Welcome to the Great Republican Squirm

For as remarkable as Trump’s rise has been, what’s maybe more remarkable is how he has exposed the lameness of the political ranks he is seeking to join. Why does he even have to bother with some of these losers now? Trump seemed to be wondering as much Wednesday morning when he was asked on the “Today” show whether he would be able to unite the Republican Party. “I am confident that I can unite much of it,” he said. “There are parts of it I don’t want.” This struck me as the kind of perfectly Trumpian declaration — smirking, confident and dismissive — that explains how Trump’s romp over what was supposedly an elite Republican field looked almost easy in the end.

With the ranks of the defeated now completed — John Kasich quit the race on Wednesday — Trump’s victims are now lining up to demonstrate their rationalized devotion to their abuser. It is a diminishing spectacle. Bobby Jindal, a onetime Republican star who flailed wildly at Trump during his short-lived quiver of a campaign, said on Wednesday that he would most likely be voting for Trump in November. “I’m not happy about it,” he felt the need to add…

You can certainly see how many Republicans find themselves in a tough spot. They think that Hillary Clinton is awful and that it might be politically problematic for them as Republicans to say they’d vote for her, even if they believe Trump would be worse. It’s considered unseemly for politicians to say they plan to stay home in November rather than vote, even if that’s what they plan to do. No third-party option has come forward. But there’s also something hilarious about Marco Rubio calling Trump the “most vulgar person to ever aspire to the presidency” during his campaign and then last week pivoting to say that Trump’s performance has “improved significantly.” He added that he’s more certain than ever that he will support the Republican nominee “now that it’s apparent that Hillary Clinton is going to be the Democratic nominee,” as if that prospect came out of nowhere (or that he might be Feeling the Bern otherwise).