These are the opportunity costs and risks of giving someone the Democratic nomination, which Schultz insists he will not pursue. But I think the risks of a well-financed, irrationally-publicized independent bid are worth taking seriously — that it will split the anti-Trump vote and allow Trump to sneak in again. I do not think it very likely that Schultz will have that effect, but I don’t believe he helps Democrats, and the 2016 versus 2018 comparison is helpful: a united opposition to Trump can blow him out of the water, but divided, maybe not. If Schultz cares about the republic, he’ll not run. Ergo, if he does run, no one should believe that he cares about the republic.