By Harshil Jani A lot has changed for the state of the GOP within the past month, mostly for the worse. We have come down to three candidates, one of which is mathematically eliminated from the nomination, leaving only two candidates behind. And yet we still have our frontrunner Donald Trump, deflecting damage that would destroy any candidate left and right and emerging unscarred. Not only does Trump present a threat to one of our nation’s two parties, but our nation as a whole. So, I will be dedicating this article to why and how Donald Trump should be stopped. Now the moment of truth has come, as the race narrows down to the likes of Ted Cruz and Donald Trump. And all hell has broke loose. The seemingly invincible frontrunner, Donald Trump is one of the most polarizing figures in modern American politics, with people not even familiar with the process having very strong opinions about him. And he is the only remaining GOP contender that is still losing to Hillary Clinton, the Democratic frontrunner in recent head-to-head polls. And he must be stopped at all costs. The biggest reason Donald Trump must be stopped is the fact that the GOP absolutely cannot handle another loss. Election cycle after election cycle, the party’s voters have been told to settle on more moderate people, like Mitt Romney and John McCain, and now the people are tired of settling on losers. Donald Trump embodies this frustration, and a loss by him, the one who has tauted himself as the only hope of rescue from weak and corrupt leaders, would send the party in a downward spiral of chaos. Yet at the same time, we cannot let him win the general either. The primaries aren’t even over, and countries like China and Japan are hesitating over keeping positive relations with America, and we cannot afford to lose more support on the international scale. If one thing is clear, it is the fact that Trump will do anything to further his own gain, from paving over an old lady’s home for his casino parking lot, to using the very same illegal immigrant labor he decries to build the Trump Towers for cheaper. This is not a man that can be trusted to handle the seat of Commander in Chief of one of the world’s superpowers. The real pressing question is how we can stop him at such a late stage in the election process. And the best chances we have to save not only the GOP, but our nation rests in three options. Ted Cruz, Bernie Sanders, and Gary Johnson. The most obvious answer is getting Ted nominated. If we can deny Trump the nomination, there is still path for the party to recover. However, this comes at one huge cost, and that will be a full-scale revolt within the party, and possibly a massive plummet in turnout, which could easily cost the GOP the victory. A split GOP would end disastrously, and the Democrats would be able to seize back power in two of the three branches. Yet, a Cruz victory would be even more terrifying as he would be able to nominate the ninth justice, and secure the presidency, leaving the Republican Party in control of all three branches of government. And one of the most striking qualities of Ted Cruz is his unwillingness to negotiate. A completely partisan system would increase tensions and cause chaos, possibly even more than a Donald Trump victory. And then there’s the odd choice, being that of Bernie Sanders. Sanders had been a lifetime independent until the election season, with him using the Democratic Party as a platform for his ideals. A Sanders victory, or even nomination would show a significant shift in American politics, inspiring more independents to enter races under Democratic and Republican banners, which would help break down the two party system. Now, how is this relevant to the Trump issue at hand? Donald Trump is a reaction to a broken political process, one in which elections become electing the lesser of the two evils, with party leaders telling the people who they should vote for instead of the people themselves deciding. A broken political process in which a massively divided election hurts the voices of people, that can only be solved by getting more independents in the standing. Yet still, the GOP will crash and burn, with American politics jockeying further to the left at a time when they don’t need that. And then we have the most insane idea of all. Gary Johnson of the Libertarian Party. He is a right-leaning independent candidate for the Libertarian Party. He currently holds 11% in general election polls, ten times the previous record for any independent candidate (which was set by him). The idea that an independent candidate can even poll double-digits without using one of the two main parties as a platform is a game-changer in the political world, and if he were to get more visibility, he could be a serious contender for the presidency, but that’s where the issue is. 75% of voters do not even know who he is, and if that pattern continues, this route is blocked entirely. This is by far, the longest shot Republicans have, but high risk would come with high reward. And there you have it. In the short term, there’s no escape for the GOP, who will have to face the inevitable, due to their carelessness. However, for the long-term fate of the conservative movement, an independent candidate changing the political process, may be our best chance. This primary election has been completely crazy, but as we approach the finale, both Republicans and Democrats have to prepare themselves for the storm that is Trump.
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Elena Caputo
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