'New York Daily News' Depicts The GOP's Funeral

It's the sad truth that many Republicans (and Democrats, and Independents) didn't want to admit, but now have to accept, is that Donald Trump is almost surely the GOP's presidential nominee after a decisive victory in Indiana's primary Tuesday. On Wednesday, the New York Daily News' front page marked the occasion for Trump — but probably not in the way that he had in mind. The cover showed a grim outlook for the Republican Party, and cast major side-eye at Trump himself.

Indiana's Republican primary was called for Trump nearly immediately after polls closed across the state. Trump won with around 53 percent of the vote, nabbing at least 51 of the Hoosier State's 57 delegates. It was the latest in a long streak of wins for The Donald, including lead-solidifying delegate hauls in New York, Maryland, and elsewhere.

More than Trump's win, the buzz of the night centered on Ted Cruz's loss. Cruz had campaigned hard in Indiana, working with John Kasich and Carly Fiorina to stop Trump from reaching the delegate threshold he needs to secure the party's nomination. When he lost to Trump, Cruz announced on Tuesday evening that he was suspending his presidential campaign. In doing so, Cruz essentially handed the nomination over to Trump — and the entire credibility of the GOP along with it.

Wednesday's front page showed a cartoon elephant — the symbol of the Republican Party — in a coffin. Just in case the visual wasn't blunt enough, the text reads "Republican Party: 1854-2016" and "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here ..." The artwork clearly references Tuesday's happenings, as it implies that Cruz being out of the race essentially killed the GOP by handing it over to Trump. It also throws some shade John Kasich's way, by implying that even Kasich remaining in the race can't slow Trump. That's bound to be true, as Kasich has only accumulated about 10 percent of the delegates that Trump has.

It seems that even the Republican Party has resigned itself to Trump, a candidate whom many "establishment" members have pushed against ferociously. On Tuesday, though, Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, tweeted that Trump was the "presumptive nominee" and that the party ought to unite behind him. Perhaps that could change the tone that many Republican leaders use when referencing Trump.

Trump's success has forced more than 10 Republican candidates to suspend their campaigns, including mainstays like Jeb Bush and Chris Christie. Trump's ability to appeal to the Republican establishment has been a conversation long in the making. He appears to be resonating with voters, but he doesn't seem to do so well with the party he's running to represent.