They never did have that ability, because to “determine” something requires judgement. And judgment is called discrimination in the Left’s dogma.

Is it because they are afraid of alienating Hispanic voters?

Is it is because influential businesses want a continuing supply of cheap immigrant and illegal immigrant labor?

Is it because they are afraid of being smeared as racists in mass media?

Is it because they flinch at the thought of mass deportation?

Is it because of “Ellis Island sentimentality” about America as a “nation of immigrants”, sympathy for apparently deserving immigrants, and echoes of the reflexive Jewish aversion to immigration restriction?

Yes. All of those reasons apply.

It is going to be very hard to overcome a feeling that has so many different deep roots.

“What No One Seems to Know About Ted Cruz’s Past.”

https://pjmedia.com/blog/what-no-one-seems-to-know-about-ted-cruzs-past

http://www.wsj.com/articles/lets-elect-hillary-now-1450742854

Of course they have power.

My point is that their power is limited, not that they don’t sometimes succeed in sabotage, particularly in more local elections. Their power seems to have been very limited so far with Jeb Bush, compared to many predictions on blogs about how they would engineer his nomination.

Right. I’m well-known for ignoring evidence and ignoring comments.

Is your name ironic?

Oh, and by the way: I never claimed the GOP doesn’t try to sabotage certain candidates, in particular by not supporting them very much. In fact, if Trump were to be the nominee (or Cruz), I believe they might do just that (as I already stated in the post). The question is whether it would account for a loss by either Trump or Cruz. I think that Trump (and perhaps Cruz; not sure about that one) could definitely lose, even if he did have the full support of the GOP (although he wouldn’t have it). I think Trump is on track to lose to Clinton, were he to be nominated, and I base that on several things, including polls.

It could change, of course, over time.

If either Trump or Cruz is the nominee sometime this summer some eminence gres with “impecable conservative credentials” will, “with great sadness”, find he has to run 3rd party as the “real Republican in this race”.

This will give the Old Guard a way to vote against Trump without openly supporting Hillary.I think this was originally the genesis of the John Anderson campaign in 1980. Reagan, who the establishment didn’t want, neutured this by selecting Bush as his VP and thus spilting the Old Guard. The Old Guard then left Anderson to swing in the wind.

Lindsey Grahamn, with his role as an impeachment procecuter against Clinton, is the kind of centrist Old Guard that has the “impecable conservative credentials” they’ll want.

It amuses me when leftists think their politics prove that they are smart, and that those on the right are knuckle dragging idiots. They mock the Republican candidates as stupid. Rand Paul is an eye surgeon. Ben Carson is a neurosurgeon. Alan Dershowitz said that Ted Cruz was the smartest student he’s ever had at Harvard Law.

Perhaps the left has be so enamored of affirmative action and participation trophies that they’ve lost the ability to determine who is smart and who is stupid.

Just as an aside, I wonder if any of the candidates have any hobbies besides politics.