Peter Schorsch
Presidential candidate Donald Trump and U.S. Senate candidate David Jolly don’t have much in common, but they do have this: They’re both leading the polls in Florida in the races they each want to win.
If the Republican primary were today, Trump and Jolly would be the GOP’s nominees in the Sunshine State. Of course, there is nearly a year of variables that are in play before that will happen, but, for today, Trump and Jolly are the front runners.
That presents an interesting scenario. Can you imagine the Republican presidential candidate campaigning in must-win Florida when the U.S. Senate nominee has publicly called for said presidential candidate to drop out of the race?
On Monday afternoon, Trump called for the United States to bar all Muslims from entering the country until the nation’s leaders can “figure out what is going on” after the terrorist attack in San Bernardino, California.
Responding to this, Jolly released a statement urging Trump to quit the presidential race.
“While ISIS is beheading innocent people for their religious practices, Trump is betraying our freedoms,” Jolly said. “His brutal, bullying bigotry runs contrary to the very principles our forefathers fought so hard to defend. We are either a party of protecting the constitution and religious liberties or we’re not. America should insist on a security test but never a religious test.”
There is no way Jolly can walk back that kind of statement next October. Can you imagine how awkward it will be on the campaign trail for Jolly if Trump is the nominee? It will be all Trump, all the time. Meanwhile, the guy at the top of the ticket will certainly refuse to campaign with or help someone who earlier called on him to drop out of a race.
This is the kind of scenario that’s keeping the GOP establishment up at night. It’s the kind of scenario that directly affects the Republicans’ capacity to hold onto control of the U.S. Senate.
It’s the kind of scenario that should prompt otherwise rational Republicans to not support Trump.
But since when has this campaign cycle been about what’s rational?
Reporter Mitch Perry contributed to this post.
