Former RNC Chair Michael Steele Predicts Bedlam At The Convention
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Former Chairman of the Republican National Committee, Michael Steele says he expects pandemonium at the Convention this summer in Cleveland if the party tries to take the nomination away from Donald Trump.
Steele, during an interview with Rich Zeoli on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT, says Donald Trump will be ready for whatever comes his way.
"I don't think there will be riots in the streets but there will be bedlam on the convention floor. I think the Trump forces will come prepared. They've already been preparing because there's already been noise about stopping him and taking the nomination away from him. They're having a meeting this week to plot out how they're going to do that. Here's the reality. If Trump goes into that convention with a strong plurality, within 200, maybe even less, and I think it likely will be less, they will be hard pressed to take that away from him."
He believes the party should already be doing more to get behind Trump, rather than plotting for a way to overthrow him.
"The party needs to think about how do we move towards him not away from him. His supporters are not going to stand for it. I've been saying it for two or three months now. It's just not something they're going to stand for. Put the shoe on the other foot. If this were Kasich, if this were Cruz especially, who was in Donald Trump's position and forces who don't like Cruz were plotting to take the nomination away from him and give it to someone else, like a Mitt Romney or a Paul Ryan, what do you think the Cruz people would be saying?"
Steele says spur of the moment rule changes will not sit well with Trump's supporters and could end up costing the party in the long run.
"The problem is you're going into the convention and you're changing the rules and the strategies at the last minute. Delegates aren't going to fall asleep on that. They'll know what's up. It sets in motion, I think, a very ugly situation for the party overall...This kind of monkey business is not something that's going to go down well with a lot of delegates who have the expectation on the first ballot everyone votes for the candidate they're committed to. After that, then the contest begins for the person who's closest to get votes and the people who are farthest away to grab votes as well. I think they need to be very careful about all of this."