The Nevada GOP Caucuses  were conducted in an atmosphere of chaos as huge numbers of people who had never before participated in a Republican caucus showed up and overwhelmingly voted for Trump. Ominously for his adversaries, Trump broke through what had been a ceiling for him, one-third, and got 43% of the vote, with Cruz at 23.8% and Rubio at 23.6%. Carson and Kasich brought up the rear with 5.6% and 3.5%. The percentages may change a bit due to the fact that only 37% of the vote has been counted as of writing, but not the result: an overwhelming Trump victory. A week from now, Super Tuesday, Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont and Virginia go to the polls for both parties and Alaska, North Dakota and Wyoming caucuses for the Republicans.  The question of whether Trump can be stopped will likely be answered by the end of that night.
That Trump is an ignorant, vain buffoon with political positions that indicate he is a Democrat matters not at all to his fans who view him as the equivalent of a vote of no confidence in how the country is being run, especially on the issue of illegal immigration. That Trump was until the day before yesterday in favor of amnesty and that he has a history of hiring illegal aliens, is of no consequence to the members of the Trump cult. The chief blame for this ludicrous disaster is the GOP establishment that on a whole host of issues campaigned one way and then in Washington did nothing or supported the opposite of what they said they would support. A party ignoring its base is always a recipe for a debacle and Trump is happy to play his part. One can only hope that enough Republicans ultimately conclude that while their anger is justified, Trump is the wrong vehicle for redress. If not, the Republic is in for a very rough ride whoever wins the Presidency in the fall.
Update:Â Final tally:
Trump 45.9%, Rubio 23.9%, Cruz 21.4%, Carson 4.8% and Kasich 3.6%.
Trump is the guy who will pull this country together again. No other candidate can do this. Pulling our country together is the President’s Job #1 for me as a house divided will surely fall.
8 years of Obama has succeeded in reducing the country into imbecility. People do NOT think logically. Even reasonable, rational engineers with whom I work – especially the young spoiled brat millennials – lose their minds when it comes to this. It’s either a philandering, adulterous, foul-mouthed playboy gambler or a murderous pathological liar (because she’s a woman) or a commie pinko geriatric because he cares about the less fortunate and Wall Street is evil.
@Michael Dowd.
With all due respect for you, pulling the Nation together is a job for someone who doesn’t make grandiose promises that can never be attained. Mexico to foot the bill for building the Wall? Oh and that’s truly going to happen. The Donald is delusional.
Tell them anything to get their vote.
Used car salesman have more integrity than Mr. Trump.
I agree that his popularity is due to the failings of a RINO Republican Party. I agree that the justifiable angst of the people is due to a President and administration that care less for the will of the people and more to enacting it’s will on the people. I do understand that!
I feel that Trump will not bring the Nation together. He will benefit Trump. He will be a nightmare that will make the past eight years look decent in comparison. Loose cannons cause too much damage The Donald is the worse kind….a loaded and fuse lit type.
Pulling the country together is more important than reigning in executive power, than restoring the Separation of Powers?
No, that is the road of Caesar.
Perhaps the Republic is dead. Perhaps we no longer care about liberty. Perhaps parliamentarianism is the de facto reality of American politics.
I refuse.
I have a thousand dollars that says Trump will not work to defund Planned Parenthood and overturn Roe v. Wade. I’ll be happy if he fights and if I win $1,000: win/win. You know Hillary is pro-death. You can’t vote for her. And, sitting it out is a vote for pro-death.
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“Perhaps the Republic is dead.”
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Perhaps. What are you prepared to do?
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We are suffering eight years of “hope and change” and “fundamental transformation” (translated “ruin”) b/c the GOP pros put up two moderate losers, who supinely allowed themselves to be libeled by the pushy, deceitful, and aggressive leftists and their mass media operatives. Cruz or Rubio won’t be able to stand that. Trump will shoot back.
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GALLUP: “Dishonest” and “socialist” lead people’s responses to “Democrats.”
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Hillary Clinton is a pathological liar and a sociopath who would be in prison if not for her status among Washington’s elites.
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“Wondering who can possibly watch the 2016 presidential clown show, and think, ‘Yes, I want the political process to control ever larger parts of my life!'” Radley Balko
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Oy vey! All this and Heaven, too!
The most obvious sign the GOP was in deep trouble was the election of 2012. If the party could not get a candidate to beat Obama with the track record he had at that point, it will be difficult for them to beat anyone. So frustrated is the base, even “evangelicals” are embracing a guy whose life and values run contrary to the ones they claim. Evangelicals are also responsible for the 2012 loss, and Romney’s Mormonism was unacceptable to them. But Trump? He’s very acceptable.
Kyle Miller.
I hate to say it because of the importance of the elections however it truly is Theatre of the Absurd. A monkey and a football have an equal presence to that of this years political dance.
How sad.
Ya ever notice how Trunp supporters talk about him in the same glowing generalities that Obama supporters used to do?
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/24/a-trump-win-is-looking-inevitable.html
I truly hate Winner-Takes-All contests. I always have.
That having been said, Mr. Trump has run a brilliant campaign. He proves that substance isn’t really important in this media age and that folks are rather turned off by detailed accountings, that “hitting the high points” is a powerful strategy.
I note that Senator Sanders is doing his best to mimic him and I concede that Mr. Trump may be unbeatable.
So… Now what? Once the accolades are given and the GOP has begrudgingly crowned Mr. Trump, will we be treated to centrist positions with details… A “move to the center for the General”? That is the question that must be most on his mind, as the nomination looks more and more promising.
I do not believe that Trump can win as merely “the angry white guy for angry white guys.” Even that future convict, Clinton, could win that contest.
How does he make the move to serious presidential material? It will be interesting to see how he manages it.
Will I vote for him? Not as far as I can see. I do not say that he could not win me over but I do not believe that the kind of rational, substantive policy statements I need to feel comfortable would help get him elected in this vacuous age.
(Note, I am NOT calling those who favor Trump “vacuous.” I have immense respect for my friends who choose Trump. It is just that the “headlines only” approach to information that dominates the ether is poor turf for substantive debate. I didn’t see that till now and Mr. Trump smartly recognized that that is what propelled Obama to office… and that the same appeal would work again.)
The sad reality is that the Fall of Rome looks more and more familiar. I should probably work some cardio into my routine… Lions are fast.
A different perspective on why Trump is succeeding:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/23/why-evangelicals-are-born-again-for-donald-trump.html
I am not as bothered by Trump as others are. I thought by now he would have faded but it hasn’t happened. After eight years of the Muslim Communist, I’m ready for anyone who isn’t a Democrat.
The terrifying people to me are Clinton and Sanders. Clinton, and her husband, belong in Supermax cells. Sanders is an idiot and so are his supporters.
I’m ready for anyone who isn’t a Democrat.
The problem being Trump IS a Democrat, so you’re kind of stuck at square one.
darn. Paul beat me to it.
I don’t see it that way, Paul. As for what is and what is not Republican, the GOP establishment is a Democrat Lite bunch.
@David Spaulding. Thanks for daily beast reference: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/23/why-evangelicals-are-born-again-for-donald-trump.html
A lot of what the article says applies to serious Catholics, too.
@Penquin Fan Thanks. It is good to see someone on this site that doesn’t go bat-sh– crazy when the name Trump is mentioned.
Rubio v Trump.
Who is more likely to flip on abortion issue?
Trump claims he had a personal experience that changed his mind on choice and now is claiming to be for Life W/ exceptions for rape and incest. (Jan 26 Washington Post. )
Rubio is considered an extremist because he will not include rape and incest as an exception. I want this extremist for any possible chance to overturn R v. W since in my opinion that we are, as a people, hanging on by a single thread. That the blood of innocent children has reached a zenith. If you think God can suffer another ten or twenty million dead babies and continue to hear our prayers for good leadership in this nation, then it shouldn’t be a surprise when the United Socialist States of Amerika asks you to stand in line for your cheese and bread.
Climate change is on the way alright.
Stop the killing of our future.
Support those who are committed to turn the tide.
Bat crazy?
You but.
Crazy for the unborn child.
…bat —- crazy! You bet.
(No and, if’s or buts)
To your point, Mr. Dowd:
http://www.theimaginativeconservative.org/2016/01/why-are-many-christians-supporting-trump.html
Even the bat-sh_t crazy Left recognizes this:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2016/02/22/before-donald-trump-the-sad-history-of-when-christians-anointed-another-political-bully/
Admittedly, It is REALLY hard to read someone in the West declaring Charlemagne an enemy of civilization but, if one accepts the idea that the GOP Establishment has repeatedly shown itself to be a heap of betrayers and hypocrites, one can see why a champion would be an attractive proposition.
I share that belief that the GOP Establishment are an untrustworthy lot but my ties to the Republic are too strong to turn a blind eye to yet another presidential want-to-be who will build up the Imperial Presidency.
the GOP establishment is a Democrat Lite bunch.
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Which makes Trump an establishment Republican. At best.
This “the GOP establishment” you mention, Mr. McClarey, how does one become a member of it, where do they meet, and can you name ten men of your state who have sworn formal allegiance to it?
Ha! Talk of “the GOP establishment” is to reify a fiction. There are no secret levers of power within the Republican Party that commands it.
Words are tools of the mind. Dull and inexact tools mar the work.
“GOP Establishment” is, nonetheless, an acxurate shorthand for those who wield direct power over who runs, obtains support, and is targetted for removal.
A snarky elitism in the demand for exact language does not enhance understanding or encourage discussion.
In my state the following are members of the Gop Establishment:
1. Mark Kirk.
2. Jim Edgar
3. Jim Thompson
4. Adam Robinson
5. Pat Brady
6. Aaron Del Mar
7. Dan Cronin
8. Dan Rutherford
9. Jack Dorgan
10. Robert Dold
The state party is so corrupt that John Kass of the Chicago Tribune has labeled the Republican and Democrat establishments in this state as members of one party, “The Combine”. The Republican establishment specializes in running RINOs and demonizing conservative Republicans. Read about former Senator Peter Fitzgerald and dare tell me that there is no Republican Establishment in the Land of Lincoln:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Fitzgerald_(politician)
Pulling the country together is only good if the object or end goal of being together is good. A country can come together for bad ends or for good ones.
Trump could be the pied piper leading people together along a bad path. He has a history of immoral behaviors and his judgment and intellect is clouded by that. His self defensive shouting at Rubio tonight showed his emotionalism and his lack of depth.