The fissure in the Republican establishment continues to widen. Grand Canyon here we come.
Most significantly, these guys are breaking all the rules of the Beltway by not hiding behind anonymous quotes or unnamed sources. The Hill, emphasis added:
In interviews with The Hill, prominent Republicans who signed a scathing open letter denouncing Trump said they aren’t wavering from their opposition to him.
“What’s happening is you have a lot of people who are desperate to get anybody in there other than Trump. ... People are going to go for Cruz, because at the end of the day they think he’s considerably less bad than Trump,” said Eliot A. Cohen, a former Jeb Bush adviser who also served in the George W. Bush administration.
Cohen, along with Bryan McGrath, organized an open letter opposing Trump that was signed by more than 120 members of the Republican foreign policy establishment. The letter declared that Trump is unfit to be president because his views of American power are “wildly inconsistent and unmoored in principle.”
The Hill contacted 13 of the people on the letter and heard back from all but two of them.
The text of the letter is here at the Republican Defense website "War on the Rocks." No, really, that's what it's called. Props to them for just admitting "cocktails with your weapons appropriations" is the life model,
It's worth a read for their list of particulars against Trump, though. Given how they have depended on the rabid ignorant base of the Republican Party since forever to keep their congress critters voting for appropriations, it's hilarious to watch them squirm when a reflection of that base comes within grabbing distance of the White House. That they had to go public with their distain? Priceless.
[A]s committed and loyal Republicans, we are unable to support a Party ticket with Mr. Trump at its head. We commit ourselves to working energetically to prevent the election of someone so utterly unfitted to the office.
This is open. This is public. This is ugly.
Pass the popcorn.
