Free Republic
Browse · Search
GOP Club
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Kavanaugh Killed the ‘Never Trump’ Movement
The Daily Beast ^ | October 9, 2018 | Matt Lewis

Posted on 10/09/2018 3:09:27 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

Some Never Trumpers are now on board for 2020. Others are leaving the Republican Party for good. One way or the other, it’s all about you know who.

Resistance is futile. Long on life-support, the Never Trump “resistance” movement within the Republican Party was finished off by the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation fight.

Consider the dichotomy that has emerged in the last week: We saw people like Erick Erickson, who once wrote a piece headlined “I Will Not Vote For Donald Trump. Ever,” suggesting they will vote for Trump in 2020, and people like Tom Nichols, formerly of The Federalist, saying Kavanaugh’s confirmation was the final straw (he quit the GOP).

Nichols and Erickson reacted to the exact same news in exactly opposite ways.

The Kavanaugh hearing essentially radicalized Never Trumpers. Some—as part of the GOP base’s backlash against the left’s attacks—are coming home and supporting Trump. Others—perhaps because their hatred of Trump has only intensified—were pushed completely from the fold. This process has been going on for a long time, but one gets the sense that the fight over Kavanaugh was the end of the road.

Where you stand on this probably depends on where you sit. Personally, I see the group who submitted to their Trumpy fate as making an understandable submission to the inexorable forces of tribalism and partisanship. Consider Erickson’s plight. If you are a conservative, you, too, might well be repelled by the left’s behavior last week.

As Erickson writes, “Trump is neither an ambassador for my values nor the articulate champion of my principles I would prefer. But he is a safe harbor in a progressive storm that seeks to both destroy my values and upend our constitutional republic.”(continued)

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


TOPICS: Campaign News; Issues; Parties; State and Local
KEYWORDS: kavanaugh; scotus; supremecourt; trump
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-47 next last
To: BRL

Great comment. I agree 100%.


21 posted on 10/09/2018 3:29:19 PM PDT by poconopundit (MAGA... Get the Spirit. Grow your community. Focus on your Life's Work. Empower the Young.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]

To: DannyTN

Erick “The Red” lost his credibility a long time ago.


22 posted on 10/09/2018 3:29:25 PM PDT by tennmountainman ("Trust Sessions" Yeah Right)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet

After reading Rich Lowry’s piece from earlier this week, I do believe he may be right.

Except for Bill Kristol...who will go to his grave cursing Trump.


23 posted on 10/09/2018 3:29:26 PM PDT by bigbob (Trust Sessions. Trust the Plan.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet

The few remaining Never Trumpers need to WAKE UP and realize what a GREAT conservative president we have in Trump!

When I hear people (especially other Republicans) complain that they don’t like Trump’s “demeanor,” I just say, “He’s from Queens, relax! That’s what people from Queens are like. Get over it.”

LOL, I’ve been able to shut up/calm down quite a few friends and coworkers that way. (“Oh, okay, he’s from Queens. Well, that explains it.”)


24 posted on 10/09/2018 3:30:43 PM PDT by RooRoobird20 ("Democrats haven't been this angry since Republicans freed the slaves.")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet

Those names listed are men. I believe all of them could envision them in Kavanaugh’s position, being falsely accused by a random bimbo for political, financial, or other reason, and it scared the hell out of them. It should scare the hell out of every man.

Women could see their husbands’ careers put in jeopardy by random floozies’ lies. Loss of career = loss of stability, finances, etc., and destruction of the entire family.

How dumb ARE the Rats ... really?


25 posted on 10/09/2018 3:31:43 PM PDT by MayflowerMadam ("Do not discount anything in which Donald Trump is involved." - Rush Limbaugh)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: BRL

Here is a litmus test. Remember every conservative who said, “...but I don’t like tariffs...”. They are being disingenuous. The Tariffs Trump was threaten were just a stick.


26 posted on 10/09/2018 3:35:12 PM PDT by wastoute (Government cannot redistribute wealth. Government can only redistribute poverty.B)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]

To: MayflowerMadam

“How dumb ARE the Rats ... really?”

They don’t know that their winning has stopped.

It has not sunk in yet.

They had been winning for so long that this
can’t be real.

The funnest person to me is Harris CA Senator.

She has been working to be a senator for so long
watching how much power DiFi had and just hoping she
will have that power and poof it’s gone. hahahaha


27 posted on 10/09/2018 3:38:52 PM PDT by missthethunder
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet

Some aren't ever welcome back...

28 posted on 10/09/2018 3:39:18 PM PDT by Dogbert41 (When the strong man, fully armed, guards his own dwelling, his goods are safe. -Luke 11:21)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: DannyTN

I don’t know Erickson, but he indicated that he doesn’t want our constitutional republic to be upended by the Left and that he will vote for Trump in 2020. On these two things, we are in agreement.

Irrespective of other differences he may have with President Trump, for a former “NeverTrumper” to move in the right direction is a positive development, it seems to me. Our country needs more of these folks to move back in this direction.


29 posted on 10/09/2018 3:41:32 PM PDT by Let_It_Be_So (Once you see the Truth, you cannot "unsee" it, no matter how hard you may try.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: Behind the Blue Wall

Certainly not a Republican we need in this day & age. I have been a Republican all my life, and there were times I was willing to walk, but for just the opposite reasons as him. They were a bunch of weaklings who always caved to the Democrats. This party doesn’t need him as much as he needs us to be honest.


30 posted on 10/09/2018 3:44:48 PM PDT by Robert DeLong
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: BRL

“These professional conservatives”

Except they aren’t conservatives, they’re trotskyites and globalists.


31 posted on 10/09/2018 3:49:27 PM PDT by Electric Graffiti (Jeff Sessions IS the insurance policy)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]

To: plain talk

Is that real?


32 posted on 10/09/2018 3:51:25 PM PDT by MileHi (Liberalism is an ideology of parasites, hypocrites, grievance mongers, victims, and control freaks.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet; All

MA governor Charlie Baker is a Republican but more of a RINO and is very popular in the state; most popular governor in the country. Ads for him are bright and upbeat and mention his willingness to be “bipartisan”.

>>Baker’s unique talent has been his ability to get as much distance as possible from Trump without thoroughly disowning him and alienating his own party. He works with Trump when necessary, but more frequently speaks out against his policies (Politico)

Actually he has stated he didn’t support Trump, didn’t vote for him, so I’m not so sure about the “disowning” part. He tweeted that he was deeply disturbed by the allegations against Kavanaugh

>>The accusations brought against Judge Kavanaugh are sickening and deserve an independent investigation. There should be no vote in the Senate. (Sep 27 Charlie Baker Tweet)

He’s running against Democrat Jay Gonzalez and should win easily.

(Good n Plenty song aka Casey Jones)
(chorus)
Charlie says, Boy I hate the Donald!
Charlie says, Didn’t vote for him!\
Charlie says, I’ll get re-elected
Everybody loves me though I’m a Republican

Boston Herald:
>>The Democrats’ attempt to link Baker to Trump is basically their only hope of toppling the incumbent Republican, who is far ahead in the polls and in fundraising. And Democrats have a new weapon — superstar congressional candidate Ayanna Pressley — to go after Baker. Pressley and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren led the charge against the GOP governor at a unity event on Sunday, criticizing him for supporting Trump loyalist and U.S. Senate hopeful Geoff Diehl.

But even Pressley can’t rescue the Democrats in this race, not if they just try to turn Baker into a closet Trumpite.
Baker has distanced himself so far from the president that Trump supporters led a mini-revolt against him on primary day, throwing nearly 100,000 votes to Republican opponent Scott Lively.
Lively said in a missive to supporters yesterday that he is leaning toward actively opposing Baker in the general election, perhaps even running a write-in campaign.

But despite the opposition from Trump forces, Democrats are going forward with their Trump strategy. They can’t really run against Baker, so they’re doing the next best thing — running against Trump.

This won’t work.

Democrats need to offer voters more than just vague attacks featuring the unpopular president. They need to actually convince voters that their nominee — Jay Gonzalez — would be a better governor.
Gonzalez remains unknown by many voters and lacks the charisma and energy of Pressley and Warren. He also has little money, with most of the big players sticking with Charlie.
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/columnists/joe_battenfeld/2018/09/strategy_to_link_charlie_baker_to_donald_trump_won_t_work


33 posted on 10/09/2018 3:53:24 PM PDT by raccoonradio
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Responsibility2nd

If McCain were still alive I don’t think we would have this Lindsay Graham and maybe not Justice Kavanaugh. That attention whore would have figured out some way to put himself in the middle of this and create so much drama we might have lost the nomination. Just as he did on so many other issues.


34 posted on 10/09/2018 3:58:51 PM PDT by colorado tanker
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: DannyTN

Remember that Erickson was ‘ambarassed’ by McCain’s Palin pick. Pretty much says it all. Someone wrote of him at the time words to the effect that we might have presumed that he was potty-trained between the Ford and Reagan administrations but based on his reaction to the Palin pick, we were wrong to do so.


35 posted on 10/09/2018 4:02:41 PM PDT by HapaxLegamenon
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: MileHi

Probably photoshop. Fake but accurate.


36 posted on 10/09/2018 4:11:36 PM PDT by plain talk
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 32 | View Replies]

To: poconopundit

It would seem the next move is up to the usual Big Buck GOP donors, who are the backbone of the Cheap Labor Express.

If they don’t come aboard, who are they going to sponsor next? The Milkman’s son? Egg McMuffin? Who?

Rubio, Jeb!, and others are still licking their wounds, unless they want to be Trump’s piñata yet again.


37 posted on 10/09/2018 4:44:31 PM PDT by Sir Napsalot (Pravda + Useful Idiots = USSR; Journ0List + Useful Idiots = DopeyChangey)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 20 | View Replies]

To: RooRoobird20

I never liked Donald Trump. I do not like New Yorkers.

I have been in ministry, and have lived neither a vulgar nor a promiscuous life.

I gleefully jumped on the Trump Train with both feet the day he announced.

I knew who he was, and what he was. Almost nothing he has said or done has surprised me - whether I agree with it or not.

I will vote for him again without hesitation or embarassment.


38 posted on 10/09/2018 4:48:10 PM PDT by YogicCowboy ("I am not entirely on anyone's side, because no one is entirely on mine." - J. R. R. Tolkien)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 24 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet
Good news. The "Never Trump “resistance” movement is dead. Also, the liberal/conservative distinction is still dead. The silly "liberal/conservative" labels are mentioned by columnists who are ignorant of the six forms of government (monarchy, tyranny, aristocracy, oligarchy, republic, democracy) as outlined in Aristotle (350 B.C.) and the Federalist Papers (1787 A.D.). President Trump is a wealthy American, because he understands what patriotic Americans understand: politics and economics. It became clear to me in June 2016 that opponents to Trump's campaign were ignorant of politics and economics and also not patriotic.


39 posted on 10/09/2018 4:48:15 PM PDT by Falconspeed ("Keep your fears to yourself, but share your courage with others." Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-94))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: YogicCowboy

Trump would not be as effective as he is if he weren’t brash, bold, and plain spoken.

I LOVE the fact that if he gets punched, he punches back HARD.

I LOVE the fact that he drives the fake newsies crazy and that he mercilessly ridicules fools like Kankles and Gay Spartacus Jazz Hands.

Best!

President!

Ever!


40 posted on 10/09/2018 4:53:35 PM PDT by RooRoobird20 ("Democrats haven't been this angry since Republicans freed the slaves.")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 38 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-47 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
GOP Club
Topics · Post Article

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