The selectively leaked tidbits from the secret rooms are depressing, yet utterly predictable: In one, GOP donors are tucked away in a swanky French restaurant in Palm Beach, plotting a new path to kill off GOP front-runner Donald Trump. In another, bloggers and conservative media folks are gnashing their teeth in a much-hyped closed-door “we-must-vanquish-Trump” session in Washington. Some attendees of each meeting are backing Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, but many others are disgusted with both options.

I don’t have a problem with anyone working within the rules to beat Trump up to and at the convention. However, unless Ted Cruz starts to show some real strength in the remaining primaries — unless he can somehow beat Trump over and over, and probably even take the lead going into the convention — then the most likely outcome of these efforts will be to forge an alliance between Trump and the Establishment. This will leave conservatives out in the cold. We already saw that yesterday, when Trump and Kasich worked together to kill FOX’s next scheduled debate.

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If the conservatives drive Trump and his followers to work with the Establishment, and the conservatives are left on the sidelines, they will have brought this outcome on themselves. Cruz is in a very strong position right now, and he could probably get very good terms from Trump. But if Trump can get to a majority WITHOUT Cruz, then the conservatives will find that they have no leverage.

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Still, if people believe there are good reasons to continue trying to beat Trump prior to the convention, I think they should follow their own conscience. I’m a little more troubled by this language from Team Secretive:

“Lastly, we intend to keep our options open as to other avenues to oppose Donald Trump. Our multiple decades of work in the conservative movement for free markets, limited government, national defense, religious liberty, life, and marriage are about ideas, not necessarily parties.”

What exactly does this mean? Does it mean that they would consider running a third-party candidate who would throw the election to Hillary? If so, how is that consistent with their desire for free markets, limited government, national defense, religious liberty, life, and marriage? Trump has promised to cut taxes and regulation — Hillary is devoted to big government. Trump has promised to rebuild the U.S. military — Hillary is one of the worst secretaries of state ever. Trump has promised to appoint conservative justices in the mold of Justice Scalia — Hillary is committed to judicial liberalism.

Team Secretive is convinced that Trump doesn’t mean what he says. It’s odd that Team Secretive never threatened to walk after all the times that the Bushes and their GOP enablers did lie to conservatives, and are only now angry about the possibility that a GOP candidate may not be telling the truth. It’s even odder that Team Secretive wasn’t concerned that Marco Rubio lied to his constituents about his plans with respect to immigration policy. But even putting these issues aside, wouldn’t it make more sense to work with a guy who claims to be on your side, than to do everything possible to help a woman who is your avowed enemy?

Politics ain’t beanbag, as the old saying goes, and the old saying is right. Many, many, many Americans were unhappy with the choices served up to them in the last few presidential elections. Many, many, many Americans have waited in vain for a candidate who would change GOP policy on trade, immigration, and foreign policy. But never, at any time, did those Americans seek to throw a presidential election to the Democrats. Every time, they swallowed their anger and did their best for the country. Now they have a right to expect that if Trump is the nominee, and Team Secretive faces the same type of unpleasant alternative that many of us have dealt with for years, that Team Secretive will not pout, and will not throw the election to Hillary.