Althouse: "If you disqualify Trump, you could help Ted Cruz and the establishment doesn't want that. If you disqualify Cruz, you could help Trump."

January 10, 2016

"If you disqualify Trump, you could help Ted Cruz and the establishment doesn't want that. If you disqualify Cruz, you could help Trump."

"So a lot of the establishment is just sitting on the sidelines and I think the moment to go after either has passed," said Alex Castellanos on "Meet the Press" today. He's a big establishment type, having worked for GW and Jeb Bush and Mitt Romney and who has been looking for donors for an anti-Trump ad campaign and not finding any.

Chuck Todd, the moderator, prodded him with the non-question "It's too late," and Castellanos echoes the statement — "It's too late" — "And two-thirds of the party is in one of those guys' pocket, one-third is in the establishment lane. That doesn't argue well for the establishment going forward beyond New Hampshire."

14 comments:

YoungHegelian said...: It's amazing to me how the so-called Republican establishment is simply nowhere to be seen & called by name. I mean, who has given Jeb Bush all those millions? Do I see a hand way in the back?

I'm imagining the following scenario:

Erin Burnett, CNN: "Tonight, we've tracked down one of those rare & elusive creatures, a Jeb Bush donor. It's long-time establishment Republican Milburn Drysdale. Welcome, Mr. Drysdale. So, tell us about your reasons for supporting Jeb Bush."

MD: : "Let's move on to more important & pleasant topics, shall we? Erin, have I ever told you where I stash my 20 year old Sugar Baby?"; 1/10/16, 3:51 PM
Hagar said...: On Fox News Sunday, there was discussion about Hillary!'s e-mail telling someone to just strip the identifiers off a classified document and send it "non-secure." Bob Woodward thought the seriousness of this depends on what it turns out the content was about - if it is ever found out.
I think it is more that if she just offhand types this and sends it, we have no idea how many other documents this happened to. As I understand it, stripping the identifiers also takes the document out of the cataloguing system, so that it cannot be found by searching the subject under a FOIA order, but only by reading every single e-mail on her drive - if it still exists. And it shows a clear intention to bypass the system, which has to be illegal, regardless of content, since it is obviously useless to have a system if those whom it is supposed to cover are free to bypass it whenever they find it "inconvenient."

Then there was a session with the White House chief of staff, Dennis McDonough, and Chris Wallace tried to beard him about the President's rule by executive orders and "memoranda." McDonough responded about like "Stonewall" Jack Lew before him, but not quite as cleverly, and in effect admitted that the President is bypassing Congress and Article I of the Constitution.

Most remarkably perhaps, Juan Williams in the following panel discussion just about flatly stated that if Congress refuses to pass the President's desired legislation, the President is fully justified in ignoring Congress and proceeding on his own by "executive action."

"A republic, Madam, if you can keep it," indeed.; 1/10/16, 4:00 PM
David said...: You can't beat something with nothing, and when all you have is Jeb, it's close to nothing.; 1/10/16, 4:01 PM
John henry said...: Trump disqualified? I assume that this meant Constitutionally or legally disqualified, right?

On what grounds?

He is over 35, born in the US to citizen parents so no possible question he is natural born and has lived in the US for 14 years.

Are there any other grounds on which he could be disqualified?

If they mean politically disqualified, they've been trying that for 6 months now and are probably further away from disqualifying him than when they started. Certainly no closer.

John Henry; 1/10/16, 4:12 PM
John henry said...: Trump

Cruz

Cruz

Trump

Yadda, Yadda, Yadda for the past couple months. They seem like the only two running.

Seems like there is another guy, Dr Wassisname. I have not heard him mentioned hardly at all in the past couple months. He is down from earlier highs but in pretty much every poll I see he and Cruz are neck and neck. Sometimes Cruz Carson, sometimes Carson Cruz but always pretty well in a statistical dead heat for #2.

How about a bit of love for the doctor? He has no Constitutional qualification questions.

So why do we hear nothing about Carson anymore?

John Henry; 1/10/16, 4:17 PM
traditionalguy said...: Castellanos and his buddies are very fortunate they are not Japanese, because if they were then honorable Hari-Kari would be all they have left.

Forget Sepuku. If they did that, then Fox News would have no on air Experts left alive to give out the Network's continuous croaking that Trump cannot win.; 1/10/16, 4:22 PM
Bill, Republic of Texas said...: This analysis is why we are seeing all the new respect Trump is getting. The Establishment is starting to think they'll back Trump over Cruz. Or at least keep their options open.

Interesting times indeed.; 1/10/16, 4:38 PM
traditionalguy said...: Trump close to being disqualified under the Using Bad Words about others section of the Constitution. He has already used:
1) bomb the shit out of them, and
2) The politicians kissed my ass, and
3) Hillary was Schlonged, and
4) Ted is a Canadian.; 1/10/16, 4:38 PM
bleh said...: Eh, the support for Trump is quite shallow and anyway the early primaries seem certain to doom his campaign. Trump won't win Iowa or New Hampshire. After that his lead in South Carolina could be long gone. He won't win Nevada. He's going to have a hard time winning the nomination.

The irony of the Republican race is that liberal states like NY and California account for huge numbers of delegates which will go to some establishment candidate (probably Rubio). Trump can play spoiler by depriving Cruz of some conservative Southern states.; 1/10/16, 4:58 PM
Michael Fitzgerald said...: "That doesn't argue well..."
I don't think I've ever heard that phrase. Isn't it "augre well"?; 1/10/16, 5:17 PM
Michael Fitzgerald said...: A-ha! The phrase is "augur well". An augur is a soothsayer, an auger is a tool to drill holes, and an augre is an Olde English ogre.; 1/10/16, 5:21 PM
rehajm said...: So why do we hear nothing about Carson anymore?

He speaks softly.; 1/10/16, 5:29 PM
John henry said...: Blogger traditionalguy said...

Trump close to being disqualified under the Using Bad Words about others section of the Constitution. He has already used:
1) bomb the shit out of them, and

You mean like this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-zoPgv_nYg

(McCain singing "Bomb, bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran"

John Henry; 1/10/16, 7:01 PM
eric said...: My wifes preference is Carson, then Cruz, then Trump.

I wonder how many people have a similar preference.; 1/10/16, 7:34 PM