Conservatives, the fight is not over!

[emilynghiem]

I am sure there are a lot of very disappointed conservatives out there who are just throwing up their hands today and saying... well, now what? Trump is the GOP nominee and once again, Conservative voters are left in the lurch without a candidate to support for president of the United States. Today, we're having to endure the sickening gloating of the Trump brigade as they parade around on their victory lap, taking their final pot shots and being the smug and arrogant assholes they've learned to be under their leader.

Fear not, the battle may be over but the war rages on. This isn't over by a damn sight and it won't be over regardless of who wins in November. Our focus must now shift to the congressional races where we stand to make great headway in the house and senate. Now more than ever, our strength and resolve becomes crucial. We can't abandon this fight... not now... not ever. We've suffered a setback, that's for sure. It hurts, I know. But we have to press on for the sake of our children, our grandchildren and this country we love so much.

Naturally, we want to know what went wrong. How did we end up on the short end of the stick in this primary which started with such high hopes? The answer is not simple but it can be summed up easily. The establishment GOP is getting their just rewards for abandoning conservative values. Us conservatives would have liked for that to have come in the form of a new conservative revival and for the first time in 40 years, a conservative choice for president. We came close but no one could have estimated the level of anger from those who are simply fed up with politics as usual in Washington. Too many were simply so fed up they weren't willing to give anyone a chance with a message other than "burn the place to the ground and shake it to the foundation because we're fed up." They didn't really care about messages, they just wanted someone who isn't a political insider because that's all they believe they can trust now. And... some of this can be blamed on actual conservatives who were sent to Washington to change things then abandoned their conservatism.

So maybe this is for the best... maybe we needed this? Granted, it's not what seems the best... it's worse than taking a dose of bad tasting medicine. But maybe we need to get this out of our system so we can return to a clean slate and then start to rebuild a true and strong coalition of conservative values? Once the real Donald Trump becomes known, there will be many who regret their choice. He may or may not defeat Hillary in November and some of us may feel obligated to support him even though he makes their blood boil. I can't tell you what is the right thing to do because I think it's a personal decision you'll have to make.

For me personally, I am not ready to support Donald Trump. I think he needs to unify this party and to do so he needs to advance core conservative principles. It's not our obligation to abandon our beliefs and move toward him, it's his duty as the GOP nominee to reassure the base that we can be united under principles we can all be proud to support in November. If he can't do that or his ego won't let him do that, or his supporters refuse to embrace such a concept, they will do so at their own peril. Clearly, this is out of the control of conservatives now, we can't do anything about what Trump does going forward, that's entirely his prerogative. But there are millions and millions of American conservative voters who are listening and waiting for a reason they should vote for this man in November.

Forget about Trumps antagonistic and frenzied base of supporters... they really don't matter here. What they have to say doesn't matter. They are all giddy with excitement like they just won the championship football game and full of beans. They have already demonstrated they will support Trump no matter what he says or how many times he transitions from one side of a position to another. It's a proven quantity and we know that. What matters is what Trump does. He can either continue to alienate conservatives or he can attempt to bring them into the big tent. The course he takes will have a tremendous effect on his general election bid.

I mostly agree, but it really boils down to one question. Do you want the hildabitch or sanders to be picking possibly the next 4 supreme court justices, that could easily be deciding the course of the country for the next 40+ years? If your answer is no, there's only one alternative.

Dear OKTexas I think we need a Constitutional check on the judiciary where citizens can bring grievances to
a Grand Jury or a Senate Judiciary committee where there are
* conflicts of interest either politically or financially that aren't addressed by the legal system
* political or religious beliefs in conflict that aren't being resolved before pushing one-sided biased policies through govt
* or other Constitutional issues raised, including damages or debts still owed beyond what the legal system can address

I was hoping Cruz could lead the way for this and set himself up for
either a position on the Supreme Court, or a future office as needed to serve in this capacity
of checking judicial and federal authority.

 

[ThunderKiss1965]

Burning the place to the ground would be staying out of it and letting Hilary win or if by default Clinton gets taken off the board and the old, crazy ass socialist gets the nod. I don't like Trump as the nominee either. I'll grimace as I cast my lot, but there are bad choices and then there's the ones that go up in flames.

 

[OKTexas]

I am sure there are a lot of very disappointed conservatives out there who are just throwing up their hands today and saying... well, now what? Trump is the GOP nominee and once again, Conservative voters are left in the lurch without a candidate to support for president of the United States. Today, we're having to endure the sickening gloating of the Trump brigade as they parade around on their victory lap, taking their final pot shots and being the smug and arrogant assholes they've learned to be under their leader.

Fear not, the battle may be over but the war rages on. This isn't over by a damn sight and it won't be over regardless of who wins in November. Our focus must now shift to the congressional races where we stand to make great headway in the house and senate. Now more than ever, our strength and resolve becomes crucial. We can't abandon this fight... not now... not ever. We've suffered a setback, that's for sure. It hurts, I know. But we have to press on for the sake of our children, our grandchildren and this country we love so much.

Naturally, we want to know what went wrong. How did we end up on the short end of the stick in this primary which started with such high hopes? The answer is not simple but it can be summed up easily. The establishment GOP is getting their just rewards for abandoning conservative values. Us conservatives would have liked for that to have come in the form of a new conservative revival and for the first time in 40 years, a conservative choice for president. We came close but no one could have estimated the level of anger from those who are simply fed up with politics as usual in Washington. Too many were simply so fed up they weren't willing to give anyone a chance with a message other than "burn the place to the ground and shake it to the foundation because we're fed up." They didn't really care about messages, they just wanted someone who isn't a political insider because that's all they believe they can trust now. And... some of this can be blamed on actual conservatives who were sent to Washington to change things then abandoned their conservatism.

So maybe this is for the best... maybe we needed this? Granted, it's not what seems the best... it's worse than taking a dose of bad tasting medicine. But maybe we need to get this out of our system so we can return to a clean slate and then start to rebuild a true and strong coalition of conservative values? Once the real Donald Trump becomes known, there will be many who regret their choice. He may or may not defeat Hillary in November and some of us may feel obligated to support him even though he makes their blood boil. I can't tell you what is the right thing to do because I think it's a personal decision you'll have to make.

For me personally, I am not ready to support Donald Trump. I think he needs to unify this party and to do so he needs to advance core conservative principles. It's not our obligation to abandon our beliefs and move toward him, it's his duty as the GOP nominee to reassure the base that we can be united under principles we can all be proud to support in November. If he can't do that or his ego won't let him do that, or his supporters refuse to embrace such a concept, they will do so at their own peril. Clearly, this is out of the control of conservatives now, we can't do anything about what Trump does going forward, that's entirely his prerogative. But there are millions and millions of American conservative voters who are listening and waiting for a reason they should vote for this man in November.

Forget about Trumps antagonistic and frenzied base of supporters... they really don't matter here. What they have to say doesn't matter. They are all giddy with excitement like they just won the championship football game and full of beans. They have already demonstrated they will support Trump no matter what he says or how many times he transitions from one side of a position to another. It's a proven quantity and we know that. What matters is what Trump does. He can either continue to alienate conservatives or he can attempt to bring them into the big tent. The course he takes will have a tremendous effect on his general election bid.

I mostly agree, but it really boils down to one question. Do you want the hildabitch or sanders to be picking possibly the next 4 supreme court justices, that could easily be deciding the course of the country for the next 40+ years? If your answer is no, there's only one alternative.

Dear OKTexas I think we need a Constitutional check on the judiciary where citizens can bring grievances to
a Grand Jury or a Senate Judiciary committee where there are
* conflicts of interest either politically or financially that aren't addressed by the legal system
* political or religious beliefs in conflict that aren't being resolved before pushing one-sided biased policies through govt
* or other Constitutional issues raised, including damages or debts still owed beyond what the legal system can address

I was hoping Cruz could lead the way for this and set himself up for
either a position on the Supreme Court, or a future office as needed to serve in this capacity
of checking judicial and federal authority.

Until an amendment is approved the only course is to make sure the right people sit on the court.

 

[Alystyr]

The wealthy are doing very well.

That is a non-issue.
The wealthy do "very well" regardless of who's in power. Political climate only affects how they manage that wealth.
There's no policy that will change that short of stripping them of everything - investments, real estate, bank accounts, and so on. Even that's not a certainty, since they could potentially rebuild using social connections.

Dear Alystyr instead of stripping anyone of any power or wealth,
why not redistribute the KNOWLEDGE of how to manage and build sustainable wealth.

Ever hear of the abundance mentality vs scarcity mentality?

Scarcity mentality translates into victim mentality that politicians use to SCARE people into blaming either the poor or the rich,
divide people by class and party, and then use up all resources bullying back and forth by fear-based politics, especially abusing media to keep the negative hype going.

Abundance mentality teaches that by investing in growing businesses and serving people, including mentoring and helping others to develop independently,
then EVERYONE benefits and more resources and opportunities multiply for more people.

Instead of competing for scarce resources and thinking we need to beat out the next guy to get ahead, where someone has to lose in order for others to win,
abundance mentality says to invest in building personal and community relations for mutual benefit across the board.
Nobody has to lose, everyone can benefit and win.

Cooperative economics works on this basis.
Investing in microlending and business training to uplift people and whole regions out of poverty
works on this idea of investing in the economy by investing in people to gain business experience in financial and property management.

So why not invest in self-government and teaching communities, cities and states
to manage independently based on their own local resources and leadership?

Right now we have groups attacking each other for political points to gain favor
to get elected to higher centralized offices.

Why not SHARE and redistribute the responsibility among leaders on local levels
and train more people to get involved directly in business and community management.

Wouldn't that create a more self-sufficient financially and politically stable environment
by educating and training the masses to collaborate and run their own districts instead of depending on govt higher up to dictate and mandate policy for them?

What kind of world do we want to live in?
One that is self-sustaining or one that depends on dividing and conquering,
bullying one group over the other to dominate in politics, govt and media.
How sustainable is it to spend billions of dollars on media attacks back and forth
instead of investing our resources directly into creating jobs solving the problems
of govt, society and future development through stable systems of economy and education?

Apologies, but I didn't claim to be in favor of stripping their wealth - I'm not, because their wealth doesn't bother me all that much - but that it would be the only way that they wouldn't be wealthy.
What does bother me is that people are always using the argument "Don't _____ because it benefits the rich!" It doesn't matter that what they're saying not to do would also benefit the lower classes, they're still against it because it allegedly helps the wealthy.
Regardless of politics and policies, the wealthy can shift their assets so that such things have a negligible impact on their total stake.

 

[Boss]

Boss- I am also a conservative, and I believe the single biggest event that has negatively effected this country is the 17th amendment. It essential diverted state power to the federal government. Without addressing this issue, you are trying to fix a squeaky axle but ignoring the square wheels.

Instead, today's Republicans concern themselves with social issues like abortion (settled issue) while catering to the religious right who demonize the LGBTQ community. Meanwhile republican congressional leaders let BO run over them with executive orders.

What is worth saving about the Republican Party?

I agree on the 17th Amendment. I would love to see it repealed in our lifetime. On social issues, I am not liberal, I am a libertarian, but I I am very much pro-life and I disagree with the "settled law" argument... slavery was also "settled law" and that did not make slavery alright. I will continue to stand up and fight for basic human and constitutional rights for humans who do not have a political voice. I will go to my grave not being the least bit ashamed of that. You want to stand up for the rights of a special interest group.... how about the unborn? How about we stop "demonizing" those who stand up for them instead of sex perverts and deviants? How about we stand up for religious liberty, like our founders intended?

Republicans are NOT CONSERVATIVES... If we have learned anything in this election, it is that. From where I sit, there really isn't anything left worth saving about the Republican party. The "establishment" is done... but have you noticed how very few Republicans admit they are "establishment" these days?

 

[emilynghiem]

I am sure there are a lot of very disappointed conservatives out there who are just throwing up their hands today and saying... well, now what? Trump is the GOP nominee and once again, Conservative voters are left in the lurch without a candidate to support for president of the United States. Today, we're having to endure the sickening gloating of the Trump brigade as they parade around on their victory lap, taking their final pot shots and being the smug and arrogant assholes they've learned to be under their leader.

Fear not, the battle may be over but the war rages on. This isn't over by a damn sight and it won't be over regardless of who wins in November. Our focus must now shift to the congressional races where we stand to make great headway in the house and senate. Now more than ever, our strength and resolve becomes crucial. We can't abandon this fight... not now... not ever. We've suffered a setback, that's for sure. It hurts, I know. But we have to press on for the sake of our children, our grandchildren and this country we love so much.

Naturally, we want to know what went wrong. How did we end up on the short end of the stick in this primary which started with such high hopes? The answer is not simple but it can be summed up easily. The establishment GOP is getting their just rewards for abandoning conservative values. Us conservatives would have liked for that to have come in the form of a new conservative revival and for the first time in 40 years, a conservative choice for president. We came close but no one could have estimated the level of anger from those who are simply fed up with politics as usual in Washington. Too many were simply so fed up they weren't willing to give anyone a chance with a message other than "burn the place to the ground and shake it to the foundation because we're fed up." They didn't really care about messages, they just wanted someone who isn't a political insider because that's all they believe they can trust now. And... some of this can be blamed on actual conservatives who were sent to Washington to change things then abandoned their conservatism.

So maybe this is for the best... maybe we needed this? Granted, it's not what seems the best... it's worse than taking a dose of bad tasting medicine. But maybe we need to get this out of our system so we can return to a clean slate and then start to rebuild a true and strong coalition of conservative values? Once the real Donald Trump becomes known, there will be many who regret their choice. He may or may not defeat Hillary in November and some of us may feel obligated to support him even though he makes their blood boil. I can't tell you what is the right thing to do because I think it's a personal decision you'll have to make.

For me personally, I am not ready to support Donald Trump. I think he needs to unify this party and to do so he needs to advance core conservative principles. It's not our obligation to abandon our beliefs and move toward him, it's his duty as the GOP nominee to reassure the base that we can be united under principles we can all be proud to support in November. If he can't do that or his ego won't let him do that, or his supporters refuse to embrace such a concept, they will do so at their own peril. Clearly, this is out of the control of conservatives now, we can't do anything about what Trump does going forward, that's entirely his prerogative. But there are millions and millions of American conservative voters who are listening and waiting for a reason they should vote for this man in November.

Forget about Trumps antagonistic and frenzied base of supporters... they really don't matter here. What they have to say doesn't matter. They are all giddy with excitement like they just won the championship football game and full of beans. They have already demonstrated they will support Trump no matter what he says or how many times he transitions from one side of a position to another. It's a proven quantity and we know that. What matters is what Trump does. He can either continue to alienate conservatives or he can attempt to bring them into the big tent. The course he takes will have a tremendous effect on his general election bid.

I mostly agree, but it really boils down to one question. Do you want the hildabitch or sanders to be picking possibly the next 4 supreme court justices, that could easily be deciding the course of the country for the next 40+ years? If your answer is no, there's only one alternative.

Dear OKTexas I think we need a Constitutional check on the judiciary where citizens can bring grievances to
a Grand Jury or a Senate Judiciary committee where there are
* conflicts of interest either politically or financially that aren't addressed by the legal system
* political or religious beliefs in conflict that aren't being resolved before pushing one-sided biased policies through govt
* or other Constitutional issues raised, including damages or debts still owed beyond what the legal system can address

I was hoping Cruz could lead the way for this and set himself up for
either a position on the Supreme Court, or a future office as needed to serve in this capacity
of checking judicial and federal authority.

Until an amendment is approved the only course is to make sure the right people sit on the court.

We already have political parties that have nothing written up on them and how they operate in the Constitution.

Why can't we create an agreed system to check political parties, media and collective corporate interests
since none of these are written in the Constitution either.

Grand Juries have been called if there are charges to be brought to be reviewed.
Why not use something similar?

Sure, if we can develop/troubleshoot something that works, we could write it into formal legislation
like the OSHA system of issuing complaints of hazards that are out of compliance with the code.
And setting up a system of redressing and correcting the issues to avoid penalties or further hearings, trials or legal/govt action.

There is nothing to stop people from setting up their own
schools, or nonprofits or businesses to serve the public.

Why can't we organize something, and then if it works,
we could later connect it more formally with govt to assist with redressing grievances,
protecting due process, and resolving conflicts that otherwise obstruct the other democratic procedures of govt.

 

[emilynghiem]

I am sure there are a lot of very disappointed conservatives out there who are just throwing up their hands today and saying... well, now what? Trump is the GOP nominee and once again, Conservative voters are left in the lurch without a candidate to support for president of the United States. Today, we're having to endure the sickening gloating of the Trump brigade as they parade around on their victory lap, taking their final pot shots and being the smug and arrogant assholes they've learned to be under their leader.

Fear not, the battle may be over but the war rages on. This isn't over by a damn sight and it won't be over regardless of who wins in November. Our focus must now shift to the congressional races where we stand to make great headway in the house and senate. Now more than ever, our strength and resolve becomes crucial. We can't abandon this fight... not now... not ever. We've suffered a setback, that's for sure. It hurts, I know. But we have to press on for the sake of our children, our grandchildren and this country we love so much.

Naturally, we want to know what went wrong. How did we end up on the short end of the stick in this primary which started with such high hopes? The answer is not simple but it can be summed up easily. The establishment GOP is getting their just rewards for abandoning conservative values. Us conservatives would have liked for that to have come in the form of a new conservative revival and for the first time in 40 years, a conservative choice for president. We came close but no one could have estimated the level of anger from those who are simply fed up with politics as usual in Washington. Too many were simply so fed up they weren't willing to give anyone a chance with a message other than "burn the place to the ground and shake it to the foundation because we're fed up." They didn't really care about messages, they just wanted someone who isn't a political insider because that's all they believe they can trust now. And... some of this can be blamed on actual conservatives who were sent to Washington to change things then abandoned their conservatism.

So maybe this is for the best... maybe we needed this? Granted, it's not what seems the best... it's worse than taking a dose of bad tasting medicine. But maybe we need to get this out of our system so we can return to a clean slate and then start to rebuild a true and strong coalition of conservative values? Once the real Donald Trump becomes known, there will be many who regret their choice. He may or may not defeat Hillary in November and some of us may feel obligated to support him even though he makes their blood boil. I can't tell you what is the right thing to do because I think it's a personal decision you'll have to make.

For me personally, I am not ready to support Donald Trump. I think he needs to unify this party and to do so he needs to advance core conservative principles. It's not our obligation to abandon our beliefs and move toward him, it's his duty as the GOP nominee to reassure the base that we can be united under principles we can all be proud to support in November. If he can't do that or his ego won't let him do that, or his supporters refuse to embrace such a concept, they will do so at their own peril. Clearly, this is out of the control of conservatives now, we can't do anything about what Trump does going forward, that's entirely his prerogative. But there are millions and millions of American conservative voters who are listening and waiting for a reason they should vote for this man in November.

Forget about Trumps antagonistic and frenzied base of supporters... they really don't matter here. What they have to say doesn't matter. They are all giddy with excitement like they just won the championship football game and full of beans. They have already demonstrated they will support Trump no matter what he says or how many times he transitions from one side of a position to another. It's a proven quantity and we know that. What matters is what Trump does. He can either continue to alienate conservatives or he can attempt to bring them into the big tent. The course he takes will have a tremendous effect on his general election bid.

I mostly agree, but it really boils down to one question. Do you want the hildabitch or sanders to be picking possibly the next 4 supreme court justices, that could easily be deciding the course of the country for the next 40+ years? If your answer is no, there's only one alternative.

Dear OKTexas I think we need a Constitutional check on the judiciary where citizens can bring grievances to
a Grand Jury or a Senate Judiciary committee where there are
* conflicts of interest either politically or financially that aren't addressed by the legal system
* political or religious beliefs in conflict that aren't being resolved before pushing one-sided biased policies through govt
* or other Constitutional issues raised, including damages or debts still owed beyond what the legal system can address

I was hoping Cruz could lead the way for this and set himself up for
either a position on the Supreme Court, or a future office as needed to serve in this capacity
of checking judicial and federal authority.

Until an amendment is approved the only course is to make sure the right people sit on the court.

Dear OKTexas

1. for the legislative branch/Congress the best suggestion I have heard is to introduce a procedure
where there is a vote on whether an expansion of govt is Constitutional before a bill is voted.
So if a constitutional amendment is needed before adding something like the ACA mandates/exchanges,
this would be voted on first BEFOREHAND.

2. for the judicial system because the "right of defense and equal representation/protection"
has been skewed by political, corporate and financial biases and conflicting interests:
I think we need a Constitutional check on the judiciary where citizens can bring grievances to
a Grand Jury or a Senate Judiciary committee where there are
* conflicts of interest either politically or financially that aren't addressed by the legal system
* political or religious beliefs in conflict that aren't being resolved before pushing one-sided biased policies through govt
* or other Constitutional issues raised, including damages or debts still owed beyond what the legal system can address

I was hoping Cruz could lead the way for this and set himself up for
either a position on the Supreme Court, or a future office as needed to serve in this capacity
of checking judicial and federal authority.[/QUOTE]


Until an amendment is approved the only course is to make sure the right people sit on the court.[/QUOTE]

We already have political parties that have nothing written up on them and how they operate in the Constitution.

Why can't we create an agreed system to check political parties, media and collective corporate interests
since none of these are written in the Constitution either.

Grand Juries have been called if there are charges to be brought to be reviewed.
Why not use something similar?

Sure, if we can develop/troubleshoot something that works, we could write it into formal legislation
like the OSHA system of issuing complaints of hazards that are out of compliance with the code.
And setting up a system of redressing and correcting the issues to avoid penalties or further hearings, trials or legal/govt action.

There is nothing to stop people from setting up their own
schools, or nonprofits or businesses to serve the public.

Why can't we organize something, and then if it works,
we could later connect it more formally with govt to assist with redressing grievances,
protecting due process, and resolving conflicts that otherwise obstruct the other democratic procedures of govt.

3. for the executive level
instead of having to push conflicts and civil rights protections all the way to the federal
govt, Supreme Court or President's executive orders to seek relief,
why not support the ability of citizens to enforce the same Constitutional protections
and ethics on local levels including per city? right now because city govt and municipal
courts can act as independent corporate interests without Constitutional check, they
have to be sued and ordered by Courts before citizens can protect their rights from
violations. Why not introduce and enforce Constitutional standards on the city
levels of govt by educating the public and setting up systems for citizens to
receive assistance in reviewing policy, redressing grievance or objections,
and resolving conflicts over policies and complaints of abuse or violations.

if we don't redress grievances locally, then like the wedding cake and bathroom
policies, these issues that are better resolved personally and directly between
people get pushed all the way up to top levels of govt in order to address Constitutional level
disputes. So why not address that at the grassroots level instead of depending on federal govt to intervene and rule on behalf of all the public.

 

[Boss]

I mostly agree, but it really boils down to one question. Do you want the hildabitch or sanders to be picking possibly the next 4 supreme court justices, that could easily be deciding the course of the country for the next 40+ years? If your answer is no, there's only one alternative.

I have little faith in what kind of justices Trump will appoint, to be honest. You'd like to think he would appoint some wacko liberal to the court but what if he did and the mealy-mouth Republicans wanting to please the president put their rubber stamp on his pick along with the liberal democrats? It might be tougher for Hillary to get her picks approved and she might be forced to nominate a more centrist moderate than she would like, just to get them through Congress? I'm looking at this like we've already lost the battle for SCOTUS... we're never going to get another Antonin Scalia out of either candidate. The hopes of a true Constitutional Conservative went down the tubes with Ted Cruz and we're going to suffer regardless. So I can't let that be my reason for voting. I need to hear something from Trump to assure me he is going to at least adhere to some of our core conservative principles as president and if he doesn't give me that, I can't vote for the man. I'll stay home or vote for the Libertarian. If we end up with Hillary, we end up with Hillary.

 

[bripat9643]

I don't think this is a kick in the pants, I think it's a changing of the guard. The GOP electorate is old, and quite frankly dying off, being replaced by a shiny object crowd of regressives and isolationists who sew the seeds of fear at every turn. Blame the Right Wing media for a lot of this.
The GOP needs to rebuild from the ground up and take a hard line against the blithering idiot talking heads that damage the brand, and the whack jobs like Cruz, Santorum, King, Bachman, Palin, and the myriad other dumbasses that speak before they think, making headlines that make the GOP look like a bunch of unhinged escapees from an asylum. They also have to lay off the fake scandals and focus that time, money, and energy on real ideas instead of rehashing the same old disproven theories.
Harsh? Yeah, but that's what it's going to take to rebuild the brand.

All conservatives need to do is become conservatives again, and reject the social right, reactionary libertarians, and TPM nitwits who misappropriated conservatism and the GOP.

You mean they should become liberals? You know what you should do, Clayton? Quit deluding yourself that you understand politics or the Constitution. You don't understand either. You spout propaganda and talking points.

 

[LoneLaugher]

I am sure there are a lot of very disappointed conservatives out there who are just throwing up their hands today and saying... well, now what? Trump is the GOP nominee and once again, Conservative voters are left in the lurch without a candidate to support for president of the United States. Today, we're having to endure the sickening gloating of the Trump brigade as they parade around on their victory lap, taking their final pot shots and being the smug and arrogant assholes they've learned to be under their leader.

Fear not, the battle may be over but the war rages on. This isn't over by a damn sight and it won't be over regardless of who wins in November. Our focus must now shift to the congressional races where we stand to make great headway in the house and senate. Now more than ever, our strength and resolve becomes crucial. We can't abandon this fight... not now... not ever. We've suffered a setback, that's for sure. It hurts, I know. But we have to press on for the sake of our children, our grandchildren and this country we love so much.

Naturally, we want to know what went wrong. How did we end up on the short end of the stick in this primary which started with such high hopes? The answer is not simple but it can be summed up easily. The establishment GOP is getting their just rewards for abandoning conservative values. Us conservatives would have liked for that to have come in the form of a new conservative revival and for the first time in 40 years, a conservative choice for president. We came close but no one could have estimated the level of anger from those who are simply fed up with politics as usual in Washington. Too many were simply so fed up they weren't willing to give anyone a chance with a message other than "burn the place to the ground and shake it to the foundation because we're fed up." They didn't really care about messages, they just wanted someone who isn't a political insider because that's all they believe they can trust now. And... some of this can be blamed on actual conservatives who were sent to Washington to change things then abandoned their conservatism.

So maybe this is for the best... maybe we needed this? Granted, it's not what seems the best... it's worse than taking a dose of bad tasting medicine. But maybe we need to get this out of our system so we can return to a clean slate and then start to rebuild a true and strong coalition of conservative values? Once the real Donald Trump becomes known, there will be many who regret their choice. He may or may not defeat Hillary in November and some of us may feel obligated to support him even though he makes their blood boil. I can't tell you what is the right thing to do because I think it's a personal decision you'll have to make.

For me personally, I am not ready to support Donald Trump. I think he needs to unify this party and to do so he needs to advance core conservative principles. It's not our obligation to abandon our beliefs and move toward him, it's his duty as the GOP nominee to reassure the base that we can be united under principles we can all be proud to support in November. If he can't do that or his ego won't let him do that, or his supporters refuse to embrace such a concept, they will do so at their own peril. Clearly, this is out of the control of conservatives now, we can't do anything about what Trump does going forward, that's entirely his prerogative. But there are millions and millions of American conservative voters who are listening and waiting for a reason they should vote for this man in November.

Forget about Trumps antagonistic and frenzied base of supporters... they really don't matter here. What they have to say doesn't matter. They are all giddy with excitement like they just won the championship football game and full of beans. They have already demonstrated they will support Trump no matter what he says or how many times he transitions from one side of a position to another. It's a proven quantity and we know that. What matters is what Trump does. He can either continue to alienate conservatives or he can attempt to bring them into the big tent. The course he takes will have a tremendous effect on his general election bid.

Man....if you weren't such a monumental pussy, you'd have made a great military leader. Very inspiring!

 

[LoneLaugher]

I am sure there are a lot of very disappointed conservatives out there who are just throwing up their hands today and saying... well, now what? Trump is the GOP nominee and once again, Conservative voters are left in the lurch without a candidate to support for president of the United States. Today, we're having to endure the sickening gloating of the Trump brigade as they parade around on their victory lap, taking their final pot shots and being the smug and arrogant assholes they've learned to be under their leader.

Fear not, the battle may be over but the war rages on. This isn't over by a damn sight and it won't be over regardless of who wins in November. Our focus must now shift to the congressional races where we stand to make great headway in the house and senate. Now more than ever, our strength and resolve becomes crucial. We can't abandon this fight... not now... not ever. We've suffered a setback, that's for sure. It hurts, I know. But we have to press on for the sake of our children, our grandchildren and this country we love so much.

Naturally, we want to know what went wrong. How did we end up on the short end of the stick in this primary which started with such high hopes? The answer is not simple but it can be summed up easily. The establishment GOP is getting their just rewards for abandoning conservative values. Us conservatives would have liked for that to have come in the form of a new conservative revival and for the first time in 40 years, a conservative choice for president. We came close but no one could have estimated the level of anger from those who are simply fed up with politics as usual in Washington. Too many were simply so fed up they weren't willing to give anyone a chance with a message other than "burn the place to the ground and shake it to the foundation because we're fed up." They didn't really care about messages, they just wanted someone who isn't a political insider because that's all they believe they can trust now. And... some of this can be blamed on actual conservatives who were sent to Washington to change things then abandoned their conservatism.

So maybe this is for the best... maybe we needed this? Granted, it's not what seems the best... it's worse than taking a dose of bad tasting medicine. But maybe we need to get this out of our system so we can return to a clean slate and then start to rebuild a true and strong coalition of conservative values? Once the real Donald Trump becomes known, there will be many who regret their choice. He may or may not defeat Hillary in November and some of us may feel obligated to support him even though he makes their blood boil. I can't tell you what is the right thing to do because I think it's a personal decision you'll have to make.

For me personally, I am not ready to support Donald Trump. I think he needs to unify this party and to do so he needs to advance core conservative principles. It's not our obligation to abandon our beliefs and move toward him, it's his duty as the GOP nominee to reassure the base that we can be united under principles we can all be proud to support in November. If he can't do that or his ego won't let him do that, or his supporters refuse to embrace such a concept, they will do so at their own peril. Clearly, this is out of the control of conservatives now, we can't do anything about what Trump does going forward, that's entirely his prerogative. But there are millions and millions of American conservative voters who are listening and waiting for a reason they should vote for this man in November.

Forget about Trumps antagonistic and frenzied base of supporters... they really don't matter here. What they have to say doesn't matter. They are all giddy with excitement like they just won the championship football game and full of beans. They have already demonstrated they will support Trump no matter what he says or how many times he transitions from one side of a position to another. It's a proven quantity and we know that. What matters is what Trump does. He can either continue to alienate conservatives or he can attempt to bring them into the big tent. The course he takes will have a tremendous effect on his general election bid.

Dear Boss
If conservatives are going to live up to the principle that we should develop our own programs by free enterprise
and not depend on govt, then now is the time to demonstrate that.

If you are ready, I'm asking to form teams in every city and state that can organize around
either their local political party leadership, and/or academic institutions willing to take this on as a feasibility study,
and start implementing govt and social program reforms OURSELVES by investing in
our local businesses, schools, charities, parties, churches district by district and take back responsibility that has been overburdening govt.

I am asking for ministerial and business leaders, school officials or whoever can help manage teams.

let's do this. let's contact the Sanders and independent Greens and Libertarians,
the Trump supporters who also want jobs and control of the economy back with the working people.

Let's create jobs and facilities along the border that solve several problems at once,
with trafficking, with abuse of enslaved workers in sweatshops, with drug running and cults and gangs,
with the need for health care and jobs/training in social services to meet the demand of the populations in need,
and the need for prison and VA reform which could be the focus of development of medical facilities
based on effective treatment instead of the failure of our mental health and prisons based on
marketing big pharm products to the masses and pushing drugs as self-medication etc.

We can do better than this but the push has to come from the people to be sustainable.
Especially with conservatives whose whole party line is to teach the benefits of limited govt and not depending on Washington,
we need to support local leadership who preach and practice consistently.

Are you game? Are you ready to put out a call and get teams together?
Public radio and internet talk shows can help organize the masses ready for the work it's going to take.

We need ALL the candidates, from Sanders and Clinton, Carson Trump Cruz and the rest,
each to take on part of the puzzle in order to make all the pieces fit together where all the work gets done.

all levels of govt can be used for the maximum and proper capacity
and quit complicating things with programs best run by local groups per district.

Sorry, not even understanding what you want to do. I don't want to be on a team... I am not helping form some coalition to talk about ways we can all get along and solve problems. I am a Constitutional Conservative and I stand for core Constitutional Conservative principles and millions upon millions of Americans are with me.... we don't need organizing. I'm sorry that you spent so much time typing out all of that... really, I think you need to work on honing down your points to one or two main things you'd like to throw out there and not try to reinvent the wheel with every post you make. No offense, but you're just all over the board here.

Yes. That happened. Boss just complained to someone else that they were too wordy. Awesome.

 

[JoeB131]

For me personally, I am not ready to support Donald Trump. I think he needs to unify this party and to do so he needs to advance core conservative principles. It's not our obligation to abandon our beliefs and move toward him, it's his duty as the GOP nominee to reassure the base that we can be united under principles we can all be proud to support in November. If he can't do that or his ego won't let him do that, or his supporters refuse to embrace such a concept, they will do so at their own peril. Clearly, this is out of the control of conservatives now, we can't do anything about what Trump does going forward, that's entirely his prerogative. But there are millions and millions of American conservative voters who are listening and waiting for a reason they should vote for this man in November.

So in short, the Establishment threw everything they had at Trump, still couldn't beat him, but now you want him to kiss your ass after you failed to make your case. Am I getting this right?

Trump doesn't actually need to do anything. He knows your sort will just freak at the thought of a woman in the White House, just like you freaked at the thought of a black dude in the White House.

 

[JoeB131]

I mostly agree, but it really boils down to one question. Do you want the hildabitch or sanders to be picking possibly the next 4 supreme court justices, that could easily be deciding the course of the country for the next 40+ years? If your answer is no, there's only one alternative.

I think I'd rather have that than Trump starting a nuclear war because he's fucking nuts...

 

[Boss]

For me personally, I am not ready to support Donald Trump. I think he needs to unify this party and to do so he needs to advance core conservative principles. It's not our obligation to abandon our beliefs and move toward him, it's his duty as the GOP nominee to reassure the base that we can be united under principles we can all be proud to support in November. If he can't do that or his ego won't let him do that, or his supporters refuse to embrace such a concept, they will do so at their own peril. Clearly, this is out of the control of conservatives now, we can't do anything about what Trump does going forward, that's entirely his prerogative. But there are millions and millions of American conservative voters who are listening and waiting for a reason they should vote for this man in November.

So in short, the Establishment threw everything they had at Trump, still couldn't beat him, but now you want him to kiss your ass after you failed to make your case. Am I getting this right?

Trump doesn't actually need to do anything. He knows your sort will just freak at the thought of a woman in the White House, just like you freaked at the thought of a black dude in the White House.

I'm not the establishment, I am a conservative. I didn't ask him to kiss anyone's ass. I didn't realize conservatives were obligated to make their case to Donald Trump. I don't have a problem with women or blacks in the white house. I don't like Marxists, Communists and Fascists in the white house. I would prefer a conservative. I will not vote for someone who is anti-conservative.

Personally, I don't really care what Donald Trump does. I would like to be able to vote for the man because I don't want Hillary or Bernie to be elected. But my vote is not automatic and I won't be cajoled or insulted into voting for Trump. And there are millions just like me who are waiting for this man to make his case to us as to why he deserves our vote. If he doesn't care, he doesn't care.... Maybe Gary Johnson cares?

 

[JoeB131]

I'm not the establishment, I am a conservative. I didn't ask him to kiss anyone's ass. I didn't realize conservatives were obligated to make their case to Donald Trump. I don't have a problem with women or blacks in the white house. I don't like Marxists, Communists and Fascists in the white house. I would prefer a conservative. I will not vote for someone who is anti-conservative.

Yeah, whatever, guy. YOu know what, when Obama saved GM, he was doign a pretty shitty job as a Marxist. You see, a Marxist would have nationalized GM and then took out the Capitalists and buried them out back in a shallow grave. While that does have a certain appeal, most people would have considered that harsh.

Here's the problem. "Conservatism" stopped being about ideas a long time ago, and now is mostly about playing to white male resentments that they only hold MOST of the power instead of all of it. All Donald Trump did was just boil the argument of all the bullshit about "the constitution" and "supply side" and "right to life" and just left the white male resentment, which won't win him the general election, but WILL did win the nomination for him.

Personally, I don't really care what Donald Trump does. I would like to be able to vote for the man because I don't want Hillary or Bernie to be elected. But my vote is not automatic and I won't be cajoled or insulted into voting for Trump. And there are millions just like me who are waiting for this man to make his case to us as to why he deserves our vote. If he doesn't care, he doesn't care.... Maybe Gary Johnson cares?

I think conservatives need to rally behind Gary Johnson and the Libertarians. Ab-so-fucking-lutely. But if you go that route, and Johnson only gets 3% of the vote, you guys are kind of admitting you aren't that much of the electorate and the GOP establishment will have more of a reason to ignore you in the future.

 

[Wilbur Right]

The GOP needs to rebuild from the ground up and take a hard line against the blithering idiot talking heads that damage the brand, and the whack jobs like Cruz, Santorum, King, Bachman, Palin, and the myriad other dumbasses that speak before they think, making headlines that make the GOP look like a bunch of unhinged escapees from an asylum. They also have to lay off the fake scandals and focus that time, money, and energy on real ideas instead of rehashing the same old disproven theories.
Harsh? Yeah, but that's what it's going to take to rebuild the brand.

Damn dude, you nailed it. Of course non of the resident right wingers on here will believe what you said. But I do.

Unfortunately I don't think your common sense ideas have any chance of being implemented.

 

[Norman]

I am sure there are a lot of very disappointed conservatives out there who are just throwing up their hands today and saying... well, now what? Trump is the GOP nominee and once again, Conservative voters are left in the lurch without a candidate to support for president of the United States. Today, we're having to endure the sickening gloating of the Trump brigade as they parade around on their victory lap, taking their final pot shots and being the smug and arrogant assholes they've learned to be under their leader.

Fear not, the battle may be over but the war rages on. This isn't over by a damn sight and it won't be over regardless of who wins in November. Our focus must now shift to the congressional races where we stand to make great headway in the house and senate. Now more than ever, our strength and resolve becomes crucial. We can't abandon this fight... not now... not ever. We've suffered a setback, that's for sure. It hurts, I know. But we have to press on for the sake of our children, our grandchildren and this country we love so much.

Naturally, we want to know what went wrong. How did we end up on the short end of the stick in this primary which started with such high hopes? The answer is not simple but it can be summed up easily. The establishment GOP is getting their just rewards for abandoning conservative values. Us conservatives would have liked for that to have come in the form of a new conservative revival and for the first time in 40 years, a conservative choice for president. We came close but no one could have estimated the level of anger from those who are simply fed up with politics as usual in Washington. Too many were simply so fed up they weren't willing to give anyone a chance with a message other than "burn the place to the ground and shake it to the foundation because we're fed up." They didn't really care about messages, they just wanted someone who isn't a political insider because that's all they believe they can trust now. And... some of this can be blamed on actual conservatives who were sent to Washington to change things then abandoned their conservatism.

So maybe this is for the best... maybe we needed this? Granted, it's not what seems the best... it's worse than taking a dose of bad tasting medicine. But maybe we need to get this out of our system so we can return to a clean slate and then start to rebuild a true and strong coalition of conservative values? Once the real Donald Trump becomes known, there will be many who regret their choice. He may or may not defeat Hillary in November and some of us may feel obligated to support him even though he makes their blood boil. I can't tell you what is the right thing to do because I think it's a personal decision you'll have to make.

For me personally, I am not ready to support Donald Trump. I think he needs to unify this party and to do so he needs to advance core conservative principles. It's not our obligation to abandon our beliefs and move toward him, it's his duty as the GOP nominee to reassure the base that we can be united under principles we can all be proud to support in November. If he can't do that or his ego won't let him do that, or his supporters refuse to embrace such a concept, they will do so at their own peril. Clearly, this is out of the control of conservatives now, we can't do anything about what Trump does going forward, that's entirely his prerogative. But there are millions and millions of American conservative voters who are listening and waiting for a reason they should vote for this man in November.

Forget about Trumps antagonistic and frenzied base of supporters... they really don't matter here. What they have to say doesn't matter. They are all giddy with excitement like they just won the championship football game and full of beans. They have already demonstrated they will support Trump no matter what he says or how many times he transitions from one side of a position to another. It's a proven quantity and we know that. What matters is what Trump does. He can either continue to alienate conservatives or he can attempt to bring them into the big tent. The course he takes will have a tremendous effect on his general election bid.

I am throwing up for the fact that bunch of regressives like yourself are not seeing that they are voting for a rhino.

 

[Anathema]

I don't think this is a kick in the pants, I think it's a changing of the guard. The GOP electorate is old, and quite frankly dying off, being replaced by a shiny object crowd of regressives and isolationists who sew the seeds of fear at every turn. Blame the Right Wing media for a lot of this.
The GOP needs to rebuild from the ground up and take a hard line against the blithering idiot talking heads that damage the brand, and the whack jobs like Cruz, Santorum, King, Bachman, Palin, and the myriad other dumbasses that speak before they think, making headlines that make the GOP look like a bunch of unhinged escapees from an asylum. They also have to lay off the fake scandals and focus that time, money, and energy on real ideas instead of rehashing the same old disproven theories.
Harsh? Yeah, but that's what it's going to take to rebuild the brand.

The brand you speak of already exists...... theyre called Liberal Democrats. Join them and you'll be fsr happier.

 

[OnePercenter]

I don't think this is a kick in the pants, I think it's a changing of the guard. The GOP electorate is old, and quite frankly dying off, being replaced by a shiny object crowd of regressives and isolationists who sew the seeds of fear at every turn. Blame the Right Wing media for a lot of this.
The GOP needs to rebuild from the ground up and take a hard line against the blithering idiot talking heads that damage the brand, and the whack jobs like Cruz, Santorum, King, Bachman, Palin, and the myriad other dumbasses that speak before they think, making headlines that make the GOP look like a bunch of unhinged escapees from an asylum. They also have to lay off the fake scandals and focus that time, money, and energy on real ideas instead of rehashing the same old disproven theories.
Harsh? Yeah, but that's what it's going to take to rebuild the brand.

The GOP isn't damaged. The wealthy are doing very well.

Yes George Soros and Warren Buffet are doing very well, but they are hardly supporting the GOP.

Silly far left drone

Yes George Soros and Warren Buffet are doing very well, but they are hardly supporting the GOP.

Silly far left drone

Income inequality is a Republican objective.

 

[OKTexas]

I mostly agree, but it really boils down to one question. Do you want the hildabitch or sanders to be picking possibly the next 4 supreme court justices, that could easily be deciding the course of the country for the next 40+ years? If your answer is no, there's only one alternative.

I have little faith in what kind of justices Trump will appoint, to be honest. You'd like to think he would appoint some wacko liberal to the court but what if he did and the mealy-mouth Republicans wanting to please the president put their rubber stamp on his pick along with the liberal democrats? It might be tougher for Hillary to get her picks approved and she might be forced to nominate a more centrist moderate than she would like, just to get them through Congress? I'm looking at this like we've already lost the battle for SCOTUS... we're never going to get another Antonin Scalia out of either candidate. The hopes of a true Constitutional Conservative went down the tubes with Ted Cruz and we're going to suffer regardless. So I can't let that be my reason for voting. I need to hear something from Trump to assure me he is going to at least adhere to some of our core conservative principles as president and if he doesn't give me that, I can't vote for the man. I'll stay home or vote for the Libertarian. If we end up with Hillary, we end up with Hillary.

If the hildabitch wins, we'll most likely lose the senate also, making liberal judges a certainty. I'll take the chance that Trump will do what he said and appoint Scalia types to the court.