Posted on 04/13/2016 5:09:25 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz is close to ensuring that Donald Trump cannot win the GOP nomination on a second ballot at the party’s July convention in Cleveland, scooping up scores of delegates who have pledged to vote for him instead of the front-runner if given the chance.
The push by Cruz means that it is more essential than ever for Trump to clinch the nomination by winning a majority of delegates to avoid a contested and drawn-out convention fight, which Trump seems almost certain to lose.
The GOP race now rests on two cliffhangers: Can Trump lock up the nomination before Cleveland? And if not, can Cruz cobble together enough delegates to win a second convention vote if Trump fails in the first?
Trump’s path to amassing the 1,237 delegates he needs to win outright has only gotten narrower after losing to Cruz in Wisconsin and other recent contests, and would require him to perform better in the remaining states than he has to this point.
In addition, based on the delegate selections made by states and territories, Cruz is poised to pick up at least 130 more votes on a second ballot, according to a Washington Post analysis. That tally surpasses 170 delegates under less conservative assumptions — a number that could make it impossible for Trump to emerge victorious.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
His support is already tanking
Nobody wants to vote for a candidate that celebrates a victory where he and his buddies rigged an election.
Where in those “184 year old rules” does it say second place wins?
They should be friends and allies, and we should treat both of them as such.
If Cruz wishes to be a friend and ally to Trump, he will drop out as soon as he is eliminated from first round contention, throwing his support to the frontrunner...but he will not.
Instead he will cling to the lifeline afforded by the archaic selection process, in the mistaken belief that he will beat the opposition, and Trump will not...and in fact, if that is the GOP objective, both Trump and Cruz will be bypassed in favor of Kasich, who polls far better...
Same as # 1. Plus Rubio is already formed an alliance with Cruz in some states. Rubio likes Sleazy tRump like he likes plison.
You’re having a day dream. Trump got 1.1 million votes in Rubio’s state. Won every county but one. Rubio is not crossing Trump because it would be the end of his political career in Florida. LOL.
The delegate hunt will continue right up to and including the convention.
Best case scenario is a shotgun wedding...Trump/Cruz.
Okay...air fuel bomb wedding.
Might want to add a couple of armored divisions just to make sure they get to the “you may kiss the bride” part.
heh
Jedi
The simple fact is if Trump fails to get the 1237, Cruz gets the nomination no later than the fourth ballot when Florida’s 99 delegates will be free to vote as they please.
With their total control of the rules committee both Trump and Cruz will allow no others to be on the ballot. So all these GOP-e conspiracy theories about anyone else getting the nod is bee esss...unless they totally ignore the rules and destroy the party—and we all know they ain’t got the guts to do that.
Regardless, people will finally see how underestimating the political genius of Ted Cruz pays out.
[Cruz is no longer a real candidate. He will be mathematically eliminated next Tuesday from winning the candidacy]
There are delegates from all the also rans that will be applied to some candidate.
Trump ain’t getting the 1237 either and Cruz will beat him in Cleveland.
You think Cruz is so stupid to drop out when he knows he is gonna win?
If Duh Donald does get the 1237 THEN Ted should drop out...but it ain’t gonna happen.
My understanding and it could be wrong, is that if Kasich drops out, per State rules his delegates from Ohio revert to the No. 2 candidate who is Trump. So he does not have to do anything for Trump to get his delegates just stop running.
And Kasich has teamed up with Trump against Cruz already....
So would a Governor want to be owed a huge favor by a sitting president who is running on bringing back manufacturing to America?
Geez, where is my pic of trump with his tiny hands and pacifier in his mouth?
You can ignore the punditry, many whom have said if he does not win 1237 Cruz wins in the second round. We won’t know until June 7th.
All part of the Donald/Hillary DEAL.
We are still the stupid party.
Where in those “184 year old rules” does it say second place wins?
I guess you haven’t been keeping up with the news...but, to help you out, those rules permit a redo of the whole process (excepting, of course the people voting) if the arbitrary threshold of majority of delegates is not reached...thus allowing a second place finisher to kiss up to enough delegates in order to gain that majority...
this system allows backroom wrangling and strongarming to take place, stuff that was common in the 1830’s, but should have been modernized to reflect a popular vote as the methodology; but that would eliminate the power for party bosses, so...
There is a limit on what Trump could do, but that limit is not terribly restrictive when it comes to a billionaire courting 2,000 delegates.
How much difference could a $2,000 family vacation in Miami, NYC, or Vegas, with brief daily visits from Trump family members and his staff, plus at least a few minutes talking with Trump personally about each delegate’s concerns and their district’s needs, make in a delegate’s willingness to vote Trump?
How much difference could a weekly meal with the state’s Trump campaign coordinator, or with a local or national celebrity who endorsed Trump, make in loyalty or in willingness to switch to Trump? Dinner with Sarah Palin, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Mike Ditka, or Clint Eastwood? I’d be impressed!
Two thousand delegates at $2,000 each for vacations is $4M. Two thousand delegates at another $2,000 each spread over several meals takes that to a total of $8M. In terms of campaign expenditures, that is small. It’s also completely legitimate in terms of standard practice for this phase of the campaign. It’s not bribes, just consultations.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Donald_Trump_presidential_campaign_endorsements,_2016
There are a lot of endorsements for Trump. He should use them, and they get a chance to help out and to meet interesting people in return.
6 years as Solicitor General of Texas running over 700 lawyers says HELLO!
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