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COMMENTARY Honoré: GOP to Donald: It's not you, it's us Comment By Chris Honoré DailyTidings.com By Chris Honoré Posted Apr. 25, 2016 at 12:01 AM By Chris Honoré Posted Apr. 25, 2016 at 12:01 AM » Social News For some weeks, now, the mainstream GOP has been trying to construct what’s proven to be a tortured strategy regarding how to break up with Donald Trump (not so subtly referred to as, “Stop Trump!” or, in the alternative, “Anyone But Trump!”). Their problem has been how to extract themselves from this relationship as gracefully as possible given the Republican voters’ unexpected and enthusiastic response to Trump. Of course, the forensic analysis of Trump’s appeal continues, with endless pundit/Republican discussions about the Trump phenomenon and the vein of voter anger and frustration he has revealed. So how to break up? Mitt’s soliloquy about Trump’s flawed persona and outrageousness was uncharacteristically blunt and the Republican cognoscenti were quick to agree. To their surprise it created barely a ripple. Now, if they could speak collectively to candidate Trump, they might say something like this: For the sake of the party, Donald, and the White House race, we should part ways. Thinking back, we admit that things didn’t start well. We quietly gasped when you proposed deporting 11 million undocumented Mexicans. Good grief. Perhaps you didn’t get our post-2012 election autopsy report regarding our carefully crafted efforts at inclusivity. We want to be the new quilt of America, the party that is not just country club white but also brown and black. That was the plan. Republican equals big tent. OK, we grimly smiled and said, “Hey, nobody’s perfect.” Others were convinced that this fling would quickly lose its attraction and a serious, measured Republican (out of a field of some 18) would soon emerge. Say, Jeb!, for example. Or Marco. And not to forget Dr. Ben Carson. Meanwhile, to our chagrin, you moved on from Latinos to Muslims, wanting to ban them from the U.S. as well as surveil their mosques and create a national Muslim registry. Recall, too, that you wanted to kill the families of ISIS members, which, we’re pretty sure, is a war crime. We watched and listened as your rallies turned into versions of World Wide Wrestling, with you actually saying from the podium that you’d like to smash a protestor in the face. Meanwhile your crowds grew in size and the idea that it might be harder to make this break than we thought began to nudge. And then there were your comments about women, who make up more than 50 percent of the electorate. You reassured us that “no one respects women more than I do,” other than Rosie O’Donnell, Carly Fiorina and Megyn Kelly (the Fox anchor). Our quilt does include women. Please refer to the autopsy report. But let’s be completely honest, we could have worked with your bluster and rising poll number rants. Besides, specific policy proposals are overrated. But there’s more, Donald. There’s someone else. It’s Ted. Sure you have your own plane, golf courses, no PAC, a bunch of primary wins, millions of votes, and you did kill New York. But Ted is so… . We can overlook the fact that he shut down the government in 2013 in order to defund Obamacare. And yes we’re aware that he wants to abolish the IRS and institute a flat tax (how that would work he hasn’t said) and go on the gold standard (whatever that means). True, he’s pro-life with no exceptions for rape or incest and wants to pass an amendment that would allow states to prohibit same-sex marriage. But, he just seems so decisive and articulate. A conservative’s conservative. We admit to flirting with Lindsay, Mitt, Jeb! and Marco. Plus Speaker Paul, whose “no” might mean “yes.” Bottom line, we think it’s time to move on. At the convention, latest. We agree that this all sounds fickle and a bit Machiavellian. And just between us, we know Ted isn’t forever. But he doesn’t provoke all this drama and won’t turn our much-loved Republican party into a train wreck. But who knows who we’ll ultimately walk down the aisle with. Mr. “give me a hug” Kasich keeps calling. Meanwhile, we hope that since things between us haven’t quite worked out, you’ll exit graciously. No threats and tantrums. Let’s agree to part amicably and we definitely want to remain friends. Chris Honoré of Ashland is a Daily Tidings columnist. By Chris Honoré DailyTidings.com By Chris Honoré Posted Apr. 25, 2016 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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