I don't want Trump to drop out.

[yardwork]

If Trump drops out, the Republicans will replace him with a "reasonable" sounding conservative who could win the election. Once in the White House, the RNC will proceed to hide all the treason, all the illegal activity that took place during this corrupt administration. It will be swept under the rug and we'll never know most of it. We'll never be able to fix it.

I want tribunals. I want congressional investigations. I want grand juries. I want it all exposed, down to the rotten filthy roots, so that we can finally clean out the rot and rebuild our country.

[PJMcK]

1. I know how you feel

Sometimes, though, it's hard to have optimism:

- The Warren Commission Report
- The 9/11 Commission
- The Mueller Report
- The Challenger Disaster

See what I mean?

[Fresh_Start]

3. +1 nt

nt

[yardwork]

4. I know. Still, it will be worse if a Republican gets in the White House.

[PJMcK]

9. No doubt

It's academic anyway because Trump won't bow out.

[yardwork]

44. He can be forced out. He's obviously unwell.

[brush]

64. Let's be real. If trump drops out whoever replaces him will lose too.

Last edited Mon Jun 29, 2020, 04:46 PM - Edit history (1)

This mess the nation is in is repug-generated. They won't get away with 250k deaths by election day. 40k+ unemployment, 401ks depleted, the white supremacy trump is tweeting, stupid trump pushing no masks. And now not doing anything about Putin paying bounties on our troops.

No, they can't distance themselves from all of that.

[live love laugh]

65. No they wouldn't automatically lose.

Too much focus has been on Trump and not the complicity of the Republican Party.

[brush]

67. Wouldn't automatically lose? What does that mean?

[McKim]

89. They Cannot Win: Too Many Disasters!

They cannot win with Trump or without him. There are going to be too many more bodies by summer’s end. The Pandemic will sweep this country and bring it to its knees. If he is removed from running, then maybe we have a chance to get some semi rational leadership who will go along with medical science and save more people from dying of COVID. This should be our priority.

[DonaldsRump]

2. I actually think this is beginning to be a real possibilty

The only way Trump would do this is to cut a deal on pardons (of course that would NEVER happen in the US )

[yardwork]

6. It is a real possibility. It's obvious.

I think it's the plan.

[aeromanKC]

59. NY AG will use those pardons for toilet paper

But yes, this OP concerns me too!!! Way too son for Trump to collapse!!

[brush]

96. IMO trump will lose badly. And won't it be great when he is...

then taken down by the New York AG, a black woman.

Karma is a bitch.

[yardwork]

140. That would be glorious.

[lame54]

5. Way too late for that...

There is no one who is not Trump that can turn this around

[yardwork]

10. I hope you're right. Because that spells doom for the Republican Party.

[lame54]

60. There are only 4 months left...

And if Trump drops out it won't be tomorrow

It will be more last minute because it's only about him and the party can go screw itself

[sprinkleeninow]

86. That's my thinking also. Too late in the game to replace COVID-45.

Although....

[yardwork]

107. Stealing COVID-45!

[sprinkleeninow]

138. Help yourself to it! 😃

[Laura PourMeADrink]

100. Only person I can think of who isn't tied to trump is

Romney. But, of they did that, trump super crazies might not vote. So I am not worried about someone replacing.

[C_U_L8R]

7. It's pretty funny though

We all know Mitt Romney is wetting his pants to run.
But what's going through Lindsay Graham's mind?
Will he give Trump the Brutus treatment so he can take his place?
What other Rebumblicans will break rank to feed their ambitions?
Their chance at 'greatness' is a very small risky window.

[yardwork]

12. Graham has no chance, but Romney could win.

[LakeArenal]

30. But it will be a cluster fuck and take media way from Biden's campaign.

Cruz, Mitt, Christie all vying for air time.

[jcgoldie]

38. Romney can't win

He's seen as Judas by the Trumpers. Even if Trump drops out a huge chunk of the Republican base will be dispossessed and probably not even turn out especially if its someone like Romney or Kasich that have opposed Trump.

[yardwork]

43. I hope you're right.

I see a scenario where someone like Kasich is drafted, with Nikki Haley as VP, and they run on a "save America" platform. And win.

[jcgoldie]

54. You also have to consider that even if Trump dropped out...

...he's not going to go away gracefully obviously. He's going to be a butthurt 2 year old on twitter spewing bullshit to the dumber half of the country and poisoning the Republican Party who he feels hung him out to dry... GOP NEEDS those uneducated racists... they can't win without them.

[JI7]

80. none of these situations fit reality and you overestimate their popularity

[wnylib]

99. I think that's very possible.

i also suspect that's why so many R's are speaking out against Trump now. If there is enough legal dirt on Trump to force him out of the running, then they can replace him with Romney. And Romney might win.

And that would be the end of Republicans being held accountable.

They have good motivation. If there's a blue wave that puts Dems in Congress and the WH, the R's lose all power. If they run Romney, they might salvage the Senate.

[delisen]

121. Romney is their ace in the hole. He is on record as strongly anti-Putin

The democrat who was our strongest anti-Putin candidate was H Clinton and Putin worked hard to keep her out of office.

He may do the same with Romney or he may decide otherwise. He plays the long game

[jcgoldie]

128. They still have to get deplorables to the polls to have a chance

No way Romney does that. He didn't in large enough numbers in 2012 and he certainly won't in 2020 after voting to impeach Trump.

[delisen]

129. They are willing to not win because they can stall change anyway

They do not mind 4 years of a Dem president cleaning up a horrific mess

Romney can also win if the Russia issue bread=ks open. Romney has been consistently strong in opposition to Russia even the many democrats ridiculed him. He can provide cover for them on the Russia-Treason issue. They will try to paintBiden as weak on Russia and try to saddle him, not Mcconnell for 2016 Russian interference.

[mindfulNJ]

42. Trump's base

would be apoplectic if the put Romney in there...no way Jordan, Nunes, McCarthy et al would support that move. They are all determined to go down with the SS Trump...and I hope they do.

[yardwork]

46. I want them all to go down and go to prison.

I don't want this swept under the rug.

[mindfulNJ]

51. Same.

[Squinch]

74. We said - and they ALL said - no way they would support Donny Bodybags either. They will

blow wherever the wind blows.

[JI7]

77. Romney isn't going to run. He would lose and is hated by most Republicans

[pwb]

8. I think you will see that

but The pukes are down just like trump. They will all be beaten and humiliated . Nobody can beat Democrats this election IMO.

[yardwork]

13. I hope so!

[ProfessorGAC]

11. I Do

Nothing repudiated trumpism more than the "leader" running from a fight, especially one that he probably can't win.
The followers can always be countered with "Your boy chickened out & quit."

[yardwork]

17. Revenge is not enough.

If the Republicans hold onto the White House and the Senate, Trumpism lasts forever. The horrible political appointees stay. Nothing gets undone. We'll never know how far Russia got into running our country.

And the Republican Party will get credit for "doing the right thing" instead of being blamed for causing the problem in the first place.

I want annihilation if the RNC.

[ProfessorGAC]

49. If He Drops Out, Republics Lose

They have no chance of flipping sentiment without the cult leader.

[sweetloukillbot]

81. The followers are Trump followers, not Republican followers

He drops out and they lose their motivation.

[ProfessorGAC]

103. Agreed!

And, it only takes demotivating 10% of them.

[jcgoldie]

14. Yeah well

I have to say I'll be having a party when we know he's done and by any means. I know it seems like a weak ridiculous Trump would be a more manageable opponent than his replacement, but that's exactly what I thought when he won the GOP nomination in 2016.

[yardwork]

26. There is risk either way, but I think he's finished.

I just want him to take down the whole Republican Party with him.

[Brainfodder]

15. No, I want him dropped out, reason below:

Avoiding months of BS and protesting assholes and the random careless deaths that would result?

After 4 years of vitriol spewed over RIGGED ELECTION, assorted dumbfuckery and worse.

Remember, Death Count Donnie was crowing RIGGED in 2016, I agree that one WAS rigged!

[yardwork]

19. He'll be replaced and we might lose the White House and Senate.

[Brainfodder]

50. This late? Nah, unless it's cooked, again.

[JI7]

82. NO we won't. Why do you continue to overestimate Republican popularity ?

trump is the one that is popular with today's Republican party and they will not support Romney or kasich or anyone else like that.

but even if they were they nominee they would lose to Biden.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

16. Right.

Especially if Biden has a woman of color as his running mate. Between the sexism and racism in this country, a lot or people will have a great reason to vote for the Republican ticket.

[yardwork]

24. All those Lincoln ads we love will get turned on us.

[JI7]

83. no they won't

[BComplex]

53. That's what I'm worried about anyway. Having a woman, ANY woman on the ticket is going

to be tough.

I think Americans are really tired of "firsts". They want stability and predictability right now.

[Mike 03]

18. I'm a little nervous about the unforeseen consequences but I do believe

if Trump drops out a huge segment of Republican voters will be so demoralized that they won't "rally" around anyone and many will throw in the towel. Trump, for better or worse, is more than just a politician or president to his base. He's like a God. Nobody can replace him except maybe a Fox news celebrity or, I don't even know who.

And if they stick with Pence, or maybe a Pence/Nikki Haley ticket, they'll be routed too. Nobody is going to get excited about Pence except certain Evangelicals. I don't even think he could bring out the racists. The apathy will be ubiquitous. Voting won't be worth the risk of contracting the virus if those are their candidates.

The stench is so thick, I don't even see Romney wanting to have anything to do with running, not this go-round. If Trump goes down, he's going to take a lot of republicans down with him because they've associated themselves with him to the degree it is indistinguishable from a cult.

[yardwork]

21. I hope you're right.

[Mike 03]

36. Maybe I'm being too optimistic.

My favorite way to get rid of Trump is to turn the electoral map of the US entirely blue in November, and to send his family into figurative exile, so they are pariahs nobody will touch.

Same for the Senate GOP.

Besides, I want to see what Mike Bloomberg's going to do with his attack-machine and billions of dollars, and if Trump drops out we won't get to see that.

[yardwork]

41. I love it.

[LisaL]

20. I don't think he is going to, so don't worry.

[TreasonousBastard]

22. You are correct that pretty much any other Republican improves their chances, but...

pretty much any other Republican vastly improves the chances of at least some return to sanity.

Even the slightest chance of another four years of Trump is pretty much unacceptable, and I, for one, would prefer to take the chance of, say, a Romney/Haley ticket beating Biden/Harris. I wouldn't want it, but I could live with it.

Even if they won, it would be a step back toward normalcy, and not nearly as catastrophic as another Trump run. Or win.

The nation's future is far more important than partisan winning.

[yardwork]

31. It would be a catastrophe. They won't fix anything. They'll keep the corruption.

We'll have Trump lite run by more competent people. It will be the end of our democracy.

[Hstch05]

23. It's up to all of us

no matter what happens over the next five month, if Trump resigns and they make someone palatable as VP or if he makes it to the election, to remind everyone we know that every Republican lawmaker (minus Romney) is complicit. They supported Trump for 3 1/2 years. They enabled him. They didn't speak out, they pushed through his agenda, they allowed a virus to run rampant and had no problem with keeping kids in cages. We cannot let them rewrite history. They tied their fortunes to him to get tax cuts and stack the judiciary for generation. Now that Trump is going down, the rest of them need to go down with him. Be loud. Be persuasive.

[yardwork]

39. +1000

[Eliot Rosewater]

25. Agreed, but the only caveat for me is we know Putin literally owns rump...

Would the murderous dictator putin work just as hard for any repub?

Dont know...so do they work as hard to shut down the internet and cell towers and power grids on election day if it is Romney?

I dont know, what do you think?

[yardwork]

37. Yes, Putin will work hard to elect another Republican.

Putin's greatest fear was Hillary Clinton in the White House. She knows all about him. Putin's second greatest fear is Joe Biden in the White House.

They know what Putin was doing. They will root it out.

[Eliot Rosewater]

52. The enemy of our country fears Hillary and Joe and I have relatives who served

in the military who say Joe and Hillary are FAR worse enemies of America than putin is.

REMARKABLE how insane having a Black man in the WH for 8 yrs drove them.

[yardwork]

58. Decades of literal brainwashing. It's a tragedy for our country.

Once we get back the majority in Congress we must reassert the fairness doctrine and get this propaganda off the air. The lies are destroying our democracy.

[delisen]

120. I think Putin fears Romney who considered Russia our enemy in 2012

Romney was ridiculed but he was right. Clinton was ignored when she talked about Putin/Russia machinations in 2016 but she was right. It is we the voters who were left in the dark.

Mueller's been largely ignored when he warned of Russia involvement in 2016 and his clear warning about 2020.

Facebook remains a problem is not our friend; it is our enemy and the tragedy is that so many democrats have willingly given their information to it for free and were completely propagandized in 2016 with Putin and Republican/corporate fake news. I do not have much hope that Facebook will cease and desist in 2020 because those who were duped still do not want to admit it and continue to support this platform which is authoritarian and works against human rights and freedom all over the globe.

The reasons some in the party have been warning against complacency and urging people to vote as though we are 30 points behind is because they know we are still relatively unprepared for the Russian challenge and Facebook.

If Putin drops Trump and Republicans run Romney again (yes they dislike him but they can put up with him for four years if they have too. that is what they did in 2012; he is after all big on self-deportation of immigrants) they will will do what they did from 2008 to 2016 and block as much legislation as they can while Biden works on cleaning up the mess-they they swoop back in and steal everything they can again while destroying the planet.

[yardwork]

122. I agree with your assessment.

[Ms. Toad]

27. I agree, but not for all of the same reasons.

I want Trump out and a Democrat in the White House. If Trump drops out, the Lincoln Project - and other opponents to Trump drop out as well. Republican opponents to the republican candidate give us a tremendous boost. We also need Trump on the ticket to help knock out the down-ticket candidates.

What happens after we retake the white house - I really don't care as long as we work on fixing the country. Exposing the filth would be great - but the country is in desperate shape right now and that has to be our first priority.

[yardwork]

32. The Trump opponents will turn on us.

The Lincoln group won't go away. They'll churn out ads against Biden and our congressional candidates.

[Ms. Toad]

45. That is part of my fear. n/t

[beachbumbob]

28. lol, true trump believers will walk away and see it as deepstate GOP ouster of trump, that works for

me, 1000x over as any significant reduction in GOP voter turnout multiplies the tidal wave

[yardwork]

35. That could happen. That might be good.

[beachbumbob]

143. Its a very likely outcome. The ideologues are what they are and they will stay home from voting

[global1]

29. I Don't Want To See Trump Drop Out Because....

I want to see him lose by a landslide and be humiliated beyond beyond. I want him to be labeled a loser and then I want to see his presidency taken a part piece by piece and discredited. I want to see him wind up in jail like Bernie Maddoff along with his criminal cronies and family.

[LakeArenal]

33. Dreamy!!!!

[3catwoman3]

71. Precisely. I want to see him humiliated...

...by a blue wave of repudiation.

[Thunderbeast]

34. It would take years for the GOP to re-brand itself.

Maybe in 2024 they can organize a new message, but the whole party mechanism has been purged of moderate conservatives. The Wackos are all that's left.

When the money dries up, they will have to come up with a new narrative.

[yardwork]

40. Never underestimate the stupidity and venality of rich Americans.

[SKKY]

47. There is no way in hell his narcissism would allow that to happen...

...He thinks he's winning. And he thinks he'll win. Let's prove him wrong!!!!

[awesomerwb1]

48. You have nothing to worry about

This talk of trump dropping out is absolute and total nonsense.

[DenverJared]

55. I agree completely.

[yardwork]

61. Thanks!

[dawg day]

56. Me neither. To quote some Nixonite (Haldeman?), I want him to twist slowly, slowly in the wind

I want him suffering agonies of frustration and panic until Election Day.

Most of all, I want him to ruin any chance the GOP will elect a president for decades.

[yardwork]

62. Yes!

[jeffreyi]

57. Yes.

Justice, please.

[Me.]

63. I Want It Tonight

Who are they going to run? Pence is their only option and he is a loser. And Trump dropping out doesn't preclude him facing criminal justice for many, many things.

[OrlandoDem2]

66. At the end of the day they're all the same.

They don’t believe that healthcare is a human right.

They don’t believe that climate change is man made and must be dealt with.

They don’t support free tuition at any school past 12th grade.

They don’t support workers rights.

They will ALL put right wingers on the court.

Anything else?

[yardwork]

109. They don't believe that racism, sexism, and homophobia are wrong.

They don't believe in equal rights.

They don't believe in science.

They believe it's good to take money away from poor people so that they can get even richer, even though they already have more money than they could ever spend, while 25% of our country's children live in poverty and don't have enough to eat.

They applaud police brutality.

I could go on and on. They're demonic.

[alterfurz]

119. "Trump is a sociopathic megalomaniac...

...and the Republican party is the most dangerous organization on earth." -- Noam Chomsky

[yardwork]

123. Noam is spot on.

[SoonerPride]

68. I want him to drop dead.

[marble falls]

69. In a million years I would never have thought I would ever agree but ...........

[MrModerate]

70. Who could Reps possibly get who isn't either so obscure that no one knows who they are...

Or so well known to be immediately rejected as a criminal, low-life, Trump-enabler?

Well, maybe John Kasich, but I can't think of anyone else.

[True Blue American]

114. John Kasich

Is no moderate. He just plays one on TV!

[MrModerate]

145. People used to think that Trump...

Could play a politician, even on TV.

[True Blue American]

146. I know what Kasich did in Ohio.

Another massive Charter school ripoff came out today. His friends. Taking money from schools to feed his friends Charter Schools. DeWine is not fixing that either!

[MrModerate]

147. And charter schools got a big boost from SCOTUS today, as well. n/t

[BamaRefugee]

72. This is why I don't applaud Steve Schmidt, Lincoln Project, etc, this is EXACTLY what they are

working for, we need to stop kidding ourselves!

[yardwork]

110. I think you're right. They want Trump gone so they can salvage the election.

They aren't our friends and they're not doing this to help the country. Kristol doesn't give a damn about the country. Schmidt picked Sarah Palin.

[Roc2020]

73. He will not drop out

Trump surrender??..risking the base not turning out??..being seen universally as a coward??etc.. it's not happening. this is a distraction form CV19.

[flibbitygiblets]

79. +1 Distraction. And to rally his idiot base

He's probably just sore from the public humiliation of his #rallyfail. So he's floating that maybe he won't be running in order to
1) distract from COVID and #bountygate,
2) provoke his lowlife supporters to come see him at his stupid rallies. (Kind of like when has-been rock stars announce a "farewell tour".)

[Roc2020]

117. Totally, it's a big shiny object

to get us looking just so he can get a few days escape from the crushing CV19 news and the tanking economy.

[yardwork]

111. Actually he's quit over and over again in his life. He would rationalize it.

[Salviati]

75. I think the best course of action now would be to be what the democrats seem to be doing

Start putting the heat on mcconnell. Blame him for the obstruction, blame him for the gridlock. Cite the terrible approval ratings of congress. Give trump someone else to blame and he will. Put it out there that the approval rating of congress is only 25%, and trump will never shut up about it. Get them in a fight about who's to blame, and trump will take any excuse to pin the blame on someone else.

[yardwork]

112. Excellent strategy!

[JI7]

76. Reasonable Republicans will NOT WIN in today's Repiblican party

MAGASHITS make up most of the party.

the most"reasonable" one is Romney and they hate him and will not support him.

and he can't win anyways.

[Thekaspervote]

94. This! Their only real option is pence..he will never win

[mountain grammy]

78. I just want him to die.

[budkin]

84. No Republican is winning at this point

The entire party needs to lose badly for the "non-Trump" version of the party rebuild itself.

[JI7]

85. ROMNEY AND MCCAIN FUCKING LOST

stop with this being scared over things that don't exist.

Biden would beat Romney and he would beat McCain if he were alive and the nominee.

your fears are not based on reality.

the sooner trump goes the better it is for the country. so many people are hurting and losing their lives and nothing is being done to stop it.

[yardwork]

113. If Trump resigns now we get President Pence until January at least.

I don't think President Pence will be an improvement. I hope you're right that no Republican can win. No need to shout. It's not up to me anyway.

This is a discussion board, so I'm discussing.

[Blue_playwright]

87. I agree!

Let the chaos build in his name. The GOP needs to crash and burn. I’m afraid the damage will be bad, but if this is all covered up, the damage will be worse.

[yardwork]

118. That's my thinking. No more cover ups.

We didn't clean house properly after Watergate, we gave Reagan a pass on the Iran hostage deal he made to win the election and we totally flubbed Iran-Contra. No more.

[0rganism]

88. two things: 1. Trump won't drop out, 2. there's no "reasonable" conservative who could win if he did

Trump needs to stay on as president* or else he gets stuck in a cat5 legal shitstorm
even if he cuts very artful deals for federal pardons covering everything he ever did, there's still plenty of state-level prosecution he'd be running from
even though he's polling at a disadvantage now, he can still win by cheating. he just has to publicize some semi-plausible victory scenarios for his supporters.
if he resigned the presidency and left the race for reals, GOP enthusiasm would crater hard. i do believe his support among Republicans remains quite high -- 80-90%. that's a lot of potential hemorrhaging for the replacement candidate to try to shore up while not losing the very voters they'd be trying to gain back.

basically, Trump has put the GOP in a stupid bind of their own stupid making. they're stuck with him now.

[dem4evah]

90. FUCKIN' A right 'yardwork'

and MOST of all this can NEVER happen again. This POS didn't qualify for drain commissioner let ALONE POTUS. I just got off work today, after spending hours driving by my (red) neighbors flags and BS signs in support of tOrange POS. I have to say, I'm still worried about beating him just because of all the sleazy BS he's still capable of. BUT...I want him to stay in the race and get his ass handed to him if at all possible at this point.

THEN I'd love to see him prosecuted but I have to say folks: I don't think he ever will be. Love to be wrong, but he'll skate in the end and run his mouth and make money off all his cultist dumbasses, and sit off on the sideline and troll and try to destroy anything and everything that Biden will try to do. It won't go any other way. I just hope he dies soon after the election is over. It would be best for everyone involved if the SOB just croaks. But we know that probably won't happen. So, we continue on and fight the good fight as best we can.

[yardwork]

124. Thank you, and thank you for fighting.

[Dopers_Greed]

91. If Trump drops out, we will lose Presidency, Senate, and House

[brush]

92. Just the opposite. Repugs can't run away from 250,000...

pandemic deaths, a horribly bungled response to the virus, 40,000+ unemployed, 401ks depleted, trump afraid to confront Putin about bounties, this new depression, the white supremacy tweeting in response to the BLM protests—nah, it's not if the repugs lose, it's how bad.

[JI7]

101. If we lose it will be because of fearmongering Democrats who drown everything

out with their fearmongering bs.

[BadgerMom]

93. K & R

I’ve been thinking exactly the same thing. They’ll nominate Nikki Haley, pretend that makes them friends of women and proceed down the path they are on right now. We lose the Supreme Court. Social Security is dismantled. Obamacare ceases to exist. Hard NO!

[yardwork]

130. I believe that some Republican leaders are testing this strategy.

[bucolic_frolic]

95. Totally agree

Just realize politics is like a giant network, it's never completely polarized, hundreds of issues entangle both sides while other separate them, and there will be strange bedfellows.

I'm thinking it will be cleaned up to a degree, but there are issues and relationships dating back decades and decades, even a dozen of decades, that would just be too unseemly.

[yardwork]

131. Like 400 years of slavery, genocide and oppression.

It is quite a mess to clean up.

[Warpy]

97. It doesn't make a whole lot of difference right now.

Consider if the worst happens, that Dumdum is carried out feet first (the only way he'll quit) on an outpouring of national sympathy for a leader felled by coronavirus, a bad diet, or stroking out during a temper tantrum. They'd run an affably bland technocrat like Weld and win.

BUT, and this is a big one, a crash is now inevitable. Decades of devaluing labor while overvaluing capital have run their course and we're in the end game. Everything they have done over the last 4 years, from tax cuts they targeted toward the 0.1% and corporate to the trillions in relief money they knew would be looted by the top (and did nothing to stop) has gone toward keeping the pieces on the Monopoly board for just one more round, it's not lights out, honest! Just print some more money to keep it going for a few more rolls of the dice.

Oh, I'd far rather have a Democrat in office when the board catches on fire and the big players get burned. Biden might have been beholden to the banksters for most of his career in politics, but he also saw what a profound effect even a timid, limited effort had when applied to the bottom of the economy, rather than the top, after the 2008 crash when the banksters were screaming the loudest.

However, the schadenfreude of seeing the Republicans stuck with their own disaster would be delicious. The price would be steep as even a bland technocrat would be as bound by his own faulty dogma as the last one, Herbert Hoover, was, so I'd rather see Dumdum try in vain to cling to power and be humiliated by a landslide defeat.

Just realize that Biden will be blamed by stupid people for what's coming if it is delayed until after the election.

I have no idea when it's coming. I just know that nothing this topheavy can stay standing for long.

[yardwork]

132. I agree but it's remarkable how the very rich have kept this going.

[Warpy]

136. All it took was one fucking idiot who was willing to print money

a trillion at a time because he's so stupid, he thinks that's where money comes from.

People need to read about the last countries that tried to do it this way--Germany and Austria in the 20s and early 30s.

It's not remarkable, it's been done before. They just blamed what evntually happened on working people who managed to get some of it.

[Joinfortmill]

98. I hear you. Me too.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

102. If Repukes had someone they would have voted to convict

And they didn't. It also says that they don't like pence.

Anyone who is sane knows they can't win without Trump's insane followers.

[yardwork]

133. That is a good point, but politics is all about the last news cycle.

When the Senate voted not to convict, they didn't believe that COVID-19 was going to tank the stock market, put millions out of work, and oh yeah, kill 125,000 and counting Americans.

Trump screwed this up so badly it's been impossible to spin, and it isn't over.

[JGug1]

104. Trump Dropping Out

There is no Republican who can be elected. Trump is their best chance. Pence would expect to be named and he would lose by a ton.

[DIVINEprividence]

105. I go back and forth on this

A part of me agrees. Another part thinks if he drops out his base will be demoralized and stay home. They aren’t going to get worked up over Pence or Romney. The thing with Trump, I truly fear he would press the button in a psychotic rage and actually fear for my life everyday he is in office. He needs to be removed from office ASAP

[yardwork]

134. I see your point.

[dai13sy]

106. Tribunals

I also want every dirty little secret, every illegal act, all the selling out of our beloved country and the REAL American citizens (and by that I mean everyone who loves our country) that Trump and the Republicans have kept from us exposed. I want everyone in the country and around the world to know the despicable people that have been in charge of bringing our country down. I want the treason laid bare. I agree that then and only then can we begin to breath real, good life into the United States and bring her back from the brink.

[nevergiveup]

108. It is absolutely imperative

that we win the Senate and salvage the Supreme Court. We have a good shot if Trump is at the top of the ticket.

[yardwork]

125. Absolutely agree! Imperative.

[Silent3]

137. I think it would be great if Trump drops out.

As long as Trump is in the race we have to worry that one way or another he can win, or if not win, cause a huge mess by refusing to acknowledge losing.

If he's not in the race, then it's assured he's not the next president. What can be more important than that?

While it would be emotionally satisfying to make Trump suffer electoral defeat, the chance for that is not more important than knowing he can't win at all.

For whatever fire it might (and only might) drain from Democrats to not have Trump to beat, I'm pretty sure Republican voters will be at least equally, if not much more so, dispirited by having Trump quit.

Pence certainly won't whip up the deplorables the way Trump can. And who else could Republicans throw in at the last minute, with nearly all of the primaries already over? A free-for-all Republican convention trying to pick a non-primary-winning replacement for Trump would be an enormous fiasco.

I'm pretty sure Republicans, including those running for Senate, would be in worse shape in the wake of a drop-out Trump than they would be with him running.

[Music Man]

115. As the saying goes,

"Never interrupt your enemy when he's in the process of making a mistake."

From now until November, let Trump be Trump.

[Fla Dem]

116. I totally agree. Someone like Romney would step in.

If he did, all those disgusted Republicans who wouldn't vote for Trump would vote for him. Would make this a much more difficult election to win. Pence probably wouldn't stand a chance just because he was such a sycophant to Trump. But a legitimate center/right governor, senator etc would have a chance.

[madinmaryland]

126. If trump drops out, he will still be president until 01/20/2021.

That may be even more dangerous. A lame duck narcissist with no controls. Scary times

[backscatter712]

127. One nice thing - any would-be-replacement for Trump won't be able to demagogue like him.

Hell, even Trump can't demagogue like 2016 Trump did.

Pence might try the Nuremberg Rally strategy and try for more MAGA rallies, but they'll be snoozefests. And I'm not sure who else in the GOP would be willing to step in the ring. Remember the dynamic - the only thing Trump has is the bigotry - that right there is the core of his damned cult. Any replacement for Trump will try to patch over the damage down-ticket by going back to condemning open racism and trying for the dogwhistle. That will fail to energize the chud base, and fail to fool anyone on our side of the aisle, who's seen the dogwhistling tricks a million times.

The best the GOP can hope for is to try to save their Senate majority.

I'd say the odds right now I'd estimate are 65% Trump sticks it out to the end and gets slaughtered this November. 35% says he takes the coward's road and bails. The rest of the GOP is probably trying to talk him into bailing right now, but Trump's probably at the hissy-fit stage of the discussion.

[Skittles]

135. I don't think Trump humpers will be keen to vote for a replacement

nope

[yardwork]

139. I want to thank everybody who replied in this thread.

I rarely start threads - I'm more of a follower - but I'm glad I posted this. It's been thoroughly enjoyable. Everybody's posts have been thoughtful, informative, and provocative. This must be what it's like to host a talk show!

And thanks for the recs, too!

[ecstatic]

141. Millions of lives are on the line, so he needs to go as quickly as humanly possible.

I don't give a shit who takes his place. Anything or anyone will do for the next few months. trump is a threat to our lives and must go now. Not in January. Now.

[Mike Nelson]

142. Agree...

... Pence would do better. However, it's getting too late for Pence to preside over a normal Administration. I think this is one of the reasons for Pelosi's impeachment timing. The goose is almost cooked... we only have to do our parts.

[Progressive dog]

144. I want him in office until he leaves in disgrace

and takes a lot of the human scum with him. But, destroying evidence has been ongoing, to the extent possible, since he took office. If Trump resigns, he will wait until after the election is over and only if Pence promises to pardon him. I don't think Trump's ego will allow that, he might have to be evicted when his term is over.
Most of the evidence of his crimes will not have been destroyed, because there is too much, with copies in too many places. I believe that you will see criminal, congressional, and civil actions brought against Trump and those who colluded with him.

[book_worm]

148. He won't

and besides even if he did no "reasonable" republican will be nominated. Furthermore many Trump supporters will be so despondent they won't vote. At this late date the only republican who would probably be nominated instead of Trump would be Pence who would still have to carry all the Trump baggage.