Former Republican Gov. Jim Douglas is joining efforts to block GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump from winning the party's nomination. Douglas says Trump's candidacy is not in the best interests of the Republican Party or the country.
Since his retirement from office in 2011, Douglas has remained largely in the political background and hasn't actively debated political issues affecting the state or the country. But that could be changing.
Douglas says he's concerned that presidential candidate Donald Trump is leading the Republican field and could accumulate a majority of delegates to win the GOP nomination in July.
Douglas says he supports efforts to prevent Trump from winning a first ballot victory at the convention.
"I'm not ready to concede that the front-runner is going to be the nominee of our party," says Douglas. "He may fall short of the votes he needs. And that will give the delegates in Cleveland a chance to make a decision that's in the best interests of not only the GOP but of our country too."
Although Douglas says he's not endorsing any candidate at this time, it's clear that he favors Ohio Gov. John Kasich.
"I'd like to see a different, more inclusive nominee," he says. "I generally have a predisposition to governors, they're the folks that have actually run something ... There's only one governor left in the race and it would seem to me that he would serve us well as the nominee, if that were possible."
"I'm optimistic that the Republicans of our country will hear the message that the Trump voters are delivering but, in the end, pick a different standard-bearer." — Former Gov. Jim Douglas
There are other Republican officials who share Douglas's concerns. Former House Minority Leader Patti Komline thinks a Trump nomination would be a disaster for the Republican Party.
"His attacks on women, his attacks on veterans, his attacks on disabled people, it just goes on and it's so divisive to the country and the identity politics of pitting one group against another," Komline says. "It's just disappointing."
Jeff Bartley is the executive director of the Vermont Republican Party. He says it's important to better understand why Trump appeals to voters and to use this information to bolster efforts to elect more Republicans at the legislative and statewide level.
"Our question isn't necessarily about Donald Trump," Bartley says, "it's about the people who are supporting him and why are they supporting him and why are they supporting Bernie Sanders. And there's that huge dissatisfaction out there with the direction of Congress and here in Vermont."
"There's that huge dissatisfaction out there with the direction of Congress and here in Vermont." — Jeff Bartley is the executive director of the Vermont Republican Party
Former Gov. Douglas says he feels so strongly about the prospects of a Trump nomination that he's seriously considering becoming a delegate to the GOP national convention.
"I might even go to Cleveland to see if I can make a contribution to the deliberations there," Douglas says. "I'm optimistic that the Republicans of our country will hear the message that the Trump voters are delivering but, in the end, pick a different standard-bearer."
Both of Vermont's Republican gubernatorial candidates, Lt. Gov. Phil Scott and businessman Bruce Lisman, have released statements critical of Trump's candidacy.
