Reince Priebus thinks Donald Trump has enough 'crossover appeal' to win the general election


Republican National Committee Chair Reince Priebus just gave presidential contender Donald Trump a huge vote of confidence in a Washington Post retrospective published Sunday about the Republican Party's hectic 2015:
I'm not one of these people that think that Donald Trump can't win a general election. I actually think there is a huge crossover appeal there to people that are disengaged politically that he speaks to.... Donald Trump taps into the culture. Some people in politics don't get it, don't understand it, are frustrated by it. It doesn't matter. He does. [The Washington Post]
Priebus' remark comes after December rumors that the party establishment would consider a brokered convention for 2016, as outsiders like Donald Trump and Ben Carson remained popular in the polls months after they were expected to fade. In that light, the notion that Trump would be an appealing general election candidate sounds a little off.
As Gov. John Kasich (R-Ohio) put it to the Post: "If I said one of the things [Trump] had said about Hispanics, Muslims, or women, I'd have to go into a witness protection program."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.
-
Ukraine: Trump's mixed messages
Feature Trump reverses a Pentagon freeze on Patriot missiles to Ukraine as Russia ramps up air attacks
-
Diddy: An abuser who escaped justice?
Feature The jury cleared Sean Combs of major charges but found him guilty of lesser offenses
-
Death from above: Drones upend rules of war in Ukraine
Feature The world's militaries are paying close attention to drone use in the Russia-Ukraine war
-
Secret Service 'failures' on Trump shooting
Speed Read Two new reports detail security breakdowns that led to attempts on the president's life
-
Trump set to hit Canada with 35% tariffs
Speed Read The president accused Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney of failing to stop the cross-border flow of fentanyl
-
Mahmoud Khalil files $20M claim over ICE detention
Speed Read This is the 'first damages complaint' brought by an individual targeted by the Trump's administration's 'crackdown' on Gaza war protesters
-
Trump threatens Brazil with 50% tariffs
Speed Read He accused Brazil's current president of leading a 'witch hunt' against far-right former leader Jair Bolsonaro
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled
-
New tariffs set on 14 trading partners
Speed Read A new slate of tariffs will begin August 1 on imports from Japan, South Korea, Thailand and more
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress