Posted on 04/08/2016 7:17:17 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Via Breitbart, the key bit below starts at 6:30. When he says “set the country on fire,” does he mean people literally setting things on fire in rage over how much they hate a Trump/Cruz ticket? Because I can sort of see that. Trump’s numbers are flaming garbage, as you know, but check out Cruz’s numbers from the same poll:
What should we call that? Smoldering garbage? I’m a Cruz backer but I’m also under no illusion about how popular he is and isn’t among the general electorate. (Although the AP data here is from a poll of adults, not likely voters, please note.) Unlike Trump, he really would have a chance against Hillary this fall, but only because her own numbers are a smoking dumpster — and even then, he’ll have trouble flipping any of Obama’s blue states in 2012 to red. There is no ticket involving Trump or Cruz, let alone both of them, that sets the country on fire. There’s a ticket involving Cruz and someone not named Trump that might eke out a close victory if they catch some breaks. That’s your best-case scenario.
Buchanan’s logic here, if there’s any logic behind this, presumably is that a Trump/Cruz ticket would give the party its best chance at unity against Clinton this fall by reconciling embittered Trump fans and embittered Cruz fans. It would, for sure, eliminate the risk of a major third-party effort from one side or the other. But so what? What’s the prize for bringing the party together only to lose with 45 percent of the vote in a two-way race instead of with 37 percent in a three-way one? Trump/Cruz still leaves you saddled with all of Trump’s negatives at the top of the ticket, with all but the most hardcore Cruz-fan conservatives deeply disaffected with the direction of the party. It’s one thing for Trump to win the nomination by piling up votes in the primaries, it’s another thing for him to coopt the party’s leading conservative lights by bringing them onto his team to serve his agenda. Many Cruz fans would be enraged at him, I’m sure, for tossing his principles aside to join Trump, especially after Trump’s boorish nastiness towards Heidi Cruz. There’d still be a #NeverTrump movement, albeit a bit smaller than it is now as some strong Cruz supporters would eventually decide to suck it up and back Trump. How does all of this add up to setting the country on fire? Which swing voters, among whom Trump is toxic right now, are thinking, “No way will I support that buffoon — unless he puts Ted Cruz on the ticket, in which case ‘game on'”?
Buchanan does make one good point, though. If we go to a brokered convention, which seems likely, it’s hard to imagine a scenario in which Cruz agrees to accept the VP slot. Trump will lead on the first ballot; if he doesn’t clinch there, a bunch of votes will shift to Cruz on the second. If Cruz doesn’t lead on that one, he almost certainly will when more delegates become unbound on the third. Once he takes the lead, what incentive does he have to accept the number-two slot? You’d need to see some delegates shift back to Trump on the fourth ballot or fifth ballot, I think, and then have them end up in a protracted stalemate. In that case, Cruz might eventually cave and agree to be VP. (If only because, once there’s a stalemate, the odds of a dark-horse nominee will rise and Cruz will risk being left with nothing.) So long as Cruz maintains a lead among the delegates, though, he has no reason to bow to any other prospective nominee. If you want a Trump/Cruz ticket, it needs to happen with Trump winning on the first ballot.
Exit question: If you’re saddled with Trump as nominee, wouldn’t one of your top priorities for VP be finding someone who’s exceptionally personally likable, whom voters trust instinctively? They could look at the veep and tell themselves that if that person trusts Trump to run the country, maybe he’s worth taking a chance on. Ted Cruz has many good qualities. Being exceptionally likable isn’t one of them.
Update: Glenn Beck’s head writer chimes in:
Not only would I not vote for Trump/Cruz ticket, I wouldn't vote for Cruz/Trump. Taking Trump would convince me I'm wrong about Cruz.
— STU BURGUIERE (@WorldOfStu) April 7, 2016
It’s very naive to believe that.
Trump needs to strike a deal with Cruz to drop out and support Trump. They don't have to like each other to strike a political deal. Happens all the time. In return for Cruz stepping aside, Trump dangles the Supreme Court nomination carrot in front of Cruz.
Cruz is a much better fit as a Supreme Court justice than he would be as president. Trump, with his executive decision-making skills, is better suited as the chief executive. Cruz would fly through Senate confirmation because the senators don't like Cruz and would love to get rid of him. Here's a way how to accomplish that.
With Cruz's delegates now promised to Trump, Trump wins the nomination before the convention and blows Hillary out of the water in November. I do not believe any of the polls saying that Trump will lose to Hillary in the general election. No way you put those two on the stump together, that Donald doesn't beat Hillary going away. He's got high dislikable ratings? Well, so does Hillary. Remember, she's got an email-server-national-security-violations albatross hanging from around her neck,. So Trump having a ton of negative baggage himself, just levels the playing field some.
This scenario is a win, win, win situation to break the stalemate between the Trump and Cruz camps.
What about Rep. Mia Love?
Why are you here? Support my balls.
Go give a lewinsky at the bathhouse, you'll feel better.
It’s too early to put Cruz in the SCOTUS. It’s nice to say he’d be a better justice than a president, but then give me the list of who you want to be president after Trump. I doubt you’d find anyone better than Cruz.
The deal would have to be Cruz as V.P. and Cruz gets to pick all the SCOTUS appointments at a minimum.
So if someone isn't a fan of Cruz or Trump, they're gay, and like performing oral sex on other men?
What are you, 12?
I definitely like Carly as Cruz’ V.P. She is perfect to be the Hillary attack dog and really outshone all the other candidates in doing that in the primary. She might not be a reliably conservative president, but she probably wouldn’t be handed an automatic primary win in 2024. She’s enough of an outsider to not make it look like Cruz is selling out to the establishment, but she doesn’t look unqualified or risky like Palin did. Her outsourcing record she got hit with in California just wouldn’t be able to bubble up to a major issue when she’s only the V.P. pick.
I knew her refusal had been establishment based, but I also thought it might have been personal. She saw what happened to Palin, and wasn’t of a mind to go there.
Brewer, though, has already served her time and maybe any attacks won’t matter to her.
Mia Love is Ferraro or Palin all over again. Way too inexperienced as a campaigner or politician. Not credible at all to step into the presidency.
Yeah, I'm 12, and you can also piss off.
Because usually, it's only 12 year old boys who think clunky jokes about blow jobs and bath houses are funny.
Yeah, I'm 12, and you can also piss off.
Look, I admit the age crack may have been a bit of a miss. I mean, the more likely explanation is that as a bubblehead, you just can't stop thinking about what really happened during all those dark, lonely nights aboard the boat....
It'd be a good opportunity for either Trump or Cruz to change the media-driven narrative about their campaigns. Having a tough, capable woman who isn't a crook firing alongside them may be something that sets Hillary back a bit.
I'm currently reading the annals of congress for 1795. I'll get back to you.
Nope. We don’t need mental illness on the ticket or anywhere near the Whitehouse.
Right. Trump wants to campaign with the slogan: “Vote for me and Lyin’ Ted.”
Cruz should have bowed out long ago with an under-the-table deal with Trump for the VP slot.
Ego too big.
I don't foresee this particular feud ending with makeup sex. These guys are going to hate each other for awhile. I just hope their supporters can act a bit more maturely than they have.
Naive? Do you know what the word means?
My comment is based on the results of a dozen independent polls.
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