Free Republic

"If you control the money, you control the party," Republican donor Dan Eberhart told CNN on Tuesday. "Trump has effectively stunted the RNC, NRCC and NRSC this cycle because they are going to have to spend an awful lot of time worrying about friendly fire from the MAGA crowd." "The MAGA endorsement is going to loom large this cycle for everyone. When Trump puts his finger on the scales, it may prove decisive in a lot of races," said Eberhart, who said he is considering a Senate run in Arizona. "There is going to be a lot of consternation when...

The popular narrative circulating in Washington is that Donald Trump is finished. Even if, after a while, he tries to make a comeback, his brand has become so toxic that it’s unlikely he can dominate the Republican stage anymore. He won’t be invited to speak at Republican gatherings. He won’t be asked to campaign for GOP candidates. He will be shunned by the Republican Party now and forevermore. Oh, really? Indeed, losing access to Twitter crippled Trump and his ability to communicate with his followers. But no one has taken away his email account. And there are other social media...

Confab ahead of AIPAC speech meant to improve relationship with congressional GOP. Donald Trump will host a group of nearly two dozen influential Republicans on Monday afternoon for an off-the-record gathering that his allies hope will improve his relationship with the congressional GOP and the party’s Washington establishment, according to two attendees. The meeting is Trump’s first major meeting with lawmakers and key Republican figures since last fall, when he met with a smaller group at the Capitol after his speech at a protest against the Iranian nuclear agreement. Several members of the House and Senate are expected to participate,...

Conservative donors have engaged a major GOP consulting firm in Florida to research the feasibility of mounting a late, independent run for president amid growing fears that Donald Trump could win the Republican nomination. A memo prepared for the group zeroes in on ballot access as a looming obstacle for any independent candidate, along with actually identifying a viable, widely known contender and coalescing financial support for that person. The two states with the earliest deadlines for independent candidates, Texas and North Carolina, also have some of the highest hurdles for independents to get on the ballot, according to the...

No wonder the media are fascinated by Donald Trump’s chances of becoming the Republican presidential candidate in 2012. After all, when the Conservative Political Action Committee this year polled members on their choices for a 2012 candidate, the winner, by a seven-percentage-point margin, was Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas). This is in sharp contrast to last year’s poll, in which the winner by nine points was Ron Paul. When a Rasmussen poll sized up potential general election candidates against President Barack Obama, the most competitive Republican hopeful turned out to be Ron Paul. When NPR ran a March Madness contest of Republican politicians—a...