The NY Times has a pice that reveals that Donald Trump’s handlers ARE actually concerned that one the guys circling around a possible primary run against Trump might actually run, and gain traction among Republicans….
With Trump’s polling numbers sagging in the last week?
They may be right….
Some Trump advisers are more concerned about a primary challenge than they publicly let on, as Mr. Trump faces more strain in the job than he has in many months. They are also aware that primary challenges can weaken incumbents in a general election. The most recent example was President George Bush, who faced a primary challenger from the right in 1992 from Patrick J. Buchanan, a former aide to Richard Nixon and a prominent conservative.
In Mr. Trump’s case, there is little to no space to his right for a challenger to occupy. And his lock on Republican voters has remained solid. But primaries can drain energy and resources, particularly when the president is increasingly focusing on distractions, like a feud with his 11-day communications director, Anthony Scaramucci, who has recently turned against his former boss, calling him a “demagogue” and encouraging Republicans to take a stand against him.
Some public polling has found that more than 40 percent of Republicans are open to a primary challenge to Mr. Trump.
“One of the things that is clear is that there is a high interest in an alternative,” said Sarah Longwell, a Republican strategist who has been working with Mr. Kristol on a group called Defending Democracy Together, to resist Mr. Trump from within the party.
“People say they like the economy and some of the things he’s doing on immigration and judges, but he’s divisive and doesn’t tell the truth,” Ms. Longwell added. “People have eyes. They’re very clear about who this person is. These are not the people who attend the rallies.”
Mr. Kristol, who acknowledged that he had made several efforts at recruiting a Republican to take on Mr. Trump, admitted that the race would be “David and Goliath,” with Mr. Walsh as the underdog….
image….CreditCreditPeter Hoffman for The New York Times
I see no evidence of this.anyhow, what little chance that any of this is serious is mitigated by the fact that Weld, the only official challenger may be joined by Mark Sanford and Joe Walsh.
I can already hear Trump….”you know those three stooges running against me”
( raucous laughter, shouts of RINOs from the Hatefest attendees.).
Kasich and Flake are both said to now be reconsidering too.
Kasich or Flake jumping in would be big news. Previously Kasich has dismissed challenging Trump as a suicide mission and Flake has wimped out on actually calling Trump out.
Actually this isn’t good news for Republicans.If any challenger to Trump started gaining any traction, Trump will immediately start attacking the Republican Party itself.He will claim there is a”conspiracy “ to remove him .He will call out his Cult .The Hatefests will be a daily occurrence.He will demand loyalty endorsements (and get them) from most Republican officeholders.
Ultimately,of course, the challenge will be futile but it will result in suspicion among his supporters about various Republican officeholders who may have been insufficiently enthusiastic in his support of The Leader.
Let the fun begin!
I agree. Also if “the Mooch” is right and Trump does bow out of the Presidential race (very unlikely) he will continue to Tweet and cast doubt on any Republicans who do not bow down to him.
At some point he will likely claim there us a conspiracy against him in the Republican Party.
There really is no easy way out for Republixans with Trump. And that’s the way they want it!
FYI?…..
Three Republicans qualified to run in March’s [Alabama] GOP primary: President Donald Trump; former Massachusetts Gov. William Weld, and Roque “Rocky” De La Fuente, a perpetual candidate…
Source…
If Trump, Weld, Sanford, and Walsh debated, there would have to be the most per capita divorces ever in a political debate.
Haha! Yeah