Thoughts on Kasich not attending the GOP convention...

[PeteB]

As someone who liked Kasich, I am definitely very disappointed in him. But I am not disappointed in him over skipping the Convention (although I hope Trump allows him to show up and welcome the delegates, as the Governor of OH); and I am certainly NOT disappointed that he won't endorse Trump.

What I am disappointed about is that he dropped out, when he did. Since that time Trump has done one stupidity after another, and Kasich staying in would at least have presented an alternative!

Well, I guess, it's water under the bridge right now.

[PeteB]

the stubby-fingered rapist was the first to back out of the pledge, guys. your talking point is nonsense, as usual.

So? If Trump does something wrong, then is Kasich justified in doing wrong too?

Not to get too bogged down in moral and ethical dilemmas, but the "pledge" was meant to be a unifier for the GOP, around certain policies and values.  Trump clearly does not believe in them, nor does he have any set values or beliefs that I can discern (certainly none that cannot quickly be changed for opportunistic reasons).  He is not GOP nor was he ever going to be.  

Kudos to Kasich (and others), who recognized this, and who saw how much his divisiveness and entertainment reality show was an abomination of the normal primary election process.  If I had to say it from a legal and ethical standpoint, Trump's conduct and comments nullified any so-called pledge.

I am just sorry that Kasich did not stay in, as there could have been a real fight, now that Trump's ineptness is clearly coming out.

[PeteB]

Not to get too bogged down in moral and ethical dilemmas, but the "pledge" was meant to be a unifier for the GOP, around certain policies and values.  Trump clearly does not believe in them, nor does he have any set values or beliefs that I can discern (certainly none that cannot quickly be changed for opportunistic reasons).  He is not GOP nor was he ever going to be.  

Kudos to Kasich (and others), who recognized this, and who saw how much his divisiveness and entertainment reality show was an abomination of the normal primary election process.  If I had to say it from a legal and ethical standpoint, Trump's conduct and comments nullified any so-called pledge.

I am just sorry that Kasich did not stay in, as there could have been a real fight, now that Trump's ineptness is clearly coming out.

the pledge was explicitly built around every candidate following it. the minute one of them pulled out, it became null and void.

Really? Tell me what part of the pledge supports that thought (especially since you use the word "explicitly"):

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/09/02/us/politics/document-the-republican-national-committee-presidential-loyalty-oath.html

The pledge is as straightforward as possible, affirming that the losing candidate will support the party's nominee no matter what. There is no ambiguity or fine print that enables a losing candidate to break the pledge if the nominee is bad or if someone else breaks the pledge first. In fact, the pledge pointedly says, "regardless of who it is," which indicates that bad candidates must get support too.

You're just mis-characterizing the pledge in manner that fits your defense of Kasich.

I just explained it to you but you obviously cannot or do not want to see it. The pledge includes one key word - "Republican". This has some connotation, meaning and beliefs. If you do not share them, then your pledge to be a "Republican candidate" is worthless, and so is a pledge from anyone else to support you.

Trump is not simply a "bad" candidate, as you put it. He is a populist candidate who hijacked a major party for his own gain - he believes in nothing it stands for, and I sincerely doubt he believes in anything at all, other than the material gain for himself and his family.