![\"from](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/533\/2016\/10\/referee-1149014_1920-1024x599.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Two opposite approaches:<\/p>\n
Trump wins primaries, and the GOP establishment follows all the rules, scrupulously voting down attempts at the convention and elsewhere to replace him. \u00a0The drama over the weekend included various Republican congressmen pulling their support of Trump, but the RNC itself then issued a statement that they will do no such thing. \u00a0A voice on the TV last night (I wasn\u2019t really paying much attention; don\u2019t know who): \u00a0\u201cTrump won the primaries fair and square; he\u2019s the GOP nominee and that\u2019s that.\u201d<\/p>\n
The continuing revelations that the DNC was planning from the start on doing no such thing, with active private support for Hillary Clinton even when making statements that they were neutral.<\/p>\n
The Republicans are emerging as rule-followers, or, more precisely, process<\/em>-followers, following the established process, even when it\u2019s in their power to re-evaluate the situation and change the rules<\/em>, even when it\u2019s to their harm. \u00a0And the Democrats, are, of course, rule-breakers.<\/p>\n At the same time, the very method of selecting candidates was far different, too: \u00a0the Republicans \u201cwinner take all\u201d primaries prioritized getting someone, doesn\u2019t matter who, across the finish line quickly \u2014 valuing process more than the suitability of the actual finisher. \u00a0And the Democrats\u2019 Super Delegate system was a (non-duplicitous, at least) way of favoring the Establishment\u2019s choice of candidate.<\/p>\n Of course both these approaches, in 2016, backfired. \u00a0Had the Republicans\u2019 process not favored the winners, regardless of their actual share of the vote, then at the very least the convention would have been contested. \u00a0Had the DNC not so clearly had their chosen candidate \u2014 well, Bernie still wouldn\u2019t have gotten a majority of the vote, even without the Super Delegates, but if you go back further in time, other Democrats might have thrown their hat in the ring had they not regarded Hillary\u2019s nomination as a done deal.<\/p>\n So do you think this says something bigger about Republicans and Democrats, or about conservatives and liberals? \u00a0\u201cFollow the process regardless of whether it\u2019s still wise\u201d vs. \u201cbreak the rules to get to the result you want\u201d?<\/p>\n Or am I reading too much into things?<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n from Pixabay.com; https:\/\/pixabay.com\/en\/referee-sports-fair-person-man-1149014\/; public domain<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Two opposite approaches: Trump wins primaries, and the GOP establishment follows all the rules, scrupulously voting down attempts at the convention and elsewhere to replace him. \u00a0The drama over the weekend included various Republican congressmen pulling their support of Trump, but the RNC itself then issued a statement that they will do no such thing. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2209,"featured_media":5472,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[442],"class_list":["post-5471","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-election-2016"],"yoast_head":"\n