By Michael Medved

According to an old saying, a politician looks to the next election, but a statesman concentrates on the next generation. Unfortunately, several Republican presidential candidates seem as though they don’t even consider the next election — the November contest in which the party must unite to beat Hillary Clinton.

John Kasich’s campaign released a loathsome ad implicitly comparing Donald Trump to Hitler, but any Republican will need Trump’s support to win the general election. Meanwhile, The Donald, himself, compared Ben Carson to a child molester and called him a “sick puppy,” so how can he expect Carson to campaign with him for November? Ted Cruz regularly assaults leaders of his own party as “RINOS” and liars, insisting all who back any sort of immigration reform actually favor “amnesty.” He’d be the most divisive GOP nominee since Goldwater, who lost 44 states.

Candidates who try to win the nomination by trashing their rivals and splitting the party offer a path to sure defeat in 2016.