Watching all the returns come in, I kept thinking about something Bernie Sanders said tonight, "This campaign is not about electing a president, it’s about transforming America."
And, tonight, America was politically transformed. You can’t miss the Republican change, but the Democrats are changing, too.
Tonight, for all intents and purposes, Donald Trump completed his hostile take over of the G.O.P.
Ted Cruz got Texas and Oklahoma; Marco Rubio won Minnesota– and might win Florida two weeks from tonight–but given Trump’s super Super Tuesday, the Donald is now in the waiting room for the G.O.P. Nomination.
Which leaves the Republican establishment without a candidate who has proven able to beat Trump nationally.
The only way left for the party to block him is a brokered convention that would split it even further apart.
So, get the picture, and memorize it: Donald Trump is the new face of the grand old party.
For Democrats, Hillary Clinton is now the nominee-in-waiting, no matter how long bernie Sanders stays in the race.
But Sanders’ campaign has exposed many of Clinton’s weaknesses, particularly among young voters and some women.
To them she represents the old way, and they wanted something new, too.
Now the question is, how enthusiastically will Sanders’ supporters back Hillary in november?
My guess is "not very."
And here’s another guess: If it does turn out to be Clinton versus Trump in the general election, we’re headed for the nastiest campaign we’ve ever seen: The mother of nasty campaigns.
I know we’ve seen dirty before.
But not like we’re going to.
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