You forgot Jerry Ford. We survived him too.
We are turning into a party of Chicken Littles. I'd rather a Rudy or any Republican--even a RINO--over Hillary. Some people seem to think that means I WANT a RINO, but I can't prevent people from lying about the point. Rudy wouldn't destroy this party. What is destroying this party is that it is becoming so very narrow in its views that it is pushing people like me away--people who aren't moderate, but aren't religious conservatives, either.
In the process, conservatives will leave the party and completely doom any possibility of changing the party from within. I have heard this ridiculous "I stand on my principles, you don't" crap forever, and it is so childish, so lacking in realism.
Ronald Reagan was a conservative who understood that he couldn't have it his way all the time. Thinking about such things as his signing of an amnesty bill into law, I have to wonder how many people here would be calling him "Ronaldo" the way they call the president "Jorge". The definition of a Republican is getting narrower and narrower, and those who threaten to stalk off seem to think they will just establish a True Conservative Party and start running things. They are deluded.
RINOs won't kill us, because the people who toss that label around don't seem to know what being a Republican means.