Let's say it's June 2016 and after a long primary battle it looks like Donald Trump will in fact win either a majority or a strong plurality of delegates. Does the RNC have a plan in place to either try to deny Trump the nomination outright or minimize the damage to the party in this scenario? Does Reince Priebus have people working up a "doomsday plan" right now to respond to a Trump win?
Is there any way the RNC could wrestle the nomination away from Trump at the convention?
Would they try to force an unwanted running mate onto Trump's ticket?
Do any major establishment players back some kind of mainstream conservative third party ticket (knowing this will lose Republicans the election but possibly minimalize down-ballot damage)?
Would most sitting Senators and Governors bite their tongues and endorse Trump, or would many refuse to do so?
Could any state parties refuse to give Trump their ballot line?
My wife and I were talking about this very thing yesterday afternoon. I suggested that maybe the RNC could offer the carrot of full-throated support to Trump if he went with an establishment running mate, but my wife asked why in the world he would take that offer. If he wins the nomination, he has all of the power. The GOP establishment still wants a Democrat not to win, right? Trump would be in the driver's seat, and I don't imagine he'd be likely to accept any attempts to rein him in. And why would he? If he wins the nomination, that'll mean he basically waltzed into the GOP and conquered it on his own.
