Some Never Trumpers would lie down on the tracks, if need be, to try to derail Donald Trump’s third consecutive GOP nomination. Certain journalists will use every bit of their creativity to conjure up “but-if” scenarios that result in another nominee. But there was little in the results of the Iowa caucuses on Monday to support any conclusion other than Trump’s inevitability.
Let’s start by looking at previous contested Iowa Republican caucuses. That is, let’s omit the three incumbent presidents who ran unopposed (Ronald Reagan in 1984, George H.W. Bush in 1992, and George W. Bush in 2004), as well as Trump, who was all but unopposed in his bid for renomination four years ago. Until this week, the biggest victory margin in a contested caucus was Sen. Bob Dole’s 12-point win over Pat Robertson in 1988. Trump won by a 30-point margin, obliterating the previous record.
Until Monday night, the record-high share of the caucus vote was President Ford’s 45 percent, ahead of Ronald Reagan’s 43 percent. Other large-share winners included Dole’s 37 percent in 1988, George W. Bush’s
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