A Washington Post reporter is coming out as a campaign consultant for the GOP’s establishment wing by offering a plan to “Take Trump Out.”
“How do you solve a problem like Trump? I have an idea! And it involves, you, Jeb Bush. Okay, here goes,” pleads WashPo reporter Chris Cillizza on Dec. 7.
“Bush and his Right to Rise super PAC have spent almost $29 million on TV ads in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, but they have done little to help his numbers. Dead in the water is a fair way to describe him at the moment.
Bush still has one thing going for him, though: money… A little simple math gets you this: [Bush’s Super-PAC] Right to Rise should have (at least) $60 million left to spend on this race… Simply put: Take all of the ad time Right to Rise has reserved for Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina and turn the fire hose on full blast against Trump. I am talking about a sustained ad campaign whose sole aim is to disqualify Trump — not boost Bush…
Sure, a sustained attack on Trump could, theoretically, boomerang against Bush as Republicans — Trump supporters and not — come to see the move as dirty and punish Bush for what Right to Rise does. But, to be candid, what the heck do Bush and his allies have to lose at this point? He’s absolutely nowhere in the race.
There is a not-insignificant chance that a heavy and sustained ad buy against Trump could yield some real effect on the billionaire’s numbers. A Trump decline would greatly destabilize the shape of the race. No one needs the state of the race destabilized more than Bush. Period.
Bush and the broader establishment that he represents need to understand that these are desperate times for them. Standing on the sidelines is no longer a viable option. Waiting for someone else to do it won’t work. Someone needs to step up and try to take Trump out, if, indeed, the establishment thinks that Trump’s nomination would spell catastrophe.
No one is better positioned, or has less to lose, than Bush or Right to Rise. It’s time to take a chance.”
Read the entire pitch here.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.