Just because we won’t have the excitement of a contested convention doesn’t mean there won’t be any drama. Here are some of the questions to be answered in Cleveland in July:
1. Who will appear with Trump on the podium? This decision is going to be excruciating for Trump’s opponents, and it will be based primarily on self-interest, although there will be a moral dimension for some of them, as well. On the one hand, for, say, Cruz and Rubio to refuse to join in a gesture of party unity will offend millions of Trump supporters and the GOP brass, will cast them into the wilderness in the event he wins, and will expose them to future allegations that their failure to support the ticket cost Trump the election. On the other hand, appearing with Trump after making pointed statements about his unfitness to be President will make them look weak and hypocritical, and will forever make them accomplices in Trump’s obnoxious nativist agenda. My guess is that tribalism will ultimately prevail.
2. Will we see major battles over the platform? There will be some of that, but I don’t think Trump really cares about the platform: after all, his personal awesomeness is his platform. He will simply ignore anything the party says that is inconsistent with his message.
3. Who will be his VP? I have written about this on previous occasions. He needs an establishment figure with executive experience who can run the country while he is off making his amazing deals.
4. How will Trump’s reality TV experience impact the convention’s production values? Trump thinks conventions are boring. Count on him to do everything he can to turn the show into “Celebrity Presidential Apprentice.”
5. Will there be violence in the streets in Cleveland? Since the outcome of the convention is already known, the danger of this is limited to the usual class of Trump protesters. I don’t think it will be a big story.
6. Will we have a reprise of Clint Eastwood and his chair? No.