Donald Trump may have screwed up, big time. By focusing on a populist xenophobic message that ignored the way Republican politics actually work, he may have doomed his campaign.

And now he’s predictably trying to incite the deluded right wing masses against the Republican Party itself: Donald Trump, Losing Ground, Tries to Blame the System.

“Our Republican system is absolutely rigged. It’s a phony deal,” he said, accusing party leaders of maneuvering to cut his supporters out of the process. “They wanted to keep people out. This is a dirty trick.”

His charges built on comments in the last few days by associates, senior advisers and Mr. Trump himself, seeking to cast a shadow of illegitimacy over the local and state contests to select delegates to the Republican National Convention in Cleveland in July.

By blaming the process rather than his own inadequacies as a manager, Mr. Trump is trying to shift focus after Senator Ted Cruz of Texas outmaneuvered him in delegate contests in states like Colorado, North Dakota and Iowa, losses that could end up denying Mr. Trump the nomination.

Note that Trump has previously said his followers will riot if the Republican Party takes away what is rightfully his.