It could be an interesting convention, after all

[Giovanni Jones]

Even though Trump won the majority of delegates, there could possibly be a revolt (or uprising, or coup, whatever) brewing

WASHINGTON - Growing conservative unease with Donald Trump's outspoken pronouncements on race and a host of other hot-button issues is giving life to a fledgling movement to throw open the Republican convention to rein in the presumptive nominee or find an alternative general election candidate.

The long-shot push includes several top former supporters of Texas Republican Ted Cruz, who suspended his presidential campaign after losing the Indiana primary in early May.

Although the first-term U.S. senator is one of the most conspicuous GOP figures not to endorse Trump, he has disavowed any connection to the effort, saying through a spokeswoman that he plans to stay in the Senate to fight for "the same conservative values he campaigned on."

However, some of the leading figures in what some have dubbed a "coup" or a "delegate revolt" are former Cruz campaign officials who see Trump as an impending disaster for the party. They are encouraging delegates to the national convention in Cleveland in July - no matter who they are pledged to - to press the presumptive nominee on his conservative credentials or reject him.

"Unbinding the delegates is a revolt," said Steve Lonegan, Cruz's former New Jersey state director, now one of the leaders in the national movement to challenge Trump's nomination. "Call it whatever you want. It's a revolt. It's an uprising. … The fact is, our delegates have a moral obligation to nominate the candidate best suited to defeat Hillary Clinton and also carry the banner of the Republican Party."

Lonegan's unusual call-to-arms has been backed by conservative talk show host Hugh Hewitt, who compared Trump to "stage-four cancer," and conservative activist Erick Erickson, who has questioned Trump's "pro-life conversion." It also has been taken up by Christian talk radio host Steve Deace, a former member of Cruz's Iowa leadership team.

"I've had delegates from at least a dozen states reach out to me for help," Deace said. "This is not something Cruz people are organizing. It's something people are doing on their own because they see that this guy is morally unqualified and he's going to lose, and probably lose bad."

-snip-

The anti-Trump drive, which Deace said is "trending up," comes as the former reality TV star prepares to meet with national evangelical leaders in New York next Tuesday to discuss concerns among faith-based voters, who largely broke for Trump in the southern primaries.

Among those attending the private meeting will be Iowa Christian leader Bob Vander Plaats, who endorsed Cruz over Trump in the primaries. Vander Plaats wrote in an essay over the weekend that "every accountability option needs to be on the table at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland."

"Mr. Trump," Vander Plaats added, "should be held accountable for his profanity, for his vulgarity, and for mocking anyone and everyone, including the disabled and prisoners of war."

Drew Zahn, a spokesman for Vander Plaats' group, The Family Leader, said he is "not advocating for a coup," but rather that Republican delegates use whatever leverage they have to "influence him to be a principled conservative leader."

Good luck with that, Drew. Best case scenario would be a minor kerfuffle that goes nowhere. Worst case scenario would be reminiscent of the 1968 Democratic Convention, only with the mayhem being between Trump supporters and delegates, plus a boatload of outside protesters.

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/new...s-among-GOP-activists-looking-for-8146033.php

 

[Seattle Husker]

Even though Trump won the majority of delegates, there could possibly be a revolt (or uprising, or coup, whatever) brewing



Good luck with that, Drew. Best case scenario would be a minor kerfuffle that goes nowhere. Worst case scenario would be reminiscent of the 1968 Democratic Convention, only with the mayhem being between Trump supporters and delegates, plus a boatload of outside protesters.

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/new...s-among-GOP-activists-looking-for-8146033.php

The Republican elite don't have the courage for a coup at the convention because they know it would be the end of their party. At this point, the elite seems resigned to ride out the Trump train and hope it eventually crashes at which point they can say "we told you so".