Could David French actually be a presidential candidate?

The #NeverTrump movement might have found their champion


Earlier this week, neoconservative American political analyst and commentator Bill Kristol (who is also the founder and editor of the political magazine The Weekly Standard), announced that there will be an independent candidate entering the 2016 Presidential race to take on Trump and (presumably) Clinton.

There has been a lot of talk on who that might be, but it seems that a name has surfaced: David French.

David French

Who? Well, that’s the same question most people have asked. French is a writer for the National Review, a conservative publication, as well as a constitutional lawyer. He’s also an Iraqi war veteran. Virtually unknown, he has also not held political office before. On top of that, he would face several barriers to entry due to being independent and entering so late in the race.

However, Kristol insists that he is “impressive” and will have “a strong team and a real chance.”

French himself has not actually confirmed he will run. And personally, I think there is little reason that he should run. Besides what I mentioned earlier that he has no name-recognition and would have ample barrier to entry, this is unwise of the Republicans, since this will give the Democratic nominee (most likely Clinton) a straight-shot to the White House since Republicans and conservative independents will split.

I may sound hypocritical since I also strongly believe third party candidates should be given much more attention, there should not only be two major parties, and if it is between Clinton and Trump, I will be voting third party. Nonetheless, strategically this is a big mistake on the behalf of Kristol and his fellow #NeverTrump activists. He would be the classic “spoiler”. If the Presidential race were to be able to become more than two major-party candidates race, with Jill Stein of the Green Party and Gary Johnson of the Libertarian Party gaining real traction, it is arguable French would be less of a spoiler and possibly more of a real candidate. But even then, he would have to gain traction, which truthfully seems unlikely so late in the game.

If these Republicans don’t want a Trump or Clinton presidency, maybe they should consider getting behind Johnson. He does not fit all of their neoconservative credentials (obviously, that’s why he’s Libertarian), but he has name recognition, political experience, and a compromise of Left and Right voters. But they are looking for a “true conservative”, and unfortunately for them, all their viable options like Mitt Romney, Mark Cuban, and Ben Sasse have all declined. If anything, their choice of David French shows that the #NeverTrump movement has basically died, at least from the Republican perspective.

To play devil’s advocate though, it’s amazing what the power of money and the establishment is capable of. On top of that, a poll by the firm Data Targeting found 58 percent of respondents describe themselves as dissatisfied with the Republican and Democratic candidates, 55 percent in favor of an independent presidential ticket, and 91 percent of voters under 29 years old who would like to see an independent effort. So who knows, maybe French has potential.