2016 April 13^th

A man named Randy Evans may well determine who the Republican standard-bearer will be in this election. Randy is one of those Republican biggies who will determine who gets the Republican crown at the Cleveland convention; he is a member of the rules committee. This morning Mr. Evans appeared on “Morning Joe” and he was a trifle unkind toward poor, complaining, Donald Trump of whom he said, “he should have learned the rules.” Rather like a cop who tells you that you should have known the speed limit was 35 miles an hour on this road. But then Randy was asked about the presumably sacred 1237 votes needed for a first ballet victory. He declared that if a candidate got 1100 or more votes that would assure victory; if they got less than 1000 that would guarantee defeat and if they fell in the grey area between these two the results would have to be adjudicated. I believe that Trump must be mightily encouraged by those comments. After all this Rules Committee honcho just knocked 137 votes off the number Donald Trump needs to win the nomination.

It does look like Trump will take New York and take it all; if he gets more than half the votes, he gets all of the delegates. They might be fickle and leave him after the first ballet but if he wins on the first ballet who cares? Then it also appears that the convention in Cleveland will be wide open to buying the votes of the uncommitted, of which there will be many. Mr. Evans was asked about this and confirmed that it happened and so what? He claimed that the academy awards were also rife with vote buying attempts with “gift baskets” for all the voters. Why bribery in one venue excuses it in another Evans didn’t say …and of course he wasn’t asked. These TV show folks want to get their guests back so unanswerable questions are rarely asked.

If it comes to competitive bribery I can’t Imagine Donald Trump losing; perhaps he could offer a weekend—or more-- at Mar-a-Lago, the old Marjorie Merriweather Post estate on Palm Beach. Just think, all meals, spa treatments, golf and probably much else for a gaggle of uncommitted voters. Who could compete with that? Besides the current Paddy Power odds are for Trump, even up to take the Republican nomination, and a six to one favorite to lose the general election once he is nominated. It is easy to see why the Republican Party is pushing a stop Trump movement. Of course, if they stop Trump their party still heads right down the tubes because all of those really, really, angry Trump voters will not likely steal quietly away. Windows will fly open and voices will shout, “I’m mad as hell and I won’t take it anymore.”

And then goodbye Republican Party.