A few months ago, the Republican establishment made noises, both secretive and blatant, about an upcoming civil war within the party. These threats had everything to do with Donald Trump. He’s done a tidy job of fracturing the GOP by striking Hitler poses and generally acting like an embarrassment. There have been whispers of a contested convention with a Paul Ryan nomination, but Ryan continues to deny all intentions of wanting the position. With Ted Cruz’s momentum waning, the party appears to be tied into a Trump ballot, and Kasich doesn’t have much hope of even catching up to Marco Rubio’s delegate count. On Twitter, Trump’s calling for his remaining rivals to drop out so the party can “unify.”
Senator Ted Cruz has been MATHEMATICALLY ELIMINATED from race. He said Kasich should get out for same reason. I think both should get out!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 21, 2016
Both Ted Cruz and John Kasich have no path to victory. They should both drop out of the race so that the Republican Party can unify!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 21, 2016
Whatever happens, lasting damage has been set in motion, even as Trump’s New York victory speech and subsequent media appearances reveal a more refined character. All of this arrives too late for a secretive Hollywood group known as the “Friends of Abe.” This long-running club, which was once filled with 1,500 devotees, is shuttering. No longer will members like Jerry Bruckheimer, Kelsey Grammer, and Jon Voight enjoy a safe haven from the overwhelmingly liberal nature of show business. Rumor has it that infighting over Trump has crushed the organization’s soul, and the Guardian obtained an internal email that announces the group’s immediate dissolution:
“Effective immediately, we are going to begin to wind down the 501 c3 organization, bring the Sustaining Membership dues to an end, and do away with the costly infrastructure and the abespal.com website,” the executive director, Jeremy Boreing, told members. “Today, because we have been successful in creating a community that extends far beyond our events, people just don’t feel as much of a need to show up for every speaker or bar night, and fewer people pay the dues that help us maintain that large infrastructure.”
Notice the positive spin of this note, which claims the group is ending because it’s so bloody successful that it’s services are no longer needed. Why the sugar coating? Folks aren’t showing up to events anymore, and the Guardian quotes FOA co-founder Lionel Chetwynd, who explains the situation as “a civil war in slow motion.” As Chewwynd tells it, there’s no election in recent memory that has divided Republicans so much. He can’t even stand to talk to his Republican buddies anymore.
Meanwhile, writer and actor Jack Marino admits that fellow conservatives can’t handle his support for Trump, and he’s lost several friends during primary season. So, the whole infighting theory isn’t a theory anymore. Look at what Trump has done to these guys. Perhaps they can start a Facebook group, which would require no overhead beyond the laptops and cell phones required to hit the “like” button.
(Via The Guardian)