The Washington Post reports that "Republican elites" in the party establishment are borderline panicking over the thought of Ben Carson or Donald Trump winning the GOP nomination.
Establishment campaign operatives expected Carson and Trump to "fizzle" and plummet in the polls after enjoying their 15 minutes of fame, but that hasn't happened and it may not happen.
With rival operatives finding no clear way to bring down Carson or Trump, this looming doomsday scenario has prompted some party insiders to take another shot at drafting Romney.
The party establishment is paralyzed. Big money is still on the sidelines. No consensus alternative to the outsiders has emerged from the pack of governors and senators running, and there is disagreement about how to prosecute the case against them. Recent focus groups of Trump supporters in Iowa and New Hampshire commissioned by rival campaigns revealed no silver bullet. [...]
According to other Republicans, some in the party establishment are so desperate to change the dynamic that they are talking anew about drafting Romney — despite his insistence that he will not run again. Friends have mapped out a strategy for a late entry to pick up delegates and vie for the nomination in a convention fight, according to the Republicans who were briefed on the talks, though Romney has shown no indication of reviving his interest.
While I personally doubt the majority of the GOP brain trust cares about nominating someone competent as much as they care about Hillary Clinton annihilating them in the polls, the Washington Post did quote one Republican strategist who is genuinely worried about electing a nincompoop.
“We’re potentially careening down this road of nominating somebody who frankly isn’t fit to be president in terms of the basic ability and temperament to do the job,” this strategist said. “It’s not just that it could be somebody Hillary could destroy electorally, but what if Hillary hits a banana peel and this person becomes president?”
From my perspective saying a candidate "isn’t fit to be president in terms of the basic ability and temperament to do the job" could describe the entire GOP field, not just Donald Trump and Ben Carson. Any one of them would be a disaster for the nation but, admittedly, some more than others. Ben Carson isn't even fit to serve in the city council.
I can understand and even share some of the party's concerns,but I have to say they've made their bed and they can sleep in it. The GOP didn't arrive at this point by accident.
It's amusing to think that at this point four years ago, the general atmosphere and attitude among Republican voters was to say 'anybody but Romney,' but today some party insiders dream of his return.
I don't believe 2016 will necessarily follow a similar script and see the nomination of Jeb Bush. Jeb! is far more unpopular than Romney ever was.