Tuesday, May 3, 2016

Ronald Reagan is finally dead, and it is Donald Trump who killed him

Now that Ted Cruz has unleashed his extraordinary televised rant against Donald Trump, and John Boehner likewise called Ted Cruz "Lucifer in the flesh" a few days ago, we can all agree that Ronald Reagan is finally dead, done and gone.

One of the Gipper's most lasting legacies for his party was his oft-repeated 11th Commandment, "Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican."

The phrase actually owes its birth to California Republican Party chairman Gaylord Parkinson, who coined it in an effort to avoid the vicious internecine warfare that hounded Barry Goldwater in his ill-fated 1964 run. Reagan just adopted it and popularized it.

Who's to blame in this most recent iteration of the demise of the Grand Old Party? None other than party's front-runner and likely nominee, Donald Trump who from Day One brought the tone down down down. Clearly, his charms have become infectious.