To Save the Party, Pull the Plug on Trump Now

Donald Trump is not going to quit the race. The Republican party is not going to push him off the ballot. He may have a brief surge in the polls at some point, because the first rule of politics is that all races tighten.

Then again, maybe not. It could be that Trump's surge came and went during the final week of July and that the tightening period has already passed. But while we're talking about things that are not going to happen, understand this: Donald Trump is not going to win.

Trump isn't just behind in the big battleground states. No, what should scare sense into any sophisticated Republicans is that Trump is clinging to bare leads in Utah, Kansas, and South Carolina. He's behind in Georgia. This is not a presidential race. It's The Poseidon Adventure.

If Trump were any other figure, Republican party elites would be making cold-blooded calculations about pulling the plug.

But because Trump commands a sub-rational cult of personality, Republicans seem committed to sticking with him, no matter the embarrassment, no matter the cost. And the real perversity is that they seem to be doing it not because they like Trump but because theyhate him.