GOP Sets Out to Prevent Another Donald Trump in 2020

[Frodo]

And if they get their way, open primaries (at least for the Republican Party) will become a thing of the past:

'Never (Again) Trump' sets sights on 2020:
Grassroots conservatives and party leadership are finding a common cause: Limiting Republican primaries to registered Republican voters.

By Kyle Cheney
05/12/16 06:03 PM EDT

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Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2016/05/republican-primary-rules-donald-trump-223136#ixzz48Ugtdoow

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

They have an ally in Debbie Wasserman Schultz. All HP, of course.

[RINO Tom]

Good.  If you want to influence a party and its platform, join it.  Otherwise sit on the sidelines as an Indy until the GE.

[IceSpear]

How will they do this in states with no party registration?

[SteveRogers]

Good.  If you want to influence a party and its platform, join it.  Otherwise sit on the sidelines as an Indy until the GE.

What if your state has no party registration?

[SteveRogers]

How will they do this in states with no party registration?

They won't. Just one of several reasons why it's a dumb plan.

[RINO Tom]

Good.  If you want to influence a party and its platform, join it.  Otherwise sit on the sidelines as an Indy until the GE.

What if your state has no party registration?

I selfishly support all states having partisan registration so I can finish my damn map I've been working on!

[muon2]

Good.  If you want to influence a party and its platform, join it.  Otherwise sit on the sidelines as an Indy until the GE.

What if your state has no party registration?

I selfishly support all states having partisan registration so I can finish my damn map I've been working on!

In your state it would take a major change in state law, and perhaps a change in IL Supreme Court opinion, too. The ILSC has ruled that people are free to declare for a different party with each electoral cycle. The grace voting system allows one to select a partisan ballot type as part of early voting with registration, so one could not close that without abolishing early voting. That doesn't even factor in same day registration (which is effectively the grace voting system applied to election day).

[sg0508]

Just like Democrats didn't understand in the 70s and 80s, the GOP has no clue right now.  They could nominate Trump and will likely lose.  They could nominate one of their own and lose.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Senate map which a flip of 2014 and reapportionment favors Hilary reelect.

[Oldiesfreak1854]

Unfortunately, there's not much they can do in many cases.  A lot of states mandate open primaries, so the party has no control over who can participate.

[Mr. Morden]

Unfortunately, there's not much they can do in many cases.  A lot of states mandate open primaries, so the party has no control over who can participate.

It sounds like rather than barring closed primaries (which as you say, is unworkable) they might just give delegate bonuses to primaries/caucuses that are closed.

[Mr. Morden]

Here's another story on how the Republicans might reform their nominating process, including more talk of Nevada losing its early state status:

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/25/us/politics/republican-primary-schedule.html

[dax00]

If Trump wins and does a great job, they'd be hard-pressed to explain themselves.

[Oldiesfreak1854]

Believe me, it's not just conservatives who are anti-Trump.  It's a lot of moderate and center-right Republicans as well, like Christie Whitman and Charlie Baker.

[Vosem]

If Trump wins and does a great job, they'd be hard-pressed to explain themselves.

If is such a magical word.

Believe me, it's not just conservatives who are anti-Trump.  It's a lot of moderate and center-right Republicans as well, like Christie Whitman and Charlie Baker.

It's a fairly comfortable majority of the party, so obviously not just hardline conservatives.

[ElectionsGuy]

That won't stop another Trump. He won all those northeastern states, Florida, North Carolina, and Arizona when those were all closed. He won several open primaries by 10-15 or more points.

[TJ in Oregon]

Believe me, it's not just conservatives who are anti-Trump.  It's a lot of moderate and center-right Republicans as well, like Christie Whitman and Charlie Baker.

Sure, but the states where those types of voters are concentrated are also the states where Trump performed best. Remember, Trump did better in Massachusetts than he did in Mississippi.

[TJ in Oregon]

If Trump wins and does a great job, they'd be hard-pressed to explain themselves.

If Trump wins and does a great job, then in 2020 he'll be an unopposed incumbent and it won't matter until 2024, by which whatever logic was put into the rules will end up having completely unintended effects.

[Indy Texas]

Closed primaries and nominating Cruz (or a Cruz-type) candidate doesn't solve the problem of Cruz being just as unpromising of a general election candidate as Trump is.

Maybe the GOP should focus on the root cause of their problem - that the only people who vote in their primaries (and identify as members of their party) are old white people.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

These guys are just as stupid, and cowardly as they have always been. They are scared of Trump so they run like sheep to the nearest cliff. Genius, fing genius.


Just like they got spooked by the Tea Party, which is what saved them from 30 years in the god damn wildness that they fully earned with Bush, and ran head long like sheep back to the same fing people who destroy the Party in 2006 and 2008, to lead the Party in 2014 and initially in 2016. And you wonder why we have Trump today.

The problem is they keep trying to ram the same boilerplate down voter's throats, and cannot for the life of themselves understand that is not what people want. You cannot just keep offering the same thing over and over again until people finally vote for it. That is the path not to Whig style destruction, it is the path to Federalist Style destruction. Of being so out of touch with the vast majority of people that they cease to exist as a viable contender.

THE WORLD HAS CHANGED!!! The Bush era GOP is dead, deal with it!!!

[IceSpear]

These guys are just as stupid, and cowardly as they have always been. They are scared of Trump so they run like sheep to the nearest cliff. Genius, fing genius.


Just like they got spooked by the Tea Party, which is what saved them from 30 years in the god damn wildness that they fully earned with Bush, and ran head long like sheep back to the same fing people who destroy the Party in 2006 and 2008, to lead the Party in 2014 and initially in 2016. And you wonder why we have Trump today.

The problem is they keep trying to ram the same boilerplate down voter's throats, and cannot for the life of themselves understand that is not what people want. You cannot just keep offering the same thing over and over again until people finally vote for it. That is the path not to Whig style destruction, it is the path to Federalist Style destruction. Of being so out of touch with the vast majority of people that they cease to exist as a viable contender.

THE WORLD HAS CHANGED!!! The Bush era GOP is dead, deal with it!!!

Though to their credit, they're smart enough to realize that as long as they control the GOP they're still viable simply due to the #NeverDemocrat vote, which is roughly 45% of the country, nothing to sneeze at.

[Young Conservative]

I agree only Republicans should be able to vote in the REPUBLICAN primary. We also need to use proportional delegate distribution across the board like the Democratic Primary. The latter is more important than the former.

[Bojack Horseman]

If the polls continue tightening, then Donald Trump just might be their nominee in 2020 regardless of what they do.

[Boston Bread]

I'd be ok with this. Hopefully the Democratic primaries become more open so independents will mostly vote in the D primary.