Presidential race 2016

[Blindgreed1]

Trump is kickin' ass in South Carolina and by a wide margin. How can this be. Jesus. Carson is dead last and Jeb isn't far behind.

Trump trounced the other Republican candidates in almost every demographic. I don't understand his appeal, but it's undeniable that he's in a strong position to win the Republican nomination at this time. I can't imagine what he could do or say to lose support, which is even stronger outside of evangelical-heavy South Carolina. The man has already done and said so many things that would have sunk any other candidate (at least in past elections).

I don't think Carson cares about anything but self-promotion at this point. He's not investing much in the primaries and caucuses, his poll numbers are low, he's not getting a lot of votes... Staying in the race only hurts the Republican party, unless he wants Trump to win and thinks Trump has the best chances of beating Clinton.

I saw Cruz's interview with Jake Tapper this morning. Cruz said that he's the only one who could beat Hillary because Trump's positions on most issues are so close to her's, as is Rubio's position on immigration.

I think Cruz is right about Trump and Rubio being essentially more moderate than he -- who isn't? But, I think he's wrong about being stronger general election competition for Hillary than Trump or Rubio (or maybe even Kasich, if he can survive Super Tuesday). Tea Party politics is not what the country wants or needs, in my opinion. I'll be surprised if Cruz drops out and gives Rubio a chance to scoop up a lot of his base in order to compete with Trump though. He seems more likely to stay in the race until his money runs dry, despite the impacts to the Republican party.

It's been my assumption since the first debate that his sole purpose was to sell his next book.