Some sort of reckoning regarding conservatism, the Republican Party and Donald Trump is necessary. Electing Hillary Clinton or any Democrat to be president is not how to proceed. Preparing (or adopting) a conservative third-party alternative is arguable but the risk of impacting the presidential process this year in favor of a Hillary must be taken into account. For conservatives there appears no third-party path to improving on Trump and preventing a Hillary in 2016.
However reports are that Mit Romney, perhaps for different purposes, has been going around interviewing personages for the purpose of soliciting their agreement to run as a third-party candidate for president. Some related articles have suggested the strategy is to come up with a candidate with enough popularity to prevent an electoral college majority of either Trump or Hillary and throw the race to the House of Representatives as per the 12 Amendment to the Constitution.
But look at who Mit or others are “interviewing” for the role . . . they include Mark Cuban and John Kasich. Kasich has a whiff of credibility for such an effort (I am not saying assured superiority to Trump) because his negatives are not as high. The relevancy of that is subject to flux as Trump’s may be improving vis-à-vis Hillary. But leave it to elements of the GOPe to assume Kasich is somebody for the bulk of the conservative base to get excited about.
Billionaire Mark Cuban does not have the baggage of Donald Trump, has at least some of the persona but these interviews seem to be conducted with little regard to conservative policy. Cuban seems to be more of a libertarian and not a conservative. So again there is little to excite the base.
Senator Ben Sasse is the only substantial conservative mentioned in the articles below but he has no national name recognition and may have been thrown in the mix on pretense of placating “never Trump” conservatives. And by the way, all mentioned here have turned the opportunity down.
Relevant articles:
Romney Leads Effort for Third-Party Candidate
WashPo: Mark Cuban Rejected Third-Party Presidential Bid
Romney Recruiting Kasich, Sasse for Third Party Presidential Run
I understand the consternation, indeed I share it, of conservatives who have little real trust in Donald Trump. We are frustrated by his opportunism, his lack of credentials, phoniness, and more. It is galling to see him grab the nomination because of stupid plurality rules and the credulity of people with some decent policy instincts but marginal association with who their political friends really are. For example no one was more vociferous and “credentialed” about illegal immigration and amnesty, the first and foremost issue driving Trump support, than (former) Congressman Tom Tancredo who ran for president in 2008 (now I believe a member of the Constitution Party). Where were the Trump supporters then and where are the GOPe Nevertrumpers now in soliciting him? For his part he doubts Trump’s immigration resolve.
But the third-party approach now is too late without a high-profile conservative candidate and probably too risky anyway, especially with the GOPe doing the picking. However the ground work for a conservative third-party safety alternative, OR to better control that substantive candidates emanate from the Republican Party, can begin now.
R Mall
