"GOP mulls convention challenge to Trump" LATEST: unbinding voted down in cmte

[Fuzzy Bear]

It wouldn't end well for the GOP. Even if they just concede the presidential race, such a chaos, culminating with trouncing the presumptive nominee, would hurt them in downballot races.

Sometimes you have to put the country before party.  I'm ok with conceding the Presidential election in this circumstance.

I would respect a Republican who took this stance.  I have little respect for those who trash Trump, but say they're voting for him because Hillary is so bad.  That's ridiculous on its face.

[Fuzzy Bear]

Yeah, as if overturning the will of GOP voters will allow them to win. First off, their voters would practically revolt - The final proof that the establishment is only in this for themselves and screws them every chance they get. They will see this as the establishment taking their chance at "winning" and flushing it because it may hurt their corrupt agenda.

Second, whoever they nominate will not only suffer from a severely split party and widespread resentment, but they start off with a significant disadvantage in cash and field infrastructure. They basically start out with nothing, except maybe a Super PAC filled with tens of millions of dollars from desperate billionaires. That won't be as helpful as one would like to think, seeing as the candidate would be just starting out with little time to catch up.

Terrible idea. If they wanted an alternative, they should have worked something out much earlier.

Trump never won the majority of Republican primary voters, not even close.  The voters won't revolt (at least most of them wont), they're only going along with Trump now because he's the presumptive nominee.

You're kidding yourself.

Other than two-person races and incumbent Presidents, it's rare when any candidate gets a majority of the primary vote.  Trump got FAR MORE of the vote than any other candidate. 

[Fuzzy Bear]

There are a number of states where the GOP could name its electors for candidates other than Trump and whomever he picks as his running mate.  If Hillary didn't make it to 270, the election would go to the House of Representatives, where the other Republican could win.  That's if the rebellion is successful enough.  It would be a world-class betrayal.  Big!  YUUUUUUUGE!

[Fuzzy Bear]

I'd love a Walker convention coup.  It's not going to happen, but it would be great. 

I hate Scott Walker with every fiber of my being.  He has poisoned the Badger State for me, forever.

Me, too.

[Fuzzy Bear]

One side effect of "unbinding" the delegates at this convention is to make it harder for at least SOME candidates to gain financial support for their primary campaigns.  What would donors think if they were financing only a "beauty contest" primary with unpledged delegates?  Could an "outsider" ever hope to be nominated by a party that "unbound" their delegates on the first ballot?

That leads to the second effect; the posture of such an action as an anti-outsider stance by the GOP that would quench the aspirations of lots of "outsiders".  It would lead a number of Republicans to believe that, one way or another, the GOP will only nominated Bushes and Romneys and the like.  For some, that would be reassuring that there will be no more of this outsider nonsense.  For others, it would alienate them from the GOP to the point where voting Republican would be difficult.