title:  Team Trump Puts A Proverbial Gun To The GOP’s Head: Support The Nominee Or Else
text: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has made life a living hell for party leaders since he first began to rise in the polls way back in the overcrowded GOP primary season. Against all odds, Trump s bombast and demagoguery wooed disaffected GOP base voters, and he managed to steamroll past other established, much more qualified Republican presidential candidates. In the interim since then, Trump s controversies have caused many issues for party leaders who have been forced to try to defend and vouch for their nominee. The worst instance of this, of course, was the infamous Access Hollywood tape in which Trump had a lewd and offensive conversation with Billy Bush.Well, since that tape caused condemnation across the board   even causing many leading Republicans to withdraw their endorsements- the result was a well-publicized and fiery civil war within the GOP writ large. Now, with just 11 days to go until Election Day, the Trump campaign is making an effort to hold the party hostage, and force support for the embattled Trump/Pence ticket. An email, obtained by the Washington Post, was sent around to GOP elected officials, which read: I know we are less than 11 days to the 2016 election. But it is imperative that we continue to drive Republican support for the top of the ticket. That means we need your direct, strong support for the Trump/Pence ticket. Now is the time. No waffling, no week [sic] knees. We strongly urge you today to make a statement   take a stand   and step out for the Trump/Pence ticket. So, in other words, this is a  support Trump or else  message. Trump himself has already floated the idea of punishing party leaders such as House Speaker Paul Ryan for disloyalty, especially since some of these people are only supporting Trump because they are forced to. Now, Team Trump is essentially holding the GOP hostage, and if their demands are not met, make no mistake   the consequences will likely be dire.Hopefully these Republicans don t cave to Trump s insane, strongman-like tactics, and can show a bit of spine and limp on to election day.Featured image via Alex Wong/Getty Images