As long as Trump is in the race we have to worry that one way or another he can win, or if not win, cause a huge mess by refusing to acknowledge losing.

If he's not in the race, then it's assured he's not the next president. What can be more important than that?

While it would be emotionally satisfying to make Trump suffer electoral defeat, the chance for that is not more important than knowing he can't win at all.

For whatever fire it might (and only might) drain from Democrats to not have Trump to beat, I'm pretty sure Republican voters will be at least equally, if not much more so, dispirited by having Trump quit.

Pence certainly won't whip up the deplorables the way Trump can. And who else could Republicans throw in at the last minute, with nearly all of the primaries already over? A free-for-all Republican convention trying to pick a non-primary-winning replacement for Trump would be an enormous fiasco.

I'm pretty sure Republicans, including those running for Senate, would be in worse shape in the wake of a drop-out Trump than they would be with him running.