Trump supporter Hugh Hewitt floats replacing Donald with Ivanka to win over #NeverTrumpers

Hugh Hewitt floats the idea of President Ivanka — (Image credit: Kirk Irwin/Getty Images for SiriusXM)

It apparently started as a joke Thursday morning, or maybe a thought exercise:

Donald Trump is slumping in the polls, evidently due to a combination of Hillary Clinton's post-convention bounce and Trump's post-convention gaffe slough, and conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt — who is backing Trump — was playing what-if, while urging Trump and anti-Trump Republicans alike to focus their energies and attacks on Clinton, not Trump. When National Journal's Josh Kraushaar fretted that Trump may have passed the point of no return, Hewitt re-floated his thought bubble:

At this point, #NeverTrump conservative Stephen Miller stepped in, wielding a rhetorical needle:

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Then, #NeverTrumper Johan Goldberg joined the conversation, and Hewitt got serious:

Unsurprisingly, the idea was not met with wild enthusiasm by the anti-Trump crowd, or the Trump fan club. Still, if Trump's poll numbers sink lower.... You can read some of the responses at Hewitt's Twitter feed.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.