My operating theory goes like this: The only way to have a fighting chance to beat Trump is by assembling a coalition of (a) former Trumpers who believe it’s time to move on to a younger and less chaotic pugilist who actually wins his fights, and (b) Reagan conservatives who never liked Trump.
And there’s only one name in the middle of that Venn diagram: Ron DeSantis.
The hypothesis suggests that it is unrealistic to expect Republicans to repudiate Trump or even Trumpism. Rather than attempting the fool’s errand of supporting someone who would (fairly or not) be perceived as being a Never Trump candidate, you settle for a Not Trump candidate.
Now, for those of us who might prefer a kinder, gentler alternative than DeSantis, this choice should be viewed as the only plausible way out and possibly a step in the right direction. In other words, before we can move on from Trumpism, we simply must move on from Trump.
This does not bode well for Never Trump candidates.
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