Scott Walker backs away from anti-Trump insurgency while John Kasich tiptoes toward it

[HAPPY2BME]

Jon Ward
Senior Political Correspondent
July 6, 2016

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker told the state press corps he’d like to speak at the GOP’s four-day convention that starts July 18, and hinted Wednesday that his decision to reverse course and support Trump was based on his belief that any effort by the roughly 400 anti-Trump delegates out of the 2,472 headed to Cleveland has no chance to wrest the nomination away from the presumptive nominee.

“It’s now clear who the RNC delegates will vote to nominate. And he is better than she is,” Walker wrote on his Twitter account, implying that up until recently, he thought the effort to stop Trump had some chance of succeeding.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/scott-walkers-backs-away-anti-000000829.html?nhp=1

[HAPPY2BME]

Ha Ha!

[Jazzhead]

But just as Walker took himself out of the anti-Trump conversation, Ohio Gov. John Kasich has hinted he’d like to enter it.

Kasich  told the Washington Post’s Dan Balz Tuesday that delegates should not automatically vote for Trump in Cleveland. “They have to weigh their responsibilities against their consciences, and then make a decision about what they want to do,” Kasich said.

Adding further to the intrigue, an email was sent out Tuesday from Kasich’s campaign — which he suspended in May but did not formally end — that touted the results of an NBC News poll that came out the same day that showed Kasich beating Clinton by 8 points in a general-election matchup.

“Perhaps most surprising are the results of a Clinton vs. Kasich November matchup,” said the portion of the NBC News article that was included in the Kasich campaign’s email. It cited Kasich’s ability to win over larger numbers of Democratic and Independent voters than either the 2012 Republican nominee for president, Mitt Romney, or House Speaker Paul Ryan.

I'm proud that I supported Gov. Kasich from the start.   Will he be the only candidate left who won't be intimidated by Trump and his bullies?

Stand and fight - there's absolutely nothing to lose.   

[thatcher]

Interesting that he doesn't mention Trump's name here.  It was 'clear' in May who the nominee would be -- it's 'now clear' that it could very well be someone else.

...hinted Wednesday that his decision to reverse course and support Trump ...

“It’s now clear who the RNC delegates will vote to nominate. And he is better than she is,” Walker wrote on his Twitter account, implying that up until recently, he thought the effort to stop Trump had some chance of succeeding.

[geronl]

Walker has already been pretty establishment. He condemned primary challenges to GOP leaders.

[livius]

Kasich wants to be president, and will do anything to get there. I personally do not like him and he was a the bottom of my list (along with Christie). Trump was never even on my list, because I thought he was a despicable fraud from the start.  However, I'd vote for Kasich if he turned out to be the candidate.

Kasich is somewhat of an opportunist and a liberal, but as such, he was never really attacked by Trump, whose priority was to demean and destroy the actual conservatives and real contenders. So he didn't get smeared and thus I think that probably improves his chances if they can dislodge Trump (which I do think will happen). Originally, I thought that no replacement for Trump could come from among the candidates, but I think that Kasich actually could be agreed upon. As VP maybe he could choose somebody like Gov. Susanna Martinez, who has a good track record and is a smart, outspoken conservative woman who could attract a lot of votes, possibly even current Hillary voters who just want to vote for a woman (but I think even they would be holding their noses as they voted for Hillary and might like another option).

[geronl]

but I think that Kasich actually could be agreed upon.

Kasich is a lefty, wouldn't be much of a switch

[jmyrlefuller]

Interesting that he doesn't mention Trump's name here.  It was 'clear' in May who the nominee would be -- it's 'now clear' that it could very well be someone else.

That seems to be the case of a lot of Republicans. It's as if they don't like the guy, or even care for him—and if it comes to a coup at the convention it won't bother them in the least.

If Trump's counting on a mass revolt if there is a convention coup, he's going to be sorely disappointed.

[HootOwl]

Walker has already been pretty establishment. He condemned primary challenges to GOP leaders.

Kasich said he is not coming to the convention--after he wined and dined the GOP to have it here.  He has become a stinkin' , rude liberal.

[Jazzhead]

Kasich is a lefty, wouldn't be much of a switch

Except he's honest, and lacks Clinton's mendacity, and is one of the original Reagan Revolutionaries, elected to Congress in the first wave of voter euphoria at finally having an alternative to the Democrat/statist hegemony.

Kasich's heart was forged by idealism, and tempered by the real world.    He'd make the best damn President that we could possibly hope for this cycle.

DELEGATES -  YOU HAVE NO LEGAL OR MORAL OBLIGATION EXCEPT WITH RESPECT TO YOUR OWN CONSCIENCES.  THE TIMES DEMAND YOU ACT.   YOU can change the course of history, and erase our collective despair.     

[thatcher]

DELEGATES -  YOU HAVE NO LEGAL OR MORAL OBLIGATION EXCEPT WITH RESPECT TO YOUR OWN CONSCIENCES.  THE TIMES DEMAND YOU ACT.   YOU can change the course of history, and erase our collective despair.     

Don't worry -- they've got this...

[Smokin Joe]

Kasich said he is not coming to the convention--after he wined and dined the GOP to have it here.  He has become a stinkin' , rude liberal.

Envision this: Last two non-trumps standing were Kasich and Cruz. Trump spent the entire campaign smearing, slandering, and calling Cruz everything but a patriotic American. Some of the voluminous poo trump flung at Cruz stuck in the psyche of trumps followers who expressed such vile sentiment toward Cruz, they are as polarized as us #nevertrumps, and perhaps worse.

They poisoned that well, so to speak, which leaves Kasich the last man in who doesn't have a significant plurality dead set against him.

In the calculus of campaigns, that leaves Kasich as a possible candidate enough people could at least rally around to beat Hillary, which is likely the best choice remainaing.

If Kasich is not present at the convention, that 'distance' might remove him from accusations by the followers of the orange one and any others of tampering with the delegates, whereas if he were present, the trumpertantrum would focus on him.

End result: Game, set, and match to the GOPe, with Kasich in the nomination, Palin and Trump in the dustbin, and Cruz backed off, if not blamed for the trump dump, but out of the nomination for at least 4 years, if not more.

[Jazzhead]

Don't worry -- they've got this...

 

[CommerceComet]

Kasich said he is not coming to the convention--after he wined and dined the GOP to have it here.  He has become a stinkin' , rude liberal.

For that reason, John Kasich needs to grow up and be there. He needs to act as the responsible adult he claimed to be in the primaries. Were he not governor of Ohio, he could have his little temper tantrum and stay home for all I care but as the Republican governor, he needs to consider this official duties.

If the governor of Pennsylvania was a Republican, I would expect him to do a brief welcome on behalf of the state at the Democrat convention.  I expect no less out of Kasich.