Pepublican Party Chaos

The Republican Party is reeling and stunned as a result of the release of 2005 audio recordings of Donald Trump talking about women using vulgar language.  Many leading Republicans have denounced Trump and withdrawn their endorsements.   Some are calling for Trump to be removed from the ticket.   With a month to go before the presidential election, the GOP is in chaos.  

Vice Presidential nominee Mike Pence and his team are described as "absolutely apoplectic" and "inconsolable" because of Trump's obscene language.  In his appearance at the Vice Presidential Debate, Pence said, "If Donald Trump has said all of the things that you've said he said, in the way you said he said them, he still wouldn't have a fraction of the insults that Hillary Clinton leveled when she said half our supporters were a basket of deplorables."   Pence may have won that battle, but he is about to lose the war because of his deplorable running mate.  Pence should immediately quit the race in order to save his dignity and reputation.  

Unless Trump withdraws it will be difficult and complicated for the Republican Party to remove him from the ticket and replace him on the ballot.  Some Republicans are holding out until they see how he performs in Sunday’s second Presidential Debate.  But even if Trump has a strong performance, how can any Republican member of Congress stand behind him?  There are reports that more tapes of Trump using offensive language will be released soon.  There already have been plenty of anecdotal reports of Trump's bad behavior towards women.  

Loyal Trump supporters are standing by their candidate.  Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani told reporters he wasn't surprised that some Republicans no longer support Trump.   "You look at it, they were all Republicans who all opposed him and didn't support him in the past and this is basically the insiders against the outsiders anyway," he said outside Trump Tower Saturday night.  But the thrice-married Giuliani may not be the best person to make Trump's case.

There are reports that Trump will bring up former President Bill Clinton’s affairs in the debate, and he will again attack Hillary Clinton as an enabler.  But the same could be said for any Republican who supports Trump. 

Trump's crude language towards women is just the latest offense in a long list of embarrassing comments by the New York billionaire.  He has called Mexicans rapists, he called for a ban on Muslims entering the U.S., he forced a sitting president to produce a birth certificate, he mocked a reporter with a disability, he said Senator John McCain was not a hero, he viciously insulted his primary opponents, and he has harshly attacked a many journalists.   Yet, despite all of that he secured his party's nomination and most leading Republicans endorsed him.   Now they are in a panic.

Trump is now toxic, and he made be headed for an historic landslide defeat November 8.  His actions have put many down ballot races in jeopardy for Republicans, and they may lose control of the U.S. Senate.   Simply denouncing Trump and redirecting campaign funds to House and Senate races may not be enough for Republicans to stop the tidal wave.  

Late Saturday, Donald Trump, living in his alternate reality, arrogantly tweeted, “The media and establishment want me out of the race so badly - I WILL NEVER DROP OUT OF THE RACE, WILL NEVER LET MY SUPPORTERS DOWN!’’

Many Republicans are already looking ahead to the 2018 midterm elections, when a large number of Democratic Senate seats will be in play, and the 2020 presidential contest.  But humiliated Republicans will first have to rebuild their party and unite their members.  That will be no easy task.  

On Election Day 2016 the Republican Party will reap what it has sown.