Posted on 09/07/2015 3:40:14 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Dear Reader (if there are any of you left),
Well, if this is the conservative movement now, I guess youre going to have to count me out.
No, Im not making some mad dash to the center. No, Im not hoping to be the first alternate to Steve Schmidt on Morning Joe, nor am I vying to become my generations Kevin Phillips. I will never be a HillaryCon. And I have no plan to earn strange new respect from the Georgetown cocktail-party set Im always hearing about but never meeting. But even if I have no desire to grow in my beliefs, I have no intention to shrink, either.
The late Bill Rusher, longtime publisher of National Review, often counseled young writers to remember, Politicians will always disappoint you. As Ive often said around here, this isnt because politicians are evil. Its because politicians are politicians. Their interests too often lie in votes, not in principles. Thats why the conservative movement has always recognized that victory lies not simply in electing conservative politicians, but in shaping a conservative electorate that lines up the incentives so that politicians define their self-interest in a conservative way.
But if its true that politicians can disappoint, I think one has to say that the people can, too.
And when I say the people I dont mean those people. I mean my people. I mean many of you, Dear Readers. Normally, when conservatives talk about how the public can be wrong, we mean that public. You know the one. The low-information voters Rush Limbaugh is always talking about. The folks we laughed at when Jay Leno interviewed them on the street. But we dont just mean the unwashed and the ill-informed. We sometimes mean Jews, blacks, college kids, Lena Dunham fans, and countless other partisan slices of the electorate who reflexively vote on strict party lines for emotional or irrational reasons. We laugh at liberals who let know-nothing celebrities do their thinking for them.
Well, many of the same people we laughed at are now laughing at us because we are going ga-ga over our own celebrity.
Behold the Trumpen Proletariat
Yes, I know that there are plenty of decent and honorable people who support Trump. For instance, my friend John Nolte over at Breitbart is one. He constantly celebrates Trump because Trump has all the right enemies and defies the conventional rules governing politics and media:
#GOPSmartSet-ters confused by Trumps appeal need to spend some time in the Real World. You cant help the cause being this out-of-touch. John Nolte (@NolteNC) August 28, 2015
Why Trump resonates. https://t.co/IGgZq6RXdS John Nolte (@NolteNC) August 27, 2015
Trump goes right over the heads of the media to talk to the people. He uses the media like his chew toy. And its glorious. John Nolte (@NolteNC) August 26, 2015
Ive waited 30 years to see the media get treated like Trump just treated that piece of garbage @jorgeramosnews. Oh. Hell. Yes. John Nolte (@NolteNC) August 25, 2015
But this is not an argument for Trump as a serious presidential candidate. It is really no argument at all. It is catharsis masquerading as principle, venting and resentment pretending to be some kind of higher argument. Every principle used to defend Trump is subjective, graded on a curve. Trump is like a cat trained to piss in a human toilet. Its amazing! Its remarkable! Yes, yes, it is: for a cat. But we dont judge humans by the same standard.
The Tempting of Conservatism
Ive written many times how the phrase power corrupts has been misunderstood. Lord Actons original point wasnt that power corrupts those who wield power, it was that it corrupts those who admire it. In a letter to a historian friend who was too forgiving of the Reformation-era popes, Acton wrote:
I cannot accept your canon that we are to judge Pope and King unlike other men, with a favourable presumption that they did no wrong. If there is any presumption it is the other way, against the holders of power, increasing as the power increases. Historic responsibility has to make up for the want of legal responsibility. Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men, even when they exercise influence and not authority, still more when you superadd the tendency or the certainty of corruption by authority. There is no worse heresy than that the office sanctifies the holder of it.
Popularity which in democracy is a very important kind of power works the same way. We routinely forgive the rich and famous for sins we would condemn our neighbors for. Trumps popularity apparently trumps all standards we would apply not just to our neighbors, but to our leaders. A small example of what I am talking about can be found in Ted Cruzs vow not to criticize other Republicans if by Republicans you mean Donald Trump. I have a lot of respect for Cruz, but this doesnt pass the laugh test. The Texan has been lambasting the entire Republican party for his entire time in office. Some of his critiques are valid, of course. But he has shown not an iota of reluctance to criticize fellow Republicans when its in his interest. Cruz isnt criticizing Donald Trump because, as a smart politician, he wants to woo Trumps followers when/if Trump eventually falters. Similarly, Im constantly hearing from Trump fans that its disrespectful for me to criticize the Republican front-runner as if these fans would refrain from criticizing Jeb or Rubio or Kasich if they were in the lead.
#share#
The Bonfire of Principles
If I sound dismayed, its only because I am. Conservatives have spent more than 60 years arguing that ideas and character matter. That is the conservative movement I joined and dedicated my professional life to. And now, in a moment of passion, many of my comrades-in-arms are throwing it all away in a fit of pique. Because Trump fights!
How many Republicans have been deemed unfit for the Oval Office because of comparatively minor character flaws or ideological shortcomings? Rick Perry in 2012 saw his candidacy implode when he couldnt remember the third item on his checklist of agencies hed close down. Well, even in that oops moment, Rick Perry comes off as Lincolnesque compared with Donald Trump.
Yes, I know Trump has declared himself pro-life. Good for him and congratulations to the pro-life movement for making that the price of admission. But Im at a total loss to understand why serious pro-lifers take him at his word. Hes been all over the place on Planned Parenthood, and when asked who hed like to put on the Supreme Court, he named his pro-choice-extremist sister.
Ann Coulter wrote of Newt in 2011: If all you want is to lob rhetorical bombs at Obama and then lose, Newt Gingrich like recent favorite Donald Trump is your candidate. But if you want to save the country, Newts not your guy. Now Ann leads a chorus of people claiming that Trump is our only savior. Has Trump changed, or have Ann and her followers? Is there a serious argument behind the new thinking, or is it because he fights!?
RELATED: Have Conservatives Grown Tired of Supporting the Rule of Law?
It is entirely possible that conservatives sweat the details of tax policy too much. Once in office, a president must deal with political realities that render the fine print of a campaign pamphlet as useful as a battle plan after the enemy is met. But in the last month, Trump has contemplated a flat tax, the fair tax, maintaining the current progressive tax system, a carried-interest tax, a wealth tax, and doing nothing. His fans respond, That shows hes a pragmatist!
No. It shows that he has absolutely no ideological guardrails whatsoever. Ronald Reagan once said, Government is like a baby. An alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other. Trump is close to the reverse. Hes a mouth at the wrong end of an alimentary canal spewing crap with no sense of responsibility.
In his embarrassing interview with Hugh Hewitt Thursday night, Trump revealed he knows less than most halfway-decent D.C. interns about foreign policy. Twitter lit up with responses about how it doesnt matter and how it was a gotcha interview. They think that Trumps claim that hell just go find a Douglas MacArthur to fix the problem is brilliant. Well, Im all in favor of finding a Douglas MacArthur, but if you dont know anything about foreign policy, the interview process will be a complete disaster. Yes, Reagan delegated. But he knew enough to know to whom to delegate.
If you want a really good sense of the damage Donald Trump is doing to conservatism, consider the fact that for the last five years no issue has united the Right more than opposition to Obamacare. Opposition to socialized medicine in general has been a core tenet of American conservatism from Day One. Yet, when Republicans were told that Donald Trump favors single-payer health care, support for single-payer health care jumped from 16 percent to 44 percent.
Ive written a lot about my problems with populism. One of my favorite illustrations of why the populist mindset is dangerous and anti-intellectual comes from William Jennings Bryan. The people of Nebraska are for free silver and I am for free silver, Bryan announced. I will look up the arguments later. My view of conservatism holds that if free silver is a bad idea, its still a bad idea even if the people of Nebraska are for it. But Trumpism flips this on its head. The conservatives of Nebraska and elsewhere should be against single-payer health care, even if Donald Trump is for it. What we are seeing is the corrupting of conservatives.
Homework Is for Losers
I agree that presidents dont need to be experts on everything. But they do need to do their homework. This is a standard Ive held for years:
This is my biggest gripe about some of the GOP candidates in recent years. They dont think they have to do their homework, perhaps because they arent so much running for president as running for greater celebrity.
Consider Herman Cain. I love listening to him, and so do a lot of conservatives. Hes smart enough to be president. But he simply didnt do his homework, and he acted like that was something to be proud of, as when he of bragged about not knowing the names of leaders of small, insignificant states like Uzbekistan (which he jokingly pronounced Ubeki-beki-beki-beki-stan-stan).The one thing you cannot buy in politics is charisma. If you could, Mitt Romney would have bought a pallet of it at Costco and hed probably be president now. Cain and Perry had the charisma, the natural political talent, and they squandered it by thinking all they needed was the sizzle without the steak.
Trump has the charisma, Ill grant him that. But there is no evidence hes thought deeply about the job beyond how much classier it will be once he has it. His whole shtick is an eminence front (Its a put on! The Couch).
When running for president, doing your homework is a question of character and even patriotism. If you love this country and want to be the president, quite literally the least you can do is be prepared.
So lets return to the issue of character.
In 2012, Mark Steyn wrote that a President Gingrich would have twice as many ex-wives as the first 44 presidents combined. If that (quite brilliant) line resonated with you three years ago, why doesnt it for a President Trump?
I understand the Noltean compulsion to celebrate anyone who doesnt take crap from the mainstream media. But when Newt Gingrich brilliantly eviscerated the press in 2012, there was a serious ideological worldview behind it. Trumps assaults on the press have only one standard: whether the journalist in question is favorable to Trump or not. If a journalist praises him, that journalist is terrific. If the journalist is critical of Trump he is a loser (or, in my case, a loser who cant buy pants). Not surprisingly, Hugh Hewitt is now third rate because he made Trump look bad. Im no fan of Arianna Huffington or Gail Collins, but calling them dogs because they criticized you is not a serious ideological or intellectual retort. (Its not even clever.) I think Trump did insinuate that Megyn Kelly was menstruating during the debate. He denies it. Fine. But what in the world about his past would lead someone to give him the benefit of the doubt? This is the same man who said, You know, it doesnt really matter what [the media] write as long as youve got a young and beautiful piece of ass.
Trumps glass-bottom id lets the whole world see his megalomania. He talks about himself in the third person all the time. He explains that Trump is great because Trump is rich and famous. Hes waxed profound on how he doesnt want blacks counting his money (he prefers Jews in yarmulkes). He makes jokes on national TV about women fellating him. He pays famous people to attend his wedding and then brags about it as if he got one over on them. He boasts in his books how he screwed over business associates and creditors because all that mattered was making an extra buck.
If your neighbor talked this way, maybe hed still be your friend, because we all have friends who are characters. But would you want him to be your kids English teacher? Guidance counselor? Would you tell your kids you want them to follow his example? Would you go into business with him?
Would you entrust him with nuclear weapons?
Remnant Here I Come
Karl Marx coined the term lumpenproletariat to describe working-class people who could never relinquish their class consciousness and embrace the idea of a classless socialist society. Hence, they were useless to the revolutionary cause. Im no Marxist, so I dont buy the idea that anybody never mind a whole class of people are beyond persuasion. But I am tempted to believe that Donald Trumps biggest fans are not to be relied upon in the conservative cause. I have hope they will come to their senses. But its possible they wont. And if the conservative movement and the Republican party allow themselves to be corrupted by this flim-flammery, then so be it. My job will be harder, my career will suffer, and Ill be ideologically homeless (though hardly alone). Thats not so scary. Conservatism began in the wilderness and maybe, like the Hebrews, it would return from it stronger and ready to rule. But Im not leaving without a fight. If my side loses that fight, all I ask is you stop calling the Trumpian cargo cult conservative and maybe stop the movement long enough for me to get off.
Robert Heinlein.
Winning really is everything.
art of the deal and he is dealing. i hope he means what he says about loving this country. i think he does. but he is a self absorbed ashl*e. a lot like the current inhabitant but one difference i think he loves this country. he travels and sees and deals with all the other worldly a*es. i think he really does love this country.
Dare I say RABID Palin supporters?
Cruz Supporters? I don't recall you insulting the intelligence of those...
If I'm incorrect, PLEASE supply links to your posts.
But this is not an argument for Trump as a serious presidential candidate. It is really no argument at all. It is catharsis masquerading as principle, venting and resentment pretending to be some kind of higher argument. Every principle used to defend Trump is subjective, graded on a curve. Trump is like a cat trained to piss in a human toilet. Its amazing! Its remarkable! Yes, yes, it is: for a cat. But we dont judge humans by the same standard.
sorry had to post this panties in a twist part. i think he protests too much. off with his head. this is very funny
Bla bla bla
I'm being sarcastic, to illustrate the point that when anyone criticizes their idol, the Trump fanatics tend to impugn his person, rather than his argument.
I have no problems with independent thinkers even if we do not agree. It’s drones and her worshippers that get under my skin.
Goldberg wearing Noonan’s skirt.
“But Jeb Bush was a solid conservative, right?”
Well he certainly CLAIMS to be one - and, I guess, that’s good enough for Joanne.
I never said I wasn't one of them. We're trying to play chess with a pigeon, at this point. I'll support Trump as the nominee moreso than I supported Mitt the last go around.
Please, Jonah. Within less than 3 months you and all of you cohorts have been brought down to Earth. Why? Because you do nothing except talk and write about doing something.
Please, Jonah. Within less than 3 months you and all of your cohorts have been brought down to Earth. Why? Because you do nothing except talk and write about doing something.
Politicians and diapers must be changed often, and for the same reason.
― Mark Twain
RE: I’m being sarcastic, to illustrate the point that when anyone criticizes their idol, the Trump fanatics tend to impugn his person, rather than his argument.
Ahhh, OK. It has been the tradition here at FR to add the /sarc or /s tag if one is being facetious or sarcastic :)
Ha!!
That was my first thought - except I thought “Chris Christie”.
Check my account. I wasn’t here when Palin was on the ticket in 08 or maybe going to be on the ticket in 2012.
It’s not about wanting to insult the intelligence of anyone and it’s not about making personal with anyone. If it comes across that way, than I apologize.
It’s plain and simple wanting people to THINK and be independent rather than just following a herd. Because I think every single person here is probably more intelligent than some of the things that comes out of their keyboard. Heck, hopefully I’m more intelligent than some of the things that come out of my keyboard.
But those posts were a case in point. We have a thoughtful article that while it perhaps had what could be an insulting tone to some, nevertheless addresses the concern and disagreement many of us do have with Trump concerning his so called conservatism.
And the first response is about Jeb Bush and asking whether he’s supposed to be conservative? Really? I’m not going to speak for Jonah Goldberg and if he’s complaining about Trump’s lack of conservative credentials but would back Jeb than shame on him. But overall, as far as I can tell, most of the people saying Trump isn’t a conservative don’t have “Jeb 2016” signs in their yard.
And this has been the standard fare in many cases unfortunately in this discussion. Anyone who dares question Trump’s credentials is either a Jeb supporter, a GOPe troll, a minion of the establishment, or someone who doesn’t care if illegal aliens completely take over the country.
There’s this pure emotion based, knee jerk reaction to any criticism of Trump that’s usually full of ad hominems and a dogged insistence that Trump is literally the only person that can save the country. “GOPe” which indeed isn’t something that most people here would want to be identified with, but the GOPe identification is the same as the progressive’s “You’re a racist” if you criticize Obama. Sometimes the GOPe slur fits. Sometimes it probably does not.
But there’s a reason why in one of my online shows that I do I referred to “The Cult of the Donald”. Because that’s exactly what I’m seeing. Intelligent, conservative adults falling all over themselves over this man- again shouting down any criticism, legitimate or otherwise, and getting swept away in populist rhetoric, and making comparisons between not just Trump and Reagan, but Trump and John the Baptist and probably Trump and Jesus Christ. I can’t recall if I’ve seen that, but I believe someone, perhaps Catherine of Aragon, did.
To an outsider’s eye, it’s almost as if we have our own Obama 2008 type of candidate and candidacy, and we’re doing the same thing and sadly maybe even making some of the same mistakes many Obama voters made in 2008.
Now there ARE some people here who can articulate why they support Trump. And while I’m not one of them, I can still respect that.
But those swept away in the tide of emotion, I can guarantee even if we get a “President Trump”, they’ll probably be the most disappointed of any of his supporters. Because they just let the emotion of the rhetoric rule their minds without stopping to think whether Trump can be trusted to follow through on what he says, or if he can even do what he says, or if he in fact is the kind of individual we as conservatives should even want to support as a candidate.
Trump is not going to “save America” or make it great again. Quite frankly, believing we’re in the end times biblically, I’m not even sure it can be done. But if it can, we look to God and we look to Jesus Christ, and we follow Him- and in my humble opinion, we support a candidate that seems to do likewise. That’s not Donald Trump for me.
Yes, and John McCain. Boehner and McConnell are two conservatives that meet the Jonah Goldberg litmus test.
And as I just finished that response, I look up and I see someone decided to call Jonah Goldberg a homosexual, presumably because he criticized Trump. This too is what I’m talking about.
That’s right - attack, don’t answer. Have you met Mr. Alinsky or do you just follow his tactics?
As a matter of fact, being a Conservative I don’t see anyone that I support in everything. I see a lot of them that I could vote for over any Democrat, but that is hardly supporting them. But I can spot a Conservative and Trump does not look like one - he is on some issues, but not on many.
So go ahead and tell me how conservative Trump is. Tell me his “touchback” amnesty is not amnesty. Tell me about all he has done to limit abortions. Tell me all the wonderful Conservative Republicans he has supported.
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