[Jonny_C]

It's still hard to believe that Trump is seriously a candidate.

But Americans seem to have a death wish.

Have a look at these poll numbers reflecting what people thought of the first debate...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... slide.html

Hillary Clinton's no shining light either, but when stacked up against Trump?

This will be a VERY interesting election day.

[Robair]

Jonny_C Jonny_C:

It's still hard to believe that Trump is seriously a candidate.

They elected Dubya.


Twice.

[DrCaleb]

Robair Robair:

Jonny_C Jonny_C:

It's still hard to believe that Trump is seriously a candidate.

They elected Dubya.


Twice.

It's amazing how much better he looks, compared to the choice they have today.

[Robair]

Just when you think they're scraping the bottom of the barrel, they find a deeper barrel.

It's fucked down there.

[BartSimpson]

What's fucked has been the media expectation that the Republicans are supposed to nominate some spineless, vanilla, milquetoast old bastards like Dole, McCain, or Romney to lose against the charismatic Democrat.

The problem is that this year, and over the protests of the GOP elites, the Republican voters nominated the only candidate with any charisma who stood out from a field of seventeen. Then the Democrats went with the dried up old douchebag who'd stabbed and murdered her way to the top and now even when Trump totally friggin' tanks a debate he's still continuing an upward trend in the polls.

No kidding folks, the Democrats blew it by not running Sanders against Trump. People want something new, not just the same old shit wrapped up in a new suit.

[Thanos]

Assuming that Clinton wins who does the GOP choose next for 2020? Their establishment has been decimated. The Tea Party is burnt out. The big money like the Kochs and Adelson are deliberately staying away this cycle because Trump is too much of a loose cannon for them to tolerate. Choose another loudmouth celebrity with an insane Twitter account like Trump? Some bozo from the Drudge/Breitbart circus? Sean Hannity, who's as big a hyper-sensitive flake as Trump is? I suggested Megyn Kelly, who has a brain and isn't a maniac, but how well would she fare in a party where being kinda stupid and kinda crazy is now something the membership sees as positive character traits?

[BartSimpson]

Thanos Thanos:

Assuming that Clinton wins who does the GOP choose next for 2020? Their establishment has been decimated. The Tea Party is burnt out. The big money like the Kochs and Adelson are deliberately staying away this cycle because Trump is too much of a loose cannon for them to tolerate. Choose another loudmouth celebrity with an insane Twitter account like Trump? Some bozo from the Drudge/Breitbart circus? Sean Hannity, who's as big a hyper-sensitive flake as Trump is? I suggested Megyn Kelly, who has a brain and isn't a maniac, but how well would she fare in a party where being kinda stupid and kinda crazy is now something the membership sees as positive character traits?

For 2018 the GOP will inevitably move to the right and adopt Tea Party issues into the GOP Party platform. And assuming Trump loses in November then we can expect the GOP to nominate a young, articulate, firebrand for 2020. Now that they know what the public wants they'll pivot to satisfy them.

The Democrats are now the party that lacks momentum and 2020 will be a hard sell for them no matter who they nominate. And if Hillary wins in November then she's definitely out come 2020 because she'll spend the next four years playing the part of Putin on the Potomac.

[Thanos]

You mean what "part of the public" wants. You're forgetting that the further right the GOP goes they're continually alienating at least 50% of the American population. They're going to need at least a decade, or more, to recover alone from the way Trump pissed off the Latinos over the last year. And there's always going to be more of the right-wing horror shows of the Palin variety hanging around reminding the public of what stupid genuinely looks like.

This is what a state of perpetual polarization looks like. Large majorities of both sides find their opposites to be so repugnant and outright evil on so many levels that there's zero chance of any cross-over appeal that politicians like Reagan and Bill Clinton were able to successfully pull off.

[martin14]

Thanos Thanos:

Assuming that Clinton wins who does the GOP choose next for 2020?

There won't be a GOP in 2020 worth talking about.

It will split into 2 small parties, or disintegrate. Or both.

[Robair]

Republicans need to get to work on that born in America requirement. Only Arnold Schwarzenegger can save them now

[BartSimpson]

Thanos Thanos:

You mean what "part of the public" wants. You're forgetting that the further right the GOP goes they're continually alienating at least 50% of the American population.

No, you're wrong in thinking that the polarization of the American public is a static number. It's not.

This time in 2000 the 'Tea Party' types consisted of a scant fringe of the GOP. Now they're at least a solid 40% of the GOP. And what's really interesting is the growing number of black and Hispanic voters moving right because the left has spent fifty years both fucking them over and taking them for granted.

The population is moving to the right and by 2020 the super-majority of the GOP will be composed of people who right now you'd call Tea Party types.

Factors like immigration, globalization, and environmental regulations are pushing more and more people to the right and while a Donald Trump Presidency will slow this movement a Hillary Presidency will force it to explode to the surface. In any case, the direction of the public is inevitable and so is the growth of the right. The only question now is what the rate of growth will be.