The NeverTrump faction of the Republican Party and conservative movement is facing reality as the election nears.  As Jared E. Peterson explained in detail yesterday, “[t]he election of Hillary Clinton would mean final defeat for American conservativism – for at least a generation and almost certainly for much longer than that.”

Compared to the personal benefit of maintaining theoretical moral superiority to the unwashed masses that chose Donald Trump as the GOP nominee, the downside of a Supreme Court majority utterly compliant with the demands and whims of the left is starting to change minds.  As well, the degree of personal corruption of the Clintons is such that the specter of a presidency driven by the opportunities for various forms of bribery may be sickening some of those repelled by Trumpian rhetoric and style.

One of the first NeverTrumps to reconsider is Mark Levin, who occupies a crucial position in the conservative movement, as both a popular talk show host and as a legal and constitutional scholar of great importance.  He may well be the most influential pundit among conservatives.  Such is my regard for him that I am not really surprised at this change, nor by the timing of it, as the post-Labor Day campaign-in-earnest begins.  The Conservative Review, founded by Mark Levin, explains:

Mark Levin made the big announcement Tuesday night on his radio show after methodically walking listeners through his rationale.

At the beginning of the program, Levin made sure his real feelings were known. It was no secret that Levin’s first choice was not and is not Donald Trump. In fact, he boldly declared Tuesday that despite Trump’s holding some conservative policies, “Donald Trump is not a conservative … and he’s not reliable.”

Levin reiterated his position that Sen. Ted Cruz would’ve been a far better choice to champion conservative principles as president.

But that’s not what happened and … “at the end of the day, someone is going to be president.”

You can listen to the endorsement:

Who’s next?  My guess is Charles Krauthammer, but who knows?  Jonah, Kevin, and George, come on in; the water’s fine.  

If Donald Trump can improve his support among Republican voters to customary levels of 90%, he has a far better shot at winning.