By Paul Gable
Voters will go to the polls in five states today to cast a ballot in Republican and Democratic presidential primaries.
At the end of the day, Hilary Clinton will probably be very close to securing the number of delegates needed to win the Democratic nomination for president.
On the Republican side, Donald Trump is expected to win all five states. However, his nomination will still be in doubt because of party rules and a last ditch effort between the other remaining Republican candidates, Ted Cruz and John Kasich, to stop his nomination at all costs.
Here is a sample of the rhetoric we have heard in the last several days:
A vote for Cruz or Trump is a vote for Hilary Clinton – Kasich
John Kasich has no path whatsoever to the Republican nomination – Cruz
If you collude in business, if you collude in the stock market, they put you in jail. But, if you collude in politics, because it’s a rigged system, that’s okay. – Trump
It takes two guys, long time politicians, to get together to try and stop Trump and they’re way behind. These two guys have to collude in order to stay alive. And they’re not doing very good. They’re way behind. – Trump
Pennsylvania demonstrates the Republican system. It will send 71 delegates to the Republican national convention. If Trump has a big win in Pennsylvania, as he is expected to do, he will gain 17 pledged delegates. The remaining 54 will be unpledged going to the national convention.
This is why Cruz and or Kasich still have hopes of gaining the nomination. They don’t have to win with the voters. All they have to do is stop Trump from gaining a majority of delegates on the first ballot to force the convention open to second and further ballots where the results from the voters will be largely ignored.
As the rhetoric rises and the games being played are brought to light, it becomes more obvious to voters that they really don’t matter that much to the Republican insiders who are trying to stop Trump from gaining the nomination.
But, this isn’t a year to make the voters mad. There is enough bad feeling among voters across the nation against both major parties.
It’s a far cry from 1896 or 1920 when Republican nominees were decided in secret, smoke filled rooms.
But, you have to win with the voters in November and neither Cruz nor Kasich has demonstrated the ability to do that on a consistent basis.
Only Trump, the man the Republican Party does not want, is carrying voters with his message.
Recently, Charles Koch told news media that Hilary Clinton, among the remaining candidates, may be the best suited for the presidency. When the Kochs can’t find a Republican candidate to support, things are very bad for the Republican Party.
Speak Up…