It’s easy to forget that, before Donald Trump piloted his Strength Through Joy pleasure cruiser of a presidential campaign into the general election, he unleashed a series of devastating broadsides into the conservative movement. For nearly a year, the result has been one of the most persistent and pathetic spectacles of this election cycle: a small crowd of conservative true believers, huddled together miles from shore in the groaning hulk of their once-proud vessel, shouting #NeverTrump at the indifferent sea.

These plaintive cries have been violating eardrums since January, when the National Review gathered the twenty-two responses it received by querying the “[email protected]” listserv and published them as its “Conservatives Against Trump” feature. In the months that followed, Republican voters responded to this overwhelming display of thought leadership by lining up behind Trump and carrying him convincingly to the nomination.

Trump-denouncing conservatives may have fulfilled the National Review’s mission statement of “stand[ing] athwart history, yelling Stop,” but as it turns out, history no longer has a use for those who think that America’s hearts and minds are won in the pages of the National Review. The feature was better suited for publication as “We Asked 22 Conservatives About The Most Pathetic Salvo They Ever Launched At Donald Trump” on ClickHole; at least it would’ve been funny to see the line “Um, I’m not sure I understand. ‘Pathetic salvo?’” above a dour-looking photo of Bill Kristol.