The annual World Forum of the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) last Sunday was attended by technology moguls and high-ranking Republicans. According to a report by the HuffingtonPost, one of the main topics during the forum was stopping the ascent of Donald Trump to power.
Powerful Gathering of Republicans
The secretive gathering of the most powerful and wealthiest persons in the United States took place in a private island resort off the coast of Georgia. Although the meeting was officially off-limit to the press, political commentator Bill Kristol reported some details of the proceedings and even tweeted about it.
Among the most notable businessmen who attended the meeting were Apple CEO Tim Cook, Google co-founder Larry Page, and SpaceX boss Elon Musk.
Meanwhile, some of the bigwig republican politicians who were present included House Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. The other U.S. senators who were present were Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Senator Cory Gardner of Colorado, Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, Senator Rob Portman of Ohio, and Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska. Senator Sasse made the news lately because he openly denounced Trump and declared that he will not support him.
Anti-Trump Sentiments
Political commentator Bill Kristol was present in the meeting as an observer. Borrowing the opening lines of the Communist Manifesto, Kristol wrote this in his emailed report:
“A specter was haunting the World Forum–the specter of Donald Trump.”
Kristol wrote that the businessmen and politicians at the gathering were frustrated by the rise of Trump as a likely nominee of the Republican Party. Many of those who attended were hoping for Trump to be defeated.
Stopping Trump’s victory is now the key concern of the business and political leaders, rather than merely understanding the motivations and ideology of Trump. Even for conservatives, Trump is too right-wing, with real fascist tendencies.
Trump is seen as too erratic and self-absorbed to become the commander-in-chief. His unapologetic narcissism and arrogance are more akin to the typical psychological profile of dictators.
Trump’s brand of political incorrectness has attracted fanatic followers who have racist tendencies. Like a true demagogue, Trump has been playing the blame game since he started his campaign.
Fractured GOP Leadership
The Republican Party leadership is now too fractured to be effective in curbing Trump’s rise but there might still be a chance of stopping him with the help of the business tycoons. The concerted efforts of businessmen and politicians within the Republican Party could strike a decisive blow on Trump’s campaign.
How exactly would the anti-Trump forces muster the strength and momentum? Well, this remains to be defined.
Featured image by Gage Skidmore via Flickr, available under a Creative Commons license.
