• Home
  • About us
  • Contact Us
  • Date/Time
  • Login
  • Subscribe

logo

  • Home
  • Politics
  • Economics & Finance
  • World
  • Arts & Books
  • Life
  • Science
  • Philosophy
  • Subscribe
  • Events
Home
  • Home
  • Blogs
  • Politics
  • Economics & Finance
  • World
  • Arts & Books
  • Life
  • Science
  • Philosophy
  • Subscribe
  • Events
  • Home
  • Magazine

The Republicans’ unloved leader

Trump won the nomination because he grasped the reality of these troubled times

by Sam Tanenhaus / July 14, 2016 / Leave a comment
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkedin
  • Email

Published in August 2016 issue of Prospect Magazine
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump ©Kristen Zeis/AP/Press Association Images

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump ©Kristen Zeis/AP/Press Association Images

Can Donald Trump be stopped—not in November, but sooner, by being denied the nomination by opponents within his own party? The idea seemed delusional in early June, after Trump won 75 per cent of the vote in the California primary. But his detractors haven’t disappeared. His vanquished rivals Ted Cruz, John Kasich and Jeb Bush have yet to endorse him, and Beltway chieftains, including Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell, continue to imply, or let others think, Trump lacks the fitness to serve.

“What is this?” Trump snarled in his best imitation of another Queens (New York) native John McEnroe, after House Speaker Paul Ryan, the top-ranking national Republican, indicated Trump needed to brush up on “Republican principles and ideas.” The “presumptive nominee” had a point. Ryan, a flop as Mitt Romney’s running mate in 2012, was now lording it over an everyman hero who had excited the grassroots base in every region of the country, capturing 37 of 50 states.

But that was before Trump lurched off on a two-month binge of say-whatever-I-please Trumpism. First came his speculation that the distinguished federal judge now hearing a suit brought against Trump University was biased because of his Mexican ancestry. The accusation was “the most un-American thing from a politician since Joe McCarthy,” said Senator Lindsey Graham, who went on to unendorse Trump and said others should too. Next came Trump’s beyond tasteless reaction to the horrific mass murder at a gay nightclub in Orlando. Even as the nation grieved—49 dead and 53 injured, t…

YOU’VE HIT THE LIMIT

You have now reached your limit of 3 free articles in the last 30 days.
But don’t worry! You can get another 7 articles absolutely free, simply by entering your email address in the box below.

When you register we’ll also send you a free e-book—Writing with punch—which includes some of the finest writing from our archive of 22 years. And we’ll also send you a weekly newsletter with the best new ideas in politics and philosophy of culture, which you can of course unsubscribe from at any time







Prospect may process your personal information for our legitimate business purposes, to provide you with our newsletter, subscription offers and other relevant information.

Click to learn more about these interests and how we use your data. You will be able to object to this processing on the next page and in all our communications.

8539055775c686d870fa247.70935789

Go to comments

Related articles

The myth of liberal interventionism: why it always fails
Anatol Lieven / December 7, 2018
We need to get real about Russia and China—or risk being led into another disastrous war
The Nixon playbook
Sam Tanenhaus / December 7, 2018
Forget Watergate. In the second half of Trump’s term, there are other lessons he could...
Share with friends
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkedin
  • Email

Comments

No comments yet

Prospect's free newsletter

The big ideas that are shaping our world—straight to your inbox. PLUS a free e-book and 7 articles of your choosing on the Prospect website.

Prospect may process your personal information for our legitimate business purposes, to provide you with our newsletter, subscription offers and other relevant information. Click here to learn more about these purposes and how we use your data. You will be able to opt-out of further contact on the next page and in all our communications.

This Month's Magazine

Perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus.

Prospect is the leading magazine of ideas. Each month it is packed with the finest writing on politics, culture, economics and ideas. Subscribe today and join the debate.

Subscribe

Most Popular

  • Read
  • Commented

The invigorating strangeness of Friedrich Nietzsche

The naïve optimism of Liam Fox

Why I bet £1000 that a no-deal Brexit will trigger recession

The backstop debate goes round and round but there is no waking from this Brexit nightmare

Labour's Remainers could be a ticking time bomb for the party

Ruling out no deal is the wrong sort of red line

6 Comments

The Conservative Party has a problem—it’s no longer conservative

5 Comments

The overlooked dynamic at the heart of the Brexit “culture war”

2 Comments

Arlene Foster’s DUP still holds the balance of power in Westminster—so what’s their next move?

2 Comments

The impact of Brexit on services has not received nearly enough attention

2 Comments

About this author

Sam Tanenhaus
Sam Tanenhaus is Prospect's US Writer-at-Large
More by this author

More by Sam Tanenhaus

The mystifying ascent of Mike Pompeo
June 18, 2018
Why Fire and Fury is such a hit
January 22, 2018
If Trump doesn't already fear Robert Mueller, he should
December 14, 2017

Next Prospect events

  • Details

    Prospect Book Club—Diarmaid MacCulloch

    London, 2019-05-20

  • Details

    Prospect Book Club—Sue Prideaux

    2019-04-15

  • Details

    Prospect Book Club—Andrew Roberts

    2019-03-14

See more events

Sponsored features

  • Reforming the pension system to work for the many

  • Putting savers in the driving seat: getting the pensions dashboard right

  • To fix the housing crisis we need fresh thinking

  • Tata Steel UK: Driving innovation for the future of mobility

  • The road to zero

PrimeTime

The magazine is owned and supported by the Resolution Group, as part of its not-for-profit, public interest activities.

Follow us
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Google+
  • RSS

Editorial

Editor: Tom Clark
Deputy Editor: Steve Bloomfield
Managing Editor (Arts & Books): Sameer Rahim
Head of Digital: Stephanie Boland
Deputy Digital Editor (Political Correspondent): Alex Dean
Creative Director: Mike Turner
Production Editor & Designer: Chris Tilbury
US Writer-at-Large: Sam Tanenhaus

Commercial

Commercial Director: Alex Stevenson
Head of Marketing: Paul Mortimer
Marketing and Circulations Executive: James Hawkins
Programme Coordinator: Oliver James Ward
Head of Advertising Sales: Adam Kinlan 020 3372 2934
Senior Account Manager: Dominic Slonecki 0203 372 2972

  • Home
  • Advertising
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Acceptable Use Policy
© Prospect Publishing Limited
×
Login
Login with your subscriber account:
You need a valid subscription to login.
I am
Remember Me


Forgotten password?

Or enter with social networking:
Login to post comments using social media accounts.
  • With Twitter
  • Connect
  • With Google +
×
Register Now

Register today and access any 7 articles on the Prospect’s website for FREE in the next 30 days..
PLUS find out about the big ideas that will shape our world—with Prospect’s FREE newsletter sent to your inbox. We'll even send you our e-book—Writing with punch—with some of the finest writing from the Prospect archive, at no extra cost!

Not Now, Thanks

Prospect may process your personal information for our legitimate business purposes, to provide you with our newsletter, subscription offers and other relevant information.

Click to learn more about these interests and how we use your data. You will be able to object to this processing on the next page and in all our communications.

×
You’ve got full access!

It looks like you are a Prospect subscriber.

Prospect subscribers have full access to all the great content on our website, including our entire archive.

If you do not know your login details, simply close this pop-up and click 'Login' on the black bar at the top of the screen, then click 'Forgotten password?', enter your email address and press 'Submit'. Your password will then be emailed to you.

Thank you for your support of Prospect and we hope that you enjoy everything the site has to offer.

This site uses cookies to improve the user experience. By using this site, you agree that we can set and use these cookies. For more details on the cookies we use and how to manage them, see our Privacy and Cookie Policy.