http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/278719-chuck-todd-the-reagan-coalition-is-no-longer-in-existenceMay 04, 2016, 02:59 pm
Chuck Todd: 'The Reagan coalition is no longer in existence’
By Mark Hensch
Chuck Todd on Wednesday said that former President Reagan’s GOP is extinct following the rise of presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
“[Trump has] made it his own,” the “Meet the Press” host said on MSNBC. "It’s remarkable. In 11 months, he has bested nine current or former governors; he has bested five current or former U.S. senators.
“Collectively, those folks had 130 years of elected experience in statewide office,” Todd said.
“And a guy who had never held elected office, who never really was an active member of the Republican Party, he has bested all of those people and now he has essentially remade the coalition of the Republican Party. The Reagan coalition is no longer in existence.”
Trump on Tuesday easily won Indiana’s GOP presidential primary. Ted Cruz announced the end of his campaign shortly after the results came in, and John Kasich is expected to follow suit Wednesday.
Todd on Wednesday said that Trump’s success, though extraordinary, does not soothe concerns about his odds in a general election.
“We’re going to find out in November if that adds up to 50 percent plus 1,” he said. "I think there are a lot of people who are skeptical of that. I do think that we need to step back and sit here and give him his due. What Donald Trump did was not easy.”
Todd added that Trump next faces an uphill battle in fundraising for a general election and keeping the GOP in control of the Senate.
“The Senate map for the Democrats just went from six target seats to 12 target seats,” he said.
“Look, the Democrats on a presidential level are probably going to spend anywhere from $1.5 billion to $2 billion,” Todd added. "Is Donald Trump going to put in $2 billion of his own money? Would Donald Trump put in $100 million of his own money, let alone $1 billion? That’s unlikely.
“Can he raise between $1 billion between now and then? Well, if you have all of this angst in the Republican Party from the donor community about Trump, well then, that’s unlikely."
