough delegates to hold Trump short of the 1237 needed for a majority.
And Cruz can then defeat Trump on a later ballot by assembling a 1237 majority from his delegates, plus assorted Rubio/Kasich/etc. delegates, plus Trump defectors. I'm not saying he will succeed in this endeavor, but he has a measurable chance of doing so.
To assert that this result is somehow thwarting the "will of the people" is tantamount to claiming that a 1st ballot plurality of delegates (and a plurality of the popular vote) is sufficient to win. But, clearly, it is not -- never has been.
Are we making progress...or do we remain at loggerheads?