Amanda Carpenter has a brave and important post today at Conservative Review. She has compiled a list of every Republican elected official and every prominent conservative pundit who has endorsed Donald Trump before he officially clinched the nomination. Her argument is pretty simple:
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It’s time to make a list.A list of those so-called conservatives and Republicans endorsing Donald Trump, the meglomaniac who regularly threatens his opponents and the press, raves about making members of our military adopt ISIS-like tactics, has funded Obamacare and Gang of Eight Democrats, promises to forcibly relocate American companies to his liking, and has demonstrated again and again he intends to govern as a tyrannical King rather than a President.Call it a boycott, call it a blackball, call it blacklist, call it whatever you want. I’m done with these folks and other conservatives should be, too. Anyone who will defend a man condoning random acts of violence at his rallies has lost their morals; they will defend anything at all.So, I’d like to remember who supported Trump so I never give any kind of credence to their judgment. “Never Trump” means never those who support him as well.
This isn’t just a political disagreement. I have never been a huge fan of Rand Paul but I would not say that anyone who supported him can never be trusted again. I think I’ve made my feelings about John Kasich pretty clear on the pages of this august website, but people who support Kasich have at least defensible reasons for doing so, even if I disagree.
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But the people who are endorsing Trump, while other Republicans are still standing, have forever forfeited their right to have their opinion taken seriously by conservatives. And when Trump’s train finally wrecks, before or after November, it will wreak untold destruction on this party and this movement, and it will have been eminently foreseeable from day one of his campaign by anyone with even the slightest shred of judgment in their brain.
The only complaint I have with Amanda’s list is that it does not include the media pundits and conservative thought leaders, who have been far more damaging in this regard – the Ann Coulters and Laura Ingrahams of the world, who have given the Trump boomlet the pseudo-intellectual backing that allows his followers to falsely believe that they aren’t just part of a not-very-bright mob led by a not-very-bright mobster.
If Trump wins, that list will be far more important to keep and pull out on regular occasion.
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