Begun, The War On Conservatives Has (Shapiro)

[corbe]

Begun, The War On Conservatives Has

By: Ben Shapiro,

March 27, 2017

Many conservatives predicted that President Trump, once disappointed at conservatives in Congress failing to go along with his populist program, would turn to Democrats in order to ram through his agenda.

It didn’t take long for Trump to open that door.

Trump didn’t care much about repealing Obamacare; he spent most of his campaign saying he would repeal Obamacare, but then promising health insurance for everyone. Even during the Trumpcare push, Trump openly stated that the best thing might be to let Obamacare fail on its own terms. Because Trump had little interest in the business of doing the hard slogging necessary to generate a massive health care overhaul, he delegated bill-writing to Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, who knew that Trump’s legislative ADHD wouldn’t allow him to take too long with the process. So Ryan negotiated with himself, tried to ballpark a bill that could pass both houses of Congress, and ended up with a Frankenstein monster of stupidity combined with a few pieces of good policy. Then Trump pushed. And failed.

Trump and Ryan failed because the policy they pushed didn’t repeal Obamacare – it re-enshrined its central regulations, which conservatives opposed. Trump and Ryan failed because even their good policy changes were opposed by moderate Republicans in Congress.

So, who did Trump blame? Was it Ryan, for pandering to moderates in the Republican caucus? Was it the moderates, who wanted a watered down bill? Was it Trump himself, who made promises that Democrats would have loved, then insisted on Obamacare 2.0 rather than a true free market repeal?

Nope. It was conservatives.

You know, the people who actually took the whole “repeal Obamacare” thing seriously. The people who thought that a new entitlement program was a bad idea. The people who didn’t lie to their constituents.

Conservatives, the people who brought Republicans their victory in 2010 and 2014, who despised Hillary Clinton so much that they turned out in record numbers for a man noticeably short on conservative credentials in 2016. They’re the problem.

Trump himself has fired off only one tweet casting blame for the Trumpcare debacle:
 

Donald J. Trump
✔  ‎@realDonaldTrump 

Democrats are smiling in D.C. that the Freedom Caucus, with the help of Club For Growth and Heritage, have saved Planned Parenthood & Ocare!

7:21 AM - 26 Mar 2017

This is laughable. Trump doesn’t give two figs about Planned Parenthood – he spent much of the campaign praising them. Heritage and Club for Growth both supported Trump ardently during the election. The top members of the House Freedom Caucus were all Trump campaign stalwarts.

But Trump is blaming them. Of course. This is the same guy who said during the election cycle that he didn't care if the Republicans lost the Senate, since that would enable him to work with Democrats.

And so White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus blamed the conservatives in the GOP, and then added that Trump could work with the Democrats instead.

Avatar for the establishment Hugh Hewitt, a fan of Paul Ryan’s and a bizarrely vacillating fan of President Trump, called the House Freedom Caucus “the Area 51 sub-caucus…which believes in legislative flying saucers that ignore the Senate, and the Senate rules, and the reconciliation rules. They own the loss, nobody else.”

And Democrats are eager to split Trump from conservatives: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), who has zero interest in working with Trump, is now flirting with Trump, understanding that he can give Trump the run-around without consequence. Schumer accused Trump of being “captured by the hard right” and offered to work with Trump if Trump dumped repeal and tax cuts for high income earners (i.e. the people who pay the vast majority of America’s taxes).

Back in March 2016, I wrote this:

The establishment doesn’t object to Trumpism. They only object to Trump. Strip the drunken boor antics from Trump, and you’ve got John McCain who will lie transparently to pander to the populist wing.

Trump’s new war on conservatives, cheered by establishment lackeys, was totally predictable. If Trump pursues that war, it’s all downhill for conservatives from here.

<..snip..>

http://www.dailywire.com/news/14814/begun-war-conservatives-has-ben-shapiro?utm_source=thenewamericana.com

[INVAR]

I hate it when Yoda is paraphrased.

[Sanguine]

I hate it when Yoda is paraphrased.

I think it's slightly charming. 

[Idaho_Cowboy]

I think it's slightly charming.

Very fitting this head line is. Unaware of who the true enemy was for so long the Jedi were. Painful the lesson was; so too the Republicans will find it.

[skeeter]

I hate it when Yoda is paraphrased.

Hate it you may, but right Ben Shapiro is.

[Cripplecreek]

Begun it has not.

Continues the war has.

[INVAR]

Once we start down the dark path, forever will it dominate our destiny, consume us it will - as it did Republics before us.

And started down that path we have.

Argue we do, about the need for the dark side.  Compromise we must, told we are. 

The shroud of the dark side has fallen.

Continue this war, will.

[Frank Cannon]

Begun? The war has been going on forever. Trump failed here by supporting a convoluted bill no one understood. He can blame everyone he wants, but he is the head cheese. He is the one who is getting fingered for doing a lazy, half assed job here.

[DB]

This seems dead on to me. A lot of magical thinking was applied to Trump to create something that wasn't there. Trump has been pretty clear who he was all along but "conservatives" wanted a "fighter", someone who will "get things done", "the wall", etc. and that overrode the reality of all those "little" inconsistencies that so many were willing to overlook chasing their illusion.

Reality always wins.

Hillary was worse for sure. But Republicans own this one.

[corbe]

Begun? The war has been going on forever. Trump failed here by supporting a convoluted bill no one understood. He can blame everyone he wants, but he is the head cheese. He is the one who is getting fingered for doing a lazy, half assed job here.

[EasyAce]

From the article:

If Republicans gained the White House and Congress and Senate only to dump conservative principles
in favor of bipartisan mush, they won’t have only blown the most obvious chance of our lifetimes, they’ll have
broken all their promises. They’ll deserve to lose.

In the immortal words of the late Lawrence Peter Berra, it's deja vu all over again.

[DiogenesLamp]

Begun it has not.

Continues the war has.

This.   

[Emjay]

I think it's slightly charming.

Wrong, I always get it.

[Emjay]

Begun? The war has been going on forever. Trump failed here by supporting a convoluted bill no one understood. He can blame everyone he wants, but he is the head cheese. He is the one who is getting fingered for doing a lazy, half assed job here.

Those of us who have tried to be fair to Trump and not make it about his annoying personal habits are hanging by a thread now.

It's not just that he went with a bad bill.  It's that he seems to have given up instead of going back to the drawing board and figuring out a bill that will work.  There are plenty of Smart People who would help him.  the Freedom Caucus would help him.  Mike Lee and Ted Cruz would help him.

He can't just say, 'oh, well' and try to move on to something else.  At least he can't and retain the full respect of his supporters.

[Sanguine]

Wrong, I always get it.

 

[Silver Pines]

Star Wars, I do not care for but a pass I will give Shapiro.

[libertybele]

Those of us who have tried to be fair to Trump and not make it about his annoying personal habits are hanging by a thread now.

It's not just that he went with a bad bill.  It's that he seems to have given up instead of going back to the drawing board and figuring out a bill that will work.  There are plenty of Smart People who would help him.  the Freedom Caucus would help him.  Mike Lee and Ted Cruz would help him.

He can't just say, 'oh, well' and try to move on to something else.  At least he can't and retain the full respect of his supporters.

I was willing to give him a clean slate.  Out of the gate it seemed he was off too a good start with momentous patriotic festivities that surrounded his inauguration and appointing several conservatives to his cabinet. Liberal heads started spinning and they started in with the fake news and the accusations.  I knew it was going to be an uphill battle but Trump himself vowed to drain that swamp. I find it rather alarming at this early stage of the game for him to signal that he's jumping ship and going over to the other side to get his way; not what those who elected him want, but what he wants.  He doesn't like to lose and it appears he's going to try to win at all cost. 

Yes, Hillary is defeated and we may get a conservative justice (that is still uncertain); I'm not so sure we're going to get much more than that. If Congress was smart they would go back to the drawing board and repeal and replace Bammycare and stay afloat, otherwise their captain is going to sink their ship long before 2018...and then there's the wall.  What's happening with the wall?  Last I had heard, contracts were supposed to be awarded by mid-April.

[Oceander]

Those of us who have tried to be fair to Trump and not make it about his annoying personal habits are hanging by a thread now.

It's not just that he went with a bad bill.  It's that he seems to have given up instead of going back to the drawing board and figuring out a bill that will work.  There are plenty of Smart People who would help him.  the Freedom Caucus would help him.  Mike Lee and Ted Cruz would help him.

He can't just say, 'oh, well' and try to move on to something else.  At least he can't and retain the full respect of his supporters.

Trump doesn't give a rats behind about repealing Obamacare, except insofar as he needed to make some sort of lukewarm show of it to mollify the fools who voted for him.  He is on record in the not-so-distant past as favoring single-payor, which is codespeak for nationalized health care.   

He'll move on now, with nary a glance back.  He got what he wanted out of his dog-and-pony voters, and threw them the empty sop they wanted, so he's square on that promise as far as he's concerned. 

[Cripplecreek]

Trump doesn't give a rats behind about repealing Obamacare, except insofar as he needed to make some sort of lukewarm show of it to mollify the fools who voted for him.  He is on record in the not-so-distant past as favoring single-payor, which is codespeak for nationalized health care.   

He'll move on now, with nary a glance back.  He got what he wanted out of his dog-and-pony voters, and threw them the empty sop they wanted, so he's square on that promise as far as he's concerned.

Trump not caring about Obamacare is the best thing that could happen. Congress can work on it and take the time they need to build a real workable plan that can pass both houses.

[Smokin Joe]

Looks like a lot of doe stopped there, too.

[libertybele]

Trump not caring about Obamacare is the best thing that could happen. Congress can work on it and take the time they need to build a real workable plan that can pass both houses.

Trump only cares about winning; he doesn't care how he gets there.  Ryan has created this mess and the hurdle is going to be getting past Ryan and his cronies.  The House is now very divided.  From my understanding there was a plan back in 2015 that already passed both Houses but Bammy refused to sign it.  Remember; Trump and Ryan (along with Preibus) made a deal a long time ago.  With any luck, they'll show Ryan the door just like they did Boehner.

[Cripplecreek]

Trump only cares about winning; he doesn't care how he gets there.  Ryan has created this mess and the hurdle is going to be getting past Ryan and his cronies.  The House is now very divided.  From my understanding there was a plan back in 2015 that already passed both Houses but Bammy refused to sign it.  Remember; Trump and Ryan (along with Preibus) made a deal a long time ago.  With any luck, they'll show Ryan the door just like they did Boehner.

Ryan needs to be very worried about Ted Cruz.

Nobody ever said Ted Cruz had anything to do with removing John Boehner from his position as speaker but the way events played out it sure looks like he did.

On September 24 2015 John Boehner held a press conference to arrogantly state to the media that he would remain speaker and wasn't going anywhere.

That very evening Ted Cruz held a meeting with conservative house members.

On the morning of September 25th 2015 John Boehner held a tearful press conference to announce his resignation as speaker of the house and his impending retirement.

I don't know if Ted Cruz had anything to do with Boehner's resignation but it sure looks like he did. Unfortunately he had no influence over who replaced Boehner but if I recall he seemed to lean toward Mark Meadows.

[libertybele]

Ryan needs to be very worried about Ted Cruz.

Nobody ever said Ted Cruz had anything to do with removing John Boehner from his position as speaker but the way events played out it sure looks like he did.

On September 24 2015 John Boehner held a press conference to arrogantly state to the media that he would remain speaker and wasn't going anywhere.

That very evening Ted Cruz held a meeting with conservative house members.

On the morning of September 25th 2015 John Boehner held a tearful press conference to announce his resignation as speaker of the house and his impending retirement.

I don't know if Ted Cruz had anything to do with Boehner's resignation but it sure looks like he did. Unfortunately he had no influence over who replaced Boehner but if I recall he seemed to lean toward Mark Meadows.

I thought that as well.  Let's not forget that during Cruz's campaign, Boehner called him Lucifer and Cruz stated he'd never met with Boehner.  He may have never met with him, but that doesn't mean he didn't give him a little nudge out the door.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/04/john-boehner-ted-cruz-lucifer/480315/

[Jazzhead]

Trump and Ryan gave conservatives a golden opportunity to be part of the solution,  and the Freedom Caucus demurred.

So it's logical to now tack to the center.

Politics isn't complicated - it's about the building of coalitions.   Conservatives need to decide if they want to be part of coalitions, or be outside the process on an island of ideological purity.   

Trump doesn't care about ideology - to his credit.   He sees that this country is a mess and wants to try to fix it.   If conservatives want to give him the back of their hand, the better to keep their self-righteous anger focused and their consciences clear, then so be it.   There are other deal partners out there.         

[Polly Ticks]

It's not just that he went with a bad bill.  It's that he seems to have given up instead of going back to the drawing board and figuring out a bill that will work. 
[...snip...]
He can't just say, 'oh, well' and try to move on to something else. 

What's the old adage -- If at first you don't succeed, give up and send out an ugly tweet?
I don't remember seeing that one in the Ten Habits of Highly Effective Leaders book.