Electoral Momentum

   Pressure is building among presidential electors to bypass Donald Trump when they meet next week to finalize the results of the 2016 election.
   Meanwhile, Trump has delayed a planned press conference until after the electors meet. And he has decided to continue his role as executive producer of the TV show "The Apprentice," even as he keeps his job as leader of the Trump Organization, his worldwide business empire.
   There's just one problem: Constitutionally, he can't do both.
   Therefore, that leaves two possibilities.
   First, electors will choose someone else to be President. There is no Constitutional requirement that they conform to the popular vote, and momentum is accelerating to have some of the members of the Electoral College change their minds. Those leading the effort need only persuade 36 members of the group to abandon Trump and switch. Of the total 538 electors, 305 are supposedly Trump supporters, and 270 would constitute a majority to finalize the Presidential election.
   After the elector meeting, Trump can use his planned press conference to announce his next step.
   First, if he loses, he can attack the vote as "rigged," and start a legal challenge. Or he can say he will return to his business empire and abandon his claim to the Presidency. Second, if he wins the electoral vote, he can use the press conference to gloat, even as he vows to keep his business interests. That, however, increases the risk of impeachment.