I've been predicting that the Republicans will, facing an apocalyptic election in 2020, remove Donald Trump from office and off the ballot.
Yesterday's elections not only proved my point but they have nudged the Republican Apocalypse clock closer to midnight. All the mainstream media coverage has focused on the big, top-down Democratic victories-- Beshear's Kentucky governor's race win and the Democratic House and Senate win in Virginia. And they are important, but as the commercials say, there's much more-- a bottom-up local explosion of wins that portend catastrophe for the GOP.
I live in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, where yesterday, the Democrats almost swept the entire ballot, winning bigger then they have in over 30 years-- taking most countywide elective offices, particularly the essential two out of three county supervisor positions that provide control of the county. The same kind of election sweep happened in adjacent Delaware and Chester Counties and nearby Lehigh county. Most important, Bucks county has long been considered a bellwether district that often predicts national elections. So the result yesterday, for not only Bucks, but also Delaware and Lehigh Counties was a giant signal of what is to come.
The Republican Apocalypse will happen in November 2020 if things continue as they are, with Donald Trump in the White House and on the ballot. Between now and next November, Trump's reputation will continue to be trashed and the Republicans, if they stay with Trump will pay the price, as they already did in yesterday's elections. And the Republican leadership will see this predicted in internal polls. They'll see that they will not only lose the White House, the House and the Senate, but also, downballot, they will lose governor races, control of state legislative bodies and many more local elections of county commissioners, mayors, school board members, even prothonotaries and recorders of deeds. it will be a deep Republican Apocalypse.
Given this scenario, the worse thing that could happen to the Democratic party would for Donald Trump to be out of the picture-- removed from the White House and off the ballot. If Trump is out of the picture, there will be a fast, lively Republican primary that will probably include at least ten primary candidates. The GOP will allow a truly bottom-up process to select the winning general election candidate-- something I don't trust the Democratic party to do.
Then there will be a general election and, my guess is that the Republicans will run a female candidate, probably former governor and UN ambassador Nikki Haley, Lisa Murkowsky or Susan Collins. This will drastically change the chemistry of the general election.
How do you think Joe Biden, who is the one people think will do best against Trump, will do going up against Nikki Haley?
I don't know. Pollsters should be asking that question-- matching the top four Democratic primary candidates-- Biden, Sanders, Warren and Buttigieg against likely top Republican candidates-- Pence, Cruz, Rubio, Haley and Collins, for example.
If the Republican leadership does not remove Trump, I'm very certain that the Republican Apocalypse will happen, come November. Given my prediction is correct, the last thing the Democrats want to do is remove Trump. As I've written before, the purpose of impeachment is at least partially political. Everyone I talk to and I mean everyone, says I am wrong, that Trump will not be removed. Former Trump appointee Anthony Scaramucci also predicts that Trump will soon be gone.
Clearly we are in interesting times. I've been wanting Trump to be removed and looking forward to it. But now, given the promise of such a devastating Republican apocalypse, I'm not sure I still want that. Keeping Trump dangling, like a reeking rat at the head of the Republican brand could be far more effective.
One thing I believe will help is using the term "Republican Apocalypse" or "GOP apocalypse." If it starts going viral it will strike fear into the hearts of Republican politicians and leaders. So start using it in comments, articles, and hashtags.
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