Yet another casualty; Rick Santorum dropped out, endorsing Marco Rubio in the process. There was some scuttlebutt at Red State expecting him to endorse Trump, but that seemed a bit far-fetched. I commented that "I'd see him more as a Cruz or Rubio guy, but stranger things (by the truckload) have happened this go-round."
Talking to Eileen just before he made the announcement on Fox News, I predicted Rubio. Santorum and Rubio both have more than a touch of compassionate-conservative to them, caring for the little guy more than a lot of conservatives. That doesn't sell that well these days in a primary, but it will sell in a general election. Both are Catholics with an evangelical streak, Rubio so much that he goes to a Baptist church as well as a Catholic one, getting both good Bible-preaching on Saturday night and those ancient sacramental ties on Sunday.
I still don't get Huckabee's going with Trump (or Sarah Palin, for that matter), but this one make sense.
Let me help you. Huckabee and Palin are both damaged brands and feed on attacking Republicans on the way up or assisting people who are already there, likely at a price. Let's not pretend to think either of them had any ideological integrity to the party or even their own way of thinking.
The vicious winnowing of candidates is doing more damage to RNC brand (which was already nearing life support at a national level) than the opposition could have hoped for. But it is in many parts, reaping what Republicans have been sowing in strategy for years. If you cultivate a climate of exclusion, a Trump is a possible outcome somewhere down the line. At best, they are at fault for a strategic failure for allowing hatred of others (eg: women, the immigrant, etc) to fester among their base. At worst, they are guilt of serious moral foul play, everything that the book of James says Christisns should stand for.
I don't think the days of coalition politics are in the future of the United States. But do think there is plenty of room among liberals to create a dichotomy where the Republican Party plays an even more diminished role as a third party, absorbed by moderate democrats. Of course this would put us more in line with other political systems in other developed nations, as you well know. Why must you fight against inevitability, especially one that opens a brighter future for everyone?
Posted by: Critical Thinker | February 09, 2016 at 05:06 PM