I, for one, harbor no secret desire to ingratiate myself with the Ruling Class. I couldn’t care less if media elites disdain my existence or sneer at my beliefs as the stuff of antediluvian knuckle-draggers. I refuse to comply with the Left’s insipid, cynical identity politics regulations. I’m not a dogmatic conservative on every issue, but I lean decidedly and transparently to the right, without apology. I regularly critique Trump not as a means of signaling to the Left that I’m a “sensible conservative” or whatever, though I do strive to be sensible. I do it because I sincerely believe Trump lacks the character, temperament, mastery of issues, and ideological underpinnings to be a viable general election nominee against a dishonest Statist who must be beaten. If I’m proven wrong on that count, I’m convinced he would not preside over an effective or conservative presidency, for the same reasons. Bluntly, I view the man who currently leads the contest to carry my worldview’s flag into political battle as a net threat, not a net asset, to that worldview. I also believe Trump’s oft-praised ability to “manipulate” the media is, in fact, giddily aided by the media, which delights in a three-pronged payoff: Trump drives ratings and clicks through the roof, while drowning out stronger Republican presidential alternatives, and making the party look like an unserious clown car in the eyes of key voting blocs that will decide next year’s election…

My opposition to Trump, therefore, is rooted in a commitment to principles, an abiding belief that character matters, and a burning desire to win. People are welcome to disagree with my analysis. Rush Limbaugh, who’s been at this longer than I’ve been alive, may recognize some utility in Trump that I’m missing. But I wish he and others would quit suggesting that passionate conservative resistance to Trump must be a capitulation to political correctness, or a “tell” that one has been seduced by the siren song of impressing the so-called ‘smart set.’ Indeed, motive-impugning can cut both ways. For instance, some have suggested that Rush et al are indulging Trump against their better judgment because they’re fearful of alienating their own audience, having stoked the embers of anti-establishment resentment for so long. But rather than ascribing unseemly and ulterior motives to one another, perhaps those of us who still care about issues and who prioritize the defeat of Hillary Clinton should focus our energies on a serious, substantive debate about who best fulfills William F. Buckley’s sage electoral standard: Who is the most conservative candidate with the best chance of winning? The answer to that question is necessarily subjective on both fronts, and opinions will inevitably vary. I’d submit that Donald Trump satisfies neither criterion; just the opposite, in fact. Despite his attention-grabbing bravado and unapologetic demeanor that appeals to many right-leaning voters at the moment, a robust empirical case can be made that he’s both the least conservative and least electable figure in the GOP race. If you disagree, terrific. Feel free state your case and employ arguments to persuade Trump skeptics, preferably while eschewing his penchant for personal invective.