Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Charles Krauthammer: Visigoths at the gate?
Washington Post ^ | September 24, 2010 | Charles Krauthammer

Posted on 09/24/2010 11:07:20 PM PDT by neverdem

When facing a tsunami, what do you do? Pray, and tell yourself stories. I am not privy to the Democrats' private prayers, but I do hear the stories they're telling themselves. The new meme is that there's a civil war raging in the Republican Party. The Tea Party will wreck it from within and prove to be the Democrats' salvation.

I don't blame anyone for seeking a deus ex machina when about to be swept out to sea. But this salvation du jour is flimsier than most.

In fact, the big political story of the year is the contrary: that a spontaneous and quite anarchic movement with no recognized leadership or discernible organization has been merged with such relative ease into the Republican Party.

The Tea Party could have become Perot '92, an anti-government movement that spurned the Republicans, went third-party and cost George H.W. Bush reelection, ending 12 years of Republican rule. Had the Tea Party gone that route, it would have drained the Republican Party of its most mobilized supporters and deprived Republicans of the sweeping victory that awaits them on Nov. 2.

Instead, it planted its flag within the party and, with its remarkable energy, created the enthusiasm gap. Such gaps are measurable. This one is a chasm. This year's turnout for the Democratic primaries (as a percentage of eligible voters) was the lowest ever recorded. Republican turnout was the highest since 1970.

True, Christine O'Donnell's nomination in Delaware may cost the Republicans an otherwise safe seat (and possibly control of the Senate), and Sharron Angle in Nevada is running only neck-and-neck with an unpopular Harry Reid. On balance, however, the Tea Party contribution is a large net plus, with its support for such strong candidates as Marco Rubio of Florida, Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, Joe Miller...

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Editorial; Politics/Elections; US: Delaware; US: Nevada
KEYWORDS: delaware; harvard4obama; harvardresumefraud; krauthammer; nevada; romney; teaparty; teapartyexpress; teapartymovement; teapartyrebellion
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-92 next last
To: neverdem
Christine O'Donnell's nomination in Delaware may cost the Republicans an otherwise safe seat

What good is a "safe" seat if the one occupying it acts like a dim? Is it better to have a RINO than a dim? I'm not sure. With a RINO, you never know which way they'll go on an issue. Some, like the two up in Maine, are more reliable to the dims than many "official" dims.

21 posted on 09/25/2010 1:08:46 AM PDT by The Sons of Liberty (Psalm 109:8 Let his days be few and let another take his office. - Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Dr.Zoidberg

Chuck is an advocate for high taxes on energy, pro-abortion
anti-creationism. He rejects intelligent design theory because this leads to “creationism.”

Mr K. is more akin to the northeast cultural liberal menatlity than to the middle American conservative for sure.


22 posted on 09/25/2010 1:41:06 AM PDT by ChiMark
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 14 | View Replies]

To: Ronin

I notice Charles had to lower himself to appear on O’Reilly last week to “splain” himself about O’Donnell.


23 posted on 09/25/2010 1:49:12 AM PDT by Georgia Girl 2
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: Lancey Howard
[You, quoting Charlie Kraut 1996] ".....to desensitize the public to the regulation of weapons in preparation for their ultimate confiscation.”

Oh, really?

Hadn't been aware of that instrumental, Straussian, let-them-eat-cake little opinion of his, concerning our Second Amendment rights.

Think we can wheel Charlie's chair into the back row for a while.

24 posted on 09/25/2010 2:00:01 AM PDT by lentulusgracchus
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: ChiMark
He [Krauthammer] rejects intelligent design theory because this leads to “creationism.”

I'd like to see him and Chris Hitchens defend that idea of his in a discussion with Marie Curie, Isaac Newton, Francis Bacon, and Percival Lowell. With Teilhard De Chardin refereeing.

Good luck, Charlie K.

25 posted on 09/25/2010 2:04:43 AM PDT by lentulusgracchus
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 22 | View Replies]

To: lentulusgracchus
I think he should debate Percy Dovetonsils.


26 posted on 09/25/2010 2:07:20 AM PDT by Lancey Howard
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: neverdem

a spontaneous and quite anarchic movement with no recognized leadership

. . .

What’s funny is that young progressives view themselves this way while their “rebellion” is managed and very establishment.


27 posted on 09/25/2010 2:20:51 AM PDT by Nickname
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: lentulusgracchus

This:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2mzbuRgnI4


28 posted on 09/25/2010 2:21:09 AM PDT by NTHockey (Rules of engagement #1: Take no prisoners)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 24 | View Replies]

To: Lancey Howard
You’re confused. I lifted my post verbatim from here:

Okay, so American Survival Guide did. Thanks.


Here's another quote for you:

"It is true that with far stricter gun laws, Cho Seung Hui might have had a harder time getting the weapons and ammunition needed to kill so relentlessly. Nonetheless, we should have no illusions about what laws can do. There are other ways to kill in large numbers, as Timothy McVeigh demonstrated. Determined killers will obtain guns no matter how strict the laws. And stricter controls could also keep guns out of the hands of law-abiding citizens using them in self-defense. The psychotic mass murder is rare; the armed household burglary is not."

--Charles Krauthammer, "A Moment of Silence," The Washington Post, April 20, 2007

I'm not saying he's great on guns, but just giving a better picture.

29 posted on 09/25/2010 2:45:58 AM PDT by Gondring (Paul Revere would have been flamed as a naysayer troll and told to go back to Boston.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: Lancey Howard

In your quote it is hard to tell if it is a future he “envisages” or endorses. Certainly if civilian disarmament is a future he wishes to see then he is no friend of ours. OTOH, if folks 50 years from know “allow themselves to become desensitized to disarmament” it is their own fault. I imagine none of us will still be here then. Certainly I will not be turning over a damn thing.


30 posted on 09/25/2010 3:42:35 AM PDT by wastoute (Government cannot redistribute wealth. Government can only redistribute poverty.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: Gondring
Why would Paul Revere been flamed? I don't really understand you're tagline. You also suggested the man at the Angle/Reid debate who threw the punch may have been an Angle supporter. Do you know if this is true or were you just suggesting the possibility?
31 posted on 09/25/2010 3:49:19 AM PDT by normy (Don't take it personally, just take it seriously.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 29 | View Replies]

To: neverdem
Charles Krauthammer is nothing but a selectively myopic PR Rep/flack
and kept-trained monkey, for the Obama White House
and misogynyst Mitt (working for Obama,RomneyCARE, and TARP).


“Kill the Republican witch. Kill the women.
Go Mitt. Go Mitt. Go Mitt.”



32 posted on 09/25/2010 4:01:14 AM PDT by Diogenesis ('Freedom is the right of all sentient beings.' - Optimus Prime)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: neverdem

Charles? Too many foreign cliches.


33 posted on 09/25/2010 4:35:13 AM PDT by RoadTest (Religion is a substitute for the relationship God wants with you.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Lancey Howard

Do you have a link to the rest of that article?


34 posted on 09/25/2010 5:10:20 AM PDT by nuconvert ( Khomeini promised change too // Hail, Chairman O)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: neverdem

Looks like CK is trying to suck up to conservatives after his ill considered remarks about Christine ODonnell.

No matter. I thought this guy was a beltway elitist with a conservative schtick before that, and I think he’s a beltway elitist with a conservative schtick now. Every now and then his true colors come shining through.

As a mere unwashed peasant, I’m far too coarse to appreciate his enlightened words. So I guess I’ll just have put him on the list as a pundit to be ignored.


35 posted on 09/25/2010 5:18:00 AM PDT by RKBA Democrat (Amateurs study tactics, professionals study logistics, and victors study demographics.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: neverdem
The Perot comparison is a decent warning, but we aren't trying to re-elect a dull, NE rino running against the young and very charismatic new, fresh faced Bill Clinton.

This is a much different world here in the obamanation than in '92 and one would think it would be easy for the republicans, but if they try to run another rino in 2012 all bets are off.

The real challenge has always been to either first save the GOP and use it to save the Republic or abandon the GOP if it can't be salvaged and let the TEA party resistance form into something new and use that organization to challenge the progressives and restore the Constitutional Republic.

36 posted on 09/25/2010 5:48:09 AM PDT by GBA
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Lancey Howard

Is there a link to the entire article that this quote came from??


37 posted on 09/25/2010 5:59:52 AM PDT by phockthis
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: Gene Eric
Krauthammer is a pragmatist and can easily survive the consequences of his dissenting views concerning the ladies.

I'm thinking he's bemused by the FReeper "outrage." What did Krauthammer do, anyway? Call O'Donnell a weak candidate? (I'm asking because I don't know).

38 posted on 09/25/2010 6:00:45 AM PDT by 1rudeboy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: Ronin
Hmmm... methinks Herr Krauthammer has been hammered sufficiently by Tea Party reality and is now trying to get in its good graces.

Krauthammer has been a huge supporter of the Tea Party movement from day one.

39 posted on 09/25/2010 6:04:14 AM PDT by CharacterCounts (November 4, 2008 - the day America drank the Kool-Aid)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: Lancey Howard
Hope this helps.

It Doesn't

You lifted an excerpt from a article which excerpted an article from Krauthammer. Without the i=original Washington Post article and its context, the excerpt could easily be used in the wrong context.

I would like to see the original Krauthammer article.

40 posted on 09/25/2010 6:11:27 AM PDT by CharacterCounts (November 4, 2008 - the day America drank the Kool-Aid)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-92 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson