Republican Party Establishment Declares War on Donald Trump

I was in the classroom all day today, but I saw the headlines.

I haven't watched the Mitt Romney's speech yet, but I will. At this point I think the GOPe's making a huge mistake. Millions of voters have already voted for Donald Trump. He's won 10 out of 15 of the primaries and caucuses held thus far. If you're looking to create a movement that demonizes the concerns of the average American "Joe Six-pack" voter, then the Republican Party's got your number. It's insane, frankly. You can't change the rules in the middle of the process. If you created the rules, you need to abide by them. I mean, c'mon, if the New York Times is blaring the headline of "Open Warfare" in the party, something's seriously out of whack. Frankly, it's the Democrats who're acting much more rationally at the moment, preparing, behind the scenes, to launch a major attack campaign against Trump under the expectation that he'll be the party's standard bearer. It's the GOPe that's still out to lunch.

It's mind-boggling.

See, at NYT, "Mitt Romney and John McCain Denounce Donald Trump as a Danger to Democracy":

In an extraordinary public rebuke of Donald J. Trump’s campaign, Mitt Romney and John McCain, the last two Republican presidential nominees, denounced Mr. Trump in forceful terms on Thursday and warned that his election could put the United States and even its democratic political system in peril.

Offering himself as a bulwark against Mr. Trump’s march to the nomination, Mr. Romney laid out a precise and lengthy case against Mr. Trump, lacerating his business dealings, his erratic pronouncements on national security and demeaning treatment of women, minorities and the disabled.

Mr. Romney warned that Mr. Trump’s nomination would be calamitous for the Republican Party and, quoting John Adams, even suggested it could be suicidal for the country.

Evoking the specter of totalitarianism, he said Mr. Trump was amplifying a “brand of anger that has led other nations into the abyss.”

“His domestic policies would lead to recession,” Mr. Romney said. “His foreign policies would make America and the world less safe. He has neither the temperament nor the judgment to be president.”

Mr. McCain, once a rival of Mr. Romney’s, effectively linked arms with him soon after his address, saying that he shared Mr. Romney’s dismay about Mr. Trump’s ascent. Referring to a public letter released on Thursday by dozens of conservative national security leaders, who vowed never to support Mr. Trump, Mr. McCain echoed their concerns about Mr. Trump’s “uninformed and indeed dangerous statements on national security issues.”

The onslaught against Mr. Trump appeared aimed at sowing new doubts among voters about a man who has taken firm command of the Republican presidential race, and stiffening the resolve of mainstream Republicans to reject Mr. Trump.

But the timing of the assault, after Mr. Trump’s commanding electoral victories on Tuesday, may make it futile. And Mr. Romney’s history with Mr. Trump, which he ignored in his jeremiad on Thursday, could undercut the power of his warning: Mr. Romney eagerly sought and publicized his endorsement by Mr. Trump in 2012, even as Mr. Trump heckled and harassed President Obama with accusations that he was not born in the United States...

Keep reading.

Plus, at CNN, via Memeorandum, "First on CNN: Team Romney explores blocking Trump at RNC."

Lots more on this at the link.