Thunderdome in Cleveland Pregame Show: Will the Elephants Stampede?

[Jimmy Higgins]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/paul-ryan-president-2016_us_570d4138e4b0885fb50e7179

About 15 months ago, in January 2015, Paul Ryan announced he wouldn’t seek the presidency in 2016. On Tuesday, he said it again, using his strongest phrase to date: “I do not want, nor will I accept, the nomination for our party.”

Ryan is out and will not be helicoptered in by the "mainstream" Republicans.

What, now we're trusting Paul Ryan?

Seeing he made the same statements regarding being Speaker of the House...

 

[Nice Squirrel]

It's an effective tactic.

Denial. Denial. Second vote someone puts his name in. "How can I turn down the will of the part-tey?"

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

It's an effective tactic.

Denial. Denial. Second vote someone puts his name in. "How can I turn down the will of the part-tey?"

The odd part is to determine whether the Delegates want him. He can always be nominated, but it'd be awful for him to get nominated and then not enough delegates!

Cruz seems to be pushing for delegates at the local level, which may imply that the delegates will be more Cruz friendly than Ryan and definitely Trump who's campaign has been short-sighted due to his never thinking he'd be here in the first place.

 

[Sarpedon]

Yeah, Cruz certainly is the most skillful player in this game, I'll give him that much. No matter how much he is despised, he's got himself in the position where its him or Trump. Cruz has put himself in a position where every outcome is to his benefit. (except getting the nomination and then losing). If Trump gets the nomination, he's well positioned for next time. If they really want to stop Trump, they more or less HAVE to go with him. Ryan won't fly, Kasich won't fly.

 

[SimpleDon]

Here is an article that predicts that nominating Trump might not result in an electoral disaster for the Republicans.

If I asked you what most defines Donald Trump supporters, what would you say? They’re white? They’re poor? They’re uneducated?
You’d be wrong.
...
In fact, I’ve found a single statistically significant variable predicts whether a voter supports Trump—and it’s not race, income or education levels: It’s authoritarianism.
That’s right, Trump’s electoral strength—and his staying power—have been buoyed, above all, by Americans with authoritarian inclinations. And because of the prevalence of authoritarians in the American electorate, among Democrats as well as Republicans, it’s very possible that Trump’s fan base will continue to grow.


Read more: http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/01/donald-trump-2016-authoritarian-213533#ixzz45ic8p9Cv
Follow us: @politico on Twitter | Politico on Facebook

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Here is an article that predicts that nominating Trump might not result in an electoral disaster for the Republicans.

If I asked you what most defines Donald Trump supporters, what would you say? They’re white? They’re poor? They’re uneducated?
You’d be wrong.
...
In fact, I’ve found a single statistically significant variable predicts whether a voter supports Trump—and it’s not race, income or education levels: It’s authoritarianism.
That’s right, Trump’s electoral strength—and his staying power—have been buoyed, above all, by Americans with authoritarian inclinations. And because of the prevalence of authoritarians in the American electorate, among Democrats as well as Republicans, it’s very possible that Trump’s fan base will continue to grow.


Read more: http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/01/donald-trump-2016-authoritarian-213533#ixzz45ic8p9Cv
Follow us: @politico on Twitter | Politico on Facebook

They can talk that all they want. Trump has alienated minorities to such a level, he'd need 75% of the white vote to make up for it. And this says nothing about his grotesque commentary on women to this point during the election run.

 

[Horatio Parker]

This where the action will be AFAICT:

With the Republican Party seemingly headed for a contested convention in July, an obscure committee of 112 delegates could effectively determine the outcome before House Speaker Paul D. Ryan even gavels the proceedings to order.

The 2016 Convention Rules Committee could decide, for instance, who can be considered for the nomination, how long a delegate must remain committed to his or her candidate and what rules govern debate on the floor.

- See more at: http://www.rollcall.com/news/politi...le-contested-conventions#sthash.ay5nbsAb.dpuf

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

This where the action will be AFAICT:

With the Republican Party seemingly headed for a contested convention in July, an obscure committee of 112 delegates could effectively determine the outcome before House Speaker Paul D. Ryan even gavels the proceedings to order.

The 2016 Convention Rules Committee could decide, for instance, who can be considered for the nomination, how long a delegate must remain committed to his or her candidate and what rules govern debate on the floor.

- See more at: http://www.rollcall.com/news/politi...le-contested-conventions#sthash.ay5nbsAb.dpuf

At the same RNC briefing last week, it was made clear that chaos could arise on the floor if the rules committee itself cannot unify. In the event that 25 percent of the panel dissents, there could be a minority report, bringing dueling rules packages to the floor of the arena.

Holy fuck, that'd be something.

So how is this committee selected from the pool of delegates? Cruz is playing politics to get Cruz Delegates on board, but in the Northeast, where states are numerous and pro-Trump (*sigh*), does Trump have a potential lockbox for the Committee seats? It all comes down to who the delegates are, who they actually like, etc...

And why did Romney want Paul off the Convention ballot? Was he ever a threat?

 

[Tom Sawyer]

The environment for the GOP seems so poisoned right now that anyone who'd actually want to become President some day would be wise to not touch the nomination with a ten foot stick (that's a two foot stick in Donald Trump measurements). If someone does nominate Ryan, the best thing he could do for his career is to flee the country until December.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

The environment for the GOP seems so poisoned right now that anyone who'd actually want to become President some day would be wise to not touch the nomination with a ten foot stick (that's a two foot stick in Donald Trump measurements). If someone does nominate Ryan, the best thing he could do for his career is to flee the country until December.

Naw... three simple words would immediately withdraw the nomination.

Paul Ryan: Black lives matter.

 

[Tom Sawyer]

The environment for the GOP seems so poisoned right now that anyone who'd actually want to become President some day would be wise to not touch the nomination with a ten foot stick (that's a two foot stick in Donald Trump measurements). If someone does nominate Ryan, the best thing he could do for his career is to flee the country until December.

Naw... three simple words would immediately withdraw the nomination.

Paul Ryan: Black lives matter.

Well, he still wants to run for President four years from now. He doesn't need to commit suicide.

 

[Cheerful Charlie]

Romney rules out becoming presidential candidate if the convention is contested between Cruz 'n Trump.
---
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/neil-cavuto-grills-romney-gop-convention

"C'mon Neil, I'm not that nominee," Romney replied. "I'm not going to run for office. I'm going to support whoever our nominee is."

Romney called the odds of him even being asked to step up in the event of a contested convention "a zero percent chance."
"They're not coming to you and they're not coming to me," Romney told Cavuto.
"If they did?" Cavuto asked over him.
"I'm not going there," Romney said.

----

Ryan is out and now Romney. There is no man on a white horse to save the GOP.

 

[Nice Squirrel]

Things are getting nasty in the territories!

Dateline Virgin Island:

Virgin Islands GOP Delegate Meeting Escalates Quickly​

Read more at http://wonkette.com/600782/virgin-islands-gop-delegate-meeting-escalates-quickly#D6huoRIwV1cYvH4H.99

A meeting of U.S. Virgin Islands Republicans went a little nutso Saturday, complete with shouting matches, screams for points of order, and at least one delegate getting shoved to the ground, allegedly. While the clusterfuck was due to political infighting, we’d also like to congratulate the USVI GOP for its spirited attempt to dispel stereotypes of islanders as laid back and relaxed.

The foofaraw over the Virgin Islands delegation to the Republican National Convention in Cleveland has been building for a while

 

[Nice Squirrel]

Trump Magazine:
An appeal to shut down democracy with biker gangs! ​

We are looking for patriot bikers who are fed up with the unfair practices of the Republican party. You, and a sizable group of bikers will be responsible for visiting the homes of party leaders who have defied the will of the people, and the homes of delegates who have not been authorized by the people to vote in the upcoming GOP convention, to hand-deliver letters to all of these leaders and delegates.

If you are outraged by what is happening in both of these states (the GOP denying the people the right to vote), write us now and say "I'm a biker and I want to help stop the corruption by the GOP!

http://garyforbes.wix.com/tfg1#!social/fgt67