Well, see, in a free country, &quot;allowed&quot; to run is a pretty slippery concept.  You don&#x27;t actually need anybody&#x27;s permission.<p>Where Trump <i>does</i> need permission is to run <i>as a Republican</i>.  I have no idea why the Republican National Committee hasn&#x27;t just said, &quot;not using our name&quot;.  Maybe because that was part of the &quot;promise you won&#x27;t run as an independent&quot; deal they made with Trump?<p>And what Trump does have (unfortunately) is a whole bunch of support from primary voters.  I cannot fathom how that is possible, but apparently it is.  On a more pragmatic view, that&#x27;s why he&#x27;s &quot;allowed&quot;.